Ats and his team had spent a siderable amount of time on Fre Peak Isnd, which allowed them to gather a wide variety of materials. Fortunately, one of those materials turned out to be invaluable in their current situation—the Fire Crystal.

  Fire Crystals were simple fuel items primarily used for starting fires, in this brutal cold they became lifesavers.

  Ohe camp was fully set up, and they made sure the camp was hidden from view in a spot that would be difficult to detect from afar, they built a firepce using wood and Fire Crystals to create a stable heat source.

  Heat!

  The warmth spread quickly through the camp, and for the first time in hours, everyorue fort. The harsh, biting cold that had threateo freeze their bodies was now being pushed back by the steady warmth of the fire.

  They set up three firepces, allowing the troops to gather around and warm themselves. Faces that had been teh exhaustion began to rex as the heat soothed their bodies.

  They all k would take time to fully adjust to an envirohis harsh. However, the real challenge would e at night, wheemperature would drop even further, and survival would bee even harder.

  Ats stared at the fire, lost in thought.

  Ba Fre Peak, the monsters would drop items that protected agaireme heat. He figured there must be simir items on this isnd to protect against the extreme cold. Or maybe, they just hadn’t found a.

  For now, they were lucky they hadn’t entered any monsters. Fighting in these ditions while still adjusting to the cold would have been a nightmare. But he khis peace wouldn’t st forever.

  As the troops gathered around the fires, they began warming their meals, reheating rations over the fmes. The f st of cooked food filled the air, and they ate quickly to replenish their energy. The st thing they needed was for ao colpse from hunger in these ditions.

  Ats g his map system. Thanks tasa’s efforts, nearly 70% of the map had already been uncovered.

  He let out a breath of relief.

  Without Kurogasa, navigating and surviving in this brutal terrain would have been far more difficult—perhaps even impossible.

  He took a bite of the heated meat, feeling the warmth spread across his tohough it quickly turned cold the moment it hit his mouth. The cold air made it difficult to truly savor the meal, but he e heless.

  If he hadn’t been holding himself together, f his mind to ehe harsh ditions, he might have felt miserable like the rest of his troops. But he couldn’t afford to show weakness—not while his people were fighting the same battle against the cold.

  Beside him, Manna, the Vampire Queen, sat quietly on one of the camp chairs. She had been silent ever sihey arrived on the isnd, her expression calm and unreadable, as if the freeziher didn’t bother her at all.

  Ats g her, her.

  Sensing his gaze, Manna turned her head toward him, her crimson eyes meeting his.

  She said nothing.

  "You’re handling this well," he said. "You survive in this kind of dition without issue."

  Manna’s lips curved into the fai of smirks.

  "Watg all of you suffer in this weather is amusing."

  Ats raised an eyebrow at her teasing. "You don’t feel the cold at all?"

  Manna didn’t respond, but before the silence could stretch too long, Edrik—seated on Ats’s right—stepped in to expin.

  "Vampires are typically depicted as resilient to extreme ditions," Edrik began. "But their ability to handle cold temperatures varies depending oype of vampire or the world they e from."

  Ats turo him, intrigued by the expnation.

  "They have little need for warmth," Edrik tinued. "Siheir bodies don’t rely on normal human funs like blood circution, they don’t o maintain body heat. This makes them far less affected by cold."

  Ats nodded slowly, processing the information as Edrik tinued.

  "Most vampires have natural resistao cold-reted fatigue, high endurance, and enhanced eyesight in darkness. However, their weaknesses in cold enviros include sleion, especially if they rely on blood to heal."

  He g Manna briefly before adding, "And in snowy enviros, sunlight reflect off the snolifying light exposure, which be dangerous for vampires weak to sunlight."

  "So vampires seriously have far more advahan normal humans, huh?"

  Edrik gave a small, knowing smile. "In many ways, yes. But advantages e with their own costs."

  "Is it easy for a human to turn into a vampire, Manna?" Ats asked, direg his words toward the quiet vampire queen sitting beside him.

  But Manna didn’t even look up. She simply tinued eating her food.

