Sigrid

“No way.”

“Really. Since you’re smaller than me, be careful not to lose body heat.”

“Shouldn’t you be more careful with your larger surface area?”

“That’s an order from your superior.”

Sigrid raised an eyebrow at that, then turned her gaze forward without reply. Whatever Beramund’s cloak was made of, it looked thin but quickly warmed her body.

‘It must be expensive.’

Sigrid narrowed her eyes as she examined the fabric. The knowledge she’d gleaned from Marie-Chez flitted through her mind.

‘A slight golden sheen… thin, light, and warm… rare northern animal fiber called Rashima… this luster indicates top quality… the price…’

A mental sound of gold coins clinking echoed in her head. Sigrid would bet her hat—a lifeline in the northern winter—that this thin cloak covering her was worth half a year’s salary for an Imperial Guard member, or even more. 

Sigrid clutched the cloak tightly with one hand. The thought that she absolutely must not let it blow away and fall dominated her mind.

“Just cover your hands too—”

Beramund reached out to readjust the cloak. Sigrid gripped it tightly and said:

“I can’t.”

Beramund was puzzled by her sudden return to formal speech. Sigrid said firmly:

“I’m not able to compensate for this.”

“…Since I gave it to you, I won’t ask you to compensate no matter what happens…?”

When Sigrid looked at him skeptically, Beramund said:

“I even paid for those four silver buttons before.”

“…That’s true.”

“So don’t worry. And if it looks like it’s going to fly away, I’ll grab it quick.”

Beramund demonstrated snatching the cloak out of the air a couple of times. Sigrid chuckled and slipped her hands under the cloak. Warmth instantly spread to her fingertips.

‘Should I buy one of these for myself…?’

She’d have to tighten her belt to afford it, but it seemed worth it.

Their arduous sledding through the cold paid off as they reached the village before sunset. It was a small village without even an inn. The village chief apologetically offered them the stable, and the two entered the cramped space shared with two mules and a goat. It smelled inside, but thanks to the animals’ body heat, it wasn’t too cold.

Fortunately, they had brought feed, so they fed the mules, then the goat as payment for lodging. After gathering some hay bales and spreading the cloak over them, the two lay down side by side. There wasn’t enough space to lie apart.

As their shoulders, arms, and the backs of their hands lightly touched, Beramund flinched. Sigrid turned to face him and asked:

“By the way, are you alright?”

Unconsciously pulling his waist back, Beramund asked:

“With what? And why are you being formal again?”

“Ah—”

Sigrid chuckled and said:

“Isn’t it fine? There’s no one else to hear us now anyway.”

Despite the warmth, their breath still formed small clouds with each word. Moonlight filtered through gaps in the stable roof, leaving crooked, thin stripes on the floor. Beramund nodded towards the mules and said:

“They’re here.”

Sigrid grinned at that.

“True.”

“Yeah. So? What’s alright?”

“Oh, when we went west before, you said you couldn’t sleep comfortably in clothes. You’ve been sleeping in them for days now, so I wondered if you’re feeling okay?”

“Ah— It’s not that bad. I’m fine.”

“Really?”

Aside from the occasional soft snorts from the mules, everything was quiet. The sound of breathing only emphasized the silence around them.

Both unconsciously lowered their voices.

“This is the last village.”

At Beramund’s words, Sigrid’s eyes widened.

“So we’ll be camping from now on?”

“That’s right. We’ll leave the sled and mules here.”

“Will that be okay?”

“Yeah. You know how to use snowshoes, right?”

“Yes.”

“Then we’re good. There aren’t any roads beyond this point anyway…”

Sigrid rustled as she half-raised her upper body. Looking down at him, she asked:

“Do you know the exact location? Or are we searching?”

“From here on, it’s a search. Luckily, it hasn’t snowed more until now. We need to be careful because it’s spring. Even if it looks like snow-covered ice on the surface, there might be places that suddenly give way.”

“I see…”

Sigrid exhaled softly. Looking up at her face, Beramund was struck by an odd sentiment. This was a perspective that could only exist when sharing a bed.

“Would it have been better if you hadn’t come along?”

