While Kirito, Asuna, and Kizmel were striding through the frigid halls of Castle Yofel to meet its master, in the village of Usco, Ren and Argo could hardly sit still either.
They had barged into more than a few lakeside houses, where faint lamplight flickered through narrow windows.
Every time Ren brought up renting a boat, the homeowners would frown; some shook their heads furiously, others cursed at them as if they were lunatics for even thinking about going out on the lake in the dead of a winter night.
One old man even chased the two of them around with a broom, swinging wildly and shouting, "Damn fools, may the devils drag you off!"
Argo scrambled alongside Ren, yelping, "We're not thieves, I swear! We just… really need a boat, pleaaase!"
After rounds of pleading, dodging broom swats, and stifling laughter, they finally managed to get hold of a tiny gondola, rickety, creaking, and wobbling as if it might fall apart any moment, for twice the usual price.
Argo grudgingly handed over the money, while Ren looked as indifferent as though this outcome had been inevitable.
"You… you actually mean to go right now?" Argo crossed her arms, her gaze equal parts weary and incredulous as she watched Ren shove the boat off the shallows. "Do you not see? It's snowing already."
She tilted her head upward. Thin white flakes spiraled lazily from the night sky, carried by the wind before melting into ripples across the lake's surface.
The water lapped softly, lamplight glimmering on each shiver of a wave. Just looking at it made the chill seep deep into the bones. Argo shivered, hugging her cloak tighter around her shoulders.
Ren stayed silent a while, his calm eyes following the snow as it dissolved into the water.
The wind teased strands of his black hair into disarray, scattering them in the dim glow.
"I don't think it'll get heavy," Ren said evenly, as though he were mentioning something of little consequence. "I'm still going. I have to reach Yofel."
He paused, glancing back at Argo who remained on the shore, her eyes flickering in the lamplight. "For safety… you should stay here."
Argo froze for a moment. She blinked rapidly, brows furrowing then relaxing. A crooked smirk tugged at her lips, half mocking, half amused.
"So what you mean is… leave me here, in this frozen village, alone, on Christmas Eve… while you row off on some grand adventure?"
Ren neither denied nor explained. He only smoothed down his windblown hair and continued to tug at the mooring rope, his movements sharp, leaving no room for negotiation.
Argo folded her arms, tilting her head, her eyes glimmering as though caught between laughter and outrage. "Honestly… You think I'm the kind of girl who'll just sit here and behave?"
Ren turned his face away, feigning deafness.
Before he could react, Argo suddenly crouched and sprang, landing with a solid thump on the gondola's prow, setting it rocking wildly.
She plopped herself down, grinning wide, legs swinging as if this were the most delightful game of the night.
"Let's go, Captain," Argo said, propping her chin in her hand, her narrowed eyes gleaming with mischief. "On Christmas Eve, ditch me? In your dreams."
Ren sighed, expression blank, giving only the faintest shake of his head. He knew all too well he could never win against Argo's stubbornness.
"Stop kicking your legs. If this thing capsizes, don't expect me to save you."
"Relax. If it sinks, I'll just drag you down with me for company." Argo smirked, her voice both teasing and smug.
Ren shot her a sidelong glance, exhaling through his nose as though questioning how he'd ended up in such a ridiculous situation, then set the oar into the water.
The soft dip and pull broke the silence, sending the gondola gliding into the black expanse of the lake beneath the drifting Christmas snow.
The little boat slipped into the dense night, the lake mirroring the dim glow of stars half-hidden behind snowy clouds.
Each stroke echoed faintly before vanishing into the stillness, leaving only the heavy breaths of the two passengers.
Ren bent over the oar, droplets freezing into a thin crust along his sleeves.
His face flushed from the cold wind, yet his eyes burned bright, fixed unerringly on the darkness toward the southwest horizon.
Argo huddled into her cloak, shoulders trembling, lips pressed tight as though stifling a groan against the biting cold.
She lifted her gaze to Ren, noticing the snow-slicked strands clinging to his forehead, the faint clouds of his breath, and the unwavering hands that refused to stop rowing.
"You really are insane," Argo muttered, her voice a blend of irritation and fatigue. "Middle of the night, freezing winds, snow falling too… You're nothing but a lunatic."
Ren tilted his head slightly, eyes fixed on the distant horizon. "If I'm even a little late… things will change. I don't want to live with regret."
A short silence. The sound of water lapping gently against the boat's hull.
Argo looked at him, biting her lip. "Regret, huh? … You really never let yourself rest, do you?"
