I PICKED UP A CHILD IN A DUMPSTER-Chapter 45: We’re Safe...? (III)

***

We ran.

Nivalis ran through the snow, breath ripping from her lungs in heavy bursts. Arven now awake clung weakly to the saddle, Hana hunched low in front of her, arms wrapped tight around Arven. And me— slung over that woman’s shoulder like baggage.

And somehow—

She kept pace.

Not struggling. Not lagging.

Running.

Every few steps, she casually swung her katana forward. No pause. No effort. Just a lazy flick of her wrist— and the trees ahead of us split apart before we ever reached them. Trunks parted. Branches flew. Snow exploded outward as if the forest itself was being pushed aside to make way.

She even yawned.

"She’s an ancient dog," she said, voice bored, almost disappointed, "but she’s probably the weakest Ursa Canis I’ve ever seen."

My jaw tightened.

"Slow, too."

I looked at Nivalis.

At her furless body covered in scars. At the way her steps were uneven. At how her breathing rattled.

Weak...?

Then it hit me.

She wasn’t sprinting.

The woman was matching our pace on purpose.

Never mind— she was holding herself back.

"What do you mean... weakest?" I asked, my voice strained as the wind tore past my ears.

She tilted her head slightly, still running. "Mm. She’s like a dog that’s been spoiled too much. Sheltered. Never pushed to the edge."

"Spoiled?" I snapped. "What do you mean? Look at her—she has a lot of scars on her body."

"That doesn’t mean she’s been close to death," she replied. "Not really."

Another slash. Another line of trees erased.

"She’s never lived close to death," she continued. "Not like the Ursa Canis I’ve seen. Not hunted. Not broken. Not forced to grow."

"And when I say not hunted," she went on, amused, "it’s because no one can. Ursa Canis are monsters far beyond your expectations."

My eye twitched.

Nivalis?

Sheltered?

"So..." I hissed, then smiled a little. "You’re telling me there are levels to this shit?"

She nodded casually.

"Of course."

Then—

A system window burst open beside my vision.

「TARGET DISTANCE: 982M」

Before I could even process it—

Another.

「TARGET DISTANCE: 982M」

Then again.

The notifications wouldn’t stop. They didn’t just pop up anymore— they stacked.

One after another, snapping into place beside my vision, lining up vertically like a tower made of glowing glass.

「TARGET DISTANCE: 873M」

My breath caught.

「TARGET DISTANCE: 732M」

The numbers were dropping too fast.

「TARGET DISTANCE: 612M」

THUD.

The ground shook.

Snow jumped beneath us.

「TARGET DISTANCE: 512M」

Another THUD— closer this time.

Trees fallen tree’s behind us wear heard snapping like a twigs.

「TARGET DISTANCE: 482M」

My heart slammed against my ribs.

THUD.

The impact reverberated up through Nivalis’ legs, through the saddle, through my spine.

「TARGET DISTANCE: 312M」

My eyes twitched.

The stack grew taller, creeping higher and higher in my peripheral vision, numbers shrinking faster now— each update snapping into place with a sharp, mechanical chime.

THUD.

「TARGET DISTANCE: 212M」

"It’s getting closer!" I shouted, panic tearing through my voice. "HEY— IT’S GETTING CLOSER!"

She didn’t even look worried.

"Meh," she replied, finally glancing over her shoulder.

Then anther window forced itself into the pile.

「TARGET DISTANCE: 92M」

My blood ran cold.

That’s when it saw us.

A shadow burst through the fallen trees behind us— too big, too fast. Snow and branches were obliterated as it forced its way forward, its shape finally clear between the broken trunks.

Then—

It roared.

The sound wasn’t just loud.

It hit.

It punched into my bones, rattled my teeth, vibrated through my skull like the mountain itself was screaming. Nivalis stumbled mid-stride, letting out a strained bark as fear surged through her body.

Hana held Arven closer.

Arven groaned. 𝐟𝕣𝕖𝐞𝐰𝕖𝚋𝐧𝗼𝚟𝐞𝕝.𝗰𝐨𝐦

Even my vision blurred for a split second.

The roar followed us, chasing, suffocating, filling every gap in the air—

And beside all that terror—

The woman laughed softly.

"Oh," she said, eyes gleaming as she finally turned fully toward the sound, katana lifting slightly in her hand.

"So you finally caught up."

She swung once— clean, casual.

The arc of her blade tore through the air and slammed straight into the Frosthowl.

