A couple of hours passed before the storm began to ease. The wind gradually died down, and soon, the last of the snow had fallen.
The group shivered, their limbs growing numb under the relentless cold.
Vale's gaze drifted to his companions.
Ayla and Klein stared ahead, their expressions blank—yet behind that stillness, a fragile hope for survival burned in their eyes.
A sudden snore pulled Vale's attention farther down the crevice, where Dain had laid sprawled out, only half of his body sheltered by the rocky overhang—the massive student was fast asleep.
With a deep sigh, Vale shifted and squeezed himself out of the narrow space. As he stood, a wave of dizziness washed over him, blood rushing back into his limbs. He stretched, shaking life back into stagnant muscles.
As if on cue, Ayla and Klein followed, climbing out of the crevice and mimicking his motions, stretching stiff joints and shaking off the cold.
