The Village of Eskyle
The bitter cold and blizzard they had just endured felt like a lie.
Beyond the barrier, what spread out before Simon's eyes was the picture of a peaceful village. Butterflies drifted through the air, birdsong rang out. Modest thatched-roof houses came into view, and people bustled along the roads.
So this is Eskyle Village!
It felt like stepping into a greenhouse in the middle of a deep freeze. They had come up from the lower city of Kula hearing nothing but bad rumors about Eskyle, and it was completely unlike anything he had imagined.
"This barrier."
Meanwhile, Lethe was running her palm along it. The empty air rippled and gave way beneath her touch like the surface of water.
"It's focused entirely on insulation, so the strength is nothing impressive. Especially from the inside — one swipe of a knife would tear right through it."
"As long as it keeps the cold out, that's good enough for me."
From here, the fury of the outside world appeared only as a blur. Snow came pouring down beyond the veil, and yet inside, it was as warm as spring — warm enough to make the sight feel surreal. A single gossamer-thin barrier, and it divided heaven from hell.
"So where do we go now?"
"Good question."
Lethe shrugged.
"Rather than wander around and get ourselves mistaken for intruders, it seems better to just wait quietly where we—"
"Who do we have here?"
Waiting quietly, it turned out, was indeed the right answer.
A middle-aged man approached, a straw hat tilted on his head, short stubble running from his ears all the way down to his chin. Simon and Lethe bowed their heads quickly.
"Laus! We've come to teach the children of Eskyle Village. I'm Sean Hader."
"And I'm Lea Bennet."
Sean and Lea were, of course, false identities.
"Ah! The teachers from outside."
The man nodded and looked the two of them over from head to toe.
"To make it here on a day with cold this brutal, without being devoured by the Snow Woman — you're lucky indeed."
Simon's expression stiffened slightly.
The Snow Woman again. Had that woman he'd seen earlier really been her after all?
"Wait here just a moment. I'll go fetch Petria."
"Petria?"
"She'll be your guide. With a cold this severe today, I suppose they assumed no teachers would come."
Leaving nothing but those words behind, the man disappeared.
And a short while later—
"I-I'm so sorryyy!"
A girl came sprinting toward them at full speed from the far end of the village. Grey-haired with her forehead boldly bared, she looked young — about the same age as Simon and Lethe.
"Haah! Hah! We didn't...! Hoo...! We didn't expect you today...! I'm sorry...!"
"N-no, it's quite all right."
Simon spread his palms in reassurance.
"So you're Petria?"
Lethe asked.
"Yes! I'm Petria! I'll be guiding you two. This way, please—"
Following the chattering girl as she rattled off explanations, Simon took in the village in a single sweeping glance. There were fields, and livestock being raised — reindeer-like beasts that seemed to exist only in this region, kept for milking and meat.
It was a far cry from Kula, where people were dying even now. This village had adapted completely to the deep freeze and lived in a steady, settled calm.
Hmm. Bringing up Kula right away would be a bad choice.
That was a topic he could only raise after earning the villagers' goodwill and trust first.
Simon decided to start with a light question.
"Petria, there's something I'm curious about."
"Yes, Teacher Sean! Ask away."
"Does the Snow Woman truly live in this mountain?"
Her footsteps stopped dead. When she turned her head and glared at him with blown-wide pupils, Simon flinched despite himself—
"Ahahahaha!"
—and then she burst into loud, ringing laughter.
"Oh, come on! That's just a legend!"
She wiped away the tears gathered at the corners of her eyes. Simon scratched the side of his head at her somewhat unexpected reaction.
"Well, that villager earlier did say he was glad not to have been eaten by the Snow Woman..."
"The elders all believe in her, I suppose. Every year it's the same commotion! We must hold the ritual. We must offer a sacrifice. But I don't believe in the Snow Woman. Ah!"
She raised a finger to her lips.
"That's absolutely a secret from the elders, of course. Especially from the grandmother you're about to meet."
"Ah, understood."
Being a small village, they reached their destination quickly. It was the largest building in Eskyle — something like a village meeting hall.
"Come in."
Once inside, they found carved statues displayed throughout the building. Statues that appeared to depict the Snow Woman. Lethe frowned faintly, clearly displeased.
Blasphemy.
The Holy Federation worshipped the Goddess Deva alone as the one true deity. The worship of folk gods, local spirits, or any other faith was strictly forbidden. By that measure, the people of this village were deeply suspect.
"Bear with it. Understood?"
"Do I look like a fool to you?"
And according to Israfil, this region was one where the reach of central Efnel's authority was almost nonexistent. If they traveled all the way out here only to pick a fight over religion and get expelled, the loss would be entirely theirs.
"Now, we'll go see the grandmother."
Petria said.
"Who exactly is this grandmother?"
"She's the eldest elder in the village. Think of her as the chief."
Click.
The door opened, and the two of them were shown into a small sitting room. There, frail and gray-haired with age, an old woman sat holding a cane.
Petria stood beside her and spoke.
"This is Nenia Mizzenaci, the chief of our village."
At the sight of Nenia, however, Simon's and Lethe's eyes went wide.
"The—the fortune-teller grandmother?!"
"Why are you here?"
She looked exactly like the old woman who had read their "fortunes" in Kula just the day before.
But Nenia merely blinked, as if she had no idea what they meant.
"...What nonsense are you speaking?"
Simon continued the conversation calmly.
"Forgive us if we're mistaken, but on our way to this village, we saw an old woman in Kula who looked exactly like you, Lady Nenia."
"...You must be mistaken."
She stroked her grey hair slowly.
"But if you teachers are not mistaken, then you may have seen my sister."
"Your sister?"
"Yes. My sister, who broke the village's law fifty years ago and was exiled. What has she been doing with herself?"
