“Parfeil, this is amazing!” I exclaimed.
“You think so?”
“I do! You couldn’t find anything this delicious from food stalls in the capital!”
“I had these a lot during my days as an adventurer,” she said, reminiscing a bit. Apparently, her food would often freeze when walking through snowfields like these. “I never thought these were that tasty back when I was eating them on my own.”
Eating during an adventure also meant that you had to let your guard down. It was best to eat discreetly so as not to attract monsters. Worrying about whether you’d be attacked by monsters was evidently not the most appetite-inducing thing.
Even the squirrels were getting hungry. They took out some nuts, cracked them open with their teeth, skewered them with fallen branches from nearby, and roasted them over the magicstone fire. The squirrels chattered happily once they could smell the roasted nuts.
They’re so clever for knowing how to roast nuts. I suppose they are phantasmal beasts for a reason.
Parfeil also stuffed her toasted sandwich into her mouth. Her expression loosened into a smile.
“Milady, you’re right! These are delicious!” Parfeil exclaimed. She had finally noticed the taste of her sandwiches once she was eating together with me. She thanked me for the discovery.
After taking a break and recovering our stamina, we resumed our search for hot spring sources.
We had been walking through the forest for some time when the Spring Dowsing Device suddenly reacted for the first time. We arrived at a small clearing, one just big enough that Van could land in it while transformed. The magicstone started spinning as it hung from the chain.
“Parfeil, there’s a hot spring source here.”
“Whoa!”
Judging by the degree of the reaction, it must’ve been a source that could support a very large spring. While the reaction at the Noisette mansion had been even bigger, the size of this one was more than sufficient.
We had to plant a flag here to mark the site. The flagpole was quite tall, so it wouldn’t be buried completely by the snow. Parfeil, with her immense strength, stabbed the pole deep into the ground.
“Once we excavate the site...”
The hot spring will flow. And if it’s too hot, we could use the snow to adjust the temperature.
I had thought we were going to have to travel all over Diamant to find an appropriate source, so I felt relieved that we were able to discover one before too long.
“We have to report this to Van and ask for permission to excavate the site,” I said.
We had already made a few preparations for digging, but since this land was currently being managed by someone else, we couldn’t just get started.
“I can’t wait to see the hot springs,” Parfeil said.
“Same here.”
I looked up at the sky and noticed that the flow of the clouds had gotten faster. Our surroundings also seemed darker than they had before.
“Is it almost sunset already?” I asked.
“I did hear that at sunset, quickly gets as dark as the nighttime in cold regions,” Parfeil recalled.
However, we had only just finished lunch. I couldn’t believe that the daylight would be this short. Monsters would become more active once it got dark. We had to return to the mansion as soon as we could.
“Parfeil, we need to hurry.”
“Ah?!”
Parfeil hurried to my side and held on to my hand. The moment we crouched down, a strong gust of wind blasted us.
“Ahhh!” we both cried out.
The force of the wind knocked us right over. Parfeil had moved to shield me from the gust, but I’d had no time to even check if she was okay.
A storm of wind and snow had arrived—this was a blizzard.
A chill stronger than anything I’d ever experienced before assailed us. The phrase “bitter cold” was the perfect way to describe the sensation. The whistling of the wind sounded to me like a requiem for those about to die from exposure.
We can’t stay here like this. We’ll die if our bodies get too cold. We’d stop shivering first, get delirious next, and then lose consciousness.
My shivering was starting to slow. We’d be in real danger if we stayed exposed to the blizzard. Parfeil seemed to be thinking the same. She suggested that we should make ourselves get moving.
“Lady Mille-Feuille, please have some of these.” She stuffed some chocolate into my mouth and then did the same for herself. The sweet taste spread in my mouth. “Milady, it’s going to be rough, but we have to keep moving.”
“Y-Yes, I know.”
