Haruo walked in front, morning rays of light scattered through the forest, mixing beautifully with the snow. Taiyo laughed to himself as he played with the snow around him.
Of course, he would follow Haruo as he did; he had learned not to wander off by himself and focus on heading forward first before having fun, but for a child like him, it was hard to maintain focus.
It was the snowy season, which first began to form just after Leon's death.
As Haruo walked forward, he felt a tug on his coat and saw Taiyo looking at him with curious eyes. He stopped himself for a moment to listen to what Taiyo was going to say.
"Why is that lady following us?"
Taiyo pointed toward Ena, her eyes worn out by continuous crying. Some of her tears had been frozen due to the cold and were left there because she had no will to remove them herself.
Her clothes were ragged and tattered by the fire; they didn't reveal any skin, but they did ruin her only set of clothes.
She was a mess; She had lost her momentum and impulsive behavior and was replaced by a limp and lack of energy. She was far past her prime, and Haruo didn't pay attention to it whatsoever.
To him, she was just empty luggage that he didn't need or want. He wasn't afraid of leaving her to dust.
"Don't mind her, she's just a person with issues."
He continued his way before putting both of his hands in the pockets of his coat.
He sighed and looked back to see his brother rushing to Ena's side. Taiyo's steps crunched the snow, while he got closer to Ena. After getting by her side, he tugged her shirt gently.
She stopped in her tracks and glanced at the boy. He had his hands spread out to her, gesturing for her to carry him. Both stayed still for a moment or two, only staring at each other, before Taiyo started flailing his arms around.
Ena didn't get a signal whatsoever, but she ducked down to his level, which was good enough for Taiyo.
Taiyo wiped her face off from the frost and smiled warmly before fixing her hair as well. He slid, patted her head, brushing off any excess snow. He took off his scarf, but before she could wrap it around her, Haruo stopped him with his hand.
"Stand properly."
She did as he said and stood in front of him, both of them getting a clearer view of each other's faces. Haruo cleaned her off properly, taking off his scarf and wrapping it around her neck.
"Are you so pathetic that you need a six-year-old to take care of you? If you're going to follow me, then make yourself useful."
Ena gently grabbed the scarf and raised it to warm herself. Her eyes started to look up slightly—no longer staring at the ground all day. Both stared at each other for a second before Haruo continued on his hike.
She felt her hand getting occupied; as she diverted her gaze to her side, she saw Taiyo holding her hand while smiling. Taiyo walked first, signaling her to follow Haruo faster.
***
As the sun descended from the horizon, Haruo found themselves sheltered in a cave. To their luck, a snowstorm appeared just as it hit nighttime, and the cold wind entered at times, making Taiyo shiver slightly.
To combat the biting cold, Haruo had made a fire inside, allowing themselves to have some warmth.
Taiyo was the first to sleep; he slept at the very edge of the cave, far enough that he didn't wake up from the cold. Haruo took two blankets out of his mana storage and covered Taiyo with both.
Next, he took out dozens of sticks from his mana storage, just enough to last them the night without freezing to death.
Ena stared at the fire, covering her mouth and nose with the scarf. She sat parallel to Haruo with her back against the wall, watching the fire cackle diligently.
"If you don't want to go blind, I suggest not staring at the fire so carefully."
She redirected her gaze to Haruo while he placed sticks to keep the fire alive. To his irony, he was watching the fire diligently as well.
"You say that, but you're watching it like there's no tomorrow."
This had been the first time she had spoken since her father's death; her hoarse voice echoed quietly in the cave. She hugged her legs with her hands, directing them elsewhere and no longer glaring at the fire as if it were an enemy.
"Make sure you remember what I said earlier; I don't acknowledge dead weight, so make sure you're useful."
"Wow, aren't you comforting…"
"What you're feeling right now isn't my problem, only your uselessness is."
She glared at him with disdain, scoffing as she rolled her eyes to the storm outside.
"'How are you' or 'Are you okay' would be nice, you know."
"I find that really useless since I already know you're terrible and not okay."
"At least give me the opportunity to tell you how I'm feeling."