Ren said nothing more, only bowed his head so that the snow gathering on his hair slid down into the boat. A faint apology slipped from his lips, almost carried away by the wind.
Argo heard it, frowning slightly. She leaned her back against the edge of the gondola, tilting her head upward to the shrouded sky.
Her breath spilled out in thin streams, her eyes flickering for a moment before softening. "… Fine then. If you're that crazy, I guess I can't just leave you behind."
Ren glanced up, a touch of surprise lighting his eyes. But Argo only waved it off, tugging her cloak tighter as if to hide her fluster.
The boat drifted on, pulling them into the darkness, beneath the thick snowfall blanketing the lake.
At last, through the whiteout night and skin-cutting cold, the two caught sight of a faint light piercing the snowy mist, a glow cast from the sharp watchtower of Yofel Castle.
Ren froze for a heartbeat, his trembling hands tightening around the oar. The chill pierced through his metal gloves like invisible sawblades grinding into his bones.
His breath grew ragged, each cloud of white vapor bursting out before him only to vanish instantly in the night wind.
Argo followed his gaze toward the light, her eyes widening slightly. She pressed her lips together, somewhere between relief and worry, then turned to look at Ren.
Seeing his hands shaking so hard he could barely hold the oar steady, she frowned. "You can barely row anymore," she said softly, but firmly.
Ren clenched his teeth and shook his head. "No… I'm fine. Just a little farther."
The glow from the tower became the only flame guiding them, driving him to fight against the cold that gnawed at every joint.
The gondola pressed onward, struggling against the water, inching toward the fortress that loomed in the winter night.
As the boat bumped lightly and drew up against a stone pier cloaked in mist, Ren set aside the oar and slowly raised his hands in a calm, deliberate gesture.
Torchlight spilled down across his face, flushed red from the cold, breath steaming into the dense curtain of falling snow.
Argo startled, fumbling for a second, then quickly mirrored Ren's movement.
Her eyes darted upward, to the vague silhouettes lining the watchtower and battlements. Dozens of glinting gazes shone beneath iron helms, all fixed on the tiny gondola approaching the pier.
Bows were already drawn, their arrowheads catching the firelight, gleaming like cold stars.
But none were loosed. The tension hung razor-thin, balanced on the edge of friend or foe.
The gondola touched the pier with a dull thud, wood knocking stone, echoing through the stillness and drowning out the whistle of the wind.
Immediately, a squad of guards stepped forward from the dock, weapons ready, their armor gleaming under the torchlight.
Ren rose with steady composure, though his hands still trembled from the cold. Reaching into his inventory, he drew out a small emblem, a dark metal crest shaped like a leaf, etched with the sigil of the Dark Elf.
The token Aisen had entrusted to him before parting on the third floor.
The commander, tall and broad in heavy armor and a sweeping cloak, raised a hand.
The soldiers halted at once, their boots falling silent as the commander's heavy steps carried him closer.
His sharp eyes swept across Ren, then lingered on the emblem. A pause. Then he gave a slow nod, his deep voice cutting through the night air:
"You are Ren… aren't you? Knight Kizmel left a message before her departure, instructing us to wait here for you."
The tension dissolved in that moment, leaving only the howl of the wind through the battlements and the pounding of Ren's heart in his chest.
"Yes. We came here out of concern for our friends." Ren exhaled, his breath spilling white into the freezing air.
The guards' stiffness eased somewhat, though their wary gazes still glimmered in the torchlight.
Even with the Dark Elves' trust in him improved, Ren knew their faith remained fragile, as thin as ice.
He gave Argo a brief nod. The two of them stepped off the gondola, boots thudding against the cold, damp stone, each sound echoing sharply into the night.
A road paved with solid stone stretched inward toward the castle, glimmering faintly under scattered lights like a river of black.
Ren spoke hoarsely, his voice roughened by the cold. "You mean… Kizmel and the other two have already gone somewhere else?"
The commander, steady and imposing, turned his head. Torchlight flickered against the metal of his pauldrons, flashing briefly.
"Let's head inside first," he replied, calm and resolute. "I'll pass along the message Knight Kizmel left for you as we walk."
With that, he turned, his boots striking the stone in firm, rhythmic steps, leading them inward.
The rest of the guards spread out, maintaining their distance, bows lowered but eyes sharp.
Ren followed in silence, Argo beside him, huddling deeper into her cloak, her gaze flicking uneasily to the cold, impassive stares of the guards.
The road ahead swallowed them between towering stone walls, where whistling winds and echoing footsteps merged into a grim prelude of the coming war.