[Vol. 9] Chapter 33: The Guide
To be honest, even though she didn’t want to make casual comments, this little wooden doll really couldn’t be called well-made at all.
Not only were its arms and legs just straight sticks without hands or feet, but its bald head wasn’t even fully carved. It only had two stones stuck on as eyes, while the rest of the face wasn’t finished. She couldn’t tell if the maker’s skills were just poor, or if they simply didn’t put in any effort.
And yet, the black-haired girl in front of her hadn’t been adding or carving anything new on it. She was just squeezing it here and there, turning its stick-like arms and legs back and forth. The whole scene looked more like a child casually playing with a rough toy, which made it really hard to understand.
But Moraya wasn’t the impatient type. Since Violet seemed too busy to care about her, and the surroundings were unknown and unsafe, she didn’t run around recklessly. Instead, she quietly sat back down by the campfire, closed her eyes, and started recovering her magic power.
For some reason, this forest gave her a faint feeling of unease. The fire did push back a bit of the darkness, but the shifting shadows it cast seemed even more disturbing than the night itself, making her hair stand on end.
Without a doubt, there was danger here.
Moraya didn’t know where this place was, nor how long she had been unconscious. The mysterious girl had healed her wounds, but the massive battle on the ice sea and the cost of using forbidden spells had drained both her magic and her soul power. Those she would have to restore step by step on her own. Either way, regaining strength could only be a good thing.
Luckily, while the forest was strange, the magic in the air was unusually dense and pure, several times richer than outside. It was, in fact, a perfect place to train.
And so, one of them continued fiddling with the wooden doll while the other meditated in silence. More than half an hour passed this way. Then, the black-haired girl suddenly clapped her hands with excitement, her serious expression instantly turning into a bright, happy smile.
“Hey, done! I knew it would work!”
Her voice wasn’t loud, but the jungle was quiet at night. Moraya, who had been keeping part of her attention on her surroundings, immediately snapped out of her meditation. Her clear eyes opened, and she curiously looked up.
“What is that?”
“It’s hard to explain in just a few words… Just know that this little guy can lead us out of here.”
With that, Violet tossed the finished doll forward. The moment it left her hand, it shone with a golden light that could be seen clearly with the naked eye. Then, as if it had come to life, it landed steadily on the ground.
It looked around curiously like a real person. When it noticed the black-haired girl behind it, it instantly gave off a wave of emotion that felt like happiness. Then it even raised its tiny hand to wave at Violet in greeting, before walking ahead on its own.
“It… it’s really alive?”
Moraya’s eyes widened in shock.
She had seen a lot in her life, but never anything like this. Just moments ago, the doll had clearly been nothing but a lifeless object. How could it suddenly be filled with such strong spirit and life?
Giving life to something that has none… this was said to be a miracle only the gods could achieve. How could it be done so casually?
Thinking this, Moraya felt a wave of regret and frustration. If she had known, she would not have wasted time resting or training. She should have carefully watched every single move this mysterious girl made.
It seemed that Violet did not notice the storm of thoughts in the snow girl’s heart. After throwing out the little wooden doll, she clearly relaxed. She turned to look at the duke’s daughter, whose eyes were still a little unfocused, and pointed her chin toward the direction where the doll had gone.
“You can walk now, right? I already treated your injuries earlier. There shouldn’t be any big problems left.”
Hearing the priestess openly admit to healing her, the snow tribe girl quickly stood up and gave a formal bow. If she still couldn’t see that the person in front of her had an extraordinary identity and unfathomable power, then all her years of study and training would have been wasted.
“No problem. Thank you for helping me this time. Once we return to the outside world, I, Moraya, will definitely give you a proper reward.”
Violet didn’t care about talk of rewards. She just nodded casually, patted the dust off her robe, and stood up.
“Alright then, let’s go. Follow the little guy.”
“...Okay.”
Leaving behind the simple camp, Moraya watched as the palm-sized doll happily ran through the jungle. The golden light shining from its body wasn’t very dazzling, but it was enough to push back the darkness for several meters around them, making it much easier to see than before.
And unlike the firelight, which carried an uneasy, eerie feeling, the doll’s glow gave her no sense of hidden danger at all. The campfire’s shadows seemed to stretch and fade away behind them, as if whispering the unwillingness of something indescribable, but none of it dared approach under the pressure of that golden light.
Moraya felt as though she had narrowly escaped a great crisis without even realizing it. But since she couldn’t explain it clearly, she decided not to overthink and instead focus on the situation in front of her.
Following the little one’s lead, the snow girl moved forward cautiously, always keeping alert for any danger around them. Yet her crystal-like eyes also couldn’t help but glance at the black-haired girl walking ahead.
Seeing the white-robed girl strolling forward so calmly, as if she were just out for a walk, Moraya hesitated several times. At last, she could no longer hold back her confusion and asked.
“Miss Violet, I remember that we were fighting the beast tide above the ice sea before. Why is it that when I woke up, we were in this kind of place? Just where exactly are we?”
The black-haired girl turned her head slightly to look at her, with a faint smile that was not quite a smile.
“We’ve been here for quite some time already. Lady Fortress, don’t you have any sense or judgment about it?”
“Uh… you are my lifesaver, please just call me Moraya. I can’t accept such a respectful title from you. Besides, my role as fortress master is only temporary. Someone else will take over soon.”
Answering seriously and not trying to avoid the question, the snow tribe girl then continued:
“I did notice some strange things. For example, the northern land’s climate is cold and dry. The plants that grow there usually have narrow and sharp leaves to reduce water loss. But when I looked carefully at the trees in this jungle, the leaves were broad and thick. Even the wind here carries strong water elements. This… doesn’t make sense.”
Violet stayed silent, quietly listening as Moraya calmly analyzed. The latter didn’t seem to expect an answer right away. Instead, she kept speaking, almost like talking to herself.
“Even though the ice sea is still a sea, the temperature is so low that water elements in the air usually condense and sink. The sea breeze there could never be this moist. Also, while this jungle looks dense, we haven’t come across a single insect, snake, beast, or ant along the way. That’s another very strange thing that cannot be ignored.”