As the group was talking, Arthur noticed that the two dwarves had walked away from the group and stood in front of the aircraft wreckage. Seeing their lonely silhouettes, Arthur’s smile vanished slowly. He could read what was in their minds even though they weren’t talking.
So, he approached them with a calm look on his face. The two didn’t notice him walking closer until he spoke.
“What are you two doing all alone, hm?” He asked as he crouched next to them while trying to smile.
“… Arthur? Mm, we’re just looking at the remains of the… aircraft.” Finlay replied in a quiet tone.
“The aircraft, huh? I’m sorry for your loss. You must’ve worked really hard to make this.” He replied.
“… No, we aren’t thinking about that. We’re just… Sad that it didn’t hold on for long enough.” Serko replied. “We almost caused everyone to die.”
“…” Arthur blinked in surprise.
“If we made it stronger and sturdier… It might-” At that moment, Finlay was cut off.
“Aaah, what a bummer.” Arthur rolled his eyes as he fell on his butt. “That’s not the talk I like to hear. Listen here, both of you. This aircraft had fallen from the sky because of an unexpected outcome, it has nothing to do with how you built it. If anything, it’s a miracle you made this thing from wood and some metal. You two are talented geniuses and your talent is something really precious.”
The two dwarves stared at Arthur with a confused expression. They couldn’t understand how Arthur reached such a conclusion.
“But, it fell down.”
“So what? It did its purpose. We’re far closer to our destination than ever before and it’s all thanks to the two of you. So, lift your heads up, you deserve gratitude from everyone here.” Arthur said with a grin.
“Arthur…” The two dwarves felt deeply touched by his words. They couldn’t believe that he wasn’t angry that the aircraft fell from the sky and almost killed them and instead thanked them for making it.
‘How can that letter say that humans are bad… Arthur isn’t bad… He is good.’ The two thought to themselves. Finlay and Serko didn’t forget what they read in that letter and how they must be aware of humans as they ‘Would only spill destruction wherever they went’.
Yet, the only thing they saw in the first humans they ever interacted with was kindness. They weren’t the evil monsters the two expected them to be.
Unaware of their thoughts, Arthur tapped their heads gently. “Now, let’s go. We have a city to reach.”
“So, what’s the plan now?” Herculia asked.
“Obviously, we need to continue on foot. The several hours of flight had cut down a few days of traveling. Looking at the map and the distance we crossed.” Emmy replied.
Their current location, while still unknown was horrifyingly far away from where the aircraft took off. It was easy to say that a few days worth of traveling had been compressed into several hours which was great news.
“But, we need to know where we are exactly first,” Arthur interjected.
“Hmm, it seems we fell in a snowy, mountain region of some sort,” Danny replied.
The area around them was completely covered in ice. Wherever they looked, it was all ice. To their left and right, a large mountain range reached the far distance and beyond the horizon. Its peaks were at least 1000 meters in height or way more. Their colossal and towering heights loomed over the group like divine pillars.
It was a very beautiful and majestic natural scenery. But, it also gave them the chills as mountains and snow was also a huge trouble to travel through.
“We should continue as planned… North.” Isla suggested.
Although their fall was unplanned, they were still more or less on the same path, and continuing on it was the obvious choice.
“Yeah, that sounds like a good idea. Though, crossing these mountains is going to be brutal. Man, I hope we aren’t far from the nearest city or village. I want to rest.” Herculia mumbled.
“Come on, this is the last stretch, big guy.” Arthur tapped his shoulder. “Though, I understand your pain… I’m tired too.”
“My brother Arthur, you understand me!”
“My brother Herculia, of course I do!”
The two hugged each other dramatically while the others looked at them as if they were two of the dumbest people on earth.
“We should start moving,” Emmy muttered with a blank expression.
“I agree,” Danny replied.
“Hey! Wait for us!”
“Why are you leaving so quickly?!”
Rushing after the group, Arthur stopped near Isla and asked. “By the way, did you get the broken shard?”
“Hm? Oh yes, here it is.” Pulling it out of her inventory, she handed it to him. “It flew inside the aircraft upon impact and fell next to me.”
“… Really? What a weird coincidence.” Arthur muttered as he grabbed it and put it away. ‘That’s some good luck right there. I would’ve had to waste hours digging for this thing if we lost it.’ Arthur chuckled to himself.
***
With that, the group started marching through the rocky mountain region. As they expected the snow proved to be a big problem as it not only required them to use more energy but it also made it hard to see where to step and where not to.
The group found themselves tripping over rocks and pebbles that were hidden under the snow. The weather was also way colder than in the first step region.
The ones to feel the most affected were the two dwarves since they weren’t as strong as the players. They had to wear the big coats the others had which covered their entire bodies. Then, at one point Herculia decided to carry them on his shoulders when he noticed that they were exhausted.
“No monsters, huh? This region is completely desolate. It’s like a goddamn snow desert.” Arthur muttered as he stopped for a moment and looked around him. They had been walking for almost an hour without stopping and they were still moving through the mountain range with no end to it.
“Are you ok, Arthur?” Isla stopped and looked at the boy next to her.
“Hm? Yeah, I’m fine. I’m just wondering why this place feels so empty.”
“Well, this is a considerably harsh environment compared to the regions we have been before. I’m not surprised that we didn’t come across any monsters. I wouldn’t be surprised if we came across them either.”
“I wouldn’t be either…” Arthur muttered as he started walking again.
“Arthur! Arthur! Look at this!” Herculia suddenly called for Arthur, he was weirdly facing the other way as if he wanted to hide his face.
Then, when Arthur looked at him, he turned around. “A big snowy beard. Hohohoho!”
“Pfft! What the hell is that?!” Arthur exploded in laughter when he saw the funny expression on Herculia’s face.
“What? Don’t you like my Santa beard? Come here, Santa will give you a gift.”
“No! Stay away from me, weird Santa!”
“Hohoho! Everyone deserves a gift!”
As Herculia started chasing after Arthur, the latter grabbed a ball of snow and threw it at him. The latter dodged and threw one at him too.
“Hey! You two, stop messing around like kids!” Emmy scolded them with an angry look on her face. “We’re stranded in the middle of nowhere and you have the time to play around?”
“… We’re sorry…” The two said in unison as they dropped the snow to the ground.
“Sigh, unbelievable.”
At that moment, the group heard a loud screech that took their attention immediately.
A//N: Don’t forget to give the book some golden tickets for good luck! :3
