The cold night wind seemed a little gentler. As dusk approached, Selene went into the carriage, passing the upright seats fastened to the carriage, and stopped at the back.

There was a bag on the ground, large enough to hold an adult. It looked like the sacks she was familiar with, but the material was unfamiliar and very pleasant to the touch.

Selene bent down and searched through the bag.

A set of chains, the ones she had been wearing when she woke up, but they were now open; several letters written in an unfamiliar language, which she had already read; a few pieces of cloth that looked like they had been torn off, scattered on the ground; a few things that looked like cookies or bread, which had served as her dinner… Finally, she found what she was looking for: a delicate and elegant quill, a pot of ink, and a notebook made of several sheets of paper bound together.

Selene picked up the quill and notebook, and grabbed a handful of rations, sitting down at the very front of the carriage. Considering the warmth needed for sleeping, she’d intentionally set up the fire close to the carriage. Sleeping at the front of the carriage meant that she wouldn’t have to worry about the temperature being too low while resting, even if the fire caught the wooden structure of the carriage. She’d have time to put it out and escape.

She tossed the rations next to the fire to warm them up, and began to write in her diary.

“Day five. Still no signs of human activity. Waiting for rescue is unrealistic. It’s obvious that in this kind of weather, no one would be out and about. My attempts to find food have also failed. I heard the sound of running water, but when I got there, I found that the river had frozen over. There wasn’t a single plant, let alone any fish. Maybe my mental state is the problem.”

“I didn’t find any berries or other plants in the forest to the south. Either the plants were frozen solid, or the bushes were wilted and flat. No fruit. I’ve fallen quite a few times.”

“The food I found in the carriage is almost gone. Even if I aim for mere survival, it’ll only last for three days at most. And I have to go out to find firewood every day. At most, it’ll only last two days. Staying here is just a slow death. I definitely have to find a way to break out.”

“To the east and west, there’s nothing but endless snowfields. Let’s rule that out. To the north, I can see a dry riverbed. It’s huge. There might be people there, but the bottom of the riverbed is full of small rocks. The terrain is also uneven…”

Selene unconsciously glanced down.

It was a pair of pale feet that might attract those with particular fetishes, but they were now frostbitten and blue. The shoes were also incredibly oversized, like adult-sized shoes on a child’s feet, hanging awkwardly.

“Considering the current conditions, let’s rule that out.”

That only left the forest to the south. It would be difficult to traverse, but there were bushes to provide cover, and any dangerous wild animals would be hibernating in the winter… But she still needed to consider this possibility.

Selene frowned and started sketching on the paper, thinking about what she needed to prepare for her trip outside, how she could increase her chances of survival. While she was thinking, she suddenly sighed. —There must be no one who’s had it as bad as me. A transmigrator like me who’s gone through all this. At this point, I should be enjoying some powerful displays of strength, dealing with some arrogant villain, and enjoying the company of a sweet, cheerful maid…

After finishing her plans on paper, Selene picked up the rations, which were no longer frozen solid, and ate them.

They tasted just as bad as before.

Then she began to pack her things. Besides the bag, there were all kinds of little things—she’d have to get rid of the chains; the letters didn’t contain much useful information, but they were light, and could be used to prove her identity; the pieces of cloth were too small to keep her warm, but could be used as bandages; the pen and paper could be exchanged for some money once she reached civilization; she’d definitely need to keep the rations…

As for the carriage and the fire, which could be considered “real estate,” she didn’t even consider them.

By the time she had finished packing, it was night. The modern, uncommon starry sky was dotted against the deep night sky. Below the stars was a quietly burning fire, and a girl, using a sack as a sleeping bag, was lost in her dreams.

Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.

Eight hours later, Selene opened her eyes.

The snowflakes, which had lessened during the night, were once again falling heavily. Hexagonal snowflakes were practically “pounding” the ground. The snow was accumulating rapidly. The fog was thick, obscuring her vision, and even the sun was just a hazy glow.

Frankly, this wasn’t good weather for traveling.

But Selene was used to this weather, which seemed determined to make her life difficult. She crawled out of the sack, ate most of the rations she’d warmed by the fire, and packed the things she’d prepared the previous night into her bag. It wasn’t easy to carry a bag that was as tall as she was, but she was used to it by now.

Finally, she put out the fire and tore a page from her notebook. She wrote “I am going south” in the language of this world and placed a rock on it.

