Frostbound [LitRPG Apocalypse]

Hal

Slightly North of Lake Superior

Hal didn't mind the woods. Most days, he found them rather peaceful and relaxing.

One would think that now that they held actual monsters and beasts that could kill a normal human with a sneeze, that peacefulness would go away, but Hal didn't think so. The spice of danger kept it from becoming something it wasn't.

Not that there were beasts nearby that could put him in danger. Only D-ranks could threaten him now, and those liked to stay near mana hotspots. Hal wasn't running through any of those, and the highest level he would likely see was high 80s or 90s. Now, if he had traveled North, that would be a different story.

The mana there was thicker, the beasts were stronger, and they were exceedingly vicious.

Let's get this over with quickly. I don't want to get caught in any early snows on the way back.

The year was coming to a close, and the last thing Hal wanted to do was spend a week traveling in what would come. Not only would it slow him down, but it was just a hassle. While Chris may love it, Hal wasn't a fan.

After living here for a few years, he'd come to endure it, but that didn't mean he enjoyed it.

Lakeshore was further South than Fort Hope, and it took twice as long to get there. A usual trip to Fort Hope took two weeks by carriage, but only a week if he ran there by himself. If he ran throughout the night and really pushed it, Hal could do it in a few days, but there hadn't ever been a need for that.

It took him two weeks of running to reach Lakeshore.

He didn't need to rush, and there were a few things he had on his mind. Preparing for his evolution was the biggest one. Both his Law and Body were in a state he felt were good enough; it was the last of the three he was contemplating.

His anchor.

Pumping Chris, Jon, and now Austin for everything they had helped less than he had hoped. Hal had felt something during the Orcs, but he just couldn't actualize it. He wasn't even close, either.

It was... frustrating.

The two weeks of travel helped him as much as the year of meditations before that. Not at all.

Hal wasn't sure why, but the closer he got to his intended location, the more off things felt.

Nothing was glaringly wrong, but he couldn't help but sense the oddness of the woods. It didn't get quiet like when a predator was around, or loud, or change in volume at all, really, just... odd.

It was difficult to describe.

When he reached the border of the City's claimed area, Hal had a decision to make. Continue on and allow himself to be noticed, or hide himself.

This wasn't the first time they had sent Scouts or messengers, but every one was turned away. If he approached in the open, there was a chance he would be turned away as well. A high chance.

That would then lead to another decision. To push through, and, more importantly, how much force he was going to do that with. Or, he could hide. Sneak up to the city without being found. It was the less diplomatic of the two, but it would also lead to less confrontation.

Maybe he didn't want to deal with things, or maybe he was sympathetic to the guards, but he chose to sneak. If this were Frostheim, it would be Hal's Order that first made contact.

[Hunter's Gait] already had a muffling feature built in that masked his tracks, but he applied [Stalking] as well. It had started as [Stealth] way back when, even though it had gone towards a more hunting direction. Just to make sure, he activated [Mask Scent].

His wind was good for both. Escaping scent was captured, and any trace he did leave behind looked natural, rather than stand out.

Hal noticed signs in the woods of usual trails. Scouts who had repeatedly taken the same path. It was something he warned his own against doing. Not only did it create a pattern in patrolling to exploit, but it also left signs.

No matter how good you were, if you took the same path day after day, there would be signs left behind.

He entered what looked like the first line of Scouts and continued making his way closer to the City. A patrol came close, but neither of the pair was able to see through his stealth and continued walking by. They were rather lax by his standards, but that made his job easier.

It was as he was getting into viewing distance that things went south. A bell chimed, and he could tell something had detected him. It didn't break his stealth, but they knew he was there.

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How? Do they have a Detection Formation or something? We don't even have that. Chris wanted one, but was too busy with other things to get around to it.

With his cover blown, he sacrificed stealth for speed and sprinted the rest of the way. The Walls came into view quickly, and he had to give them credit.

The forest gave way to a clear field as all of the trees near the wall had been cut down, revealing a twenty-foot behemoth of stone that ringed the city. They weren't as tall as Frostheim's and didn't give off the same feeling of power, but they were still stone walls.

The city was a square, rather than a circle, and two massive guard towers stood on the corners Hal could see, with smaller ones placed along the straight length of the wall. A reinforced wooden gate broke up the continuous stone and stood in the center of the wall.

Hal guessed there were three more just like it on the other three sides.

This could have been easier if someone had at least seen the city before. At least then, I'd know what I was getting into.

Other than not even seeing the city, they didn't even know the precise location. They knew the area, but that was all. Without seeing it for themselves, all they could do was estimate.

Now that he had, Hal was sure of one thing he would find within the City.

