"It's so dark." Yadrith carried Mahaya on his back. The fact that there were so many bones in one area meant something was here. The problem was, what could it possibly be?
'It must be one picky monster to leave the bones behind.' He struggled through the deep snow, carefully taking each step. He seemed to be going up a hill, which was a good sign. But honestly, it didn't matter.
He was so cold, to the point that he couldn't feel his fingertips. His eye was nearly glued shut by the ice, his legs burned with pain, and his lungs were frozen. If it were just him that had fallen, then he would've already given up.
But he was carrying Mahaya, and he had no right to give up her life as well.
It didn't matter if the wind had teeth. Teeth that tore through the thick folds of his clothes, leisurely took bites out of his skin, and rattled his bones. Each step of his was a show of his resolve against this new cruel world.
A world that had brought him companionship but immeasurable pain. He couldn't remember his lifestyle on Earth well, but he knew it wasn't like this. Fighting monsters, travelling through deserts, and dying in a cold storm that devoured even the sunlight above him.
The darkness made him contemplate whether a sky existed in this area or not; the cloud of darkness following him wasn't relenting at all. Disregarding it completely, he continued walking.
Time passed, and the flakes of snow that occasionally whipped past his ears and cheeks were the only things he could feel.
'How long have I been walking?'
Even time was being swallowed by the blizzard; how strange is that?
He continued on before his legs finally gave out. Falling straight down into the snow, his arms pressed into it, and his chest felt stiff.
"I'm sorry." He muttered.
He felt like screaming—but it was an effort to even stay awake and breathe. The cold had broken down his body, and now it was attacking his will. The will he had built over the past two months.
He let out a shaky breath, suddenly realizing that there was a small warmth on his back. Between him and Mahaya, there was a Stone Sword. Inside that sword was a resolve, a promise to project his own life into this new world.
He stood up again! He had to. There was no other choice. Something had to be awaiting him—a cave, a light, something!
The cold could devour him whole, but his will would remain standing...
Or at least, he thought.
After taking only a few more steps in the snow, his legs shook. With another step, he stumbled. With the next step, he fell. Without the strength to even hold himself up with his arms, he fell into the embrace of the cold snow. No, it wasn't cold anymore for him.
It simply felt warm, as if it were a perfect bed.
His eye did not even close, and his surroundings slowly faded into a dull gray. He didn't even have enough energy to think, even when a bright light appeared, illuminating his dull view.
***
Oddly enough, Yadrith's eye had opened once more. Above him were the dark walls of a cave; he suddenly thought about the first time he woke up in a cave.
Every time he woke up in one, the direction of his life vastly changed. The first time he fought with his life on the line, and the second time he was given a mission.
That mission still rang in his mind; perhaps it was what gave him the power to brave the cold.
"He's awake!"
"Ohhh! Really?"
Yadrith turned his head, glancing at his saviors.
'I recall seeing a light... Somebody had pulled me out of the snow.'
The two people were clad in clothes clearly made for braving a cold tundra.
"...Where is my companion?" Yadrith couldn't help but ask.
The two went silent for a moment.
"We tried our best, but her body is still stiff as a rock after performing the same treatment we did on you. She's on that cot next to you. It seems she's still breathing, but we don't know if she'll ever wake up in that particular state."
He turned his head and saw Mahaya's body. She looked the same as ever.
'She's more resilient than me.' He let out a sigh of relief and stood up. "I'm Yadrith; thank you for helping us."
"Haha, it's fine. It's a normal thing for us humans to help each other. I'm Karadael. Next to me is the one who found you—my husband, Vincent."
Vincent pointed over towards an out-of-place black wall, where another man was standing. "Over there is Benson; he's one of our associates."
Yadrith did a quick wave at Benson, who responded with the same gesture.
"By the way, what treatment did you do?"
Karadael rubbed the back of her head. "We just put you in this warm area and set up a fire between your cots."
"Oh... I'm used to people doing odd stuff with Regalias. It's a bit nostalgic hearing that. Thank you."
Vincent chuckled, "Yes... Home, I miss Pelsac. This godforsaken continent has been nothing but hell for us."
"You're from Pelsac? Interesting." Yadrith spoke, moving toward Mahaya. 'Most humans I've met are from Vestriam. This will be an opportunity to learn about Pelsac and Jubel.'
