65. Errand

65. Errand

“H-help me…!”

“Kkae-aeng kkang!”

We, in a panic, called for help. Even at this moment, the ice beneath our feet was declaring its intention to send us into the icy water by making crackling, popping, and crunching sounds of various colors.

Crack-!

“Hiiik….”

My legs trembled. I could understand why Seol-gu was trembling with his legs spread wide here. If I moved even a little, the ice would scream, so there was no way to avoid freezing with my body in an awkward posture.

Crack-pop-!

“Hoo…!”

But perhaps there was a limit to just stopping movement, as the cracks in the ice grew larger and larger. If this continued, Uncle would surely fall into the water before he could help us.

It’s already cold, but if we fall into the frigid Arctic water, we’ll turn into frozen ice statues. We’ll become ice foxes and ice wolves.

… Ice wolf, that might be a bit cool.

But if the material is my body, it’s rather unfortunate. Even if I try to become an ice wolf later, first I need to figure out a way to escape from here.

Think, think, Rang Seol-ah.

You’re a magnificent wolf. A strong, powerful, and cool super magic wolf, acknowledged even by Sister. If you just use your brain a little, you’ll find a groundbreaking and wise way to escape from here.

I opened my eyes wide and sharply looked around.

What exists here now is thin, brittle ice. And piles of snow, and cold water. There’s also a fox that’s not edible.

Combining these…!

“Oh, Uncle!! Hurry up!!”

No answer came.

Even a wise and strong wolf couldn’t do anything in a situation like this. If only there were a piece of wood nearby, I could have climbed on it, but there’s really nothing here!

All I could do was tremble my legs and tail and desperately call out to Uncle.

“Uncle!! Where are you?!”

“Kkae-aeng…!”

“Seol-gu… Uncle ran away and left us…!”

But no matter where I looked, Uncle Polar Bear’s face was nowhere to be seen. I couldn’t even see his round bear ears, let alone his face.

He’s already so big that it’s hard not to find him, so the fact that I couldn’t find him meant Uncle must have run off somewhere.

Whether he ran away because he knew the ice was dangerous or he simply left his spot, the fact that he left us made me feel immensely betrayed.

“Bad Uncle!! Hope you stub your toe!”

“Kkang!!”

Crack-!

“Hiiik…!”

I’m falling. I’m falling.

I can instinctively tell. The ice is at its limit. The next time it cracks, the ice will shatter and send us into the water.

“Kkae, kkae-aeng….”

Seol-gu and I hugged each other tightly, savoring the last warmth of our lives. No, should I say, the warmth of our wolf lives and fox lives.

Whatever the word, the fact remains that once we fall into the ice lake, we will no longer be able to radiate the warmth of life.

No, I still have so much Ice fruit left to eat…!

“Ah!”

At that moment, an incredible thought flashed through my mind. It was such an incredible thought that I wondered why I hadn’t realized it sooner!

“Let’s use magic!”

“Kkang!”

As I pulled the stone out from my tail, Seol-gu grumbled as if to say, ‘You only just thought of that?’

But I have my own excuses. Isn’t it natural for anyone to have trouble thinking when they’re in an extreme situation? Besides, I’ve only recently started using magic, so it’s not strange that I didn’t think of it.

Anyway, this foolish fox, when the situation is so urgent, instead of encouraging me, he’s just complaining-

Crack-pop-!

“Hiiik?!”

“Kkae-aeng!”

The ice sheet collapsed. Small cracks extending from a large fissure finally shattered the ice into tiny pieces. The part we were standing on was no exception.

“Ugh!”

My toes plunged into the water. As the stepping stone disappeared, my balance was instantly thrown off, and my body began to tilt like a sinking ship.

Time slows down infinitely.

Is this the end?

If I used magic quickly… but I don’t think I have time…

To use magic, I have to open my mouth, and if I go in like that, cold water will rush into my mouth. It will be too cold.

Or maybe it would be better to take a deep breath and prepare for a dive….

While I hesitated and did nothing, the water surface drew closer and closer. Seol-gu’s tail tip had already fallen into the water.

Oh, this foolish fox. You should have held your tail high in the air.

