After an entire day of relentless advancement through the Ancient Domain, the three of them finally agreed that they needed to rest.
The Frozen Throne did not permit exhaustion to announce itself loudly. Fatigue crept in silently, buried beneath layers of cold and pressure, eroding concentration little by little.
They chose a hollow within the frostbound forest, where ancient trees locked together like ribs of ice, shielding them from the worst of the wind. There could be no ordinary fire here. Jinkan activated a specialized heating artifact instead—an orb etched with rotating sigils that radiated a steady, contained warmth. The heat did not spread far, but it was enough to allow all three of them to slightly relax their protective layers.
The cold of the domain could be pushed back.
However,
The cold between Jinkan and Eeshoo could not.
