Day 4 of the Expedition.

[You have reached the 10th floor of Yuslan's Ice Palace.]

[You have discovered the Frost Jade, the source of the Ice Palace.]

After a longer-than-expected journey, Taehyun and the soldiers of Balak finally stood on the tenth floor. He couldn't tear his gaze from the crystalline orb before him. 'So that's what's maintaining the Ice Palace,' he thought. 'It's still pulsing with a cold aura.' The Frost Jade rested beside a throne, giving the chamber the feel of a long-abandoned royal court.

"It seems we've finally reached the last floor," Riel observed.

"It looks that way," Taehyun agreed, scanning the empty room. "But there are no spirits here."

"Perhaps they are summoned when a specific action is taken?" she suggested.

"Hmm. That could be it."

Taehyun took a moment to assess his forces and supplies. Most of his soldiers had reached level 30 during the ascent, but the climb had been costly. Only forty-one remained. While losing nine out of fifty might not seem catastrophic, the final challenge still lay ahead. To make matters worse, he had been forced to use one of his emergency 2nd-circle magic scrolls on the eighth floor and another on the ninth, leaving him with only a single scroll.

'We don't have much leeway,' he mused grimly. 'Since this is the last floor, a boss-level monster is bound to appear. The odds are stacking against us.'

Although half his soldiers now wore gear scavenged from the Ice Palace, he knew it wasn't enough.

'A few soldiers learned new skills, and Riel's level has gone up, but will it be enough?' he wondered. The need to strategically manage the Minotaurs' Berserk ability made every encounter a complex puzzle.

Before approaching the Frost Jade, Taehyun checked his soldiers' condition.

"Kieeeek!"

"This seems to be the end. Moo."

Having had ample time to rest, none of them showed any signs of fatigue.

"We're ready, Master," Riel reported, her own condition perfect.

Taehyun nodded and cautiously approached the Frost Jade. The moment he drew near, a fierce blizzard howled from outside, and the orb flared with brilliant light.

[Boldark, the last remaining Guardian of Yuslan's Ice Palace, has been summoned.]

[Due to the effects of the fierce blizzard, the movements of all Balak soldiers are slowed.]

As he'd anticipated, a Guardian—the final boss—had been summoned. Atop a shimmering magic circle, a knight in azure armor materialized, drawing two swords and settling into a combat stance.

'Just one?' Taehyun thought, a flicker of hope igniting within him. 'I didn't expect the blizzard, but if he's alone, we can win this!' He quickly arranged his soldiers into formation and pulled up Boldark's information.

[Aaron Boldark]

[Rank: C (Named)]

[Level: 34]

[Class: Knight]

[Title: The Witch's Royal Guard]

[Affiliation: Yuslan's Direct Subordinate]

[Skills: ?]

[Special Ability: ?]

[Description: The sole Guardian protecting the Ice Palace that Yuslan left behind. Both of his swords were personally bestowed upon him by Yuslan, and his armor is crafted from unmeltable ice crystals.]

'A C-rank Named, level 34,' he noted. 'I don't know his skills or special abilities, so I'll have to start by probing for weaknesses.'

Taehyun calmly ordered the goblin archers to open fire from a distance.

A volley of arrows rained down on the knight. Boldark didn't move from his spot, effortlessly deflecting each projectile with his twin blades. He was the very picture of composure, just as one would expect from a tenth-floor Guardian. Following his standard strategy, Taehyun ordered a full-scale assault.

"Arrogant fool! Moo!"

"Kieek!"

"Woof, woof!"

With the Minotaurs leading the charge, the goblins and wild dogs surged forward, while imps and goblin archers provided covering fire from the rear.

"Mooo?!" a Minotaur bellowed in surprise.

Boldark had casually parried the Minotaur's heavy axe before weaving through the soldiers' ranks with fluid grace.

"Don't give him an opening! Attack simultaneously!" Taehyun commanded.

Despite being severely outnumbered, Boldark engaged his soldiers one by one, his movements a deadly dance. A flustered Taehyun ordered his troops to encircle the knight and constrict his movements, but it was futile.

'Slice.'

[Boldark's Glacial Strike has hit an elite lowest-rank warrior goblin.]

[The elite lowest-rank warrior goblin has been killed in a single blow.]

