In the biting wind, Alice Kuonji instinctively hugged herself tighter. After signing the Contract, she already regretted it, before the real trouble had even begun.
With someone who had such a twisted sense of humor as her contracting partner, it was hard to have any hope for the future... though it had already been visibly bleak to begin with.
Fortunately, after saying that, Roland made no further moves and sank back into thought, as though it had merely been an idle tease.
The Witch, who had never been good at finding things to talk about, did not know how to handle the situation either. For a time, silence descended over this cold land once again.
Just as Alice Kuonji was about to space out in this awkward impasse, a rustling sound came from the sky.
"It's snowing..."
Roland, who had been silent for a long time, looked up at the gray sky and smiled with a touch of wistfulness.
"That was rather rude of me, Miss Kuonji. I stopped having much need for warmth a long time ago, so I was a little slow to notice. I forgot how sensitive to the cold you looked last time in the forest."
Roland snapped his fingers. Two soft armchairs emerged from the shadows, and before them, a roaring fire rose without any firewood. The dancing flames spread warmth around them, while the snowflakes seemed to gain intelligence, avoiding the area enveloped in warmth of their own accord.
"Have a seat. This grand performance will probably go on for a while yet."
Having broken the silence, Roland sat down without ceremony. His fingers danced gently, and a faint glow spilled from the flames, weaving a detailed image that hung fixed in midair.
In the center of the image, Aoko Aozaki had stopped running.