Chapter 12: The Storm and the Sacrifice

The ominous premonition came true.

‘If I insist it’s a nice day, will the weather clear up?’

‘Of course not.’

A downpour, loud enough to drown out even Iris’s voice next to me, began.

I stopped fishing and hurried to take shelter under the large tree where we had tied the horse.

The fishing spot wasn’t well-equipped, so this was the only shelter available.

The rain, now heavy enough to obscure my vision, showed no signs of stopping.

Even with the tree’s protection, we were still getting wet, so I thought we should find a better shelter.

And if the weather suddenly changed to snow, which wasn’t entirely impossible in this world…

My strangely resilient body didn’t mind the rain, aside from the unpleasant feeling of the wet dress clinging to my skin.

But Iris… ‘Hopefully, she’ll be fine.’

I glanced at Iris, who was staring blankly at the rain-soaked sky, her expression unreadable.

Her usually bouncy ponytail was now drooping like a waterlogged tail, and her side bangs were plastered to her cheeks.

Her white shirt clung to her, revealing her figure.

‘She’s unexpectedly… no, what am I even thinking?’

Iris looked as impassive as ever, but she seemed unwell.

If this were when we first met in the snowy mountains, my concern would have been laughable. But Iris’s recent excessive training had taken a toll on her body.

Just because she wasn’t complaining didn’t mean she wasn’t in pain. She might be shivering even now, behind that calm facade.

“Iris.”

“…Yes.”

‘I wonder what she’s thinking.’

“I’ll go look for a place to take shelter.”

“I’ll go.”

“No, you know I’m tough. You rest for a bit. It would be nice to build a fire, but… that’s probably impossible.”

“If we’re moving, we should go together.”

“What if we can’t find a place?”

“That’s…”

“So, just stay put and watch the horse. I’ll be back soon.”

Iris lowered her raised hand and nodded slightly.

“…Alright.”

Leaving her there, I dashed out from under the tree.

The rain, though lighter than before, was still heavy as I searched for a building.

I ripped the hem of my dress, which was hindering my movement.

It wasn’t mine to begin with, and I had no intention of wearing it again, so I felt no regret.

‘Lena will nag me, but it’s a small price to pay if she doesn’t restrict my macaron intake…’

I pushed aside distracting thoughts and focused on my search.

After a while, I found an empty-looking wooden building.

It was a bit eerie inside, but the roof was intact, and it seemed decent enough, aside from the lack of signs of recent habitation.

‘This will do.’

There was even a fireplace, though it looked a bit flimsy… ‘Better than nothing.’

I could use the unnecessary-looking furniture for firewood.

As for lighting the fire… Iris could probably handle that.

‘I wish I could use magic.’

I should stop with the wishful thinking and go get Iris.

Imagining her standing there stiffly, waiting for me, brought to mind a large, stoic dog waiting for its owner.

‘A wolf suits her better than a dog, though.’

Chuckling, I opened the door and saw a dark figure in the distance.

‘Wait, is that the owner? I didn’t think anyone lived here since there were no signs of habitation. They’ll probably let us stay if I ask nicely, right?’

‘Maybe they’ll recognize Iris as the Duke’s daughter. They pay taxes to the Duke, after all.’

‘Or maybe not…?’

‘I mean, I know the mayor’s face, but not his daughter’s… But judging by the people here, they probably won’t be so heartless as to turn us away.’

‘Or maybe it’s just someone like us, seeking shelter from the rain.’

As I was lost in thought, the blurry, dark figure came into focus.

It wasn’t the owner or a passing traveler.

It was Iris.

I felt a jolt, as if struck by lightning.

‘Why is she here?’

I rushed out and ran to her.

“Hey! I told you to wait!”

“…”

“ come inside, quickly.”

I grabbed her silent hand and pulled her inside.

Her hand was different from when she touched me. It was ice-cold. I had a bad feeling.

‘Is she going to die?’

I sat her down on the floor and frantically started breaking furniture to use as firewood.

‘Something… to start a fire.’

Empty-handed, I searched Iris’s pockets, but she didn’t have anything useful.

‘She followed me all this way? Why? She could have just waited and come with me.’

‘Why would she do this without any preparations? Why?’

‘The Iris I knew wouldn’t do something so reckless.’

‘Why doesn’t matter right now.’

Iris’s complexion was worse than before.

She looked like she was about to die.

‘This wasn’t supposed to happen. Why did things turn out like this?’

Overwhelmed by unexpected emotions, my vision blurred.

‘I have to do something.’ I grabbed a wooden stick and started rubbing it against the firewood.

But no sparks appeared.

The stick broke, and the firewood only dented. There was no sign of a flame.

I discarded the broken stick and grabbed another.

I repeated this until there were no more sticks within reach.

Even my resilient hands were slightly injured.

But they were just slightly red, so I didn’t feel much pain.

The bigger problem was the lack of sticks.

“ why is this happening to me…?”

Overcome by helplessness, my vision blurred again.

I tried rubbing two pieces of firewood together, then gave up and threw them down.

Thud

I collapsed to my knees.

Various thoughts consumed me.

‘What if Iris dies?’

‘What will happen to this world if Iris dies?’

‘What about me?’

My eyes burned, and I felt something warm trailing down my cheeks.

Covering my face with my hands, I cried out,

“Why is this happening to me?!”

Then, I whispered, filled with frustration,

“Someone… please help me…”

Just then, I heard a whoosh from beyond my covered eyes.

Somehow, the firewood had caught fire.

The small flame grew stubbornly, eventually creating a large fire.

I didn’t know how, but it was burning.

That was all that mattered.

I dragged Iris closer to the fire and did what I could remember about treating hypothermia.

Iris opened her eyes, struggling against the remnants of a forgotten dream.

Her last memory was seeing Evrys’s distraught face as she chased after her.

She realized she was naked.

Then, she noticed dry clothes placed on her body.

She looked up and saw a roaring fire.

It felt… strange, not like an ordinary fire. But it was warmer than any fire she had ever felt.

Staring at the flames, she thought of Evrys.

She sat up abruptly, then swayed, hit by a wave of dizziness.

The clothes covering her slid off.

Gathering the clothes, she looked around and easily spotted Evrys.

Evrys was sitting on the floor a short distance away, eyes closed, seemingly asleep.

Her torn dress revealed her pale legs, and her hands were red, as if she had been working.

‘Why is she lying there, still wet, while I’m placed by the fire?’

Iris set her clothes down, lifted Evrys, and placed her by the fire.

Evrys didn’t stir, deeply asleep.

The word ‘perhaps’ flashed through Iris’s mind.

A bad feeling washed over her, and she placed her ear against Evrys’s small chest.

Thankfully, Evrys’s small heart was beating strongly.

As Iris lifted her head, she saw Evrys’s eyes flutter open. Her lips moved slightly.

“You’re safe…”

With those words, Evrys closed her eyes again, seemingly falling back into a deep sleep.

As she did, the flames gradually died down and vanished.

Iris stared at the extinguished fire for a moment, then dressed and checked outside.

The downpour had stopped.

“Why… would you go so far…?”

Swallowing the unspoken question, Iris lifted Evrys into her arms and walked out the door.