Chapter 5: Frozen Zombie

Gazing at the black dome on the podium, Vivi simply hovered in the air with her usual indifference, waiting patiently at the outcome of the test. But what happened next was something she never expected— that her frozen solid brows tWitched as she frowned.

WOOSH!

Instead of stabilizing its spin, the black dome continued much faster than before, resulting in the dark smoke beginning to scatter in all directions. As seconds passed, the wind had become more aggressive, forcing her to stand on the ground so she wouldn't be swept away.

The dome was noticeably becoming smaller, as if being drawn towards the center while spinning aggressively. Vivi did not know why, since she had not seen the test before, but she could sense the dome was breaking apart. This could only mean either Valier passed, or failed.

Finally, the dome was now a meter in size, and the podium began cracking by the sheer force of the violent wind and black smoke-like matter, encouraging her to distance herself further. Which was a wise choice.

BOOM!

A strong, devastating, gust of wind scattered in all directions along with the black smoke. But that was not all, as bones and various rusted weapons and armours were also sent soaring throughout the room, with one sword being an inch away from Vivi's head. Fortunately, she caught the blade on time and it became ice solid upon her touch.

She let go of the sword casually that it fell and shattered into miniscule pieces. She then flew towards the podium, and the thin black book near Valier's kneeling figure caught her attention. "So you have passed the test. You have obtained one of my master's most prized possession. The Guide."

"ARRGGHHHH!!!!" Instead of responding to her, Valier screamed at the top of his lungs in pure agony while gripping the blade with all the strength he could muster. But it just would not break despite his efforts.

Seeing this, Vivi crouched in front of him and caressed the blade. In an instant, the blade turned into ice and broke apart in tiny pieces that resemble white snow. This immediately relieved Valier from the constant pain for a moment, before his chest bled blood.

"Grahhh! Arghh…" He groaned while attempting to press his chest to stop the outflow of blood. But it proved useless as it went through the spaces between his fingers and his back, and his body was rapidly losing sensations— leading him to fall forward.

Vivi hesitated for a moment before placing her hand on his back. The crimson blood smeared the frost covering her, but she did not mind, and lightly pressed her hand against the wound— sealing both the wounds back to back with ice.

At this point, Valier was already on the verge of blacking out. He thought he had died as his body felt cold, especially from his wounds. But as he waited for his demise, it did not come. Instead, the pain he was feeling began to diminish, and his senses were also returning.

Touching his chest with his trembling hand, the sudden cold sensation puzzled him, evoking his curiosity. Rolling on his back, he looked at his chest and saw transparent ice covering the wound. He realized what had happened, and his gaze went towards Vivi who stood silently.

"T-Thank you, Vivi. For saving me." He expressed sincerely.

"I have only prolonged your demise, I could not erase it completely." She claimed indifferently while bending down to grab the book on the floor. Handing it to him, she continued, "I used a magic spell to seal your wound with Permafrost Ice. But since I will be gone, the rate of this ice melting will be rapid. So I suggest learning what my master had left behind as fast as you can."

While processing her words, Valier received the book. It was then something that almost made him throw the book away. "Ma-Magic…? You mean… like… Mages?"

"Yes, Mages."

"Your master… is a Mage?" Asked Valier while desperately trying to keep his cool.

"Yes, she's a Mage. The Mage of Golems— my creator." She responded in her usual sweet but indifferent voice, but there was a hint of pride and admiration Valier noticed.

"So… you're saying you used a magic spell to… stop me from dying?" Valier asked for certainty. He already knew the answer, but it was too much for him to take in that he was saved by a Mage's golem. He did not know whether to be grateful or concerned with his own safety.

"Yes. I've also used Regeneration Touch to heal your heart tissues. So your heart is healed completely. But since I have spent much mana in that spell, I am unable to heal your flesh with it. I used Permafrost Ice instead with the last bit of my mana." She explained.

Her explanation made Valier fall silent for a moment before he slowly sat up and bowed to her in sincerity and gratitude. "Thank you for saving me, Vivi. My name is Valier, and I swear upon my name to never forget this kindness."

"I am merely a Golem of my master. My actions are all up to her."

"Oh… then I will wholeheartedly express my gratitude to the Mage of Golem if I ever encounter her in the future." He bowed once again. Strangely, he heard nothing from Vivi but silence, eliciting his curiosity.

Looking at her, her eyes were fixated on the black book on his lap. He was unsure, but he thought Vivi's eyes were showing sadness and longing.

