A steam shower was better than I expected. There was still sothing missing, like a good scrubbing, but it was very pleasant. Astrid and I kept talking during the sauna. Although, to be fair, I was the one doing most of the talking. But she seed appreciative of the conversation. Even in monts when I felt like I was talking to myself, she chid in with a question or a short reply. I think the reason for her speaking like that was probably her upbringing. From the little she told , her dad was also a man of few words. And if I understood it right, they never had conversations that lasted more than a few sentences. Despite that, Astrid seed like a good person. She cared about others, wanted to help those in need, understood that she couldn't do everything by herself, and overall had a good head on her shoulders. Which was sothing this village was seriously lacking.
Eventually, we rushed back to the house. Astrid moved very quickly, but I was faster despite the unfamiliar location. Sure, I might be cheating because of the System, but it was too cold to think of this as a competition. The goal was not to get here before her, just to get here and into sothing warm. I quickly wrapped myself in a towel and started rubbing myself down, trying to retain any of the warmth that ca from the steam. Strangely enough, it worked. As soon as I walked through the door and away from the cold outside air, I was already feeling comfortable. The warmth that perated my skin was able to fight against the snow during those few monts.
My host arrived a few monts after with a satisfied smile. Unlike , she did not grab a towel to maintain the heat, but just let out a few happy grunts.
"You know, it looks like you enjoy this part more than you enjoyed the steam shower," I said, still trying to process the fact that I was not cold.
"I do. Feels great."
"I am glad you like it. If I am honest, I would not do that very often."
"Why?" Astrid turned towards as she walked over to the small kitchen and pulled out a bottle of sothing. She removed the cork and poured a glass of a brown liquid. Before I could answer, she offered the glass to .
"What is that?"
"Booze."
"I don't like the cold all that much. And doing this every day doesn't sound fun," With a shrug, I took the glass.
Astrid poured another and walked back to the living room, sitting on a wooden bench with so furs covering it. I sat on the one opposite, still wrapped in the towel while she was just in her underwear. The liquid in my glass had a strong sll, and it was clearly alcoholic, but I had never seen this kind before, not in person at least. In a way, it looked like the whiskey I had seen on television. Astrid was staring at , likely waiting for to taste the drink. Not wanting to leave her hanging, I took a swig. After all, people used to do that on TV. Might as well follow along.
It took less than a second to regret that decision. I felt the liquid burning my throat as it went down. I coughed and hacked for a good two minutes before I was able to speak again. During all that ti, Astrid had a smirk on her face.
Once I was able to breathe again, she spoke up. "You sip this."
"Why did you not tell before?"
"It is funny."
I rolled my eyes. "I am glad I can be your entertainnt for the night." Glancing down at my cup, I steeled myself before taking a small sip. This ti, I could actually taste the drink. It had a rich flavor with so sweet notes of zesty fruit, but that was overshadowed by the strong alcohol in the mix.
"Like it?" Astrid asked.
"A bit. But it is also too strong for . We didn't have alcohol back in my village all that often." I took another sip and looked around, noticing how many furs covered the place. "Did you hunt all this?"
Astrid just nodded.
"Was it just regular hunting, or did you have a specific goal in mind?"
"I need to be stronger," Astrid took another sip, not even bothering to look at . It was almost as if the answer was ant for herself.
"Because of the ice devil?" There were a lot of furs here, and most of them looked fresh. Too fresh. As if she got them in the past couple of weeks.
"That too," Astrid paused, but I waited for her to continue. "My dad wanted a safe world. I want one too. A world with no monsters."
I nodded, but considering that there were a few other species with access to the System, I was not entirely sure her dreams were possible. They might be, but they would involve a few genocides—which is never great. But Astrid was following her late father's dream. No one could argue against that. And honestly? Could I even bla them for having that dream? A world without monsters sounded like a paradise.
"But a lot of these furs look really new. How long has it been since you hunted them all?"
Astrid looked around and pointed to a white pelt just by the entrance, serving as a mat. "Oldest. Six months." She then turned to the one I was sitting on top of. "Newest, five days."
Between the pelts on the benches, the chair, the table, the curtains, the floor, and the handful I saw in the bedroom, there should be around 70 different furs spread around the house. And that was not even taking into account the ones she had stashed away sowhere else.
"That is a lot of hunting. Even if you are feeding the village, that is a lot. Are you okay? You are not risking yourself too much, are you? Are these scars related to this or just old scars?"
Astrid groaned and slumped back in her chair, taking a large sip of her drink. "I am fine. Was stupid. Got hurt. Nothing more."
The mood turned sour. It was clear she was not appreciative of my concern. Instead, she seed to feel like I was treating her like a child or sothing. I don't know. It is not like there is a way for to understand what is going on in her mind. After so ti where we just sat there staring at each other, I gave up.
"Do you think you can show the mines tomorrow? I want to see what's inside there." It was better to change subjects. There was no reason to stay on that topic. Possible or not, Astrid was following her late father’s dream. No one could argue against that.
"I can. We leave early."
"Okay. Any specific reason for that, or just to make use of the sunlight?"
"Takes one hour for . Two for us," Astrid explained.
"Hey! I might not be used to walking in this little, but I'm not that slow. I even got here first after the shower."
"Different problem. Path is complicated."
"If you say so." I finished my drink and put the cup on the table. "Mind if I go to bed? I walked a lot today, and I'm a bit tired. Need to rest if we are going to walk a lot tomorrow."
