Chapter 25: In the Mountains
It really surprised him to hear that Marjorie was Cyrus's daughter. The humble merchant of 'With Wind Comes Glory' was spawned from that gruff adventurer who goes drinking every night. Despite that, Subaru couldn't argue with her ability to refit their group for the cold that they were expecting in Dragonspine.
Subaru couldn't help but tug on his new clothes as they travelled to the mountains. His previous thin black shirt was replaced by a black parka, with his torn green cape being substituted by a similar green cloak fitted with a fluffed hood. He substituted his pants for something a little thicker and his boots were now fitted for snow traversal. The only part of his dress that remained the same was his orange scarf which already assisted with harsh climates. Having secured his old clothes within his inventory, he felt confident as he proceeded to the mountains.
"Are you really sure you'll be fine, little girl?" Paul asked from his side, looking at his shoulder; the fairy loli was resting there, after all.
"No problem!" Paimon cheered, not having worn any extra layers, unlike the others. "Paimon can handle a little cold!"
"You're probably underestimating it, then," Subaru snarked.
"Well, then Paimon'll hide in that flap on your cloak!"
"That's a hood, and I need that, you damn fairy loli!"
"But you didn't buy anything for Paimon, Stinky Space!"
"I tried and you said no!"
Steven snorted nearby. "Yeah, I don't regret calling you two to join us now."
Their current team consisted of Subaru, Paimon, Paul, Steven and Cyrus. It was pretty interesting how well Cyrus had set up the team. Cyrus himself was skilled not only in combat but adventurer survival tactics and he claimed to be level-headed. Paul was a skilled cartographer, and considering how they might enter uncharted territory in the land it was rather clear that Paul would be a valuable addition for further expedition. Also, he would handle their routes. Steven was brought in for additional firepower, with emphasis on the Fire. Surprisingly, he had a Pyro Vision. One of those was essential for traversal in a land as bone-chillingly cold as Dragonspine. Also, it turned out that he only cried like a baby when he was drunk, he was much more serene on the job. Finally, Subaru was already known for his cooking skills and his reputation as the Hero of Mondstadt preceded him. Paimon was… well, Paimon.
"Hey, are you done setting up that fire yet?!" The same fairy loli cried out. "Paimon's starving here!"
"You just had some toast two hours ago…"
"Shut up, Stinky Space!"
"Haha, don't worry, little lady, I'm all done!" Cyrus cried out, dusting his hands as he looked down at the building fire. "Now, let's set up the pot. Everyone huddle up! This might be the last time we feel warmth in a while."
Despite the intermediary camp for Paimon, the group quickly finished up, packed up and set off yet again. The sight of the towering peaks spurred them along their journey. Subaru could feel the temperature dropping as they got closer to their destination. It was by midday that they finally reached their location: The Adventurer's Camp at Dragonspine.
"We're here!" Cyrus cried out in cheer as soon as they stepped foot in the camp. Subaru immediately felt a chill as he walked in. If the place was cold even at such a distance away from the mountain, it made sense why the others were so concerned.
"Yes, you've made it," a feminine voice called out as well. Surprisingly, Cyrus went rigid upon hearing the voice. Creaking to look to the side, he noticed a dark-haired woman sternly gazing at him. "And what took you so long, oh dear brother?"
"B-Big Sis Iris… I, uh…"
"Save it," the now-named Iris rubbed the bridge of her nose. "We've been waiting for backup for a while, better late than never. Also, you've made good choices here. I can already see a Pyro Vision user and… wait, is that the boy who defeated Stormterror?"
Cyrus couldn't help but grin at that. "Yep! Look at the connections your little brother has, Big Sis! I can have you two meet whenever you want!"
Subaru balked at his words. "… this is why you called me, huh? To think Katheryne went with it…"
Scowling, Iris shook her head. "It doesn't matter. Having him here helps, that's what matters most. Come in, all of you. It's good to see you're well dressed, save that little droid there, but I don't think that matters."
"Droid? What droid?" Paimon muttered, looking around. She looked back at Iris, who was gazing directly at her. "… wait, are you talking about Paimon?!"
"Droid, huh?" Subaru muttered with a grin. "Another one to note…"
"Oi! Don't let Paimon make a new ugly nickname for you, Stinky Space!"
Ignoring their chatter, the group moved into the tent with Subaru and Paimon quickly following behind. As they sat at the round table in the centre, Iris offered them some warm drinks which Subaru identified as hot chocolate the moment he sipped it. Paimon eagerly drank her fill, of course.
"Katheryne must have left it vague, so let me explain the situation here," Iris began, taking a seat with them. "Recent expeditions have found the wind turning harsher within the peaks the higher they ventured. As of now, the winds throughout the Snow-Covered Path have gotten out of control. We have called the alchemists to observe this phenomenon without entering Dragonspine, and they have concluded that this is due to certain cores of ice that have popped up a little further past the very same path. Judging by the locations, this might be connected to a previous issue: rigid ice. No matter what we tried, we could not get this ice to melt. The alchemists are currently on their way to confirm this relationship, but we'd like to gain further insight in the meantime to reduce risk to their persons.
"As mentioned, your job is to tread through this path and find this ice, hopefully finding some way to melt it. Moreover, we'd like you to identify the core reason for this issue with the weather while you are at it. From what we've seen in tests, the issue will not stop with this single core removed. Please figure out this conundrum and report the results back to us."
Cyrus frowned. "You could not figure it out, Big Sis? If you couldn't get it, then how could we?"
Iris cast a hopeful look at Subaru. "I just… have a feeling."
Subaru scowled at that. "I'm not some miracle worker, you know that, right?"
"I know, but it's just… you've already stopped one major issue afflicting Mondstadt. We're hoping you could work your magic here as well."
She was comparing this to the Stormterror attack. The thought of that sent a shiver down Subaru's spine. If this issue was that serious… would he die again?
Cyrus, noticing Subaru's speechlessness, decided to continue. "We'll try, but we cannot guarantee anything."