According to Parfeil, on the way here, there had been a spot with exposed rock faces. In that area, there had been an opening that looked like a cavern. Parfeil suggested that we take shelter there. I hadn’t even realized that there’d been a cavern along our path. Parfeil must have been constantly taking note of every contingency as we had trekked along. Even while we had been in the forest, she had been tying red ribbons around trees so we wouldn’t get lost. Because of that, we were able to find our way even in this blizzard.
We were fighting against the wind, so just walking forward was a struggle. The force of the gusts made it hard to even breathe, but I had to endure it for now.
“Milady, it’s only a bit further!!!” Parfeil was encouraging me with all that she had. Thanks to her, I could move forward without despairing.
But all of a sudden, Parfeil stopped.
“Milady, you need to back away a bit and activate the defensive scroll,” she told me.
I could tell that she was shaken, which was unusual for her. I tried to ask what was going on, but the moment she drew her swords, I figured it out. A monster must have appeared.
I stood back and activated the defensive scroll as Parfeil had instructed. A semicircular wall appeared and surrounded me. It seemed that it could even block the wind and cold that had been tormenting me all this time.
Parfeil didn’t move a muscle. The blizzard must have been terrible for visibility, which prevented her from making a preemptive strike.
A dark silhouette appeared from the white snow. I looked up to see a gigantic White Bear standing there. Its gaze was sharper than a normal bear’s, and fangs as sharp as knives poked out of its mouth. Its claws were more like daggers.
The White Bear roared and attacked Parfeil. It raised its paws and swiped at her with great force. Parfeil dodged it gracefully. She landed in a nearby tree, adjusted her position atop a thick branch, and launched a counterattack on the White Bear. Her first strike slashed the bear’s right eye, and the second rent its neck. However, its thick fur prevented her slash from making any more progress.
The White Bear began its rampage. It let out another roar and swiped its paws one after the other. Parfeil managed to dodge all of its swipes, but she dropped the sword in her right hand as she was being pushed back. Her left sword was also knocked away as she tried to parry one of the bear’s attacks.
Parfeil was now cornered and empty-handed. Without mercy, the White Bear lifted its paw and slashed at her stomach. Red blood scattered in the wind of the blizzard.
“Parfeil!!!”
Without thinking, I ran straight to her side. Her coat had been ripped open and blood was flowing out of her torso. I did my best to stop the bleeding. I also grabbed my bag and tried to dig for the recovery scroll.
Then a chill ran up my spine. The White Bear was now looking down at us. The clawed paw that had slashed Parfeil was raised and ready to strike again.
It’s over.
I gritted my teeth and waited for the killing blow to come.
I waited...but it never came. Instead, a strong gust of wind blew by. A large shadow passed over us, and I saw a great silver dragon flying in the sky. It circled around before descending, grabbed the White Bear with its teeth, and flew back up into the air.
The dark clouds parted, giving way to clear skies. The terrible blizzard dissipated.
That great dragon had unmistakably been Van. He had come to rescue us.
The dragon incinerated the White Bear with its breath attack and reduced the monster to ashes.
My sense of relief only lasted for a moment. I had to hurry and tend to Parfeil.
“Squeak!”
A white squirrel handed me the recovery scroll. They had dug through my bag to get it.
“Thank you!” I said and tore apart the scroll. A magic circle appeared above Parfeil’s wounds and healed them in no time. Parfeil’s eyes, which had been shut in pain this entire time, now twitched.
“Ugh...”
“Parfeil, are you okay?”
In response to my question, Parfeil opened her eyes. “Milady... Wh-What about you?”
“I’m fine, all thanks to you!”
“I see... That’s good...” Parfeil muttered before closing her eyes once more. Her pulse seemed to have stabilized. She had probably gone unconscious due to the amount of blood that she had lost. Just in case, I tore open a second recovery scroll to help her get better. I also embraced her tightly to keep her warm.
“Millefie!”
I then heard Madeleine’s voice, so I turned around. She was trudging through the snow in her dress. A number of knights had also arrived, and they took Parfeil to care for her.
I started feeling relieved, but then my vision started to waver.
“Mille-Feuille!”
I thought I heard Van, but I had no time to check and make sure.