The Muddy Road

Early in the morning, in a small village, the Village Chief, dressed in black, looked at the mailbox at the door; it was empty.

Fern stopped in his tracks.

Before me lay a dirt road, soaked by days of rain, nestled among the trees. The road surface was no longer recognizable as its original color, but rather a dark brown muddy mess. Several low-lying areas were filled with murky water, floating with fallen leaves and broken branches. Footprints and tire tracks, some deep and some shallow, were embedded in the mud, their edges soft and rotten, blending seamlessly with the surrounding landscape.

Before you even step on it, the damp, earthy smell already wafts over.

Fern looked down at her clean shoes, then gazed at the seemingly endless mud ahead. She looked up at Lowell behind her.

Lowell stopped as well, crossed his arms, and examined the road. He tilted his head.

"Uh," he began, "Don't look at me like that, Fern."

Fern's gaze didn't move, his intention was clear.

"... Relying on other dimensions will weaken my self-reliance," Lowell continued, as if convincing herself. "If I always seek convenience, what will I do when I encounter real difficulties later? Hmm, no, I have to walk on my own. I'm the kind of person who believes in enduring hardship without facing it..."

Frieren peeked out from the side, her silver hair cascading over her shoulders. She glanced at the muddy road, then at Fern, her emerald eyes blinking.

"That's right," she chimed in, "You have to travel on your own."

Fern turned his face, his pale purple eyes looking at her.

"Then," she asked, "Is Frieren here to do the laundry?"

Frieren's expression froze for a moment. She guiltily turned her face away, her silver-white head tilting slightly to the other side.

"... don't want."

Himmel came up from behind. He stood at the edge of the dirt road, looked around, and suddenly his face lit up with that signature eager smile. He turned to Lowell and puffed out his chest.

"Lowell!"

"Um?"

Let's have a match!

Lowell turned his head.

Himmel turned his back to him and crouched slightly. Ruby naturally climbed onto his back, wrapped her arms around his neck, and brushed her fiery red curls against his shoulders and neck. She glanced at Lowell, a mischievous glint in her blue eyes, and a smile played on her lips.

Lowell stared at the pair for two seconds.

"... So you're going to use that trick, huh?"

He smacked his lips and turned his head away.

"Frieren!"

"Oh!"

Frieren readily agreed. She took a small step forward, jumped lightly, and wrapped her arms around Lowell's neck. Lowell supported her knees with his hands, lifting her up slightly to make sure she was steady.

Frieren adjusted her position on his back, resting her silvery-white head on his shoulder. She waved to Fern.

"Fern is here too!"

Fern looked at the muddy road, then at the little space left on Lowell's back, and hesitated for a moment.

"... good."

She walked over, carefully stepped on Lowell's instep, used it for leverage, and then, holding onto Frieren's shoulders, gracefully climbed up and lay on Frieren's back. The three of them were piled on top of each other, swaying like a tower of interwoven silver and dark colors.

Lowell steadied himself, felt the weight on his back, and a smug smile crept onto his lips.

"I have two here," he announced loudly.

Ruby, perched on Himmel's back, wrinkled her small nose upon hearing this.

"Snort..."

Her eyes darted around, and she suddenly raised her voice.

"Methode!"

"Here it comes~"

Methode walked up from behind, her blue-violet eyes curving into gentle crescents. She reached out and naturally wrapped her arms around Ruby's neck, her other hand stroking Ruby's fiery red curls, gently stroking them. Her movements were elegant, her expression one of blissful ecstasy.

Ruby's face was buried in Methode's arms, her voice muffled.

"I didn't ask you to pat my head..."

She twisted, but didn't actually break free.

"... never mind."

She turned her head and peered through the gap in Methode's arm at Liletta had been standing quietly beside her.

"Liletta?"

Liletta looked over with her golden eyes.

"How?"

"Come on up, come on up."

Liletta glanced at the two people already piled on Himmel's back, then at Methode. Without asking any questions, she walked over, placed her hand on Methode's shoulder, and with a slight effort, lightly leaped up, landing on Methode's back, her legs clamping tightly around her waist.

