155 "Kite"

“A new expedition? What expedition?” Theresa blinked, utterly bewildered. But she was busy with the work at hand and had no time to ask just then. She simply suppressed her doubts, treated the two injured patients, and clearly explained to the beastmen all the taboos and precautions they needed to observe while recovering. Only then did she finish her work and leave.

The moment she stepped out of the patients’ tent, Theresa spotted Lambert standing beside the makeshift workbench she had assembled, apparently studying her research site with great interest. After allowing herself time to settle, Theresa no longer felt any urgency to demand an explanation. Instead, she calmly put away the first-aid kit, removed the rubber gloves she had worn while preparing the medicine, washed her hands and face, and ladled herself a bowl of steaming meat broth from the large pot hanging over the fire. She sipped it in small mouthfuls, soothing her stomach, which had begun to cramp from all the exertion.

Every one of these movements fell under Lambert’s watchful gaze, and he could not help smiling. He wondered whether the girl truly was not anxious, or merely pretending not to be. Either way, it was remarkable that someone so young possessed such self-control. After all, many people in this world never learned to restrain their impulses and desires, even by the time they died of old age.

Once she had finished the broth, Theresa felt warmth spreading through both her stomach and her body, while a deep sense of happiness filled her heart. Only then did she turn toward the temporary workbench with a contented smile and walk over to Lambert.

“The poison in those three people has been partially separated. Fortunately, they were frozen solid at the very moment of death, so the venom is still remarkably well preserved. Give me a few more days, and I should be able to isolate a medicine that can suppress it temporarily. As for a true cure, I’m afraid I won’t be able to produce one in the short term.”

“That is already excellent,” Lambert said with an approving nod. “Given the appalling conditions we are working under, what you have accomplished far exceeds my expectations.”

Theresa drew a sharp breath. “If you never expected me to develop an antidote, how dare you recklessly take people to explore the ice fissure?” she demanded, glaring at him with displeasure. After all, Habata had been among the people he took with him. Fortunately, he had returned from this preliminary exploration with nothing worse than a few superficial injuries. Otherwise, she would never have let Lambert hear the end of it.

Instead of being angered by her glare, Lambert laughed. He reached out and ruffled her hair vigorously. “If I dared take them exploring, then naturally I had confidence in my own judgment. Don’t burden yourself with so many worries, little girl. Just focus on doing your own work. Leave the troublesome matters to someone else.”

“Hmph. That would only work if this ‘someone else’ were trustworthy enough!” Theresa knew she could not win in a contest of strength, so she gloomily allowed him to mess up her long hair while giving him no quarter with her tongue.

“Oh? You don’t trust me, little girl?” Lambert deliberately increased the force of his hand, turning her soft hair into something resembling a bird’s nest.

“Hey! Let go! Let go! This is my hair, not a rag. If you want to wipe your hands, go somewhere else!” Theresa beat at his hand with both of hers and protested loudly. Lambert only tousled her hair a couple more times before finally releasing her.

For convenience during her work, Theresa had tied her hair back. It had already become somewhat disheveled from all the activity, and after Lambert’s interference it was an utter mess. At last escaping his “clutches,” she immediately sprang three yards away. While glaring at him resentfully, she pulled a small comb from her clothing, loosened the ribbon, and slowly combed her long hair smooth.

Fortunately, her hair was fine and soft, and it took only a few strokes to restore it to order.

Lambert watched her with a faint smile, then turned his gaze toward the three skeletons soaking in the solution, his expression thoughtful.

After smoothing her hair and tying it back again, Theresa finally returned to the question that had first troubled her.

“Lambert, what did you discover inside the ice fissure? Why did you suddenly change your plans?”

Lambert turned his face toward her, his eyes brimming with amusement. His smile plainly declared that he had known all along she would be unable to resist asking. Theresa felt several fresh sparks of irritation flare within her.

“It wasn’t exactly a change of plans,” Lambert explained. “It would be more accurate to say that we moved the schedule forward.”

“They moved the schedule forward?” Theresa’s eyes immediately gleamed. She instinctively caught her lower lip between her teeth, rolling her eyes upward as she mentally filtered through the map of the Black Rock Mountains. After a while, she said uncertainly, “Are we already that close? I thought it would take at least another five days.”

“If we followed the terrain on the surface, it would indeed take five days. But traveling through the heart of the mountain is another matter.” Lambert flashed another broad, white-toothed grin. “Theresa, it was fortunate that you discovered those three bodies!”

