In the polar night, when the sun did not rise, it seemed as though the concept of time was lost.
Colin could only determine the time by the pocket watch he carried on him... almost five days had passed.
The crystal hourglass in Village Chief Hunter's house had also completed five cycles.
This noon.
Colin walked out from the base of the Ancient North Ice Mountain.
During the wait for the Ice and Snow Monsters to attack again, he hadn't been idle, and his daily schedule was full.
"Did you find anything, Lord Colin?" Dempsey, who was nearby, asked.
They had just emerged from the Blue Cold Crystal Mine.
"No," Colin shook his head.
That morning, he and Dempsey had started from the spot of the attack, carefully investigating and searching, trying to find something that might exist—
like the reason the Ice and Snow Monsters attacked Ancient North Village.
However, at least for now, they had found nothing.
That Ice and Snow Monster probably just enjoyed killing and did not come with a specific purpose.
At this moment, Village Chief Hunter beside him sighed and added:
"Ancient North Village almost always gets attacked by an Ice and Snow Monster every so often. The intervals can be as short as one or two years, or as long as two or three decades.
If my memory serves me right, it's been almost fifteen years since the last attack by an Ice and Snow Monster."
"Didn't the previous wizards manage to kill the Snow Monster once and for all?" Dempsey couldn't help but ask.
Hunter shook his head, "A Wizard once mentioned that those Ice and Snow Monsters are naturally formed entities of the Extreme North. As long as we can't find and destroy their source, it's impossible to eradicate them completely."
Colin turned his head to glance at the icy plain disappearing into the darkness in the distance, his expression inscrutable.
In the afternoon.
Boom!
On an empty plot next to Ancient North Village, Colin was practicing the Limit Breaking Fireball Skill for the fourth time.
It had to be said that the Extreme North was quite suitable for practicing witchcraft.
The sparse population and open terrain allowed one to act freely.
The only drawback might be the scarcity of Magic Power, necessitating the use of some Magic Stones to help recover it.
But that was not a problem. Compared to time, a few Magic Stones were not that important to him now.
During the interval of recovering Magic Power, Colin summoned the Golden Paper.
On the ancient pale golden parchment, the progress of the Limit Breaking Fireball Skill had reached 99/100, just one step away from breaking the limit.
Colin's spirit lifted, and after recovering his Magic Power, he started practicing again.
He chose a location not far from Ancient North Village, behind a small slope, surrounded by an open field of view. If anyone was secretly watching, they would be easily spotted.
But in reality, Colin didn't make much effort to hide his whereabouts.
Dempsey was on a lookout tower temporarily erected by Ancient North Village nearby, keeping watch all around. From his position, he could clearly see Colin practicing.
However, the latter didn't think much of it, only remaining vigilant, ready to call for Colin's assistance as soon as the Ice and Snow Monsters approached.
On one hand, Colin had previously told him that he wanted to practice some witchcraft, and on the other hand, the fourth Limit Breaking Fireball Skill was just a First Rank Advanced witchcraft, so it wouldn't seem strange to use.
As long as Dempsey didn't see the exaggerated improvement that practicing witchcraft brought Colin, he wouldn't think anything of it.
Time passed, and about three hours later, Colin's heart stirred and he opened the Golden Paper again.
Sure enough, he had successfully pushed the Limit Breaking Fireball Skill to its limit.
The progress had been stuck at 99 for several days, but today he had finally trained it to 100!
Dispelling the building Magic Power in his hands, Colin tucked away the Golden Paper and let out a slight breath, preparing to find a secluded room to break the limit for the Fireball Skill.
Village Chief White had placed the two of them in a domed ice house near his home.
According to Dempsey, that domed ice house was built specifically to accommodate wizards like them.
The interior was even more elaborate than the Village Chief's home, and could be considered a "luxury house."
Of course, that was relative, the real living experience was underwhelming.
The conditions in the Extreme North were still too harsh.
After greeting Dempsey at the lookout tower, Colin returned to his room in the domed ice house and sat down cross-legged, taking out a Magic Stone.
As the characters behind the Limit Breaking Point on the Golden Paper kept flickering, the Magic Stone in his hand continuously turned to dust.
When the ↑ symbol behind the fourth Limit Breaking Fireball Skill lit up, Colin, without any hesitation, focused and pressed firmly.
The black characters twisted and blurred.
The Golden Paper began to break the limit!
Just then, a shadow suddenly slipped in from under the door and took shape into a dark figure in front of Colin.
This was Silent Shadow.
The shrouding dark mist on its body vibrated continuously, as if reminding Colin of something.
Colin furrowed his brows slightly and opened his eyes.
At the same time.
Swoosh!
Suddenly, a screeching sound of a Magic Arrow shot from outside, followed by a bang, a red firework illuminated the sky above Ancient North Village.
"Lord Colin, the Ice and Snow Monster has arrived!"
From the lookout tower, as soon as Dempsey launched the signal arrow, he hurriedly flew towards the house where Colin was, calling out subconsciously.
The red fireworks slowly spread across the pitch-black sky.
The villagers of Ancient North Village, who had been active outside, looked up at the fireworks in the sky and remembered the words the Village Chief had recently instructed. They immediately showed signs of panic.
And then, like rabbits startled by the approach of a hawk, they hesitated no longer, dropping what was in their hands and frantically diving into the nearest domed ice house!