"That's all I ask. Note that returning without any results is also a perfectly acceptable result and you will still be offered the commission award for the attempt."
"Rigid Ice…" Steven muttered. "Pyro Visions don't work on them?"
"We have tried before the winds picked up, and no. Brute force didn't do anything to them either."
Steven cursed under his breath. "We'll have to look into it then." Unseen to the others, Steven gently traced the Vision on his hip.
Paul stood up and pulled out a map from his inventory and unfurled it on the table. "Can you point out the location of this ice?" he asked, offering her a marker.
After Iris marked the location, Paul nodded. "A little bit through the path, yes. We can get there before nightfall without struggle."
"It will be cold," Iris reminded them. "The shift in weather has changed the temperature rather drastically. Whatever you remember of the land is irrelevant now. Make sure you are well-equipped before you enter."
Paul looked grimly at the map and nodded.
Subaru finally looked up at the group and nodded at Cyrus, thankful for the save. He turned back to Iris. "About what you said… there's a lot more to the Stormterror incident than simply 'defeating' him, which I definitely didn't do. It was only when I worked with the Knights that I was able to drive him away. Similarly, I'm hoping that everyone here can help me as well."
Paul and Steven nodded at him, with Cyrus laughing in the background. "You've certainly got the spirit, boy!"
"Yeah!" Paimon cheered. "We can do this! Let's melt that ice already!"
Iris smiled at them as well. "Thank you, then. But please, ensure that you return safe. Cyrus, you're still my brother. Be careful, please."
Cyrus held up his fist to his sister. "Ad Astra Abyssosque. To the Stars and the Abyss. Come Hell or High Water, we'll finish our adventure and return home. Let's do this, men!"
"Oi! Paimon's not a man!"
"Yes, that's very clear."
"Quiet, Stinky Space!"
As they prepared for their venture, Subaru took the time to explore the camp. They were rather well furnished; they had a restaurant, a forge and a research centre all there.
However, it was what lay past the camp that held his attention. The cold was biting through his layers already, the grass was turning softer under his boots. The peaks of Dragonspine towered over him and he was forced to crane his neck to look all the way up. The heights made his breath hitch and he fully realised what he was getting into.
'I'm walking into danger again. I could die there.'
Biting back his fear, he forced himself to look down and away. 'Should I do this? Stormterror was threatening to destroy Mondstadt, but why am I here? Yes, there's the matter of finding out more about Durin and that jewel that came from Stormterror, but that's not what we're dealing with, right? I'm walking to the danger, I'm not protecting anyone. So…' Subaru gently gripped the fabric over his heart, his frown deepening. "Should I be in this party?"
"Ah, there you are!"
Subaru snapped out of his thoughts and noticed Paimon trailing behind him. "Where were you? Everyone's ready and Paimon's got some other gear they wanted to give you."
"Paimon…" Subaru spoke, earning her curious glance. "We're really about to scale a mountain, huh?"
"Well, yeah! You signed up for this, right?"
"No, you pushed me into it."
"Hey, it's free Mora!"
Shaking his head, Subaru gazed up at the peak, still wondering if he should keep going.
"… Dad…"
The quietness carried that estranged voice. Subaru perked up and followed it to find a young boy, nearly Timmie's age, sitting right past the gate into the camp.
"Hey, little guy," Subaru called out, making the child look up to him. "What's wrong?"
"You're… another adventurer? You're going in there?"
Subaru winced, recalling his doubts. "Well yeah, but – "
"Please! Find my Dad!"
Jolting at how quickly the boy stood up to plead to him, Subaru reoriented himself and spoke. "Okay, um, where is he? If we find him on our way, we'll bring him back."
"Please! I… I heard someone say he was going into the Snow-Covered Path? There's a camp there… can you check?"
The Snow-Covered Path was the same path they were going to take. Subaru knew that this camp should be rather exposed, and the boy's father should have been found already if he were there.
"Don't worry!" Paimon called out. "We'll find your Dad! Paimon promises!"
"Paimon!"
Subaru looked back down at the boy and halted upon seeing his fearful expression. Sighing, he sealed his fate.
"Fine, we'll look for him. But you know… this mountain is pretty dangerous and…"
Keeping his gaze on the boy forced him to stop going down that line of discussion. The boy looked like he was going into tears.
"We'll find him." Subaru knew it was wrong to make such a promise, but it was all he could do then. "Like Paimon said, we promise to find him."
"R-Really?" the boy said. "Thank you! Thank you!"
Subaru grinned and patted the boy's head.
"Oh yeah!" the boy suddenly remarked. "I never told you my name, sorry! I'm Joel! Big Brother, what's your name?"
Paimon braced herself, knowing there was no way to stop it.
Before he continued, however, Subaru took a raspy breath. He looked up at the mountain again. He had his doubts. He didn't know if he could survive this journey or rather, if the pain of his death was worth it. However, having made such an impossible promise, Subaru found no way out. His body was already scarred, there was no trouble scarring it further for the sake of this boy's estranged father. And if he found out more about the Stormterror situation on the way, then it was all the better.
Subaru finally grinned and stood back up straight. He spread his legs and rested his left hand on his hip, cocking it back stylishly. With a holler, he raised his right arm and pointed at the sky.
"I'm Natsuki Subaru! I'm the guy that chased Stormterror away from Mondstadt, and I'm the guy who's gonna find your dad!"
The only saving grace he had was the rope he had wrapped around his torso. Ignoring the way the cold bit through his multiple layers, he looked up to see a splash of white minimally blocked by Steven's brown hair fluttering in the gale. Wincing, he hung his head low and thanked the fact that his hood was tied securely over his head. Paimon, who was fluttering restlessly within his jacket because of the cold, did not quell his unease in the slightest.
