Chapter 123
I chose the slightly wider-looking path in the middle of the three forks and quickly hid my body between the rocks. Worried that if I disappeared from sight the snowmen might ignore my words and cross the boundary—or even attack the house—I cautiously peeked out. The snowmen showed no interest in the house at all and vanished into the distance like the wind.
That was… a bit awkward.
Still, the danger hadn’t completely disappeared, so I needed to inspect this path as quickly as possible and return. I slung the fire poker over my shoulder and hurried forward, forcing my swollen feet to move faster. Unlike the other paths, this one looked different—sparse trees grew up to waist height here and there. My chest swelled with hope that this road might connect to the outside.
But I hadn’t gone far before my steps stopped.
A gigantic temple, so white it was nearly indistinguishable from the snow, revealed itself.
“This is….”
There were no markings, but I knew instinctively.
It was the Temple of Winter.
Chapter 15
The pure white temple, as vast and magnificent as the grand hall boasted by the Temple of Spring, looked sacred in its own way—yet also unsettling. Like an abandoned mansion left unattended for ages, a quiet, chilly air brushed against all my senses. Paradoxically, it also seemed warm enough to welcome weary travelers. Perhaps it was because it was so white it blended into the piled snow, or because of the faint divine power clinging to its outer walls.
“The Temple of Winter…”
My guess wasn’t based on intuition alone. Unlike the Temple of Spring, the divine power here carried a biting cold. It felt strange—like something that would bare its thorns at enemies while being infinitely gentle to allies.
If the Temple of Spring had a bright, cherry-blossom-like exterior, then this pure white temple, had it been well maintained, would have looked majestic—like a Frost Queen. Even now, its overwhelming scale spread endlessly across the snowy plains, pressing down on me just as the tundra itself did.
Even though I knew this was essentially a dead end and that I should turn back and explore another path, my feet carried me up the steps on their own. What must once have been a carefully tended garden was now nothing more than a wide expanse of snow. When I poked the ground beside the steps with my fire poker, it sank endlessly downward. It was deeper than it looked.
Inside the temple, it was less white than the exterior. Still, that was only because dust had piled up over time, dulling it to a pale gray—if properly maintained, it would have been just as white as the outside.
I continued inward, surveying my surroundings. My brow furrowed on its own. In the temple, where only my footsteps echoed without any other sign of presence, an unannounced sense of foreboding filled the air. It felt like something terrible could happen at any moment. My instincts rang alarm bells. Everything felt strange and unfamiliar, though I couldn’t tell exactly where that feeling originated.
“This is strange. Something’s off…”
I was definitely missing something, but I didn’t know what.
Muttering to myself as I looked around the desolate interior, a realization suddenly struck me, and I snapped my fingers.
“There’s no divine power at all!”
The faint divine power that lingered on the outer walls was completely absent inside—so dry it felt like a desert.
If I wasn’t mistaken, this had to be the main sanctuary of the Temple of Winter, or something close to it. In the grand hall of the Temple of Spring, divine power was always present. It wasn’t because the priests wasted or leaked it unnecessarily. Rather, it flowed constantly, like waves, as if to demonstrate what a god’s blessing truly was—filling every corridor, every room, spilling outward even beyond the walls.
I looked around the bleak interior.
This level of emptiness was clearly abnormal. Divine power on the outside but none inside? Shouldn’t it be the opposite? The outside should lose it faster.
More than anything—it felt ominous.
“Let’s get out of here.”
I shouldn’t stay here long. I needed to go back quickly, check that Nain was safe, and explore another path. There was no time to waste—so what was I doing here?
I slapped my cheeks sharply. Just as I turned to retrace my steps, a strong sulfuric smell brushed against my nose.
My body froze instantly.
I sucked in a sharp breath without realizing it, and the sulfur stench grew even stronger—proof it wasn’t my imagination.
Had I heard footsteps? No… did those things even make footstep sounds?
Creaking, I tilted my head to the side. When I couldn’t turn any farther, I rolled my eyes to look behind me.
This time, I deliberately exhaled and steadied my breathing. I loosened my grip on the fire poker, which I’d been holding so tightly my knuckles had gone white, and opened my fist. Crescent-shaped nail marks roughened my palm.
“…Figures. My bad premonitions never miss.”
I forced my trembling voice down. From between the gas masks worn by the pests—each holding an axe nearly as large as their own bodies—came their distinctive wheezing breaths, as if they might stop at any moment. It sounded like mockery, enough to make me want to cover my ears.
As if waiting for this moment, more of them poured in like insects, sending chills down my spine.
After failing to kill me once, had they decided to always move in groups now? They weren’t schoolyard bullies who needed numbers to feel strong.
