Early on the morning of the second day, Kal’tsit woke up from the cold stone slab.
She stretched her slightly stiff body, her short silver-white hair dusted with a few tiny ice crystals.
“Hoo…” She gently exhaled a puff of white mist, her slender fingers brushing through her hair to shake off the ice chips.
Her pale green pupils flickered with a vigilant light in the morning light, and the cat ears on top of her head twitched slightly, catching any suspicious sounds around her.
The cold wind whipped fine snow across the wasteland, and Kal’tsit raised her hand to tuck her short silvery-gray hair behind her ears, the cat ears on top of her head turning alertly.
“This weather is truly… unpleasant.” She muttered in a low complaint, her pale green eyes narrowing slightly as she scanned the surrounding snowy white expanse.
When climbing up that low hill, Kal’tsit suddenly stopped in her tracks.
Her cat ears perked up sharply, and her pupils suddenly constricted.
“There is something…” Before the words finished falling, she had already agilely leaped backward.
The very instant she left, a red and a blue light violently collided, the resulting shockwave kicking up the snow several meters high.
“Frostcrystal creation and Blazing-flower creation…” Kal’tsit calmly recited those two names, her slender fingers already resting on her waist.
“mon3tr!” Her voice remained clearly distinguishable amidst the howling cold wind.
A dark shadow emerged in response, like lightning tearing through the night sky.
mon3tr’s sharp claw blades traced a perfect arc in the air, and the two crystalline monsters turned into dust of light filling the sky before they even had time to make a sound.
Kal’tsit gazed at the drifting points of light, her brow slightly furrowed.
“An enemy of this level… It seems the danger level of this world needs to be re-evaluated.”
She thoughtfully looked mon3tr up and down.
“Since it’s currently powered by the energy of the path of remembrance…” Kal’tsit murmured softly to herself, her fingertips unconsciously tapping her chin,
“perhaps I can try that form?”
“mon3tr, change into human form.” She commanded tentatively.
The black energy began to twist and reorganize, and in the blink of an eye, a young girl wearing a black uniform appeared on the snow.
The young girl’s pitch-black long hair cascaded down like a waterfall, and her emerald-like pupils shone brightly under the reflection of the snow.
“What are your instructions? Dr. Kal’tsit?” mon3tr tilted her head slightly, her voice clear and steady.
She moved her newly acquired limbs, her movements so elegant that they didn’t look like someone using a human form for the first time.
Kal’tsit’s gaze carefully patrolled over mon3tr’s body, missing nothing from the tips of her hair to the tips of her toes.
“The energy conversion efficiency is 23% higher than expected…” She nodded thoughtfully,
“however, why have you always maintained your prototype form before?”
mon3tr blinked, an action that added a bit of vitality to her stern face.
“The prototype form is more suitable for combat.” She answered earnestly, while unconsciously adjusting her standing posture,
“and can protect you more effectively.”
“Heh…” Kal’tsit’s lips curved into a barely perceptible arc,
“that certainly fits your core directive.” She turned to look south,
“let’s continue moving forward, we need to find a suitable campsite before dark.”
mon3tr immediately followed, maintaining a just-right distance.
She glanced around from time to time, her emerald pupils flashing with vigilant light under the reflection of the snow.
As for Kal’tsit, she always maintained a steady pace, her slender figure casting a firm silhouette on the snow.
“Speaking of which…” Kal’tsit suddenly spoke up without looking back,
“under the human form, how much will your combat effectiveness decrease?”
mon3tr shook her head gently, her black hair fluttering lightly in the wind.
“The loss in effectiveness does not exceed 7%, only the attack patterns need to be adjusted.” Her voice was calm and resolute,
“do you need a demonstration?”
“No need.” Kal’tsit raised her hand to stop her, “Saving energy is the priority.”
Her gaze cast towards the faintly visible mountain outlines in the distance, “The journey ahead… is still very long.”
The two figures marched one after the other like this, leaving a trail of crisscrossing footprints of varying depths on the pristine white snow.
The piercing cold wind still howled, yet it could no longer shake their determination to move forward.
mon3tr’s green eyes remained closely fixed on Kal’tsit’s back, ready at any moment to deal with any possible danger.
“Right, Dr. Kal’tsit, can I hug you?” mon3tr’s voice suddenly came from behind, carrying a hint of anticipation.
Kal’tsit’s footsteps noticeably paused for a split second, her silver-white hair swaying gently with that pause.
“No, you cannot.” Her reply was crisp and neat, her tone so calm that no fluctuations could be heard.
mon3tr nodded obediently behind her, this result completely within expectations.
