Chapter 47 The Miracle Snow Prince certainly didn't want to be hugged by the witch...

A fierce wind howled, and Ashlin clung tightly to Lucas. He felt as if his ribs were about to break, but he didn't complain.

The thought that he had even snored a little (note! only a little) under this witch's rule made him wish he could disappear into a mouse hole.

But then again, Ashlin always smelled wonderful, reminding him of forest streams and dappled sunlight filtering through the leaves, which calmed him down even in the most tense moments.

“Tracking? You mean, you’ve been tracking us for weeks? That’s insane!” Lucas asked incredulously, but Ashlin didn’t translate.

“Let’s talk this out, Miss Mara!” the witch said. “There’s no need to use weapons. By the way, these weapons are mine.”

Ray didn't sheathe the dagger; the blade was pointed straight at Ashlin's chest. Like them, her head was covered in snow, and her face was red from the cold. Her hair was shaved so short, it was hardly an advantage in the frigid North.

"Are you in cahoots with that dwarf?"

“A dwarf? No, I’ve never seen her before.”

"Then why did she help you that day? Bryce and Harry are bedridden!"

“Because she said your enemy is her friend,” Ashlin said. “I suggest you steal less; you might run into some dangerous people.”

"A dangerous person? You mean Nova?" Ray scoffed. "She's just a mechanical idiot."

“No,” Ashlin said, “I said I.”

The words had barely left her lips when a shadow fell upon Ray's head. Beside her, a massive pine tree suddenly bent low, staring at her menacingly. As a warning, snow from its crown fell onto her ears.

Ray's expression changed.

“How is that possible? Don’t wizards always use spells or complicated rituals? Besides, you’re just a little girl…” She stepped back, turning her dagger toward the tree.

The pine tree trembled, and more snow fell on Ray's head. Lucas guessed it was probably amused by the pointless threat of the dagger.

“I’m not young at all! I’ll be seventeen next spring!” Ashlin said angrily. “Put down your weapons and I’ll tell you what’s going on. You also tell me why you’re tracking us.”

Ray finally put away her dagger and gave them a suspicious look.

“This cat is a prince of the human kingdom, right? At first I thought you were human spies sent to spy on the orcs, but then I thought, why would humans send two children as spies?” She put her hands on her hips. “Tell me, why are a human witch and a cursed prince here?”

"Participate in the trial? You want to get a wreath?" Ray laughed loudly. "What a pipe dream. The High Priest will never grant you the qualification to participate in the trial!"

"Why? What are the criteria for qualifying for the trial, meow?" Lucas asked, and Ashlin translated.

Ray shrugged. "There is no standard. Our great priestess is always very mysterious. She selects the trial participants by hand, and the trials are made up."

A casual orc becoming a high priest? That's hardly good news. Lucas had thought the trials would have strict standards and procedures, allowing them to prepare properly.

Lucas stuck his head out to look behind him, but couldn't see the Yeti clearly.

Magical monsters aren't so easily defeated. He still felt lingering fear from the image of the three-headed dog with an arrow in its head biting Ashlin.

A roar answered his question.

The Yeti got up again, its eyes glowing.

Ray immediately raised his bow: "Don't worry, the enchanted arrows of the Dragonbone Bow can stun it. The spot where it was hit just now might not have been very good."

She reached behind her and grabbed at nothing.

We've run out of arrows.

Ashlin's face turned ashen: "What do we do now?"

"run!"

Here we go again. Lucas sighed.

The Yeti is incredibly persistent. Even with an arrow enchanted by the Dragonbone Bow stuck between its brows, it persists in catching little people in the snow; it seems it's truly starving.

Ashlin was out of breath and was left far behind by Ray; Lucas tried to keep himself from falling out of her arms while observing the Yeti from behind her.

"The High Priest protects us in the Frostclaw Forest, we'll be safe once we get there!" Ray called back, her tail wagging. "What are you dawdling about, little witch?"

"This is my fastest speed!"

Ray looked at her with a conflicted expression, then glanced at the Yeti, before rushing over and hoisting Ashlin onto his shoulder with one hand.

Lucas felt dizzy and the whole cat was sandwiched between the two of them.

“I need your magic!” Rae said, rushing into the next grove of trees.

With each step the Yeti took, a large number of pine trees fell down.

Ashlin put her arm around Ray's shoulder, freeing up her energy to control the pine tree and delay the Yeti as much as possible without having to run herself.

Ray was incredibly fast. It might not be the best way to put it, but Lucas felt like he was in a horse race.

“What do you need Ashlin’s magic for?” Lucas asked.

Ashlin, amidst her busy schedule, cast another cat-talking spell on Ray.

