Ch.5Chapter 5

It was not strange that Skadi was flustered.

Anyone would experience cognitive dissonance when facts they knew were denied.

What mattered was regaining composure and having the mindset to solve problems. Skadi quickly regained her composure.

When examined one by one, it wasn’t such a big issue.

What did it matter if one didn’t know their limits, or didn’t know their name?

From Skadi’s perspective, Wendigo wasn’t the type to struggle with such problems. The only real issue was not knowing his origin…

“Since you can control cold, your origin might be related to ice, frost, or snow. Ah, considering your head and body, a beast might also be your origin…”

“Calm down. We can figure out what my origin is step by step. For now, let’s focus on solving the immediate problems.”

“Ah, yes!”

Wendigo calmed down Skadi who had started to get carried away. From traveling together, he’d noticed that despite her seemingly calm appearance, Skadi was quite… easily ignited.

‘Perhaps it’s because she had a difficult childhood. She seems to crave recognition.’

This is why deficiencies are so frightening. How desperate for recognition must she be to try so hard to prove her usefulness to a monster(?).

Wendigo and Skadi walked for quite some time before reaching the vicinity of the village. Wendigo spotted the village located outside the forest in the distance.

Men who appeared to be vigilantes were talking with serious expressions, making the village look quite chaotic.

“It seems they’re worried because those who were tracking you haven’t returned.”

“The ones who chased me weren’t very well-regarded in the village… but I suppose the village would still worry about them. If they were so concerned, they should have stopped them from chasing me in the first place. Serves them right.”

Wendigo noticed that she was softening her words because she was in front of him. Judging by her expression, it wouldn’t have been strange if she had cursed outright.

Feeling pity, Wendigo gently placed his hand on her head and stroked it. Skadi looked up at him, startled.

“All this trouble just because your hair and eye color are a bit different. You must have had a hard time.”

“N-no, not at all. Thanks to that, I got to meet you.”

Skadi answered in a small voice, her face reddening. Seemingly embarrassed, she hurriedly moved toward the edge of the forest and called out in an awkward voice.

“L-let’s go, Wendigo! If we go to my mother’s hut, there will surely be things you’ll like!”

“Alright. Just in case, I should prepare my weapons…”

Just as he was about to step out of the forest, Wendigo felt a strange sensation.

The sensation was… yes, like unbreakable chains binding his entire body and pulling him back into the forest.

He was perplexed by this intense aversion he felt for the first time.

“…Skadi. Are there Djin who cannot leave certain places?”

“I don’t know about places, but there are Djin who can’t be summoned without specific mediums. Like not being able to summon fire-related Djin where there’s no fire, or not being able to summon earth-related Djin at sea…”

Skadi’s eyes widened as she answered Wendigo’s question. He wouldn’t have asked such a question without reason. That meant…

Skadi looked at Wendigo. He was standing still at the boundary between the forest and the meadow, as if blocked by a wall.

Wendigo spoke calmly.

“It seems I cannot leave the forest.”

“!”

Skadi’s eyes widened, and Wendigo sighed in frustration.

It made sense. Even fantasy ultimate weapons like dragons had constraints, weaknesses, and flaws, so it was only natural that he would have limitations too.

Wendigo, it turned out, was unable to leave the forest.

* * *

“I’m sorry. I said I would escort you, but I didn’t know I couldn’t leave the forest.”

“No, it’s fine. This might actually be a good thing. At least now we can guess what your origin might be!”

Wendigo nodded with a bitter expression. Anyone could have figured it out.

Setting aside whether he was a Djin or not, if he couldn’t leave the forest, anyone could deduce that his origin was the forest itself.

It was good to discover what his origin was. He didn’t know how useful this knowledge would be, but knowing was better than not knowing.

The problem was that because of this, he couldn’t leave the forest. But sending Skadi to the village alone was too dangerous.

If someone’s family or friends had gone after a witch, and only the witch returned? It was obvious nothing good would come of it.

‘But if we turn back, it would be a shame to leave Skadi’s belongings behind. Maybe there’s a way…’

At that moment, a thought crossed Wendigo’s mind.

If he couldn’t help her directly, couldn’t he help her indirectly?

“Skadi. It seems the only way for you to enter the village and retrieve your belongings is to form a contract with me.”

“A-a contract? Really?”

“Do you dislike the idea? If so, then…”

“No! I like it. No, more than like it—it’s an honor!”

When he asked because Skadi seemed hesitant, she strongly denied it, her eyes shining. Of course she wanted to form a contract with Wendigo.

The reason for her hesitation was that she believed Wendigo could easily contract with a much more skilled Summoner than herself.

The reason Summoners contract with difficult, arrogant, and demanding Djin was simple.

The mystical abilities they could wield through the Djin were that captivating!

If they could control even a portion of Wendigo’s cold power, there would be no shortage of Summoners willing to offer him the most beautiful virgin in the village.

That’s why Skadi, who was avoided by Djin, didn’t have the courage to request a contract…

“But… am I really good enough? I hate to say this, but with my appearance and all, I’m someone Djin tend to avoid.”

“Honestly, I’m not even sure if I am a Djin. And does forming a contract cause any major problems?”

“Not really, but a contract is something sacred and solemn…”

“If there’s no problem, just do it. In my view, you’re more than qualified.”

