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But, it's how we can make sure that every step we take is safe and secure. After a Catastrophe, we must be extremely cautious inside Originium zones—

A sudden gust of wind rises, causing Elena to stumble, but Joanna catches her from behind just in the knick of time.

Thanks—

...Hmph.

The chilly, snowflake-laced wind sweeps over them, and all other noise ceases, save for the whistling wind and its sharp, biting cold.

How did the temperature drop so sharply all of a sudden? Is this...?

I know of a deserted village up ahead. Let's head over there and find a house to shelter in.

Enya, who has been lagging behind the group because she was flipping through her notebook, steps in between the two.

She stretches her palms out, her fingertips only slightly reddened from the cold.

Come. Take my hand.

The fresh snow is too slippery, and the terrain here is steep as well. It would be terrible if someone slipped and fell here.

Hmm... You're both hesitating?

Do you not want to hold my hands?

Enya... I mean, Your Holiness, I...

No, thank you.

One hand extends forward.

Hmph. I'm just doing this for Her Holiness.

Joanna turns her head away, but nevertheless places her hand within Enya's.

Phew... Thankfully, the temple is in a much better state than the other buildings because there still are people who come by occasionally to do repairs.

The three shake off the thick snow from their cloaks. They arrive at the village only briefly before the snow starts to come down heavily, fluttering down like feathers.

You two... Go ahead and rest. I'll see if the fireplace here can still be lit.

You can usually find a small woodshed behind the village temple. I'll go take a look.

Need my help?

...I'm good. You...

Didn't you say you were going to do the weather forecast? Just go do your thing!

I've already set it up. The measuring device will automatically gather data from our surrounding area, so I can help you carry—

I told you I'm good! Don't follow me...!

Before Elena can even stand up, Joanna already manages to feel out the small door behind the temple statue with practiced ease.

The layout of any Kjerag monastery is more or less the same. The girl rushes out back, and the door slams loudly behind her.

Did I do something to upset her...?

Maybe just a little, but not that much. Don't worry about it.

Joanna is a kind girl. Even when she's grumpy, she still wants you to be warm. Just like not long ago, when she protected me from assassins even though she despises me.

However, for many of Kjerag's villagers, your thoughts and words can hurt them, even if they are without malice.

I'm sorry... I was too rash...

That's not your fault, nor is it the fault of Kjerag's people. If anything is at fault... perhaps it is simply your differences.

Any sort of communication between people... is about these differences.

Even partners who work together in the lab, sharing the same ideas and goals, can still have disagreements.

Which is why... communication and understanding between people is so precious.

Enya folds her cloak and puts it aside, point to a snowflake on it that has not yet melted.

Oh, look at that.

...A snowflake?

The people of Kjerag sometimes use snowflakes that have not melted upon stepping indoors as a form of divination. These unbroken, branch-like snowflakes are a sign that our journey will be smooth.

According to folklore, the snow is a messenger protected by Kjeragandr, carrying important truths and omens.

It can predict the harvest, the hunt, the craftsman's hammer-fall, and even quarrels between friends and lovers.

Some may say that this iconic, tree-like hexagonal snowflake with well-defined branches is a sign of good fortune. But, others just as easily see within it a broken connection, an omen of disaster.

And so... regardless of what happens in the end, the fortune-teller always has something to say.

Worst-case scenario, they always say, 'the diviner you met was just bad; the movement of the stars had already revealed the truth long ago,' and use that to defend their authority.

You also seem quite knowledgeable about divination, Elena.

You could say I've had some run-ins with them... due to family circumstances.

In any case, most divination has nothing to do with revealing the truth. It's just... a form of self-delusion and sophistry.

A place where no people wish to go, has no roads leading to it.

If a problem does not exist, there will be no solution created to resolve it.

Fate is a fickle thing, just as your science should acknowledge that there are many things on this land that cannot be controlled or predicted.

On this great land, we are but tiny people trying to grasp a glimmer of the prophetic and the true.

Is this so different from the origins of 'scientific' discovery? Knowledge is what makes people feel safe and allows them to face an unreasonably uncertain future.

In a sense, coincidence, probability, and fate are all the same concept. Fate falls on many, just as this snowflake has fallen on my cloak.

I get it. Even placebos can be an efficacious type of medicine.

But... I've also seen many things in modern Kjerag.

In the past, I always tried to see such strong beliefs as a kind of cultural phenomenon; a ritual, a projection, a form of comfort-seeking...

But... what exactly are they to you people?

She asks the question in a soft, subdued voice. The wind outside the window has already subsided significantly.

Kjerag's Saintess looks up at the statue of Kjeragandr on the altar. Beneath a slab of stone engraved with messy markings, several brightly-colored figurines sit side-by-side.

They were exhibition goods produced around the time of the Lake Silberneherze ceremony. By the looks of things, someone brought them to this village temple as an offering to the reclusive Kjeragandr.

The clerics of the Vine-Bead Court often describe faith as walking into the darkness without a lamp, or leaping fearlessly into a silent ravine.

Everyone always seems to yearn for Her. Ascetics, devout believers, faithful followers of the Commandments—countless people endure innumerable hardships just to reach Her side.

But... for me...

She tries hard to recall, but the memories in her mind are now but struggling fragments, jumping around like frames from a movie, shrouded in a dark haze.

A strong emotion surges once more within Enya's heart.

Trouble—!

Joanna suddenly rushes in with a gasp, firewood in her arms, her cheeks flushed from running.

I just... I just saw, coming down the mountain... Lots of Victorian cars, heading for the mine!

Victorians? That mine is a joint operation with Kazimierz. What are they trying to do there...?

Have they already picked up our trail?

Don't panic just yet. Regardless of what business they have with the mine, we have to hurry.

Let's pack up our things and set out immediately. We need to be even more careful and discreet on the road ahead.

Just a second, please. I need to pack up my instrument first, and it...

Wait, how could this...?

What are you dawdling around for? Hurry and pack it up! Here, I'll help you...

What... is this?

This... 'Moderate Catastrophe Risk' written here... does it mean what I think it means?

Catastrophe...

Could there be another Catastrophe brewing...?