Erii: A Journey Through the Heavens Begins with Frilian

"Huffing and puffing~"

Rapid but rhythmic breathing could be heard from inside the room, as if someone was doing strenuous exercise.

Frillie pushed open the door and saw a shirtless man doing squats, sweating profusely, the air thick with the scent of male hormones.

Philon reached out and closed the door, saying seriously, "There's a pervert here, let's go."

"He's freezing to death." Erii poked the unresponsive Shutark and pushed the door open to enter.

The man inside had stopped training and laughed heartily, "Oh! I didn't expect to run into someone. Hmm? You're an elf too?"

He looked at Frilian, and everyone else looked at him as well.

The man was wearing black training pants, and his muscular upper body was well-proportioned. Above him, on either side of his upright and well-defined face, were sharp and long ears.

Clearly, he was also an elf.

"I am Kraft, a monk. I lost my fire while crossing the snow-capped mountains and have to exercise to maintain my body temperature," the man confessed.

"Hmm," Frilian said, somewhat surprised, "I haven't seen my own kind for hundreds of years."

"Haha, me too," Kraft said, scratching his head and laughing.

Elves are a rare race because they are very insensitive to emotions and rarely fall in love, marry, or reproduce.

In addition, when the Demon King was alive, he specifically sent out demon experts to hunt down elves to prevent these immortal beings from posing a threat to the demon race.

As Philon lit the fire in the fireplace, the chill was instantly dispelled. Kraft clutched the church pendant to his chest and said devoutly, "Thank the goddess, for letting me meet the mage and enjoy the warmth of the fire."

"This girl has a really good constitution," he said, looking at Erii with undisguised surprise. "Even I feel the biting cold, but you don't react at all."

"You can't generalize about people's physical condition. Take this good-for-nothing, for example, he's so heavy." Philon complained, but his hands were busy wrapping Shutalk in a blanket, even allowing the unconscious man to rest his head on his chest.

"Two mages, come with me. My carriage is buried in snow, but we have enough food to get through the blizzard." Kraft was not as aloof as Frilian; his every move exuded a sunny and cheerful temperament.

The three went out, leaving Erii to move Shutark closer to the fire.

Soon, they returned, carrying with them the cold wind and ice crystals, along with wooden buckets and boxes filled with warm blankets, food, and water.

"With these, we can set off again once the blizzard stops," Frilian said.

And so, Erii began her first ever experience of living in a dormitory-style cabin in the snow-covered mountains.

The group huddled around the fire, playing cards with sea monsters, listening to old man Kraft recount past anecdotes, helping Philon and Hughtark empty the nuts hidden in the tree hole by squirrels, and using the Dustless Land to remove snow from the roof, which almost left everyone homeless...

Until the evening of the fourth day.

bang bang bang~

A rapid knocking sounded on the door.

The five people in front of the fireplace put down their bowls and chopsticks, and Hugh Tarek got up to open the door.

The wind and snow suddenly rushed in, and three disheveled and exhausted figures collapsed inside.

The only woman, holding a magic wand, cried out in terror, "A snow fairy is chasing us! Close the door!"

Judging from their attire and weapons, the other two men were likely adventurers of the warrior class, and they also wore expressions of fear.

"Snow Fairy?" Kraft said, grabbing his long staff and walking out alone.

Two minutes later, he returned unharmed, carrying his stick, and laughed loudly, "Don't worry, I've coaxed him to sleep."

The three of them were relieved, but their stomachs immediately rumbled from the aroma of the food.

"My name is Jessica, and these two are Marco and Mada. The three of us are adventurers who accepted a commission to harvest the Snow Fairy Lotus," the female mage revealed her identity and background with a clear understanding of her background. "But we didn't expect the blizzard here to be so much more terrifying than we imagined. Snow fairies thrive in this environment, and we were no match for them. We fled down the mountain and finally saw a light coming from the wooden house. So, I'm sorry to have disturbed you all."

His voice trembled, but he was quite polite.

"We've lost all our food and haven't eaten all day. Could you... cough cough, we won't eat for free, we'll pay for it." The man named Marco put down the giant hammer in his hand, took out two gold coins from his waist, and said with a smirk.

Mada quickly put down his sword as a gesture of goodwill and also took out some money.

Kraft glanced at it and laughed, "Put it away. Since we met in this desolate wilderness, it means we are destined to meet. It's all the guidance of the goddess."

And so, the cabin suddenly became crowded. Fortunately, the three of them were not ungrateful and behaved very appropriately. They invited Erii and the others to visit their village.

After a brief encounter, Jessica's intellectual friendliness and Marco and Mada's rugged loyalty gradually made everyone lower their guard.

After winning the sea monster card for the Nth time, Erii stared blankly at the crowd whose cheeks were flushed red by the flames, her ears filled with their heartfelt laughter, and she couldn't help but raise the corners of her mouth.

Blizzard, cabin, fireplace, sea monster sign, and unfamiliar traveler... this might become a heartwarming experience she'll never forget.

Several days passed in the blink of an eye, and the blizzard had completely stopped.

"It's time to part ways," Kraft said, slinging his bag over his shoulder and heading toward another fork in the road. "Until we meet again, everyone."

"Bye-bye." Erii waved and turned to catch up with the group.

At this moment, light snow was still falling from the sky, but compared to the raging blizzard where you couldn't see your hand in front of your face, it was a completely leisurely and elegant scene.

"Miss Jessica, where are you going next?" Philon asked.

Jessica opened her backpack, revealing a glass jar containing a unique blue and white lotus flower. "Of course, we're going back to collect our payment. We can travel together for another two days. Why don't you come to my house? My mother makes fantastic iced fruit wine!"

"Okay." Before Philon could answer, Frilian spoke first.

"Is the land of swords a place with many swords?" Erii asked as she walked, looking at the map.

"Yes, I'm also very curious. There's actually a village inside this snow mountain," Shutark chimed in.

"In another hour, we'll see the Land of Swords," Frilian replied calmly.

The group chatted idly as they continued on their way.

Suddenly, Marco, who was at the end, let out a muffled groan, squatted down with his face flushed, and clutched his chest with a distorted expression.

"Ugh~ It's so hot, so burning!"

He stammered, his breath hot as he spoke, and kept grabbing handfuls of snow and stuffing them into his mouth.

Everyone was startled and quickly moved closer to take a look.

"What happened?" Jessica asked anxiously, checking him up and down, but found no obvious wounds on his body.

Just then, Mada, who was standing nearby, also collapsed to the ground, convulsing, exhibiting the exact same symptoms as Mark.

Even Frillie frowned and knelt down to examine them.

"Miss Jessica, they're not magicians, are they?" Philon asked.

Jessica shook her head, bewildered. "No, they've always been warriors."

Philon turned to Frilian and said, "The magical fluctuations have suddenly become stronger; there's something wrong with their bodies."

"Hmm," Frillie had already realized this, "They're under a spell. If they aren't treated in time, their internal organs will be cooked. Besides encountering the snow demon, what else did you encounter?"

"Ah? No, Lady Frilian, Miss Philen, please save them! I... I'll give you the Snow Fairy Lotus, and... and all my money!" Jessica, no longer rational, took off her backpack and said urgently.

The three of them had been adventurers together for several years, and their friendship was extremely deep. They obviously did not want to see their friend die painfully before their eyes.

Suddenly, Frillie's pupils contracted, and she whispered, "Retreat!"

Thump—thump—

The two people who collapsed to the ground turned red rapidly without warning, their skin shining like clear glass.

The next second, the two exploded one after the other, the scorching magical energy turning their flesh and bones into sharp fragments that shot towards the crowd.