Whoosh! A tree swept past their heads.

“It’s only been a few days, after all,” Lucas said. The thought that they had been followed by a leopard thief with unclear motives the whole way sent chills down his spine.

“Oh my god, I’m so sorry to hear about your brother! I’ll help,” Ashlin said, but then frowned. “No, why should we believe you?”

Lucas was overjoyed; at least the girl was no longer so trusting of others.

He cleared his throat and suddenly felt something was off.

Meow?

The cat language spell created a linguistic link between Ashlin and Lucas that no one else could understand; they were actually speaking in a magical language, not an animal language.

In other words, he shouldn't meow when communicating with cat language spells.

Has he been meowing more and more lately? Is his cat language spell starting to lose its effectiveness? Possibly, after all, Ashlin's magic has been "frozen."

"Two guys who rode on my back to escape have the nerve to say that!" Ray said. "I've never killed a person or a cat before. Want to be the first, little kitty?"

"To answer the little witch's earlier question: The High Priestess is very busy, and there are always crowds at her door, so she can't just see you whenever she wants. But the good news is that my father is a bookseller, and the High Priestess loves reading, so they are on good terms. If you're willing to help me, I'll have him take you to see her."

The Yeti forcefully pulled out several trees.

"Watch out!" Lucas shouted.

The pine tree flew like a giant arrow. Ray made a sharp turn and went behind some rocks, but a tree still crashed down on their heads.

Ashlin hurriedly raised her hands and waved them outwards.

With a snap, the tree broke in two, falling to the ground on either side of them, splinters and snowflakes mingling and scattering.

Lucas's fur was now covered in a fresh layer of coldness, which made him extremely uncomfortable.

“I hate this world,” Ray muttered as she continued sprinting. “So? Do you agree?”

Lucas nodded.

“Deal,” Ashley said.

"Where did the Yeti come from?" Lucas asked, puzzled. "I thought it was a scary nursery rhyme made up by orcs."

“That was true before,” Ray replied, “but since three months ago, our nightmare has come true. The last time we heard of a real Yeti was in ancient times.”

The Yeti tried to grab them again with its large hands, but Ray nimbly leaped over it.

After several dozen more rounds, they finally arrived at an even more magnificent coniferous forest, where a sparkling green stream flowed before them, surprisingly not frozen.

There were several animal paw prints on the snow in front of the forest. A crooked wooden sign hung on a pine tree, with the words "Cold Claw Forest" written in a very cool font. The word "forest" was torn apart by three scratch marks.

Safety was within reach, yet Ray stopped at the creek.

"Quickly use magic to disguise me! The Soul-Revealing Magic of Guardian Creek isn't that powerful; it won't be able to detect me in just a few seconds. If I step in looking like this, it will immediately trigger the alarm."

Ashlin stared at her.

"But illusion magic requires other people's hair!"

“No problem, little witch. I’m willing to be your twin sister.”

However, that would attract too much attention. Ashlind clearly thought so too, and hesitated to act.

The Yeti drew closer, and the forest trembled.

"What are you still hesitating for?" Ray asked anxiously, jumping up and down.

Ashlyn placed her hand on her hair, but at the last second changed direction and reached out towards Lucas.

A sharp pain shot through him. The witch suddenly plucked a hair from his back.

"Hey! What are you doing?"

Lucas knew it before Ashlyn even acted. That wicked witch! Impersonating him once wasn't enough for her; now she's having a savage orc impersonate him!

Boom! The Yeti's giant leg swept across, and the three of them tumbled across the snow like flies being swatted.

Lucas shook the snow off himself, spat out slush, coughed, and also spat out some hairballs.

Ashlin tried again to block them with pine trees, but it was too late. The Yeti's terrifying shadow loomed over them, like the end of the world.

Lucas pressed himself against Ashlin's leg, his heart pounding.

The Yeti stretched out its foot.

A buzzing vibration ran beneath my feet, as if something was about to burst forth from the ground.

The snow, mixed with mud, suddenly churned up on its own, rolling rapidly in front of the snow monster like boiling water, splashing white specks everywhere. The ground seemed to crack open, causing them all to fall to the ground.

The Yeti, pulled by the mud, slid backward as if it had stepped on a banana peel, and kept retreating.

Ashlin was panting, her face pale, and she looked extremely weak. Lucas was about to say a few words of concern when she resolutely recited the illusion spell.

After the green light faded, Ray transformed into Lucas, a half-human, half-cat creature.

It's really weird to see people wearing your own face every now and then.

Before the Yeti could rise again, they hurried across the stream and into the Frostclaw Forest.

The Yeti's roar gradually subsided, and the strange snow mud finally stopped moving, as if it had never been disturbed.