He sighed to himself before looking at Ena eye to eye. "How are you?"
"What do you think? I'm terrible. My father just died, and I haven't even heard his final words or said goodbye properly."
"Do you feel better now, or do you need to 'Express yourself' more?"
"Is it really that hard to be nice just once? At least say something comforting…"
"Well, my former master, who took care of me and my brother, died on my birthday, and even before that, I had to survive the streets at six with my newborn brother; not only that, but my ability is at the lowest tier: F."
"Was that supposed to comfort me or make me feel bad? Or maybe the ladder to express what you've been holding the past few months?"
"None of the above; It was for you to feel that I'm sympathetic about your whole situation."
"What even is your ability? It can't be that bad."
He opened his palm, with tiny particles of snow appearing from thin air—illuminating a light blue glow around him. Ena only stared before she stood up and charged a small blade next to Haruo's side—Hitting the wall beside him.
The sound rang around the cave—before fading in with the noise from the snowstorm. She kept her blade still and pressed to the wall while her other hand was on the other side, supporting herself from falling over Haruo.
A gust of wind entered the cave, extinguishing the fire, allowing darkness to join.
"Quiet, a kid is sleeping near us. Wouldn't want him waking up, would we?"
"Why didn't you extinguish the fire? If you could do so."
"What have you not been listening to? I have an F-tier ability, and even if it were strong enough to be an A-tier, it would still be impossible. You would know it yourself… I'm sure you tried to extinguish the flame yourself."
She glared at Haruo, his expression stern despite threatening to attack him. She dropped the blade, clanging on the ground.
She sat beside him and hugged her legs once more, covering her whole face under her arms.
"What's it called?" She whispered.
"A cool mist; It was the first thing that came into my mind when I first used this ability."
Tiny bubbles of blood then appeared around the cave, emitting a light crimson glow as they gave warmth to the cave.
***
Ena woke up with Taiyo tugging her side while Haruo waited at the entrance of the cave. As she slowly gained consciousness, her nostrils had tracked the scent of food.
Ena saw three sticks with fish on them. She crawled over to get one but tripped as she did.
After finishing the three sets, they continued their journey through the forest. And at the end of it was a town. But the only obstacle that stood before them was the steep decline. With a second thought, Taiyo hopped on Haruo's back and began to slide down.
Ena watched them descend as if they were skiing. Taiyo cheered while Haruo easily dodged the obstacles ahead.
Ena took a deep breath before trying it out herself, only to fail the first try. She stood up once again, determined to follow them, and slid down carefully. As she got the hang of it, she began to shift her weight forward, getting faster.
But an amateur is always bound to fail—she tripped on a rock, rolling on her side as she descended.
After a minute or two, she finally reached the bottom—Her face flat on the snow.
"Did you enjoy?"
"Fugh zou 'Fuck you'" Ena said while she took out her middle finger.
***
They had entered town and bought Ena a new set of clothing.
A Victorian-style shirt followed by a corset around her waist. Then some practical pants partnered with leather shoes. She looked at herself in the mirror, doing complex moves to see if it was compatible.
"We'll buy three sets."
After buying the clothing, he placed the spare ones in his mana storage to keep them safe.
"Hey, my underwear is in there!"
"Oh, please, I have better things to do than lusting for somebody like you. Honestly, I'd be quite disappointed with myself if it were you as well."
She rolled her eyes, mocking him silently.
"Honestly, this is better than the one I used to wear."
"Go thank, taiyo, his the one who told me to buy you clothes."
"Uh-huh, whatever."
***
It had been three days since, Taiyo felt his legs giving out, so they decided to make camp today. They were far from the snowy parts of the region and were in a field filled with orange grass.
The orange hue gave the three a sense of ease, allowing them to relax. Taiyo lay on the grass and let the sun bathe him with its radiance. Ena joined him, relaxing all her muscles.
Haruo grabbed a giant leaf and placed it on their head to not get blinded by the sun. He joined them and quietly slept through the afternoon.
***
On the sixth day, they sat underneath a massive tree. Ena watched the rain fall and absorbed the view while Taiyo slept on her shoulder.
