I found myself having to camp in the snowy mountains while suffering from altitude sickness.
I woke up the next morning to the cold. We slept huddled together, but it wasn’t enough to block out the biting cold that pierced our bodies. It’s understandable, since we were sleeping on the snow.
“Shall we get going? Are you alright, Elana?”
“I’m better than yesterday.”
Elana shivered and brushed off the snow. The child, whose fever had subsided and condition had improved, was already walking away briskly.
“Wait, wait, are you already good to go?”
“No problem. Where’s my hat?”
“Hat? Ah, the one with the cute face on it. It’s cold without it.” I said, and she snatched it from me.
“Give it back! Hmph.”
She looks cute, but why is she so insolent? Are all of her companions like this? How do they manage to get along?
“She went off on her own, what do we do?”
“She’ll probably collapse again, so let’s follow her quietly.”
The child, being light, walked without sinking into the deep snow. She’s clearly used to this.
“Hey, be careful. You haven’t fully recovered yet.”
“Quiet. I’m a hunter. This is nothing.”
A hunter, huh? I don’t mean to be rude, but how does she hunt at that size? Maybe rabbits? That might be feasible.
“Were you caught in an avalanche while hunting?”
“That’s right. Don’t follow me, monster.”
Saying that, she touched the ground with her wings and started running like an animal. It was the first time I’d seen a harpy run on all fours. The sight of the white, fluffy creature running resembled a rabbit. Aren’t they the ones who get eaten?
However, perhaps because her stamina hadn’t recovered, she stumbled in the snow after a short distance and rolled towards us. Sharin stopped her as she tumbled down the slope.
“Don’t touch me!”
She sprang up and brushed Sharin’s hand away. Sharin, not knowing what to do, raised both hands as if in surrender. Seeing this, Elana chuckled.
“It seems you were half-baked.”
“What did you say?!”
“Why are you so impatient? What exactly are you?”
That’s what I wanted to know. What kind of strange race are they?
“You saved my life, so you should tell me. Or are you too cowardly to give your name?”
“Be quiet. I am Task, the hunter. I am of the Yukidango Tribe.”
She fell for such a simple provocation, suggesting Task isn’t very bright. And what is the Yukidango Tribe? Did I mishear?
“In the future, I hope to hunt riding a dog. But now is not the time.”
“Oh, then let’s hurry back so you can ride a dog. Kukuk.”
“Hey, you laughed just now!”
Elana, while saying “I’m sorry,” tried to hold back her laughter. Despite the many things that bothered me, it was good to finally know her name.
“For now, stay on the horse’s back to conserve your strength.”
“I refuse. I don’t want to touch such an unknown animal.”
“Yes, yes, you’re scared.”
Task responded to Elana’s cheap provocation again, saying she wasn’t scared. Thanks to Elana’s clever guidance, I managed to get him onto Philiana’s back. This way, he wouldn’t run off and collapse.
After that, we continued climbing the mountain as Task instructed.
“Slow down! Walk faster!”
“Hey, hey, don’t be so rowdy.”
He seemed to have gotten used to Philiana’s back and became more arrogant. As the sun began to set, snow started to fall with a strong wind. It gradually intensified, making it difficult to stand without holding onto Philiana.
“It’s starting to blizzard.”
“Let’s stay close together so we don’t get separated.”
The strong wind drowned out our voices. Before I knew it, my vision was obscured by the howling wind and snow that felt like bullets. It was even harder to see as the sun had set.
In the darkness, they seemed to ascertain each other’s presence solely by their faint breaths and body heat. Task, who had been so noisy, was now quietly covering his face with his wings. Right, where was Elana?
“Elana, where are you?! Did we get separated?”
She couldn’t cross her arms as she was four-legged. Sharin and I called out her name.
“… Here…”
Amidst the roaring sound, a faint voice was heard from behind. Elana was almost entirely buried by the falling snow.
“Elana, grab onto me.”
“Impossible. Haa, haa.”
Sharin and I worked together to lift her up. Right, could we warm her up like Piyo did?
“Warm yourself with magic. Can you hear me?”
“…Huh? Eh?”
This was a bad situation. The blizzard was getting stronger. The freezing wind pierced our skin like a knife. It had been clear skies just a moment ago, but as expected, mountain weather is unpredictable. And the massive amount of accumulated snow was about to trigger a large-scale avalanche.
