IBDFSML Chapter 44

After leaving the Grand Duke Luxior's fortress.

Once we passed beyond the outer walls of the city of Lafren, a vast expanse of snowy white wilderness stretched before us.

Whoooosh~

I stared at the overwhelming scale of the northern snowfields as a blizzard raged before my eyes.

"……"

And I found myself thinking.

'…Every time something like this happens, I can't help but wonder, is this world really supposed to be a romance fantasy genre?'

Sure, I may have caused a bit of drift in the original storyline, but at this point, this felt less like a northern romance-fantasy epic, and more like a northern survival-disaster adventure.

Last night, I fell asleep with romantic images of a dreamy journey playing in my head, but reality had flipped the script, now I had to worry about both my safety and that of my beloved character.

"Well, still… this was the best option we had."

I muttered to myself like a self-soothing mantra.

In the original story, by now, Sion and Genevia would've been stuck in the grand ducal fortress, each going through their own hardships.

Eventually, they'd encounter the main male lead upon his return to the castle and that would be the start of Genevia's fated love story.

Meanwhile, Sion, who had already begun nurturing feelings for the heroine, would quietly embark on his own painful journey of unrequited love.

Despite all the earlier events, Sion hadn't really shown much interest in Genevia, nor did he show any signs of romantic tension with her, so this expedition was kind of a drastic intervention on my part.

'Right. Thanks to this mission, at least Sion and Genevia didn't have to go through a tearful separation (yet?), and we successfully sidestepped the main male lead. So for now, we've caught a break…'

Whoooosh~

"Ugh, it's freezing!"

I shivered as the harsh snowstorm slammed against my face.

Sion asked me.

"Are you cold?"

"Yeah. I'm super sensitive to cold."

I replied while tightly pulling my beloved character's coat closer around me.

It goes without saying, but even back in my original world, I had never been one for outdoor activities, not even a simple camping trip or glamping getaway.

I was born a homebody and a full-on otaku. For someone like me, this kind of extreme cold was a brutal challenge.

"That's surprising. According to northern folklore, fairies are said to live deep in nature, in places like snowy mountains. I didn't expect one to be so weak against the cold."

"Well, I'm a bit different from the others. Can't be helped."

I burrowed even deeper into Sion's cloak, trying to soak up his warmth.

At that, I felt Sion's body flinch slightly and stiffen.

"…Lin."

"Hm?"

"Don't snuggle in so close."

"Ah, okay."

Startled, I quickly pulled myself up and peeked out, offering a sheepish apology.

"Sorry, I must've felt cold."

"……"

Sion said nothing, just continued looking ahead.

But at that moment, I couldn't shake the feeling that his expression was strangely… tense.

"We're now entering the Idran Snowfield."

Diene, leading the group as our guide, called out from the front as she spurred her horse forward.

"Just so you're aware, this route isn't one commonly used by locals or merchants. It's a path reserved for the knights, meaning it's the fastest route, but also quite grueling."

The ominous tone in her voice made me uneasy, so I asked cautiously.

"…Just how grueling are we talking?"

"Hmm, we'll be crossing the snowfield and then immediately traversing the mountain range… so, about ten days of travel."

"Ten days?! That long?!"

"Normally, it would take over fifteen days just to get from the Grand Duke's fortress to the border region. If we had more time, we would've passed through smaller towns or villages, but since we need to reach our destination before the deep freeze sets in, this shortcut is our only option."

At that point, Garen, who was riding beside Sion on his right, chimed in reassuringly.

"Please don't worry too much, Ms. Lin. If everything goes smoothly, we may not even need the full ten days."

"And what exactly do you mean by 'if everything goes smoothly'?"

I asked, suspicious.

Diene replied brightly.

"Oh, things like running into demon beasts… or getting caught in an avalanche, for example?"

"……"

I looked up at Sion and asked.

"Hey, Sion."

"What is it?"

"I'm just asking, just in case… Is there no safer, more comfortable route we could take?"

"Like Diene said, if we want to reach the border zone before the extreme cold sets in, there's no choice but to cross the snowfields and mountain range."

"…I see."

With a pale face, I looked again at the members of our expedition.

'…With this group, we should be okay… right?'

Even setting aside Sion, who was a low-key powerhouse and secretly awakened aura user in the story, we had two veteran-level supporting knights in our group.

'And most importantly…'

I glanced behind me.

'We've got Genevia, the female lead!'

I looked at Genevia with confidence and encouragement in my eyes.

