[V6C15] Fun Fun Sled Times

Reconstructing a spirit contract into one with a dragon was no simple task.

First and foremost, it only became possible because of Monica’s extremely fast calculations. However, the fact that she had touched the mana threads within the dragon’s belly also played a significant role. She now understood the difference in mana structure between dragons and spirits.

As she recalled those threads of mana, Monica constructed the new formula, which was promptly reproduced by Melissa.

Melissa and Raul chanted in sync, forming a golden band of light around Cyril and Thule. It flew around them a few times before connecting the two with the brooch at Cyril’s collar.

However, Cyril contorted in pain the moment the light touched his chest.

“…Argh…!”

At that moment, Cyril and Thule had been connected by an invisible thread. It was through this connection that Cyril’s mana flowed to Thule, and vice versa.

The sensation of dragon mana coursing through a human body was likely akin to having a foreign entity crawling around under your skin.

Cyril bit down on his lip, suppressing his pained grunts.

Once the mana of the two contractors intertwined, the contract was complete.

Thule’s fragmented fingertips were enveloped in white light. Eventually, the light subsided to reveal his restored fingers.

Having finished her incantation, Melissa observed Thule’s finger closely.

“Looks like your surface wounds have closed up. You’ve also stopped leaking mana.”

Thule raised his healed hands and exclaimed, “Amazing, amazing,” expressing innocent joy. Ashelpikeh clung to Thule, questioning him anxiously.

“Thule, you won’t break again? You won’t disappear?”

Though the ice spirit’s monotone voice was awful at displaying emotions, her body was trembling.

Thule used his regenerated fingers to comb through Ashelpikeh’s pale golden hair.

“Pikeh, Pikeh, let’s see another spring together. This time, a spring in the human settlements rather than this mountain. Sounds fun. I’m really looking forward to it.”

“…Yeah.”

“Let’s search for spring flowers together. Then we’ll gather sparkling treasures in the summer, listen to the songs of insects in the autumn, and in winter… I want to see your ice again.”

“…Right.”

“So please, don’t cry.”

“……Okay.”

The blizzard that had been raging irregularly had completely subsided at this point. The snowlights now fell gently to the ground.

While watching this scene, Cyril let out a long sigh.

“…A beautiful sight. I’d love to take my time and enjoy it, if it weren’t for the circumstances.”

Immediately after saying that, Cyril sneezed.

He had been abducted from the relatively warm Sazandol, so the jacket he wore was meant for spring. Spending the night on a snowy mountain would result in him freezing to death.

Monica hurriedly offered her own jacket to Cyril.

“Uh, um, Cyril-sama, please use mine…”

Cyril stared at the offered jacket and Monica’s right hand, furrowing his brow deeply. Soon enough, he shook his head with a stern face.

“No, I’m fine. Wear it yourself.”

“But…”

Monica attempted to persist, but fell silent once she noticed that her jacket was covered in holes and bloodstains.

(Oh right… Cyril-sama wouldn’t want to wear a jacket in such poor shape…)

Monica gave the jacket in her hands a depressed sigh, as Cyril gestured again for her to put it on.

In the middle of this awkward exchange, Raul snuck up behind the two.

“Here!”

He had spread out his own jacket and embraced both Monica and Cyril from behind.

Monica let out a squeal, and Cyril shouted, “Ugh, don’t jump on me like that!” However, Raul paid no mind to either of them.

“Everyone can stay warm if we stick together like this… Besides, this kind of thing feels really buddy-buddy!”

“Are you seriously telling us to descend the mountain in this posture!?”

To Cyril’s outcry, Raul laughed heartily, saying, “We can do it.”

His cheerfulness almost made one forget that they were currently in a remote snowy mountain.

“Start walking at my signal! Oh, and right foot first! Ready, go!”

“Stop, I didn’t agree to this…!”

“Hyah!”

Raul suddenly took a step forward, causing Cyril and Monica, who were wrapped in the same jacket as him, to lose their balance. The three promptly tumbled down onto the snow.

Watching the commotion of the snow covered trio from the sidelines, Melissa let out a sigh.

“Only Raul would have the stamina to descend a mountain after such an intense battle.”

Indeed, Melissa seemed thoroughly exhausted. ‘I don’t even want to take another step’ was practically written on her face.

Melissa cracked her neck and glanced sideways at Thule and Ashelpikeh, who were still hugging each other.

“Hey, you dumb dragon. Can you fly with all of us on your back?”

“Hmm… Well… that would probably be a bit challenging.”

Thule’s wounds had only just recovered, so his mana wasn’t stable enough for him to transform back into a dragon. Pushing him too far might result in complications.

Melissa clicked her tongue and glared at Ashelpikeh next.

