New Arc is here! Few more chapters before we reach the end of this volume, ppl!

Arc 5: To the Depths of Frozen Waters

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The moment he woke up the next morning, a dull pain shot through his lower back. It wasn’t so severe that he couldn’t stand up, but his lower back and inner thighs felt mildly sore. Yuichiro, groaning softly, found himself sandwiched between Noah and Temeraire, who were sleeping soundly while cuddling him.

Upon seeing their peaceful sleeping faces, Yuichiro exploded in spite of the early hour. “You idiots! Consider the time, place, and situation!”

Yuichiro shouted as he threw his pillow, causing both Noah and Temeraire to panic. In the end, Noah appeased him with sweet treats while receiving a thorough massage from Temeraire, which finally calmed his anger hours later.

Later, they had breakfast and lunch on the bed and finally left the mansion in the early afternoon. Along with Yuichiro, Eliza and her two subordinates were heading to Charlotte as well. Eliza’s subordinates were also adorable, to the point where one could say they looked like young boys and girls. However, according to Tyet, “Those two haven’t changed their appearance in decades. They are much older than even the Goddess yourself.” But no matter how many times Yuichiro looked at them, they still appeared to be kids in their early teens.

Both Eliza and her subordinates wore thick pants and comfortable boots underneath their short dresses. Noah wore the same outfit as well.

“I’m getting used to it and it’s becoming more comfortable,” Noah proudly said, flipping the hem of his fluffy skirt. He no longer seemed embarrassed.

They then traveled part of the way to Charlotte by carriage. However, as they reached a rocky mountain with slopes, they got off the carriage and continued on foot. As they began to climb the rocky and desolate mountain path, a chilling coldness immediately struck them.

“It’s quite cold,” Temeraire answered while buttoning up his coat. “It gets even colder at the top of the mountain. The ground becomes slippery, so be careful,” he warned, exhaling white breath.

Yuichiro responded with a short “ah” while holding his coat together. After a few more hours of climbing, fluffy white objects started falling from the sky. 

“It’s snow.”

“Snow (yu-ki)?” Temeraire tilted his head, puzzled by the snow.

Yuichiro pointed at the snow and asked, “What do you call this?”

“It’s Sekki,” Temeraire answered.

“Sekki,” Yuichiro repeated and extended his hand as if catching the snow. 

At the same time, Noah exclaimed cheerfully, “I’ve never seen Sekki before.”

“In Jeweld, does it never snow… Sekki doesn’t fall?” Yuichiro asked. 

Temeraire calmly replied with a gentle voice, “It occasionally snows in some areas, but it’s not common. In Goldar, there are places where Sekki piles up all year round, but in Jeweld, it rarely accumulates.”

“Does it snow a lot in your world?” Noah turned around and asked.

Yuichiro looked up as if reminiscing upon hearing that question. “Sometimes it snows, but not often. There was one time when it snowed heavily, so I ate it with syrup,” Yuichiro recalled.

It was a memory from when he was in his early twenties and went on training exercises in Hokkaido. He remembered pouring syrup directly onto the fresh snow, making a colorful and overly sweet treat. Of course, as a result, everyone in the group ended up with stomach aches and had to write lengthy reflections.

“Syrup? Is it delicious?” Noah asked curiously. Temeraire, too, tilted his head in incomprehension.

“Well, it’s tasty,” Yuichiro replied.

“Oh, I see. Let’s eat it together someday,” Noah said innocently, believing that “someday” would come without a doubt.

Yuichiro smiled vaguely in response. “Someday, huh?”

Upon hearing that, Noah smiled happily, his cheeks turning red due to the cold. Temeraire, behind Noah, merely pursed his lips, his gaze seemingly filled with loneliness, as he looked at Yuichiro.

To brush off the gaze of the two men, Yuichiro looked straight up. The gray ground, gray rock walls, and gray sky stretched endlessly. Amidst all that, the falling snow was dazzlingly white.

◇◇◇

Unable to reach Charlotte in a day, they spent the night in a mountain hut along the mountain path. And the next day, around dusk, they arrived in Charlotte. The journey went according to plan, but the scene before them was unexpected.

Yuichiro slowly looked around after gazing at the tip of the sword pointed at his chest. He and his companions were completely surrounded by nearly ten men and women. Except for Eliza, each of them had a weapon pressed against them, rendering them unable to move.

From beneath the hood covering his eyes, Yuichiro glanced briefly at the man in front of him. He was a beautiful young man with a dignified face, his gray hair neatly trimmed just below his ears. His slightly upturned large double eyelids resembled the agile and graceful movements of a snow leopard. A beauty mark below his left lip added a touch of allure to his appearance.

A growling voice escaped from the tightly pursed lips of the man. “Who are you?”

Eliza was the one who responded to his voice. She fearlessly stepped forward towards the men with their swords drawn and spoke in a strong tone. “We are here on behalf of Nica-sama’s request. Sasha should also be aware of my arrival.”

Upon hearing those words, Yuichiro suddenly recalled what Eliza had mentioned before. She had said that there was a vigilante group in Charlotte. So, was the man in front of them the leader of that group?

The young man called Sasha remained stern and spoke without changing his expression. “Oh, I know about you. You’re Nica’s ‘worthless playmate,'” he sneered and continued with a mocking tone, “You understand, don’t you? But what about these guys? Has Nica started wanting even bigger men?”

“They are our escorts. There is a possibility of being attacked by bandits along the way, so we brought escorts this time.”

“To call them escorts, that sounds quite pretentious,” Sasha spoke with contempt.

However, Eliza calmly replied in a composed voice without changing her expression. “Sasha-sama, I have come here to do my job. It is my duty to deliver the ‘merchandise’ properly to the customers. We cannot allow the goods we deliver to our customers to be damaged. Isn’t it only natural for us to take every precaution for that purpose?” Despite her smile, Eliza’s voice had an undeniable firmness.

Sasha twisted his lips and glared at Eliza, but she remained unfazed. “Those people, and you… Only foreign things are invading this village…” Sasha muttered to himself.

Sensing something in his words, Yuichiro quietly repeated. “Those people?”

Sasha’s gaze turned towards Yuichiro upon hearing his voice. He scrutinized Yuichiro, who had his hood pulled down low, with a look of disdain. “Listen, we don’t need anything in this village. We will protect this village. If any of you meddle unnecessarily, none of you will return alive. Remember that.”

With a disdainful tone, Sasha spat out the words and turned away. As he did, the others also left. After the men departed, a thin woman approached briskly from somewhere.

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