Lethe answered.
"She was telling fortunes on the street. Running a business catering to tourists — though with how things are in Kula lately, she seemed to be struggling."
Nenia clicked her tongue in disgust.
"So she received her just deserts. Still, to defy the village's law, incur the Snow Woman's curse, and yet keep her life — she's fortunate."
She looked back over her shoulder.
"Petria."
Petria clasped her hands together and bowed respectfully.
"Yes, Lady Nenia."
"Show these two teachers where they'll be staying."
"Understood."
"And you two teachers as well—"
Her eyes flashed fiercely as she turned to face them.
"You would do well not to go spreading tales of my sister around this village."
With that, Nenia swept out of the sitting room.
Simon and Lethe immediately exchanged glances.
"Think they're the same person?"
Lethe shook her head.
"Nope. Those two are definitely different people."
"...So that grandmother really was from this village."
* * *
From the chief Nenia on down, this village was firmly in the grip of people bearing the surname Mizzenaci.
Every one of the village's senior elders that they met afterward was also a Mizzenaci.
After being subjected to rules and warnings until their ears ached, they were finally led outside under Petria's guidance.
"Seriously, what's with all these rules? Can't do this, can't do that."
As Lethe grumbled with her arms crossed, Petria bowed her head apologetically.
"I-I'm sorry. Our village is a little... unusual."
"So we really can't go outside at all?"
"No, I'm sorry. And even if you did go out, the blizzard would swallow you up — you wouldn't be able to do anything."
Simon and Lethe exchanged a quiet look.
Even so, the two of them fully intended to go outside.
Outwardly, they would play the role of teachers, win the villagers' trust — and then, in the dead of night when everyone was asleep, they would slip out to search for clues about this unnatural freeze and the "evil" Israfil had spoken of.
An unexplained deep freeze. The Snow Woman. And the people of Eskyle Village.
A dozen clues and threads of information were tangled together, but Simon was certain that in the end, all of them connected back to a single source. And the moment they found that source and removed it, peace would return — to Israfil's errand, and to this entire region.
"Petria. What exactly are the Mizzenaci?"
Lethe asked abruptly.
"They're the descendants of the Snow Woman. With Lady Nenia Mizzenaci at the head, they preside over the village's rites and its most important affairs."
Then she smiled and pointed at herself.
"Oh! And I'm a Mizzenaci too. Petria Mizzenaci."
"Well, well. Turns out you're high and mighty."
At Lethe's playful grin, Petria's face flushed red.
"Th-that's not it at all!"
"You say the Mizzenaci are the Snow Woman's descendants, yet you yourself don't believe in the Snow Woman?"
Simon tossed out a rather pointed question, but she nodded with a serious face.
"That's right. I don't."
"..."
"Well then, we're here! Please, come this way."
The lodge where they would be staying was a log house, spacious and serene in feel.
Lethe lit up at once.
"We really get to use this whole house?"
"Of course!"
It was large and spotless, with a fireplace no less. There were three bedrooms, and all sorts of games and toys were visible around the place.
"A private room, finally! A private room!"
Lethe bounded around the house with her face glowing. Simon and Petria watched from a little distance away.
"You two will be staying here from now on. You'll be teaching the children here as well."
"When will we get to meet them?"
"They start coming tomorrow. Five in total, and every single one of them is just, just adorable!"
Petria shivered her arms once, as if the thought alone delighted her.
"There's firewood in the shed, and I'll personally bring you food and daily supplies every single day."
"Sounds good."
"Oh! And on the first day of class, the village elders will be coming in to observe!"
Simon's eyes widened.
"The Mizzenaci will be there too, I take it?"
"Yes. But don't worry too much. It's the first day, so they'll just watch a little to see whether you can teach or not, and then leave."
A heavy pressure settled over them.
An observation class. If they failed to teach properly, they could be suspected on the spot and thrown out of the village.
"Our house is right next door. The one with the blue roof you can see from here."
Petria pointed with the tip of her finger.
"If anything's inconvenient or there's anything you need, just say the word! I'll come running in a single step!"
"And how would we dare put the great Mizzenaci to work?"
Lethe said with a sly smile, and Petria's cheeks went red again.
"Ahh~ stop teasing me!"
"Just kidding. Thanks for looking after us."
"Um, and also..."
Petria hesitated, eyes fixed on her own feet, before finally working up the courage to lift her head.
"C-could I...! If you two wouldn't mind, could I come visit sometimes? Honestly, there are almost no kids my age in the village, so, um..."
"Of course."
Lethe said, settling herself onto a chair.
"And you're clearly our age anyway, so drop the formalities. None of this 'Teacher, Teacher' stuff — just call me Lea, and him Sean."
"B-but! How could I possibly, with my teachers—!"
"And how could I possibly be casual with the great Lady Mizzenaci?"
"I said stop teasing me!!"
Watching the two girls bicker, Simon looked on with a faint smile.
"Well then, I'll come by again later! Rest well, Lea! Sean!"
Click!
Petria was gone. Lethe let out a long sigh and leaned back.
"Now then~."
Her head turned.
"Mind telling us why you two are hiding in here, little ones?"
At those words — startlingly quick—
a small boy and girl of four or five crept out from under the bed where they'd been hiding. Apparently fearing a scolding, their faces were a picture of fear and nerves.
"!!"
At the sight of the two children, Lethe's expression melted. Simon's did too.
"I-I, um, it'sss..."
The girl fidgeted and hemmed, and the boy stepped forward in her place.
"We were playin' hide-and-seek, and this place was empty, so we hided here, and then!"
Adorable!
It seemed that this teacher gig, whatever else it was, would be something he could throw himself into wholeheartedly — investigation aside.