I tried to pretend calm, but my hands and feet went ice-cold, and my mind blanked out.
“If we just keep not seeing each other like before, wouldn’t that be better for both sides? You wouldn’t waste time chasing me, and I wouldn’t have to throw my life away. Win-win, right? How do you not get that?”
What was I even saying?
None of the words pouring out of my mouth registered in my ears. It didn’t even feel like my own voice.
Trying to look brazen, I took one step forward. They all stepped forward in unison. I stepped again. They followed again.
I swallowed hard.
Then I turned my stiff neck forward.
And ran.
“You crazy bastards!”
Yes, I came here prepared to die—but not now! Was it really too much to ask for some proper timing? How did you even know I’d come here and set up an ambush? Even if it was abandoned, this is still a temple! You’re not allowed to just waltz in! Don’t tell me you made this place your hideout—are you insane?!
I’d assumed that, as a temple of a seasonal god, there would be large windows or open corridors where sunlight poured in. I planned to jump out and shake them off. But it was all for nothing. Unlike the Temple of Spring, which had windows everywhere, this place had none—probably to keep out the cold. The few windows that existed were tiny, near the ceiling, barely thirty centimeters high. They let in faint sunlight, but escape was impossible. If the windows were like this, corridors? No chance.
I never thought I’d live to miss the Temple of Spring.
Before long, my mouth tasted sweet with exhaustion. My condition was better than outside in the tundra, but my stamina hadn’t improved much. My frail body hit its limits quickly. It was hell. I’d already used every ounce of strength carrying Nain, and now I was being forced to sprint.
I didn’t make it far.
A dead-end wall greeted me, forcing me to stop.
When I turned around, the number of pests had grown to around thirty while I’d been running blindly forward.
So this was why God sent me here? To die at the hands of pests?
“But I can’t die just yet.”
The injustice of it all made tears well up.
“Can’t you give me a little time? I’ll take care of my business and crawl back if I have to. I swear.”
Of course, it didn’t work.
If they were capable of conversation, I’d have dropped to my knees and begged.
[цЗйцеУсазМН.]
I didn’t understand what they were saying, and even if I did, they didn’t look inclined to spare me. Their faces gleamed with joy at the thought of killing me. Like begging would work. If there were even a chance it would, I’d kneel immediately.
Cornering me, the pests casually stroked their weapons. One of them—the same one whose weapon I’d stolen and used before—started swinging its axe around, buzzing it through the air. Annoyingly provocative. Even if begging worked, now I didn’t want to.
What do I do?
In the suffocating standoff, I leaned against the wall and darted my eyes around.
Was there no good option? Could I snatch a weapon like before and swing wildly? Could I pull off a one-versus-many miracle? Eek, two more just joined in. And that mysterious consciousness that only shows up when it wants to seize control of my body—don’t you have any brilliant ideas? Now would be a great time to chime in!
[ТтжЩцдехпюяГДц!]
Not your opinions!
As I hesitated, the distance between the pests and me steadily shrank. With no better choice, I raised the fire poker. If they came closer, I’d smash their heads first. Normally my motto was “focus on one,” but this time I’d hit several and run.
…Right. Divine power!
The absurdly destructive divine power suddenly came to mind like an epiphany.
Yeah—better than nothing! It’s divine power, so it has to be more effective than a fire poker alone!
I concentrated divine power into my hand. The cool energy flowing through my veins surged out through my fingertips and wrapped around the poker. Bathed in a soft white glow, it looked almost sacred.
The moment the divine power flared, all the gas-masked demon-like faces snapped toward me. Their eyes locked onto the poker. The glassy lenses made my skin crawl, but I forced myself not to show it and swung the poker through the air.
“Don’t come any closer! I’ll seriously kill you!”
I’m really good at smashing heads, you know? This divine power cracked ice walls—you think your bodies will survive?
A fleeting thought crossed my mind—without a proper holy technique, how effective could a divine-powered poker really be?—but I shook it off. I just needed to buy time.
But unexpectedly, divine power shot out from the poker I’d swung half-heartedly.
The effect was far better than I’d imagined.
Like a crescent-shaped slash, the divine energy struck several pests head-on, sending them flying backward like fallen leaves. Their clothes and weapon blades weathered and eroded instantly, and deep, slashed wounds tore across their bodies.
I froze mid-swing, stunned by my own attack.
“Huh?”
This… actually works? Why is it so effective? Did I reincarnate and become a sword master in another world? Has my second life finally granted me a usable skill? Light-novel-title-worthy thoughts bubbled up, but I ignored them and kept swinging the poker.
The ones charging at me collapsed to the ground the moment they were hit by the blade of divine power.