Haruo created a fire far from the trunk to prevent the tree from catching fire. With it, he cooked food for the three. The scent awoke Taiyo from his nap, and he walked to the food.
She took another glance at the scenery before making her way to the fire as well.
***
Blades made contact whilst Ena and Haruo dueled each other as they trained. Ena threw one of her blades at Haruo, only for him to grab it by its handle and send it back to its sender.
Ena quickly dodged it by leaning backward, cutting slightly on her bangs. Haruo swiftly closed the distance and sent a downward strike on her.
Another blade appeared on her hand like a magic trick and flicked her wrist, sending another blade toward his face. He quickly redirected his blade to deflect it. Giving Ena time to reposition herself.
Taiyo watched, counting how long it had been since they began travelling together, which was nine days in total.
***
On the fourteenth day, Haruo put his finger on his lips.
At the same time, Ena nodded, redirecting her gaze back to the boars while they silently waited in the trees. As Haruo lifted three fingers toward Ena, as he went to look at her, she had already jumped off and charged at them directly.
Both of them returned to their base and came back with only one leg at hand. Ena didn't meet his eyes, not wanting to see his disappointment whatsoever.
***
On the Twentieth day, they went to a nearby town to buy more materials and food to last for the week.
Haruo booked them a place to stay near a tavern, which surprised Ena, as the place was smaller than she had expected. Taiyo jumped on the bed, then let himself feel the cushion on his back. Sleeping almost instantly.
***
On the twenty-eighth day, the two of them sprinted away as a giant monster came after them. Taiyo watched as he got carried by Haruo, waving at the beast before disappearing from its sight.
Both of them hid under the bushes for hours till the beast lost interest and wandered off on its own. As it drifted away from the horizon, Taiyo sneezed, turning the beast back to its pursuit.
***
On the thirty-first day, they all hung their clothes and wore their extras as it was laundry day. Haruo did all the work while the two dozed off by themselves and slept under the sun.
***
On the thirty-seventh day, the three of them steadied their feet as they crossed a steep mountain hundreds of meters above the ground.
As Taiyo fell, Ena caught him quickly and made him ride on her shoulder while he took in the scenery of the landscape in the side of them.
***
On the forty-fifth day, Haruo pulled out a massive fish from a lake, splashing the ocean around it and watering the nearby forest. The fish shot up hundreds of meters into the sky, flapping as it did.
Ena, who stood near Haruo, sprinted to the side, jumping on one of the trees and using it as a springboard to launch herself upward to the massive fish. She took out one of her hidden knives and sliced its side cleanly—its blood raining down on the lake.
The fish groaned, sending a loud, painful shriek into the sky.
Ena then dropped to the lake, giving Haruo a thumbs-up. Haruo only pointed upward as she did, a large shadow casting over the lake getting bigger and bigger.
The massive fish fell into the lake, splashing gallons of water in all directions.
Haruo hid himself in a case made of layered Ice. The fish floated on the surface of the water, its blood dyeing the lake. Ena walked beside Haruo limply. Her clothes were soaked—not only water but also blood as well.
***
On the Fifty-first day, they were in a dense forest filled with large trees that shot up 40 meters into the sky, with trunks as thick as 10 meters. As they observed the place, they came across a giant beast.
It stared into their soul, not blinking once. Haruo and Ena equipped their weapons almost immediately and looked at the beast.
"It's already dead!"
A voice was heard above the beast, and there entered a man looking down from the beast's corpse.
He smiled at the three and dropped down from its skull and to the ground.
He had messy black hair with one single strand of red hair in the middle of his bangs. He wore a formal vintage attire that partnered well with his face; His amber eyes locked with the three.
Going to the side of one of the thin trees and vanishing instantly. Haruo felt his skin tense up while they all searched for him.
"You know…"
The three turned their heads on their back to see the man leaning against a tree while he investigated Haruo's ring. Haruo's eyes widen as he takes a look at his hand to find his ring missing.
"I had a friend who had a similar ring." He smiled.
"It's nice, where'd you get it?"