WINTER'S SWEET EMBRACE

Behind the trunk of a tree, a short distance away from the flickering light of the camp’s firepit, Vincent struggled to put on a pair of grey trousers.

"Damn it. This shit is way too tight. Hey, Maelle! Isn’t there another pair in that supply bag?!"

"No. Be glad Roxa brought extras at all – unless you are genuinely planning on walking around in your birthday suit."

"Yeesh, no thanks. I think I almost got it anyway. Honestly, your timing was terrible. You know you yanked me out of a very important play date with my friends. I even met a new one."

"Spare me the details, please. I do not particularly care what bizarre activities you engage in while resting in the Spirit World. And besides, when I summoned you, you were fast asleep – far from awake and ’playing’."

’Spirit World? What’s that? Is that where she thinks I’m going anytime she undoes the summon. God, more homework for me I guess...’

Deciding not to correct her and risk a two-hour lecture on magical cosmology, Vincent gave his tight pants once last fitting yank, stepped out from behind the tree, and struck a dramatic, hands-on-hips pose in front of her.

"Tada~ The grand familiar, fully clothed. Thanks for my jacket BT Dubs."

Maelle rolled her eyes so hard it looked painful. Vincent sat down next to her and asked the important question.

"Alright. So why’d you summon me?"

"... Roxa warned me before we set up camp, that this particular stretch of the forest is notorious for dangerous nocturnal threats – shadow-beasts, night crawlers, and the lot. She told me she’s only leaving for fifteen minutes to conduct a perimeter sweep, but she’s been gone for over an hour now. I am worried."

"How can you tell?"

"Excuse me?"

"How can you tell it’s been over an hour?"

"Look to your side on the ground."

Looking down, Vincent noticed a flipped over hourglass with all the sand at the bottom.

"Ohhh. Damn, Roxa really came prepared."

"I had a wristwatch, but it must’ve been stolen by those bandits once they kidnapped me."

She then looked out toward the pitch-black wall of trees surrounding their tiny circle of firelight.

"According to Roxa, the light of this fire should deter most low-level night creatures, but if a serious threat stumbles upon this clearing... I am essentially helpless here by myself."

"Ah. So you called me so I could go on a search-and-rescue for our resident elf."

"Yes. Given the perilous nature of these woods at night, I did not deem it wise to venture out into the dark alone. So, I summoned you to help."

"Fair enough." Vincent stood up, adjusting the slightly ill-fitting trousers one last time with a small grunt. "Sit tight and watch the camp, Princess. I’ll go find her and bring her back."

Maelle popped straight up from the log along with him. "I’m coming with you."

"Nuh-uh. Taking you into an unknown, dangerous forest in the middle of the night makes you a liability and a giant target. I want to move fast and stealthily. Besides, you’re safe right here by the fire, aren’t you?"

"I am not sitting back like a helpless maiden while the person tasking herself with my protection is missing, Vincent."

Seeing that she wasn’t going to budge an inch, Vincent sighed heavily, running a palm through his loose brown hair.

"Fine. You can come. But on one condition: once we find Roxa, you dismiss the summoning and send me back in four hours or less."

"Four hours? Why four hours specifically?"

Vincent kept his face entirely deadpan.

There was no way in hell he was going to admit to her that four hours from now was when he and his mom usually woke up for early morning chores – or that he was terrified Natasha would randomly wake up first, find his side of the bed completely empty, and tear the mansion apart in a panic.

"That’s not important. Deal, or no deal?"

"... You seem to forget who holds the leash here, Vincent. I do not need to make ’deals’ with you. I can simply order you as my Familiar, and your very being will be forced to comply."

Vincent took one step forward, towering over her slightly, and smirked.

"Go ahead then. Try ordering me."

She held his gaze for three long seconds before recognizing that he was calling her bluff.

"Fine. Four hours or less. We have a deal. Now let’s move before it’s potentially too late."

"Cool. Which way did she head out?"

Maelle pointed east.

Vincent took a deep breath, letting his internal power surge. In a flash of soft blue and golden light, his form shifted – long white wings sprouted gracefully from his back, and his hair turned a luminous shade of blue.

Maelle’s breath was momentarily taken away by the transformation. No matter how many times she saw it, his ethereal form was mesmerizing.

Stepping side-by-side past the tree line, they plunged together into the ominous darkness of the woods.

.....

As they walked through the ambient forest, Maelle kept sneaking quick glances at his profile.

