The icy wind cut at their faces like tiny, invisible blades, but Strax didn't seem bothered. Mounted on the massive back of Shura, the white tiger, he surveyed the horizon covered by an endless blanket of snow. The forest that had once surrounded them was now far behind—the ground was a mixture of ice and rock, and the increasingly thin air carried the distant scent of the deep north.

Scarlet was right behind him, her legs crossed over the tiger's back as if on a leisurely journey, her red hair fluttering in the biting wind. She adjusted her cloak, sighing.

"You know," she began, in a light but provocative tone, "sometimes I wonder why we go to so much trouble."

Strax looked over his shoulder. "What do you mean?"

"What do I mean?!" she laughed, pointing to the icy horizon. "We're literally crossing half a continent riding a giant tiger, facing wind, ice, and death by hypothermia... when we can both fly." She gestured with her hands. "Fly, Strax! Cut through the sky in minutes!"

He smiled, the kind of calm smile she knew preceded an annoyingly logical answer.

"Flying would attract too much attention."

"Too much attention?" Scarlet scoffed. "We're dragons, remember? Too much attention is kind of our middle name."

Shura let out a guttural sound, something between a growl and a laugh. "I agree with her, boss. It's been a long time since I've seen a good show in the sky."

Strax ignored the comment and replied, still looking ahead:

"The last thing we need now is for the north to know that two dragons are approaching the ice capital. Cristhalis is neutral territory, but things change quickly when someone feels threatened."

Scarlet rolled her eyes. "Always the diplomacy..."

"Diplomacy keeps heads on shoulders," he said calmly. "And, in our case, also the wings."

She sighed, leaning slightly forward. "I swear, sometimes you remind me of Monica."

"Was that a compliment?"

"Not at all."

The three continued in silence for a while, the sound of the wind and the crunching of the ice under Shura's paws being the only accompaniment. The sun was already hiding behind a dense fog, and the light seemed to be swallowed by the infinite white that stretched in all directions.

Shura, who until then had maintained a steady pace, slowed down. His furry ears perked up, and he sniffed the air.

"We're reaching the border of the Frozen Valley," he announced, his voice resonating with a more serious tone. "After that, there will be no more forest, no more shelter. Only wind and silence."

Strax nodded, looking around. The vegetation had completely disappeared—the last signs of life had been left behind. Now, ice crystals grew from the stones like frozen flowers, and the ground reflected the dull light of the sky.

"I can already feel it," he murmured. "The temperature is dropping fast."

Scarlet rubbed her arms, even though she was enveloped in protective magic. "Dropping fast is a gentle way of saying 'freezing to the bone'." She looked to the side and grumbled: "The Ice Monarch should sell this weather as a weapon."

Shura let out a low growl, steam coming out of his nostrils like smoke. "Her cold is a weapon, girl. You'll see."

"Girl?" Scarlet raised an eyebrow. "Keep calling me that and I'll turn you into a rug."

Shura showed his teeth in a defiant smile. "Try it."

Strax raised his hand, interrupting the two. "Enough."

Silence once again dominated the landscape. The air there was different—denser, heavier, charged with magical energy. Each breath seemed to crystallize in their lungs. Strax felt the magic flowing beneath the ground, as if the entire ice field were a living extension of the Monarch's power.

"Hm." He closed his eyes for a moment, analyzing. "We're entering her territory. I can feel the presence of her domain."

Scarlet looked around, intrigued. "Can you feel it too, Shura?"

The tiger growled low, the fur on his neck bristling. "I can. Her scent is on the wind… the same scent as when my clan was destroyed."

His voice was hoarse, laden with memory and anger. The air around them seemed to pulse for a moment, as if the very cold responded to his fury.

Strax placed a firm hand on the tiger's neck. "Control."

Shura took a deep breath, vapor escaping from his nostrils in short bursts. "I'm fine. Just… memories."

Scarlet looked away, for a moment setting aside her sarcasm. "Did she really do all that to your people?"

"She and her cold," Shura replied. "It wasn't a war, it was a massacre."

The silence that followed was heavy.

Strax looked at the horizon—a frosty blue glow danced in the distance, reflected in the clouds. Cristhalis. The capital of the Ice Monarch.

"There it is," he said softly.

The city seemed made of pure crystal, suspended between cliffs covered by ice bridges. Towers gleamed like spears of bluish light, and the air above them swirled in spirals of visible magic. It was beautiful… and menacing.

Scarlet whistled. "Yeah, she has good taste. It looks like a cursed jewel."

"That's exactly what it is," Strax replied.

Shura snorted, resuming his steady pace. "I hope you have a good reason for coming here, boss."

Strax looked at the horizon, his gaze firm and determined. "I do."

