Chương 108: Elf Cloak

"It's been almost half a year."

"Thanks to everyone working together, we were able to get through the long, harsh winter in the northern kingdoms."

Kraft sat on a tree stump in front of the cabin, carving a piece of wood with a small knife in his hand.

Xia En sat next to him.

He ate the walnuts that Philon had prepared for him while watching the three people shoveling snow on the roof.

Shutark shoveled the snow, and Frilian and Philon used [Levitation Magic] to slowly push large chunks of snow off the roof ridge.

They were preparing to leave the hunter's hut.

"I never imagined that the winter in the Northern Kingdoms would last this long," Xia En couldn't help but sigh.

"Your destinations are the Northern Plateau and the Demon King's Castle, right? The winters there are much harder to endure than here. Be very careful, or you'll die."

"Yes, Frilian said that during the battle against the Demon King's army, the ones who inflicted the most heavy losses on the adventurers were..."

The extremely cold weather in the northern countries.

As he spoke, Shane turned to look at Kraft.

"By the way, are you really not coming with us? We really need a [monk]."

Kraft shook his head in response to Shane's invitation to team up.

"I'm sorry, I have something I promised to do."

"I see—"

"But don't worry, I'll keep an eye on any news about [The Last Saintess Todd]."

Xia En nodded.

Sigh—it's so hard to find a wet nurse.

After putting everything back in its place, replenishing enough firewood, and leaving some smoked jerky wrapped in waterproof oil paper, the group finally left the small house they had been living in for so long and slowly walked onto the main road.

"Then I'll go this way."

Kraft chose a different path from Shane and the others.

Philen held the wooden pendant shaped like "goddess wings" in her hand and thanked her softly.

At first, she was angry for a long time because of Kraft's misunderstanding and attack on Shane—now, after spending so much time together, she realized that he was a devout person just like Mr. Haita.

Shutark also expressed his gratitude, as he had indeed received a lot of guidance during this period.

Kraft smiled at the two of them, then looked at Shane.

"Shane, I hope I'll have the chance to see you again someday—the only one who remembers me—" Then, looking at Frilian, he said, "You have wonderful companions; cherish them."

Frillian glanced at Shane beside her, then replied, "See you in a few hundred years, Kraft."

Kraft walked alone onto the main road.

The group turned and headed further north.

On the way, Frilian asked Shane curiously, "What did he give you as a final gift?"

Philon and Shutark joined in.

They all saw Kraft give Shane a package, but they didn't know what was inside.

"What are you curious about regarding the gift you gave me?"

"Of course it's intriguing," Shutark retorted.

"Boys don't usually exchange gifts, do they?"

"That was just you, Mr. Shutalc."

"Feed————" Urged on by the curious crowd, Xia En opened the package.

Inside was a gray-green cloak, with a leaf-shaped pin fastened at the collar, the pin intricately inlaid with silver leaf veins.

simple.

Exquisite.

It has a very elven feel to it.

Frillie was slightly surprised when she saw it.

"This is the traditional clothing of our Elf race."

"In elven custom, there is a tradition of gifting cloaks to friends on long journeys. It seems that Kraft considers you a worthy friend."

Xia En smiled.

He simply pulled it over, swung it back, and draped the cloak perfectly over his shoulders.

It must be said that Kraft has a good eye; swordsmen and cloaks are a perfect match. Shane, already handsome and dashing, looks even more imposing in the cloak.

The most amazing thing is that the color of this cloak is not always the same.

In the shade of the trees, it looked as gray as dusk, but when the cloak was in the sunlight, it turned into a deep green like leaves, and even when Shane ran, the cloak turned into a light color like ripples on water.

Such a miraculous phenomenon.

This immediately turned Philon into a little fangirl, who praised her repeatedly.

Even Shutark exclaimed that he was just too handsome, and the envy in the boy's eyes was almost overflowing.

Only Frillie remained expressionless.

The elven girl glanced back in the direction Kraft had left, a vague unease creeping into her heart.

[A cloak is given as a gift to a friend who is traveling far away.] This is indeed an elf tradition, but besides blessing friends, this tradition also hides another very solemn meaning: guiding souls and reminding them of the way home.

Am I overthinking things?

Frillie turned to look at the three people who were joking around.

hope so.

Dark clouds slowly gathered in the sky, and snowflakes began to fall again, pattering softly.

The sky gradually darkened.

Xia En looked at the map in his hand.

There was some worry in his eyes.

They were surrounded by barren, snow-capped mountains, making it impossible for them to rest there.

"Mr. Shane."

Philon tugged at Shane's sleeve and pointed to the side.

Frillie was shuffling forward with her eyes closed, looking like she was about to fall asleep.

Xia En was helpless.

The old man's biological clock is really punctual; it's time for him to go to sleep.

Just then, Frillie stepped off course and was about to fall to the side.

Xia En reacted quickly and immediately caught him.

The elven girl collapsed into his arms, her breathing gradually becoming steady, and she drifted off to sleep peacefully.

"What should we do?!"

Philon was somewhat worried.

Falling asleep in the snow is a dangerous thing.

"I'll carry her on my back."

With that, Shane handed the backpack to Philon, then lifted Frilian onto his back and carried her steadily.

Philon took a blanket out of his backpack and draped it over Frillie.

The three continued on their way.

Just then.

Shutark, who was leading the way, suddenly stopped.

The boy instantly drew the battle axe from his back and assumed a fighting stance.

Philon was startled.

[Magic Detection] No demons were detected nearby. Could it be a wild beast?

All I saw was...

A slender figure slowly appeared in front of the group.

She was an exceptionally beautiful woman. She walked out of the snow, her face stunning, her steps graceful. She wore a plain white dress and had very long, light blue hair that trailed in the snow, winding down her back.

Soon, she arrived in front of Shutark, smiling as she said, "It's quite a surprise to see adventurers here. You must be exhausted. Please come and rest in my hut."

As he spoke, he turned slightly to the side, making an inviting gesture.

Shutark did not move, and Philon, who was always very polite, did not respond to the other party's invitation.

Because they all saw the special horn on the woman's head.

"Oh dear, did I get caught?"