{4}“Yuparuru”

  ***

  Tears of Winter. Mirror of Fantasy.

  A legendary lake that has remained unfrozen for thousands of years, holding the sorrow of the snow spirit.

  "......"

  The crystal-clear, still surface perfectly reflected the sky above like an immense mirror. Rin couldn't help but shed tears at the mystical and majestic sight.

  *GRRRR*

  The moment was broken by an angry growl from behind.

  "Ah!"

  The Muwai had somehow caught up, right behind her. It had transformed all the pain from its injured leg into pure rage. As Rin stepped backward, she realized in despair that even that was no longer possible. What she had believed to be open ground was entirely covered by the waters of Yuparuru.

  Whoosh

  The Muwai smugly twirled its blade, showing off. Its attitude suggested it wasn't planning on giving her a quick death. Backed into such a desperate situation, Rin felt like clutching at straws.

  'Should I jump into the water? No. In this weather... No. But still, better than being brutally killed by the Muwai...'

  Her eyes naturally drifted from the Muwai to Yuparuru. Though she didn't know why the lake never froze, she would surely freeze to death if she entered the water in this weather.

  And running along the shore wouldn't work either—the Muwai was much faster.

  With these thoughts, Rin took a step forward. Her frozen legs slowly began to move toward the lake. At first, she felt nothing. The Snow People's clothing she wore prevented the water from seeping in.

  But that didn't last long. Soon, the ice-cold water invaded through the gaps in her clothes.

  She could hear her teeth chattering. This was beyond what could be simply described as "cold."

  Every place the water touched felt like it was being cut by knives. Tears welled up in her eyes, only to freeze into droplets on her cheeks.

  *GRRRR*

  The Muwai's fierce growl no longer frightened the current Rin. When she slowly looked back, the Muwai was indeed right behind her. However, for some reason, it didn't attack immediately.

  It seemed to be extremely wary of the lake's edge that rippled gently.

  *WHOOSH!*

  It swung its blade but didn't reach her at all.

  Rin had already waded in deep enough for the water to reach her waist. The Muwai howled in frustration.

  Why was it so wary of the lake? Because it was cold? That made no sense. While getting wet in winter was dangerous, that only applied to humans. For large northern species like the Muwai, it shouldn't matter at all.

  "Heh."

  Rin let out a hollow laugh. Her lower body was already completely numb from the cold. In her hazy consciousness, the pain had disappeared, replaced by a false sense of comfort and floating thoughts. Only the knowledge that she would soon die lingered in her mind. Without realizing it, she clasped her hands together and closed her eyes.

  "Are you going to pray?"

  "?"

  A sudden human voice stopped Rin in her tracks. It was a very young, unbroken voice.

  "Over here."

  Rin turned around in surprise. A white boy was staring intently at her from right beside her. He appeared no older than 10, with snow-white skin and hair, and eyes as clear and blue as Yuparuru. Wearing a white silk robe, he was dazzlingly bright all over.

  "Who... who are you...?"

  "Why are you trying to enter the lake?"

  The white boy answered her question with another question. Rin, who was about to explain, suddenly remembered this wasn't the time for casual conversation. The cold had even made it difficult to speak properly.

  "I'm... being chased..."

  The boy looked in the direction she pointed. There stood the Muwai, clutching its blackened knee, holding up its sword and glaring at them. Upon seeing the creature's fierce blade, the boy spoke.

  "The lake does not welcome your rotting corpse."

  The Muwai seemed taken aback by the sudden appearance of the white boy, apparently hesitating to attack. And Rin momentarily forgot the cold due to the boy's cold attitude.

  "So you're saying I should just die?"

  "Yes. Better to die by that blade."

  "......"

  His apparent disregard for life made Rin angry.

  She stormed forward defiantly. The boy hurriedly reached out and grabbed her.

  "Wait! What are you doing?"

  "Let go! I'm just going to drown myself!"

  In her anger, she didn't even know what she was saying. The boy considered her words for a moment, then calmly stated:

  "Fine. Shall I deal with that thing then?"

  "What?"

  The white boy released Rin's hand and fearlessly strode toward the Muwai. To the puzzled Muwai, the boy spoke arrogantly with his arms crossed:

  "As the master of this lake, I warn you. Return to where you came from, creature of the snow."

  "......"

  The Muwai's forehead creased deeply at the boy's words. Rin was quietly surprised at its seemingly complex expression.

  'What's this? It's as if it actually understands human speech.'

  The boy solemnly warned the snorting Muwai once more.

  Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.

  "Go back. If not, I will force you to retu—"

  Before the boy could finish speaking, the Muwai's sudden attack came down on him.

