I’m sure he wasn’t buried under a rock somewhere. He’s a fierce little guy, so it’s unlikely, but I was still worried.
“He’ll be fine. If he’s not here, he must have escaped safely in the nick of time.”
Lacius tried to reassure me. I frowned and let out a weak laugh.
Well, I’m glad he’s safe, but it’s a bit disappointing. If his master is in danger, shouldn’t he try to save her right away instead of escaping by himself?
‘Hmm, but I really didn’t see him falling with us.’
It would be nice if he could at least stick close to the princess. However, the problem was what if he fell here with us but was missing.
‘Did he chase after those roots he seemed so eager to grab?’
Cats are cute because they are curious and haughty, and I incorporated those traits when I created Cat. If it were princess-unnie’s Precious, it would definitely not leave my side.
‘I just hope he’s safe. Well, I need to get out of here first in order to check on him.’
We had been walking for at least 30 minutes. My legs were starting to ache, and my ankle throbbed, indicating it might have been longer. As silence soaked everyone, I finally spoke up.
“Hey, everyone.”
We’d circled three times, always ending up at the same spot. I clicked my tongue and continued speaking.
“It seems like we’re trapped. We probably can’t find another path easily, so let’s take a break.”
I was sure of it because I was dropping fairies as I walked. The fairy I just saw appears again and again. The first time around, I thought, “No, there is no way.” The second time, “Surely not.” But by the third time, if you don’t admit it, you’re an idiot.
As soon as I finished speaking, there was a cold silence, and the civilians plopped down to the ground. They must be exhausted and fatigued, both physically and mentally.
“It seems like the path is circular, centered around a large rock.”
“In the end, does that mean the only way out is the way we came in?”
Back to square one. Kun warriors and Lacius took turns exchanging opinions.
“But you said earlier that air was coming in from somewhere, so maybe there’s another way we haven’t found?”
Daphne whispered, squeezing the child’s hand and comforting them.
That was a reasonable assumption. Our condition was extremely bad. Passages and entrances that would have been visible in perfect condition may not be visible at all now.
To make matters worse, the desert is scorching hot, and this cave was cold. I hadn’t felt it at first, but now there was a chill in the air that sent a shiver down my spine.
“Cough, cough.”
Eventually, Daphne and the old man coughed in unison. Not sneezes, but coughs. This was a bad sign.
‘This isn’t going to work.’
I expected to be able to leave right away, but it might take a lot more time than expected. We had no food or water, and our body temperatures were dropping. Thanks to the power the little shaman infused, we had light, but if this situation continued for more than a day, the weaker ones would start collapsing first.
‘I have no choice.’
The first thing to prioritize in an emergency, whether stranded or isolated in the mountains, is maintaining body temperature. I summoned the sparkling fairies to surround me. Then I took out my magic pen and scanned the wall.
“Are you planning to draw something?”
“Yeah. I’m going to make some blankets.”
Lacius stood next to me. Curious eyes are focused on my back. In particular, the Terran diplomat, whose face I only knew had a twinkle in his eye,.
‘… … It’s very burdensome, but I shouldn’t worry about it for now.’
Just do what you can do now and don’t worry about the future.
This is also one of the survival rules my mother, Mrs. Lim, taught me for dangerous situations. Following her advice, I touched the wall to find a flat, even spot. Of course, it wasn’t as smooth as paper, but it was good enough for drawing
“Come out, blanket.”
The people here would inevitably find out what I was. Even if they don’t know about painting wizards, they would at least suspect that I am a wizard. I decided to just play it cool and brought out about ten blankets.
“As expected, it was painted on stone, so the quality is not very good.”
But at least they weren’t wet. I handed out the blankets to the elderly first. Daphne took one and snuggled up with the child. The little shaman, on the other hand, was carried by a warrior of Kun with a blanket wrapped around them.
“Everyone, try to preserve your body temperature. If you are tired, take a break, but avoid talking about depressing or sad things.”
Leaving the civilians to rest, I pulled Lacius’ arm.
“Lashin, how about we take another lap together?”
“You should rest too.”
“I’m very fine. I just want to get out of here as soon as possible.”
“Still. You just created blankets.”
The corners of his eyes narrowed slightly, as if he didn’t like what I was doing, even though he was doing as I asked. Then he touches my cheek in a circular motion with his thumb. Feeling good because the touch was filled with worry, I rubbed my cheek against his large, firm hand.
Even in situations like this, because he is there, I’m not afraid—not in the slightest, not at all. I wouldn’t have been afraid even if he wasn’t there, but with him, there was nothing in the world to fear. It’s amazing how the feeling of liking someone can make you so strong.
I burst into laughter with this realization.
“Alright, I understand. I can’t win against you.”
“Yes, then let’s go. We really can’t use this as an exit. No matter how I think about it, we’re only going to get ourselves in trouble here.”
We are buried. We were lucky to be alive because there was a cave underneath, but that thing over our heads was a bomb that could go off at any moment.
However, I can’t paint a picture strong enough to protect everyone here when that rock, stone, and dirt come crashing down. Nothing is possible here other than simple cave engravings. As for the protective charms I carry on my body, they are only for protecting me and do not have a large scope.
“Kun warriors will stay here to protect everyone. We’ll try to move by ourselves this time and find a possible exit.”
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