Return of the Frozen Player

On the frozen plains, surrounded by people weeping for him, the red-haired knight closed his eyes one last time. Seo Jun-Ho stared at the surreal scene and reached out without realizing it.

"Sir Hart."

He knew…

He knew better than anyone that a blooming flower would one day wilt and wither.

However, the knight’s expression was so calm and warm. Seo Jun-Ho felt like if he lightly shook Hart’s shoulders, the man would open his eyes immediately and say, ‘I’m sorry for dozing off’.

"Sir Hart…?”

Seo Jun-Ho shook Hart's shoulders lightly with his trembling fingers. However, Hart collapsed toward Seo Jun-Ho like a broken doll.

“…”

Was a person clad in armor usually this heavy? He was heavy. He was so heavy that he couldn’t be compared to the lightweight Thunder God.

"Contractor..." The Frost Queen looked at the pale Seo Jun-Ho. "Didn’t Hart say so? Do not blame yourself. It is not your fault."

"…How can I do that?"

If he were just a bit faster. If he had arrived ten minutes—no, five minutes earlier.

‘I could have saved him.’

Why didn't he try harder? Why did he think that Hart wouldn't die? With a distorted expression, Seo Jun-Ho closed his eyes.

‘I always repeat my mistakes and failures.’

He had made a vow as he buried the Thunder God. He had made a vow to become stronger—to become strong enough that he wouldn’t be able to feel the nauseating and dizzying feeling of losing someone again.

'So I became strong.’

He could confidently crush his past self in just ten minutes. He accumulated over seventeen years of combat experience, consumed valuable elixirs, and mastered the Black Moon Martial Arts.

"But why was it not enough?”

As Seo Jun-Ho smiled helplessly, several knights came over. With a light bow, they recovered Sir Hart's body.

"Hmm. You’re walking on a different path, but you've always been an example," said the Tower Master of the Magic Tower. "I apologize for doubting you. I couldn't afford to ask why you were acting separately because it was an emergency.”

“…”

He glanced at the tears flowing down Seo Jun-Ho's cheek and said, "I don't know what it's like on Earth, but here, we believe that when a great knight dies, his soul goes over to the Knights’ Corridor."

"The Knights’ Corridor?"

"It’s a heaven for those who wield the sword. Apparently, great knights could cross swords with the other great knights there every day."

The Tower Master of the Magic Tower seemed to have no idea of the specifics about the Knights’ Corridor as he coughed and said, "Sir Hart must have gone there. So... don't beat yourself up too much.”

With that, the Tower Master of the Magic Tower left.

Seo Jun-Ho stared at the skies.

'The Knights’ Corridor...’

If the Tower Master of the Magic Tower wasn’t lying to him…

If great knights always go to the Knights’ Corridor upon dying, then…

[You can use Soul Collector (A).]

[Will you collect the soul of Hart Weeper?]

What was this?

***

"Thank you very much… Really, thank you very much."

The lord of Merhen said again and again. Seo Jun-Ho would usually feel proud upon receiving such words, but today, he felt cold.

‘I would very much prefer it if you start blaming me for all this. Maybe this heaviness in my heart would go away...’

Everyone treated him as a hero who killed Nazad Hallow and saved the empire.

"You all must be very tired, so rest well in your rooms. I will see you tomorrow."

Seo Jun-Ho sat on the edge of the soft bed. He was currently in a luxurious room.

After rubbing his face with his hands, he chuckled dryly. “They’re treating me like a hero even though I’m a huge part of the reason they lost a star of their empire. It’s so ridiculous that it’s funny, right?”

"Uh, um..." The Frost Queen wriggled her fingers beside him. She was wondering if she should give words of consolation or leave him alone for now.

"Whew." Finally, Seo Jun-Ho exhaled and said, "Frost."

"Uu, hmm?" the Frost Queen replied with her ears perked up.

"What’s a soul?"

"Soul? You are asking a very random question."

"Yeah." Seo Jun-Ho looked at the message in front of his eyes. “It’s definitely a random question.

[You can use Soul Collector (A).]

[Will you collect the soul of Hart Weeper?]

He was still unable to accept or reject the offer.

'What happens if I collect this soul? What if I say no?’

He was confused. It wasn't that he didn't know what a soul was, but it was his first time being confronted with such a concept.

"…If I accept this, will I be able to apologize to Sir Hart?"

Perhaps collecting his soul would be a huge disrespect to him.

'The Knights’ Corridor.'

It was a glorious place, and it was a heaven for knights. He didn't know it well, but Hart was definitely more than qualified for that place.

'But if I collect his soul, he may not be able to make it to the corridor.’

Seo Jun-Ho sighed.

"Why did it activate when it has been staying quiet all this time? It has no tact."

"I do not know what you are talking about."

"The Soul Collector has been activated."

"What?"

The Frost Queen’s eyes opened wide. Wasn't that a secret that the two of them couldn't resolve even after putting their heads together and agonizing about it for a long time?

The Frost Queen came running to his side and shook his sleeve.

"What is it? What was it? What did you do to activate it? I am dying of curiosity."

"I don't know."

He had witnessed numerous deaths since he learned the skill. In addition to the ones he had killed himself, he had also witnessed the deaths of many Players.

'Despite that, the skill just activated for the first time.’

So what was the difference between those people and Hart?

Seo Jun-Ho carefully made some hypotheses.

Seo Jun-Ho’s first hypothesis was that the Soul Collector’s activation condition involved the death of someone particularly close to him and that person's strong desire to live.

