After Rachel found Leriana alone in the middle of the forest, only one thought occurred to her: how did she get here in the first place?

There was a single forest on the territory of the Duchy of Cassius, which everyone preferred to avoid. It was called Dense for a reason, because it was easy to get lost there, and it was almost impossible to get back out.

Already several dozen people have been lost in this way, and have not returned. And since then, Duke Cassius has officially banned his people from visiting it. Even the forester, who had been following him for more than twenty years, was forced to change jobs.

Of all the inhabitants of the duchy, only Leriana did not know this rule. But no one could have imagined that the girl would somehow wander into it. If it wasn't for Rachel, who knew the forest like the back of her hand, no one would have found her for sure.

It took the girl less than an hour to get here, but with Leriana it may take longer. The weather was getting worse and worse by the minute. Rachel was worried that she might just not survive the journey and freeze. After all, already now, her whole body turned blue from the cold.

Rachel didn't want to take any chances and decided to wait out the night in the woods. Since childhood, she remembered that somewhere here there was a forester's hut, where it was possible to hide from the snow. It wasn't the best option, but it was much better than nothing.

Carrying Leriana, who was still unconscious, on her back, the girl went in this direction. Despite the pitch darkness, she was perfectly oriented on the terrain, and a blizzard could not interfere with her.

Now, even if she had to face a hurricane, Rachel was willing to overcome all these difficulties for her.

Soon, at some distance from this place, Rachel saw an abandoned wooden hut with no lights on. The forester for whom it was built had not lived there for a long time.

Rachel clenched her teeth, intending to make one last push.

Effortlessly breaking open the door, the girl immediately slammed it against the wind, and put Leriana in a corner. Her head was leaning against the wall, but she still didn't open her eyes.

Before abandoning this hut, almost all the furniture was taken out of it, so we had to limit ourselves to some amenities. There was no more snow hitting my face, but it was still very cold here. Rachel searched in vain for matches or anything that could help light a fire. However, the hut was indeed empty.

Since time was running out for minutes, Rachel was afraid to leave Leriana alone and go to the forest for firewood. It may take too long.

Putting her hand to her forehead, she became even more agitated. The girl was as cold as ice, and did not show any visible signs of life. She spent several hours in the snow in an open space, which an ordinary person could hardly survive.

Rachel took off the only coat she had on and covered her with it. But it still wasn't enough.

This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

Rachel never thought that she would ever be so afraid for someone's life.

Meanwhile, while the girl was frantically thinking about what she could do in this situation, Leriana suddenly woke up.

Slightly opening her eyelids, she turned her gaze to Rachel, who was in front of her, and as if she didn't quite believe that it was really her. The Rachel Leriana knew would never have come this far to save her.

Under the influence of the low temperatures experienced, the girl could hardly think, and her consciousness was as if in delirium.

She smiled absently.

— Am I in heaven...?

Rachel shuddered and looked at her.

— Are you awake?!

Leriana giggled softly.

— It looks like it's really in paradise…

Rachel grabbed her by the shoulders, looking straight into her eyes.

— Just don't fall asleep, okay? Be patient until morning, I'll figure something out.

But in this state, the girl could hardly hear her. She was still smiling blissfully, as if she saw an angel in front of her.

—You're not Rachel," she said suddenly.

- what?

— Rachel… She would never have come for me.

Leriana mumbled it, barely moving her lips, but Rachel heard it anyway. She frowned when she told her that.

— I'm Rachel, — the girl said firmly, — Have you lost your last brains? Don't you recognize me?

—You're lying," Leriana said stubbornly, "you just look like her." The real Rachel hates me…

Rachel sighed.

— You either keep quiet, or stop talking nonsense.

The girl let out a laugh.

— And this looks like her… Are you really Rachel?

She chuckled.

— Did you finally get it?

In the next second, Leriana suddenly shuddered, as if something had hit her in the head. Her pupils dilated and she stared at the girl in shock, grabbing her by the shoulders.

At that moment, there seemed to be one sound thought left in her mind.

Rachel was surprised by this turn of events.

—If you're really Rachel, then promise me something," she said importantly.

— Hmm?

— Promise... if you have a child in the future, you will treat him well.

What?

Rachel stared at her in amazement.

Why did she suddenly start talking about children at such a time?

Despite the fact that a couple of minutes ago Leriana was neither alive nor dead, now she clung to Rachel with a surprisingly strong grip. There was a firm determination in his eyes to get an answer.

— What are you talking about? — Rachel didn't understand, — What the hell kind of child...?

— Promise me! The girl repeated stubbornly.

Leriana was talking some nonsense, but at the same time she looked like it was extremely important.

Rachel was confused, not knowing what to say to her. Until that moment, she had not thought about children at all, especially in such an environment.

Meanwhile, the girl still continued to cling to her, despite the fact that she herself was about to lose consciousness.

Rachel didn't know what it was about, but eventually gave up:

— Okay.… I promise.

Upon hearing the answer, Leriana seemed greatly relieved. For a split second she smiled, after which her body still could not stand it, and she closed her eyes.

Rachel immediately started shaking her.

— Hey, I told you, don't fall asleep! What place are you listening to?!

She tried in vain to bring the girl to her senses again, but Leriana did not wake up. Dropping her head on her shoulder, her face seemed paler than snow. Breathing was difficult to catch at all.

Rachel understood that her chance of surviving until morning on her own was extremely low. If not to say impossible.

Although Rachel herself was without any outerwear, she didn't think about it at all. Because I didn't feel cold at all.

Startled, the girl realized that there was only one way out of this situation.

The one she least wanted to resort to.

But did Rachel have a choice now? To save Leriana, she was ready to go even to such a thing.

She could only hope that Leriana wouldn't blame her afterward.

After thinking for a split second, Rachel finally decided. Removing the scarf and the top coat from the girl, she had full access to her neck.

Rachel's scarlet pupils sparkled in the darkness.

— I'm sorry if it hurts…

The next moment, Rachel approached and bit her.