Graphic Novel The Coldest City 소설 & 이야기

“Zayn MacQuoid, you can’t be this selfish! I’m working hard right now. I can’t have kids!” I compromised to quell her anger. I valued her career, but she resigned so that she could take care of Charles and Caleb better. Besides, she used the money I had saved for retirement for Caleb’s wedding. My leg hurt terribly during that winter, but I was too poor to see a doctor. Moreover, the temperature at home was freezing. It made me shiver. I tried calling Layla for money, but she hung up on me repeatedly. I could not hold on since I was old. In the end, I froze to death.

All I really wanted was for someone, anyone to look me in the eye and tell me I was fine, that I wasn’t unraveling, that I wasn’t going insane. The rink was dark, the ice silver-blue under the faint glow of the EXIT signs. Cold air wrapped around me like a blanket, numbing the noise, softening the edges. For the first time all day, the static began to fade. Collins sat on the bench, tying his laces, and when he looked up his smile was small and warm—no pity, no judgment, just him. “Hey. You made it.” “Yeah,” I answered, my voice echoing in the stillness as I pulled on my skates, the routine grounding me with tight laces, heavy boots and solid ground. “Talk to me,” he said gently, no pressure

--- **The Fractured City** At dawn, the western horizon fractures. A city thrusts upward, its architecture a schizophrenic collage-glass spires fused to concrete slums, neon signs written in a language that squirms when read. It shouldn't exist. The Seed's roots recoil from it, thorny veins blackening at the tips. Veyra finds me gripping the storm-gun. "Scouts went missing there last night. Their mutations... reversed." "Reversed?" She peels back her sleeve. Where serrated bone once protruded, smooth skin remains. "The city *erases* scars. Even the old ones."

[The Coldest Night] The Spire was dying. As the Council cut the secondary power lines, the low hum of the life-support systems groaned into a haunting silence. The air, usually a precise $22°C$, plummeted, turning our breath into ghostly plumes of silver vapor. We were no longer in a palace; we were in a glass tomb at the edge of the sky. The final click of the breakers sounded like a gunshot. The neon pulse of New Macau below us didn't vanish, but it felt a million miles away. We were trapped in the dark, the thermal glass leaching the heat from the room with predatory speed.

THE UGLY TRUTH Author’s Narration (Flashback of the murder of Zella’s parents) Winter held the whole city in a strong grip. The heating system groaned, but the wind still slipped through the curtains. Frost crawled over the tall windows, locking out the world and turning the Midnight estate into its own little ice palace.

Chapter 17: The Coldest Dawn The sun crawled over the edge of the city, bleeding a pale, sickly gold across the penthouse floor. It was too quiet. Abram’s chest rose and fell against my back, a steady, rhythmic thud that felt like a mockery. He looked peaceful. The lines of tension in his face had smoothed out, making him look younger, almost human. His arm was draped over my waist—not the bruising grip of a captor, but the heavy, relaxed weight of a man who finally felt safe.

The iron hatch groaned as Killian forced it open, revealing the inner sanctum of the Frostbite Citadel. Unlike the steaming vents below, this hall was a cathedral of absolute zero. The walls were made of compressed glacial ice, so clear that you could see the frozen corpses of Ragnar’s enemies trapped within the layers like prehistoric insects.

“Because it’s none of my business. And besides, I’m going to enjoy watching you pretend until you can no longer—“ “I’ll pay you.” I cut her off, my fingers shaking. The horrors of last night flashing through my mind vividly. There was no way I could stay here and wait for death. I stepped closer to her, my voice low as I told her, “Back in the city, I’m loaded. I’ll pay you a huge sum. Enough money to take you out of this job and let you live a life of luxury, only if you help me survive and help me get out of here.”

Shards of glass cut into my skin, and blood instantly soaked through my clothes. Gritting my teeth, I yanked out the document envelope and protected it tightly against my chest.

Lately, his unadulterated dirty talk caught my wolf completely off guard and made the tips of my ears burn with a deep flush. I cleared my throat roughly, forcing my eyes to focus on the black text of the document, but stopped after the first line. "A new expansion project near Snowfall City?" "Yes." "It must be gorgeous in that northern territory during the winter when the pack lands freeze over!" I had seen the white northern lights in old scrolls but had never visited the high northern peaks, only glimpsing them in maps featuring the central trading avenue and the iconic winter cathedral where the ancient alphas took their vows. Grant’s golden eyes softened to a molten glow, his clean-cut