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The elevation had already exceeded 8,000 meters, yet my equipment remained the same—a simple white fur coat.

(Everest’s temperatures drop to around -30°C, right? I thought I’d need an oxygen mask or something similar, but honestly, I can’t believe I’m managing with just this coat at such a high altitude; that’s comparable to even Mount Everest! If a mountaineer were to see this, they’d shout, ‘No freaking way!’ But this is just a dream! An incredibly vivid and long one at that!!)

I was so glad that everything felt so easy.

“Still, the closer I get to the summit, the larger the Mobs seem to get.”

I had already taken down quite a few Mobs since passing the gatekeeper. And I’d even downgraded my gear from A to D Rank.

My D Rank equipment consisted of white half-plate armor, throat pads, shoulder pads, torso pads, shin guards, and gauntlets, all adorned with white plates. Below the tassets at my waist was an over-the-knee leather skirt, which allowed for my dazzling white thighs to show as I moved.

The chest area was also open, giving quite the view of the twin dunes beneath.

My weapon of choice was a one-handed sword called the Generation Sword. As usual, I had two swords, one for each hand. The blade was thick with a hefty grip, and the large cross-shaped guard jutted forward at both ends like thorns, featuring intricate carvings.

Compared to the G0 swords, which had a more menacing design, these ones felt knightly—refined and simple. Having it alongside the white half-plate armor, I couldn’t help but think, “Don’t I look like a knight right now?”

“I finally stopped blowing everything up once I finally downgraded my weapons to D Rank. That said, it doesn’t change the fact I’m still one-shotting everything… Even the massive Frost Dragon I encountered earlier turned out to be a joke. And before it, there was the Frost Giant. It was about the size of the thing I saw in Odaiba—probably around 18 meters. Yet, I also effortlessly sliced it in half with nothing more than a bamboo stick.” I muttered to myself, tapping my right shoulder with the flat of my sword.

“Still, this place really is all blue. Let’s hope the Mobs here turn out to be stronger… I can’t tell the difference anymore, you know?!” As I continued along the mountainside, I spoke aloud, almost as if I had given up.

The summit was already within sight. With this body, I could easily reach it in a single leap. Before heading to the top, I paused and turned to look back, gazing down from an altitude of over 9,000 meters.

“I knew I was high up, but to think that I’d see the horizon curve… It’s incredible. And it’s not just breathtaking. You can only see such a view inside of a dream!”

Below, beyond the vast mountain range, stretched the forest I had been wandering in just a day or two before. It looked huge even from here, extending far to the south.

The horizon blurred into a sea of clouds, so the forest’s edge was barely visible. However, far beyond it, I could faintly make out what seemed to be a flat, possibly inhabitable area.

Here and there, the vast forest seemed hollowed out in spots, in the same way moths left holes in clothes. I assumed those places were either lakes or wetlands. Given that I could spot it from this distance, they must have been enormous.

In other places, large rocks stood like massive stumps, with little greenery around them, suggesting the land was barren in those parts. But the forest swallowed these spaces, continuing to spread far and wide.

To my right, west of here, the mountain range and the forest stretched endlessly. A river split through the forest, making its way towards the south. Even from this height, the river was clearly visible, indicating just how massive it was.

To the left, toward the east, I could also see the end of the forest. About roughly 100 kilometers ahead there was a sea, and above it, towering cumulonimbus clouds rose from the water.

I let out a deep sigh, standing in this hazy, brilliant landscape, taking in the world around me for a while.

“Now then.”

I’d lost count of how much time I’d spent here. I tore my gaze away from the view below and squinted as I turned toward the mountainside.

“I know there’s definitely something on the other side!”

With a heavy thud, I leaped, gouging into the mountainside, and landed at the peak.

The moment I reached the top, I immediately looked below. What unfolded before me was a white, desolate world, hidden behind the mountain range. It was the complete opposite of the vibrant world I had passed through. The white landscape was so pure, so sealed off, that no trace of life could be felt.