The wind grew stronger as they approached Cristhalis. The city shimmered in the distance, suspended amidst natural pillars of ice and surrounded by translucent walls that seemed made of cut glass. It was an almost ethereal sight—a fortress of sharp, cold, silent beauty, as if it had been sculpted by the very hands of winter.

Shura slowed his pace, his enormous claws digging into the hardened ice of the path. The road leading to the main entrance was lined with blue crystals that emitted a soft, pulsating glow, as if the city were breathing.

"We're close," he growled, his fur bristling. "The air here tastes of magic."

Strax felt the same—there was magic in everything, even the snow. The ground, the air, the stones—everything carried the signature of the Ice Monarch. This wasn't just a city; it was a living extension of her power.

"Stay alert," he said, his voice firm. "One false step and the whole city will know we're here."

Scarlet laughed, rubbing her gloved hands together. "With this giant tiger, it's hard for them not to know." She lightly patted Shura. "You're great at getting attention, you know?"

Shura responded with a low purr. "And you're great at annoying me."

"Look at that," she said, amused. "We're already getting intimate."

Strax sighed, unable to suppress a slight smile. "Both of you, focus."

As they approached the entrance bridge, they saw the first group of guards. Men and women dressed in heavy white fur cloaks and silver armor, with the Monarch's symbol—an ice crown surrounded by spirals—emblazoned on their breastplates. The air around them seemed even colder; even the breath from their mouths formed small crystals that floated before dissipating.

The leader of the group stepped forward, raising his bluish steel spear. The tip gleamed with a frosty rune that lit up upon contact with the air.

"Halt!" The voice echoed, firm and authoritative. "No one enters Cristhalis without direct permission from the Council or the Monarch!"

Shura stopped, and the sound of the ice cracking under her paws reverberated like contained thunder. Scarlet raised an eyebrow, leaning slightly towards Strax.

"Are you going to explain politely or do you prefer the explosive method?" she whispered, barely containing her laughter.

Strax replied without looking at her: "Politely. For now."

He dismounted from Shura, his cloak billowing in the wind, the silver clasp gleaming in the city's bluish light. The guard watched him with suspicion—and perhaps a little apprehension. There was something in Strax's gaze, something that, even without displaying power, made the air seem heavier.

"I am Strax, from Asgard," he announced, his voice filled with firmness and calm. "I have an appointment with the Ice Monarch."

The leader of the guards narrowed his eyes. "Asgard?" he repeated, visibly surprised. "We haven't received any message confirming a diplomatic visit from Asgard."

Strax let out a heavy sigh, as if he had expected exactly that reaction. The cold wind swept across his face, making his cloak ripple behind him. Scarlet watched him with her arms crossed and a little smile that said, "I told you so," while Shura merely growled softly, impatient with the delay.

"Always the same story…" he murmured, reaching into his cloak. "Nobody ever believes it until I show them the damn paper."

From his inner pocket, Strax withdrew a parchment sealed with a crystallized ice emblem—the seal of the Monarch herself. Even from a distance, the symbol emanated an unnatural cold, and the air around it seemed to freeze for an instant when he broke the seal.

The guard in front of him widened his eyes slightly at the sight. The rune on the tip of his spear reacted, pulsing in pale blue—the seal was genuine.

Strax calmly held up the document. "Here it is. A direct invitation from the Monarch of Cristhalis." His voice was calm, but his gaze held a weight that brooked no argument. "I believe that solves the problem."

The guard hesitated for a moment, then slowly approached, his boots sinking into the thick snow. He carefully took the parchment, as if afraid of breaking it, and opened it in the bluish light of the crystals.

The text gleamed in frozen letters, written with pure magic—the cold, perfect calligraphy of the Monarch herself. The soldier read in silence, his eyes moving quickly across the lines, until the color seemed to drain from his face.

He swallowed hard and took a step back, returning the parchment with both hands.

"F-forgive me, sir. We didn't know… The Monarch has indeed… requested your presence."

Strax tucked the parchment back under his cloak and gave a half-smile. "It happens." He glanced over his shoulder at Scarlet. "See? Politeness works."

Scarlet let out a short laugh. "Sure, sure. I bet if it had taken another minute, you would have solved it with a lightning bolt to the wall and called it 'direct education'."

"It's still an option," he replied calmly, and the guards ahead exchanged nervous glances.

The leader of the group cleared his throat, trying to hide his embarrassment. "I apologize for the approach. No one crosses the gates of Cristhalis without express authorization. Those are her orders."

"Excellent," said Strax. "Then she'll be pleased to know you obey them well."

Shura let out a low growl, visibly bored. "Can we go in now? Or are you going to ask me to show my tiger license too?"

The soldier blinked, confused, and Scarlet laughed loudly, shaking her head. "He's joking… I think." Strax mounted Shura again and gave a slight nod. "Inform the Monarch that her guest has arrived."

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