Now there are four people stacked on Himmel's back: Ruby at the bottom, Methode hugging her, Liletta on Methode's back.

Ruby peeked out from between Methode's arms and Liletta's cover, her bright blue eyes sparkling with smugness.

"On our side," she drawled, each word brimming with triumph, "We have four!"

Lowell looked at the "human tower" opposite him and blinked.

The smug smile on his lips slowly faded, replaced by a serious, assessing expression. A few seconds later, as if he had made a decision, he looked at Fern again.

"Fern!"

"Um?"

"Call it out."

Fern, perched on Frieren's back, nodded without asking further questions. She raised one hand, palm down, towards the open space beside her.

A faint, magical ripple spread through the air.

Immediately afterwards, a huge Snow Wolf appeared in the open space. Its entire body was covered with thick, smooth, silvery-white fur, its limbs were long and strong, its shoulder height was over two meters, and its body length was at least four or five meters. Its ice-blue eyes calmly looked at the crowd, and its tail gently swept behind it, creating a slight breeze.

After the Snow Wolf appeared, it naturally walked to Fern's side, lowered its head, and gently touched her arm with the tip of its nose.

Lowell raised his free hand—the one that wasn't supporting Frieren's knees—and patted the Snow Wolf's fluffy head. Then, he closed his fingers and grabbed the wrist of one of the Snow Wolf's front paws.

Snow Wolf: "Awooo?"

Muscles are tense.

The lines of the arms rise clearly beneath the fabric, creating a distinct curve.

"Get up!"

He gave a low shout, exerted force from his waist and abdomen, and violently raised his arm upwards.

The enormous Snow Wolf, weighing several tons, was lifted off the ground by him, its front paws gripped by one arm! The Snow Wolf's body instantly left the ground, its front paws raised high, its hind paws barely touching the ground, its posture somewhat comically unbalanced. A hint of confusion flashed in its icy blue eyes, and a low, bewildered whimper rolled from its throat.

"Aww..."

His voice was muffled, tinged with grievance.

Lowell remained in the position of supporting Frieren and Fern on his back with one hand and raising the Snow Wolf's front paw with the other, slightly panting, but his eyes were bright. He looked at Ruby on Himmel's back opposite him, his eyebrows raised.

"Four," he panted, his voice laced with laughter, "So what if there are four! I have this guy here!"

Ruby: "..."

She looked at the huge Snow Wolf, suspended in mid-air with a blank expression, then at Lowell's "you're out of options now" look, opened her mouth, but didn't say anything.

Himmel stared at the scene for a moment, then burst into laughter. His hearty laughter echoed through the woods.

"Haha... I really can't compete with that!"

He laughed until he was done, then stood up straight again. The three people on his back swayed slightly with his movement, but remained steady.

"However," Himmel's smile remained, but a sharp glint appeared in her eyes, "When it comes to speed, I won't lose!"

The moment the last word was uttered, he dashed off.

Without a running start or gathering momentum, he carried three people on his back, his figure transforming into a pale blue streak as he rushed straight into the muddy road ahead.

Footsteps landed.

There was no splashing of mud or water.

The moment his boot soles touched the mud, it was as if they were supported by a very faint, invisible force. With a light touch, he leaped forward. Each step landed precisely on the relatively firm or slightly raised parts of the mud, like a dragonfly skimming the water, light and swift. The mud seemed to slide away to the sides in fear, without a single speck sticking to his trouser legs or boot tops.

In the blink of an eye, he had dashed more than ten meters, his figure becoming blurry in the middle of the muddy road.

Lowell watched the rapidly receding figure, a smirk playing on his lips.

"Good...!"

He responded and moved.

Without gathering his strength, he carried two people on his back and lifted a huge Snow Wolf, charging towards the muddy road.

His steps were much heavier, but the moment he landed, the muddy road seemed to sink slightly, only to be immediately held back and smoothed by an invisible force. With each step he took, he left a clear, neatly edged shallow imprint on the mud, but the mud around the imprint did not splash up either, as if it were suppressed by some kind of force field.