“Incredible. It’s like this mountain range is a barrier, hiding something beyond it.”

The mountain range rose over 9,000 meters above sea level, running from east to west. Beyond it lay the outer ring of a massive, mortar-shaped caldera.

The distance from where I stood to the ridge at the caldera’s edge was roughly 10 kilometers. The diameter of the caldera was easily twice that, probably more than 20 kilometers.

On the far side of the caldera, more mountains rose, matching this one in altitude, both to the east and the west, as if encasing the caldera in a colossal, natural wall. And at the center of this immense, mortar-shaped caldera there was something awaiting.

“Over there.” I muttered, folding my arms as I looked down at the center of the caldera. “I’ve come this far, so there’s no turning back now. I can’t just not check it out… There’s a good chance it turns out to be Raid, but if I don’t touch it, I should be fine… or was that only in the game? Either way, I need to get close enough to see it! If it looks bad, I’ll just run!”

I whispered to myself as if mentally preparing.

“There seem to be plenty of Mobs along the way, so I’ll go have a bit of fun.”

With a powerful kick, I launched myself off the summit, leaping into the air. As I descended, I slid down the steep snow-covered slope with just the soles of my feet, skillfully gliding as though skiing.

On this side of the mountain, the world was a monochromatic expanse of snow and bare rock, utterly desolate.

I continued my swift descent, jumping ahead with ease. Suddenly, the snow in front of me began to ripple and rise, as if something enormous was burrowing toward me.

Moments later, a massive, white creature erupted from the snow with tremendous force—a Polar Worm. The beast was a gigantic, worm-like creature, nearly a meter thick and over 30 meters long, its head sporting a sharp jaw resembling that of a stag beetle.

The Polar Worm opened its enormous jaws wide and surged directly at me, intent on devouring me whole.

Just before contact, I vaulted forward and twisted my body, spinning like a top. The blade in my hand slashed down in a clean vertical arc, slicing through the Polar Worm’s massive body.

The creature’s long, white body split in two, its momentum carrying it forward as blue fluid splattered across the snow. The two halves of its body crashed to the ground, sinking into the snow.

I landed smoothly on my feet and, without missing a beat, continued running as if nothing had happened.

“Huh, a group this time? Great White Hounds and White Fenrir. What’s up here? That Fenrir is clearly a boss!”

The hound was about 7 to 8 meters long, but the boss, the Fenrir, was nearly twice that size. A group of about eight surrounded me, with the boss in the center.

(It looks like Princess Mononoke could be riding on top of it! And they charge with the force of a damn rhino!)

I sighed and leaped into the air.

Using my outstretched arms as the axis, I spun forward gracefully, arcing towards Fenrir, who stood behind the pack.

The Fenrir’s eyes widened as it momentarily lost sight of me. But quickly, it realized I was coming from above. Thinking it had the perfect opportunity, the Fenrir timed its leap, baring its fangs to catch me midair.

But at the last second, I easily dodged The Fenrir’s bite, landing a powerful stomp on the bridge of its nose before flipping backward.

The Fenrir crashed down, its chin slamming into the ground. Meanwhile, the pack, having missed their prey, panicked and began to run back towards the Fenrir.

I took up a position right behind the Fenrir, preparing to unleash my skills. Planting my feet, I sat back slightly and pointed the tip of my sword at my target.

“You’re minced meat!”

With a swift motion, I thrust my two swords forward, slicing horizontally.

The shockwave spread out from the blade’s tip, cutting through the entire pack consisting of the Fenrir and the White Hounds, turning them into chunks of meat in an instant.

I glanced briefly at the blood-splattered snowfield, then immediately began running again. On the way, I encountered some lizard-like and insect-like Mobs, but I managed to avoid most of them.

After about five minutes of sprinting, I finally reached the foot of the mountain’s outer rim and dashed up to the ridge.

“That Mob seems to be the only one here… I’ll need to prepare myself better this time.” With that, I switched my equipment from the D Rank gear to the G0 one—a set of dark green heavy armor with a light red cape trailing behind me.