Chapter 69: Frost Keep Cleared

Clarisse approached. She looked tired. Pale. Her eyes were distant.

"Good work," she said quietly. "Both of you."

"You too," Collin said. "That distraction saved us."

She smiled and this was maybe the first real smile he had seen.

"I try."

They collected the loot.

The Frost Wyrm’s core— was a large, pale blue, pulsing core with cold light. Shards of crystalline spine. Fragments of scale. A pouch of frozen essence that Mira said was valuable for alchemy.

Collin hauled it into a large backpack.

"Good raid," he said. "We should do this again."

"Agreed," Maynard said.

Mira nodded. Clarisse smiled.

Emeric was told that they would divide the spoils after they turned it in to the guild. His arm was still tender, but functional. The Ring of Regeneration had done its work.

He looked at the others.

They were tired. Battered. But they were alive. They had worked together. They had survived.

This was what a party looked like.

---

They exited the rift.

The afternoon sun was warm on their faces. The checkpoint official waved them through. The party climbed into a wagon and began the ride back to the city.

Emeric sat in the back, his eyes closed. The Ring of Regeneration was still working. His arm felt better with every passing minute.

Clarisse sat across from him. She watched him.

"You did well today," she said quietly.

"So did you."

"I know." She smiled. "But you’re different."

"Different how?"

"You fight like someone who’s been alone for a long time. With no hesitation and a point to prove." She tilted her head. "But you also listen. You follow. You trust."

Emeric said nothing.

"That’s rare," she said. "Most people can only do one or the other."

She leaned back and closed her eyes.

"Get some rest, Mr. Halden. We’ll need you again soon."

Emeric closed his eyes.

The wagon rolled on.

---

[SYSTEM NOTIFICATION]

[RIFT CLEARED — FROST KEEP]

[RANK: D]

[STATUS: COMPLETE]

[COMBAT EXPERIENCE GAINED]

[TIER PROGRESS: 38% → 44%]

[STAT GROWTH]

[STRENGTH: 48 → 50]

[AGILITY: 44 → 46]

[MANA: 36 → 38]

[DP AWARDED: +25]

[CUMULATIVE DP: 706 → 731]

[SKILL EXP GAINED]

[DUELIST’S RESOLVE — RANK D → C]

[SHARED RESILIENCE — RANK E → D]

[PARTY SYNERGY BONUS]

[WORKING WITH OTHERS HAS IMPROVED YOUR COORDINATION AND TRUST.]

[NEW SKILL UNLOCKED: TEAM AWARENESS (PASSIVE)]

[RANK: E]

[DESCRIPTION: When fighting alongside allies, you gain +5% to all stats. This bonus increases to +10% if the party has fought together before.]

[DEVOTION LOGGED: RETURNING HOME — SAFE AND VICTORIOUS]

[DP AWARDED: +5]

[BOND METER: 93 → 94]

---

Emeric didn’t read the notification, taking note of all the news things he had gained.

He was getting stronger but he needed to push further. He had someone to protect

---

The Guild was busy when Emeric arrived.

Mid-morning. Vessels crowded the hall, checking boards, arguing over contracts, nursing drinks.

The smell of ink and old parchment hung in the air. Clerks shuffled papers behind the counter. A queue stretched toward the transaction windows.

Emeric found his party near the back.

Collin sat at a table with a ledger open in front of him. Maynard leaned against the wall, arms crossed. Mira sorted through a pile of cores and materials, separating them into neat piles. Clarisse sat apart, watching the room with lazy interest. 𝒻𝘳ℯℯ𝑤ℯ𝒷𝘯ℴ𝓋ℯ𝘭.𝑐ℴ𝑚

"Halden," Collin said. "Good. Sit."

Emeric pulled up a chair.

Collin turned the ledger around to show numbers with columns. A detailed accounting of everything they’d pulled from the Frost Keep.

"Guild credits have already been distributed," he said. "The Guild handled that directly. Each of us got our share deposited to our Licenses."

Emeric checked his own. The notification had come through that morning. A modest sum, but fair.

"Now the materials," Collin continued. "We’ve got cores, scales, essence, and a few miscellaneous items. I’ve already appraised them with a merchant. Here’s the breakdown."

He pointed at each pile.

"Frost Wolf cores. Twelve. Low value, but they add up. Frost Hare cores. Eight. Ice Bear core. One—decent value. Frost Sprite cores. Six. And the Frost Wyrm core." He tapped the largest pile. "That’s the prize. Rare. Valuable. We could sell it outright, or we could hold it and see if a better offer comes along."

"How much are we talking?" Maynard asked.

"Enough to split five ways and still have a decent payday." Collin leaned back. "But here’s the thing. Mr. Halden is the reason we cleared that Wyrm. He was able to land the killing blow. And he took a hit that would’ve frozen anyone else."

Emeric shook his head. "We all did our part."

"We did. But you did more." Collin slid the Wyrm core toward him. "Take it. Sell it yourself. Keep the profit."

Emeric looked at the core.

Then he pushed it back.

"We split it. Evenly. That’s what we agreed."

Collin studied him. Then he smiled.

"Fair enough."

They decided on splitting it evenly. Collin took back the materials, agreeing to sell it and divide whatever it made between them

It was fair and this ensured there would be no resentment between them.

"Good," Collin said as soon as he was done packing the materials back into his bag. "Now. Anyone up for another rift?"

"I found something," Collin said.

He spread a parchment across the table. A rift posting. The ink was still fresh.

"The Molten Citadel. C-rank. Volcanic terrain. Fire-based creatures. High reward."

Maynard leaned forward. "C-rank? That’s a big jump from D."

"We handled the Wyrm," Collin said. "We can handle this."

Emeric studied the posting. Something felt wrong. The reward was too high for a standard C-rank. The posting didn’t list a recommended party size. The sketch of the terrain looked unstable.

"I don’t like it," he said.

Collin looked at him. "Why not?"

"It’s too vague. No recommended party size. No detailed creature listing. Just ’fire-based creatures’ and a high reward." Emeric shook his head. "That’s a red flag."

"Besides, I heard parties have been vanishing in rifts." Clarisse added, shooting Emeric a knowing look.

"He’s right," Mira said quietly. "I’ve seen postings like this before. They’re usually traps. Or worse—rifts that have been seeded with extra creatures. Made more dangerous than they should be."

Collin frowned. "You think someone wants anything to do with a D-rank party?"

"I think maybe we should think about it," Emeric said. "The rank jump alone is not advisable."