He asked abruptly. Sigrid looked down at him and whispered:

“No. Thinking about searching that wide area alone would be even more of a headache. It’ll be faster with two of us.”

Beramund took a light breath and apologized:

“Sorry. You came along, and I said something unnecessary.”

Suddenly, Sigrid thrust her face close to his. Startled, Beramund’s eyes widened and he stiffened. Sigrid spoke as if something was odd:

“You’re right. You’re saying things that aren’t like you. Are you feeling unwell? Are you really not getting enough sleep? Do you have a fever?”

Without hesitation, she pressed her forehead against his. Beramund flinched.

“Strange, it doesn’t seem like you have a fever.”

As she spoke, Sigrid’s breath tickled his lips. Beramund reached out, grabbed her shoulders, and forcefully pushed her away, rolling on top of her. Suddenly finding herself underneath him, Sigrid blinked.

“Beramund?”

“You know, you should—”

He was about to say ‘have some sense of wariness,’ but he swallowed his words.

‘Why should I be wary here? If she says something like that, it’ll hurt me too.’

But feeling this was a bit unfair, Beramund relaxed his body. Sigrid, unexpectedly pinned under him, struggled in confusion.

“Wait, Beramund? You’re heavy.”

After a moment of pettiness, he rolled off her body. Sigrid sat up abruptly, flushed, and said:

“What are you doing?”

“Just… joking…?”

“You were joking while I was worried about you?”

She narrowed her eyes. Beramund, realizing his mistake, quickly sat up as well.

“No, well, I was trying to show you I’m fine.”

Sigrid snorted, then swiftly rolled on top of Beramund. He swallowed hard as Sigrid looked down at him triumphantly and said:

“I’m fine too.”

“Uh, well, that’s—”

Beramund couldn’t move a finger, feeling her weight on him. Sigrid narrowed her eyes and leaned down to look at him closely.

“You won’t play such jokes anymore, will you?”

“I won’t.”

Absolutely, absolutely not.

If he kept getting rebuffed like this, his lifespan would shorten or he’d become an unscrupulous person. Sigrid smiled victoriously and advised:

“You can just say it with words.”

“Yeah, right. Sorry.”

Please, just get off me and use your words too.

Seeing him apologize with his head bowed, Sigrid exhaled deeply and rolled off, flopping down beside him.

“Let’s sleep. We’ll be searching on foot from tomorrow.”

It felt like she was the leader now, but Beramund obediently lay down next to her without comment.

‘Cold.’

Sigrid subtly pressed her body closer to Beramund.

“Good night.”

As Sigrid murmured softly, Beramund mumbled back, “You too,” and she soon fell asleep.

Beramund watched the moon set and the sun rise through the gaps in the roof.

‘Couldn’t sleep…’

Settling in one place, Sigrid kept seeking warmth and pushing into his arms, leaving Beramund unable to sleep a wink. He looked down at Sigrid, her face buried in his chest, sleeping soundly.

‘Ah, really.’

Why are you so cute?

It’s impossible to even get angry. He let out a groan and stared blankly at the brightening stable. Not long after sunrise, Sigrid’s eyes automatically fluttered open.

With dazed eyes, she assessed the situation and said “Ah” as she wriggled out of his arms.

“I’m sorry.”

“No, it’s fine.”

Beramund mumbled in a dejected voice. Rising from her spot, Sigrid stretched out fully and asked:

“Are you really okay?”

“Uh…”

Beramund stared blankly at the ceiling as he spoke. Sigrid gave him a doubtful look before loosening her stiff body. They took out a small brazier from the sled to melt snow for a quick wash, shared some rations, and then gave the village chief some silver coins to look after the mules and sled.

Each carrying their own pack, they climbed briskly up a small hill in the morning. Beramund pointed down and said:

“Can you see that road there?”

“Yes, it’s a well-maintained main road that makes all our previous hardships seem pointless.”

Sigrid couldn’t help but speak with irritation. Beramund chuckled and said:

“It’s too roundabout to go that way. The path we took is the shortest route. But since Prince Rudinal’s party is large, they had no choice but to take the main road even if it’s longer.”

“I see.”

Sigrid nodded, finally understanding. Beramund lifted his head to look ahead.