But I’m not in a position to give advice. After all, in a few seconds, or a few milliseconds, we’ll both become frozen fur balls.

I squeezed my eyes shut and held my breath.

“Hup!!”

… Did I fall into the water now?

It doesn’t feel as cold as I expected.

I stayed curled up as much as possible. I heard somewhere that gathering your body together helps maintain body temperature.

Judging by the direction of gravity, I seem to be sinking deep into the water upside down.

The temperature is bearable, but I can’t breathe.

It’s only natural, as wolves aren’t good at diving in the first place, and I had taken a desperate breath, so the amount of oxygen in my lungs was far from sufficient.

“Ubu-bub.”

What happened to Seol-gu? Did he hold his breath in time?

He’s held tightly in my arms right now, but I don’t know his condition.

At that moment, something soft, warm, and wet licked my cheek.

“Kkang kkang. Hek hek.”

Could it be… Seol-gu is crying “Kkang kkang” and licking my cheek right now? In this cold water? Then how is he holding his breath?

I never knew that “Kkang kkang” sounds could be heard so clearly underwater. But my wonder lasted only a moment. If this continues, Seol-gu, who is wasting oxygen, will suffocate from lack of oxygen.

Oh, no.

I am a proper wolf. And wolves protect their friends.

Although I also lack oxygen, I still have a little more leeway compared to Seol-gu. I shouted towards Seol-gu and opened my eyes.

“Seol-gu!! I’ll help you!! … Huh?”

“Kkang.”

The sight that greeted me when I opened my eyes was surprisingly above the ice lake. Not underwater.

It was exactly as it was just before we fell in.

Only then did I notice that my tail was being firmly held by something. When I turned my head to look, I saw a familiar, muscular arm.

“Uncle!!”

Uncle Polar Bear had emerged from the water and caught us. I had no idea when he had dived…

Uncle held us with one hand and skillfully swam with his other arm, bringing us to the safe ice surface. It made me realize anew how amazing Uncle’s swimming ability was.

“Uncle, aren’t you cold…?”

“Polar bear suins don’t get cold easily.”

Even in the past, Uncle Polar Bear often fell into the water but never seemed cold. I would cry out “Hwae-aang” if I fell in even a little, so it’s amazing.

Uncle lightly bonked Seol-gu and my heads and said.

“Why were you standing there? The ice was clearly weak. Are you two idiots?”

“Don’t lump me in with Seol-gu. Seol-gu is the idiot, and I was trying to help Seol-gu.”

Seol-gu protested with a “Kkang,” but no one here can understand Seol-gu’s words anyway. If you’re going to complain, try speaking human language instead of “Kkang.”

“My goodness… So why did you come here?”

“Now I have to ask Seol-gu… Huh?”

The moment I turned towards Seol-gu, I noticed my hand felt empty. Something the size of a fist should have been in my hand, but it wasn’t.

I quickly reached into my tail and searched inside. But I found nothing. Even after frantically searching all around, what I was looking for was nowhere to be found.

“My… my stone!! It’s gone!”

“Kkang?!!”

Seol-gu was shocked. He was surprised by the fact that I had lost the magic stone he gave me.

But I was equally shocked. Without that magic stone, I would go from being a strong and powerful magic wolf to just a strong and powerful wolf.

“I must have dropped it in the water when I fell…! Uncle, please find it!”

“Why are you asking me… Ah, wait a moment.”

Recalling the memory, I still had the stone in my hand until the moment I thought I had fallen into the water. I must have dropped it while hugging Seol-gu tightly then, and if there are no other issues, the stone should be underneath.

I don’t know how deep the water is. But fortunately, we now have Uncle Polar Bear, who swims better than anyone.

Uncle grumbled at my plea, but then dived into the water without further complaint.

“Phew… It’s a good thing Uncle is here, isn’t it?”

“Kkang kkang, kkang!”

“It’s not like I wanted to lose it! I dropped it while trying to protect you, you idiot!”

I sat on the ice, bickering with Seol-gu, and waited for Uncle. Fortunately, it seemed like it would be resolved without any major problems, so I wasn’t worried.

Kuaang-!

That is, until a red laser beam shot up from the lake.