The thought had occurred to him some time ago, way back when he started having that recurring dream. Before it, fire would always consume the world whenever he closed his eyes to sleep, so it was all the more bizarre when he started dreaming about the endless land of snow. Then there were those dreams, the ones where she appeared.

There was a lot he still didn’t understand, and a lot that didn’t make sense. Still, if he were to disregard all the things he couldn’t explain and allow himself to grasp that baseless hunch, then maybe, just maybe...

-Hope, huh?-

-Since when were you the kin who believe in such things?-

-Even if there was some to be found, you will never grasp it.-

Taking a deep breath, Dante closed his eyes and activated Spatial Awareness. A mental command brought forth the global 3D model he had been creating. At the moment, it only contained places he had traveled to more than once, while the rest still looked barren, lacking details. Some spots were enveloped in darkness, a sign of his armor’s ability failing to peer inside them.

The world map was mostly complete, with only one part missing. Dante was aware that he had been avoiding the area for a while now. Part of the reason was his fear of not finding anything there. The other part was his fear of finding something.

Until now, he had been far too weak to find out, but things have changed. He was a Level 6 now. He had the world’s most powerful weapon in his hands, and his wealth was growing by the day. Soon enough, he will be ready, and once the time comes, nothing will stop him.

-Careful now. You don’t want to get cocky.-

Dante put all his focus on the 3D model, watching as it gradually expanded. At times, something on the ocean floor would catch his attention, but he quickly returned it to the surface, waiting for the moment something solid would replace all the water.

Feeling his anxiousness skyrocket, Dante gritted his teeth, then he saw it. Something appeared on the surface of the ocean. It had an irregular shape and was roughly the size of a truck. Just by looking, one could tell that it was an iceberg. Another one appeared soon after.

Seeing as both of them were moving, there was a big chance that they had been drifting for quite a while before reaching that far. Still, ice was the sign he needed, and so he continued to watch the model, unable to restrain his anticipation.

-Don’t get excited just yet.-

More and more icebergs appeared on the 3D model, their size increasing the farther the scan reached. Some were larger than most islands, and among them, a few seemed to be stuck in the same location. As more were added to the model, it started to appear like that area was a series of mountains separated by a web of giant rivers.

’Polaris... Ultima...’

Realizing he was looking at the edge of the frozen continent, Dante held his breath, and he was right to do so, because in the next moment, the 3D model reached its end.

’No...’

Spatial Awareness scanned his surroundings in a circle with him at the center. As the circle continued to expand, a piece of its southern border suddenly turned black.

’No, no, no, no...’

The black section grew larger the farther the scan progressed, gradually eating into the 3D model. The arc it formed was a gentle one. As he stared at it, Dante realized there was no point in continuing the scan. Even then, he still sat there and waited, watching as a massive black sphere formed inside his 3D model.

-See? You shouldn’t have gotten your hopes up.-

Clicking his tongue, Dante activated Teleportation, setting his destination to the edge of his 3D model, right where it intersected with the dark abyss. He arrived at the peak of a snowy mountain and was immediately blasted by powerful wind. Thankfully, it wasn’t snowing, so the view wasn’t obstructed. Once again, he activated Spatial Awareness. The scan resumed, and the 3D model expanded faster than before, quickly covering the areas that had yet to be scanned. Before long, the worst came to be, confirming a prediction Dante was hoping would turn out wrong.

As countermeasures against spatial abilities became more common, more and more places around the world appeared as dark spots on his 3D model. Looking at it as a whole, those spots appeared as nothing more than tiny dots, barely covering a couple of kilometers. Compared to those, the last one to form was colossal in size, like a dark abyss that swallowed the entire frozen continent.

’You got to be kidding...’

-Seriously, what did you think would happen?-

-Did you expect that they would have no countermeasures whatsoever?-

-Or did you think that they would block only one spot, narrowing down the search area for you?-

-Guess what? They probably camouflaged the entire place, too.-

-But hey, at least one of your dreams will come true.-

-You now have a reason to walk through miles and miles of snow.-

-Maybe you’ll run into that wall by chance like you did that time.-

-Or maybe you’ll waste even more time and still find nothing.-

-Nothing strange about that, thought.-

-It’s not like this is a first.-

-When it comes to wasting time and having nothing to show for it, a failure like you is a pro.-

’Damn it...’

Dante glared in the direction of the invisible barrier blocking his senses, and the storm around him stirred, as if responding to the one raging inside him. Another mental command brought him to the border. Only one step separated him from the dark abyss, and having come this close, he realized that even his Absolute Awareness was blocked. His sight worked just fine, and so did his hearing, but without the ability to sense everything in his immediate surroundings, Dante felt that he would become blind the moment he passed through the barrier.

Not that it was about to stop him.

Raising his leg, he took a step forward, crushing the hesitation that held him back under the metallic soles of his armor. Encased in layers of alloy, he stepped through into the darkness.

TINGG