The impact didn’t cut it.

It stopped it.

The massive beast skidded backward, claws carving trenches into the snow as its body locked in place, stunned mid-motion.

The woman didn’t even look impressed.

She turned her head toward Nivalis.

"Hey," she said calmly. "Stand up."

Nivalis barked— sharp, obedient and forced herself upright, muscles screaming as she surged forward again.

"Okay," the woman added lightly. "Let’s go. That swing probably only stunned that big guy for a minute."

She glanced back once.

"...It’s a still big difference."

We ran.

Snow blurred past. My body bounced uselessly against her shoulder as Nivalis Ran forward, breath coming out in thick white plumes.

I clenched my jaw.

"Can’t you just kill that Frosthowl?" I asked. "You’re strong, right?"

"Nah," she replied instantly. "Don’t feel like it."

I looked at her.

"Or maybe you can’t?"

For a split second, she looked away.

"Trust me," she said quietly. "I can. I just don’t feel like it."

"Then why are you looking away?"

Her eyes snapped back to me— cold, sharp.

"Thief."

She swung again.

The forest ahead of us vanished.

Trees were erased in a single sweeping motion, trunks sliced so cleanly they didn’t even fall right away— just slid apart as wind exploded through the gap.

"Huh?" I muttered. "Where did that come from?"

"Shut your mouth," she said flatly. "Or I’ll leave you here."

I didn’t say another word.

We ran in silence after that.

After a while of running— no, after what felt like an eternity the fog finally thinned.

And there it was.

The tower.

It stood at the heart of the Foggy Snowfall Mountain, tall and unmoving, its silhouette cutting through the storm. Even from this distance, it felt wrong— too still for something so massive, like it had been waiting.

And for the first time since this nightmare started... I really did miss this big guy.

"I won’t cut trees anymore," she said suddenly. "Understand?"

"Why?" I asked.

She didn’t answer right away.

"I just can’t," she replied. "I really can’t. I can’t even explain it to you."

Nivalis barked sharply and adjusted her path, weaving between trees and broken rocks with practiced instinct, snow exploding beneath her paws.

The woman released me for a split second— then she leapt.

She ran along the trees instead, feet barely touching the bark, jumping from trunk to trunk, keeping pace with Nivalis without slowing at all.

Then—

THUD.

The sound rolled through the mountain.

My heart dropped.

I looked back.

The Frosthowl burst from the fog.

Faster.

Closer.

Its massive body tore through the snow, eyes locked on us, breath steaming violently.

"Shit," the woman cursed.

"Why?" I shouted. "Just do that slash thing again!"

"I can’t," she snapped. "I can’t destroy anything in this part!"

The Frosthowl roared— louder than before.

The sound slammed into my bones, rattling my skull, making my vision blur.

It charged.

Straight through the forest.

A tree shattered under its weight.

And the moment one trunk broke— The ground reacted.

A green sprout burst from the snow.

Then another.

Vines exploded upward, thick and alive, wrapping around the Frosthowl’s legs, its torso, its neck.

The beast snarled, thrashed—

Too late.

The vines pulled.

With a violent lurch, the Frosthowl was yanked off the ground and launched upward, its roar cutting off as it was dragged high into the fog, swallowed by the FOGS above.

I looked up.

The sprout stretched impossibly far, catching the Frosthowl mid-air.

The Frosthowl bit down, claws tearing, ripping the vine apart.

It fell—

Only for another sprout to erupt and catch it.

Then another.

And another.

Each time it struggled free, the mountain answered again.

"Seems like I don’t need to explain," the woman said calmly.

That was when it hit me.

This mountain wasn’t just dangerous.

It was alive.

And there was so much more here— things I hadn’t seen, things I didn’t understand yet.

Snowfall Mountain wasn’t just a floor... like Arven said... It was a Region.

And I had barely scratched the surface.

The familiar window I both loved and hated flickered into existence beside my vision.

「Si Hon. Miss me? I’m back.」

I let out a shaky breath.

"...Truly," I muttered. "I did miss you so much."

The text shifted.

「Based on your current knowledge of Snowfall Mountain and what truly exists within it:

Discovered: 3%

Undiscovered: 97%

This Floo— Region is VAST.」

"Yeah," I said quietly. "Thanks... I really missed your texts, Systemy."

Then I realized—

The tower was right there.

So close now.

Just a little more.

Just a little more run and steps—

And we’d reach it.