The sky bled frost.
Ethan stood at the overpass for hours, watching the new world rebuild itself into something unrecognizable. Every gust of wind carried a shimmer — dust that glittered like snow but burned cold when it touched the skin. The air itself hummed with mana, unstable, raw.
The System pulsed again.
[System Phase Two Complete.]
[Dungeon Growth Accelerating.]
[Hostiles Emerging: Tier 2 Entities.]
[Survivor Groups Detected — 14% Class Distribution Achieved.]
Fourteen percent. Out of billions, only a fraction had adapted. The rest were still prey.
He sheathed his runeblade, the weapon pulsing faintly like a living thing. Around him, the frost-bound ghouls knelt silently, awaiting command.
"Come on," he murmured. "Let's see what the world looks like now."
The first thing he noticed when he reached downtown Lansing was the silence — not the absence of sound, but the way the world seemed to hold its breath. Windows were covered in ice from the inside out. Streetlights flickered dimly, their bases cracked open by roots of crystal mana.
Something moved above him — fast.
He ducked just as a creature swooped low over the street, wings cutting through the mist. Its body was serpentine, its eyes glowing bright azure.
[Entity: Frostwyrmling — Level 11]
A dragon. A small one, but still a dragon.
Ethan exhaled slowly. "We're escalating already…"
He raised a hand. The sigil of frost lit across his gauntlet.
[Skill: Soulrend Chain]
A spectral chain burst from his palm, catching the wyrmling mid-flight. It shrieked, ice spreading across its wings, dragging it down in a spiral. The beast crashed through a row of abandoned cars, shattering glass and metal.
The ground shook once. Then silence.
Ethan approached, blade drawn. The wyrmling struggled, breath steaming with blue fire. He plunged the runeblade through its chest, twisting. The frost spread until the creature stilled.
[Frostwyrmling Defeated +520 EXP.]
[Item Acquired: Mana Heart (Rare).]
[Level Up — 7 ➝ 8.]
He picked up the glowing heart, studying the way it pulsed in rhythm with his own heartbeat. Another piece of the puzzle. Another step toward control.
He was still examining it when the sound of boots echoed behind him.
"Whoa, whoa, easy!" a voice called. "I come in peace — and preferably in one piece!"
Ethan turned.
A man in scavenged riot gear stood at the intersection, holding a massive slab of rebar over one shoulder. His helmet was missing, revealing short messy brown hair and a grin that didn't seem to understand the meaning of fear.
"You're either crazy," the man said, "or really damn good at what you do. Please tell me it's both."
Ethan said nothing.
The man jogged closer, eyeing the frozen wyrmling. "You killed that thing solo?"
"Wasn't much of a fight," Ethan said.
"Sure, and I'm the Pope." The man dropped his makeshift weapon and extended a hand. "Name's Joseph. Warrior, apparently. Still figuring out what that means besides hitting things until they stop moving."
Ethan hesitated before taking his hand. "Ethan."
Joseph's grin widened. "Death Knight, right? Kinda hard to miss the glowing eyes, the ice, the army of nightmares behind you."
Ethan's gaze flicked toward his undead — still standing silently at the edge of the street. "You're not afraid."
"Oh, I'm terrified," Joseph said cheerfully. "But I figure if they were gonna eat me, you'd have done it already. Besides…" He looked at the wyrmling's corpse. "I'm not dumb enough to pick a fight with someone who solos dragons before breakfast."
Despite himself, Ethan almost smiled.
"Where are you heading?" Joseph asked.
Ethan sheathed his blade. "North. Toward the power plant. The energy readings there are higher than anywhere else in the region. Probably where the next dungeon is forming."
Joseph whistled. "You're actually hunting them?"
"Yes."
"You know most people are running from them, right?"
"That's why most people are dying."
Joseph blinked, then grinned. "Well, damn. That's metal as hell. Alright, Frosty — mind if I tag along? I promise to only scream a little if we get eaten."
Ethan glanced at him. "You'll slow me down."
"Probably. But I'll keep things interesting."
The Death Knight's silence stretched for several heartbeats before he turned and started walking. "Fine. Try not to die."
Joseph chuckled, jogging to keep up. "Can't make promises I can't keep."
They moved north through the city's frozen carcass, past burned-out vehicles and corpses that glittered faintly under the frost. The System had reshaped everything — even the air felt heavier, alive.
Occasionally, Joseph tried conversation.