“If she agreed, I’d have to consider whether Dr. Kal’tsit’s brain had been frozen solid.” She thought silently to herself.
“Then Dr. Kal’tsit, where in Terra are we right now?” mon3tr changed the subject, her emerald eyes curiously appraising the surrounding snowy scenery.
Kal’tsit shook her head gently, her hair fluttering in the cold wind.
“We are not in Terra.” She paused for a moment, “To be precise, I have traveled to a new world.”
Before Kal’tsit could continue explaining, mon3tr’s expression suddenly turned stern.
Her figure instantly transformed into a dark shadow, rushing toward the front of Kal’tsit at an astonishing speed.
At the same time, Kal’tsit also acutely sensed the danger, quickly tilting her head—a sharp ice cone flew past her earlobe, cutting off a few strands of silver-white hair that slowly drifted down.
“This is… ice from outer space.” Kal’tsit narrowed her eyes, looking at the crystalline monster suspended mid-air.
That fellow was over three meters tall, its whole body composed of crystal-clear ice crystals, refracting a dazzling light under the sunlight.
mon3tr’s sharp claws mercilessly pierced through the monster’s body, tearing it in half.
The crystalline monster didn’t even have time to counterattack before it turned into countless ice chips scattering all over the ground.
After the battle ended, mon3tr changed back into human form, and suddenly rested her head gently on Kal’tsit’s shoulder.
“Hmm?” Kal’tsit raised an eyebrow, “Learning bad habits?”
Hearing this, mon3tr immediately took two steps back, but those emerald-like eyes flashed with a sly light.
“Not at all, Dr.
Kal’tsit.” Her voice carried a hint of playfulness, “It’s just that for some reason, in this current form, I just especially want to be close to Dr.
Kal’tsit.”
Kal’tsit gave a light hum and turned to continue walking forward, but mon3tr acutely noticed that the tips of the doctor’s ears seemed a bit redder than usual—perhaps due to the bitterly cold weather.
Kal’tsit tightened her collar, the white mist she exhaled quickly dissipating in the cold wind.
“Don’t do unnecessary things.” She said without turning her head, her voice carrying its customary chill, “Maintain vigilance, under this environment at any time it might…”
Before the words finished falling, the snow-covered ground suddenly shook violently.
mon3tr instantly flashed in front of Kal’tsit, her black hair flying in the wind and snow.
“There is something underground!” Her emerald pupils constricted into a thin line.
Accompanied by a deafening roar, a huge frost spider burst out from the snow, its eight compound eyes flashing with deep blue light.
“Shadow of Perpetual Winter…” Kal’tsit quickly retreated a few steps, “mon3tr, watch out for its…”
The monster suddenly spat out ice silk filling the sky, and mon3tr agilely picked up Kal’tsit and leaped into mid-air.
“I know, an oversized spider.” She turned nimbly in the air, landing steadily on a protruding rock in the distance.
“Put me down.” Kal’tsit frowned and said.
Only then did mon3tr realize that she was still maintaining a princess-carry posture, and hurriedly loosened her hands.
“Sorry, Dr. Kal’tsit… my body just did it by itself…”
Kal’tsit tidied up her ruffled collar, her gaze constantly locked onto the distant monster.
“Its weakness is the carapace on the third segment of its abdomen.” She analyzed quickly, “Use a piercing attack.”
mon3tr nodded, her figure transforming into a dark shadow once again to assault the monster.
This time, sharp energy blades extended from her arms, piercing precisely into the location Kal’tsit mentioned.
The monster let out a piercing screech and crashed to the ground.
When mon3tr returned to Kal’tsit’s side, she found that the doctor was staring at her thoughtfully.
“Your combat instincts… are sharper than they were in Terra.”
mon3tr tilted her head, the snowflakes on her black hair falling in rustling flurries.
“Perhaps it’s because it’s now entirely driven by Path energy?” She answered tentatively, “However… I always feel…”
“Always feel what?”
“I always feel that protecting Dr. Kal’tsit like this… is more… natural than when we were in Terra.”
As mon3tr spoke, she suddenly reached out to brush a snowflake off Kal’tsit’s shoulder, “Just like this.”
Kal’tsit was slightly startled, but quickly returned to her normal state.
“Don’t get too carried away.” She turned around and continued moving forward, her voice a bit softer than usual, “…However, you did well.”
The corners of mon3tr’s mouth lifted quietly as she quickly caught up.
In the wind and snow, the figures of the two gradually disappeared into the depths of the boundless snowfield.