Hyrule Warriors: Rise of Valoria

XXVIII

It was busy in Gateway Town. Merchants were crowded in the square down the street at the cliffs of the Great Plateau. The guards saw Link, Ganondorf, Demise, Zelda, and Hylia approaching and they all moved aside immediately.

The doors to the Great Plateau opened and in they went.

Eastern Abbey was owned by a rich Hylian. The abbey was a mansion which over looked a small town, Abbey Town. The other town, Plateau Outpost, was on the other side of the Forest of Spirits.

The Temple of Time towered in front of them grandly. It had been rebuilt since the Great Calamity, but many worried that the temple would suddenly collapse upon them as they prayed to the Goddess Hylia.

"This place looks lively." Demise observed.

"Do you know how many people are up here?" Ganondorf asked Link.

Link shrugged. He wasn't familiar with the Great Plateau. Let alone did he know a close estimate for how many people now dwelled on the plateau.

"Around 200 people. Plateau Outpost is where you will find the other races. Abbey Town is where you will find the concentration of Hylians and Sheikah." Zelda answered the Gerudo King. She had been around the kingdom a lot, making assessments and surveys and taking notes about any other things that need to be fixed or improved.

"Wow." Demise and Ganondorf breathed.

Link took the group along a path that led past the Temple of Time and into the colder depths of the mountains.

They all started to put on their cold gear to continue the journey to the peak of Mount Hylia.

When Link looked at the Sheikah Slate, it read the temperature as 20°F. He knew winter was coming in Hyrule. His childhood in Hateno Village said everything.

Hateno Village was already pretty cool in the summer, usually 60-65°F. During winter, it was usually 20°. It very rarely got above 30°. Link could remember shoveling snow from the yard and into the ravine in front of their house. His father would be in the village, helping other villagers shovel snow away from their door.

Link had a scar on his foot from one extreme winter. He was around 10 years old. He had been shoveling snow for so long that his foot was badly frostburned. The skin was already dead and splitting open.

He had to be taken to Castle Town to be taken care of at the recovery center. It left a bad scar on Link's foot. The injury was not bad enough to cause permanent damage, but if it would've gone unnoticed any longer, Link would have had a slight limp.

Mount Hylia reminded him of that winter. It was pretty cold.

Soon, they were walking across the stone bridge that led across the River of the Dead. It was called that because the water is cold enough to freeze a person solid within a couple minutes.

There was a stone pathway leading to the peak, much like the one on Mount Lanayru.

"Here we are. This is the path up to the peak of Mount Hylia." Zelda announced.

Hylia snorted. "I understand an entire culture. But really? Hyrule had to name a mountain, lake, bridge, and river after me?" she asked incredulously.

Link smiled subtly from his place at the front of the group. He never heard anyone speak so disdainfully about the religious symbolism of Hylia. The Triforce, Hylia, and past heroes were a heavy influence to important structures.

"There are a few mountains, landmarks, and hills named after kings, historical figures, and heroic titles." Zelda said to Hylia. She sounded slightly offended.