A Fateful Encounter on the Snowfield (1)
The first thing I felt after diving into the water was the cold sea wrapping itself around my entire body.
Thankfully, my thick feathers and layer of fat made it more bearable than I'd expected.
Well... looks like I can float, at least.
My first objective — "float on water" — had been successfully confirmed.
Alright... now let's try swimming on the surface.
I began moving my flippers slowly.
Splash.
Splash.
Each stroke of my flippers sent my body gliding forward as if I were sliding across glass.
Oh...!
Excited, I put more power into my flippers.
Whoosh.
Whoosh.
In an instant, my body cut across the surface and shot forward.
Whoa! I'm way faster than I thought!
This time, I decided to try diving as well.
I slowly pushed my body down into the frigid seawater.
The moment I went under, a nictitating membrane slid over my eyes, and my pupils widened until the world around me came into razor-sharp focus.
Wow... my eyes don't even hurt, and everything's so clear...
Looking around, I spotted a fish swimming not far away.
There... a fish.
I watched its movements for a moment, then lowered my body.
That one's the target.
I drove my flippers hard and accelerated in a single burst.
Before the fish could even twist its body in recognition of the danger, the distance between us closed in a blink.
Got it!
I opened my beak and clamped down on the fish in one bite.
Its thrashing body sent tremors through the tip of my beak, but it didn't last long.
Ugh... time to head up.
Hunting that single fish had already cost me nearly two minutes of holding my breath.
I turned and swam hard for the surface.
Splash!
As I neared the surface, I beat my flippers with everything I had.
My body burst free of the water and skidded a long way across the snow.
Ssssshh.
Settling gently onto the cold snow, I let out a deep breath.
Hah... so my first hunt was a success, huh?
I shook myself hard, flinging the water from my soaked feathers.
But... I only ate one fish and I'm already full?
A sudden question struck me.
Adélie penguins were known to eat an average of about two pounds of food a day.
Don't tell me my body's still young, so even a little fills me up?
Or maybe the fish I'd just caught had simply been bigger than I thought.
I couldn't be sure of the exact reason, but the fact remained that my belly was full right now.
Well... not exactly a bad thing.
I decided not to dwell on it and turned my thoughts to the next objective.
Hah... now I need to find a nest where I can stay clear of predators...
Normally, I would have huddled together with other penguins, sleeping shoulder to shoulder as a defense against predators.
But I was a lonely penguin without a single friend.
In the end, I had to find a safe shelter on my own.
The problem was that on this vast, pure-white snowfield, my black feathers stood out far too much.
If only there were a cave or something... but this is a snowfield. Finding one won't be easy.
Before setting out, I decided to list the conditions for a proper nest.
1. Minimal threat from predators.
2. A cave — or something close to one — that could shield me from the cold and the fierce winds.
3. Preferably close to the sea.
Yeah, that should cover it.
The first two were obvious. The third was so I could cut down on travel distance when going back and forth to hunt, reducing the chance of running into predators.
Alright. Time to look around.
I began walking slowly along the coastline.
After wandering the area for nearly an hour—
Figures... nothing.
There was no place that looked remotely like a nest.
Sigh...
Finding a cave in a land buried under snow really was like plucking stars from the sky.
And right then—
"Urgh..."
"...!"
A faint groan rode the wind into my ears.
What was that? Where's it coming from?
I turned my head this way and that, then started walking in the direction of the sound.
That was definitely a human voice...
After following the groans for another five minutes or so, a small cave appeared beneath a coastal cliff, half-hidden by the snow.
Someone inside was breathing hard, struggling for air.
"Hah... hah..."
"So even I, the North Sea Ice Emperor... am to end my life here..."
Inside the cave, a white-haired old man sat with his back against the wall.
A person... but why is he dressed like that?
Anyone exploring Antarctica would normally wear full polar gear — a cold-weather parka, thermal layers, waterproof and windproof shells, polar boots, gloves, and goggles.
But that wasn't what the old man was wearing.
It looks like old Chinese clothing...?
Not quite a cheongsam...
Closer to Hanfu, maybe?
It was the kind of outfit you'd only ever see in a martial arts novel or webtoon.
Curiosity getting the better of me, I carefully approached the groaning old man.
"Kyaak."
"...What is this? This beast..."
The old man stared at me as if he had never seen a creature like me before in his life.
What? Don't tell me he's never seen a penguin?
And he made it all the way to Antarctica?
Or... is he just not right in the head?
I looked at the old man who didn't recognize a penguin with a baffled expression.
And right then—
"Khahk!"
The old man suddenly coughed up a mouthful of fresh blood.
"Hah... so this truly is the end."
"...That I, the North Sea Ice Emperor, should meet my end through qi deviation..."
He muttered to himself and let out a hollow laugh.
Hmm... they always say not to get involved with people who aren't right in the head...
My mind told me the smart move was to just walk away.
But for some strange reason, my feet refused to move.
Pat.