* * *

The expedition team was reorganized after Theresa developed a medicine capable of temporarily suppressing the poison. Since this exploration overlapped with Lambert’s original destination, Theresa, the only alchemist in the group, was required to accompany them. Once she joined the party, Flora and Habata naturally insisted on coming as well. With Lambert and several beastmen added to the group, the ten-person team set off in grand fashion.

As soon as they entered the ice fissure, the light suddenly grew much brighter. Theresa looked around in astonishment. Ice surrounded them on every side, and its naturally high reflectivity filled the passage with radiance. She could even see beautiful halos refracted through the highly transparent ice where the magical lamps shone upon it. Apart from the ground beneath their feet, it was as though the entire group had been swallowed by ice.

The beastmen who had made the initial exploration had already opened up the passage somewhat. Since a road broad enough for their tall, powerful bodies was passable, it naturally offered no difficulty to a human girl who had not yet reached adulthood. At first, the way ahead was smooth and easy, like a leisurely stroll—indeed, even easier than wading through the snow along the mountain’s outer slopes.

Habata noticed Theresa looking around curiously and stepped forward to warn her. “Be careful. It gets difficult farther ahead.”

Theresa smiled and nodded to show that she had heard him. Flora, however, asked impatiently, “What kind of danger?”

“Once we pass beyond the frozen zone, we’ll enter the Black Rock Caverns. There are batlike magical beasts inside, as well as violent, unpredictable winds. In a little while, you must keep close to the cave wall. If you feel any wind at all, secure yourself immediately!”

Seeing that Flora still looked somewhat unconcerned, Habata grew even more solemn.

“The wind inside the caverns is the most dangerous thing there! The two beastmen who were injured earlier were hurt because they were careless. They weren’t even caught head-on. They were merely grazed by the tail end of a gust that was already dying down. So the two of you must, must be careful!”

Theresa and Flora immediately became exceptionally vigilant. The sturdiness of a beastman’s body was famous among all races. If a mere brush of wind could injure their internal organs, then Theresa or Flora would surely have been killed on the spot.

The brief exchange soon ended, and for a time a grave, somber atmosphere spread throughout the entire party, leaving the group oppressed and tense.

After walking for a little over twenty minutes, they suddenly came upon an astonishing boundary. Layer upon layer of highly transparent ice abruptly vanished, replaced by thick, dark-black rock. There was almost no transition between the two, as though the ice had suddenly transformed into stone. The sheer contrast made Theresa’s heart itch with curiosity. The inquisitiveness peculiar to alchemists urged her to investigate the cause of such a transformation.

But the purpose of this journey was clear. She stared at the border between ice and stone for a long while, then was finally dragged away despite her profound reluctance. She was so absorbed in regretting the unfortunate timing that she failed to notice when the group entered the Black Rock Caverns. Only when Flora pinched her did she finally come to her senses.

At first, the cavern seemed no different from any ordinary cave. After walking roughly a hundred yards, they reached a fork in the passage. Lambert, who was leading, suddenly stopped and said, “Careful.”

Every member of the group immediately grew alert. Theresa widened her eyes and watched Lambert’s every movement.

He followed the passage slanting up toward the left, keeping close to the rock wall. After advancing about three yards, his clothes and hair suddenly began streaming backward. Clearly, a powerful current of air was blowing from somewhere ahead and to his left.

Yet though they were only four or five yards away, Theresa and the others could not feel the slightest trace of wind. They could not even hear a whisper of it.

Only after experiencing it herself did Theresa understand that Habata’s warning had not been exaggerated in the least. That was no mere gale. It was a hurricane!

The instant Theresa stepped into the zone of moving air, her feet felt strangely light. She had barely lifted one foot when the ground seemed to vanish beneath it. Before she had gone two yards, her entire body felt weightless.

And then, quite literally, she was blown into the air.

“Ah!”

Her back slammed hard into something. The tremendous impact forced a muffled cry from her, and at the same time a voice sounded above her head.

“Are you all right?”

It took Theresa nearly ten seconds to recover from the shock. Only then did she realize that Lambert had caught her and was holding her tightly in his arms. Recalling what had just happened, she immediately understood that he had saved her. Otherwise, she hardly dared imagine what shape she would have been in after being hurled about by that wind.

“Thank you,” Theresa said, still shaken. Then she gave a wry smile. “I suppose I need to put on a little more weight.”

The matter-of-fact look on Lambert’s face vanished at once. A smile took its place.

“Yes, you are far too thin. You could be flown like a kite.”

Theresa was speechless at the comparison. But when she thought of the way she had just been swept away by the gale, she realized that she truly had looked rather like someone flying a kite. Her mood grew even more miserable.