How to survive in the Romance Fantasy Game Chapter 685: Frost Queen 4

A peculiar morning had dawned.

High above, the sun beamed down softly and warmly, while a light breeze wafted inside via the wide-open windows, bearing the subtle aroma of flowers in bloom from the academy's grounds.

In every way, it seemed like a serene start to the day.

However, a nagging discomfort twisted through Lily's core.

With precise, hushed motions, she readied a cup of tea for her lady, though her gaze repeatedly darted toward Liyana.

At first glance, her lady appeared as flawless and lovely as always—poised elegantly, face serene, hands gently holding the fine china.

But Lily understood the truth.

Since Riley and his prospective fiancées came back to the academy, a shadow had quietly fallen over Liyana's spirits.

Not through dramatic displays or harsh remarks—no tantrums or cutting comments—but via a heavy quietness that thickened the atmosphere, leaving the staff treading lightly without fully grasping the cause.

And at this moment...

Liyana was grinning.

Not her typical teasing grin. Nor the polite one she showed in company.

This smile shone vividly. Intense. Nearly... eager.

Lily gulped.

Her lady gazed at the tea with uncommon fascination, like the vessel concealed some charming mystery.

That sight alone sent chills racing over Lily's skin.

Through years of attending Liyana up close, she had learned a vital truth:

Liyana only grinned that way when scheming.

Something risky.

I shouldn't disrupt her plans...

The previous occasion when Lily had unwittingly spoken up at an inopportune time—merely slightly distracting her—those calm red eyes had fixed on her.

Lily had sensed her essence being judged and deemed lacking.

Whatever filled Liyana's mind right now was beyond her concern.

Utterly so.

Firm in that resolve, Lily proceeded with utmost caution.

She entered Liyana's line of sight briefly to set down the newly steeped tea tray nearby, positioning it tidily, her hands firm even as her pulse raced wildly.

Then she pivoted, set to depart quietly—maybe to inform the chief servant, or ideally, to create maximum space from this chamber.

But—

Her petite frame jolted when fingers abruptly seized her cuff.

A wave of ice flooded Lily's veins.

Ah... I'm done for.

That one soft hold ignited raw fear in her bosom. Her legs almost buckled, rooting her to the spot.

"M-Miss...?" Lily's words quivered, no matter how she tried to steady them.

"Stay," Liyana uttered gently.

It came out as no booming order.

No volume was required.

"B-But—" Lily began, then cut off at once. "I... I'll follow your desire..."

She was wise enough not to resist at this point.

Liyana's grin remained steady.

With elegant ease, she raised the china cup, the gesture smooth and polished, and savored a leisurely taste of the brew.

Vapor grazed her mouth as her slit pupils—keen and clearly dragon-like—sparkled in a rich, glowing red.

"Looks like darling is up to something intriguing once more..." she whispered tenderly.

In those red depths danced the vision of her cherished Riley, journeying across the icy northern wastes alongside Snow.

Snowy expanses rolled out boundlessly under them, with rime and peril gripping each stride.

It had been ages since she could watch Riley so freely.

Usually, the vile boons from that cursed deity would have shielded him completely from her view.

Even in the academy, that crimson power—strangely akin to the defeated White Queen—had disrupted her gaze, barring direct surveillance of him.

But currently...

With portions of her restraints eased.

Her dragon sight could now cut through.

Is it due to yet another supreme power colliding with those tied to Riley?

She had no answer.

And unusually... it didn't bother her.

The key point was regaining sight of him after such absence—clear, unbarred.

Observing his actions, his looks, the faint manner in which his aura warped his surroundings.

Her mouth's edges lifted a touch more.

Shall I startle him?

The notion of instantly shifting to his location brought a spark of fun to her thoughts.

Materializing abruptly, encircling him in her embrace, seeing that well-known flash of surprise on his features...

How entertaining.

But—

No...

Her grin eased, yet the claiming spark in her gaze stayed sharp.

Darling would probe her.

Riley possessed too keen an insight for comfort. He would inquire about her arrival, her method of locating him, her secrets. And worse... suspicion might brew.