  Ats sighed softly, his mind drifting back to the time when Manna had offered to turn him into a vampire. Back then, he hadn’t given it much thought. He hadn’t uood enough about the advantages or disadvantages of being a vampire to take the offer seriously.

  Now, though, he was curious. Ats turned his gaze to Edrik—the one person he could always t on to give a detailed answer.

  "Edrik, what do you know?"

  Edrik gnced up from his meal, wiping his hands on a cloth before speaking.

  "Turning into a vampire varies depending oype of vampire and their ins. In some cases, it’s as simple as being bitten and ied. In other cases, a ritual or blood pact is required." He paused briefly. "But there are always sequences."

  Ats nodded, encing him to tinue.

  "Most vampires retain their memories and personality after the transformation, but their bodies undergo drastic ges. They no le like humans, their hearts stop beating, and their bodies adapt to their neiriature. However..."

  Edrik’s tone lowered slightly. "Ohe transformation is plete, there is no going back."

  Ats gnced briefly at Manna again, who remained quiet.

  "And what about her kind?"

  Edrik smiled faintly. "Manna isn’t an ordinary vampire. She’s a pureblood. That means her method of turning someone is far more... deliberate. It wouldn’t be a mindless iion. It would be a scious decision on her part to pass on her bloodline. And because of that, anyone she turns to would likely retain more of their humanity."

  "With all the vampire strengths?"

  Edrik nodded. "Yes, but also with their weaknesses."

  He tinued. "But there’s another factor to sider." He leaned forward slightly. "The base state of the humaly affects the final result in their vampire form."

  Ats frowned. "What do you mean?"

  "A human’s physical aal dition before the transformatioermines how powerful—or fwed—their vampire form will be. For instance, someoh a strong body and sharp mind will likely bee a vampire with higher endurance, superior senses, and stronger abilities. However…"

  He paused again.

  "If the human has underlying weakhose weaknesses might be amplified in their vampire state."

  "So a weak human would turn into a weak vampire?"

  "In most cases, yes. Their fws would carry over—poor eyesight, unstable emotions, physical ailments. Some of these could be corrected through vampiric regeion, but the core traits remain. The transformatio magically make someone perfect. It enhances what’s already there."

  Ats tapped his knee. "I see.”

  Edrik tinued. "Vampirism amplifies the essence of a person. The stronger you are as a human, the more powerful you’ll be as a vampire. But if you’re weak, reckless, or mentally unstable, that too will be enhanced. Immortality always es at a price."

  Ats nodded slowly, the idea of being a vampire lingering in his mind. It souempting, though he k wasn’t something to take lightly. Turning toward Manna, he gave a slight smile.

  "Tell me, Manna… what kind of vampire would I bee?"

  Without even pausing from her meal, Manna replied bluntly, her voice ft and devoid of emotion.

  "Defective. No brain. Bloodthirsty. Awful. Imperfect."

  Ats chuckled, shaking his head at her sharp, merciless words.

  "I guess I o get stronger first, huh? Maybe one day, I’ll earn a different answer from you."

  Manna g him briefly before returning to her food. "There’s no hope for you."

  Ats smiled softly, then reached out aly tucked a loose strand of Manna’s hair behind her ear with a calm, fideure.

  "Thanks for the answer," he said.

  For a moment, silence fell over the camp.

  The troops nearly froze! Their eyes wide with shod fear

  What just happened?!

  They stared in disbelief. Did their Lord just… touch the Vampire Queen? The terrifying, silent Manna who everyone feared to eveo?

  But…

  Nothing happened.

  Manna tinued eating calmly, as if she hadn’t even noticed the gesture. aliation. No gre. No deadly strike.

  Just calm silence.

  The troops exged nervous gheir minds spinning. What did they just witness?

  And then, a sihought began to take hold.

  Lord Ats… truly is a queror!

  If he could casually brush aside the untouchable Vampire Queen, what else was he capable of?

  He would bee a great Lord—one who quers not just nds, but the loyalty of even the most fearsome beings.

  Suddenly, Ats’s attention ulled away as a notification appeared in his system.

  [Kurogasa]: "My Lord, I believe I've found the pce we're looking for—the spot where the monsters we're hunting are located."