Outside the cave, the wind was like a ghost crying and the two of them were constantly hitting their eardrums, and the snowflakes were blocked by the cloak at the entrance of the cave, gradually accumulating into small snowdrifts, and Fern had to overturn the snowdrifts with the hilt and foot of his sword every once in a while to prevent the cave entrance from being completely sealed by snow. In such caves, it is necessary to maintain air circulation to ensure that there is sufficient oxygen.

Ness sat on Fern's inside, her legs curled up, her hands on her calves, her chin resting on her knees, thinking of something in a lost mind.

Fern took out flint and velvet, along with some dead wood branches he had collected along the way, and began to try to make a fire. After some tossing just now, the mercenary's hands were already a little frozen, and his numb hands could not touch the flint vigorously.

Ness silently watched Ferne's efforts, and a strange feeling rose in her heart, she knew that Fern didn't want her to spend her mental energy to do useless things like making a fire, but the mercenary himself was already so difficult, but he still thought about her everywhere, thinking of this, tears had flowed from the corners of his eyes.

Fern heard Ness's nose twitch and looked up at her. "What's wrong? Isn't it too cold? I'll light it up, be patient for a while. With that, Fern put his hands to his mouth and blew on them, and continued to rub the flint vigorously.

Ness hugged her legs tighter again, tears uncontrollable, and she couldn't speak.

After a while, Fern lit the velvet, and a curling cloud of green smoke slowly rose, and the mercenary was so close that he choked on the smoke and coughed, almost coughing up tears. Finally relieved himself, and immediately put the dead branches on the velvet to continue the hard-won fire.

The small spark stabilized, and the dead branches burned, making a crackling and popping sound. Fern took a wide-mouthed iron teapot from his package, placed it on the flame, then grabbed two large handfuls of snow from outside the cave and put them in the teapot, then sat down against the cave wall with relief, and exhaled heavily.

"Wait for some hot tea, it won't be so cold. Fern arched his right foot and rested his right hand on his right knee, watching the melting snow in the teapot.

Ness wiped the tears from her cheeks, smiled slightly, and looked at the small fire in front of her expectantly.

In this way, neither of them spoke, but quietly listened to the wind whistling outside the cave, watching the dancing flames and the snow water gradually boiling, and it continued like this for a long time.

When the water finally boiled, Fern took out a small teacup, put in a little crushed black tea leaves, and then poured in a little boiling water, and a fresh fragrance of tea wafted.

Fern held up the teacup and handed it to Ness. "I've been waiting for a long time, so let's drink it. ”

Ness took the teacup and held it gently, warming her frozen hands, occasionally taking a sip of the dark red tea inside.

Fern poured himself a glass, but instead of drinking it immediately, he kept rubbing his hands on the flames.

"Is it cold, Ferne, is it okay if you don't wear a cloak?" Ness looked at Fern worriedly, and the mercenary sat outside to help her block the cold wind blowing from outside the cave, so she had to rely on the heat of the fire to warm herself.

"It's okay, don't worry, just eat something. Fern took out some food and ate it with tea.

Ness wasn't hungry, but she managed to pick out a loaf of bread, tore a few slices from it, and stuffed it into her little mouth. After drinking three cups of hot tea, drowsiness set in, and the mage's eyelids began to heavily, but she still fought hard, hoping to spend more time with Fern.

Fern saw Ness's sleepiness and added some twigs to the fire. "When you're tired, go to sleep, it's almost night. After saying that, the mercenary opened the curtain a little and looked at the weather outside the cave. "This blizzard is expected to be a long time coming, so let's rest here tonight. ”

Ness agreed, then frowned as if she wanted to say something, but hesitated, but still didn't say it. The mage found a slightly flatter place, lay down slowly, and carefully wrapped his cloak tightly, wrapping himself completely.

Fern watched as Ness fell asleep and looked up at the top of the cave, wondering if he could make it through the night, which would not be easy without a cloak and sleep. "There's always a way. Fern thought to himself, but at the same time smiled self-deprecatingly.

Scattered memories began to come back, and Fern remembered his time in the Crows, when there were so many companions, and there was always all kinds of noise in his ears, and the mercenaries at that time only wished that there would be some quietness around them. Now, there was too much time for him to enjoy the quiet, but Fern often felt lonely.

"Fern ......," Ness's voice came.

Fern looked at Nyss with her hands propped up in surprise, some of her messy hair hanging down her shoulders, and the rest pouring down from behind the mage's ears. "What's the matter? Go to sleep. ”

"Fern, your high fever is just right, your body has not fully recovered, and if you don't have a cloak, you can't survive such a cold night. Ness sat up, looking at the mercenary worriedly.

"I'll have a way, don't worry. Fern barely managed to squeeze out a smile and unconsciously stiffened up.

"What can you do?" Ness's voice suddenly rang out. "You've always destroyed yourself to protect your companions, no matter what, let me help you once today. The mage's voice only sounded for a moment, and then immediately lowered again, "Please......"

Fern was silent for five seconds, but finally relented, knowing that if he didn't survive tonight, Ness wouldn't be able to go any further. "Tell me about your solution, maybe I can't think of a good way today. ”

Ness didn't speak, she pursed her lips vigorously, her eyes determined as if she had made a decision. The mage stood up, took off his cloak and held it in his hand, then walked up to Fern, sat down beside him without waiting for Fern to react, and covered both of them with his own wide and thick cloak.

Fern was a little surprised, but he didn't resist, and in the thick cloak, warmth spread throughout his body. He subconsciously tightened the cloak on the edge of his body, wrapping himself without a single gap, and then glanced at Niss beside him. "Thanks, Ness, I think I'll make it through tonight. ”

Ness lowered her head and replied softly, she didn't dare to look up, for fear of being embarrassed by Fern seeing that her face was already red to the base of her ears. It was the first time she had been so close to Fern without danger, the girl's right hand resting on the mercenary's. The deep sleepiness hit again, and Niss couldn't support herself to continue sitting, so she had to adjust her sitting position, and the whole person was completely leaning on Fern's left hand, and her head hung down on the mercenary's broad left shoulder.

Fern leaned to the left, lowering his left shoulder so that Ness's head could rest comfortably. Ness's snort came softly, and she could hear that she was sleeping soundly, and at the same time, there was also the fragrance of the girl's body, and even the exhaled breath was faintly fragrant, as if it was the scent of gardenia flowers that had just been hit by dew in the morning, and Fern even wanted to kiss the girl who was close at hand for a moment. But reason prevailed, and Fern sighed softly and turned his head to the other side.