Then, without looking back, she left the small shelter where she had lived for five days.

...

Even with the experience she had gained from wandering in the snow and wind for the past few days, the difficulty of this journey still exceeded Selene’s expectations.

She was now in a forest. It was a part of the forest she had never been to before. Looking back, she could no longer see the snowfield. But the air temperature and the environment still reminded her that she hadn’t escaped danger yet. Her reason told her that it was time to hurry, that night was approaching, but she still stopped.

Although she was on guard against the bushes that tried to “ambush” her with thorns, and against the wild animals that might jump out and attack her, she had even slowed down because of that, but she never expected to encounter something even more… astonishing in this forest.

“What the hell is this?!” Selene exclaimed.

Intertwined vines stretched between the tall trees, connecting the lush canopy into a continuous expanse. Vague man-made wooden structures were hidden in the shadows of the trees, faintly resembling some kind of corridor… And above Selene, an even larger structure was revealed as the angle of the sunlight changed.

Selene’s eyes instantly recognized what it was—a temple. Every corridor in the trees converged on this temple, connecting it to its surroundings. Exaggerated carvings adorned its outer walls and flying buttresses, depicting legends and myths she didn’t understand. Because of the way it was fixed in the air, the base of the temple was an inverted pyramid, with layers upon layers of patterns intricately arranged, creating a dizzying array of shapes.

Selene was initially struck by the magnificent scene, then immediately realized something was wrong—although she had never entered this area of the forest in the previous few days, she had done basic explorations many times. During her search for food and people over the past few days, she had never discovered anything like this!

This wasn’t due to oversight. Anyone, except the completely blind and deaf, would notice a man-made structure of this size!

She instinctively turned her head, but the paths she had taken, hidden in the bushes and snow, and the sunlight (although she hadn’t yet clearly seen the sun in this world because of the fog) were blocked by the canopy. There was only the terrifying darkness.

Selene swallowed. All the horror movies she’d ever seen flooded her mind. She cautiously looked upwards.

The area under the canopy was quickly falling into darkness. But the ice crystals on the canopy were shining brightly because of the sunlight reflecting off them. In the reflected light, wooden corridors emerged from the shadows, one after another. In the distance, between the corridors, she could vaguely see more floating temples. Enormous temples appeared before her, one after another, and Selene had a strange feeling—

These temples were moving towards her.

A terrifying thought, and one that sounded like it came from someone who was crazy.

Grand, atmospheric temples had a holy aura that could reassure any believer, but Selene wasn’t a believer in this unnamed cult. She only felt that these things were more terrifying, and the intricate carvings only added to that feeling, reminding her of the various gruesome rituals she had seen. She even felt a tangible sense of malice emanating from the carvings, directed at her.

Selene suddenly turned her head, but found nothing.

But a sense of unease lingered in her heart. Her intuition told her that something wasn’t right. Selene even felt her heart pounding from fear. Her adrenaline surged, and the urge to escape overwhelmed her reason. She instinctively began to run, moving forward.

That disgusting and terrifying feeling was chasing after her.

Selene was very fast, and in an instant she had passed the floating temple above. This surprised her. She didn’t expect that she still had this much energy left in her. Then a feeling of joy arose, and she thought she could escape…

Then, she fell. Of course, running around in the wilderness without looking where she was going, she was bound to fall.

Selene pulled her head out of the mud, tears streaming down her face. She had twisted her ankle. This body was still that of a child. Her tear ducts were overactive, and she was very sensitive to pain.

But the most important thing right now wasn’t her tears, but the fact that she was being chased, and that she was the one being chased. This fall was incredibly serious, no matter how you looked at it! Her pursuer wasn’t going to wait for her to get up!

Selene tried to stand up, but the run had completely depleted her already-low energy. Now, she had completely lost the strength to even breathe.

Just as she was beginning to despair, she suddenly realized something—why hadn’t her pursuer rushed over to tear her to pieces? Was it planning on bringing her back alive to fatten her up before sacrificing her again? Did it like sweet or salty food?

She used the last bit of her strength to turn over. Her pursuer came into view—

She saw a suit of armor. The armor depicted a sun split in two by a huge crack. Beneath the armor, there wasn’t flesh and blood, but a swirling mass of dust, gathering from all directions and filling the gaps in the armor, forming the shape of a knight. A horse, half flesh and half bone, stood quietly beside its master.

They stood there, not far away, as if truly waiting for her to get up.