But she seemed to interpret my gaze differently.

"…I'm fine."

Genevia said flatly.

"Huh?"

"I've been dragged along this far anyway, so there's no point in people suddenly trying to consider my comfort."

With the eyes of someone who had gone through every kind of hardship, land, sea, and air, Genevia stared blankly out across the snowy expanse.

"I may not look it, but I've traveled a lot as a priestess. Compared to that, camping out on a snowfield is… whatever."

"……"

Somehow, it felt like she had completely given up on expecting anything good from life in the North.

Seeing her worn-out demeanor made me feel a bit guilty.

But faced with the long, harsh road ahead, I just let out a quiet groan.

"…We'll be fine… right?"

***

After trekking through the snowfield for half a day, we finally reached our target location just as the sun was setting.

Diene pointed toward a towering mountain that looked as if it could pierce the sky and said cheerfully.

"That's the Alpheon Mountain Range. This is the starting point for crossing it."

"…We're crossing that?"

Genevia asked quietly, her voice carrying the weariness that came from looking up at the massive snowy peak.

"Yes. But if I remember correctly, there should be a small village partway through where we can rest."

"There's a village in that kind of mountain range?"

Even Sion seemed surprised, prompting Diene to look over at Garen and ask.

"It was about seven years ago, right, Garen?"

Garen nodded in confirmation.

"Dame Diene is correct, young lord."

"Seven years ago, she and I crossed this mountain range for a mission, and I distinctly remember stopping by a small village back then."

"But it was a very isolated village with almost no outside contact, so we can't be sure if it still exists. Still, since it's along the way, should we stop by and check?"

At Diene's suggestion, Sion gave a nod.

"Let's do that. It's worth checking on the safety of the villagers as well."

"Yes, young lord."

Before beginning the proper climb into the mountain range, we decided to camp at the foot of the mountains.

The spot we chose for camp was beneath a massive rocky cliff, selected specifically for safety from any potential monster attacks or natural hazards.

"I'll set up the tent. Garen, come help."

"Sure, got it."

"I'll help too."

Soon, Sion, Garen, and Diene coordinated smoothly, pitching the tent with practiced ease.

Genevia took care of the horses, including Enoch, feeding and grooming them.

Meanwhile, I sat on Sion's shoulder, watching the three of them work.

With my tiny fairy-sized body, there wasn't much I could do to help, except offer verbal supervision.

"Garen, that pole is crooked. You might want to fix it."

"Oops, right. I'll take care of it."

"Diene, I think that nail isn't fully in. You should probably redo it."

"Huh? Oh, really?"

Seeing Sion's hands turning bright red from the cold, I stamped my foot in the air in frustration.

"Come on, both of you, hurry it up! If you slack off, Sion's going to end up doing all the work by himself!"

Diene burst into laughter at my fussing. She looked at me with the fond expression of an adult indulging a cute, fussy child.

"Ahaha, I felt this before too, but Ms. Fairy, you really do dote on the young lord."

"What? 'Dote'?!"

"When the young lord hurt his hand last time, you were totally frantic about it."

"Wh-what? Frantic?!"

"Sometimes you seem like a smitten lover… but at other times, like a doting parent. Either way, watching you is both amusing and fascinating. Ahaha."

Even Garen chuckled and added.

"To be honest, I've had similar thoughts to Dame Diene. Ms. Lin, your unwavering… uh, passionate affection for the young lord is quite fascinating, and, frankly, enviable to us regular humans."

"There's nothing to envy."

I crossed my arms and replied firmly.

"You think a fairy like me just shows up for anyone? This is all possible because it's Sion. In this whole world, there's no human more amazing, beautiful, or worthy than Sion."

I was simply stating the truth, but it must've sounded funny to them, because Diene and Garen exchanged looks and burst out laughing again.

'…Oh, for crying out loud.'

The previous awkwardness between them was now long gone, and ever since we'd started this expedition, they'd been radiating a strange kind of 'reconnection energy.'

'Sion hasn't even started a romance or a single flirtation, and here I am having to watch other people act all lovey-dovey…!'

Feeling a bit irritated, I glanced toward Sion.

But the person at the center of all this conversation was completely ignoring us and just focused on his tasks as usual.

Staring at his ever-stoic and chilly expression, I steeled myself again.

'…Yes. On this expedition. I'm going to make sure…'

That Sion finally starts the 'love' that will change his destiny.

♡♡♡
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