She had walked for hours. First alone… then with them. And now... She’d finally made it...

  Or so she thought.

  Her breath hitched softly as she took another step forward, and then froze. Her eyes narrowed slightly.

  “…Ehh?” she whispered, voice barely louder than the wind.

  The smile faded slowly. Her expression twisted just a little, caught between confusion and disbelief.

  This wasn’t what she expected.

  Yes, they had reached the pinnacle. The highest point of the mountain, the top of the world, or at least, it felt like it. But Xin?

  Xin was nowhere in sight.

  Instead, what lay before them was a stretch of sharp, jagged terrain, huge ice rocks protruding from the ground, many of them cracked, split, and sloped. All of them coated in a dense, icy layer that shimmered faintly under the pale sky.

  The mist still rolled through the air, though thinner now than before. It curled between the rocks like smoke, swirling and slipping into the carved manmade paths ahead. Faint, winding trails were etched into the frost-covered stone, leading forward… somewhere far. Somewhere still out of sight.

  Somewhere where Xin waited.

  But even from here, it was clear, it was still a long way off.

  Emma stared in silence, her hands clenching faintly at her sides. Her lips parted just a little, and her brows furrowed.

  That wasn’t what she thought this would be.

  The wind whipped past her skirt, the hem fluttering against her knees. The dark ash-colored fabric danced against the breeze, and her light blue shirt clung lightly to her form..

  She took another step forward, snow crunching under her, and her voice broke the quiet.

  “…Ugh.” She muttered faintly, then raised her voice slightly as she called ahead.

  “Jett,” Emma said, her tone edged with disbelief, “how far is Xin from here?”

  Jett, who stood farther ahead now with Liz and Dan, was facing the path. Her back was to them, but she turned at Emma’s question, one hand brushing her hair out of her face as the wind tugged at it.

  She blinked, then tilted her head a little and said plainly, “Well… from here, the journey to Xin is still a day.”

  Emma didn’t move.

  A small twitch hit the corner of her eye.

  And inside her head…

  WHAT!?

  This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience.

  ***

  The wind whispered along the edges of the high ridge, curling like a living thing through the jagged icy rocks and snow-buried cracks of the mountain's pinnacle. Emma stood there, still trying to process the words she had just heard. It echoed in her head like it had been shouted directly into her ears through a speaker.

  A day?

  She blinked slowly, trying to keep her expression calm... unbothered, even. But inside her head, something reeled back in stunned disbelief.

  A whole day left? Even after we’ve climbed all the way to the top? Her thoughts were sharp, biting with quiet exasperation. We’re at the highest part of the snowy mountain, and we still have to walk for another day to get to the Xin Region…?

  The idea alone made her want to slump forward in exhaustion, but she didn’t let it show. Instead, her breath misted the cold air as she exhaled gently, her boots shifting slightly in the snow as she rebalanced her weight.

  But despite the silent frustration, Emma felt a small kind of comfort settle inside her chest... warm, quiet.

  Well… at least I’m not walking alone.

  She lowered her gaze a little, watching the snowflakes drift lazily past her. The others were nearby. Ron, with his curious eyes. Liz, her vibrant hair. Jett, who always walked a few steps ahead. And Dan, silent, arrogant but observant. Their presence made something cold inside Emma feel a little less sharp.

  Still… she thought, lips pressing together faintly, if I were alone... maybe I’d talk to the wind. Or the snow. Or whatever strange things these mountains have.

  Her eyes followed a small flurry of snow spinning up in the air, caught in a breeze that danced between the rocks.

  But even that… it would still be lonely, she admitted inwardly.

  Flick!

  Emma's head turned sharply as she heard that sound..

  It wasn’t just the wind anymore.

  Her feet adjusted in the snow, one boot pressing down just slightly as she leaned forward, eyes narrowing. The sound was soft, almost like the crack of a spark or the flick of a match. But it was enough.

  And then she saw it.

  Just a few paces ahead, hovering faintly in the air, a ball of light appeared.

  Emma’s breath caught gently in her throat.

  It floated silently, without warning, a sphere of blue light.. shimmering, faintly pulsing, as if it were breathing in the thin, frozen air. Around it trailed a faint string of sparkling dust, light blue particles that twirled and faded behind it like a comet's tail.

  The light flickered, shifting between half-invisible and fully present, but never completely vanishing.

  Emma’s unique white eyes, reflected its glow. She didn’t move. She just stared, her gaze softening in awe. It was beautiful... unreal. Almost like something from a dream.

  The way it hovered, how it shimmered, how it didn’t make a sound… It wasn’t just magic. It felt alive.

  Her thoughts stilled. She almost reached for it...

  But then... A voice sounded..

  “Everyone, hide!”

  Jett’s voice tore through the silence, cutting through Emma’s trance like a blade. It was low, urgent, and completely serious.

  Emma blinked, her thoughts snapping into place as her eyes darted in Jett’s direction.

  Jett was already on the move, her frame diving quickly behind a massive frozen boulder...

  Emma didn't hesitate.

  Her legs moved fast, boots thudding lightly against the snow as she dashed toward the nearest rock. She slipped behind a jagged slab of icy stone, its surface rough and glittering with frost. Her back pressed tightly against it.

  She could see Ron to the left, crouched behind another stone that barely hid his frame. Liz had already dropped to her knees, her red buns bobbing as she ducked out of sight. Dan was the furthest.. silent as always, but he moved with efficiency of someone who had done this before...

  The snow around them was thick and uneven, but quiet now. The wind stilled a little, as if it too was waiting.

  Emma knelt down, heart quietly thudding, one hand pressed lightly against the icy rock to steady herself. The blue light was still there. Still hovering.

  But everything else had changed.

  Her breath came slower now, and she didn’t dare make a sound.

  Thump!

  The sound wasn’t loud… not in the way a shout or explosion would be. But it felt loud. The entire ground seemed to hum with it.. like the air had been punched, and the mountain itself was reacting.

  The boulder beside Emma trembled slightly. Snow loosened from a ledge above and drifted down in heavy clumps, landing beside her boots.

  Thump! Another erupted, like a silent earthquake was about to happen...

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