The blizzard outside the Governor's mansion had intensified. It wasn't just weather anymore; it was a siege weapon. The wind howled like a dying god, rattling the reinforced shutters of the guest quarters where Squad Alpha-9 was recuperating.

Alvian sat on the edge of a lavish four-poster bed, completely ignoring the luxury around him. His focus was entirely internal, fixed on the blue holographic interface floating in his mind.

The mission at the mansion had been a success, but it was merely a skirmish. The real war was waiting in the mountains. Varis, the SnowMage Lieutenant, was just a pawn. The map he had looted detailed the location of the Frost Sanctum, a hidden fortress built into the peaks of the Silverwood range.

But before they marched into hell, Alvian needed to sharpen his claws.

He pulled up his status panel.

┌──────[ Profile ]──────┐

│ [Name]: Alvian

│ [Class]: SkillBurst

│ [Level]: 19 (+1)

│ [Title]: The Anomaly

├──────[ Attributes ]───┤

│ [Strength]: 38

│ [Speed]: 45

│ [Physique]: 30

│ [Energy]: 68

└─────────────────────────┘

He had gained a level from killing Varis and the acolytes. A decent boost, but not enough to bridge the gap against what was coming. A Calamity-level threat required Calamity-level preparation.

He looked at his skill list.

[Shadow Weave +2] was perfect. [Frost Descent +2] was a weapon of mass destruction. But his defense? It was lacking. He relied entirely on dodging and the passive damage immunity from Shadow Weave. If he got hit while visible, his low physique meant he would crumple like wet paper.

His eyes fell on the incomplete skill he had learned via a scroll from Rogge's lab before leaving: [Runic Aegis].

It was a defensive spell that summoned orbiting runes to block attacks. Currently, it was basic, barely able to stop a Level 10 fireball.

'System,' Alvian commanded internally. 'Show me the status of Runic Aegis.'

[Skill: Runic Aegis (Incomplete/Common)]

[Description: Summons 3 runes of mana that orbit the user. Each rune can block one instance of damage up to 500 points before shattering. Cooldown: 60 seconds.]

Weak. Pathetic.

But Alvian smiled. To the system, it was trash. To him, it was clay.

He still had his two charges of [Super Upgrade System] for the day. He hadn't used them during the frantic rush to the volcano or the mansion defense.

'Upgrade [Runic Aegis].'

[Ding!]

[SSS-Rank Talent [Super Upgrade System] authority invoked!]

[Consuming one (1) daily charge… Upgrade successful!]

A warm, golden light flooded his mana channels, reknitting the structure of the spell.

[Skill [Runic Aegis] has evolved to [Runic Aegis +1]!]

[Block threshold increased to 1,500 damage per rune. Rune count increased to 5.]

Better. But not broken. Alvian needed broken.

'Again.'

[Ding!]

[Consuming one (1) daily charge… Upgrade successful!]

[Forcing secondary modification of core mana structure… Integrating offensive parameters… Upgrade Complete!]

The text shattered and reformed, glowing with a purple, epic hue.

┏━━━━━[ Core Skill Evolved ]━━━━━┓

│ Name: [Runic Aegis +2]

│ Rank: A (Evolved)

│ Type: Defensive/Offensive

│

│ Description: Summons 7 Ancient Runes of Force that orbit the user.

│

│ ▷ Evolution: Runes now possess [Reactive Force]. When a rune blocks damage, it

│ detonates, dealing 50% of the blocked damage back to the attacker as True Damage.

│ ▷ New Effect: [Rune Launch]. The user can fire the runes as projectiles.

│ ▷ Enhancement: Block threshold removed. Runes now endure based on Mana

│ sustain.

┗━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━┛

Alvian clenched his fist. A defensive skill that dealt True Damage and could be used as a projectile weapon. It was exactly the kind of versatility he needed.

He stood up, equipping the [Wyrm-Tooth Dagger] he had used to assassinate Varis. It was a good weapon, but he needed more reach. He swapped back to the [Behemoth's Earthshaker Greataxe] in his inventory. It was clumsy, but against the ice constructs of the cult, he might need the crushing power.

A knock came at the door.

"Enter," Alvian said, his voice flat.

Valeria walked in. She was fully armored, her claymore strapped to her back. She looked tired, but her eyes were sharp. The hesitation that used to be there when she looked at him was gone, replaced by the grim camaraderie of a soldier addressing a fellow veteran.

"The squad is ready," Valeria stated. "Governor Thorne has provided us with fresh supplies. Potions, rations, and thermal crystals."

"And Arin?" Alvian asked, raising an eyebrow. "Is he done shaking?"

Valeria sighed, rubbing her temples. "He's... managing. He's terrified of you, Alvian. But he's more terrified of the SnowMages. He'll do his job."

"Fear is a useful motivator," Alvian muttered. He walked past her, checking his [Prowler's Boots]. "We leave now. The storm is peaking. That means their ritual is reaching its crescendo."

"Alvian," Valeria stopped him with a hand on his shoulder.

He paused, looking at her hand, then up to her eyes.

"That dagger strike on Varis," she said quietly. "You moved through a wind barrier like it wasn't there. You possess skills that shouldn't exist for a freshman. Heck, they shouldn't exist for a Senior."

"Is that a question?"

"No," Valeria shook her head. "It's an observation. I don't care where you got your power. Just... point it at the enemy."

Alvian gave a rare, faint smirk. "That's the plan."

They marched out into the main hall. Elara was checking her staff, her face pale but determined. Arin was huddled in a thermal cloak, muttering incantations to himself.

"Listen up," Alvian announced, his voice cutting through the wind howling outside. "We are going to the Frost Sanctum. It is a fortress. There will be hundreds of them. We are four."

He looked at each of them.

"If you fight fair, you die. If you hesitate, you die. We are not here to arrest them. We are here to exterminate them. Is that clear?"

"Clear," Valeria answered instantly.

Elara nodded meekly. Arin swallowed hard and nodded.

"Then let's go hunt," Alvian said.

He pushed open the doors.

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