CH 13

“What’s this?”

As the dwarf plowed through the bushes, there was enough space to hide his tiny body. There were, however, piles of fish with small ice grains attached to them. Holly noticed with a quick glance that it was the one she was cleaning.

“Where do you think you’re going?”

Holly grabbed the back of the dwarf, who was about to run away. In the meantime, the dwarf was holding the fish with his plump arms.

“Hiik!”

The dwarf, floating in the air, widened his eyes and trembled.

Holly withdrew the strength from her hand, holding the dwarf firmly. She felt guilty for nothing because he looked like a human.

“You’re still a thief…!”

If he stole the fish, he would run away. The emotions contained in the dwarf eyes staring at her were half anger and half surprise.

“Help, help me…”

Her hand that was holding the dwarf twitched at the trembling voice. Tears welled up in the dwarf’s large eyes. She immediately remembered herself hiding in the kitchen of the inn to satisfy her hungry stomach.

Holly sighed deeply.

“Is there any place to hide here?”

As she said in a calming voice, the dwarf glanced at her and narrowed his eyes.

“If you tell me, I’ll let you take this.”

Saying so, Holly picked up the fish that had fallen from the dwarf’s arm and waved it in front of him. Saliva dripped from the dwarf’s mouth as he stared at the fish. One corner of Holly’s lips went up as she looked at the scene.

‘You can’t eat fish with each meal, anyway.’

The remaining fish alone was enough until morning, and leaving more than that may spoil it. Holly didn’t know how to store ingredients for a long time.

“There is, a cave… Big.”

The dwarf stretched out his arms and made the largest circle he could. Then, he pointed his finger somewhere.

Following his fingers and glancing into the lush forest, she nodded with a satisfied smile.

“Thank you. I will let you take the fish as promised.”

She caught the fish piled up on the floor and placed it on the large leaf instead of a plate. The dwarf stretched out his arm as if he was waiting for her to roll up into a lump with a leaf.

Seeing the dwarf trembling happily, Holly’s smile deepened.

“I’ll give it to you after I make sure it’s a proper cave.”

However, Holly quickly pulled her hand away.

At that, the dwarf’s face, who had been deprived of food in front of his eyes, was furiously contorted. The eyes staring at her sharpened. The large eyes gleamed meanly. When there was Cahill, who was much taller than her, she was stunned, though all that was left of her was an ordinary woman.

Having made a decision, the dwarf clenched his fists and took one step towards her.

“It’s the guys I met last time.”

Just then, a low voice came from behind the dwarf. When she turned around with a pounding heart, Cahill rolled his eyes and looked at the dwarf. His silver-gray eyes felt cold.

“But, the numbers are higher.”

He did nothing, and the dwarf froze. Cahill took his gaze from him and looked at Holly. She, too, had turned pale as if frightened.

‘They were still chasing me.’

Holly bit her lip with her teeth.

…Torimas. The damn bastards didn’t give up on her.

‘They’re more persistent than I expected.’

Her worries put a dark shadow on Holly’s face.

‘Is it possible that they held a grudge against Cahill for what happened last time?’

She glanced at Cahill’s face, just in case. He was looking at her with puzzled eyes.

“Are you afraid of them?”

Cahill tilted his head as if he didn’t understand. A smirk leaked from the terrified Holly’s mouth. If he could beat them with one kick, it was no wonder he doesn’t understand her.

“Should I kill them?”

Cahill spat those words out very lightly as if he was killing some bug. Hearing that, Holly’s shaking eyes hardened.

‘I need Cahill.’

It was unknown which of the two people the Torimas and the crew were after. Still, she needed him all the more as she found out they were still searching through the forest where she was.

‘…You never know when or where you will meet them.’

Thinking that, Holly decided to use Cahill’s favor a little more. Though she didn’t want Cahill to be in danger because of her.

“We have a place to hide. Let’s hide there.”

Glancing at the dwarf, the source of the information, she grabbed Cahill’s hand. The dwarf was whining to get the fish that she had wrapped up.

