Oscar showed the map to Mary, who held it gently as her brown eyes moved across the contents, stopping at the text in the bottom right corner.

"This is a map of the place we're in. The text says we must collect the Frost Orb, Arctic Feather, and Snowbell Fruit." Oscar rubbed his hands to keep warm. "There is an x mark next to the Frost Orb, meaning the three x marks on the map are the three Frost Orbs on the map."

Mary laid the map down. The three x marks were scattered at an equal distance around the large mountain depicted on the map. The large mountain was their goal and their compass in this place, so knowing this was a great advantage.

"I say we make a run for it to get our Frost Orb, then we can leisurely think about the other two items." Oscar pointed to a landmark of a ravine. "We teleported here and made our way into this forest." His finger tapped on a spread of tiny tree drawings.

Oscar waited for Mary to respond as she pondered while staring at the map. The flickering flames reflected off her brown eyes, giving them a fiery gleam.

Mary pointed at the other two x marks. "What if we go for all the Frost Orbs and prevent the other two teams from passing? We can reap all their rewards."

"I thought about that, but we'd be inviting a battle if we did that. Plus, I don't trust the Pavilion's claims that it's over when we reach the top. They put a special trial in a safe zone without telling us. For example, Elder Ava Jones didn't say what would happen to the extra items brought over. What if we are allowed to fight for the extra items?" Oscar explained. "Also, the map says the mountain is locked until the last few hours. I'd agree if we could climb the mountain on the first day, but that's not feasible, we have to survive in this place for three days. I would prefer not to do that with enemies on our heels."

Mary nodded. "Makes sense. Though I would have loved to see that merchant witch cry. Maybe we can do that later, near the end. By the way, she seemed quite friendly to you. Don't be tricked by her; she's scheming, and there's no telling what she wants with you."

Oscar kept his expression still, not to alert Mary. 'I know what she wants from me. Besides, one of the reasons to avoid fighting is that I don't want to ruin Serena's chances, and I don't want to make any unnecessary enemies.'

To Oscar, having fewer enemies was better; he would prefer no enemies, but an Exalt's life was not free of conflict. He entered conflict if it was for something he desperately needed or a friend who needed help. Although the rewards sounded enticing, it wasn't something Oscar would risk creating more enemies over.

He had time; as an Exalt, he had a lot of time to recoup minor losses. His biggest goal was to enter the Inner Hall, not some tagalong reward. However, if anyone came wanting to block him from doing so, he wouldn't hesitate to retaliate.

"I'm all warmed up." Mary stood up. Her small face beside the heavy white fur around her made her look like a rabbit with overgrown fur. "Shall we go?"

Oscar killed the flames and stepped out of the cave. Looking up, he found it was around mid-afternoon, so they had time until nightfall. He traced his eyes around the forest of trees, recalling the direction they came from.

"The ravine was over there and the mountain there." Oscar pointed for Mary. "With those two places in mind, we're probably around here." Oscar tapped on a section of the forest.

"Let's head toward the mountain. The closest X is to the right after we reach its base." Mary read the map. Then her eyes narrowed at the slowly encroaching blue frost that reappeared. She let out her Ein in a smooth small shroud around her. "We need to hurry. Maintaining our Ein like this won't be good in the long run."

Oscar was also shrouded in his Ein. "Don't overuse your Ein. Recovering it in this cold won't do us any good."

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The pair didn't summon their animas either to save on Ein. They sprinted ahead against the constantly falling snow.

…….

Serena sneezed on top of a small hill. She shivered under her black fur blanket as she gazed around the area; only a bunch of hills were in their vicinity.

"This cold is unusual. This world has a strange property to its snow, or the Pavilion made it like this on purpose." Lucy Maine came up the hill to join Serena, admiring the view of snowy hills and also looking at Serena with a hint of admiration. The Grade Seven Exolsia and stunning appearance made her speechless.