It was Cyrus's idea to bring out a rope to connect the group together as they treaded up the mountains. Being there, Subaru was more than glad he made the decision because they would have lost each other in no time if they hadn't. Paul was at the lead, using his remarkedly impeccable sense of direction to keep their heading. He was followed by Steven who constantly sent out a wave of heat to even slightly relieve the biting cold. Following him was Subaru, who trailed with them, and finally Cyrus, who claimed that he could handle the cold more than the others. Subaru didn't argue with the position; being right behind Steven was probably the best position to be in during their travel. Even then, the cold didn't fail to influence him at all. He couldn't even wonder what it was like for the others, with a part of him wanting to take their places as well.
A jerk in the rope caught his attention. That was a means of sending a signal to the others since the noise of the wind would not let them speak to each other. Two beats, and a jerk to the right. Paul, who was two spaces ahead, was declaring that they were to turn right. Subaru sent the message back to Cyrus, jerking the rope up thrice and once to his left, Cyrus's right.
As such, Paul kept them trained on the road as they traversed the spuriously convenient Snow-Covered Path. For the whole road, Subaru couldn't help but wonder how bad it would have been for the others: Paul, who had to face the full brunt of the frost and Cyrus who got less of the Pyro Vision's influence.
The sudden three jerks of his rope caught his attention. That meant that they were close. Sending back four jerks to Cyrus, Subaru tapped Paimon four times. She said something, but it was difficult to hear even himself in that wind. Shaking his head, he trod on.
Suddenly, warmth filled his bones. He gasped as the climate instantly normalized. He made a mad dash for a few steps, only to be met face first with the subtle glow of a Statue of the Seven.
"Haa… Big Sis really wasn't exaggerating with the weather," Cyrus commented, marking his subsequent arrival. "Thanks for the help, Paul."
Subaru looked ahead and winced as he saw Paul shivering uncontrollably right next to the Statue, with Steven gently applying Pyro heat from his hands. His blonde hair was clearly crusted with white frost and his skin was a touch bluer than normal. Steven also gradually fed him something from a flask.
"That's…" Subaru gulped, that part of him screaming at him to take Paul's place. "Sorry."
A strong hand clapped his shoulder. "Don't, Subaru," Cyrus remarked. "Paul made this choice. Let him stand by it, at the very least."
He wanted to protest; he really did. He who was already scarred should have been the one who got hurt instead. Subaru knew well who that was, a mere look in the mirror was enough to remind him of that.
"Oh, Paimon's warm now!" Subaru suddenly felt the lump under his clothes vanish as Paimon apparated to his side once again. "Hey! We're at a Statue!"
"Say thank you to Paul, Paimon," Subaru said.
"Oh, Paul – Oh…"
Paul winced as he leaned against the Statue. "I'll be fine," he managed to speak. "Let's just rest here for a while. I'll recover in some time, we can continue then."
Having Paul continue to push himself like that left a bitter taste in Subaru's mouth. He looked at the reason for his pain, the now domed roaring winds surrounding them. "The way this wind is moving…"
"Oh, that's the Statue!" Paimon helpfully supplied. "Statues of the Seven are known for being able to ward off danger, so the wind is okay here because we're next to one!"
"Well, we're glad for that, but we can't keep moving in this weather if this keeps up," Cyrus hummed, then turned to Subaru, extending his hand and summoning a flask from his inventory. "Drink up. Slowly."
Subaru gratefully accepted it and opened it. "What is it?"
"Warm water. It's the best remedy for this cold. Drink slowly, though, we're still rationing it. We can't always trust snow water, after all."
Wordlessly, Subaru and Paimon both drank from the flask, feeling a little better after that. Upon returning it to Cyrus, Subaru turned back to the Statue. "Paimon, I haven't had my Vision discharged in a while, right?"
"Your Vision? Right, that thing inside you! No, you haven't."
Subaru walked up to the Statue and gently rested his palm on its surface. Feeling a suction from his core, he watched a wave of darkness entering the Statue.
But that wasn't all. It was almost as if the Statue perked up, the colours shifted from red to blue as the ball above the Anemo Archon's figure shone, superseding the winds above them. A glow shot into the sky, forming a whirlwind above them. Subaru jerked away from the Statue, wanting to fully witness what was happening.
However, the whirlwind seemed rather anticlimactic, as it immediately died down. Subaru sighed, being glad he didn't accidentally force a reset.
"Boy… what in the world did you just do?"
Subaru blinked at Cyrus's sudden question. "Well, I have this way of – "
It was clear. Too clear. The wind that surrounded them was suddenly gone. Subaru was finally able to see that they stood upon a cemented ring of some sort, with a hole in the center.
" A-Ahahaha…" Paimon muttered, cheekily looking away and pressing her fingers together. Subaru looked at her and sighed. "What happened?" Subaru asked.
"Well, Paimon thinks that dark Vision of yours woke this Statue up. It's like you reminded the Anemo Archon to watch over this place. Probably because you stink so much, Stinky Space!"
Subaru gnashed his teeth at the jab. "Shut it, you fairy loli!"
"Teehee!"
Nearby, Paul perked up and shrieked in enjoyment. "Thank you, my friend!" Paul suddenly hugged Subaru, making him wince at the sudden motion. "You've saved me!"
"H-Hey, it's alright…" Subaru gently patted Paul's back, suppressing his concern at how cold his clothes were. "You'll be fine, don't worry."
Nodding, Paul picked himself up and separated from Subaru. He gratefully smiled at him again before returning to Steven to continue his treatment.
"Well, this is the perfect cause for celebration!" Cyrus cheered out. "I knew bringing the kid along would be a good idea!"
"You just wanted the extra labour, didn't you?" Subaru chided back.
Cyrus ignored his question with a loud laugh. "There's a camp right below this Statue, we can rest there for a bit!"
