Home/The Ice Age Came? And I Just Got Married?!/ch 47

Chapter 47.

Sunhaven.

A famous resort city and one of the Grandon Kingdom's tourist destinations.

And only one survivor outpost remained here.

The Sunhaven Shelter, run by Countess Winterdean.

On the surface, it seemed perfectly peaceful.

But I couldn't shake the feeling that this peace was strangely off.

Just then, Logan whispered,

"It's suspicious."

Logan had seemed unshaken from the start, as if he knew everything.

"Eve—did you know? To survive in hell, people inevitably cling to something. And hope can become an addiction."

Hope becoming an addiction—what a sad thought.

"A shelter this size couldn't stay so stable with just Redstones—not unless there's another Winterstone at work."

I remembered that this village had an unusually large number of young people.

And if a Winterstone other than the Redstone was keeping the village stable...

No way...

I looked at Logan again. He let out a quiet chuckle.

"I knew you'd understand."

Slightly shocked, I stared at the Countess's back.

Behind her, Clare and Leon followed, while Logan and I walked a bit farther back.

I racked my brain as we walked.

Soon, the Countess led us to a noble's seaside villa.

It was a two-story building facing the coast.

Though snow was piled thick on the roof, the villa seemed in good condition. The windows were intact, and faint smoke rose from the chimney.

"This was originally a summer villa."

The Countess said.

"Its owner never made it here."

At that, everyone fell silent.

After the ice age, everyone knew what that meant.

The Countess opened the door with a calm expression.

Creak.

Warm air flowed out.

A fire was lit in the fireplace, and clean bedding and hot water bottles had already been prepared.

"Guests are precious."

The Countess said calmly.

"Especially those who arrive alive."

She checked the firewood one last time, then stepped back toward the door.

"Rest well. Tomorrow's worries can wait until tomorrow."

With that, the door closed quietly.

Snow still fell outside, but inside the villa, it was strangely peaceful.

The sound of the Countess's footsteps crunching on the snow faded away.

When the sound was gone, Clare spoke.

"Something feels off."

Surprisingly, both Clare and Leon had also sensed it—they had sharp instincts.

We gathered on the sofa by the fireplace.

Crackle, crackle—

The sound of burning wood filled the quiet stillness.

After a long silence, Clare spoke.

"About Countess Winterdean—she looks different from the Countess I remember."

The Countess had been the Crown Prince's tutor, and Clare, who had been his childhood sweetheart, would know her well.

I turned to Logan.

"Logan—you frequented the royal court as a child too. Did you ever see the Countess?"

Logan nodded.

"I can't be certain, since I saw her when I was young—but the Lieutenant is right. She's different."

Logan continued in a flat voice.

"The Countess I knew had a limp."

"That's correct. She was injured and needed a cane to walk. And..."

Clare trailed off cautiously, then lowered her voice.

"At that time, the Countess was already fifty years old."

"Twenty years have passed since then—she'd be around seventy."

Silence fell.

Seventy.

The woman who had led us to this villa was certainly not seventy. I'd thought she was in her early fifties at most.

I chose my words carefully.

"I think the Countess has a Winterstone."

At my words, Leon, who had been listening with the same blank expression as Clare, spoke.

"Are you referring to the Redstone the Lieutenant General carries?"

"Similar—but a different kind. One of its types, the Violetstone, has a rejuvenation property."

I continued explaining.

"The problem is that using that property comes with a condition. It doesn't grant rejuvenation without a cost."

"What kind of condition?"

At Clare's question, I lowered my voice further.

"It takes youth from others."

"Then, to become twenty years younger..."

Leon trailed off, his face stiff.

"I believe it's about five years per person—though it varies. For the Countess, that would mean stealing youth from about four people."

Clare raised a question.

"Where do these Winterstones come from?"

"I don't know—how they came to be."

I'd guessed they were fragments of the Heart of Frost, but that was still speculation, not proof.

Though Logan and I were nearly certain.

"Given my unpleasant history with the Countess, this situation leaves a bad taste."

Clare's answer made Leon, who didn't know her past, tilt his head.

"Speaking of which—what exactly happened in the past? The conversation you had with the Countess..."

Leon suddenly stopped.

"Ah—forgive me."

He apologized and continued.

"That was a rude question. Please forget I asked."

Clare blinked a few times, then answered.

"It's nothing special—I was involved with the Crown Prince when we were young."

"I see—involved with His Highness... wait, what?"

Leon, who clearly hadn't known, asked in surprise. He'd been in the helm when we'd talked earlier.

Clare shrugged as if it were no big deal.

"It's in the past."

"Ah—yes. In the past..."

Leon stared at Clare with his expressionless face, then added,

"Were you dumped, or did you do the dumping?"

Ahem.

The bluntness of the question caught me off guard, and I coughed involuntarily.

He asks such a direct question with a straight face?

"It's an important question."

Important how?

Clare answered in the same flat tone, as if responding to an ordinary question.

"I was dumped."

"Then you have justification."

Justification for what?

Leon stroked his chin, deep in thought, then answered.

"The world has ended—who would object if you challenged the Crown Prince to a duel?"

I think they would.

"He must have survived along with his retainers—he's the Crown Prince, after all."

Curious about his answer, I couldn't help but say to Leon,

"Ah—surprise attack, then you'd have a chance."

"You said it was a duel."

"When the playing field is tilted, I don't believe in fair duels. Sometimes it's okay to be a little cowardly."

Pfft.

Clare suddenly burst out laughing.

"Ah—that's enough. Forget it."

I'd just realized—she actually has expressions.

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