༺ Estelle Hadassa El Rath (2) ༻
The feeling of bare skin on top of bare skin was something I wasn’t very used to, especially if the skin was born soft, and felt good to touch thanks to being taken care of their whole life. It made me crave for it.
My hand traveled up the soft hipline all the way to the waist, giving me the urge to pull it towards my body.
『You woke up.』
Looking back, she really liked watching my sleeping face.
“Mhmm…”
When I opened my eyes, I found a lady breathing softly in her sleep. I looked at her adorable pink hair, her exposed shoulders, and underneath that…
“…Oh dear.”
The parts of my body that were touching her skin had been warmed up to the point that it was hot. The last thing I remembered was being pushed into the sewage waterway, and it seemed that she had done this to save me from hypothermia.
Her warm and soft body felt so good to touch, that I felt the urge to stay like this for a long time.
‘This is actually very warm.’
It was probably freezing outside because the Steel Archipelago was in a perpetual winter without any other seasons due to being located right next to the Northern Kingdom.
Even though we were in a shelter that concealed us from the wind, this was still a lot warmer than it should be.
“…”
I then realized that mana was seeping out of my body in large bulks…
It shouldn’t have been more than a day, and yet I was losing instead of recovering mana.
Is this the Curse of Finnbennach that Master had talked about?
———!
The unicorn’s horn placed next to us was giving off light.
Right, the horn of a unicorn had the power to cleanse curses and poison, so it was safe to say that the curse that had been placed on my body had been lifted… So why was my mana…
Ah.
“Uuun…”
Estelle slowly woke up after rubbing her eyes. Her emerald-colored eyes soon met mine.
“Good morning.”
“…”
I awkwardly greeted her as her cheeks immediately flushed red as if they were on fire.
“You will have to pay for this handsomely.”
“…Of course.”
No matter what I would have to do in return, this was a win for me.
“Get up.”
“Yep.”
While waiting for Estelle to wear her sacred clothes that we had been using as a blanket, I turned to the fire and found my shirt being dried next to it.
“Thanks for saving my life yesterday.”
“Well… You came all this way to save me so of course I should have done that. More importantly, how do you feel, Junior?”
Hearing that, I touched my shoulder which had been stabbed by Dun Scaith’s horn. I could see that a part of my clothes had been used to stop the blood like a bandage. It probably wouldn’t have done much because of my regeneration ability, but I was still grateful for the thought.
“I can move around just fine.”
“Really? Then let’s leave this island right now.”
“That’ll be tough at the moment.”
“Nnn?”
Estelle’s voice turned noticeably soft as soon as I said that.
“They probably strengthened the borders after that. The port is most definitely going to be monitored heavily, and because of the characteristics of the Steel Archipelago, there’s a limit to the number of flying beasts that can fly around.”
There was a reason why the Kingdom couldn’t mobilize a group of wyverns for the war. Most wyverns would end up freezing to death from the blizzard, and the only monsters that could withstand the cold were massive ones like monster carriers.
“Is there no way for us to escape then?”
I shook my head in response.
“There are two options.”
They weren’t the best options, but they were the best that we could manage from our current circumstances.
“First is to stay holed up in this place. We wait for about, let’s say 20 days? And stand our ground until the Kingdom starts their full frontal assault to destroy the Tower of Mages.”
“I don’t think the Tower is so stupid that they won’t find us for 20 days.”
Right, it was a strategy that relied purely on luck. There was a way to find food, but I didn’t want to risk exposing our location just yet.
“The second option is to go north from here.”
“But… isn’t this the north of the island already?”
“…”
“Wait, do you mean…”
Estelle frowned and said after biting her lower lips. Even though she would have understood it already, she still looked at me in doubt.
“We will be crossing the ocean. Go further north from here, the Steel Archipelago, to the Dingle Peninsula of the Northern Kingdom.”
“H, have you lost your mind? How are we going to cross the ocean?”
“It’s frozen all year long. If we stick to a path, it will be a lot easier than you think.”
The only issue with that plan was that we might inevitably end up coming across the ‘Titan Archaeologists’, but if we were lucky, we might, in fact, discover ‘that thing’ before the mages did, considering how this was earlier than the battle in the original storyline.
The biggest reason why the second plan was better, was because it was difficult to hope for additional support even if we were to continue hiding here. Even if they did send help, how would they find us in this vast archipelago, and how would we escape, even if they were able to find us by some miracle?
Running away in a small group of two had more chances of success.
“Haa~”
After a small sigh, Estelle shook her head and opened her mouth.
“Shall we find something to eat before that?”
“You’re quick at adapting to the situation, aren’t you?”
“It’s not like crying would solve our problems. And like you said, we can’t wait here and do nothing either.”
It was something I felt from the last iteration, but the princesses of this Kingdom were really wild. For Miru, it was probably because she was personally crushing all the wolves, and for Estelle, it was probably because of her demi-human protection scheme and her work as a part of the Inquisition.