  "Watch out!"

  Rin quickly tried to save him, but when the young man strongly pushed her away, she ended up falling instead.

  "Eek!"

  *SPLASH!*

  Something heavy fell to the ground, making it shake. It was the sword the Muwai had been holding.

  "What...?"

  Rin blankly stared up at the unexpectedly disarmed Muwai. The Muwai was equally surprised. Rather than grasping its sword, it anxiously felt its suddenly immobile right arm.

  The white boy watched this dispassionately.

  "That's the price for ignoring my warning."

  The next moment, something unbelievable happened.

  As the boy's gaze slowly traced the Muwai's arm, cracks began appearing, breaking it into tiny pieces.

  The arm's skin, muscles, bones, and even blood all separated into crystalline ice fragments that decorated the air.

  Then the white boy crossed his arms again and said:

  "Next will be your head."

  At that emotionless threat, the Muwai ran away without looking back.

  Where it had fled, only its frozen left hand and countless fragments that had once formed its forearm remained scattered about.

  ***

  The Snow People, who had been internally uncomfortable with the Muwais joining them, had now calmed down somewhat. Professor Antoine's group returned to where the survey team had originally split up. They intended to track the sled marks left by Rin's group from there.

  However, upon arrival, they found chaotic footprints, gouges, and what appeared to be explosion marks. The reindeer and sled had been abandoned in a corner. Seeing this ominous scene, Professor Antoine spoke with a voice full of concern.

  "Looks like there was a battle here. And the sled's been abandoned."

  Trafalgas approached and bent his large frame to examine the tracks.

  "Two of your companions fought with the criminal. One warrior. The other... a magician?"

  As he tilted his head in confusion, Professor Temel spoke up.

  "If you mean the marks on the ground, those would be Dr. Gernshvatz's work."

  "Doctor? What's that? Some kind of magician?"

  To his question, Professor Antoine nodded.

  "Specifically, he's a doctor of engineering... but... you could say... he's similar to a magician. Especially in Dr. Gernshvatz's case."

  They mounted the sled again. The Muwai showed no signs of fatigue as they ran alongside the reindeer pulling the sled. Professor Antoine remained frowning with worry. The scene they had witnessed earlier kept bothering him. He called out to Trafalgas, who was running alongside the sled:

  "Trafalgas! Can you make any deductions from those tracks?"

  Trafalgas answered. Even while running, his voice showed no sign of being out of breath.

  "Deductions? What's that?"

  Though his common tongue was fluent, he probably hadn't learned such academic expressions. Professor Antoine quickly realized his mistake and corrected himself:

  "I mean, can you tell what happened there!"

  "Yes."

  Everyone on the sled listened intently to his words.

  "The criminal chased three humans. Then one human shot the criminal with magic. The criminal injured his leg but still attacked. The human with the sword fought the criminal. And the smallest human left first."

  Professor Antoine grabbed Professor Temel's shoulder.

  "That must be Rin!"

  "Yes! Thankfully she escaped first!"

  But Trafalgas shook his head.

  "No. The criminal immediately followed the small human."

  Professor Antoine was shocked.

  "What? Why?"

  Trafalgas had been examining the footprints while speaking the entire time.

  "The small human kept turning back while running. Must have shot something or cursed to make the criminal angry."

  Professor Antoine and Professor Temel nodded at each other.

  "The child sacrificed herself."

  "It seems so. That's exactly like her, though I doubt she cursed."

  Just then, urgent calls came from the bushes behind them.

  "Wait! Stop!"

  "Professor Antoine! Wait for us!"

  It was Dr. Gernshvatz and Professor Sven.

  "Whoa whoa!"

  Baldu the Snow Person quickly pulled the reins to stop the sled. Despite their hurried approach, the two professors hesitated to come closer when they saw the Muwai near the sled.

  "We'll explain, just get on first."

  Professor Temel forcibly helped them onto the sled. The two professors kept glancing nervously at the Muwai group standing casually beside them.

  "Heeyah!"

  As the sled started moving again, Professor Antoine was most worried about Rin's safety, but he thought it more important to first explain the situation to the two frightened professors. So he briefly explained how the Muwai had joined them. The two professors, who had been troubled by the criminal Muwai until now, were simply amazed.

  "So where's Rin?"

  At Professor Antoine's question, the two professors' faces grew gloomy.

  "We've been following the tracks as well."

  Professor Sven said.

  "But with our pace, we could never catch up to Rin running ahead. The only comfort was seeing both Rin's and the Muwai's footprints together consistently. It meant she hadn't been caught yet. It seems the doctor's disabling of one of its legs was effective."

