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Chapter 79: Snow Mountain Climbing

The next morning. The villagers surrounded Drake.

When I saw men and women of all ages speaking to Drake with smiles, it seemed like he was never exiled in the first place.

It’s probably because of Drake’s good personality.

I told Ruzark about the situation using the communication-type magic tool, and received his willing consent on the condition that I return to the Dragonewt village as soon as possible.

The route recommended by the village chief is to cross the Red Valley to the Morphia Forest, then pass through the city of Recuria. After crossing the Green Plains and passing through the old Nyahar village, going straight to the south from there, we will reach the wilderness and a snowfield.

Continuing southward through the snowy fields will lead us to the snowy mountains, but from there onwards it will be a constant blizzard, making it difficult to fly. Once we climb the snowy mountain, we will reach an area called Astarus Silver Ridge, and there is an ice seal near the top.

We told Lindworm that we would go that route, but we teleported to the Plainevelt dungeon as a shortcut and to prepare protection against the cold. We decided to fly to the snowy mountains on Drake after having Irs make cold-weather equipment for our party.

「Bro, I’m sorry for being selfish!」

「Don’t worry about it. And it’s not even selfish. Our ultimate goal is to be the strongest in the world. You can’t miss the chance to evolve, Drake.」

「Nn. All of us will become stronger. If Drake evolves, it will be easier to defeat the Empire.」

「Bro, Kinu-neesan, thank you! I’ll definitely break through the trial!」

After that, we changed into the cold-weather gear and flew from the Green Plains to the snowy field on Drake’s dragon form. En-route, the snowstorm got too strong, so we decided to continue on foot from there.

When we landed on the snowfield, Kinu seemed a little restless.

Ah! Could it be that this area is close to where Kinu’s friends were?

「Kinu, if there’s a place you want to stop by, we have a little bit of time.」

「…Nn. Ahead of here is the place where I was kicked out of the flock. If… my old friends are still there, I would like just a little bit of time…」

「Okay. We can do that. Are you sure a little bit is enough?」

「Nn. I just want to tell them something. So it’s enough.」

As we walked forth, we found ten fox monsters looking at us from afar.

「Kinu, go on.」

When I said that, Kinu returned to her fox form and walked towards the group.

After Kinu evolved into a “Golden Fox”, her fur became even darker in gold and her body became larger.

Her total length was about 6m. She was about the same size as Drake in his dragon form.

Kinu stopped at a position where she could be clearly seen by the fox group

『Kuuoooooon!』

With a single cry, she turned around and returned back to us while transforming into her human form.

「Ki…Kinu-sama!」

It seems that Shinku, who has a skill which can understand the languages of other races, was able to understand what Kinu said.

Returning with a smile, Kinu seemed to have a refreshed expression.

「Hey, what did you say Kinu?」

「I just said that “I found my happiness” that’s all…」

「I see.」

Without needing to ask anymore questions, I understood it just by looking at her expression. I guess she was able to say farewell to her past properly.

The flock of foxes had already disappeared, but the howls of the foxes could be heard from afar.

After about an hour, we arrived at the foot of the mountain.

So far, the only encounters with monsters have been with the flock of foxes.

However, the wind is getting stronger little by little, and the visibility is getting worse. The snow is getting deeper and it seems that simply walking in the snow might reduce my HP.

Also, Nelfie seemed to be in a lot of pain despite having taken measures against the cold.

「Are you okay, Nelfie?」

「I’m sorry. I never thought I would be so vulnerable to the cold. I think I can endure it, but I may not be able to fight in this condition…」

For Dark Elves who live in warm forests, this climate may be quite harsh.

The others don’t seem to have any problems. I wonder what’s the reason…

「Nelfie, I’ll turn into my fox form. Get on…」

Certainly, fox-form Kinu is covered in warm-looking fur. Clinging to her back could be a good countermeasure against the cold.

…Oh no, I’m getting cold, too. I might not be able to walk on my own.

Nah, I’m just kidding.

「Aun, you can pet my fur after we return to the dungeon…」

After saying that, Kinu changed into a fox again and started walking with Nelfie on her back.

As expected, she was able to see through my expressions…

What’s more, she found out that I like playing with her fluffy fur… how embarrassing.

「Y-Yeah. Nelfie, are you feeling okay now?」

「Yeap. It’s very warm. Thank you, Kinu.」

After that, a C-rank monster made of snow called “Snowman”, a B-rank monster with pure white fur called “Yeti”, and a B-rank monster that looked like a lump of ice called Ice Rock appeared. In particular, the Yeti was good at using magic and physical attacks, and had a fast movement speed. Although he was weaker he was quite a troublesome opponent.

In the future, when we create a snowy mountain area in the dungeon, let’s use the Yeti for it.

As for the battle, Drake saved his stamina and mana for the trial, so Shinku and I tried to exterminate them, but we were unable to successfully attack them due to getting stuck in the thick snow. I tried to defeat them with magic, but it still took time.

Halfway through, Kinu also started attacking with her flame lance, and due to the attribute compatibility, she was able to take down most of the monsters with 2-3 shots, thus we were able to progress faster.

However, the top of the snowy mountain was still far away, and when the blizzard got stronger, it was almost impossible to see.

I’m glad I prepared food and wood that can be used as firewood in my magic bag just in case something like this happens.

After the blizzard weakened, we continued moving for about 10 hours. Although we were attacked by monsters several times, we were able to safely reach Astarus Silver Ridge, where the Ice Wall is located.