In the suffocating tension of the standoff, the elf finally spoke.

“Why... why are you just standing there? Why aren’t you attacking?”

“Because I don’t want to fight you.”

“Liar!”

“I’m not lying. I told you from the beginning—I’m here to find Semna , my childhood friend.”

The elf scoffed.

“Is that really all?”

Well, to be honest, it’s not the only reason. Sure, I came to rescue Semna, but if I were to nitpick, my chronic curiosity is partly to blame too.

I wanted to see an elf.

I wanted to meet one.

I wanted to understand what kind of being they are.

I wanted to talk to this mysterious creature from the old stories. But this isn’t the time to babble on about something like that.

So I puffed out my chest confidently.

“Yes! Like I said a dozen times already, I’m here to find Semna!”

The elf silently looked into my eyes. It felt like their gaze was piercing into the deepest corners of my soul.

“You’re here... to find your childhood friend?”

“That’s right.”

The elf kept staring at me.

Figuring I might have to wait a while, I decided to start by untying the rope around the elf’s ankle.

The elf frowned and seemed on guard but, understanding my intention, obediently stretched out their foot.

As I loosened the rope and stood up, my nose began to itch for some reason.

“Ah... ahhh... achoo... ahhh—”

“What are you doing?”

“ACHOO! Oh, sorry.”

Before I realized it, I’d sneezed straight into the elf’s face.

The elf wiped their face with a look of utter disgust.

But I couldn’t help it. It was getting too cold to bear. Honestly, standing here in this freezing weather is worse than getting hit with a few more arrows.

The elf, looking exasperated, put their arrows away and turned their back to me.

“Follow me.”

“To where?”

“You said you came to find your childhood friend, didn’t you?”

And with that, she dashed off ahead, leaving me no choice but to follow.

Her pace made it clear—if I fell behind, she wouldn’t wait.

I grabbed the rope and lantern and hurried after her.

The forest was still vast and oppressively dark. But as I followed the elf, I realized my initial impressions of the forest were changing completely.

The trees no longer seemed like emaciated giants; now, they felt like elderly guardians peering into a baby’s swaddle. Even as I stepped on their roots and pushed through their branches, there was a cozy feeling, as if they’d chuckle kindly in response.

A sudden smile crossed my face, and I decided to ask the elf ahead of me:

“Our first meeting was kind of rough, but since this is still fate, let’s introduce ourselves. I’m Solaire. What’s your name?”

No answer.

The elf just kept running.

“I’m from Greendal. I used to herd sheep there. Have you ever seen a lamb? They’re super cute. Want me to draw one for you?”

The elf glanced back with an expression of pure exasperation and kept running.

If anything, it seemed like she sped up.

To keep up, I had to grit my teeth and push harder. But, of course, a shepherd from Greendal can handle this much easily.

Running alongside her, I fired off my questions one after another.

“Are you taking me to Semna  ? Is she okay? You didn’t shoot arrows at her too, did you? What are those arrows made of? How do you shoot them so well? Could you teach me?”

“Stop talking.”

“Why—”

The elf suddenly stopped, grabbed me by the shoulders, and twisted me sharply to the right.

I was about to grumble when the view ahead made me fall silent.

Before me was a clearing with a steaming pond, and lying peacefully at its edge was Semna.

Between Semna and the pond, darting back and forth, was—

“A fire mouse?”

The elf said nothing, simply crossing her arms.

Well, she wasn’t wrong.

I couldn’t think of anything else that would fit the description—a mouse with flickering flames on its fur.

The fire mouse was far cuter than I’d imagined. It wiggled its tail, dipped its tiny hands into the pond, and twitched its long snout.

After washing its hands, it scampered over to Semna and pressed its tiny paws to her forehead, almost like it was trying to warm her up.

Ah! But now’s not the time to marvel at this.

Sliding down the sloped embankment, I ran toward Semna.

“Semna!”

Semna, who had been lying still with her eyes closed, furrowed her brows at my shout. Slowly, she opened her eyes and looked at me.

“Solaire?”

“It’s me. Are you okay?”

Semna, as if waking from a long dream, reached out and touched my face.

“Solaire… Solaire? SOOOOOL!”

And then, she threw herself into my arms and began sobbing uncontrollably.

“I thought I was going to die, I was so scared!”

“It’s okay. I came to get you.”

“Why didn’t you come sooner?”

“Hey, you looked like you were taking a nice nap.”

Semna, enraged, tried to bite my ear but quickly gasped and pulled back.

“You’re bleeding! Who did this to you?”

“It’s fine. The cold stopped the bleeding.”

“Who… who would do something so terrible—”

Semna’s eyes darted around and landed on the elf standing behind me.

“Eek! It’s the elf ghost!”