Pat.
I slowly walked closer to the old man.
"What now... does even a lowly creature dare mock this body?"
The old man snapped sharply, but—
"Cough! Khahk!"
—he immediately coughed up more blood and began to tremble.
"Krhh... to fall so pathetically... when the Transcendent Realm was right before my eyes..."
Feeling his body collapse from within, he wore a bitter expression.
Hmm... he really does look like he's dying... should I at least try to comfort him?
I carefully approached his side.
Pat.
Pat.
I lightly tapped his shoulder with my flipper.
"...?"
The old man stared at me as if he couldn't believe what he was seeing.
"Why... why do you comfort me..."
"Even my own children feared me."
"In the Central Plains, they all called me a monster."
"Why is it that only a lowly creature such as you would extend a hand to me..."
For a long while he simply looked at me in silence.
Then, as if something had suddenly dawned on him, he began to laugh hollowly.
"Haha..."
"Hahahaha!"
"So that was it."
"In the end, life is fleeting."
"Once we die, every bond is nothing more than a passing encounter..."
It was a laugh edged with madness, yet somewhere in it was a sense of release.
Wh-what? Why is he suddenly like that?
"Kyaak..."
I tried to slip quietly out of the cave.
In that instant—
"Wait there... just a moment, if you would."
The old man called out to me.
"To you, the only one in my life who comforted me,"
"and who granted me this final enlightenment,"
"I wish to pass on the entirety of the martial arts I spent my life mastering."
"Kyaak?"
Martial arts...?
"Indeed."
"So come. Stand before me."
I hesitated for a moment, but strangely, his words carried a sincerity that was hard to refuse.
I slowly walked up to him.
"From this moment on... you must not move at all. I shall begin."
The old man finished speaking, placed his hand on my back, and with a sharp "Hup!!" began to do something.
The moment his palm touched my back—
Ssssshh.
A strange energy that was neither cold nor hot began to flow into me from his palm.
Wh-what is this?
At first it was only a faint tickle. But as time passed, that energy began thrashing violently through my body.
"Krhh...!"
The old man's face went deathly pale in an instant.
"As expected... transferring internal energy to another is... no simple matter..."
The energy flowing from his body circulated through every part of me and spread. My heart, my lungs, my muscles, even my bones. A cool, chilly force seeped into every corner.
My body... feels strange...
With every breath I drew, something deep in my gut began to slowly turn, as if an entirely new organ had just been born inside me.
The old man gritted his teeth.
"The pure essence of the North Sea Divine Art that this body spent a lifetime accumulating... every last drop..."
Wooooom.
The air inside the cave began to vibrate. Snow that had piled on the floor rose into the air, and a freezing cold energy swirled around us in a vortex.
"Hup!"
Fresh blood poured from the old man's mouth once more. Even so, he did not pull his hand away.
"I must... pass it all on to the end..."
His white hair rapidly lost its luster and turned dry and brittle. His limbs withered, and the wrinkles on his face grew deeper still. You could practically watch the life draining out of him.
Meanwhile, a power unlike anything I had ever known began to surge through my body.
What is this...?
My body... feels incredibly light.
No — it's overflowing with strength.
About ten minutes must have passed.
Thud.
The old man's hand fell away from my back.
"Hoo..."
He drew ragged breaths and smiled faintly.
"I... succeeded..."
I hurriedly turned around. The old man was leaning against the wall, managing a weak smile.
"...Kyaak."
Without thinking, I walked up to him. He fumbled inside his robes and pulled out a small bundle wrapped in old silk.
"Take... this."
Thud.
The bundle dropped in front of me. Curious, I used my beak to unfold the silk, and inside were three old books.
"These are the martial arts I cultivated — the Ice White Divine Art, the Ice Heaven Steps, and the Ice White Divine Palm..."
"...Though you are no human, the internal energy is already yours. Someday... the day will come when you understand their meaning."
He paused to catch his breath.
"...The North Sea Divine Art is by no means an evil art. The world feared my power and called me a demon, but power itself has neither good nor evil. Only the one who wields it decides..."
There was no longer any madness or obsession in his eyes. Only a quiet sense of relief remained.
"...Whether beast or human... if you possess great strength, use it to protect the weak. That is... this old man's final request."
His voice grew fainter and fainter.
"...Thank you..."
Before the words had even finished, his head slowly slumped forward. At the same time, the last of the warmth left his body.
"..."
Silence filled the cave. For a long while I could only stare at him, unable to say a word.
Is he... dead?
The man who had been alive just moments ago was now nothing more than a cold corpse. Something in my chest felt strangely heavy. We had barely known each other, and I had thought he was just a slightly unhinged old man — but at the end, at least, he had been sincere.
I stood quietly before him. Then I slowly bowed my head in respect.
...Rest in peace.
When the moment of silence was over, I wrapped the martial arts manuals back up in the silk.
But...
I looked back and forth between the books and my wings.
I... don't know how to read?