Nodding, the group slowly descended from the structure to reach the camp below. It was clearly covered in snow, but with a couple shovels and Steven's Pyro, it was all melted to reveal a cozy campsite set in the dark underneath the shade of the structure. Cyrus brought out a set of fresh logs and kindling which Steven set on fire, bringing warmth to the group once again. The temperature may have dropped after Subaru woke up the Statue, but it didn't change the bone-chilling nature of Dragonspine's environment. If left unattended and cold, anyone would freeze to unconsciousness in mere minutes with the current climate.
Cyrus brought out a pot and several ingredients while Subaru took some time to look around. It was upon looking past the tent pole that he noticed a tarp over some items. Subaru walked to it and unfurled the tarp, revealing a table with a map and some other nicknacks.
"Woah!" Paul remarked upon seeing Subaru's discovery, rushing to the map on the table. "There are updates on this that I don't have in my records! Let me take a quick note of this…"
Subaru stepped away to leave Paul to his work, but something else caught his attention. A bag remained under the table. Subaru took it out and inspected its contents. Some long-expired food which he sent to Steven for burning and some still usable cans which he tossed over to Cyrus in case he needed them. Looking further, he noticed a bit of parchment in it folded rather neatly. Expecting something for Paul, he opened it up.
"So far, so smooth. The weather is fine, supplies are plentiful, and the monsters have been on their best behaviour. I also discovered Volume 6 of "The Boar Princess" in my backpack. Joel must've sneaked it in there. That cheeky kid. Still, this book is about a brave Boar Princess and her journey up a snowy mountain with her companions... Well, I'm heading up a snowy mountain myself, and considering how well everything's gone so far... Who knows? Maybe this book is bringing me good luck. Thank you, Joel. Anyway, I shall be heading off to the next campsite to resupply and record my progress, and then I'll head down the mountain. Joel is waiting for me, after all."
Subaru's breath hitched upon reading the note. Joel… that was the name of the boy he'd met before setting out for that trip. Which meant… the note was left by his father.
"Hey, what's that?" Paimon asked. Subaru wordlessly handed her the note as well. It took her a while to read through it as well, but then she looked up in alarm. "Joel's dad was here?! Where did he go?"
"I don't know," Subaru surmised as he looked back in the direction they came from, thinking about how Joel was still waiting for his father. "But… if Joel's dad was here before this situation with the weather happened, then I don't know what to tell Joel once we go back."
Proceeding to the mentioned location was far easier now that the weather was clear. The weather was still punishing as expected, but not as torturous as it once was. As long as they set fires to warm up every now and then, they could make it. Moreover, they even found certain devices that release pulses of heat periodically once activated. It was clear that they were placed there by the ones who previously explored that land, and they were a great boon to their traversal.
Subaru was finally able to see the land around them as they wandered. The grass had turned white after being constantly buffeted by snow and wind. Errant snow dunes were still present as a consequence of the disaster, which meant more work for Steven. Subaru helped as well by using Invisible Providence for shovelling away the snow. The group was shocked by his so-assumed telekinesis, but Subaru's explanation of it being from his Vision appeased their concerns well enough, especially after seeing him use the Statue earlier.
After a while of wandering through Paul's directed path, they encountered a wide clearing pockmarked with blue crystals of ice shearing through the ground like stalactites. There was a charm to how it shone under the midday light, but it did nothing to quell the sense of danger that overtook the group.
"We're here," Paul announced. "That ice… it doesn't look normal."
Steven warily approached one of the stalactites and thrust a ball of fire against it. It didn't react; it didn't so much as sweat. Sighing, Steven stepped back. "Yeah, this is it."
Paimon jerked back at the sight. "That ice, it really can't be melted?! That's so weird!"
"Can we break it instead?" Subaru surmised, prompting Cyrus to pull out a pickaxe and slam it against one of the crystals.
It shattered! The pickaxe did, at least. Cyrus gaped at his now ruined tool, ignoring Paimon's guffaws of laughter from behind him. It drove the wedge further to see that not even a mark was left on the crystal.
"This is too weird…" Steven muttered, uselessly tossing fireballs at the ice while looking around.
"Hey, Steven," Paul called out to him. "Can you try… that?"
Steven looked back. "You mean… that?"
Cyrus nodded. "Yes, yes, that might work."
"What in the Archons are you talking about?!" Paimon suddenly cried out, leaving the trio to laugh at her obliviousness.
"Heh, we're talking about my Burst, of course," Steven declared.
"Burst?" Subaru questioned.
"Oh, Paimon can explain! An Elemental Burst is the final power a Vision User can do! They can't do it all the time, and they'll get tired out quite a bit after that, but it's said to be the best representation of what their reason to carry their Vision is to them!"
"The reason to carry their Vision?" Subaru wondered out loud, looking at Steven. "Can you explain that a little better?"
"Hey, Paimon explained it well enough, Stinky Space!"
"Haha, the little lady's right," Steven supplied. "Well, she's got the basics down, at least. A Vision Holder can freely use their Vision in any way they choose to, although people have their preferences with it. It's their Burst that's set in stone, no matter what. I can still use my Vision even after using the Burst, but as Paimon said, I need some time before I can try it again."
"Can you demonstrate?"
Steven grinned. "Thought you'd never ask!" Closing his eyes, Steven reached his hip, touching the surface of his Vision. Subaru watched it glow brighter as fire enveloped Steven's fists. Slamming his fists together, flames encased his forearms and a pair of fiery horns appeared over his head, flaring his brown hair to the sides and forming red tips on its locks.
"Steven has always loved the idea of Oni's from Inazuman culture," Paul explained to Subaru and Paimon. "Although Steven uses it for a little more than combat."
Subaru couldn't help but smile at the sight, thinking of Rem the whole time. Slipping his hand into his pocket, he thumbed the headdress he'd found on his first day there.
Steven slammed his flame-crusted palms onto the ground and snarled, growling at the ice before him. He quickly slammed it, and while the ice reverberated from the attack, there was no effect. Growling further, Steven seemed to sniff out something in the air, pivoting his head as he did.
"Part of this form is his hunting instinct," Paul further explained. "When he's like this, once he targets something to destroy, he'll be able to find things to help him destroy it."