  Dr. Gernshvatz tried to hide it, but he was clearly crying.

  "Poor sweetheart. Is she still running in this cold..."

  ***

  After running for a while, they came to a large hill. Rin and the Muwai's footprints led straight to it. Professor Temel asked Baldu the Snow Person:

  "What's beyond that hill?"

  "Yuparuru is past there."

  The professors all focused on the hill. This was actually the original purpose of their survey team coming here. Combined with the uncertainty of Rin's fate, the professors' feelings grew more complex.

  "Whoa whoa!"

  The group dismounted from the sled, and the Snow People remained in place. They decided not to use the sled as the hill's slope was too steep.

  That was fine. However, the problem was the professors' average age. Their uphill walking speed was even worse than crawling on flat ground. Finally, unable to bear it any longer, Trafalgas ordered the other Muwai to each carry a professor on their back, solving the problem.

  "Ooh!"

  "Aah!"

  Thanks to the Muwai's incredible strength, the professors quickly reached the top of the hill and were amazed by Yuparuru's majesty that overwhelmed their eyes. About halfway down the slope, they spotted Rin standing alone by the lakeshore.

  "Rin!"

  "You're safe!"

  "Sweetheart!"

  "Miss Rin!"

  The professors called out joyfully. Forgetting their age, they jumped off the Muwai's backs like children and ran to the lake.

  "Uh..."

  However, instead of showing happiness, Rin hesitated when she saw the Muwai who had come with them. Seeing this, Professor Antoine laughed heartily.

  "Ha ha. Let me introduce you. This is Walopayi Trafalgas of the Muwai. The Muwai that was chasing you was apparently a criminal of their tribe. Trafalgas came to catch that criminal."

  "Greetings. I am Trafalgas."

  "Oh, hello? I'm Rin."

  What followed was exactly like the others' reactions. Initial tension, immediate bewilderment, and after understanding, surprise and admiration.

  "By the way..."

  Professor Sven spoke while looking at the ice fragments scattered by the lakeshore.

  "How did you survive? And where is that criminal?"

  "That's..."

  Rin explained about the white boy who had saved her. However, trying to explain something she herself didn't understand made her explanation quite jumbled.

  "Hmm."

  Professor Antoine showed particular interest.

  "So where did this boy go now, Rin?"

  "He... disappeared."

  "Hm? Disappeared? Right before your eyes?"

  Rin shook her head.

  "I was talking with him and briefly looked at the lake... when I noticed it had gotten quiet, he was gone."

  "That's hard to believe."

  "It's true!"

  "No, no, what I mean is... there have only been a handful of magicians in history who could do something like this just by looking. That's why I'm so amazed."

  Professor Antoine casually picked up the left hand, the most intact piece among the scattered ice fragments.

  "Trafalgas. Do you happen to know who might have done this?"

  Trafalgas pointed first to Yuparuru and then to the ridge beyond it.

  "The master of the lake."

  "The master... of the lake?"

  Professor Antoine's eyes sparkled with curiosity.

  "You mean... Yuparuru has a master?"

  "Old story. I don't know much. Just heard there's a magician living at the top of the mountain across the lake."

  "Oh! Temel! Did you record that just now? That rumor might be true!"

  Professor Temel smirked.

  "Too troublesome to write... but I remembered it."

  "Since we're here, shouldn't we continue our investigation of Yuparuru? Maybe even about this magician who's supposedly the lake's master..."

  Professor Antoine made the suggestion while climbing onto the sled. However, Professor Temel firmly refused.

  "I'm sorry, but we must end the investigation here, Professor Pinetree."

  Despite his excitement, Professor Antoine had to keep quiet when he saw the cold faces of Professor Temel and the other professors, the frightened expressions of the Snow People, and most decisively, the state of Rin who had collapsed asleep on the sled.

  "...but as soon as we get back, I'm going to apply for research funding on this."

  With that wistful final comment, this research survey came to an end. On their return journey, they had the reliable escort of Walopayi Trafalgas. Thanks to this, they could skip the detour they had taken to avoid the Muwai, allowing them to leave the Northern Limit region more quickly and safely than when they had come.

  ***

  On the train back to the academy. The professors smiled contentedly as they watched Rin's face as she remained asleep, leaning against the compartment seat. As they entered the safe zone, Professor Temel spoke up.

  "With this, we've successfully added one more student to this year's enrollment list."

  Professor Svetrinaha (Sven) continued:

  "Indeed. The male students will probably be even more excited than we are. I hear the Swordsmanship Department is already planning to start a fan club after hearing that the 'Library Fairy' is enrolling as an academic research scholarship student."

  "Hahaha."

  -To be continued-