As Arfrotian processed the information given by Glacialix, his mind went into overdrive. His thoughts rewound, analyzing and deducing every possible scenario that could explain Eterna’s disappearance. His expression remained calm and focused, but within, his brain was a whirlwind of logic, probabilities, and strategic assessment.

  "So, Glacialix said that before disappearing, Eterna mentioned she was going to take a long rest in 'deep ice.' Now, let’s break this down systematically. First, what did she mean by ‘deep ice’? Was it metaphorical or literal? Knowing Eterna, it is likely a real place."

  He pondered further.

  "Now first of all how would it have played out, when Eterna found out that her own people that she cared so much, thinking of her as an anomaly an unknown factor were scared and wanted to seal her away, okay,

  she would have been heavily disheartened alright then what, she would go to a place where she likes to stay the most, a place which soothes ones soul, 'deep ice' Eterna said, now, as far as I know, if the people had sealed her away in the place she had wanted,

  then that time when I wielded Eternal Frostheart and was present in my dream world forged by Eternal Frostheart and Pandora, and talked with Eterna's essence, then she should have given me some locations or clues at least to find her, but she didn't give, which means three possible reason."

  Arfrotian narrowed the possibilities down to three major scenarios:

  First Possibility: Eterna’s own people, whom she cherished and protected, turned against her, considering her an anomaly or a dangerous factor.

  They may have agreed to seal her away, with the place where she wanted to be sealed away, but then after a while instead of placing her in her own chosen location, they changed her place, somewhere else—somewhere they thought was safer, somewhere she had no control over.

  "If this is the case, then her silence when I met her essence in my dream world makes sense. She didn’t know exactly where she was sealed."

  Second Possibility: The people did not follow her request out of fear. Instead, they may have sealed her in a location that was similar to what she requested but not the same, so as not to incur her wrath. Perhaps they believed that if she was sealed in a place unfamiliar to her, she wouldn’t be able to escape.

  "If they had some fear that Eterna had a way to return if they sealed her in her own palace, then it would make sense that they chose a different place, maybe somewhere unknown to her or disconnected from her power."

  Third Possibility: Eterna was sealed in the exact location she desired, but she refrained from telling Arfrotian about it because she knew there were dangerous obstacles preventing him from reaching her.

  "She might have thought that revealing her location to me would put me at risk if I went in to find her. That would explain why she didn’t mention it outright. After all, in my subconscious dream world we developed an intimate connection as, she willingly became my wife. She would naturally want to protect me from unnecessary harm."

  If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation.

  The possibilities were intriguing, but the search was still challenging. However, it was no longer directionless—Arfrotian had enough clues to narrow it down significantly.

  He muttered to himself,

  "‘Deep ice’… what could that mean? A place of absolute stillness, perhaps? This entire omniverse is called the Icy Omniverse, but wait—!"

  A realization struck him.

  "Eterna was sealed before the catastrophe that turned the entire omniverse into an eternal frozen wasteland.

  That means at the time of her sealing, the whole omniverse wasn’t covered in ice yet. So, where were the places that had deep ice back then?"

  He thought back to Glacialix’s words.

  "She mentioned that Eterna had an Ice Palace… Could that palace literally be the ‘deep ice’ she referred to? Perhaps within its structure, there was a special chamber meant for her?

  But wait… there’s also another place with ice, the Ice Temple. That was another place of significant power. Could she be there?"

  The more he thought about it, the more it seemed that there were only two realistic places where Eterna could have been sealed:

  Her Ice Palace in the Megaverse of Rodentia.

  The Ice Temple, a place of divine worship and authority.

  "It makes sense that she wouldn’t have been sealed in Caisilia or Luminia Megaverses.

  The shadow elves and angels respectively, would never allow humans to interfere in their territories like that, which perhaps, even sealing her, would have caused quite the complications, so not those two.

  That means her sealing must have happened within the Megaverse of Dementia or Rodentia."

  However, something still felt off.

  "If someone wanted to hide Eterna completely, they wouldn’t just seal her in the most predictable locations. The moment I started investigating, my first instinct was to check those two places.

  That means anyone trying to truly seal her away from everyone else’s eyes they would think ahead and choose an unpredictable location."

  Arfrotian frowned slightly.

  "There must be a third location… something overlooked…"

  Then, he recalled something else Glacialix had mentioned—how people had spoken about Eterna’s disappearance in whispers.

  "They said, ‘The goddess has gone into eternal slumber…’"

  The phrase repeated in his mind.

  "Eternal slumber… Could that mean she was put into a state of permanent sleep rather than just sealed away, like in cases of death, but not that she would die, but rather her complete inactivity of that state could have been referred to as that?"

  Arfrotian tapped his fingers lightly, deep in thought.

  "Resting forever, like in death… Where does one rest forever? A graveyard…!"

  His eyes glowed slightly at the realization.

  "Could it be that they sealed her in or near a place meant for the dead? That would explain the phrase ‘eternal slumber.’

  People often associate the dead with deep sleep, an endless rest.

  If Eterna was sealed in a location related to death, it would be a place no one would suspect. The focus would always be on the Ice Temple or the Ice Palace, but not a burial ground."

  A slow smirk formed on Arfrotian’s face.

  "If that’s the case, then her resting place wouldn’t just be a tomb—it would be something hidden in plain sight, a place disguised as nothing more than ancient ruins or forgotten land."

  He suddenly remembered something else Glacialix had said:

  "Some people jokingly mentioned that ‘one problem has been put in the deep freezer,’ and another problem would be resolved when the King arrived."

  His smirk widened.

  "They weren’t just joking. They were speaking in code. ‘Deep freezer’—that’s another way of saying ‘deep ice.’

  They hid Eterna in a place metaphorically and literally associated with freezing.

  A graveyard encased in ice or something similar… that must be it."

  Arfrotian clenched his fists slightly, his mind now sharper than ever.

  "Now, I just have to find where exactly that graveyard is. If it’s in Rodentia or Dementia, then it shouldn’t be too hard to locate."