“…Okay.”

Cahill looked in the direction of the Torimas gang, who were wandering a long distance away, and looked at his hand that Holly was holding before nodding his head.

“Now, guide me.”

She smiled triumphantly and gestured her chin.

Seeing Cahill standing behind her, the dwarf turned around with his shoulders drooping. The cave the dwarf was talking about was not too far from where they were before. The problem was that the cave was just low enough to sit on.

“You go in there and come out.”

Holly, who had bent over at the entrance and peered inside, gestured at the dwarf. The dwarf then raised his head blankly and stared at her.

“You don’t know what’s inside.”

The cost of stealing and peeking was severe. Cahill lifted his foot and pushed the hesitant dwarf’s back.

“I’m, I’m…scared, sniff.”

The dwarf’s beard, after he went inside and came out, was a mess of tears and a runny nose. Other than that, he was perfectly fine.

“Thank you for guiding me. It will taste really good with salt.”

Holly spoke in a gentle voice and waved to the dwarf.

The dwarf, who had stood still for a long time, gazed at Holly and Cahill as they entered the cave before moving. With the fish in his arms, he headed to the place where he could find the unidentified men.

Holly, ignorant of the dwarf’s vengeance, crawled on the floor with her hands and went into the cave. She wanted to come in halfway, so she turned her body and pressed her hips to the floor. Cahill, who had been crawling behind her, appeared to slam her on the stomach.

However, instead of being uncomfortable, she felt a sense of security.

Bright light poured from the entrance, but the narrow and deep cave was dark. Holly, who looked at his face following the blurred outline, opened her mouth.

“They can’t find us here, right?”

He gave no answer. In fact, she didn’t think they would ever be found out either.

After she closed her mouth, only the sound of the two of them breathing could be heard in the quiet cave. As the tension subsided, fatigue set in. Cahill, who was looking at Holly blankly, laid his body next to her.

“Let’s sleep.”

Holly gazed at him, raising her eyebrows, not knowing what he meant.

“You said we would move early in the morning. There’s nothing to do now.”

The cave was too narrow to do anything else. Holly sighed and laid down. Cahill naturally hugged her body. His body temperature was as cold as snow. For a moment, Holly’s eyes lit up.

“Maybe those snow…… Can you bring it down again?”

Those words reminded him of Holly’s face, scolding Cahill for ruining the hut. He nodded his head as he narrowed his brow.

“If the snow piles up, it will be difficult to walk, so it will be difficult to climb the mountain.”

Holly said in an excited voice as she reflected on the day she had been through. It was also very cold to the bone when it snowed. If so, they may not be able to tolerate the cold and give up tracking.

Cahill looked at her softly with eyes resembling the pure white snowflakes. He didn’t cast any spells or make any strange movements. Nonetheless, the drop in ambient temperature made it clear that he had granted her request.

“Thank you.”

The smile on Holly’s face also made Cahill’s lips curve. He hugged her.

Eventually, Holly’s eyelids, as she rested her forehead on his tight chest, grew heavier and heavier.

“Don’t, fall…asleep…”

“It’s okay. The sun is far away.”

Her eyes were closed at the languid voice that resonated in his ears. His hand stroking her hair was too warm to shake her sleep.

* * *

Cahill who woke up first. He opened his eyes, startled by the warmth he felt in his arms.

‘…I really slept.’

He had a sensitive constitution that could not sleep even if someone was in the same room. Cahill looked at Holly’s head with unfamiliar eyes. He couldn’t sleep even when he was wallowing in bed with her.

“Is it because I suddenly used a lot of energy…?”

Cahill shook his head in denial. He doesn’t know when he’s in Aisen, but he’s been working hard every day since he started traveling alone. Instead of adapting to the continental heat, it was to lower the temperature around him.

He met Holly and, on the contrary, worked hard for her, who was struggling. It was cold, and she didn’t want to take her clothes off.

He liked to pat her smooth skin throughout the act. Even now, his hand went into Holly’s clothes and rubbed her chest.