"So… death magic, huh?"
"Yes."
"Is it as depressing as it sounds?"
Ethan's expression didn't change. "Worse."
"Cool. Cool. Good to know."
A few minutes later:
"Can your skeletons do laundry?"
"No."
"Damn. Guess I'm stuck washing my own pants after that dragon stunt."
The man was ridiculous. And yet — oddly comforting. Ethan hadn't realized how quiet his mind had become until Joseph's chatter filled the empty space.
When they finally reached the outskirts of the power plant, the ground trembled with faint rhythmic pulses. The air shimmered — like heat haze, but cold.
[Dungeon Forming — Tier 2 Detected.]
[Environmental Contamination: Frost Mana Saturation 82%.]
Ethan drew his blade. "It's almost ready to open."
Joseph cracked his neck. "You ever think about just, you know, not walking into these death traps?"
"No."
"Right, of course. Because why not make things harder?"
Ethan's eyes glowed faintly in the dim light. "You can stay here if you want."
Joseph grinned and hoisted his rebar weapon. "Nah. If I'm gonna die, I'd rather it be next to the guy who killed a dragon with a sword made of ice."
The frost deepened around them. The world went quiet.
Then the ground split open.
A geyser of frost erupted upward, forming a jagged rift that pulsed with blue light. The temperature dropped so fast Joseph's breath crystallized midair.
From the rift crawled something enormous — insectoid, with armor plates of frozen chitin and eyes like shattered mirrors.
[Entity: Frost Reaver — Level 15, Dungeon Guardian.]
Joseph stared. "Oh, hell no."
Ethan's runeblade flared to life, ice crawling up his arm. "Stay behind me."
The monster screeched, lunging forward with claws sharp enough to split steel. Ethan moved like shadow and frost — his blade slicing through one claw, his ghoul intercepting the other.
Joseph dove aside, rolling behind a fallen generator. He peeked out just long enough to watch Ethan drive his sword into the beast's chest, frost exploding outward like a blizzard.
"Remind me," Joseph muttered to himself, "to never piss that guy off."
Ethan twisted his blade, unleashing Soulrend Chain again. The spectral frost shot through the monster's chest, ripping through its essence.
[Enemy Defeated +1,240 EXP.]
[Dungeon Core Materialized.]
The air shimmered. The frost receded. Ethan knelt, picking up the pulsing shard of blue crystal.
Joseph approached cautiously. "That's… one hell of a light show."
Ethan nodded. "It's a Core. Each one strengthens the world — or the one who takes it."
Joseph crossed his arms. "And you're taking them all."
Ethan looked up. "Someone has to."
The warrior grinned. "Well, good thing you've got me now, huh? Every king needs a jester."
Ethan almost laughed — almost. "Every jester needs to survive the day."
"Challenge accepted."
The Frost Reaver's carcass hissed as it cooled, its icy shell splintering into pieces that scattered like shards of glass. The air trembled with residual mana, and the frost still creeping along the ground glittered faintly beneath the fractured sunlight.
Ethan stood over the fading body, blade embedded in the ground, frost crawling up his arm and dissipating into faint trails of mist. His undead gathered around him again — silent, obedient, and unwavering.
Joseph leaned on his weapon, breathing heavily, sweat freezing across his brow. "So, uh… that thing was a 'Level 15 Dungeon Guardian,' right?"
Ethan nodded without looking up. "Yes."
"And what level are we again?"
"Eight."
Joseph let out a shaky laugh. "Cool. Cool. Just wanted to make sure I was properly terrified."
Ethan pulled his blade free. "You did fine."
"Fine?" Joseph raised an eyebrow. "I hid behind a generator and prayed."
"Smartest thing you could have done."
"Not exactly what I was going for, but I'll take it."
They started deeper into the ruined power plant. The dungeon had changed the structure — hallways were warped with frost, pipes hung like icicles, and machinery glowed faintly with trapped mana. Strange runes burned along the walls, flickering like veins of cold fire.
Ethan's undead scouted ahead. Each footstep echoed across the empty metal corridors.
"So…" Joseph began, voice low, "is this how it's gonna be? We go around killing frozen bug monsters and collecting shiny rocks until you're God of the Ice Age?"
Ethan didn't answer right away. "Something like that."
"Right," Joseph said with mock seriousness. "And I'll just be over here, comic relief and emotional support. Maybe I can start a podcast: Surviving the End of the World with My Emotionally Unavailable Ice Wizard Friend."
