Dungeon of Niflheim

With a confident gait Yule led Frost and Kiba into the mighty ice metropolis. Dozens of humanoid monsters, the majority being spirits of some kind greeting Yule with a respectful bow or nod.

Yule was the gatekeeper of the lesser entrance and a man who had reached the threshold of S-rank. His power even here within the realm of Niflheim was worthy of respect.

Several of the denizens looked curiously at Frost and Kiba as they walked by. Frost's gorgeous appearance drew many gazes from both men and women while Kiba's fluffy fur painted him as adorable in the eyes of these B-rank and even A-rank individuals.

This along with the fact that Yule was guiding them drew their interest but only briefly, Frost and Kiba were far too weak to garner true curiosity among the masses.

Seeing many outright disregard his presence Frost felt his lower lip twitch uncontrollably, his pride taking another substantial hit.

Even after his gruelling training, his boundless effort and harrowing experiences just to get here he was still pitifully weak in their eyes.

B-rank was the bare minimum someone needed to be to survive in this beautiful yet hazardous realm. Anyone who could not protect themselves with aura or withstand the chill with their own innate resistance would freeze to death in a matter of minutes.

Kiba was only able to manage due to the crystal necklace handed to him by Yule.

Frost continued to follow after Yule, occasionally he'd introduce himself to a few groups who held more interest than the rest but mostly he was left to marvel at the grandeur of city's architecture up close and silently be in awe of the power held by even the most common residents.

The average strength of those back at the Niflheim city-state was roughly E-rank given the amount of civilians present and this even took into account some of the dungeon's forces, the ronsos, Niflheim gnomes and his named monsters who were the only B-ranks present bar Frost himself.

'We've got a long, long way to go.' Frost shook his head in utter defeat but did not lose himself in despair instead he imprinted every last detail of the metropolis as he walked, determined to reach such a level and perhaps even surpass it far in the future.

As they continued to walk through the city streets their supposed destination the grand palace in the distance didn't seem to be getting any closer. With their current walking speed it felt as though they'd never reach it even after weeks of travel.

"Just how big is the realm of Niflheim?" Frost couldn't help but ask.

Yule placed a hand under his chin as he thought before answering. "….several thousand kilometres in each direction perhaps even over ten thousand." Yule pictured the entire realm in his mind and used his hands to draw a rough shape that was equivalent to a curved square with a few elongated parts.

"His Majesty occasionally adds new areas or removes some depending on the needs of his residents, so the exact size and shape isn't exactly concrete but it's pretty big."

"T…ten thousand." Frost stuttered blown away by the large figure. Ten thousand kilometres was longer than his entire journey here and then some.

"Did you think the realm of a Primordial would be small hehehe." Yule replied with a playful tone.

'Ah yes he's a Primordial, one of the most powerful Gods in existence of course his domain would be massive.' Frost gazed at the palace in the distance suddenly finding it 'appropriate' now that reality had sunk in.

Alas that didn't change the fact that he and Kiba needed to reach it somehow, Yule wasn't going to make them walk the entire way right?

Though he sorely wished to asked the question he also didn't want to be seen as a fool, so Frost returned to quietly following behind Yule trying to remain as poised and confident as possible.

Kiba meanwhile cared not for his image, he gawked at every little thing with sparkling eyes, occasionally looking at his master innocently asking why they didn't have something like this back home.

Such childlike innocence from Kiba caused Frost's lips to twitch every so often. He didn't have the stomach to keep answering his every request with an obscure excuse, so he eventually started to ignore him.

After walking for almost thirty minutes through the bright streets of the massive metropolis Frost, Kiba and Yule came to a stop before a tall cylindrical tower made of clear blue ice.

"Finally we made it." Said Yule with a short sigh of relief. He was usually quite social and easy to approach so they were waylaid often by the city's denizens.

"Made it where?" This didn't look like a place where the Primordial ice king would hold an audience, and it wasn't big enough to serve as an inn.

"The teleportation matrix, with it we'll be able to arrive directly at the palace." Flying within the city limits was strictly prohibited and since walking and or running wasn't fast enough to get around such a large place the Primordial Ice King established several transport systems.

The first being by boat, several of the larger rivers that flowed through the city bore fast currents allowing one to travel quickly between certain areas within the city.

The second was to ride atop a large, fast moving monster such as an ice faring whale, winter groundhog or even a mammoth.

Both the first and the second methods were restricted in regards to destinations as most of the internal areas bore only narrow peaceful streams and or restricted access to any being of a certain size.

The third method of travel focused on these restricted inner areas and also doubled as a source of entertainment for the residents. Connecting many high traffic buildings as well as popular areas were large ice ramps and tunnels which could be travelled by luge either individually or with a small group.

These three methods were the primary means of transport used by the city's residents with the first method being the one most used.

Traveling by waterway was not only fast but the most efficient. Boats and ferries could transport not only large groups of people at once but also large quantities of materials to different parts of the city without much risk. No dangerous/aggressive monsters resided within the sanctioned waterways thus eliminating the possibility of being attacked while the water itself a substance Yule stated that Frost should keep his distance from was far less perilous to those that naturally inhabited the realm of Niflheim.

What lay before Frost however was neither of these methods but a fourth, a means of transport restricted to those with high status and or certain permissions.

These teleportation matrixes in the form of towers were erected in key places throughout the realm not just within the metropolis itself and through their usage one could instantly travel between such destinations thanks to the spatial magic placed upon them.

This method was both the fastest means of travel and the only way to access the palace albeit by travelling there by your own merit.

Yule being a gatekeeper and Frost being an honoured guest of the Primordial Ice King had the right to use the teleportation matrix and thus allow them cross thousands of kilometres in an instant without any charge.

"Gatekeeper Yule." Two guards kilted out in full plated heavy armour spoke respectfully in a military-like fashion.

"At ease, I'm here with his Majesty's guest Prince Frost and we need to reach the palace." Replied Yule in an official manner, taking his job very seriously at this point.

The two guards briefly looked over Frost and Kiba before nodding their heads. They then turned around and both placed a key in the door causing it light up and slowly slide open.

"The Palace foyer has been set as the destination Gatekeeper Yule, safe travels." Said the left guard as he gestured for the three of them to enter quickly.

Seeing the teleportation matrix tower open up several people in the vicinity couldn't help but look on in envy. Being able to use the towers meant that person either directly served the Primordial Ice King or had a lofty status.

For many it was their life goal to be able to enter the eyes of the mighty God but unfortunately most would never get that chance.

"You might feel a bit nauseous in a moment but please do your best to hold it in until we leave the tower." Yule advised in a somewhat serious manner.

"Don't worry Yule, Kiba and I are no strangers to sudden spatial shifts." Every time they moved within the Dungeon their bodies would be rapidly transported to and fro.

In the beginning it was quite unnerving, and a few did in fact vomit from the experience but after a while it no longer phased them in the slightest.

"Alright then, just don't say I didn't warn you." One thing the guards hated most about the teleportation matrix was having to clean the towers after someone failed to restrain their urges.

Outside the tower was fine, solid ground was easy to clean but cleaning a platform covered in intricate runes where even the slightest bit of damage could result in catastrophic consequences was an extremely tedious process.

Thus it was the most hated part of the guard's jobs, and one which Yule knew full well due to personal experience therefore he didn't forget to warn the young Dungeon core and his battle mount, hoping to avoid such an outcome.