#5-12 Beyond the White Forest | Origin of Reminiscence: The City Where the Ice Queen Sleeps

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Episode 12: Beyond the White Forest

Mimi's wounds were deep, and Ruri continued to treat them every day.

Tato and Rei spent their days foraging for food in the winter forest.
Though they usually relied entirely on Mimi, they discovered that they were each very reliable partners to one another.

Tato was amazed by Rei's keen hearing and hunting skills,
while Rei, in turn, was impressed by Tato's "instinct" for walking through the forest. It was truly something they were born with.

As they spent a long time together, Rei began to talk a little bit about his magic.

"--Is that white hawk your partner?"

One day, looking up at the hawk circling overhead, Tato asked.

"Yes. I raised that child from a chick. And we are bound by a spirit-word contract."

"By spirit-word magic?"

"Spirit-word magic basically works on those who 'understand the meaning.'"

Rei continued, as if he had suddenly remembered something.

"However, it can sometimes be effective even on those who see the mark or hear the sound."

Saying this, he picked up a tree branch from his feet.

He chanted a short spell, and something like characters were engraved onto the branch.
When he threw it far away with all his might, the branch hit another tree and made a dry sound.

Immediately after, there was a rustling and a thud deep in the bushes.

"Eh, what, what happened?"

"I stopped the movement of the beast that heard that sound."

Ray said while checking the fallen prey.

"Depending on how you use it, you can do all sorts of things."

Then, he placed his index finger to his lips and smiled mischievously.

"Words of power can sometimes touch not only the perception of the listener but the resonance of the world itself. It's a secret."

＊

It was three days later that Mimi's condition finally stabilized.

"Phew, what a relief."

Ruri murmured with satisfaction and turned her usual cheerful smile toward Mimi.

"How are you? Is anything hurting?"

"Ruri... thank you."

"That was tough. But... I wonder why such a phenomenon suddenly occurred..."

"Mimi is a grumpy-pants, so..."

"That's not true. You were just protecting yourself, right?"

"Yeah... I thought, 'take that,' and then it just happened."

"I see. You have a lot of power."

Ruri nodded gently.

"Don't worry about it too much. Shall we sing a little more?"

*

Four more days passed.

"I can't just sit still anymore! I'm fine now! I'm moving!"

Mimi started rampaging in the room.
At her energy, Ruri laughed, and Tato breathed a sigh of relief.

The party finally prepared their winter gear for departure.

Tato and Ray carefully made their plans.
With that, they bid farewell to the empty, crumbling 'Tower of Love'.

Ta, To, Mimi, Ray, Ruri, and Io advanced through the snow-covered white forest, aiming for the final city—the 'Tower of Emptiness'.

There were no clues about that city anywhere.
But the entrance leading to that iceberg must surely be there.

They had to go now.

The intuition of Ta and To, which matched without a doubt, told them so strongly.

(To be continued)

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