Ethan gave him a look that could have frozen sunlight.
Joseph grinned wider. "Hey, that's a yes in Death Knight terms."
They reached a reinforced steel door at the end of the corridor. Frost covered it completely, sealing it shut. Strange markings glowed across its surface — wards, or maybe something alive.
Ethan touched the edge. The frost burned his gauntlet. "It's sealed with mana. Strong. I could break it, but it would draw attention."
Joseph stepped forward. "Nah, nah, I got this."
Ethan raised a brow. "You do?"
Joseph cracked his knuckles, squared his shoulders, and stared at the door with a dramatic glare. Then — he screamed.
"OPEN UP, YOU METAL BASTARD!"
The words echoed down the hall. For a heartbeat, nothing happened.
Then, with a loud clank, the door's runes flickered… and it slowly creaked open.
The silence that followed was deafening.
Ethan blinked. "You… intimidated a door."
Joseph stared at the door, equally confused. "I— I don't know, man! I did it once at the police station a few days ago. Yelled at a jammed locker and it popped open. I just… went with it."
Ethan's expression didn't change. "You're telling me your strategy for bypassing magical seals is screaming at them until they give up?"
Joseph shrugged. "Hey, if it works, it works. I call it the 'Vocal Command Technique.' Ancient warrior art. Passed down from… me."
Ethan pinched the bridge of his nose. "Unbelievable."
Joseph gestured toward the open passageway. "You're just mad I'm more efficient than your magic."
The Death Knight glared at him. "Say that again when the next door eats you."
"Ha! Joke's on you. I'll yell louder."
Ethan exhaled slowly. "You're insufferable."
Joseph smirked. "And yet, you keep me around. Admit it — I'm growing on you."
Ethan didn't respond, but there was the faintest flicker of amusement behind his eyes as he stepped through the open doorway.
Beyond the door was a large chamber — a control room warped by mana. Frost-covered terminals blinked weakly, and the air thrummed with unstable power. A holographic display still hovered faintly above the main console, flickering with System glyphs.
[Dungeon Core Stabilized.]
[Environmental Mana Compression Active.]
[Warning: Rift Integrity at 23%. Collapse Imminent.]
Ethan studied the display. "It's unstable. When the core was destroyed, it started to collapse."
Joseph frowned. "Meaning what, exactly?"
"Meaning this place will implode into a frozen crater in about three minutes."
Joseph froze. "…Three minutes?"
Ethan turned toward him, calm as ever. "Run."
"Oh, now you tell me!"
They sprinted back the way they came — frost cracking beneath their boots, the metal groaning around them. Behind them, the walls began to shatter, collapsing inward as frost consumed itself.
Joseph nearly tripped over one of Ethan's undead. "Tell your bone boys to pick up the pace!"
"They don't get tired."
"Yeah, well, I do!"
They burst through the outer door just as the plant exploded behind them — a dome of white frost expanding outward, then collapsing in a shower of crystal dust. The shockwave knocked Joseph flat on his back.
He groaned, staring up at the sky. "Next time, maybe lead with the 'it's gonna explode' part."
Ethan stood over him, unfazed. "If you'd been faster, you wouldn't have needed the warning."
Joseph pointed a gloved finger at him. "You are the worst motivational speaker I've ever met."
The Death Knight's mouth twitched. "And yet, you're still alive."
Joseph laughed, rolling to his feet. "Barely! My cardio wasn't built for apocalypses!"
Ethan sheathed his blade. "Then adapt."
Joseph gave a mock salute. "Yes, sir, Captain Frostbite."
For the first time, Ethan almost smiled.
They turned to face the horizon. The explosion had scattered frost across the nearby fields — a shimmering landscape of glass and ice. The city beyond was waking up again, fires burning where people fought, where monsters roamed, where others adapted to the new laws of survival.
And somewhere among them, new Classes were awakening.
The world wasn't dying anymore. It was evolving.
Ethan looked down at his gauntlet, watching frost crawl across the metal. "It's only going to get worse."
Joseph cracked his neck and picked up his weapon. "Then let's make sure we get better faster."
Two men — one dead inside, one laughing through the end of the world — walked north through the frost. Behind them, the remains of a dungeon collapsed into silence.
It was the beginning of something greater — a partnership forged in ice and chaos, and the first spark of what the survivors would one day call… the Reign of Frost.