Steven scrambled over on all fours to the opposite end of the clearing, with Cyrus and Paul hastily following him while Subaru and Paimon caught up a little later. With a roar, he slammed his palms at yet another snow wall, melting it in seconds and revealing something unseen yet within.
"What is that?" Cyrus remarked, suggesting to Subaru that this was new to the adventurers as well.
What sat before them was a blood-red gem affixed, seemingly sprouting, from the ground. Subaru couldn't tell if it was actually from Steven's blazing Oni form next to him, but it seemed as though the crystal was emitting heat as well. Steven, however, didn't care for appearances as he snatched up the crystal with no hesitation. Dashing to the centre of the clearing, Steven leapt up higher with the boost of Pyro on his legs and tossed the red crystal against the large shard of ice at the centre. To the group's shock, a crack appeared on the ice's surface.
Steven snarled yet again at the ice, but he seemed to hold up. He went back on his haunches and gurgled as he looked in the air, the flames on his hands receding to nothing. Having lost the effect of his Burst, Steven fell to the ground, groaning.
"Yeah… it's always annoying entering that form nowadays," Steven mumbled, despite his grin as he looked up at the damage. "But now we have a way to break this!"
Paul grinned as well as he patted Steven's shoulder. "You did well, friend. Now, we need to find that Quartz and reduce this ice to nothing!"
Nodding, Subaru decided to make their job a little easier. "Invisible Providence!" Summoning five arms, he sent them out to thrust through the piles of snow nearby, looking for the Quartz. He only got one from the five piles he'd looked through, so he used the other arms to keep looking as he slammed the one he found against the ice, cracking it some more.
It was draining him, that was clear. Subaru felt his jaw slacking and his neck shifting under his head's weight as he kept using this power, but after everything Paul and Steven put themselves through to get them this far, Subaru couldn't simply ignore his own part. It took him a couple tries and more energy than he expected, but upon slamming nearly the fifth shard of Quartz against the ice, the formation shattered entirely, revealing yet another layer of the ice beneath.
However, it wasn't done. The ice kept on cracking as the stalactites nearby seemed to retreat within the ground, evaporating as they retreated as well. The landscape became a little warmer, surprisingly. Subaru fell to his knees and his head hung low, his jaw agape.
"Subaru! Are you alright?!" Paimon cried out in concern.
Hissing, Subaru picked up his strength and clenched his jaw shut. He flexed his joints and stood back up, finding his tension now manageable enough to push through. "I-I'm fine," he said. "That ability is a lot more draining than I thought."
"It's going down!" Cyrus barked out in barely concealed excitement. "What will we find? A new discovery? Treasure?! Mora?!"
The ice kept on chipping away, revealing a figure within. The sight of it reversed the grin on Cyrus's face.
"Everyone!" Cyrus immediately called out. "To Arms!"
Paul and Steven immediately took out their swords while Cyrus hoisted out his greatsword. Subaru took a little more time due to the suddenness of the order and the effect of Invisible Providence, but he finally summoned his spear and moved Paimon behind him to keep her safe.
The ice kept cracking over the figure, and something moved within.
It shattered in seconds as something monstrous dashed out, charging at Subaru who was closest to it at the time, only to be caught in its path by Cyrus who blocked it with his sword.
"Wake up, boy!" he barked out before throwing the monster away to Paul and Steven who immediately began to hack away at it with their swords. Now that he could see it, the monster looked like a Mitachurl on steroids and adapted to the cold of Dragonspine. Paul's sword merely bounced off the monster's dark blue bare chest, while Steven's sword grazed some of the white fur on its mane and set it ablaze. It meant nothing to the monster, though, as it slapped the feeble flames with an ice-crusted arm, then turned its beady blue eyes to Steven and snarled, its fang-like mask sharpening as it looked at him. It hung its head low, pointing its icy horns at the Pyro User.
"It's charging!" Subaru realized. Steven took heed and jumped away just before the monster pounced on his location. However, the shockwave from the landing sent Steven flying away further than intended.
"Damn it!" Cyrus cried out as he charged at the monster before driving his greatsword to its head. The monster, despite having been caught in ice for so long, had enough awareness to tilt its head to deflect the sword with its horn. The sword bounced off, but the monster roared as the horn shattered.
Growling at the damage done to its horn, the monster cried out and dove head first at Cyrus, ready to impale him as he remained staggered from the deflection.
"I can Return by – "
Subaru gasped as his heart constricted again, but remained on his feet and kept his eyes trained on the monster that abandoned Cyrus and turned to him instead. Despite having one horn, the monster leapt to Subaru in nearly an instant.
Subaru threw his spear at the monster, only to have it be caught in its remaining horn and deflected away. Subaru drew out Guiltywhip next, lashing it at the monster. The monster recoiled from the lash, staggering back. Putting up the pressure, Subaru followed it up with several more strikes, reminding him of how he fought the mitachurl.
However, this monster was fundamentally different from a mitachurl. With a yell, the monster slammed its fists into the ground and shot out spikes of ice from the ground. Subaru, not having seen such an attack coming, jumped back as much as he could. However, one of the spikes pierced through his side, making him gasp in agony.
"Damn it-" Subaru cursed as he pulled himself away from the ice, but not fast enough to keep away from the monster that was now towering over his form. Subaru's breath hitched; at least there wouldn't be much to redo. Hopefully. Going through that snowstorm yet again would suck though.
Suddenly a bolt of fire caught the monster between its eyes, making it step back in confusion. Subaru, being caught off guard, looked back to see who it was.
"Fiery Rain!" Amber called out, palming her Vision and shooting an arrow into the sky. The power of her Vision split the arrow into multiple projectiles that rained down upon the monster. From behind her, another figure leapt up and dove for the monster.
"HAAA!" Eula cried out as frost coated her blade while she swung down. The blade caught the monster right between the eyes and sent a burst of Cryo through it, nearly bisecting it.
