Fleeting
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🕑 Added 2025-03-19 18:47:42 +0000 UTCBear-san Helped Shovel Snow
The next morning, I was woken up by Swaying Bear and Hugging Bear.
It seemed that no monsters had appeared.
I checked with my detection skill and found an Ice Golem just at the edge of my detection range.
Considering that anything could happen later, it might be better to take care of it as well.
Looking at the sleeping Kagali-san, I noticed that she had been woken up by Swaying Bear and Hugging Bear just like me, but she said she was "sleepy" and made no attempt to get up.
But in the end, Swaying Bear sat on my face, and I was woken up.
"So, what are you planning to do today?" (Kagali)
Kagali-san asked while getting changed.
"I thought about it for a bit. We can communicate with the Ice Dragon, right?" (Yuna)
"I don't know if that one-sided talk can be called a conversation, but I'm sure it understands human language." (Kagali)
"Also, the fact that it didn't attack us means it doesn't have any hostility towards us, right?" (Yuna)
"Perhaps Ice Dragon didn't even think we were enemies." (Kagali)
"If it doesn't think of us as an enemy, then there's room for dialogue and negotiation. So I was wondering if I could ask it to leave." (Yuna)
If it could understand language, we should be able to talk to it.
"Yes, but if it finds us bothersome, it probably will try to crush us." (Kagali)
I understood Kagali-san's concern.
If we did or said something that it didn't like, it might attack us.
"I'm not going to fight it or anything, and I'm also not going to drive it away by force if possible."
Fighting it out was not the only solution.
"I plan to talk to Ice Dragon for now." (Yuna)
Either way, nothing would be solved unless one took action.
"So, Kagali-san..." (Yuna)
Before I could continue by saying that I was going to take her back to the Land of Wa, Kagali-san spoke up.
"I'll go with you." (Kagali)
"It will be dangerous." (Yuna)
"I can't let a little girl go alone. This is a ship we've already embarked on. I won't leave you and get off the ship halfway through. I'll stay with you until the end." (Kagali)
I might have looked like a little girl to her, but Kagali-san was actually smaller in appearance to me.
But I was happy about Kagali-san's feelings, so I would accept it gratefully.
With today's schedule decided, I went outside the Bear House and saw Lize-san and the others shoveling snow.
"Yuna-san, Kagali-chan, good morning." (Lize)
"Good morning. Are you shoveling snow?" (Yuna)
"It's inconvenient if we don't shovel the snow around the mine and the hut." (Lize)
The snow wasn't up to my knees, but it was quite a lot of snow even for someone like me who grew up in the city.
"I'll help." (Yuna)
I was going to tell Lize-san about the Ice Dragon, but I decided to shovel the snow first.
"I'll help you as well." (Kagali)
Kagali-san also volunteered.
Kagali-san and I used fire magic to melt the snow.
"The snow is melting quickly..." (Lize)
"We don't seem to be needed..." (Bollard)
"But the ground is a mess with all the water." (Old Man)
Indeed, after the snow was melted, the ground was full of puddles and was a mess.
"It will clear up after a while. It's better compared to being buried in snow." (Lize)
Lize-san was right. I saw the news about the heavy snow on TV, and it always ends up as a mess. People couldn't walk on the roads, and cars wouldn't start. People also had to shovel the snow off the roofs of houses. I think snow is a nuisance to most people. I think the only people who would be happy about it were the ski resorts.
Leaving aside my random thought, Kagali-san and I focused on melting the snow.
And within an hour, the snow around the mine was gone. In exchange, puddles had formed on the ground.
These puddles might freeze, but they were better than the pile of snow.
Sweating from clearing up the snow, the three of us went to take a bath.
The caretaker aunty and the fisherman's wife didn't take a bath, saying they were preparing dinner.
I asked Swaying Bear and Hugging Bear to keep watch in case something happened.
"Thank you Yuna-san and Kagali-chan. That helped a lot." (Lize)
"I'm glad I was of help." (Yuna)
"So, when are you and Yuna-san leaving here?" (Lize)
"We haven't decided yet." (Yuna)
"I see." (Lize)
Lize-san looked relieved, then glanced at us as if she wanted to say something.
"Did something happen?" (Yuna)
"If there is something we can help you with, we'll at least listen." (Kagali)
"Oh, and there are things we might be able to do, but it will depend on what you ask." (Yuna)
When we said so, Lize-san thought for a moment, then opened her mouth.
"...Everyone's telling me to leave this place." (Lize)
It seemed that Lize-san and the others talked last night, just like how Kagali-san and I talked in the Bear House last night.
Everyone seemed to want Lize-san to leave this place and live a happy life somewhere else.
"I'm happy about everyone's feelings. But I can't leave everyone behind and leave this place by myself." (Lize)
"That can't be helped." (Kagali)
"Kagali-chan?" (Lize)
"You are treasured by everyone. We can tell even from the perspective of outsiders. Everyone thinks of you as their grandchild, or their child. It's only natural for an adult to wish for the happiness of a child." (Kagali)
"Fufu, Kagali-chan is a really strange girl. She seems much more mature than me." (Lize)
Well, that was to be expected. Kagali after was more than old enough to be a grandmother.
