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“‘Forge.’”

When I first jumped into the hole, I experienced a strange sensation—as if I were passing through a membrane.

Immediately afterward, I felt a piercing cold on my skin. As I fell, engulfed by the blizzard, the bottom soon came into view.

I immediately used Alchemy to gather the surrounding snow and create snow cushions for everyone.

I’ve gotten pretty good at constructing alchemical arrays using the shadows of the lanterns.

“……”

The snow seemed to be piled quite deep on the ground, and my body sank in with a soft thud.

Judging by the time it took to fall, the height wasn’t that great, yet when I looked up, the hole we’d passed through was no longer visible.

“Swallower than I thought? Did we pass through space? …Sufi, are you okay?”

In the midst of my thoughts, I realized I’d ended up with Sufi pinned beneath me and hurriedly moved aside.

“…Sufi?”
“Mmyu…”

Sufi was buried in the snow, breathing quietly in her sleep.

“Noche, Filia.”

I called out to the two of them buried nearby, but there was no response.

“‘Forge,’ ‘Harden.’”

I immediately created an igloo large enough to cover all three of them and solidified it so it wouldn’t collapse. As I knelt down, dizzy, and checked the thermometer, I saw the temperature was a relatively high minus 20 degrees.

I used Alchemy to raise the temperature inside the igloo to some extent, then smoothed out the snow inside and narrowed the entrance.

By the time I’d done that, I finally couldn’t stand anymore.

“Sufi, Noche, Filia…”

I called out to them, but all I heard was the sound of their breathing. There was no reason for them to lose consciousness in that situation; clearly, they were under the influence of some special effect.

Ah, nothing but unexpected events. If just one of them would wake up, I could manage somehow.

There’s no point in regretting it now. Gritting my teeth, I forced myself to stand and pulled the door out of my pocket.

“O-eh…”

I forced myself to suppress the dizziness and nausea caused by dehydration, used alchemy to embed the door into the snow wall, and reached for the doorknob.

…I couldn’t muster the strength. I tried to stay conscious, but at the same time I felt a sensation akin to floating, and all the strength drained from my body.

■■■■■

“…………”

A snowy plain stretched out beneath the blue sky. The blue and white horizon looked almost like a sea of clouds.

“Grandpa.”

After taking a moment to survey my surroundings, I called out to the old man standing before me.

He wore a worn-out robe and had a kind, wrinkled face. It was my adoptive alchemist grandfather, a memory still fresh in my mind.

“……I see.”

Even though I’d collapsed in that situation, I felt neither the cold nor the fatigue.

I’m in a dream, aren’t I…?

*“This is the Sea of Lingering Snow, a place where the living and the dead bid each other farewell.”*
“Mm.”

Grandpa speaks in a voice I know well. It’s a mix of nostalgia and sadness—or perhaps that slightly exasperated look he sometimes gives when teaching me something.

With the same familiar, nostalgic expression as before.

*“The only regret of my life was leaving you two behind so soon. Especially you, Alice—I couldn’t stop worrying about you.”*
“……Grandpa.”

Grandpa looks up at the sky. His expression is twisted with sadness.

*“If you shake off the dead and look ahead, the blizzard will stop and the sky will clear. That is the rule of this sea.”*

Following his gaze, I look up at the crystal-clear blue sky—not a single cloud in sight.

“…………”

It’s true—I left the past behind long ago.

This is a way of thinking I learned from Captain in my past life.

“If only I’d done this back then, things might have been different.” …Regrets like these eventually turn into chains that wrap themselves around your ankles at the most crucial moments.

It was sad and painful when Grandpa passed away.

I might have even felt a bit resentful, wondering why he left us behind. We cried, grieved, and comforted each other.

For me, it’s become a thing of the past.

That’s the only way to move forward without letting my heart be shaken by this cruel reality. In my past life, while everyone around me was risking their lives, I was the one who was protected. To safeguard my own heart, that was essential.

*“I was worried about you—that you’d be able to keep walking on your own.”*
“…Lately, I’ve learned to look back, too. I don’t want to go on alone anymore.”
*“Is that so?”*

But now it’s different. It’s not just about being protected and moving forward while keeping my peace of mind.

Even if I make the wrong choice, I’ve become capable of turning back and returning to my friends. I want to learn so many things alongside them and live my life together with them.

I sort of understand Grandpa’s concern. Moving forward by cutting everything loose could easily lead to discarding everything that’s not essential.

Even so, this is my second go at life. Especially in my past life, I’ve seen all kinds of people. After all, the only people who gather at the facility are those who’ve reached the end of their lives.

As I listen to their stories, I’ve come to realize that the things people call “unnecessary clutter” often contain what’s truly important.

A life spent discarding all the clutter I’ve accumulated and moving forward with a light step would feel empty to me.

I have no intention of living that way. I gave that up the day I resolved to die with Sufi and the others in the basement.

“So I’m okay. I’m glad we met.”
*“I feel a little more at ease now. ……Lady Alice, I hope that you and Lady Sufi will get along well with your friends. From the Sea of Genesis, I pray that you will be able to meet your parents safely in Alveria.”*
“Mhm… thank you. Goodbye, Grandpa.”

Perhaps his concerns had been put to rest; Grandpa wore a gentle smile.

Come to think of it, Grandpa used to say often when he was alive, “You should rely on those around you more.” I used to wonder why he’d say that, since I couldn’t survive without help anyway, and Sufi would look exasperated too.

Looking back now, perhaps he had somehow sensed my nature—how I unconsciously built walls around myself, as if I were ready to cut myself off from others.

Once our brief conversation ended, Grandpa vanished as if he dissolved into the air.

I don’t know if it was a hallucination or the real him, but it seems our exchange went off without a hitch.

…It really was good to see him, even if just for a moment.

When I looked up at the sky, I saw the blue sky fading away as if it were melting.

I actually wanted to talk more with him, and I’d struggle to break free from him, from my past.

But if I took my time lingering with my past, the snow would bury me deep and take my life away…what a nasty trap.

Come to think of it, since I’d already broken free from the past pretty much from the start, it ended with a light exchange… but I wonder if everyone else is going to be okay.

As the world melted away, that sensation of floating washed over my body once more.

I snapped my eyes open and realized I had literally been dreaming.

I shook my dizzy head from side to side and lifted my face.

My vision gradually cleared. I checked my body and confirmed that Sufi and the others were snoring peacefully—and then… I made eye contact with “it.”

“……?”
“Kyupi?”

A round silhouette, big round eyes, and a tiny beak. The white feathers had a deep blue gradient.

At the entrance of the collapsed snow hut, a massive long-tailed tit—easily over two meters long—was tilting its head at me.