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Jin-Woo had a bit of history with the monsters called Ice Elves.

Didn't he encounter these creatures when he stumbled into a Red Gate for the first time in his life? How rueful did he feel back then, after seeing the boss mob 'Baruka' slipping out of his hands while leaving only a dagger behind?

Just remembering that event brought back all the bad emotions he felt then after failing to extract that monster's shadow.

'And here I was, having just barely forgotten about it....'

Naturally, his strength while gripping this creature's wrist and neck increased.

Wuduk!

[Keok!]

In any case, why was a high-ranking monster that should have been confined to a dungeon roaming freely around here?

Jin-Woo got here by switching his position with his Shadow Soldier. Next up, he used 'Ruler's Authority' to keep his balance and float in the air about 7 or 8 stories high. While gripping the monster tightly, he asked this mysterious Ice Elf a question.

"What the hell are you?"

Seeing those pointy ears, or the long whitish hair, or even its pair of silvery eyes, this thing seemed to be a White Phantom alright, but then again, he could also sense the trace of an unfathomably lengthy passage of time from this creature, too.

Not only that....

[Kuwuaaahk!]

The monster gritted its teeth and shook off Jin-Woo's hands.

'....!!'

What an incredible physical strength!

Even before he had the chance to get surprised from the monster slipping out of his grasp, Jin-Woo picked up on this chilling aura coagulating around the creature's mouth.

Inexplicably, the image of Demon King Baran shooting lightning out of its mouth overlapped with this b*stard. By sheer instinct, Jin-Woo tilted his torso away.

Kawahh-!!

The bitterly cold air shot out from the monster's mouth, sped past Jin-Woo's original position, and poured out into the air behind him.

After confirming the scary amount of magical energy being poured out by the monster with his two eyes, Jin-Woo quickly retreated an adequate-enough distance away.

'.....'

He lightly dusted the particles of ice clinging onto his shoulder and stared intently at the Ice Elf – no, the Sovereign of Frost.

That thing was no ordinary monster. His ultra-sharp senses were warning him that this thing was much stronger than any monster he had faced off against so far.

Jin-Woo wasn't the only one getting surprised, though.

[But, how can you....??]

The Sovereign hurriedly looked at Jin-Woo's shadow and, after confirming the number of soldiers hiding in there, couldn't hide the fact that it was feeling deeply surprised right now.

[You have managed to amass that many soldiers, so why haven't you contacted us already?]

When Jin-Woo made no effort to reply, the Sovereign began looking into his eyes. And then, a pained gasp leaked out from the creature's mouth.

[So, that's how it was.... You're the variable he talked about, aren't you?]

What was this fool talking about?

Jin-Woo was getting rather curious about the meaning behind this monster's constant babbling, but too bad, he didn't have enough leeway to hold a cordial Q&A session with this creature.

Just one moment of carelessness and the enemy's blade would reach him. And that blade wasn't dull enough for him to ignore it and hope for the best. As a matter of fact, his shoulder that got frozen for a moment just a few seconds ago was still aching even now.

Jin-Woo took a glance at the hurting shoulder and quietly summoned the 'Demon King's Shortswords' from his Inventory.

Weapons silently appeared in his hands.

'Is it a Mage-type creature?'

Judging from how it barely managed to get out of his grasp, its physical strength or defences didn't seem to be as high as its magical energy reserve suggested.

Which was a relief, actually.

He knew from his vast experiences in fighting many different types of monsters up until now that the Mage-type enemies were the easiest to deal with since they could be killed in an instant.

Just one hit would be enough to determine the winner.

If they both possessed a similar level of magical energy reserves, then the one needing to dodge the magic attacks would hold an advantage.

His opponent must've known that too because it didn't immediately try to go on the offensive, even though it had clearly sensed Jin-Woo's hostility.

The Sovereign of Frost deliberated on its options very seriously – but, only for a brief time – before deciding on what it would do next.

[....We shall stop here. I didn't come here today to hold a life-or-death struggle with you.]

"What was that??"

Jin-Woo frowned deeply. He had no desire to let this guy leave, so just who decided when they would stop fighting?

Besides, this creature wielded a massive amount of magic energy. Jin-Woo couldn't even begin to imagine just how many experience points he'd earn if he successfully killed this monster. His level might even jump up by another ten, just like back when he killed the King of Giants.

'....Hang on.'

When his thoughts arrived there, Jin-Woo finally deduced the identity of the monster.

'Could that thing be....??'

Meanwhile, the Sovereign pointed towards the broken wall of the Hunter's Association building.

[Did you not come here to save that human?]

Technically speaking, he came here because the ant soldier he left behind in the Association President's shadow sent him an urgent alert, that was all.

Jin-Woo's gaze shifted towards the location the Sovereign's outstretched finger was pointing at. And he found Goh Gun-Hui lying on the floor there.

'....!!'

The unconscious Association President was covered in blood from head to toe, and even at a casual glance, he could tell that the man's life was hanging precariously on the edge.

It was then.

[Now, choose.]

A large, incredibly sharp ice lance suddenly formed on the left hand of the Sovereign.

[Choose between fighting me or saving that human.]

The moment the creature's words came to an end, the lance flew towards Goh Gun-Hui.