The monster certainly was damaged by it, seeing how it was scampering away from Eula. However, Eula had not let up, still slamming against it with her sword. Amber charged past Subaru as well, shooting flaming arrows at it the whole time and assisting Eula's assault.
"Subaru, let me patch you up!"
"Huh?" Subaru looked behind him again to see Bennett of all people inspecting his wound. Nodding, Bennett held Subaru's hand and dragged him closer to the battle. "I can heal you, but I should help them as well! Come on!"
Moving closer to the combat, Subaru felt a chill from how the cold penetrated the wound on his torso. Despite this, Subaru kept watch over the battle between Eula, Amber and the monster. The monster was still trying to approach him, attracted to his miasma, but Eula and Amber did a very good job holding it back. Once they reached a few paces away, Bennett palmed his Vision and slammed the ground, forming a ring of fire around them. The heat from the fire calmed him. Looking down, he was surprised to see some of the flames moving into his wound and helping it regenerate. Back in the battle, he watched as Eula's blade immediately took on the fire from the circle and how her slashes began actually cutting through the monster. Finally, the monster fell to its knees and Eula, with a final yell, slammed her blade down through its neck, beheading the monster for good.
Watching the remains of the monster dissolve into nothing, Subaru let out a sigh of relief. "You saved us…" he admitted, looking at Amber, Eula and Bennett.
"Yeah, you really did," Cyrus sighed as well, walking to them. "Thank you for the assist, knights. But what are you doing here, Bennett?"
"Oh, they asked me to join!" Bennett cheered out. "They said something about needing an adventurer with experience to help them, and they didn't seem to mind my bad luck, so I joined them!"
"Are you alright, Subaru?!" Amber called out as she dashed to a still kneeling Subaru, quickly looking at his ruined jacket and wincing. "You got hurt again…"
Subaru shook his head and waved her off. "I'm fine. Bennett healed me, so I'll be okay."
Amber slowly nodded. "Okay… but you should be more careful! That's thrice you've nearly died now!"
Subaru winced, knowing just how off she was with those numbers.
Following her, it was Eula who spoke up. "You did well for a beginner in combat," she commented. "You were too off guard against the Lawachurl. Your mistakes can be attributed to not expecting certain attacks from it, but that is something you have to acclimatise to. You still have much to learn."
Subaru sighed but nodded, not having the energy to return any pep. "Yeah, I was surprised. What did you call it, again?"
"Oh, that's a Frostarm Lawachurl!" Amber announced. "They're some of the more dangerous monsters you'll find here, and you should be careful of them. They're much stronger than Mitachurls, after all. And by the way, where's Paimon?"
"Paimon's here!" The fairy suddenly apparated to his side and waved at Amber. "Do you have a Sticky Honey Roast for Paimon?!"
Amber cautiously chuckled. "Well… I can make you one once we reach camp? I don't have one now, sorry…"
"Aww.."
Subaru shook his head with a grin, still finding his adrenaline too high to jab back at Paimon. He looked to the rest of his team and found Cyrus talking to Eula, while Paul and Bennett tended to Steven who was still unconscious.
"Seriously, what were you even doing here?" Amber asked him. "We came here expecting strong winds, but there weren't any! And we wanted to find that unbreakable ice they were talking about, but all we found was you all fighting that Lawachurl! Did you do something stupid again, Subaru?"
Subaru looked down and widened his eyes as he remembered what they were there for. "Paimon, is there any ice left?!"
"Huh?! Oh, uhh, there is still a little where the Lawachurl came from."
Looking back, Subaru verified her claim. "Hey, guys!" he announced. "There's a little bit of that ice left! Does anyone have any Quartz left?"
"I-I have some!" Paul stammered out, bringing out another shard of the red crystal in question. "I was looking for it after Steven went down, I thought it would help us against the Lawachurl."
Subaru gratefully nodded and accepted the Quartz from him. "I'm glad we didn't need it, then." Moving back to the centre of the clearing, Subaru caught a better view of the place. The final crystal remained surrounded by a small spire of rock, almost treating it like a shrine. Subaru wordlessly threw the crystal against the final bit of ice and jumped back. The ice shattered easily, revealing a floating orb of some kind encased within. The orb took flight; Subaru watched as it ascended past them and flew to the peaks of the mountains.
The ground rumbled, making Subaru stagger in place. "What's going on?!" Amber cried out, looking at the place where the ice once remained. Suddenly, the snow left in the area melted, leaving behind only the white grass of Dragonspine. The group felt a surge of warmth fill the area. The ground between the rock spires cracked and split apart, giving rise to a growing bud. It grew nigh instantaneously, widening enough to call it a tree. Within the bark of the tree was encased a large chunk of the very Quartz they used to thaw the ice. The bark itself was as pearly white as the rest of Dragonspine, only having its branches tipped with more Quartz. No leaves grew on it, it only spired up like a beanstalk.
"Woah…" Bennett muttered. "That's so cool! And it's so warm…"
Eula smiled at the sight. "Yes, this must be what was hidden beneath that ice. To think it remained underground for so long…"
Amber slowly approached the tree and warily touched the gem at the centre. It glowed a little, but it showed no further reaction. "This is incredible…" she muttered.
Paul and Steven, who were finally up, gave each other a high five, while Cyrus clapped in triumph. Subaru, meanwhile, slid back to the ground and sat on the soft grass for a while, relishing in the warmth of the environment, Paimon joining him by wordlessly sitting on his shoulder.
Looking at the tree once again, Subaru was reminded of the shade of red from the Stormterror Jewel he'd found. Walking up to it after Amber moved away, Subaru summoned the same gem and held it up against it. The shade was different; the Stormterror jewel had a stronger crimson touch. He still tried touching the Jewel to the tree, only to no effect. Sighing, he returned the Jewel to his inventory, silently bemoaning the fact that he'd have to investigate further.
