A jade-green light tore across the sky like a willful bolt of lightning, streaking straight toward the heart of the Far North.
"We're here." After reaching the castle, the Ice Empress set Tian Chen down.
Once his feet touched the ground, Tian Chen gazed at the castle before him with a sigh of emotion. He had only been away for a few months, yet it felt as though three autumns had passed.
"It's only been a few months, and this place has already changed?" He turned back, the Ice Empress's swaying ponytail reflected in his eyes.
Tian Chen pushed open the door, and a throne came into view.
Tian Chen started forward, but the Ice Empress caught his sleeve, the tips of her ears still red. "Walk slower."
"Hm?"
"...The floor's slippery." She turned her face away after speaking, but her fingers quietly slipped between his.
And so, with their fingers interlaced, they walked step by step through the faint glow of the ice lamps.
Click-click-
Suddenly, the crisp sound of high heels rang out.
At the far end, the Snow Empress wore a moon-white gown, her white hair cascading down as though she had draped herself in all the frost and snow of the Far North.
She had just raised her hand and was about to speak when Tian Chen abruptly quickened his pace-
"Big Sister Snow!"
The boy's voice rang clear, carrying a nasal tinge after his long journey. The next moment, he had thrown himself into the Snow Empress's arms.
The impact made the Snow Empress lean back slightly. The ice-crystal throne gave a faint creak, but held them both steady.
She laughed softly, resting her palm on Tian Chen's crown and soothing him just as she had when he was little. "Xiao Chen, slow down... my