“Fine, Ice Spirit, what about you? Got any clever tricks up your sleeves?”

“I can move by sliding across the snow on my own. Not with this many people though.”

Even with the legendary white dragon and a greater spirit from ancient legends, this was the harsh reality.

On top of that, the three sages were completely devoid of mana. The temple they had planned to spend the night in was in ruins.

Monica hung her head in powerlessness.

(Ugh… If only I had some mana left, we could have endured the cold with a defensive barrier…)

Exhausted to the limit in both stamina and mana, Monica could barely stand. She felt like she might fall asleep once she let her guard down.

Despite her weariness, Monica desperately thought of any possible solutions. Meanwhile, Cyril spoke up with a suggestion.

“Ashelpikeh, if I were to create a sled or something similar for us to ride on, would you be able to steer it with your powers?”

“A sled? The thing humans ride on? …I’ve never tried.”

Ashelpikeh pondered for a moment before nodding, saying “I think I can.”

Hearing this, Cyril began to chant. Blue light particles danced around his hands, and a layer of ice spread out in front of him, forming a small boat.

He had created it in the shape of a boat since that would be safer for those riding.

Upon completion of the ice boat, Raul and Melissa cheered.

“Whoa what!? This looks so cool! Nice one, Cyril!”

“How lovely! You’re the best, Cyril-sama!”

In contrast to the jubilation of the Roseberg siblings, Monica couldn’t shake off a sense of foreboding.

What flashed through her mind was the creative methods of Rynzbelfied, the wind spirit with the appearance of a beautiful maid.

Her grand twirl in midair, followed by the shout of “You idiotic maid——!” and the falling Barrier Mage.

The greater spirit of wind had boasted of her landing techniques with her knees stuck in the ground.

(What if Ashelpikeh starts trying techniques like tornado kick landings or headspin landings…)

As Monica was busy worrying about such hypotheticals, Raul had gathered a bunch of leaves, covering the seats of the ice boat so that their butts wouldn’t get cold. They had all boarded by boat one by one, and Monica was the only one left.

Cyril gave the tense Monica a doubtful glance.

“What’s wrong, Monica?”

“N-Nothing… nothing at all!”

Surely, not all spirits were fixated on stylish and dynamic landing methods… probably.

After convincing herself of that, Monica also boarded the boat.

Since the boat was small, two people sitting side by side resulted in a tight fit.

Ashelpikeh and Thule took the front, followed by Melissa behind them. Monica and Cyril sat behind Melissa, and Raul, at the very back, spread his jacket to embrace Monica and Cyril.

Once everyone was seated, Cyril instructed Ashelpikeh to begin.

“Let’s get going.”

“Got it. I’ll give it a try.”

Ashelpikeh nodded and closed her eyes.

The ice boat carrying Monica and the other began slowly moving across the snow… but eventually, they reached a moderately sized ledge. As a result, the boat fell vertically for a considerable distance.

The screams of the four humans echoed through the snowy mountain.

Meanwhile, Thule casually spoke to the adjacent Ashelpikeh.

“Wow, this is so fast.”

Of course, only a non-human could make such a peaceful remark. Behind him were four humans fearing for their lives, screaming until their lungs were hoarse.

Raul, in particular, was in a particularly pitiful state. His usually carefree face was contorted in terror, as he clung desperately to Cyril and Monica.

“Ahhhhh! I-I can’t, I can’t do this, falling from high places! No, no, no——!”

“Ashelpikeh! Slow down, now!”

“Why?”

Ashelpikeh tilted her head at Cyril’s command, not understanding what was wrong. In fact, she seemed proud about how happy she was making Thule.

After undergoing another vertical descent, the ice boat landed on a snowy field and bounced a few times before continuing with the same momentum. Its speed was comparable to, if not worse than, a runaway horse.

The teary-eyed Raul spoke again with his face still frozen in a grimace.

“Hey, wait…! Isn’t the lightest one in most danger of getting blown off…!?”

Immediately after understanding the meaning behind Raul’s words, Cyril turned pale and grabbed Monica, the lightest of the bunch. Meanwhile, the panicked Monica clung to the waist of Melissa in front of her.

Melissa turned back to look at Monica, her temples twitching as she gave a wicked smile.

“…Monica-chan? You better not be implying that I’m too heavy to get knocked off.”

Monica offered no reply.

Because she was frozen in the posture of clinging to Melissa’s waist, and had fainted with her eyes rolled back into her head.

“Raul! Hold onto the Little One and…”

Melissa cut off her sentence and looked up at the sky in irritation. Raul had also fainted, foaming at the mouth with the whites of his eyes visible.

“For heaven’s sake, slow down already…!!”

Cyril screamed with the two fainted Sages in his arms. However, Thule only tilted his head and replied, “but this is fun.”

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