While the origins of the tree remained unknown, the team gave their report of the situation to the knights as they headed back to the main camp. Upon being asked about their presence by Cyrus, Eula admitted that the situation had become serious enough to warrant the Knights' attention, so they decided to make a routine trip to inspect the situation. In turn, she said that more hands on deck would never be unwelcome, so she gave the adventurers an offer to join them. They would accordingly be paid for both their commission and from the Knights for their service. Of course, everyone in the group accepted. Meanwhile, Bennett bemoaned how he never got such an invite for the adventure from Katheryne and had to hear of it from the Knights instead.
"Do you have any further insight on the situation, though?" Subaru asked, looking at Amber and Eula.
"No, we've only heard as much as Iris told us," Amber admitted. "But we'll figure it out, won't we, Subaru?"
Subaru grinned at her. "Of course! Let's do this!"
Cyrus chortled. "To think I was trying to keep you away from her for a while…"
"Keep me away?" Amber questioned. "Why?"
Paimon giggled as well. "Subaru was a little sad that things didn't go well enough with you!"
Subaru immediately slammed Paimon's head, unknowingly blushing as he did so. "Shut!"
"Owiee… no more Paimon abuse, Stinky Space!"
"No more speaking garbage, then!"
Amber laughed at them yet again. "You two are so adorable together!"
Subaru scowled and looked away, with Paimon doing the same with a huff.
"Oh, you're back!"
Looking ahead, Subaru was surprised to see them having already reached the camp. Greeting them was a short, green-haired girl wearing a black-and-white beret and a large pair of glasses. She wore a blue one-piece with a set of lapels and arm sleeves connected to her neck with an Anemo Vision and a black bow. She also wore a garter belt and a pair of stockings with a pair of white boots.
"Sucrose, so much happened!" Amber cried out, running to her. "The weather's fine now, too!"
"Yes, I know," the girl, Sucrose, admitted. "We've been watching the changes with an atmospheric cryometer. Master Albedo is currently on his way to his camp within the mountains."
"Albedo is inside, then?" Eula remarked. "Are you sure he won't be affected by the cold?"
"I-It's okay! Master Albedo took some equipment that would help him as well! He'll be fine, I know it!"
"… very well," Eula decreed. "All of you, meet Sucrose, one of the alchemists under the Investigation Team of the Knights of Favonius and a direct assistant to their captain, Albedo."
"I-It's a pleasure to meet – wait…" Sucrose stammered upon noticing Subaru. "You're… the one that can cure the Infection, right?"
"Huh? Well, yeah, but – "
"Please give me a sample!" She immediately dove into him headfirst with no sense of personal space. "Let me analyse your skin! It won't be much, just a small portion of your epidermis is enough for me to study! Preferably from the part that consumes the Infection from others!"
"Okay, okay, I get it!" Subaru cried out, taking a few steps away from the girl. "A sample, right? Like what?"
"Skin samples. Further requirements will be requested from you after the initial stage of analysis." Sucrose looked down at her boots and suddenly her face went red. She jolted away from Subaru and kept her distance. "S-S-S-Sorry! I-I just got excited… a-and I forgot I was so c-c-close…"
Subaru raised a brow but chuckled at her. "It's okay. Skin samples, right? Yeah, I can give you that."
"Big Brother!"
Subaru widened his eyes at the familiar voice. He looked at the front gate once more to see Joel running up to him, but stalling upon seeing all the people he was with. Smiling, Subaru approached the boy instead.
"B-Big Brother!" Joel continued, forcing himself to ignore the others. "Did you find my Dad?!"
Subaru lost the smile he'd found upon seeing him. "Not yet," he admitted. "But… he should be deeper within the mountain. I promised I'd find him, didn't I?"
Joel looked down, seeming sceptical.
"Head on back now, kid," he said. "I-I'll find him."
Joel didn't say a word as he returned to the camp, slouching the whole time.
"That was not kind of you, Mr Subaru," Eula said, walking up to him. "The boy's father is stuck in Dragonspine?"
Subaru let out a heavy breath. "I ended up promising him I'd find his dad, but… he entered the mountain before this disaster. I found a note from him placed in another camp stating that he was moving deeper in."
Eula frowned. "Still, it's not a good idea to lie, especially to children."
"I know, alright?!" Subaru yelled back. "It's just… I didn't want to see him sad. I don't know how to tell him that his dad might be dead, Eula. Can you blame me for that?"
Eula looked at Subaru, holding his gaze for a while. "… there is a minimal chance that he survived."
"He'd have died of starvation by now, don't you think?"
"Dragonspine is a land of many secrets. Just look at the tree we've discovered. However minimal, there is a chance for us to find him. Even if we do not find him alive, I will help you carry his body back home."
Subaru faltered at the declaration, then looked back at the camp. "Thank you, Eula."
"… to have me make such a promise… Vengeance will be mine, Mr Subaru."
"Even now?!"
A/N: This is a bit of an ambitious arc, not gonna lie. I am going to handle so many things at once and add several new features not seen in Dragonspine yet, so wish me luck in this endeavour. It will take time, but I assume you're already used to that. When I say I'm going to handle so many things, I mean that I'll be doing almost every major Dragonspine quest at once in this entire arc. The list of included quests are given below, including World Quests and Event Quests both.
Lost in the Snow, In the Mountains, The Chalk Prince and the Dragon, Shadows Amidst Snowstorms, Festering Fang.
Not everything in each of these quests will be included. There'll be some give and take which I won't detail as of yet to avoid spoilers. I'm also taking liberties as always, like bringing in a Lawachurl after breaking the first ice shard.
Why didn't Subaru die to the Lawachurl? Look, this story is taking long enough. I'm going to have my hands full with the actual death loop for this arc, I'm not gonna start a new death loop for a bloody Lawachurl when things are gonna get so much worse for our merry little gang. It's not worth it. But I do hope that I've demonstrated that Subaru is still very wet behind the ears when it comes to Adventuring. There's a lot he needs to learn from this expedition, and he will. In the hardest way possible, of course.