Why did they build it on top of the Dungeon? They must be confident in keeping it from breaking.

The map they had gotten so long ago was probably outdated, but it showed that there was a Dungeon here. Right at the exact location he was looking. Even without the map, Hal would have been able to tell.

The draw on the surrounding mana was a dead giveaway. He could feel it flowing toward the City. Hal was too far away to check for Formations, but he didn't see any signs of them from where he was and doubted it was a Gathering Formation at work.

The strength was too much, and its area was too wide. Tier 2 Runes were an option, but an unlikely one. Even if they were, Hal doubted they had such power.

It doesn't matter. Get it done and leave. Sticking around won't lead to anything good.

The patrolling Scouts were closing in on him now, and he had to get his message out.

He was already near enough for what he had to do, and he felt no qualms about doing it this way. The bastard didn't help with the Demons or the Test; he didn't deserve courtesy.

Hmph, Chris isn't the only one who can shout at an entire city.

Pulling a move Chris had done at Fort Hope so long ago, Hal began stretching out his Aura to cover the entire place. He had less to work with than the big man, but he could get the job done.

As soon as he started, the Scouts nearby could feel it and slowed their pace. Smart. They realize the power difference. Commendable that they're still coming.

When he was done encapsulating the area, he began.

Victor

Lakeshore

What in the world is it now?

Victor had initially jumped at hearing the warning bell, but nothing had come of it right away. No one came rushing to him with news of an attack or monster nearby. No dungeon monster escaped and was rampaging in the streets.

Instead, something had tripped the alarm formation.

The scouts are going to need to be reeducated. How did they not see this?

Victor swept the City with his mana sense and didn't feel anything out of place. There wasn't even anything new, just a scrambling of his guards at the gate.

That was when an aura brushed against him.

The intruder's aura wasn't hidden and openly started spreading out over the city. Victor pushed the aura away with his own and rushed toward the Wall to see where it was happening. By releasing their aura, the intruder had given his position away.

Mana burned inside him in case of an attack, but that seemed unlikely. Not after they so openly gave themselves away. They would have attacked already if that were the plan.

Annoyingly, Victor felt the shadows around him twist and turn. Someone had tagged along. Too bad those Formations don't work on her.

He was rushing up the stairs of the Wall when the aura finished saturating the city. It was too weak to be called smothering. It wasn't pressing down on anyone like auras usually did in their natural state. Just... there.

Until a voice started speaking.

"Leader, or leaders of Lakeshore. You have transgressed on the land claimed by Frostheim and are hereby notified to cease such actions and any further actions upon land that is not yours. Any further action upon our holdings will be taken as hostilities, and we will respond in kind."

Victor pulled himself against the ramparts and scanned the grassy field outside the Northern Gate. It didn't take him but a moment to catch sight of who was responsible. He was just standing there.

A hundred yards out of the wall. Standing there.

Guards were closing in on his position, but they were wary. Fools, it's just an aura. So what if it's stronger than yours. The instinctual knowledge that the man was stronger than the guards was obvious.

They could feel it without needing to be told.

Even his gear pointed that out. The dyed green leather armor stood out even from so far away. Not to mention the large bow strapped to his back. Victor guessed the man had equally well-crafted arrows somewhere on his person.

Blonde hair, tall build, but no hammer. Not the madman, but someone related to him.

Victor knew the man ran his city with his family, and it was well known that most sported similar blonde hair. Only a few didn't.

It was almost like the man noticed he was the leader, or at least someone important, because the next words felt like they were directed at him. Maybe it was the fact that his eyes were latched on Victor as soon as he crested the ramparts.

"This is your one warning."

With his peace said, the man turned to leave.

That was when a bow twanged and an arrow soared through the air. Victor turned instantly and nearly burned the archer alive. Who told him to fire? The imbecile. That was just asking to make things worse. If they were going to get caught antagonizing the madman, they were at least going to do it for something valuable.

Not by taking a potshot at his relative.

Victor wasn't worried about the messenger's safety and was proven right. The archer was nearing the peak of E-rank at level 87, but the arrow from such a man didn't even phase the blonde man.

A gust of wind rose and blew the arrow off course, and that was the end of it. He didn't turn around, didn't fire back, and didn't say anything else. Just ran back the way he had come.

He ran North.

"It seems your people were found sniffing around the mine, and he didn't appreciate it. Did you at least get what you were after?" the shadow underneath him said. It had a distinctly female voice.

Victor didn't answer, but yes. Yes, he did. It wasn't nearly as defended as he first believed. Why would they not fortify it more?

Hal

"That was so embarrassingly formal." Hal muttered, "Transgressed? Hereby?"

I'm never telling Austin.