"This is the Heart of the Forest," I explained calmly, holding it up so the emerald light cast shadows across their stunned faces. "Or, you can call it a Titan’s Heart. It is the intact mana core of a mutated Treant that had evolved to an apex boss level in the Wilderness."

I looked directly at Arthur.

"As you can sense, the mana inside this thing is incredibly dense and entirely pure. In our current predicament, where the magical barrier is failing due to the Frostward Core burning out... this Heart can be used as an immediate, high-capacity replacement to power the fortress wards."

The glowing emerald light of the Titan’s Heart pulsed rhythmically, casting long, eerie shadows across the frozen parapet. For a long moment, the only sound was the howling wind.

Arthur, Viktor, and Rumina stared at the massive core, completely mesmerized by the sheer density of the natural mana radiating from it.

I sighed, tossing the heavy orb lightly in my hand. "Well? Are you all just going to keep staring at it, or do you actually want to fix the wall?"

Rumina finally snapped out of her academic trance. She took a deep breath, her amber eyes snapping up to meet mine. "If this thing can truly act as the core for the barrier... then I will completely forget about how you obtained that information, or how you managed to come back alive."

She turned her gaze toward Viktor. The veteran Commander didn’t need any further instruction; he completely understood the assignment.

Viktor stepped forward, carefully taking the pulsating Titan’s Heart from my hands as if he were holding a fragile bomb. Without another word, he turned and sprinted down the stone stairs, rushing toward the underground control room where the failing Frostward Core was housed.

We waited on the wall. Every single second felt like an agonizing hour.

Down in the courtyard, the penal soldiers and knights gripped their weapons, nervously watching the sky and the fractured ice walls. The monster horde was still out there in the fog, regrouping for the next wave.

Then— WUUUUM—!

A sudden, massive surge of mana exploded into the freezing air. The pressure was so intense it made the snow physically vibrate.

Panic immediately erupted in the courtyard below. "What’s happening?!" "Is it an earthquake?!" "Brace yourselves! Another wave of monsters is coming! They’re using magic!"

The soldiers raised their shields, terrified by the sudden density in the atmosphere. But the attack never came. Instead, they slowly began to see the change.

It started from the center of the eastern gate. The deep, jagged scratches clawed into the stone simply disappeared. The massive, dangerous cracks that had threatened to bring the entire structure down were smoothly filled in by weaving lines of glowing emerald and pale blue mana.

The faded, weathered color of the ancient fortress wall rapidly regained its vibrancy, looking as if the stone had just been quarried that morning.

"...What is this?" Commander Arthur whispered, gripping the parapet.

The changes gradually spread outward from the center. It expanded more and more, eventually catching the attention of every single soldier in the fortress.

Scattered, broken stones physically lifted off the ground and reassembled themselves into the masonry. Collapsed pillars rose back up, grinding into place with a heavy, satisfying thud. The temporary glacial ice Princess Celestia had desperately layered over the gaps melted away, seamlessly replaced by solid, reinforced bedrock infused with the Titan’s Heart.

The barrier was returning to its former glory, as if it had just been built. The sight was the very picture of absolute ’restoration.’

"Wow..."

Someone in the courtyard gasped, and the sound rippled through the entire crowd. Weapons clattered to the snow. Men took off their helmets, staring upward. It was a sight far more akin to a divine miracle than mere magic. Some of the hardened, death-row penal soldiers even sank to their knees on the frozen ground and simply gaped in pure awe.

"See? Told ya," I said casually, leaning against the newly restored crenellations, desperately hiding my own relief.

Beside me, Commander Arthur was trembling. The grizzled, scarred Lord of Winterguard slowly turned toward me. To my absolute horror, the towering veteran suddenly bowed his head deeply.

"Cadet Lucien... how can I ever repay you?" Arthur’s voice was thick with raw emotion.

"What are you saying, Commander?" I replied quickly, waving a hand. "You don’t need to repay me. I did it for the Empire, not just for you."

"That may be true," Arthur said, refusing to lift his head. "But we are the ones standing on the frontier. We would have fallen first. Even if the barrier would have eventually been restored by the Capital’s mages weeks from now... who knows how many of my men’s lives would have been lost today?"

The old man’s shoulders shook slightly. He was getting genuinely emotional.

"Ninety-five percent..." Arthur rasped, his voice cracking. "Ninety-five percent is the standard mortality rate of Winterguard. It is a graveyard for knights and sinners alike. But ever since you arrived... in the last ten days... not a single knight has lost his life."

I stood there, feeling incredibly awkward. Being yelled at or threatened by villains? I could handle that all day. Getting this much genuine, heartfelt praise from a battle-hardened veteran? I had no idea what to do with it.

Then, Arthur bowed even deeper, bending at a perfect ninety-degree angle.

"I am sorry," the Commander said loudly. "I am truly sorry for speaking such harsh, insulting words to you on the very first day you arrived. I was a blind old fool."

He looked up, his weathered eyes shining with gratitude. "I am so incredibly glad you didn’t take my advice and go back south. Thank you. Thank you, truly."

Oh, for the love of... somebody help me, I sighed internally, my ears burning with embarrassment as I frantically looked around for an escape route.

But no one was there to rescue me. I glanced to my left, only to realize Princess Rumina had long since quietly vanished from the wall, likely heading down to the control room to inspect the newly integrated core herself.

Down below, the soldiers were too busy happily buzzing and cheering over the magically restored barrier to notice my internal crisis. I was stuck on the wall, nodding awkwardly while a legendary Imperial Commander treated me like his personal savior.