A steam shower was better than I expected. There was still something missing, like a good scrubbing, but it was very pleasant. Astrid and I kept talking during the sauna. Although, to be fair, I was the one doing most of the talking. But she seemed appreciative of the conversation. Even in moments when I felt like I was talking to myself, she chimed in with a question or a short reply. I think the reason for her speaking like that was probably her upbringing. From the little she told me, her dad was also a man of few words. And if I understood it right, they never had conversations that lasted more than a few sentences. Despite that, Astrid seemed like a good person. She cared about others, wanted to help those in need, understood that she couldn't do everything by herself, and overall had a good head on her shoulders. Which was something this village was seriously lacking.

Eventually, we rushed back to the house. Astrid moved very quickly, but I was faster despite the unfamiliar location. Sure, I might be cheating because of the System, but it was too cold to think of this as a competition. The goal was not to get here before her, just to get here and into something warm. I quickly wrapped myself in a towel and started rubbing myself down, trying to retain any of the warmth that came from the steam. Strangely enough, it worked. As soon as I walked through the door and away from the cold outside air, I was already feeling comfortable. The warmth that permeated my skin was able to fight against the snow during those few moments.

My host arrived a few moments after me with a satisfied smile. Unlike me, she did not grab a towel to maintain the heat, but just let out a few happy grunts.

"You know, it looks like you enjoy this part more than you enjoyed the steam shower," I said, still trying to process the fact that I was not cold.

"I do. Feels great."

"I am glad you like it. If I am honest, I would not do that very often."

"Why?" Astrid turned towards me as she walked over to the small kitchen and pulled out a bottle of something. She removed the cork and poured a glass of a brown liquid. Before I could answer, she offered the glass to me.

"What is that?"

"Booze."

"I don't like the cold all that much. And doing this every day doesn't sound fun," With a shrug, I took the glass.

Astrid poured another and walked back to the living room, sitting on a wooden bench with some furs covering it. I sat on the one opposite, still wrapped in the towel while she was just in her underwear. The liquid in my glass had a strong smell, and it was clearly alcoholic, but I had never seen this kind before, not in person at least. In a way, it looked like the whiskey I had seen on television. Astrid was staring at me, likely waiting for me to taste the drink. Not wanting to leave her hanging, I took a swig. After all, people used to do that on TV. Might as well follow along.

It took me less than a second to regret that decision. I felt the liquid burning my throat as it went down. I coughed and hacked for a good two minutes before I was able to speak again. During all that time, Astrid had a smirk on her face.

Once I was able to breathe again, she spoke up. "You sip this."

"Why did you not tell me before?"

"It is funny."

I rolled my eyes. "I am glad I can be your entertainment for the night." Glancing down at my cup, I steeled myself before taking a small sip. This time, I could actually taste the drink. It had a rich flavor with some sweet notes of zesty fruit, but that was overshadowed by the strong alcohol in the mix.

"Like it?" Astrid asked.

"A bit. But it is also too strong for me. We didn't have alcohol back in my village all that often." I took another sip and looked around, noticing how many furs covered the place. "Did you hunt all this?"

Astrid just nodded.

"Was it just regular hunting, or did you have a specific goal in mind?"

"I need to be stronger," Astrid took another sip, not even bothering to look at me. It was almost as if the answer was meant for herself.

"Because of the ice devil?" There were a lot of furs here, and most of them looked fresh. Too fresh. As if she got them in the past couple of weeks.

"That too," Astrid paused, but I waited for her to continue. "My dad wanted a safe world. I want one too. A world with no monsters."

I nodded, but considering that there were a few other species with access to the System, I was not entirely sure her dreams were possible. They might be, but they would involve a few genocides—which is never great. But Astrid was following her late father's dream. No one could argue against that. And honestly? Could I even blame them for having that dream? A world without monsters sounded like a paradise.

"But a lot of these furs look really new. How long has it been since you hunted them all?"

Astrid looked around and pointed to a white pelt just by the entrance, serving as a mat. "Oldest. Six months." She then turned to the one I was sitting on top of. "Newest, five days."

Between the pelts on the benches, the chair, the table, the curtains, the floor, and the handful I saw in the bedroom, there should be around 70 different furs spread around the house. And that was not even taking into account the ones she had stashed away somewhere else.

"That is a lot of hunting. Even if you are feeding the village, that is a lot. Are you okay? You are not risking yourself too much, are you? Are these scars related to this or just old scars?"

Astrid groaned and slumped back in her chair, taking a large sip of her drink. "I am fine. Was stupid. Got hurt. Nothing more."

The mood turned sour. It was clear she was not appreciative of my concern. Instead, she seemed to feel like I was treating her like a child or something. I don't know. It is not like there is a way for me to understand what is going on in her mind. After some time where we just sat there staring at each other, I gave up.

The tale has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

"Do you think you can show me the mines tomorrow? I want to see what's inside there." It was better to change subjects. There was no reason to stay on that topic. Possible or not, Astrid was following her late father’s dream. No one could argue against that.

"I can. We leave early."

"Okay. Any specific reason for that, or just to make use of the sunlight?"

"Takes one hour for me. Two for us," Astrid explained.

"Hey! I might not be used to walking in this little, but I'm not that slow. I even got here first after the shower."

"Different problem. Path is complicated."