Mahaya was still wearing the cloak he had put on her, which was a bit damp.
'It seems they never took a survival class?' The absurdity of leaving a damp piece of clothing on someone suffering from the cold made him visibly frown.
He began taking the cloak off Mahaya's stiff body.
"Those ears...Your companion is a demon?"
Karadael's voice was in his ear; at some point, she had moved right behind him.
"Er... Yeah, is that a problem?"
Karadael took a few steps back. "No, it's fine... What's done is done. It's just that the culture of Pelsac is a bit averse to demons."
"Oh..." Yadrith couldn't help but furrow his brows. 'Why the hell are you on a continent named 'the Land of Demons' then?!' He felt like laughing.
Ignoring his conflicting thoughts, he felt Mahaya's clothes, which were relatively dry. He didn't want to deal with taking them off as well, anyway... She would probably kill him.
"Actually, I'm a little curious about Pelsac. If you don't mind."
Both Vincent and Karadael smiled.
"Well, there's not much else we can do in this desolate place. Come have a seat." Vincent spoke.
"Alright." Yadrith moved over toward a fire and sat. "Well, first, this may be a bit blunt. But why is Pelsac averse to demons?"
"Hm..." Karadael thought for a moment. "It's to do with our religion, are you a follower of Sefirah?"
Yadrith shook his head.
"You must be from a Vestriam State then?"
'...Vestriam State? Is Vestriam a federation then? Interesting...' He concluded, "Yeah."
"Well, we interpret the story of Sefirah differently. For those unaffiliated with Pelsac, you believe the Snake who killed our founder is unrelated to demons. However, in Pelsac we believe the Snake is associated with Veerhun, the Wyrmking—better known as the progenitor of the demon race."
'Veerhun... I believe someone had mentioned him to me before.'
Karadael continued, "After all, dragons greatly resemble snakes. They even have the title 'Sky Serpents.' But we who follow the Pelsacian Church of Sefirah see demons as what they truly are. Evil, no different from those demon beasts that only live to kill."
"I never knew that bit." He pointed back at Mahaya with his thumb. "I guess helping her is akin to sacrilege for you guys?"
She nodded. "It's a shame, but throwing her out now would mean you'd leave with her, no?"
Yadrith felt odd looking into Karadael's eyes. "I would... She is someone deeply important to me, who has saved my life countless times."
Feeling an awkward atmosphere brewing, Yadrith said,
"What about the Jubel family? I heard they have a rather interesting history."
Vincent shrugged, "They are righteous and kind rulers. Throughout history, they have vanquished great evils, such as the evil Melziak, and they even helped seal the Blight. Now they are fighting with such righteousness against Vestriam." His face was dark. "If only we hadn't been stuck in this horrid blizzard for the past two years!"
Yadrith's eyes widened. "Two years...? You've been in this place for two years?"
Vincent's eyes lowered. "...Yes, a group of demons trapped us in this area that lacks Rekh. There is no way out, and the rest of the group that travelled with us has succumbed to the cold."
'No way out?' Those words repeated in his head. He felt the mental compulsion placed on him suddenly intensify. 'I'll have to find a way out.' He turned to look at Mahaya. 'She's probably my only hope.'
He looked back toward the fire. "How have you survived?"
Vincent chuckled, "This place is a breeding ground of demon beasts. You were lucky you didn't run into one. We survive by eating them, and naturally the ice from the blizzard melts into drinkable water."
'Eating... Demon beasts?' He frowned. "I hope we find a way out soon then."
"There is no way out." Karadael spoke, "It's hard to believe, but this is our life now. Unless those owls decide to swoop in and free us."
"Owls?"
"The demons who trapped us in this prison—they are what you'd call True Demons, the worst of the bunch."
"Why did they trap you here?"
Karadael shook her head. "We don't know... We were only exploring the region, and they got hostile."
"That's horrible." Yadrith swallowed anxiously. 'Oliver might encounter them.'
Vincent sighed, "We just lost all faith in demons after that, so excuse any prejudices we might have toward your companion."
"I probably would too if I were randomly tossed in an area like this."
Benson suddenly approached the fire. "It is time to hunt; I will show you the ropes." He was staring intently at Yadrith.
"M-me?"
Benson nodded. "Yadrith, right?"
"Yeah..."