He was a fraction slower than Himmel, but each step covered a greater distance, his figure steadily advancing on the muddy road. Frieren's silver hair was pulled straight back by the wind, and Fern's pale purple eyes calmly gazed ahead. The Snow Wolf being held up tried to retract its paws, its icy blue eyes still somewhat bewildered.

Frieren leaned on Lowell's shoulder, watching Himmel disappear around the bend in the muddy road, and raised a hand, her voice crisp.

"Charge! Charge!"

Fern, perched on her back, listened to the whistling wind in her ears and the steady swaying beneath her, feeling a strange, unconventional sense of floating. She blinked, her pale purple eyelashes drooping, and whispered.

"It's actually quite fun."

The Snow Wolf, which was cushioned beneath her and lifted up, struggled to turn its head, its icy blue eyes gazing upwards, and let out another low growl.

"Aww..."

Her voice sounded even more aggrieved.

About half an hour later.

The muddy road came to an end, and the land ahead became firm and dry, connecting to a clearly repaired dirt road. A simple wooden signpost stood by the roadside, pointing to the outline of a village not far away.

Himmel the first to step onto solid ground. He stopped, adjusted his breathing slightly, and then lowered the people on his back one by one. Ruby, Methode, and Liletta landed one after another and stood firmly on their own.

A few seconds later, Lowell arrived. He first released the Snow Wolf's front paws, which he had been holding for half an hour. The Snow Wolf finally put all four paws on the ground, blinked its ice-blue eyes, lowered its head to sniff the dry ground, let out a relieved, soft purr from its throat, and then turned into specks of light and disappeared back into the alternate dimension.

Next, Lowell put Fern and Frieren down from his back. After landing, Fern gently moved her slightly numb legs. Frieren, on the other hand, jumped up and down twice, her silver hair swaying.

Himmel walked up to Lowell with that bright smile on her face.

"As expected," he said, raising a hand to brush his wind-blown blue hair aside, "I'm still a bit faster!"

Lowell patted his shirt and crossed his arms.

"Hmph," he turned his face away, "It's clearly because my load was heavier that I was a little slower."

"They're all amazing." Ruby walked over, holding a water pouch and taking small sips. She looked around. "Is this the village?"

The group was standing at the village entrance. Before them lay a small village, with houses mostly made of wood and stone. They looked quite old, but were well-maintained. Smoke rose from several chimneys, and the air smelled of firewood and food.

A middle-aged man dressed in coarse cloth clothes with his trousers rolled up to his knees walked over from the side path carrying a hoe. He saw the group of people standing at the village entrance, paused for a moment, and then gave a simple smile.

"Oh! You lot..."

His gaze fell on the muddy road behind them, and then he looked at their clean clothes and shoes, not even the edges of their shoes were stained with mud, and his expression became surprised.

"You actually came from that road! That's quite unusual."

He pointed with the hand holding the hoe to the other side of the village. There, a wider, smoother road paved with gravel stretched into the distance and disappeared behind the hills.

"After the main road was opened, very few people used that mountain path anymore. Only those of us who live nearby would occasionally take the shortcut. I really miss it... it used to be the main road."

Fern followed his gaze to the smooth, wide road. She paused for two seconds, then turned her pale purple eyes back to look at Frieren beside her.

"... So there was a main road all along?"

Frieren was squatting on the ground, curiously poking at a passing beetle. Hearing this, she looked up, blinked her emerald eyes, and showed a slight embarrassment on her face, like 'Why is this happening?'

"Uh..." she said softly, tilting her silvery-white head to one side, "I don't know. I'm not very clear about things from the last few decades."

The uncle chuckled and took a few steps closer, carrying his hoe.

"It was built thirty years ago. It connects the north and south of the Aofujia Bai Mountain Range, making it much easier to travel. Caravans and travelers mostly use that route."

He sized up the group, his gaze lingering for a moment on the sword at Himmel's waist and Lowell's seemingly ordinary but clearly well-made clothing, before becoming even more enthusiastic.

"Anyway, welcome to our village. Judging from your appearance, you must be adventurers? Come in, have a look around, and rest a bit?"

"Alright," Lowell said, stepping towards the village, "Then I'll take you in."