Or dismay.

Maybe even bitterness.

That could prove... complicated.

Riley meant everything to her. Beyond all others in this realm.

And though the impulse to confine him—secure, unmarred, eternally hers—murmured alluringly in her subconscious, she resisted acting on it for the moment.

Not quite yet.

Endurance had long been among her strengths.

Thus, Liyana just grinned, her digits lightly touching the heated china while she drew another unhurried sip. She would observe. She would bide her time.

After all—

Their reunion loomed near.

.....

"Here your pathetic intrusion concludes, oh wretched trespassers!"

The proclamation boomed across the icy corridors as Riley and Snow passed the dungeon's entrance, remnants of combat fading in their wake.

Splintered frost and vanishing rime showed where the beasts surging from the portal had fallen just before.

Within, the chill shifted.

Not the sharp bite from northern gales, nor the innate freeze of frost-spawned beasts.

This chill overpowered, felt alien—thick enough to adhere to flesh, to invade marrow and magic both.

Even breaths hung heavy, each exhale forming a ghostly vapor.

A band of black-robed men awaited them.

Hideous etchings—distorted runes seared and incised into skin—flickered dimly under their robes, throbbing with a foul red tint that jarred against the dungeon's pale and azure tones.

Despite the savage freeze, the hooded ones stood at ease, like the setting embraced them.

In their midst loomed an elderly figure.

He advanced with limbs flung open, as if greeting esteemed visitors instead of foes.

His mouth widened in ecstatic glee, gaze alight with wild joy.

"Tsk! Tsk! Haah~"

he tutted, tone laced with feigned sorrow.

"Such innocent, forlorn spirits venturing so far... Is this the end? Truly the end?"

He cocked his head, drawing in a deep breath like relishing their essence.

"How lamentable,"

he went on, phrases tumbling in rapturous disorder.

"Essences so pristine, so free of zeal, yet chained by destiny—gripped by such tenuous bonds—and yet you march right into our grasp."

His cackle pierced the frost-bound barriers.

"Oh, divine one... oddities," the elder whispered, pressing palms in sham piety.

"Has destiny itself splintered at last? Will these noble saviors fall here, their fated purpose unachieved?"

He quivered with rapture.

"Oh yes... how woeful."

Snow's face grew stern, her hold on the wand firming quietly. She angled toward Riley a bit, tone hushed and even.

"Riley... they are—"

"Yeah," Riley answered softly, his stare already icy and vigilant.

No deliberation was needed.

Devil adorers.

Or perhaps.

Followers of a dark deity.

No matter their label, the verdict stood—these weren't simple lunatics skulking in shadows, but structured, perilous zealots.

And abruptly, it all clicked.

The eerie unity among the creatures.

The enclosures.

The bindings.

The reality of humans being collected, shuttled... maintained.

Riley's eyes narrowed as they scanned the robed group.

So that's the truth...

These folks weren't prey for sustenance.

They served as tributes.

As tales of devil and dark-god devotees rose lately, the odds of such factions expanding over the land's territories had already seemed likely.

Even so, Riley hadn't foreseen running into them here—in a northern labyrinth, no less.

The atmosphere stank of demise.

Not the fresh tang of battle-felled monsters, but a graver odor—stale gore, rotting meat, and echoes of agony.

Any humans seized and hauled here were likely deceased already... or enduring what passed for existence as endless torment rather than life.

Riley's chin set firm.

These individuals were unhinged, their sanity corroded by obsessive faith. If anything, that suggested they weren't behind the monsters' precise synergy.

Delirious folk seldom managed such exactness.

Yet they clearly played a role.

Riley's azure gaze shimmered subtly as he honed on the devotees, magic honing his senses.

...Odd.

The aura coating them—slender, twisted, and intrusive—rang a bell.

Not exact, but near enough to disturb.

Where did I sense this previously...?

His thoughts raced through prior clashes.

Overwhelming deities such as Eris or Erebil, whose marks still scarred his being... even the tiger deity from a fleeting past meeting.

The Demon King Asmodeus flickered in his recall too.

None aligned.