They were both quite used to arduous and taxing jobs.
“I do agree that we should look for food first. Let’s fill up our stomachs and leave at night.”
“Why is that?”
“Because we need to look at the constellations to head north.”
“Do you know how to follow the stars?”
“I had to learn a few things to make up for my lack of talent.”
It was something I learned in the last iteration to increase my chance of survival as much as possible.
“Well, you can stay here, Saintess. I will go out and find something to eat.”
“Huh? Junior? Not with your body in that state.”
“It’s all healed now.”
“But, still… Are you sure it’s all healed already? Oh wow, you’re right.”
When I took off the ripped piece of clothing that was acting as a bandage and showed her the skin beneath it, Estelle uttered in surprise. She then carried the red spear lying around her and quickly came after me.
“What’s wrong? You should stay inside; it’s cold.”
“My clothes have cold-resistant spells on them, so it’s fine.”
She said with a giggle.
It seemed that she really was fine.
Even though it was already summer, the Steel Archipelago was as cold as winter and Estelle was wearing a thin layer of clothing in that cold blizzard.
It didn’t look right, but now wasn’t the time for me to worry about someone else.
“Ahh, why are my hands so cold? I will try praying again later.”
Who in the world could possibly realize that she was the Saintess, looking at her warming her cold hands by placing them under her armpits?
***
“Haht…!”
On the cold, snowy plain, a cute bunny whose fur was of the exact same color as the surrounding snow, was munching on a small blade of grass.
“Oh my god, oh my god! It’s so cute! It’s so cute!!”
Estelle tried her best to embed that adorable organism into her emerald eyes.
In her eyes that had been perfect ever since birth, the bunny appeared pure and innocent like a child playing in paradise. Its poking ears added even more to its charm.
She even wanted to invite that angel to her garden of—
-Slam!
Kehk!
The inhabitant of the snowy plain cried out tears of blood while drawing its last breath as the red spear mercilessly left its target. Lifted into the air by its formerly poking ears, the bunny’s eyes met with Estelle’s.
-Curse you. Curse you, damn humans…!
Those were the tears of blood of someone cursing from the bottom of their hearts.
“We were lucky. I hope there are some more lying around.”
“You devil…”
“What do you mean?”
“Did we have to eat a bunny? It’s so cute though…”
“Everything’s the same once you eat it.”
After that, Korin hunted another bunny and a squirrel.
“Hiing… I’m sorry, bunny. And sorry to you as well, squirrel…”
“Saintess. Can you hold onto the legs for a bit?”
“Huh? W, wait!”
Estelle received the dead bunny in a stupor, but Korin ruthlessly gave the following orders.
“Stretch the legs out wide and hold them in place. That way, it’s easier to take it off.”
“Huh? Take what off?”
Korin put his fingers into the legs that he had already poked a hole in and pulled them just like that. Estelle almost fell because of the sudden pull but somehow stood her ground thanks to readying herself beforehand.
-Rippp!
“Huh?”
In the blink of an eye, the flesh left its former shell. The red flesh with not a single bit of skin left over did not retain a fraction of its former cuteness.
“I, I’m not eating this.”
“Excuse me? Being picky with food is a bad idea. This little squirrel is so frozen, that I can’t even remove its skin.”
Unlike the bunny, Korin used the spearhead to slice off the squirrel’s skin like one would with an apple and a fruit knife. He even scratched out the frozen innards and prepared the meat that could now be placed into a skewer.
“It’s probably going to be plain because we don’t have salt, but it’s pretty fatty and should be edible.”
“I, I’m telling you no! I’ll have some berries instead…!”
While Korin continued his hunt, Estelle found fruits and berries and showed them off with pride.
However, how could the likes of berries possibly stand a chance against meat?
Smelling the scent that was given off by the grilled bunny and squirrel skewers, Estelle’s stomach constantly gave her a sign.
-Growl!
“Why don’t you just have some?”
“…Maybe a bite, then?”
……
…
“Hueeng! Sorry, bunny…! It’s so deliciousss~. I’m so sowwwyy…!”
***
Estelle realized how unbearably uncomfortable it was to be unable to use her divine energy. She knew very well that she was like luggage without her prayers, so she voluntarily looked for things she could help with.
Thankfully, she used to work for the Inquisition and actively save demi-humans from discrimination, thus she was quite used to arduous tasks.
‘It was only for a bit, but I had my power back for a second.’
Estelle’s power was to pray and have that come to reality.
It wasn’t always something that required a prayer. The environment, circumstances, instincts, and reflexes – whichever it was, if there was something she wanted, her divine energy worked to make things happen for her benefit.
They helped her skin remain dry even when she was under a storm, and if she were to run into a burning house to save someone, the fire wouldn’t even dare touch her hair.
But now that her divine energy had been sealed, her heavenly blessing was no longer working, until last night.