From Wendigo’s perspective, Skadi was quite a promising talent.

She lacked some confidence due to years of mistreatment, but judging by how she recited knowledge from her mother, she was clearly intelligent.

She also had a strong will and didn’t waver much in unfamiliar situations. Above all…

‘Honestly, I’m curious about these Summoner’s items.’

His proposal heavily reflected his personal curiosity. Unaware of this, Skadi was deeply moved by Wendigo’s apparent trust in her.

“I never thought you would trust me this much!”

‘I feel somewhat guilty.’

A sense of guilt for deceiving an innocent maiden surfaced, but Wendigo deliberately ignored it.

* * *

Rolo, a member of the village vigilante group, wasn’t happy about having to stand guard late at night. While vigilantes often stood guard at night to prepare for beast attacks, this case was a bit different.

Rolo smoked his tobacco and looked at the dark forest in the distance.

“Damn, all this trouble because they couldn’t catch one woman. If that’s the case, they shouldn’t have chased her in the first place.”

“Exactly. I mean, just raiding the Summoner’s hut would have yielded plenty…”

When Rolo grumbled, Maxim, who was standing guard with him, agreed. Rolo didn’t like Maxim’s words either.

Given the village atmosphere, he couldn’t say it out loud, but honestly, he couldn’t understand why they were being so cruel to the Summoner who had done nothing wrong.

“Hey. The Summoner has done so much for us. My mother overcame her illness thanks to her. She lived out her heaven-given lifespan and passed away peacefully because of her. She even helped me when my leg was bitten by a wolf.”

“I know. I know, but honestly, she has to pay the price for saving that cursed child. For all we know, your mother might have gotten sick because of that child in the first place.”

“No, that’s such bull… Never mind. I should just keep quiet.”

Rolo was about to retort to Maxim’s nonsense but stopped himself. Come to think of it, wasn’t he just as bad?

Despite receiving help, he had ignored the benefactor’s daughter out of fear of others’ gazes, making him just as despicable.

Rolo glared and took a drag of his tobacco, then looked back at the forest as he exhaled the smoke. There was still no sign of the men who had gone after the witch.

Instead, he saw something else. A woman was walking towards them from the forest.

Rolo was shocked when he realized who it was.

“Wait, isn’t that Skadi? What is she doing here?”

“Oh, it really is her!”

Rolo was so surprised that he dropped his tobacco. As he tried to pick it up and put it back in his mouth, a cold wind swept past, extinguishing it.

With the tobacco out, Rolo shivered from the chill that ran through his body. He looked at Skadi with an inexplicable sense of foreboding.

Skadi was approaching the village with a frighteningly calm expression. She didn’t look at all like a woman who had fled from the village.

Rolo instinctively realized something was wrong.

“Hey, hey. Something’s off. We should call the captain right…”

“Hey, witch! What nerve do you have coming back? Did you come back to collect your mother’s corpse, pretending to be a dutiful daughter?”

Rolo was slowly backing away and warning Maxim, but Maxim was more of a bastard than Rolo had thought.

There was malice in Maxim’s eyes. He had been interested in Skadi since childhood. Of course, it wasn’t the good kind of interest.

Despite her alien appearance, Skadi was sufficiently beautiful… and most men were crazy about pretty women. Maxim was one of those many men.

Maxim approached Skadi and pointed his spear at her. He licked his lips and said,

“I don’t know how you escaped the pursuit and came back, but if you spend just one night with me, I’ll give you not only your mother’s corpse but also travel money…”

“You have a dull mind and senses as blunt as livestock, yet you sure talk well with that open mouth of yours.”

“…What?”

That stupid utterance was Maxim’s last words.

As Skadi grabbed his spear, cold energy burst from her fingertips.

As frost formed on the spear, Maxim tried to let go in panic. But he couldn’t. Her cold energy had instantly frozen the spear along with his hand.

The frozen spear released cold energy from Maxim’s hand to his body, heading toward his heart. As the cold energy took over Maxim’s body, his body turned blue and frost settled on it.

Skadi looked at what was once Maxim with indifferent eyes and let go of the spear. When her gaze turned to Rolo, he drew in a breath.

“…You showed respect for my mother, so I’ll spare you. But deliver a message to the villagers.”

“W-what should I tell them?”

Rolo hastily asked, fearing she might change her mind.

“Tell them to bring all the items from my mother’s hut. If anyone hides anything, they will end up like this trash.”

“B-but people won’t believe it. How can someone freeze to death in the village, not even in a snow field… Eep!?”

When Skadi created an ice sword and struck Maxim’s arm, his arm shattered and fell to the ground.

Rolo closed his mouth at the horrific sight. When Skadi gestured, he picked up Maxim’s arm while watching her cautiously. The arm was eerily cold.

“Take that with you, and they’ll believe it whether they want to or not. I’ll say it once more. All the items from my mother’s hut. If even a grain of wheat is missing, that person will die.”

“Y-yes, of course! I’ll go and tell them exactly that!”

Cold energy swirled around Skadi, reflecting her emotions. Rolo nodded vigorously with his eyebrows frozen.

When she gestured, Rolo dropped the spear he was holding and headed for the village. Skadi watched him go.

And through the ice necklace around her neck, Wendigo was also watching the scene.