Alex gritted his teeth as he grasped the edge of the [Ice Coffin], his fingers digging into its frosty surface.
A chill crept up his arms, but he held firm, pouring all his strength into the effort.
The oppressive energy surrounding the coffin seemed to push back against him, testing his resolve.
The room was silent, save for the faint hum of magic still lingering from Tolkien's earlier work.
Alice, Eleonora, and Alphox watched with bated breath as Alex strained against the coffin's weight.
"Come on…" Alex muttered, his grip tightening.
A faint glow began to emanate from the coffin, a soft light pulsing in time with his efforts.
Then, slowly, the glow from the coffin intensified, the light spreading outward until it filled the entire chamber.
With a low rumble, the lid of the [Ice Coffin] began to shift.
"It's… working?" Eleonora whispered, her eyes wide.
Alex stepped back as the lid slid open, revealing the figure inside.
Princess Arcelia lay there, her delicate features framed by silvery hair that shimmered in the light.
Her eyes fluttered open, and she inhaled sharply, her breath visible in the cold air.
"Where… am I?" she whispered, her voice soft and musical.
Eleonora rushed forward, dropping to her knees beside the coffin. "Your Highness Arcelia! You're awake!"
"Eleonora..." Arcelia slowly got up from the coffin, holding her forehead, and suddenly, her eyes widened, as if she remembered something important, "T-The Maple Empire, what happened to it since the war? Did we win?"
"..." The beige dragon looked at the ground for a few seconds, then back at the princess, "We lost the war."
"..."
"They had hired Esteban, a Grand Magus, essentially annihilating our troops with forbidden spells, as well as locking you up in this coffin for the past 300 years."
"3-300 years?!" Arcelia gasped, fully emerging from the coffin now, her graceful figure visible to them all, "This is horrible..."
She eyed the hall, noticing Alex, Alice and Alphox, who were all confused as to what the hell the two girls were talking about.
"Maple Empire?" Alex tilted his head, he had never heard such a name in his past life, "What the hell is that?"
"I don't know," Alphox shrugged.
If even Alphox, a primordial dragon, hadn't heard of it, then the Maple Empire mustn't have played a big role in [Universal Descent].
Sensing the gazes of these people, and their attitudes, Arcelia took a step forward, her face displaying a chilling expression.
"If my empire is gone, then all I need is to bring it back to its former glory," she ordered, "Eleonora, subdue them."
"Hum..." Eleonora, hearing such a request, couldn't help but awkwardly laugh, "That's not gonna be possible..."
It was the very first time that the dragon had disrespected an order from the princess.
"Why?" Arcelia asked, confused, "Don't want you to bring back our empire?"
"I do," Eleonora confirmed, "But I simply cannot beat them, observe the black dragon on the left."
Arcelia did as she was told, and her eyes widened: that form, those scales, and that aura... it was a [Primordial Dragon]!
The princess of the [Maple Empire] was actually a peak tier 6 fighter at around level 600, higher than even Alphox.
But right now, she just woke up from a 300 years sleep, and her magic powers were weak.
Meaning that even Alice could deal with her if it came to it.
"Gargh-" Arcelia suddenly got on her knees, coughing blood, "W-What's happening..."
A single gaze with his [Cursed Eyes of the King] gave Alex all the information he needed.
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[Part of the curse is still deeply infused into her soul.]
It didn't tell him how to fix it, but at least he had the general premise.
"Bad news," Alex sighed, "The Grand Mage that placed that curse on you seemed to really hate you and your empire, as he even went as far as to placing it on your soul."
"On my soul?!" Arcelia gasped, "B-But why?!"
'Well maybe because of that attitude of yours,' was what Alex wanted to say, but he refrained himself.
"Calm down, princess, I'll find a solution!" Eleonora tried to calm her down as much as possible, though it didn't seem to work.
"What's wrong with them all?" Alice was the only one confused.
The atmosphere had suddenly become extremely tense at the mention of a [Soul] or whatever.
"I'll explain later," Alex whispered, "Just wait."
[Souls] hadn't been truly mentioned up until now, except for a few occasions, but they were basically the "core" of a person/being.
In battles, you could either attack the body directly in hopes of dealing damage and reducing their HP to zero.
Or, if you manage to get a [Soul Attack], you could attack their soul, dealing permanent damage.
Attacking a player's soul and completely shattering it leads to permanent death as well, even if it was only in the game.
If your soul shatters, it's game over, basically.
And that is why Alex was so stressed and why it was so painful every time he received the side effects of the [Undead King] curse: the curse was hitting his very soul.
Thankfully, not a single enemy could deal [Soul Damage] right now.
But Alex would have to learn some attacks like those later, as some invincible and immortal enemies can only be killed by damaging their souls.
Regardless of that, breaking the [Ice Coffin] curse was one thing, but one that was inserted in a being's soul was a matter even Tolkien couldn't resolve.
For now, Arcelia would have to endure.
"Human, I beg of you," Eleonora, the proud member of the dragon tribe, got on her knees, begging, "Please save the princess, she may not look like it, but she is kind!"
Alex sighed, rubbing the back of his neck.
"I'll see what I can do," he said reluctantly.
Eleonora's head shot up, her expression a mix of gratitude and desperation.
Alex nodded, opening up his [World Map] and grabbing everyone that was involved, meaning Alice and Arcelia, since both dragons just disappeared back into their [Pet Spaces].
After a few seconds, they materialized inside the [Fox Tribe Village].
Then they were immediately greeted by Alera.
"Another guest?" she asked, her warm smile unwavering as she noticed Arcelia's condition.
"She's cursed," Alex explained, his tone serious. "The curse is embedded in her soul."
Alera's expression shifted, concern flickering in her eyes.
"Bring her inside," she said, gesturing toward her home.
The group followed, with Alex carrying Arcelia in his arms.
Inside, Alera prepared a warm bed for the princess, and the man carefully placed her on it.
"I'll try to see what I can do," Alera said, her gentle hands brushing Arcelia's silvery hair.
Alex gave a curt nod.
"Thank you," he said as he left the house.
Once he went outside, he noticed Eleonora, who stood silently by the door after leaving the [Pet Space].
"There's nothing else I can do for you," Alex admitted.
Eleonora bowed her head respectfully.
"Do not worry," she said. "That is more than enough."
A system notification appeared in Alex's vision.
[Your reputation with "Eleonora" has reached 80/100.]
A small but significant milestone, Alex thought, as Eleonora's gratitude could prove useful later.
The dragon, after thanking the human one last time, went back inside her personal space, probably going to rest for weeks after staying up to defend her master all these years.
Though for now, Alex needed to focus on the following events in the game, as it would slowly become more and more overwhelming.