"With all my mana spent, I do not have much time left to exist and meet her once again, so I hope you can mention my name at least once to her. That would make me the happiest." She voiced, with the ends of her lips cracking as she smiled wryly. The cracks turned to bits of snow that disappeared from view.

It took a second for Valier to realize, and he felt guilty. Although he could not quite grasp what was happening, he already had an idea what Vivi had done to him. "I… will. And thank you, Vivi, truly."

Crack!

Vivi's left arm, and both legs suddenly turned completely into ice, cracking in webs. But she did not seem to be affected as she did not even flinch. "I do not have much time left, and mana, to guide you out of this place. So I advise you to simply head forward, and you will see one of the paths leading to the door where you entered."

'Door?' Valier wondered what she meant and looked at the large arch at the side of the room. As far as he could recall, he did not encounter a door at all. Looking at her in puzzlement, he asked, "I did not enter through the door… so I don't know which path it is…"

"...Come again?" She asked almost immediately.

"I didn't enter through the door… as far as I remember, I was swallowed by the green light and found myself lying on a circular platform." He explained.

Vivi's eyes widened in shock and realization, and a large smile appeared on her face, creating more cracks as her head was turning into ice, as her voice resonated in the air. "So that's why the test behaved so weirdly… she did not want to harm you."

"What do you mean?" Valier asked in confusion. But it was too late as Vivi had completely turned into ice, cracking apart at rapid speed.

SHATTER!

Valier brought his arms in front to shield himself as Vivi's whole body exploded into bits of pieces of ice, leaving nothing behind but a pile of shards. Eyeing the spot she stood a while ago, he could not help but sigh dejectedly while standing up.

He had some common knowledge about Mages, and a bit about their capabilities— one of which was golem making. So he knew Vivi was just a machine and not an actual living being created by the all powerful Mages, but he could not help but feel she was different. Although their interaction was brief, there was something that made her unique from what he had heard before.

But sadly, she was now gone. She sacrificed herself to keep him alive, and he was truly grateful. Scrambling through the pile of melting shards, he found a small round stone that looked much like a bluish ice. It was a golem core— something that holds the mana of golems to keep them moving by themselves without the constant supply by their master.

This small thing that was a few inches large was worth a good sum of money, but Valier would not dare to sell it. The reason was the mysterious Mage behind Vivi and this massive place, and his conscience. He was not someone unappreciating someone's sacrifice just for him to breathe another moment. So, he carefully inserted it in his pocket, keeping it safe.

Afterwards, he glanced around with newfound awe about this place. Before, he thought it was created by a Beast, but now that it was revealed to be the work of a Mage, he could not help but feel he was truly lucky. He did not just keep his life despite two near-deaths scenarios, but he also found and got what a Mage left behind.

Mages were typically worshiped as they were powerful like gods, possessing real power to control the elements of the world with a wave of hand. They could flip mountains in a snap, part the oceans with one word, and obliterate cities with one spell. Or that was what rumors describe them to be.

Valier had not seen a Mage before since it was said they love to shut out the outside world and only focus on their magical research, but judging from what he had seen so far, the rumors were not far-fetched. They were truly powerful people, standing at the very pinnacle of humanity. And he obtained something from one of them.

"I wonder what's written here." His gaze lingered on the black book for a moment before he decided to focus on an urgent matter first— which was to get out of the place. "I don't know how much time had passed, but certainly long. Galleon is probably going nuts right now. I need to get back immediately."

He started descending from the podium using the steps and entered through the large arch. Vivi had stated that he would find one of the paths leading to the door, but the problem was that he knew none of the paths. So, for the next few hours, he wandered from path to path trying to find it.

"This is surely it, no kidding." He looked at the last path he had not yet taken, and hoped this was the one. Jogging his way as he ventured in, he halted at the sight of a large double door standing two-meters made of iron. He approached it and pushed it lightly, only for it to not budge an inch.

But after exerting strength into it, one of the doors opened. The first thing that greeted him was a pile of green moss that fell in a lump. This brightened his mood, as he would finally return to the forest. He climbed the lump, and just as expected, the forest was at the other side.

When he finished scanning left and right, and up the branches of the thorny trees, he closed the door behind him and concealed it using the moss. It took a lot of effort to fully make it natural-looking, but he was glad it was now hidden well. This was the least he could do, since the golem tasked to protect this place was gone because of him.

With that done, he went towards the floating cube stones at the distance. The door was not too far from the stones, so he was able to walk back after a couple of minutes. But looking at the floor, it was totally different from what he remembered— which was covered in soil and plants. Now, it was a solid stone disc with green patterns branching from the center.

Sighing, he walked over to the surrounding bushes and began plucking leaves.