You will enjoy this arc, I'm sure of that. Think of the Sanctuary, where Subaru had to deal with multiple issues all at once. I'm making this arc resemble that. Old, Unexpected and New Faces will be seen throughout this arc and each of them will play a significant role. As for Paul and Steven, I intended to have them be simple adventurers tagging along with them, but I suddenly remembered that there needs to be cohesion in a team. So Paul became a cartographer and Steven became a Vision Bearer.
And yeah, the Knights have joined too. They can only do combat, so they called Bennett to help them on the adventuring side of things. Sure, Eula's used to the place... well, I needed a healer to join the team. Steven was already booked for finding the Crimson Agate, and I didn't want Subaru to suffer without reason. So yeah, faux 5 star character Bennett has joined the team! And yes, this one is C6. Big no no, I know, but I assume that real life Bennett can control the circle a little better and select which weapons to infuse Pyro into.
Also, I've caught up with the Genshin story quest. Fontaine's a doozy for sure, and I see why literally everyone is asking for Subaru x Furina now. Unfortunately, that's four books from now. To think that there's only two nations left to finish the entire game... that's two years. Heh. I'll finish this Mondstadt book by the time the Genshin Main Quest finishes, then, with my current upload rate.
Reviews fuel my writing speed, so remember to do so.
MikeThatOldKid: Ahahahaha... yeah, me too.
DBoblivion: For a while I was seriously offended by this, and then I reread my last chapter and discovered you were talking about Subaru's lie turning out to be true. And yeah, I should agree with you on that being like Cid Kagenou, only if it were actually true.
Pleyades0104: Not gonna confirm nor deny that, my friend.
pokemonrot337: In terms of muscle strength, he is quite a bit stronger than regular Teyvatians. If I had to compare him to someone, it would probably be Varka, the true Grandmaster of the Knights of Favonius. His strength is about as much as Varka's or maybe a little less. But that's only physical. Spear techniques rely more on flexibility, which is something Subaru needs to train in. His whip deals a bit of damage, and while he's more skilled in it, the lack of a blade on it makes it weaker than the others in terms of actually dealing damage. Subaru is also very inexperienced, and that will show in his combat.
Guest: My fanfics are more of a side thing, and I did want to be a writer for a while. In my case, I've got a talent in skill acquisition. If I'm invested in something and become a nerd with it, I can quickly grasp a hold of it. I can write, I can cook, I can brew pourover coffee, and I can create AI models, which is my latest skill. But if you're planning on shifting to AI after Electrical Engineering, make sure you do some certification as well. It'll look great on your resume. I just graduated from an MIT short course a few days ago, which was expensive but absolutely worth it. And if you can't afford it, there are free resources like Kaggle and Huggingface that can help.
I don't know about these coming out any quicker, but I am trying. As for the severity of the future arcs, I can guarantee that Subaru will get very little reprieve. So far I've only decided the arc structure for Mondstadt, and I've left the detailed structures for the later books for the day I reach them. This current one might be the worst arc of all, and the next will probably not be as bad. Don't take my word as given though, I'm making this story as I go and I can easily change my mind. So yes, it'll mostly depend on the contents of the arc rather than gradually increasing throughout however many arcs will come from now.
worrierfierce: Glad to have you back. The whole reason why I wrote this was because I knew the Traveler was too capable for their own good, and having someone as 'weak' as Subaru would put a whole new perspective on the story. Glad to hear it's worked.
: I'm not offended, don't worry. The A/Ns are optional, so I don't mind you not reading them, but I do hope you find this reply. But yes, I have detailed why I take so long in the A/Ns. Not anymore, I just take it for granted now. But the main reason is a mix of my life getting in the way and my own laziness demotivating me. Truth be told, this and my other stories have no bearing on my life and is more of a hobby, which is why I only occasionally invest my time into it. And with how much this story demands of me in terms of research into the base story, it's really not worth it for me to carry on regularly.
DatGuy1st: I understand where you're coming from, but you need to think if the Subaru that Teppei portrayed will survive in a world such as Genshin. Yes, he can Return by Death, but having him die to hilichurls at every moment is not going to be good reading material. To have the story progress, I had to improve Subaru's abilities. Subaru can still use the whip for parkour; he did so against Stormterror and he will keep doing it later on (if i remember about it). And I understand the Vision Teppei had for him. Despite improving his abilities, I can guarantee you that situations will become as bad as Teppei portrayed them.
The Red Sun: Thanks for the review! I've dropped the webnovel in the earlier half of Arc 7, so I get that. Although, you might be missing some things without Arc 6 knowledge, but they won't pop up in this book. Liyue, most likely, and you have more than enough time to cover your losses whenever you wish. Arc 6 is very good, I'd even say it's the culmination of the Re:Zero theme. An IF story made real, in a sense.
Glad to hear about the characters being authentic, that was one of my biggest concerns and I've dedicated quite a bit of time to nail that down. Amber and Subaru was more of a happy consequence, but I am glad it turned out well. With Jean, I've just not had many chances to show her in the story. I'll be leaving her for the next arc, most likely.
I personally prefer the Sub, but that's a natural decision for me rather than an investigation between the two. I don't know much about the Dub. I'll be implementing the Sub VA voices, like Hu Tao with Emilia. Furina with Rem's voice is news to me, however, and is adding fuel to the fire that is Subaru x Furina. And the ugly nicknames are only for their banter, don't worry. Subaru and Paimon are able to call each other by name in serious situations, although it takes a bit for Paimon to see something as serious.
For the future of the story, I really can't confirm your deductions for the sake of spoilers. A lot of what you've said is correct, but I won't specify what parts. Good on you for guessing it, though.
I have played through the Genshin quests, and I can guarantee that I'm excited for their meeting as well.
Once again, thanks for the review and I hope you enjoy the story from here on out!
Alright, make sure to fave, kudos, whatever on whatever platform you're reading this from. I'll see you next chapter.
