Dawn on the thirty-third floor broke without the golden glow of the conventional sun, bringing only a milky and diffuse brightness that passed through the thick layer of frozen clouds trapped against the vaulted ceiling of the tower. As soon as the ice storm from the previous night ceased completely, I dismantled the central campfire in the cave and organized the squad to resume the march across the polar expanse. We left the rocky shelter adopting our usual tactical formation — with Scarlet at the vanguard, followed by Liriel's assistant, Rai'kanna, Elara, Vespera, Lyannis, Liriel, and me closing the rear with my sword firmly sheathed —, ready to advance over the compacted snow that gleamed beneath the cold ambient light. The external atmosphere displayed an almost sepulchral silence, broken only by the muffled sound of our boots crushing the ice crystals, creating a sensation of profound isolation amid that white immensity.
We advanced with firm steps for about an hour, going around untouched snow hills and monumental crystalline formations that sprouted from the ground like translucent statues sculpted by divine hands. I allowed a serene and analytical thought to occupy my mind as I observed the harmony of the group amid that inhospitable scenery: the true strength of a team of adventurers is not measured only by the number of monsters defeated in open combat, but by the ability to maintain cohesion, calm, and mental clarity even when the surrounding terrain seems to conspire to exhaust everyone's patience and physical resources. Every glance exchanged between my companions conveyed unwavering trust, proving that the unity built over hundreds of floors was an infinitely more resistant shield than any magical metal armor forged by men.
The absolute silence of the plain was suddenly broken by a shrill crack coming from the hidden crevices beneath the snow ahead of us, followed by a localized seismic tremor that made the ice crust vibrate beneath our feet. Moments later, dozens of humanoid silhouettes with translucent blue ice armor and eyes glowing with an intense red light rapidly emerged from the depths of the snow, surrounding our squad in a perfect semicircle of hostility. They were the glacial demons, elite creatures adapted for agile combat on slippery surfaces, known for firing solid frost spikes with lethal precision and possessing formidable resistance against conventional physical attacks.
"Closed circular defensive formation," I ordered in a calm and cutting voice, drawing the sword's blade with a fluid movement that made the steel gleam beneath the polar brightness. "Vespera and Lyannis, raise prismatic barriers to block the ice projectiles. Scarlet and Rai'kanna, advance in a counterattack as soon as the first line attempts to close the encirclement."
The group's tactical response was executed with impeccable synchrony that eliminated any margin for error. As soon as the glacial demons fired a compact volley of translucent spikes in our direction, the magical barriers conjured by Vespera and Lyannis absorbed the impact perfectly, generating an explosion of shining fragments that fell like a shower of glass over the snow. Taking advantage of the opponents' momentary distraction, Scarlet and Rai'kanna shot forward like silver lightning toward the enemy flanks, delivering rapid strikes with daggers and spears that shattered the ice armor of the first line of creatures within a few seconds.
Advancing through the center of the formation with impressive speed, I infused my sword with a maximum charge of internal energy, spinning my body in a perfect arc to deliver an implacable horizontal slash that pulverized three demons simultaneously. The fight lasted only a few minutes, ending without any of my companions suffering the slightest scratch thanks to the surgical precision of our combined attacks and the impeccable magical support provided by Liriel and her assistant behind the scenes of the battle.
With the horde completely neutralized, I approached the remains left behind by the enemies to inspect the spoils scattered across the snow, immediately noticing that every defeated monster had left behind a small dense magical stone, similar to those we had found on the previous floors. As I picked up one of the gems with my gloved hand, I noticed that it emitted a subtle, pulsating warmth, vibrating at a peculiar magnetic frequency that seemed to call out to other stones of the same nature stored in my magic bag.
"Interesting..." Lyannis murmured, crouching beside me to closely examine the bluish gem I held between my fingers, an expression of deep technical curiosity stamped across her face. "These stones are not merely random byproducts of the demons' deaths. Analyzing the residual mana signature they emit, I perceive that they possess an abnormally high concentration of corrupted energy and, more than that, they exhibit a subtle phenomenon of mutual attraction when brought close to one another."
"Mutual attraction?" Elara repeated, approaching cautiously while storing her reagent flasks in the leather bag, frowning with evident concern. "You mean these gems function as small arcane magnets deliberately created to connect to one another?"
"Exactly," Lyannis confirmed, rising and crossing her arms seriously. "This suggests that there is direct and coordinated manipulation on the part of the Demon King on the upper floors of the tower. He is not merely placing monsters in our path; he is spreading these concentrated mana cores like pieces on a strategic board whose final objective is still unknown to us."
"If the sovereign of darkness is collecting or spreading these stones, it means that every gem we find represents a vital clue about his plans," Liriel concluded in a firm and determined tone, adjusting the runic staff in her hands. "We must collect absolutely every stone that these bosses and elite demons leave behind from now on, without exception, so that we can study them calmly when we return to the surface."
"Decision made," I stated, storing the magical stone in the magic bag alongside the previous ones, feeling the harmonious vibration that echoed within the spatial compartment. "From today onward, every gem that falls into our hands will be collected and catalogued. We will continue the march with redoubled attention to the signs around us; the enemy is trying to guide or test us through these artifacts, but we will not allow them to surprise us."
With the guidelines established and the group's morale even higher due to the clarity of our objectives, we reorganized the formation into a chain and continued the crossing through the vast frozen plains of the thirty-third floor. Every step taken over the snow reinforced the certainty that we were getting closer and closer to unraveling the deep mysteries the tower concealed within its depths, transforming every challenge overcome into another step toward our definitive victory.