“Contact was lost after an avalanche occurred over there.”

“Is it usually this neat after an avalanche?”

“Of course not. When I asked the village chief earlier, he said there hadn’t been any avalanche. According to our informant, it’s certain that contact with the prince’s party was lost around here.”

“Then that should be the starting point of our search.”

“Right.”

Beramund nodded and began sliding down the steep slope. Sigrid followed close behind.

Reaching the main road and feeling solid stone under their feet finally brought a sense of relief. They removed their snowshoes, hung them on their bags, and walked at a brisk pace.

“So we need to search this whole area.”

Sigrid murmured, looking at the snow-covered mountains and valleys. Beramund nodded. He narrowed his eyes, looking at the sky, and said:

“It seems we’re lucky, though.”

Sigrid followed his gaze.

“Ah.”

A flock of crows.

It would certainly be difficult for them to find food in this winter. If there was prey in the snow field, it would most likely be a corpse. Of course, that corpse might not be the one they were looking for, but it needed to be checked.

“Let’s go.”

Sigrid nodded and followed him. As they left the road, Sigrid was about to put on her snowshoes again, but Beramund shook his head.

“This is practically ice.”

Stepping on it, it was indeed hard, but being spring, it was slightly slushy.

“We’ll have to be careful not to slip.”

Sigrid sighed.

They walked for a long time, keeping track of the crows’ position.

“Tsk.”

Beramund clicked his tongue and pointed at the ground. Sigrid soon saw hoof prints. The ice-like surface had preserved the horseshoe marks.

“Are these wheel tracks?”

Beramund nodded at Sigrid’s question.

“It seems so. Luckily, the traces are clear because it hasn’t snowed.”

“But this isn’t even a road. If they drove a carriage through here, it would surely overturn—”

Before she could finish saying it would overturn, an overturned carriage came into view.

“Damn it.”

Cursing, Beramund ran. Sigrid followed, scanning the surroundings. Beramund examined the overturned and broken carriage. The door was missing, and inside, the body of what was clearly a servant was frozen at an unnatural angle. The winter had prevented decay.

Beramund stood up, gritting his teeth.

“The prince?”

“No, he’s not here. Let’s go further. There are no horse carcasses.”

“Okay.”

Sigrid noticed that the reins attached to the carriage harness had been cut with a sharp knife. Someone had separated the horses from the carriage.

Not long after, they found the horse carcasses as well. Looking at them, Sigrid said:

“An Aura user?”

“Maybe…”

Beramund said in a low voice. The horse’s thick neck had been cleanly severed. Not many had the skill to cut through something so thick in one stroke. The cut surface was smooth, indicating no ordinary skill.

“At least it’s not a common assassin.”

Beramund exhaled. Sigrid said:

“Let’s keep tracking. There’s only one dead horse here. That was a two-horse carriage.”

“Right.”

They continued following the traces, gradually descending towards a valley. Some places were narrow and dangerously steep, perfect for tumbling down. Sigrid groaned.

“Why do we keep going down…?”

“It’s the slope. When people are lost and being chased, they unconsciously run downhill.”

They lost the trail several times. The traces were so old that tracking was difficult. Eventually, night fell while they were still in the forest.

Beramund found a snow cave under some tree branches. Snow had piled up from the tree trunk to the branches, but thanks to those branches, snow hadn’t accumulated underneath, creating a narrow but suitable shelter. The snow had already frozen solid, so there was no risk of collapse. Sigrid settled in underneath and said:

“This is amazing. I thought snow would pile up under here too.”

“So did I.”

Beramund’s response puzzled Sigrid.

“Then how did you know?”

“I told you, I studied.”

He said as he entered and sat close to her.

“You really studied?”

Sigrid asked in surprise, and Beramund nodded.

The two drank sweet, strong ginger tea to prevent freezing, ate some snow, and then swallowed some of their rations together.

Sigrid muttered:

“It’s like survival training.”

“It is.”

As night fell, complete darkness enveloped the cave. A faint pine scent drifted down from the branches above and settled. Sigrid took a deep breath and said:

“Do you think the prince is safe?”

“I don’t know. Actually, I feel like we should be tracking even at this hour…”

“Adequate rest is important.”