The relentless cold of the snowy region stabbed into their lungs like thousands of tiny shards of glass with every breath they took. The snow beneath their feet was not merely frozen water; it cracked sharply with each step, the thick layer of ice beneath offering a slippery and deadly surface. But none of them were in a state to care about nature's cruelty right now.
The sound behind them was far more terrifying than nature itself.
THUD. THUD. THUD.
King Khronos's army was pouring down the mountainside like an unstoppable avalanche. The hooves of the heavily armored cavalry shook the ground, while the roars of massive war beasts chained by the neck drowned out the howl of the freezing wind. Khronos had clearly spared no expense and withheld no power. This was not merely a search-and-capture operation; it was a purge meant to erase the Architect he saw as the greatest power on the surface world, along with everyone connected to him.
Hope gritted his teeth and lunged forward. The burst of physical strength brought by Level 30 stretched the muscles in his legs like steel springs, allowing him to cover meters of distance with every stride. On his shoulder was Mira, who had turned into a small flickering sphere of fire to protect herself from the cold and was clinging tightly to Hope's neck.
To his immediate left, Lypin floated through the air. The pale silver glow of Moon magic surrounded her as she manipulated gravity, her feet never touching the ground. She wasn't just lightening her own weight, but also that of Hope and the others, pushing the group's speed to an incredible level. Sweat dripped down Lypin's face; using gravity magic over such a wide area was draining her mana rapidly.
And on their right ran the strange, mismatched, and deadly trio.
Gashadokuro JR. tore through the snow on all fours like a wild predator, using his massive bones like levers. The saliva dripping from his mouth froze instantly, and the black veins in his eyes glowed in the darkness. Just behind him, Field glided between the trees, turning his body into poisonous mist and solidifying again, leaving almost no trace in the snow. At the very back was NO9. Showing no sign of emotion, his breathing perfectly rhythmic like a metronome, he moved with an eerie precision as if he were on a morning run rather than in a desperate fight for survival.
"That's enough running!" Gashadokuro JR. roared suddenly, slowing down. "I'm not prey! I'm the hunter!"
"Drop the insanity, bone sack!" Field shouted, his green tattoos glowing. "Khronos's army has thousands of soldiers! They'll drown us in our own blood!"
"We need to buy time," Hope said, activating his Architect ability as he analyzed the terrain around them. His eyes locked onto a narrow canyon ahead, squeezed between two massive glaciers. "That gorge up ahead! It'll work like a funnel. The army will have to slow down passing through there. If we block that narrow passage, we might lose them!"
While running, NO9 slightly turned his head toward Hope."Your tactical analysis is correct. The narrow gorge will most likely reduce their pursuit speed by fifty percent. However, a physical barrier would be breached by heavily armored beasts in approximately 4.2 seconds. A lethal deterrent is required."
"That part's mine!" Field grinned. The psychotic gleam in his eyes burned with battle lust despite the danger.
"You'll do it together," Hope interrupted. His tone suddenly shifted from that naïve boy into that of a commander. "Field, Gashadokuro. Combine your abilities."
Gashadokuro JR. snarled in anger. "Don't give me orders, little Architect! Your sacred bones—"
"If you want my bones, you need to survive first!" Hope cut him off sharply. "Gashadokuro, plant your strongest and sharpest bone spears into the canyon floor, but hide them under the snow. I want a minefield. Field, you'll fill those bones and their tips with your strongest armor-melting tattoo toxins. When the heavy cavalry enters the gorge and steps on the bones, they'll explode like shrapnel and your poisonous runes will scatter everywhere. Khronos's dogs will drown in acid rain."
At this plan, Field's lips curled upward.
"Damn… there's a truly devilish genius inside you, Architect."
"Just do it!" Lypin shouted, glancing behind them. The torches of the army's vanguard were now visibly approaching.
When they reached the gorge, the group halted briefly. Gashadokuro JR. drove both hands into the frozen ground. As the veins on his face turned pitch black, he let out a scream filled with agony. Horrible cracking sounds rose from beneath the earth, as if the spine of a massive dragon were awakening underground. Hundreds of sharp, razor-like bones wove themselves beneath the snow, crossing each other one meter below the canyon floor.
