The Land of Snow lay close to the polar regions. For most of the year, it was covered in ice and snow; warm days were rare.
Yet the snowy scenery here was breathtakingly beautiful.
Everything was draped in silver, stunningly elegant.
When you pushed open the door, snowflakes drifted down like fine threads of rain. When the wind blew, they swirled like grains of salt tossed into the air, filling the sky.
But to Fubuki Yukime, this beauty was nothing special.
She had seen far more magnificent snowscapes when she was little. And after seeing them so often, they no longer felt extraordinary.
Pulling her coat tighter around her, she first cleared the snow piled in front of the door. Then she started a fire to cook and heated a large pot of water.
Before long, rising steam seemed to push back the cold, swirling like mist in the air.
The water boiled.
Yukime carefully poured all the hot water into a deep tub she had prepared. Then she gently lowered an egg — about the size of a newborn baby, its surface dull and weathered — into the water.
She wasn't trying to boil an egg to eat. She was doing her best, in the only way she understood, to save it.
Submerged in the scalding water, the egg seemed to react slightly. The cracked, faded patches on its surface looked a little smoother, a little softer. But still, flakes of its shell kept falling away every now and then.
It was like an old man whose life was fading like a candle in the wind. No matter how much care you gave him, it was useless — it couldn't cure what was wrong deep inside.
Yukime bit her lip. She knew the slight improvement was just a comfort. In truth, the egg's condition was getting worse day by day.
She had tried every method she could think of, but nothing could stop it.
She ate her meal mechanically, cleaned everything up, then sat in the chair, staring blankly at the egg.
Of course she had thought about simply giving up. But she just couldn't bring herself to do it.
Because Moxi had come to the Land of Snow for her sake. She had killed Fubuki Dotō to protect Yukime, and had fought a fierce battle against that being known as the Snow Demon.
Though Moxi had won in the end, it had planted the seed of her downfall.
Only a few days later, the Snow Demon returned — and this time, bringing a group of allies.
Yukime could tell they knew each other, and that there was deep, bitter hatred between them.
It was the first time she had ever seen such a serious, grim expression on Moxi's face.
Moxi had told her to run — that staying would only be a burden. She told her to flee as far away as possible.
Those Cursed Spirits never even glanced at Yukime, nor did they care about her in the slightest.
And so she had escaped.
She ran as hard as she could, just as Moxi had told her. Whenever she fell, she picked herself up and kept running.
Then came a deafening explosion that shook the sky. She was knocked flat by the shockwave.
When she turned back, everything in that place had been flattened into nothingness.
It reminded her vividly of what had happened not long ago in the Land of Wu.
She wanted to go back and look — but she stopped.
She wasn't sure if it was truly over, or if those Cursed Spirits had left.
She waited a full day before making her way back to the center of the blast.
Just like in the Land of Wu, a massive crater lay before her, everything around it utterly destroyed.
She could only imagine how terrible and fierce the battle must have been.
Then she began to search — carefully, inch by inch.
She knew Moxi was likely… gone. But once before, she had found an egg that Moxi had transformed into. She knew Moxi seemed to possess some special ability to preserve her life.
So even though hope was faint, she kept looking. It was the only way to find closure for herself.
Her efforts were not in vain. After searching for three days and three nights, she finally found it. She sank to the ground, holding an egg that looked as if it might crumble away into dust at any moment.
Outside, heavy snow was falling in thick, soft flakes.
Come to think of it… the snow on that day looked exactly the same as it did today.
---
After sitting lost in thought for a long time, Yukime took the egg out of the now‑cool water. She wiped it carefully and placed it on her bed.
Last time, Moxi had successfully revived from an egg just like this.
Why was it different this time?
She wasn't sure if it was just her imagination, but every time she touched the shell, she felt as if the life within was growing fainter and fainter.
Suddenly, voices drifted in from outside.
"This must be the place. Should we go in and check?"
The voice sounded familiar.
It's her!
She actually came!
Yukime rushed out the door, her face full of emotion, and saw Shinji and his companions standing outside.
"Hotaru!"
"Fujikaze Yukie?"
Tamamo Hotaru's eyes widened in utter surprise. She never imagined the person who had posted the search request through the Exchange would be the same actress she had worked with on a film set long ago!
But she remembered very clearly what had happened that night.
If Fujikaze Yukie was here… did that mean Moxi was here too?
She bit her lower lip nervously.
"So… was it you looking for me, or…?"
Yukime stared at her for a moment, then said: "I never really thought you'd actually come. But please, come inside. I'll answer every question you have."
Hotaru looked toward Shinji. He nodded slightly.
Since they had come all this way, they had to get to the bottom of it.
The moment they stepped inside, Shinji's eyes fell on the strange egg resting on the bed.
There's something wrong with that egg.
That was his first thought. Then he felt even more strange — because he couldn't sense its presence at all.
"Please, don't bother pouring water. Just tell me straight — I assume I'm the one you wanted to find?"
Yukime put down the cup she was holding and nodded. "I need you to save Moxi. She turned into this egg. I can feel it… her life is almost gone."
"This egg is Moxi?" Hotaru asked, shocked.
"Tell me everything — from the very beginning," Shinji said.
"Very well… but first, my real name is Fubuki Yukime…"
And so Yukime began to tell her story, recounting every detail of what had happened.
"…I really had no other choice. I suddenly remembered you, and I reached out — though honestly, I didn't hold out much hope. But since you really did come… perhaps this is fate."
Only then did Shinji understand.
So the last time, Moxi had used this very method to hide from his detection and revive herself.
It seemed she had tried to do the same thing again.
But something had gone wrong. Perhaps she had been discovered, or perhaps the enemy's cursed techniques were too powerful, slowly eroding and destroying her life force.
Whatever the reason… he wasn't sure if he could help.
But he could try — using Reverse Healing Technique.
He was willing to try to save her — if only because she had refused to join that Gentleman's faction, even at the cost of her life.
With that thought, he reached out and placed his hand gently upon the egg…
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