Her gaze lingered on the gentle glow of his blue hair, the majestic feathers of his folded white wings, and his eyes, which were currently emitting a soft blue glow in the dark.

Noticing her eyes on her, he smiled and called back without looking at her, "What is it?"

Maelle cleared her throat loudly as she straightened her back. "N-Nothing. I was merely wondering... why are your eyes glowing like that?"

"I’m tracking. From what I’ve observed, elves leave a very specific signature trace flowing through their bodies and the air around them. I believe it’s what people in this world call ’mana’.

"Just like that time at the river and during the rescue mission, elves seem to manipulate mana to control the wind. Some have higher refined control over it than others. I’ve learned to recognise Roxa’s specific flow, so I’m just following her trail."

Vincent then turned his glowing eyes down to Maelle.

"You have mana inside you too, you know. Do you know how to manipulate it? If you do, you’d be a huge help right now instead of needing to summon me every time there’s trouble."

"It is not that simple, Vincent. Despite possessing internal mana, humans cannot manipulate it directly like the elves do. Every race in this world utilizes mana differently. It is bound to our physical origins.

"Just to name a few, Elves control the elemental laws of nature. Beastfolk channel mana to transform their bodies into its true form. Dwarves use it to immensely enhance their physical strength. Merfolk govern the tides and seas. And Humans... humans channel their mana outward to contract and summon Familiars.

"Of course, there are mixed races born across the continents who possess tiny fragments of different traits... but they are largely seen as freaks and outcasts by society. It is simply how God created us. It is etched into our DNA."

Vincent raised an eyebrow when a slight chuckle escaped his lips. "Well... then I must be the ultimate freak of nature."

"Why? What do you mean?"

"Think about it. Besides summoning creatures or people, I can transform, I could control nature through my divine power if I wanted to, and I can pump my body full of energy to gain monstrous strength. I’m basically a mixture of everything."

Maelle stopped walking for a moment and looked at him with a soft expression.

"You are not a freak, Vincent."

"Oh yeah? Then what am I?"

Maelle opened her mouth, her chest heaving slightly as she stared up into his glowing blue eyes to answer.

The words hovered on the tip of her tongue when suddenly–

"Hm!?"

Vincent snapped his head around to look into the darkness of the forest ahead. "Hold that thought. I think I picked up on something. Follow me."

As he walked past, Maelle stood in the dark for a brief moment, watching winged form push past the hanging vines.

"...You are my Familiar," she whispered softly before picking up the pace and rushing after him.

Vincent led her down a steep, rocky slope where the trees grew unnaturally close together. Suddenly, his glowing blue eyes locked onto a large, dark mass slumped heavily against the gnarled roots of a wide-trunked tree.

As they stepped closer to it, the metallic stench of fresh blood and singed flesh whiffed through their nostrils.

They both slapped a hand over their nose.

There, lying before them was the corpse of a terrifying monster – a hulking, armored beast with razor-sharp quills and jagged fangs.

But it wasn’t threatening anymore. It had been slaughtered with brutal efficiency.

Vincent knelt beside the carcass and examined the deep, razor-clean severed edges along the creature’s thick hide.

"This way of cutting... It’s Roxa... C’mon. Let’s hurry."

Moving in deeper, the trail transformed from a faint path into a literal hallway of carnage. Within the next hundred yards, they passed more and more dead beasts.

Maelle’s hand rested nervously on the hilt of the steel hunting knife Roxa had given her earlier before she left.

’Did Roxa run into an ambush?’ she thought as her eyes darted between the trees. ’Was she cornered?! Is she hurt?’

The mana trail finally led Vincent toward an unusually thick, towering wall of overgrown flowering vines and dense, thorny hedges that completely blocked off a small, hidden clearing.

Vincent raised a flat hand, halting Maelle.

Leaning in close to her ear, he whispered: "This is it. Stay back here while I go in. You never know what’s on the other side."

Maelle nodded nervously as her heart hammered. She stayed back with the knife close to her chest as she braced for the worst.

Vincent held up three fingers...

...Three...

...Two...

....One!

FWOOSH!

SPLASH!

Vincent landed mid-stride... sinking ankle-deep into crystal-clear, steaming warm water and froze.

Sitting comfortably along the edge of the pool, leaning her head back against a smooth stone with an expression of pure bliss turned cautiously weary as she reached for her dagger... was a completely naked Roxa.