In order to stop Korin from dying from hypothermia, she took off her clothes, aligned her skin with his, and warmed him up with her own body. Naturally, her temperature was supposed to decrease, and yet her temperature also went up for some reason.
It felt similar to the warm radiance that used to envelope her when giving a prayer – it felt like she was next to the Lord, whose existence she was still uncertain of.
‘That’s interesting. Maybe it’s because he has the divine artifact of the sun?’
She knew that he was in possession of one of the 4 treasures deemed divine by the order ever since she researched the Undead City, Nazrea, that was cleansed in a single day after being a nuisance to humanity for centuries.
That was also probably why her sister was attached to Korin Lork.
Symbolic value.
Both Estelle and her sister saw symbolic value in Korin. A hero of the order; the owner of a sacred artifact given by the Lord.
Both Estelle and Miruam were aware that they had to one day grasp that political symbol for themselves.
“Here’s some squirrel meat and fruits. Have them regularly so that you don’t feel hungry.”
Korin was like a veteran. Unlike Estelle, who needed the help of others when sleeping outside, he did everything without cutting corners or forgetting anything to survive.
“By the way, we do look a little funny.”
He looked quite laughable at a glance.
Korin had attached bunny and squirrel skin all around his body to protect himself from the cold. Meanwhile, Estelle was still wearing her sacred clothes that clearly revealed her armpits and her thighs.
People, who saw them wearing clothes like this in this cold weather, would probably find them crazy.
“Even though it’s ladies first, I was about to freeze to death after all. You can hold onto this spear.”
Korin handed the red spear over to Estelle. Red Spear, Gae Derg. It was the javelin that was several times more effective against beasts.
“Throw this if you see an animal. The spear will travel by itself if you throw it decently.”
“Wow~. Is it a magic spear?”
“Similar.”
It was a shame that she didn’t have her favorite mace, but a spear was still better than nothing. Estelle gladly received the red spear from him and…
“Oops!”
The spear was a lot colder than she thought, and she ended up dropping it.
-Rip!
On the way down, the spear sliced apart the clothing around her shoulders. It was just a gentle graze but…
-Bam!
“Huh?”
A sudden gust of coldness struck her skin. Her bare feet, thighs, and armpits were immediately swallowed by the cold blizzard.
“Hugik…! I, it’s so cold!”
“…”
Seeing her shiver desperately from the cold, Korin had to hold his words back for quite some time.
Just then, the difficulty of their journey had increased by severalfold.
………
……
…
‘We look a little funny,’
Estelle regretted saying that from the bottom of her heart because it jinxed her and made them look even funnier.
Who could have guessed that the spear Korin used to hunt beasts was the one with anti-magic traits?
Her clothes got sliced by the red spear and so did the anti-cold spell that was cast on her clothes, so Estelle was exposed to the harshness of mother nature without anything to protect her.
『Wait here. Don’t ever leave the fire.』
After giving her the bunny and squirrel skin that he was wearing, Korin went outside and did not return for hours.
“Junior? Junior… I’m scared…”
Left alone inside the cave, Estelle started to feel more and more frightened.
The cold wind blowing from outside echoed through the cave and shook the fire, and yet all she could do was crouch there, trying to warm her body up as much as possible.
“Ugh… Lord, please protect my Junior… Junior Korin Lork and let him come back in one piece.
“And can you please do something about this cold? I can give a thousand prayers in a row after I go back if you want!
“Are you really not going to do that for me? Didn’t you always do it even when I was less sincere?!”
It was a prayer that would shock the gods even if they heard it, but as if the world had heard her desperate wish, she heard someone walking in through the entrance of the cave.
“Junior… Korin?”
Estelle carefully spoke up in case it was someone pursuing them from the Tower of Mages. Right when she was about to heave a sigh of relief from Korin’s short reply, she was startled by the thing that Korin dropped on the ground.
“Is this… a sheep?”
What Korin brought was a sheep that was dead with its tongue sticking out.
“We are going to cut this guy’s skin up to use as a coat and a blanket, so you have to bear with me even if you don’t like it.”
“Ugh… Let me help you.”
It was surprising that he caught a sheep, but thinking of how he must have been wandering outside in this cold weather for hours to catch an animal with large enough skin, Estelle felt so sorry that she couldn’t even ask anything about it.
Like that, they acquired the skin of a sheep that was still red with blood.
“…”
“…It’s small.”
“…Yeah.”
The sheepskin was barely enough to cover from the neck down to the feet. It was slightly big for one person but was way too small for two people to use after cutting it into halves.
“It can’t be helped. I can use the squirrel and the bunny skin, so Saintess, you can…”
“We can’t do that!”
“Saintess?”
“Let’s come up with an idea! There must be a way for us to both use it!”
It was way too late for him to find another one outside, and they had to leave as soon as possible to escape from the potential pursuit of the Tower.
Estelle didn’t want to waste any more time than what was wasted because of her mistake, so she thought deeply before coming up with an idea.
“Right! I have an idea! There’s a way for us to both use it!”