Astrid nodded. "More pelts in the trunk."
I rembered seeing a heavy chest at the foot of the bed. It was good to know that if I needed it, I could turn myself into a fur-covered burrito. After thanking my host, I walked back to the room, closed the door, and went to bed. A part of was really excited about tomorrow but also a bit worried. Which is why I had one thing to do before sleeping.
'Sys, do a favor. Put {Formless Nodus Swipe} in the mory bank and later add {Burst of Strength} to my skills. If we are going into a mine, I'm not entirely sure I'll be able to do wide attacks to trigger the swipe.'
[Acknowledged. Question: Does user believe {Burst of Strength} will be more effective than {Formless Boar Charge} if user needs to fight inside the mines?]
'I don't know. Both have their rits, and if I use {Formless Boar Charge}, then a useless skill will be occupying a mory slot. In that case, it would be the {Formless Series} since I wouldn't have any actual formless skill to use. But at the sa ti, I don't like the idea of having to rush head on against an enemy in an unfamiliar terrain.'
[What about {Formless Steps of Prey}?]
'The idea is to hunt monsters. I would prefer to have sothing offensive, since I already have {Body Regeneration}, {Predatory Sense}, and the Enduring Heart title taking care of defenses.'
[Neither the skills nor the title user ntioned are, strictly speaking, defensive. {Body Regeneration} and Enduring Heart are recovery-based effects. {Predatory Sense} would fall more in the utility category since it does not allow user to block an actual attack.]
'By that logic, so would {Formless Steps of Prey}. Are you really against using {Formless Boar Charge}?'
[System is simply attempting to help user identify the best option for the scenario. Experience dictates that a conversation would assist user in making the best possible decision, even if said decision was the sa decision user initially made.]
'Oh? Thank you for that. It does help to explain my train of thought. For now, it is easy since I have few skills, but I imagine that as they change and grow, it will be harder to pick the ones that work best for each situation.'
[System exists only to serve user. If System is able to help, System has fulfilled its purpose.]
I held back a chuckle. The walls here did not seem particularly thick, and considering how each step Astrid took reached my ears, there was a good chance she could hear anything I did. 'That is a very convoluted way of saying "you are welco."'
The System didn't say anything else, and I did not want it to. After the shower, the drink, and getting under the covers, I felt extrely comfortable in this soft mattress, ready to sleep for the night. Unfortunately, it felt as if I had just blinked and the sun was already up in the sky. It was a good night of sleep, but it just felt too short. Fighting off the urge to stay under the covers, I quickly got up, got dressed, and walked out of the room. Astrid was already preparing sothing for us to eat in the kitchen. She saw pass by and just gave a nod. The tension from yesterday apparently gone.
"Do we eat and go?" I approached her, hoping there was sothing I could do to help.
Astrid turned around with a plate full of pieces of bread covered in butter, all of them toasted in a pan. The fact that they used fire so freely here still felt wild to .
"Yes. A stop first."
"In the village?"
Astrid just nodded. "Routine."
"Do you need to tell anyone that you are okay or just make sure nothing happened during the night?"
"Make sure." Astrid took one of the slices of bread and started eating. She gestured for to follow, and my stomach was already growling.
We ate in silence, but a question ca to mind.
'Sys, I get energy from food, correct?'
[Correct.]
'But I also need energy to move. And I do not an the sa energy that I use for my skills. But I have {Energy Storage}—does that an I could go a few days without eating by just taking Energy from it?'
[Currently, no. Energy present in {Energy Storage} may have co from calories, however it was converted into a different type of Energy. This new Energy cannot be used to move the body, only to move SP.]
'I see…' It was a bit of a sha, but there was likely a skill that allowed to convert that. Then again, I kind of liked eating. Not sure if I would ever stop doing that unless it was strictly necessary.
After finishing the al, we left Astrid's house and started walking towards the village. Now that the sun was out, it was easier to see the distance between the two, and it was not as bad as I had pictured last night. Before my thoughts could dwell on that, a commotion caught our attention. Astrid started jogging, and I followed. There was a group of people outside their houses, everyone speaking loudly and over each other. Three specific won seed more frantic than the rest. One of them was sobbing, another was yelling loudly, and the third was being held by two n while she kept trying to move in a specific direction.
"Astrid!" Francis gasped as we arrived. He gave a glance, but it was clear he had no intention of talking to .
"What happened?" Astrid asked.
"You!" The woman who was being held turned around and started stomping in our direction. "It is all your fault, you fucking half-wit!"
"Kat. Stop," Francis pushed the woman away, but to no avail.
"Get off , Francis. She has been going on and on about this fucking ice devil in the mines, and now my dear Johnny went there trying to find it. And he took his stupid friends with him."
"Do not call my son stupid!" the woman who was yelling continued.
"He followed my dumbass son. That makes him stupid, Erica!" Kat yelled again.
"When?" Astrid asked.
"When what? Use your fucking words, you lumbering oaf!" Kat continued yelling, but Astrid had already turned to Francis.
"They left before sunrise. So, an hour ago. Or that is what we are assuming. All we know is that Johnny left a letter, and one of the guards thinks they saw sothing about an hour ago," the man explained.
Astrid turned towards , and I nodded. "Going there was already the plan. Let’s go rescue so stupid kids."
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