A single, ice-infused strike had instantly killed one of his warrior goblins. That was only the beginning of Boldark's counterattack. The imps' fireballs and the archers' arrows glanced harmlessly off his enchanted armor. A cold sweat broke out on Taehyun's brow as he watched his frontline troops crumble.

"Riel! Change your Battle Heal target! Focus on the soldiers surrounding Boldark!" he yelled.

"Understood!"

Growing desperate, Taehyun abandoned his plan to rely on the Minotaurs. This would have to be a battle of attrition.

'I was a fool,' he berated himself. 'Even against a single enemy, I tried to overwhelm him with sheer numbers right from the start. What an idiot!'

He ordered his soldiers to fall back.

[Balak Soldiers: 34]

By the time they disengaged, seven more had fallen. Biting his lip at the bitter loss, Taehyun belatedly split his forces into two groups, excluding the ranged units. He assigned one Minotaur to each group, effectively dividing his main combat power.

"Master," Riel began, her voice laced with concern, "we couldn't even scratch him when we all attacked at once. Won't splitting our forces make it even harder?"

"No," Taehyun countered, his mind racing. "Continuing to charge blindly won't solve anything. We have to drag this out. For now, focus your healing on whichever group I send in."

"I… understand." Riel's eyes trembled with unease, but she deferred to his command.

The two newly formed groups were designated Team A and Team B.

"Alright, Team A, engage!" Taehyun commanded.

Team A resumed the attack. Boldark, who seemed bound to a certain area, calmly watched them charge.

'He's not moving away from the Frost Jade,' Taehyun realized. The knight was clearly its protector. Taehyun could use that to his advantage. Bolstered by buffs, Team A began to clash with the Guardian.

[Boldark has cast the Frost Armor buff.]

[Boldark's physical defense increases.]

While fending off the soldiers with his twin swords, Boldark cast a buff on himself.

"Goblin archers, cease fire! Imps, conserve your mana!" Taehyun ordered.

Normally, this would be the time to press the attack with ranged units, but Taehyun did the opposite.

'Even if we hit him, the damage will be negligible. It's better to let the imps recover their mana. The archers are low on arrows anyway, so we need to conserve them and drag this out as long as possible.'

As long as Boldark wasn't invincible, his health and stamina had to have limits. Taehyun was determined to push this into a war of attrition and leverage his numerical superiority.

"Master! The buff is ready!" Riel called out.

"Good! Cast it on the soldiers closest to Boldark now!"

"Yes! Sublime Will!"

If the enemy had buffs, so did they. The goblins and wild dogs, who had been on the verge of being wiped out, now clung to life, their Endurance pushed to its absolute limit by Riel's magic. Boldark, looking almost disdainful, continued to unleash his Glacial Strike, but thanks to Riel's constant healing, his soldiers no longer died in a single hit.

He said nothing.

Seeing his attacks fail to kill their targets, Boldark turned and fixed Riel and Taehyun with a piercing glare.

[Boldark's murderous gaze is fixed on you.]

[Your resistance to the frost attribute decreases.]

'You've got to be kidding me! He can lower attribute resistance with just a look?' Boldark's abilities were growing more absurd by the second. Taehyun swallowed hard, his eyes darting to Team A's health bars.

'Time to pull them back.'

The soldiers of Team A were barely hanging on. Taehyun quickly ordered them to retreat so Riel could heal them.

"Aren't you sending in Team B right away?" she asked.

"He can't move far from the Frost Jade," Taehyun explained. "We need to heal Team A to at least half-health before we commit Team B."

"I see." Nodding, Riel continued to channel Battle Heal into the wounded soldiers.

Taehyun watched their health bars refill, simultaneously keeping an eye on Riel's rapidly depleting mana.

'Riel's almost out. I'll have her heal them to about fifty percent and then let her rest, too.'

If all his soldiers rested at once, it would give Boldark a chance to recover, but it didn't matter. The relentless chipping strategy he was about to employ wouldn't afford the knight a moment's peace.

'If Team B engages right after Team A retreats, we'll lose our rhythm. Considering Riel's mana, it's better for Team A to recover halfway. Riel can recharge her mana during that time, and the imps can harass him with periodic fireballs. They'll need to manage their mana too, so they'll attack in turns, ensuring he never gets a true break.'

Taehyun's gaze sharpened with grim determination.

'Let's see who breaks first, you monster.'

