With 1,500 fresh Fight Points sitting comfortably in my system balance and three defeated gorilla guardians bowing respectfully in the snow behind us, you’d think I’d feel like a conqueror.​Instead, I was just cold, tired, and deeply annoyed by the weather.Night was falling in the Frostpeak Mountains. The ambient light simply died, murdered by the shadow of the jagged ridges, turning the sky into an impenetrable curtain of swirling white dust.​I looked down at the pipe in my right hand. It had saved my life more times than I could count today, but out here in the biting frost, the metal was becoming dangerously brittle.​"Alright, Sara’s pipe," I muttered, brushing a layer of frost off the grip. "You’ve done enough."​I channeled a small pulse of intent into the silver ring on my right index finger. A swirling tear in the air hissed open—a pocket of spatial dimension tied directly to the artifact. I carefully slid the pipe inside, watching it vanish into the safe, timeless void w

The hidden path wasn't so much a tunnel as it was a frozen scar tearing through the very bowels of the Frostpeak Mountains.​The air down here was thick and heavy, vibrating with a raw, ancient cold that bypassed my jacket entirely and settled directly into my bones. The walls were sheer glacier ice, glowing with a pulsing bioluminescence that cast eerie, shifting shadows across our path.​Leading our bizarre little expedition was our newly anointed guide.​"I will name him Frost," I had declared a few minutes ago. The little snowman had simply blinked his dark eyes, tilted his head and let out a sound like a kettle boiling over in pure joy.​Currently, Frost was waddling about ten feet ahead of us. His stick arms pumped vigorously with every clumsy step. Because his body was essentially three uneven, lumpy balls of snow stacked on top of each other, his center of gravity was a complete disaster. He walked with the frantic, uncoordinated energy of a six-year-old child hopped up on

​Spiderwebs of deep red light bled through the blue frost the exact second Gulp’s skeletal hand made contact. A shockwave of raw kinetic force blasted across the raised dais, sending me skidding backward across the floor. I dug my boots in, throwing an arm up to shield my face from the diamond-sharp shrapnel raining down around us.​When the freezing dust finally settled, the twelve-foot skeleton sitting on the black stone throne was no longer just bone.​Right before our eyes, a grotesque and mesmerizing biological reversal took place. Thick cords of heavy muscle rapidly coiled around the ancient frost-bones. Sinew snapped into place, followed by a layer of scarred skin that sealed over the titan's frame. A thick mane of wild, stark-white hair cascaded down the giant’s broad shoulders.​In a matter of seconds, Gulp’s original vessel had fully regenerated into a towering armored human warlord. He looked like a god of war, a being carved out of glaciers.​The giant slowly opened his

The ice doors of the temple groaned as I threw my weight against them, helping Gulp push them shut. With a resonating thud, the ancient chamber sealed itself, locking his twelve-foot prime vessel safely away until the skeleton was truly ready to reclaim it.​I wiped a layer of freezing sweat from my forehead, "well, that was entirely too much adrenaline for one Tuesday."Suddenly, my System's blue screen shattered the air directly in front of my face, accompanied by the cheerful chime-like ping of the System.​[System Notification: Host, your recent completion of a high-tier anomalous event has exceeded standard progression parameters. For your hard work, survival, and general refusal to die, you are granted a temporary reprieve.][Reward: 72-Hour Vacation Pass.][Destination: The Philippine Islands, Earth Realm.][Status: Mandatory relaxation protocol initiating in three minutes. Gather your party.]​I stared at the text, reading it three times just to make sure I hadn't sustained a

The sun had completely dipped below the horizon. Acoustic guitar music drifted from a nearby bar, mixing with the rhythmic crash of the waves. It was paradise.​It would have been entirely peaceful too, if the cooler sitting next to my chair wasn't vibrating with righteous indignation.​"Carrot-King!" Frost's muffled, squeaky voice echoed from inside the red-and-blue plastic box. "The brown glass is ignoring my commands! And this crushed ice is vastly inferior to the pure snows of my homeland!"​I sighed, dragging a hand down my face. I looked over at Gulp, who was currently trying to build a sandcastle using a plastic cup. He was taking it entirely too seriously, calculating the load-bearing stress of wet sand with his bony fingers. Midnight was snoring softly, while Drako was fiercely guarding a discarded french fry.​I leaned forward, popping the lid of the cooler open. Frost’s rock eyes immediately glared up at me from between two bottles of San Miguel.​"Put my head back on my