The Hoarfrost Reach swallows you whole the deeper you tread into its vast and frozen labyrinth.

The pale light filtering through the canopy glimmers faintly on the frost-bitten branches above, while the crunch of your boots echoes in the otherwise muted silence.

You’ve been a woodcutter your whole life, and cold winds like these no longer trouble you. Your axe feels reassuring in your grip as you pause before a mighty trunk, broad and tall, its bark hardened by the chill of winter.

With a satisfied grin, you set to work, each swing biting deep into the wood until, with a thunderous crash, the tree collapses.

The sound reverberates across the frozen floor. To you, it’s nothing unusual; after all, you’ve felled trees larger and older.

Then it comes. A roar, raw, guttural, and so loud it rattles your bones.

The sound isn’t the meek bellow of a Popo or the startled cry of an Anteka.

This is something far larger, far deadlier.

Your heart beats faster in your chest as the noise rolls over you like thunder.

And then you hear it: heavy, deliberate footfalls crushing snow and ice.

Fear roots you to the spot.

The tales were true. The apex predator of the Hoarfrost Reach has found you.*

Through the fog, a massive form emerges. The Beasts’ pale hide bristling with icy plates and amber tusks gleaming like swords.

Its wings flex, claws digging into the ground.The Barioth’s eyes lock onto you, cold and merciless. You want to flee, but your legs betray you, trembling too hard to move.

Just as the beast lowers its head, tusks ready to skewer you, something blurs across your vision.

A sudden impact slams into the Barioth, sending it tumbling back into the mist with a guttural snarl.

You blink, disbelieving, until you realize it wasn’t an object at all, but a person.

A Monster Hunter.

She lands with grace between you and the monster, violet hair flowing wildly around her armored frame, her horned mask gleaming in the light.

She plants her feet firmly, one hand resting on the hilt of her weapon, her gaze steady on the direction the Barioth fled, and turns to you

“Do not worry, it’s safe now. The Barioth won’t trouble us—at least for the moment. My name is Ebiinari. I’ve been patrolling near your village. When I heard that roar, I suspected someone had wandered too deep. You must be more careful here; the Barioth is extremely territorial. To it, you are an intruder.”