Lucy was also beautiful but not to the devastating extent of people like Serena, Celestina, Aurora, and others. She had short blond hair in a bob cut style with a pair of dull black eyes, not as lustrous as Oscar's. She had a balanced face with a pointed nose and eyes of a hawk.

"This place irks me." Serena frowned. "Let's head our way to find the three items. Make sure to keep your Ein flowing."

"I don't think that will be an issue." Lucy smiled. "I'm Grade Six, and you're Grade Seven; we can recoup the losses with a bit of a break. But it'll be a different issue if we have to fight." Lucy's eyes were full of caution at the landscape and the mountain. The sudden appearance of the blue frost while they fought made her wary. Winning the fight could mean losing the war against nature.

Meanwhile, Serena sighed. 'If only I could have teamed up with Oscar. We could share a piece of fur, snuggle near a fireplace, and warm up together. What a missed opportunity.' Her face blushed. Whether it was from the cold or the thoughts of Oscar was unknown.

The two girls continued their trek across the hills.

…….

"Seems the teams are settling in." Robert Levitt sat on a throne on the mountain's peak. Next to him were Ava Jones and Elder Dustin, bowing like attendants. "You two don't need to stand on ceremony. Take a seat and watch the show."

Ava Jones looked at the image of Oscar and Mary making their way through the forest.

"That child is of the Jones Family, too, isn't she? I sense some anxiety from you." Robert noticed Ava's unusual interest and made the connection.

"She is my niece, Great Elder." Ava Jones answered. "But in recent years, she's been quite distanced."

"Hmm." Robert stroked his beard and slightly opened his blue and red eyes, making Ava sweat despite the chill around them. "Distanced by who? Herself or your family."

Ava Jones bit her lip, and her hands trembled. "Great Elder, our family isn't like the lower noble families who easily abandon or displace their progeny. After her Grade Five Exolsia was shown, we showed her more support. But despite that, she's been rather cold and unwilling to talk."

Robert's loud sigh resounded in her ears. She felt like she was being scolded.

"Show her support? Sometimes that is hard to do. What if the support you think you've shown wasn't supporting her at all? You may think it was good for her, but it may not have been." Robert looked sternly at Ava, who bowed her head. "Tell me, have you ever tried to hear her words? Or did your family just do what they thought was best for her?"

Ava Jones felt like she was struck by lightning and her eyes trembled. She thought back to when her niece was down after the Exolsia unveiling. 'Did we try to listen to her words at all? Were we isolating her somehow?'

"Simply distancing from one another isn't the only way to be distanced. Sometimes showing the wrong kind of support can also make people distanced." Robert rested on his throne. "I'm not involved, but I can only offer you this wisdom. Do right by your family."

Ava Jones bowed. "Thank you, Great Elder. I will hold your advice close."

Robert nodded and thought about his wayward equal, Draven. 'Master is your adopted father who raised you. Yet, you continually cause him to worry and disrespect him at every turn. I wonder when you will begin to reject this disciple of yours. A lone wolf is just that, a lone wolf.'

The winds continued to howl around the peak hidden in the obscuring snowstorm.

…….

Oscar and Mary finally made it out of the evergreen forest.

Oscar checked the map again and pointed a little to the right with his pale finger. "See that big rock that looks like a pillar? The Frost Orb should be there."

Mary breathed slowly as her body shivered. The continuous use of Ein was sapping her stamina every second. "We should find a place to rest up before heading inside."

The place before them was a flat tundra. The ground was very bright from reflecting the light of the suns. Oscar paused, looking visibly annoyed at the large expanse before them; it was a vast distance to the other side.

They walked ahead, taking light and quick steps to traverse through. But suddenly, the ground quaked as beads of snow shook up and down. Tremors ran through Oscar and Mary as they struggled to hold their footing.

Oscar heard something right below him and shouted. "Jump away now!"

As they leaped, the ground under them broke apart, erupting with water. A long scaly creature showed itself from the ground with a hungering maw that chomped on a large chunk of ice, grinding it into pieces.

Oscar was stunned when he heard more rumbling below them. "More are coming! Dodge!"