The moment I thought that in my heart, Kagali-san splashed hot water on my face.
"I've said it many times before, but you show your feelings on your face too much." (Kagali)
I wonder if my thoughts were really showing on my face. I thought I was good at poker faces.
"Besides, we will only leave after you've done what you want to do, right?" (Kagali)
Kagali-san looked at me with a meaningful expression.
"Yeah. I've got something to talk to Lize about." (Yuna)
"Something to talk about, huh...?" (Lize)
And so, after we got out of the bath, we decided to talk while eating the lunch the caretaker ladies had made for us.
"So, Yuna-san, what do you want to talk to us about?" (Lize)
As we started to eat, Lize-san asked, as if she had been really curious.
"I was just thinking about going to see the Ice Dragon." (Yuna)
Everyone stopped eating.
"Yuna-san, did you just say that you were going to see the Ice Dragon..." (Lize)
"There's something I haven't told everyone about the Ice Dragon yet. The Ice Dragon I met yesterday talked to me." (Yuna)
"Does that mean the Ice Dragon can speak?" (Lize)
"Yeah, but it was just a one-sided conversation." (Yuna)
"I can't believe it." (Lize)
Everyone looked incredulous.
I was too.
No one would think that the Ice Dragon could talk.
"So, I'm going to talk to the Ice Dragon. Maybe it'll leave after an insightful discussion." (Yuna)
"That's dangerous!" (Lize)
"Yeah. What if it attacks you?" (Bollard)
"It's like you're asking to get killed." (Old Man)
"For our sake, please don't do it. If Yuna-san doesn't come back..." (Lize)
Everyone disagreed.
"Why are you doing all this for us, complete strangers? Do you know anyone in this town?" (Lize)
I shook my head.
"No. I came to this town by chance." (Yuna)
I guess it was just a coincidence, but I was led here.
I was thinking that maybe the Bear Signpost was meant to lead me to meet Ice Dragon.
And when Ice Dragon said he recognized my magic power.
"Then why..." (Lize)
"I'm not sure if I'll wake up feeling bad. If I go home like this, I'll start worrying about everyone." (Yuna)
I would wonder if everyone was okay. I would wonder if they were not being attacked by monsters. And I would wonder if they're still alive. Also, I would wonder if there's enough food. And even I would find myself thinking all sorts of things like that.
If I set up a Bear Transfer Gate, I could come and see them whenever I wanted, but that wouldn't be a fundamental solution, so I didn't think it was the right choice.
Besides, something might happen while I was away.
I think I'd regret it then.
And would think about what I should have done it then.
Then, I should have talked to Ice Dragon when I had a chance.
I would end up thinking things like that.
And I wouldn't say I was a good person, but I didn't think I was cold-hearted either.
"So I'll talk to Ice Dragon." (Yuna)
"Kagali-chan, please say something. Stop Yuna-san." (Lize)
"That's impossible. She's too soft-hearted. She helps people even though they have nothing to do with her." (Kagali)
"I am not soft-hearted." (Yuna)
"She's the only one who thinks that. And don't worry. I'm going with her." (Kagali)
"You're also going with her, Kagali-chan? That makes me feel even more uneasy." (Lize)
"That's right." (Bollard)
"You girls don't need to take risks." (Old man)
"This is our fate." (Baran)
Maybe everyone had given up.
For three years, they just lived, unable to do anything.
But I wanted Lize-san to see a different future, so I wanted her to entrust that future to me.
"It's too early for everyone to give up." (Yuna)
"That's right. If you give up, there's no future. As long as you're alive, you have to keep struggling." (Kagali)
Kagali-san said, as if to convince herself.
"We can't do anything about the Ice Dragon." (Lize)
"That's why we're here. You've been trying your best to survive for the past three years. And because you've lived, you've been able to meet us. I don't know whether you think it's too late or too early." (Kagali)
"If everyone feels like you have no choice but to give up, then bet on us as your last hope." (Yuna)
"...Yuna-san" (Lize)
"However, in the worst-case scenario, if negotiations with the Ice Dragon break down. I don't know what will happen." (Yuna)
In the worst case, it could end up becoming a battle, but as long as I win, that would be fine.
If I was on the losing side, then I would simply take everyone and run away.
"That's right. At this point, we'll end up dying without doing anything, so I'll bet on you two." (Lize)
"That's right. For three years, we've lived fearing monsters. All we could do was watch over our frozen family." (Bollard)
"No one came to help us. It was the girls who ended up helping us so far. If they are saying they were going to meet the Ice Dragon, knowing the risks. We'll leave our lives to you two." (Old Man)
"Either way, if we don't do anything, we'll just end up dying in this frozen city, so we'll leave it to them." (Baran)
"I won't hold a grudge even if the Ice Dragon gets angry and comes to kill us." (Lize)
I wouldn't let that happen.
If the dragon got angry and things got dangerous, I would use the Bear Transfer Gate to let everyone escape.
"Thank you for trusting us." (Yuna)
"However, please prioritize your own lives." (Bollard)
I thanked everyone for their feelings and decided to head to the top of the mountain where the Ice Dragon was.
Before that, I defeated the Ice Golem that was within my detection skill range.