---

One hour later.

[Boldark's mana has reached its limit.]

[For a certain period, Boldark will be unable to use skills.]

[The frost resistance of Boldark's frost attribute attack and the elite lowest-rank warrior goblin's Frost-Laden Iron Armor clash.]

[Due to the resistance of the Frost-Laden Iron Armor, Boldark's attack only inflicts 70% damage.]

First, Boldark's mana ran dry, leaving him unable to use buffs or attack skills. He began to show small openings. Taehyun, however, refused to be baited into a rush, patiently maintaining his strategy of chipping away at the knight's health.

'So that's why the Frost-Laden equipment dropped—to give us a fighting chance against this guy.'

With a decent number of his soldiers now wearing the frost-resistant gear, the advantage was slowly but surely shifting to Balak's side.

"Alright, Team B, pull back. Riel, prepare to heal," Taehyun commanded.

"Yes, Master."

Unlike the chaotic start of the battle, Taehyun was now calmly rotating his teams, expertly prolonging the fight.

---

Two hours later.

[Boldark's stamina has reached its limit.]

[Boldark's movements slow down.]

[Boldark's reaction speed slows down.]

[Boldark's attack speed slows down.]

[Boldark's skill casting speed slows down.]

Following his mana, Boldark's stamina finally gave out. His movements became noticeably sluggish, and he could barely muster a counterattack. Taehyun watched the scene unfold with grim satisfaction.

"Team A, fall back," he ordered. "Imps and goblin archers, don't give him a moment's rest. Attack in turns."

He had completely seized control of the battle's pace. Beside him, Riel looked at her master with an expression of weary awe as she continued to heal the soldiers.

---

Three hours later.

[Boldark's health has reached its limit.]

[Boldark's special ability 'Knight's Rampage' is activated.]

[Boldark moves away from the Frost Jade and targets the enemy commander.]

As his health bottomed out, Boldark's special ability activated. He abandoned his post by the Frost Jade and charged directly at Taehyun.

'Well, I expected a final, desperate struggle.'

Unfazed, Taehyun simply pulled something from his inventory.

"Graaaaaaaah!" Boldark roared.

"Farewell," Taehyun said coolly.

He activated his last remaining 2nd-circle magic scroll.

[Using a 2nd-circle magic scroll.]

[The 2nd-circle magic skill Wind Cutter is activated.]

Three shimmering blades of wind shot forward and sliced into Boldark. The knight couldn't even raise his swords to defend himself before the spell struck him down.

[Aaron Boldark, the last remaining Guardian of the Ice Palace, has been defeated.]

[You have cleared the 10th floor of the Ice Palace.]

[The 'Normal' difficulty for Yuslan's Ice Palace has been unlocked.]

[The seal on the Frost Jade is released.]

[A teleportation magic circle is created.]

[From now on, you can travel directly to Yuslan's Ice Palace from within Balak.]

[You have acquired 30,000 Zen as a reward.]

[The experience of Balak soldiers has increased by 270.]

[The combat experience of the wild dogs has greatly increased.]

[The combat experience of the goblins has greatly increased.]

[The combat experience of the imps has greatly increased.]

[The combat experience of the Minotaurs has greatly increased.]

[The combat experience of the Minotaurs has surpassed its limit.]

[Two Minotaurs have been promoted to Prime Elite Soldiers.]

And just like that, the final floor of the Ice Palace was cleared. Taehyun stared blankly at the message announcing a new difficulty level.

'What the hell? The curse isn't broken, the palace doesn't disappear… it just unlocks the next difficulty? Being able to teleport here from Balak is useful, but to think it wasn't a complete clear… this is absurd.'

The result of four days of grueling hardship was merely clearing the easiest difficulty. Dejected, Taehyun slumped and checked the number of his remaining soldiers.

[Balak Soldiers: 25]

'Damn it. Half my soldiers are dead. If the easiest difficulty of a D-rank ruin is this hard, how insane is the next one? And I still didn't get any information about Larkan. In the end, the Frost Jade was just a glorified teleporter.'

The Zen and equipment he'd obtained from the spirits were a small consolation.

'Two Minotaurs were promoted to Prime Elite Soldiers, so at least there's that. Let's head back for now.'

Taehyun collected the loot that dropped from Boldark and stepped into the magic circle, returning instantly to Balak.

---

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