Seo Jun-Ho’s second hypothesis was that the Soul Collector needed an immaculate soul who had made great achievements while they were still alive to the extent that they could be hailed as a hero.

Seo Jun-Ho’s third hypothesis was that the owner of the soul had to be an individual strong enough to be classified into one of the Five Stages.

"Hmm, hmm. Hm." The Frost Queen nodded at Seo Jun-Ho’s hypotheses.

"Each of them is a possibility. However, there’s also a chance that all three of these conditions have to be satisfied before it activates."

"That would be too much," said Seo Jun-Ho with a frown.

He felt cold fingers pressing down on his wrinkled brows.

"Do not frown. Wrinkles will form."

"…I don't care."

At Seo Jun-Ho’s sour response, the Frost Queen smiled.

She felt like she was dealing with a sulking kid.

Eventually, she shrugged and spoke, "Is there any reason to worry in the first place? It should be fine if you collect his soul and release him if he does not like it."

The Frost Queen was right. If Hart's soul hated him, then there was no harm in releasing him.

Seo Jun-Ho closed his eyes and thought about it for a moment.

"…I'll think about it."

In the end, he still couldn’t decide. He still didn’t have the confidence to face Hart’s soul.

***

"Why do you keep drinking that cigarette-flavored cocktail?"

Isaac Dvor, who was drinking a Choke and Smoke cocktail, smiled lightly. "Peat liquor has its own taste. It is a unique taste that children like Miss Cia cannot possibly comprehend."

"You look like a fool,” said Valencia Citrin before leaving.

Isaac stayed and continued drinking his cocktail.

"Hmm?" His eyes shone. He put down the glass and put his hand in his chest pocket.

A card appeared in his hand. It was one of the cards he always carried on his person.

"Hoh." He burst into laughter as he stared at the card that had been cleanly cut in half.

"The false king has died."

He was the kind of person who firmly believed that he could be a king without realizing that he was too weak to do so. Upon learning of his longtime comrade’s death, Isaac immediately visited the Heavenly Demon.

He bowed politely toward the entrance of the tightly closed cave.

"I am sorry, but I come bearing sad news. Following Colonel Charbork’s footsteps a few days ago, Nazad Hallow has perished as well."

- …

The Heavenly Demon still hadn’t fully recovered, but he was no longer wrapped in madness like before. A cold voice came from inside the cave.

- If you bring me useless news one more time, I'll cut your head off.

This was the Heavenly Demon’s reaction to the death of a man who had been by his side for decades.

'You'll probably react the same way if I die.’

For the Heavenly Demon, his subordinates were nothing more than tools that understood words and knew how to follow orders.

‘And that’s what I like about him...’

Isaac liked how the Heavenly Demon treated every living creature fairly—he liked how the latter treated everyone like bugs under his feet.

Isaac Dvor shivered at the lingering coldness of the Heavenly Demon’s voice.

"I am looking forward to the day you emerge."

***

“…”

A pair of wary eyes scanned the surroundings.

Seo Jun-Ho quickly grasped the situation.

‘What?’

He definitely had memories preceding his sleep. The issue was he had no idea what happened afterward.

‘Did I get kidnapped? No, I didn’t feel any presence approaching the bedroom.’

Otherwise, he would have noticed them. Even if he somehow missed them, the Frost Queen and Keen Intuition would have warned him.

‘Then, what’s going on?'

He could see a huge temple up ahead. It was a temple of pure white stone, and there was an endless expanse of clouds behind it.

‘It’s an endless stretch of clouds…’

In that case, he had to be high up in the sky. Was this the work of the demons? How did they kidnap him? Seo Jun-Ho’s head started to ache as he thought of many complicated things.

[You can use Soul Collector (A).]

[Will you collect the soul of Hart Weeper?]

"Get lost.” Seo Jun-Ho growled at the tactless System message.

However, a voice rang behind him. "Are you saying that to me?"

‘A voice!’

He didn’t even sense any presence, so how?

Seo Jun-Ho's eyes shook violently as he turned around in a hurry.

"...Sir Hart?"

No way. He was dead. Right now, the System message to collect Hart’s soul was bothering him. However, the knight in front of him was obviously Hart Weeper.

"Hmm, I had no idea that you could look so pathetic.” Hart shook his head and sighed.

Seo Jun-Ho stared blankly at the knight and muttered, "Is this an illusion-type spell?"

No, with Hero's Mind (EX), there was no way he could be put under an illusion

Hart finally turned around. It seemed that he had gotten tired of looking at Seo Jun-Ho’s dumbfounded face. "I’m afraid that I’ll go dumb if I keep staring at you. Follow me. Let's talk as we walk."

“…”

Seo Jun-Ho kept his guard up and chased after Hart. Of course, he kept a certain distance between them.

After a while, Hart finally said, "Your gaze is going to poke a hole in my head at this rate. If you want to say something, say it.”

“Sir Hart is dead.”

"If I’m the Sir Hart that you know, then yes, I'm dead. I'm just a soul."

Indeed, the reason Seo Jun-Ho couldn't feel Hart’s presence until he spoke was that he didn’t have a physical body.

‘Wait a minute…’

Seo Jun-Ho started panicking at the thought, and he asked urgently, "Wait, am I dead? Did I get killed while I was asleep?”

"Children these days sure are creative. Don't worry. I just invited you here."

Upon arriving at the entrance of the temple, Hart smiled lightly and opened the huge door of the temple.

A long white corridor greeted the two.

"Welcome. The souls who came here first were the ones who named this place.”

It was the final destination every knight dreamed of reaching upon dying.

It was none other than the Knights’ Corridor.