The warm sun spilled across the lake’s surface, reflecting in fragmented glints of silver.
Loran sat by the ice hole, clutching an old fishing rod he had scavenged from Elia’s pile of junk. He had been there for nearly an hour, yet the bobber remained motionless.
Chloe sat on a small stool beside him. The furry brim of her hat obscured most of her face, leaving only her eyes visible as they darted back and forth between the bobber and Loran’s face.
“Are you… sure there are actually fish down there?” Chloe finally couldn’t help but ask, her voice tinged with a hint of skepticism.
“Of course there are.”
“If that’s the case, why hasn’t there been a single reaction for so long?”
If it were just him and Chloe, Loran wouldn’t have minded continuing this atmospheric little activity. However, there were three other mouths behind them waiting to be fed.
Thinking of this, Loran glanced back at the girls who were currently enjoying the milk tea Elia had brewed personally. Then, without making a scene, he reeled in the fishing rod.
“Eh? You’re giving up on fishing?” Chloe’s eyes widened.
“Um… I’m just switching methods.”
Loran stood up, walked to the edge of the ice hole, and crouched down. He slowly reached his right hand into the freezing lake water.
Chloe felt an extremely faint ripple of magic pulse from Loran for a fleeting moment. Immediately after, the water in the ice hole suddenly churned. Several plump Sunscale Salmon came leaping out of the water, their tails thrashing against the icy surface.
“Do you even call this fishing?”
Chloe arched an eyebrow, watching as Loran skillfully pinned the struggling fish against the ice. He pulled a short knife from his waist and began to clean them.
“Well, the fish are caught, aren’t they?”
Loran wrapped the prepared fish in a clean cloth he had brought along and turned toward the campfire on the shore.
Elia had already set up the grill and the pre-prepared seasonings.
The campfire crackled. Loran threaded the fish onto sharpened wooden skewers and sliced a few shallow cuts into the skin to let the flavor penetrate. He tossed the largest fish into a small pot to boil for soup. The milky white broth soon began to bubble, and the aroma of mushrooms and spices wafted through the air.
The girls gathered around the fire. Loran handed out the grilled fish one by one, and they nibbled at them in small bites, looking like little kittens.
After finishing the grilled fish, Loran served everyone a bowl of fish soup. The fresh, white broth slid warmly into their stomachs, leaving them feeling very, very full.
While tidying the utensils, Loran noticed Elia wore a somewhat peculiar expression. She stared at the small pot with a complicated look, as if she wanted to say something but held it back.
Loran casually asked what was wrong, but Elia merely pursed her lips and turned to put the bowls away.
After all, she couldn’t exactly tell Loran that she felt this guy’s culinary skills weren’t inferior to her own—something she took great pride in. That would be too embarrassing.
***
The afternoon sun cast long shadows on the ground. Ophelia pulled a sophisticated chess set from the carriage and arranged the pieces, beckoning Chloe over for a game.
Chloe shuffled over somewhat reluctantly. She knew she had no talent for chess, but Ophelia seemed to never tire of it.
Loran stole a glance; the rules were identical to the chess in his memories.
Barely ten moves in, Chloe’s formation was torn open. She was trying her best, but the gap in skill was still obvious. Ultimately, she was crushed by Ophelia in the mid-game.
Seeing the radiant look on Ophelia’s face, Loran pulled up a small chair and sat next to Chloe, whispering instructions to her.
“…Move here. Take her Knight first.”
The situation began to grow tense. Every few moves, Loran would offer a quiet word of guidance.
Twenty minutes later, Ophelia stared at the board, her expression turning increasingly grim.
“Checkmate,” Chloe said softly.
Ophelia stared at her King, which had been backed into a corner. After a long silence, she muttered grumpily.
“This is completely cheating.”
“How can this be considered cheating?” Loran said righteously. “It’s your own fault for not bringing a support character.”
The second round hit a stalemate in the mid-game. With a “clack,” Ophelia knocked over her King and huffed, demanding another round.
Then, Ophelia earned herself a three-game losing streak.
“I’m done, I’m done!” Ophelia stood up irritably and pointed toward the frozen lake.
“Let’s compete in something else. Let’s see who can cause a bigger stir on this lake.”
Loran thought for a moment and nodded. He asked Yuna, who had been watching the fun from the side, to act as the judge.
The four of them went to the lakeside. Ophelia took a deep breath, condensing pale gold magic at her fingertips.
She didn’t chant an incantation like a typical mage. Instead, she began to rapidly write runes directly onto the ice. Every stroke she drew triggered a faint ripple of magic.
The moment the final symbol was completed, the ice surface shook violently.
A dazzling golden light erupted from the center of the runes, transforming into a physical shockwave that swept outward. Everywhere it passed, the thick layer of ice shattered inch by inch, turning into countless shards that were hurled into the sky.
When the light faded and the ice shards fell like rain, the sight before them made everyone gasp.
The ice that had once covered the entire lake had vanished without a trace. The lake water had resumed its flow, shimmering under the winter sun. Not a single trace of frost could be seen.
Ophelia straightened up. Fine beads of sweat broke out on her forehead, but she couldn’t hide the smug look on her face.
She looked at Loran, her eyes sparkling with a challenging glint.
“Your turn.”
Loran, however, was feeling a bit uneasy internally.
What Ophelia had used wasn’t some simple spell; it was a type of magic that directly controlled mana through runes. In his previous life’s timeline, she hadn’t mastered this ability so early.
—Damn it, just how many surprises does this woman have left?
Loran silently withdrew [Conceptual Fantasy]. The small iron book, transformed from the Cube, sent a clear rejection through his consciousness. Since what Ophelia had just displayed was a high-level inherited magic, he couldn’t replicate it with his current power level. Thus, he had no choice but to give up on that idea.
Just as Loran was reconsidering how to make his move, Chloe, who had been silently watching him, seemed to mistake his brief silence for being in a difficult position. She gently stepped forward.
“Let me do it,” Chloe said, looking toward Yuna. “By the way, the judge’s criteria should be made clear.”
“Hmm… then let’s see who can make the lake move the most! It has to be cool-looking and make a huge scene!”
Chloe nodded and slowly dipped her palm into the still-freezing lake water. The moment her fingertips touched the surface, the girl softly closed her eyes.
Magic quietly diffused from her palm, turning into countless tiny threads that seeped deep into the lake, sketching the outline of a massive magic circle within her mind.
Ripples began to form on the lake. At first, they were just slight undulations, but they quickly turned into layered waves. Then, out of the waves, one ice spike after another surged forth, formed by the flash-freezing of the lake water.
As the water level dropped rapidly, the things beneath the lake that had been buried by deep water began to reveal themselves.
Ophelia’s mouth hung open. The small smudge of smugness on her face had long since vanished without a trace.
“Vi-vi… you…”
Before she could finish, a roar suddenly erupted from the woods behind them, drawing all of their gazes.
Five figures shrouded entirely in pitch-black robes walked silently out from the forest one after another. They stopped about a dozen paces away from Loran and the others, forming a semi-encirclement.
The leader was the tallest. His gaze slowly swept over the one man and four women, and a cruel sneer appeared on his face.