The sky was overcast. Pale sunlight filtered through thin clouds, giving the air a soft, sleepy hue. The group had gathered one last time near the massive stone gates at the edge of the city, where two ironclad wagons waited to escort Rei and Regulus to the train station.
Mentil stood with her arms folded, her posture sharp, but her expression a little softer than usual. Reiner stood beside her, quietly chewing on the end of a toothpick, his scarred face calm. The wind tugged lightly at the hem of his blue coat.
Regulus hefted his axe onto his shoulder and gave Mentil a crooked smile. "Well… I guess this is goodbye, huh?"
Mentil rolled her eyes. "For now. You better not fall off a cliff or something."
Regulus laughed, then blinked as she held out a thick cloak—black and deep crimson, lined with fine stitching.
"Take it," she said, avoiding his eyes. "I paid a fortune for those. They're enchanted for warmth and defense. Durable too."
"Damn, really? Fancy stuff." Regulus took it with a grin. "You spoil me."
She mumbled something under her breath and turned away before anyone could see her smile.
Rei glanced over at Reiner. The man was quiet for a moment, then walked up to Rei and pulled him into a sudden hug.
Rei's eyes widened. "Wh—"
"You're gonna do great," Reiner said, voice low and husky. "I know it. You're the type that doesn't break easy."
Rei stood still, surprised, then nodded slowly. "…Thanks."
Reiner let go and handed him a folded gray-blue cloak with silver linings, enchanted like Regulus's.
"Where we're sending you two," Reiner said, "ain't anywhere near cozy. Mountains. Frost. Wind that can tear the skin off your bones if you're not careful."
"What's it called?" Rei asked.
Reiner looked up at the clouds. "Kharvog's Spine. A frozen wasteland where the snow never melts. And at the very top? That's where your master lives. They say he trained warlords and ghost generals. You're gonna freeze your ass off, but you'll come back twice as strong."
Regulus let out a low whistle. "Why do I get the feeling we got the worst of the lot?"
"Because you did," Mentil said bluntly. "But you're the only two that could handle it."
At that moment, Vetra approached with her long coat fluttering behind her and Lancer trailing just behind with a sleepy look and a bottle halfway tucked in his jacket.
"Don't get yourselves killed," Vetra said, eyes on Rei. "You're not allowed to die. Got it?"
Rei smirked. "I'll do my best."
Lancer raised a hand lazily. "Stay warm. Eat meat. Punch bears. That's how I survived the cold."
"…You punched bears?" Regulus asked.
"No," Lancer said, sipping from his flask. "But I could've. Probably."
They all shared one final laugh before the train whistle echoed through the hills beyond the gates.
Time to go.
Rei and Regulus climbed aboard the wagon that would take them to the station. As it rolled away, the rest of the guild stood behind, waving.
Kajala, of course, shouted the loudest. "DON'T FREEZE YOUR BUTTS OFF, LOSERS!"
Regulus grinned and shouted back, "I'LL FREEZE YOURS FIRST!"
The city of Esteria shrank behind them, swallowed by trees and the gentle curve of the road.
[Later – On the Train]
The train to the north was unlike the one Rei had taken to Valebright in the past. It was larger, louder, with thick armored windows and a roaring furnace at the front. The air outside had already grown cold.
Rei sat near the window, pulling the enchanted cloak tighter around his shoulders. He watched the forests shift into white plains, and the white plains into jagged mountain shadows in the distance.
Regulus stretched his arms behind his head and yawned. "You know, not gonna lie… kinda excited. Freezing to death sounds like an adventure."
"You're a lunatic."
"Thank you."
Rei leaned back against the cold glass, his breath fogging a small patch.
"…You ever get scared?" he asked.
Regulus turned to him, serious for once. "Yeah. All the time. But that's why we train, right? So we can be the kind of scared that fights anyway."
Rei nodded slowly. "Right."
As the train rumbled deeper into the wilderness, the sky outside grew darker.
The real training hadn't even started yet, but Rei could feel it already this was going to change everything.
He closed his eyes.
He could still hear Kajala's voice.
And somehow, even far from home, it gave him just enough warmth to face what came next.
The train hissed and clanked to a stop at a tiny outpost made of frost-covered stone and old rusted steel. Cold wind bit at their faces the second they stepped out. A thick blanket of snow covered everything. Mountains loomed in the distance like sleeping giants, jagged and silent.
Rei tightened the cloak around his shoulders, steam curling from his breath.
"Okay," he muttered. "This is colder than cold."
Regulus, on the other hand, looked like a kid in a candy store. "Look at this place!" he shouted, stomping into the snow with a grin. "It's like a giant freezer of death! I love it!"
Rei just gave him a blank look.
That's when Regulus spotted it half-buried in the snow, leaning against the side of a supply shed, was a large wooden sledge. Sturdy, wide, and definitely fast-looking.
His eyes lit up. "Hey, hey, hey… you thinking what I'm thinking?"
Rei raised an eyebrow. "No. Absolutely not."
Regulus already had his hands on the rope.
"C'mon," he said. "Big hill. No one around. Perfect chance to make an entrance."
Rei hesitated. Then sighed. "This is going to be dumb."
"That's why it's great!"
Before Rei could protest more, Regulus had pulled the sledge up a nearby snow hill tall, steep, and lined with little bumps and dips.
Rei sat down reluctantly behind him.
"Hold on tight!" Regulus shouted, pushing off.
The sledge launched down the slope.
Snow sprayed up like waves, and the wind howled past them. The sledge bounced over bumps, picking up speed at an alarming rate.
"TOO FAST!" Rei shouted, gripping Regulus's shoulders.
"NO SUCH THING!" Regulus whooped, clearly having the time of his life.
They hit a ramp launched into the air spinning a bit
"WOOOAAAHHHH!"
THUMP!!!, back on the snow.
Then out of nowhere—a small white fox darted across the hill.
THUMP!!!
It flipped into the sledge, landing squarely between the two of them.
For one frozen second, all three stared at each other.
Then—
"AAAAHHHHHH!!"
"AAAAAAAAAAHH!!"
"EEEEEEEK!!" (the fox)
The fox scrambled, Rei panicked, Regulus laughed maniacally, and the sledge kept going faster.
They nearly slammed into a tree, narrowly swerving
Another ramp sent them flying again.
"BRACE!!!"
They crashed into a soft snowbank at the bottom of the hill, tumbling out in a flurry of powder. The fox popped out of the snow like a confused marshmallow and sprinted off.
Rei groaned, spitting snow.
Regulus burst out laughing. "Okay—okay—I know we almost died, but worth it!"
Rei flopped back into the snow. "I hate you."
Still chuckling, Regulus stood up and brushed himself off. "You're welcome."
The snow-covered slope ended in front of two massive stone doors embedded into the mountainside. Strange glowing runes shimmered faintly above them.
The doors creaked open slowly, as if sensing their arrival.
Rei and Regulus, still wiping snow off themselves, stared up as warm orange light spilled out from the hidden fortress beyond.
"Ready to freeze and train until we can't walk?" Regulus asked with a grin.
Rei looked at him, then ahead.
"Let's do this."
They stepped inside, leaving the wild hill and their chaotic crash behind them.
But far above, on a cliff overlooking the slope, a large figure in armor watched them go.
The master was waiting.