“She’s not a ghost. She is an elf, though. Um… she’s an elf of the Brown Spruce Forest.”

While I did the introductions, the elf stayed completely silent.

And now that I thought about it, she still hadn’t told me her name.

The introductions didn’t last long. Semna looked between me and the elf, then furrowed her brow.

“That elf ghost did it, didn’t she?”

“Did what?”

“Your injury!”

The fire mouse, which had been wagging its tail by Semna, suddenly scurried over and hid behind the elf. That alone said enough about Semna’s rising fury.

Semna   stood up with such fiery determination that it seemed like she might literally bite the elf.

The elf instinctively took a step back and muttered in a small voice, “This boy invaded the forest without permission.”

“Oh, really? Then why didn’t you shoot me? You could’ve shot at me too!”

“I did give you a warning shot. You fainted after the first arrow, so I didn’t shoot any more…”

Now that she mentioned it, there was indeed a hole in Semna’s hat.

Semna grew even more furious.

“Do you even know how expensive this is?!”

It seemed Semna didn’t realize just how dangerous the elf could become. If a fight broke out here, one of the three of us might not walk away alive.

I quickly stepped in to calm her down.

“Semna. That’s enough.”

“Enough? Don’t just stand there grinning like an idiot after getting shot! Say something! This awful elf attacked us—we deserve some kind of compensation!”

Semna stomped her feet in anger.

The elf’s expression hardened.

“You didn’t seem like loggers with impure intentions, so I showed you mercy in my own way. But in the end, humans are all the same—selfish and arrogant.”

Just as Semna was about to retort, a thunderous sound echoed through the air.

The fire mouse let out a startled squeak, and we all instinctively looked up at the sky.

The faint moonlight and starlight barely illuminated the heavy shroud of darkness, but then, a new light appeared.

Two red streaks of light spiraled upward, weaving together, before bursting into three large, dazzling circles.

It looked like sparks scattering from a fire.

Semna and I were mesmerized by the stunning sight—something neither of us had ever seen before.

“Fireworks… it seems someone’s looking for you,” the elf remarked softly.

So she knew what they were. Fireworks—what an interesting name.

Ah, that reminded me—I still didn’t know the elf’s name.

“Your name—”

“There’s no need for you to know. We won’t meet again.”

She placed the fire mouse on her shoulder and turned away.

“Go back. Don’t set foot in this forest again. Next time, I’ll aim straight for your eyes.”

Semna clenched her teeth and grabbed my arm.

“Let’s go. I don’t want to stay here any longer.”

“But—”

“But what? What if the Syle Caravan leaves us behind while we’re dawdling here?”

She was right. Those fireworks must’ve been sent by the Syle Caravan to signal us to return.

We needed to catch up.

Another firework exploded, urging us along—a brilliant display of light rising from the ground, illuminating the frozen world.

As I glanced around, the landscape seemed to stretch endlessly in all directions. It was so different from the small patch of ground lit by my lantern. It felt as if the world had suddenly expanded.

But this world was harshly cold.

In the shadows, the forest was dying. Frozen trees, animals dead from the cold, and a silence so profound that nothing dared to cry out.

Only a few ancient trees clung to life, barely holding on. But how much longer could they last?

The elf had been living alone in this enormous graveyard of trees.

For a moment, I felt as though I understood her—just a little.

“This forest is dying,” I murmured absentmindedly.

The elf, already walking away, stopped in her tracks.

The fireworks faded, and darkness descended once more.

I could no longer see her, but I knew she was still there.

Maybe I was just being childish—wanting to say something, to know more about someone who wouldn’t even share her name.

But I couldn’t stop myself from speaking.

“I’ll bring this forest back to life.”

It felt as if her unspoken question reached me: How?

I didn’t know.

But the lingering glow of the fireworks pushed me to give an answer.

“I’ll raise the sun.”

A ridiculous thing to say.

But as I spoke, another streak of red light coiled like a dragon and shot into the sky, brightening the frozen world and casting a fleeting beauty over its desolation.

Entranced by the light, I made a promise.

“I’ll raise the sun and bring this forest back to life. I’ll melt the frozen ground so that flowers, grass, and trees can grow again.”

If I can revive all the beauty buried in this darkness and ice…

Would you tell me your name then?

I wondered.

The fireworks shone brightly for a moment and then disappeared. But their afterimage lingered, lighting up my heart.

The elf slowly disappeared into the shadows.

Maybe it was because this was the first time I’d met someone so distant and mysterious, but I couldn’t help feeling deeply frustrated by her.

So I decided to say goodbye in my own way—a promise loud enough for her and the whole world to hear.

“I’ll raise the sun and light up the world! I’ll bring this forest back to life, and I’ll ask you for your name! I’m Solaire! Until then, take care! Goodbye!”