"If you say so." I finished my drink and put the cup on the table. "Mind if I go to bed? I walked a lot today, and I'm a bit tired. Need to rest if we are going to walk a lot tomorrow."

Astrid nodded. "More pelts in the trunk."

I remembered seeing a heavy chest at the foot of the bed. It was good to know that if I needed it, I could turn myself into a fur-covered burrito. After thanking my host, I walked back to the room, closed the door, and went to bed. A part of me was really excited about tomorrow but also a bit worried. Which is why I had one thing to do before sleeping.

'Sys, do me a favor. Put {Formless Nodus Swipe} in the memory bank and later add {Formless Boar Charge} to my skills. If we are going into a mine, I'm not entirely sure I'll be able to do wide attacks to trigger the swipe.'

[Acknowledged. Question: Does user believe {Formless Boar Charge} will be more effective than {Burst of Strength} if user needs to fight inside the mines?]

'I don't know. Both have their merits, but if I use {Burst of Strength}, then a useless skill will be occupying a memory slot. In that case, it would be the {Formless Series} since I wouldn't have any actual formless skill to use.'

[What about {Formless Steps of Prey}?]

'The idea is to hunt monsters. I would prefer to have something offensive, since I already have {Body Regeneration}, {Predatory Sense}, and the Enduring Heart title taking care of defenses.'

[Neither the skills nor the title user mentioned are, strictly speaking, defensive. {Body Regeneration} and Enduring Heart are recovery-based effects. {Predatory Sense} would fall more in the utility category since it does not allow user to block an actual attack.]

'By that logic, so would {Formless Steps of Prey}. Are you really against me using {Formless Boar Charge}?'

[System is simply attempting to help user identify the best option for the scenario. Experience dictates that a conversation would assist user in making the best possible decision, even if said decision was the same decision user initially made.]

'Oh? Thank you for that. It does help to explain my train of thought. For now, it is easy since I have few skills, but I imagine that as they change and grow, it will be harder to pick the ones that work best for each situation.'

[System exists only to serve user. If System is able to help, System has fulfilled its purpose.]

I held back a chuckle. The walls here did not seem particularly thick, and considering how each step Astrid took reached my ears, there was a good chance she could hear anything I did. 'That is a very convoluted way of saying "you are welcome."'

The System didn't say anything else, and I did not want it to. After the shower, the drink, and getting under the covers, I felt extremely comfortable in this soft mattress, ready to sleep for the night. Unfortunately, it felt as if I had just blinked and the sun was already up in the sky. It was a good night of sleep, but it just felt too short. Fighting off the urge to stay under the covers, I quickly got up, got dressed, and walked out of the room. Astrid was already preparing something for us to eat in the kitchen. She saw me pass by and just gave me a nod. The tension from yesterday apparently gone.

"Do we eat and go?" I approached her, hoping there was something I could do to help.

Astrid turned around with a plate full of pieces of bread covered in butter, all of them toasted in a pan. The fact that they used fire so freely here still felt wild to me.

"Yes. A stop first."

"In the village?"

Astrid just nodded. "Routine."

"Do you need to tell anyone that you are okay or just make sure nothing happened during the night?"

"Make sure." Astrid took one of the slices of bread and started eating. She gestured for me to follow, and my stomach was already growling.

We ate in silence, but a question came to mind.

'Sys, I get energy from food, correct?'

[Correct.]

'But I also need energy to move. And I do not mean the same energy that I use for my skills. But I have {Energy Storage}—does that mean I could go a few days without eating by just taking Energy from it?'

[Currently, no. Energy present in {Energy Storage} may have come from calories, however it was converted into a different type of Energy. This new Energy cannot be used to move the body, only to move SP.]

'I see…' It was a bit of a shame, but there was likely a skill that allowed me to convert that. Then again, I kind of liked eating. Not sure if I would ever stop doing that unless it was strictly necessary.

After finishing the meal, we left Astrid's house and started walking towards the village. Now that the sun was out, it was easier to see the distance between the two, and it was not as bad as I had pictured last night. Before my thoughts could dwell on that, a commotion caught our attention. Astrid started jogging, and I followed. There was a group of people outside their houses, everyone speaking loudly and over each other. Three specific women seemed more frantic than the rest. One of them was sobbing, another was yelling loudly, and the third was being held by two men while she kept trying to move in a specific direction.

"Astrid!" Francis gasped as we arrived. He gave me a glance, but it was clear he had no intention of talking to me.

"What happened?" Astrid asked.

"You!" The woman who was being held turned around and started stomping in our direction. "It is all your fault, you fucking half-wit!"

"Kat. Stop," Francis pushed the woman away, but to no avail.

"Get off me, Francis. She has been going on and on about this fucking ice devil in the mines, and now my dear Johnny went there trying to find it. And he took his stupid friends with him."

"Do not call my son stupid!" the woman who was yelling continued.

"He followed my dumbass son. That makes him stupid, Erica!" Kat yelled again.

"When?" Astrid asked.

"When what? Use your fucking words, you lumbering oaf!" Kat continued yelling, but Astrid had already turned to Francis.

"They left before sunrise. So, an hour ago. Or that is what we are assuming. All we know is that Johnny left a letter, and one of the guards thinks they saw something about an hour ago," the man explained.

Astrid turned towards me, and I nodded. "Going there was already the plan. Let’s go rescue some stupid kids."