Field stepped in without wasting time. As the tattoos on his arms flared like flames, he took a deep breath and spewed a stream of thick green acid into the gorge. The acid hissed as it instantly melted the snow, seeping into the pores of the bones placed by Gashadokuro and freezing there, turning them into deadly poison bombs. As the snow layer above quickly sealed again, the passage looked completely harmless from the outside.
"Move!" Hope ordered.
They crossed the canyon and plunged deeper into the forest, where gigantic pine trees and dark caves dominated the landscape. Only a few minutes later, the horrifying sound they had been expecting echoed behind them.
First came the halt of heavy hooves striking the ground. Then a sharp, ear-splitting crack followed. Khronos's vanguard cavalry and armored beasts had stepped on the bone mines beneath the snow. As Gashadokuro's bones shattered under immense pressure, Field's trapped poison burst into the air.
Screams rose from within the canyon. The agonized roars of beasts and the sizzling sound of melting steel armor tore through the night. Toxic mist completely filled the narrow gorge, making it impossible for the rest of the army to advance. Thousands of soldiers behind the vanguard were trapped in the chaos, trampling over one another.
"It worked…" Lypin whispered breathlessly as she leaned against a tree.
They ran for miles without stopping until they reached a hidden glacier cave far away, where their tracks would completely vanish. The cave was dark and freezing, but at least they were far from the torches of Khronos's army. Mira hopped off Hope's shoulder and created a small campfire, spreading a dim orange light across the cave.
The atmosphere inside the cave changed instantly. The moment they escaped the shared enemy outside, the deadly tension inside resurfaced.
Hope did not lean against the cold cave wall. He straightened his posture, spirit energy gathering at his fingertips as he fixed his gaze with mechanical calm on NO9, who stood in the corner. The question that had been gnawing at his mind during their escape had now reached its breaking point.
"Now it's our turn to talk," Hope said, his voice echoing through the icy walls of the cave. Spirits twisted around him menacingly. "Spill it. Now."
NO9 slowly turned his head toward Hope. There was no fear or panic in his eyes. He simply looked like a machine processing data.
"Using the imperative tone indicates that you have miscalculated our current power dynamics," NO9 said flatly.
"You don't want to test those power dynamics," Lypin said as she stepped forward. The starlight in her eyes glowed dangerously.
"Let's return to the question I asked earlier," Hope said, calming Lypin with one hand. His gaze shifted from Mira's fire to NO9. "Mira… the laboratory… how do you know about those?"
NO9 remained silent. Tilting his head slightly, he examined Mira standing innocently in the middle.
"This is a trade, Architect. Data flow is not one-directional. You will answer first. How did you remove that creature from the laboratory? How did you obtain it?"
Hope clenched his teeth. He didn't trust these criminals, but he knew the only way to get answers was to play along.
"I found her in Greenhollow," Hope said coldly. "In the middle of Vargo's disgusting experiments. I destroyed the place and took her with me. That's all you need to know. Now you tell me: how do you know about it?"
For the first time, a subtle movement appeared on NO9's emotionless face. The corner of his lips lifted slightly. It was an unsettling smile, like a machine glitching.
"You're too curious…" NO9 said. For the first time, his voice carried a tone that wasn't purely synthetic. Tilting his head slightly to the right, he continued. "Let's make a deal, Architect. If you help me with one thing, I'll give you all the information you want. The laboratory, Vargo, and much more."
Hope frowned and glanced at Lypin. Suspicion was clear in her eyes. These men were hardened criminals who had escaped the Arena. But information was their most valuable weapon right now. They needed to understand Khronos, the Collector, and what the System truly was.
Hope took a deep breath and turned back to NO9.
"Alright," he said cautiously. "Present your offer first. What do you want help with?"
NO9 smiled with quiet confidence, as if he had already calculated Hope's acceptance among millions of possibilities.
