A narrow crevasse split the mountain like a wound that never healed.
Through it, the wind howled without mercy, screaming through jagged stone walls and dragging snow in violent spirals that clawed at anything caught in its path. The passage was barely wide enough for two people to pass side by side, and even that felt like a lie when the gusts surged harder, threatening to tear flesh from bone.
Elira forced herself forward.
Each step felt heavier than the last, her boots slipping against frost-coated stone as she carried Kael over her shoulder. The barrier surrounding them flickered with unstable light, a thin dome of mana that bent and warped under the constant pressure of the wind. It wasn't failing yet… but it was close.
Too close.
Her fingers trembled violently, the skin around them pale and stiff, veins faintly visible beneath the surface. Even through the barrier, the cold was seeping in, gnawing at her joints, slowing her movements, dulling her senses.
Still, she didn't stop.
"Just… hang in there…" Elira muttered under her breath, though her voice was nearly swallowed by the wind.
Kael shifted weakly against her shoulder, her breath uneven and shallow. A faint tremor ran through her body as she tried to speak.
"Why are we… running… from them…?" Her voice cracked, followed by a sharp cough that forced blood past her lips. "I thought—"
Before she could finish, Elira abruptly veered off, dragging her behind a protruding boulder wedged into the crevasse wall. The moment they were shielded from the worst of the wind, the barrier shattered into fragments of light, dissolving into the air like mist.
Elira dropped to one knee beside her.
"Don't talk." Her voice was firm, almost sharp. "Just stay with me."
A soft green glow formed in her palm, expanding into a delicate magic circle that pulsed gently against the cold. Threads of light seeped into Kael's body, stabilizing the internal damage, slowing the bleeding that refused to stop.
For a brief moment, the world felt quieter.
Warmer.
But it didn't last.
"I can keep you from bleeding out," Elira continued, her voice steadier now, though exhaustion clung to every word. "But the frost infection is spreading too fast. This isn't something basic healing magic can purge."
She eased Kael against the stone wall, making sure she wouldn't slip before driving her staff into the snow-covered ground beside them. The moment it struck, another magic circle flared to life beneath it, drawing in ambient Astrons and converting them into mana to maintain a protective barrier.
A fragile one.
But enough.
Elira exhaled slowly, her breath trembling as she reached into her satchel. Her fingers fumbled for a second before closing around a small vial. Without hesitation, she uncorked it and drank it in one motion.
The effect was immediate.
A faint shimmer returned to her eyes.
But not much else.
Kael watched her, confusion knitting her brows together. "Didn't you say… we were out of mana potions…?"
Elira looked away.
"I lied."
The answer came flat. Simple. Final.
Kael blinked, caught off guard. "…You lied?"
Something about that felt wrong.
Elira wasn't the type to lie.
Not like this.
"Why?"
Elira remained silent for a moment, her gaze fixed somewhere beyond the crevasse walls, as if replaying something she wished she hadn't noticed.
"…Because we can't trust them."
The words were quiet.
But heavy.
Kael's expression hardened instantly, the fog in her mind clearing just enough for the pieces to begin falling into place. Her fingers curled weakly against the ground.
"…You mean…"
Elira nodded faintly, her jaw tightening.
"They were waiting."
Her voice dropped lower.
"For us to break first."
The wind howled again, but this time it felt distant, like background noise to something far worse.
"That route…" Elira continued, her eyes narrowing slightly. "It wasn't just bad luck. Ice serpents don't nest that close to open traversal paths unless something pushes them there… or unless someone already knows they're there."
Kael's breathing grew heavier.
"And that fire spell…" Elira added, almost to herself. "He aimed too low. Burned through the body… but left the head intact."
Silence stretched between them.
Then—
"…Venom." Kael muttered, her teeth grinding together as anger began to override the pain. "They wanted the venom."
Elira didn't answer immediately.
She didn't need to.
Kael's hand clenched into a fist despite the tremors running through it. "Those bastards…"
Her voice shook, not from weakness, but from rage.
"They were planning this from the start… weren't they?"
Elira finally looked back at her.
"…Yes."
No hesitation.
No doubt.
"They've done this before."
That much was clear.
The coordination. The patience. The way they pushed the fight just far enough.
It wasn't desperation.
It was routine.
Kael slammed her fist weakly against the ground, frustration bleeding through the motion. "Cowards… hiding behind teamwork just to take advantage of vulnerable woman…"
Her voice dropped into a growl.
"I swear… I'll kill them."
The moment she shifted, pain tore through her side again. Blood seeped through the wound, staining the snow beneath her.
Elira reacted instantly, pressing her hand against it while casting another small healing spell. "Don't move."
Her tone softened slightly, though urgency still lingered beneath it.
"They're not worth dying for."
Kael let out a strained breath, her body resisting, but ultimately settling under the pressure.
"…What's the plan… then?"
Elira hesitated.
Only for a second.
"If we can get out of this mountain range… we find Duke Velnard again. Report everything."
Her voice steadied as she spoke, clinging to the logic of it.
"It's the safest move."
But even as she said it—
Something felt off.
Her words stopped mid-sentence.
Kael frowned slightly. "Elira?"
No response.
Elira's body had gone completely still.
Her eyes… were fixed upward.
Wide.
Frozen.
A faint trickle of snow slipped from above, scattering across the ground beside them. Small fragments of stone followed, tapping lightly against the frozen surface.
Kael's gaze slowly lifted.
And then—
She saw it.
A figure.
Standing high above the crevasse wall, silhouetted against the pale sky.
Still.
Silent.
Watching.
The air itself seemed to tighten.
Haruna stood there, her pink hair swaying gently in the now-subdued wind, her mask concealing her expression while her presence alone pressed down on the space like an unseen weight. In her hand rested her blade, dark and quiet, yet radiating a restrained lethality that needed no display.
Elira couldn't move.
Her instincts screamed at her.
This wasn't something they could fight.
This wasn't something they could escape.
Then—
Haruna raised her hand.
With a simple motion, her fingers curled.
The wind obeyed.
The violent currents that had been tearing through the crevasse slowed instantly, bending, calming, as if forced into submission by sheer will alone. What had once been a raging storm was reduced to a controlled flow, still cold… but no longer merciless.
That alone told them everything.
This wasn't just a powerful being.
This was control.
Absolute control.
Haruna crouched slightly at the edge, her gaze settling on them.
"What are you after, human...?"
Her voice wasn't loud.
But it carried.
Clear.
Unavoidable.
Elira's throat tightened. Words refused to form.
Kael felt it too.
That crushing pressure.
The gap between them.
Monster.
No—
Something far beyond that.
When no answer came, Haruna didn't wait.
She stepped forward.
And dropped.
Her descent made no sound. No impact. No disturbance. She landed as if the world itself adjusted to her presence, allowing her to exist without resistance.
That silence made it worse.
Kael forced herself up despite the pain screaming through her body. Her instincts overrode reason as she stepped in front of Elira, raising her sword with trembling hands.
She couldn't win.
She knew that.
But she still stood.
Haruna's gaze shifted slightly, taking in the stance, the injury, the intent.
Then she lifted her blade and pointed it toward them.
"I'll ask one more time."
Her voice sharpened, carrying a quiet edge that made the air feel colder than before.
"What are you doing here…?"
Silence answered her.
But this time—
It wasn't from confusion.
It was from fear.
...