Before dark, Xia You and his two companions had already left Spear Pillar and started down the mountain.
But by nightfall, the difficult terrain meant they had only reached the mountainside, with a long way still to go before the foot of the mountain. They had no choice but to pitch camp on the mountain and spend the cold night there.
Not only that, but the change in their descent point meant their route and direction grew increasingly different as they walked... So much so that when Xia You checked the map before bed, he realized they were actually getting farther and farther from Hearthome City, and closer and closer to Celestic Town to the north!
When he told May and Cheryl, who were also in the tent, both women were rather surprised.
"Then what do we do?" Cheryl's eyes widened.
"What else? Just roll with it." Xia You didn't particularly mind. "We're traveling, aren't we? Wherever we go, that's where we travel. Whether it's Celestic Town or Hearthome City, they're both just places along the way. All right, we have more walking to do tomorrow. Time for bed!"
With that, Xia You turned over and switched off the tent's electric light, plunging the tent into darkness.
Fortunately, moonlight filtered through the small transparent window in the tent, casting a hazy glow that kept it from becoming too dark.
Outside, the cold wind continued to howl.
The tent's only source of heat, a small portable electric heater, steadily radiated warmth.
Although the tent was made of wind-resistant material, it still felt a little too flimsy in this environment. Xia You wasn't sure whether he was imagining it, but he kept feeling cold air slipping in through various gaps and corners.
He couldn't help pulling his covers tighter and curling up