"I want to help someone," he said slowly. "Contrary to what you think, we are not villains, Hope. We are simply the wreckage created by this broken system, by King Khronos, and by corruption. But for this 'help' I want to give… we're not numerous enough. The power we face cannot be defeated by the three of us alone. But if you join us… if your system-defying power and this girl's magic are added… things will become easier."
Hope narrowed his eyes. His mind quickly connected the pieces. Laboratories. Experiments. Prototypes. Captured rare beings… There was only one name he had heard associated with such operations on a massive scale.
"Are you trying to rescue someone from the Collector's island?" Hope asked with his arms crossed. His voice sounded less like a question and more like a conclusion.
The silence in the cave suddenly grew heavy. Field stopped twirling his dagger, and Gashadokuro JR.'s growl ceased.
NO9's eyes widened for a brief second. For the first time, the perfect calculating machine looked surprised. Then a loud, completely human laugh burst from his mouth, echoing through the cave.
"HAHAHA!"
His laughter was so genuine that Hope momentarily wondered if the man in front of him was the same person.
"You're smarter than I thought…" NO9 said after catching his breath. The admiration in his voice was impossible to hide. "The data said you were only destructive power, but your analytical ability truly matches an Architect. Yes…" His gaze suddenly turned serious as it drifted into the fire. "Yes. There are people there I must save… people who are more important to me than my own existence."
Hope could feel the deep desperation and determination in his voice. It wasn't a lie. No matter how monstrous they seemed, there was another motivation buried deep inside this trio.
But Hope had his own priorities.
"Alright," Hope said after a long silence. "I accept your offer."
Relief appeared on NO9's face, but Hope immediately raised his hand.
"But…" Hope continued, hardening his voice. "There's something far more important I must do first. I have to take Lypin to the World Tree. We must stop the darkness inside her, that cosmic parasite. We're racing against time, and every second works against her. I won't enter any other battle until she's healed."
When Hope glanced at Lypin, he saw a grateful smile on her lips.
He turned back to the criminals.
"After that, I was already planning to find that cursed island and fight the Collector anyway. That man must pay for what he's done. Attacking together works in my favor too. Combining our forces will help both of us reach our goals."
NO9 slowly turned his head toward Field, then Gashadokuro JR. Both of them nodded silently in agreement. Cooperating with an Architect hunted by Khronos was madness, but defeating a monster like the Collector left them no other option.
NO9 looked back at Hope and Lypin.
"Very well," he said with a slight nod. "Then we will support your journey to the World Tree… However, traveling openly beside you is dangerous for us. You are targets. We will remain in the shadows. While preparing our own plans, we will keep watch over you. We will clear your path. And when the time comes… we will unite for the Collector's island."
It was a logical agreement. Neither side trusted the other fully, and maintaining distance was wise.
But the real question in Hope's mind still remained.
"Alright, alright…" Hope said, waving his hand dismissively. He pushed aside all the strategic talk. His eyes glowed dangerously.
"Now it's your turn. I accepted your offer. We set our conditions. Now answer. The delaying tactics are over."
Hope stepped forward until he stood directly in front of NO9.
"You… how do you know about Mira and the laboratory?"
NO9 took a deep breath. The last trace of humanity faded from his face, replaced by a resigned, melancholic calm.
"Everything you know about me… the name the system gave you in the arena… 'NO9'…" he said slowly as he reached for the clasp of his cloak. "It's all an illusion. A mask I wore to hide."
NO9 unclasped his cloak in a single motion and let the thick dark fabric slide off his shoulders and fall onto the snowy ground.
At that moment, the air inside the cave changed. An invisible energy began rippling through the space, something that had not existed there before. Like ink spreading in water, the energy slowly solidified, taking on a visible form. When Mira's firelight touched it, Lypin involuntarily held her breath.
From NO9's back, enormous tails began to emerge.
They were not entirely solid yet, but they glowed with spiritual light. Nine massive, magical, ethereal white tails spread out behind him like a fan, slowly swaying in the air.
NO9 locked his eyes onto Hope's and spoke the truth of that great secret with icy clarity.
"Because I… am a kitsune created in Vargo's laboratory."