Infinite Evolution: Return of the Talentless Mage-Chapter 25 - 0. Snowflake

Back at the shed, he noticed the surrounding area was a bit too cold compared to the early hours of the morning. And even though it was evening, he hadn’t felt this cold since he started camping at the shed.

He stared down the tree dome to check if anyone was following him, the feeling he got back at the third shed wasn’t the same feeling when he entered.

"I think I’m done exploring the sheds, I’ll just manage all I’ve got for the trip." He chuckled softly to make himself feel better.

He crawled to the centre of the Shed, staring at the talisman and coat he took. Surprisingly the coat seemed clean, not like something that had stayed in the shed all these years.

"Someone was actually there then?!" He questioned himself. "Does that mean someone is with me in this forest? Has the person noticed me yet or haven’t they? Did I do a bad thing by taking their coat?!"

His mind spiralled, concern and fear gripping him immediately, "What if they come for me? I have to leave this place as soon as possible!"

He glanced back at his bag at the far end of the shed, it stood alongside the mirror and small glass cup he had found the day before.

"Maybe these are theirs too? That means they’ll be coming here soon enough. No no no, not possible, no one should be around these areas, these sheds seem extremely old and uncleaned, how?"

Before he could continue with his rumbling, he first had to set up a fire site. The environment had started to get way too cold for him to ignore.

He gathered the ashes he had placed earlier, some already used wood, and the stones he had picked from the riverside to set up the fire.

The first strike against the wood was a failure, not even a spark escaped the stones. He noticed they had somehow gotten too cold to generate a spark from the friction and that wasn’t good.

’Firstly, I’d have to make them somehow hot, I think.’ He thought to himself, staring at the stones in his hands.

There was no valid proof that it would work, but based on his knowledge and understanding of heat, the stone somehow had to be dry enough to create friction.

And so far, the only way he knew he could make it dry was by heating it up or so he thought. He sat there a while, thinking about his next move as the cold bit against his skin.

He cleaned the stones with his cloth, hoping that would help him out in some way, and decided to try again.

Sparks flew from the stone

When the flames were placed and were burning brightly, illuminating the environment around him, he moved closer to them, to gain warmth.

The edges of his face grew sharp under the firelight, shadows looming behind him. His eyes glinted at the flame, his thoughts a storm inside him.

’The weather is starting to get too cold to stay here anymore, I don’t think I will survive if I don’t move out of here soon.’

Rubbing his hands over the flame to gather heat, he placed it on his cold face. Any inch away from the fire and the cold would get to him, but another thought sat at the back of his mind in the meantime.

"If someone is truly in this forest, then leaving the fire on all night would be a bad idea. So it doesn’t attract them, tomorrow I’ll set off. Winter is coming faster than I expected."

He didn’t stop rubbing his hand against the heat of the fire to keep himself warm, drifting closer to it as the environment grew cold.

"I didn’t know it would be this cold, I feel like it drains my energy the colder it gets" he whispered against the flame.

At this point, he sat face to face with the fire, mere inches away from the burning flames. His mind reeled back and he turned around, glancing around the dark, cold shed.

"Where’s that coat, where did I keep it?"

He stretched forward, reaching out to any item within the area. His body grew colder the longer he spent away from the fire.

’This should help keep me warm for the night.’

He took the coat and dragged it towards him, opening it up and wearing it on his body for warmth and comfort. He moved back to the fire, rubbing his cold palms over it.

With nothing else to do, he stared at the fire. Nothing was on his mind, and the forest was silent, safe for the occasional chirping of the crickets nearby.

With his body now warm, and the environment quiet, he lay close to the fireplace, placing his hand below his head as a pillow to sleep.

His eyes remained fixed on the fire, his ears wandering to catch the slightest unusual rustle of leaves within the area as his eyes closed to sleep.

He didn’t stay awake long enough before the drowsiness took him and he was in a deep sleep.

**

His body shivered from the cold, causing him to wake up from his sleep. The fire had gone out at midnight and the cold took over.

The morning wind, coming from the open window, and the cold floor didn’t make it any better. He found himself rubbing his body with his palms to stay warm against the cold.

’I have to pack my things and set out today, the cold is slowly getting worse already.’

He rose to a sitting position, staring at the dead embers in the fireplace. For a moment he drifted away, sudden memories rushing in.

"The winter celebrations."

He shook his head, sighing deeply before rising to his feet. "Okay, time to wrap it up. I’ve stayed here long enough, time for me to take my leave."

He turned around, ignoring the cold air coming from the window because it had no lid and went over to his bag.

’These two can’t stay in here, they’ll break along the way.’

He stood, then walked over to the other end of the shed, and walked outside to look out the door. While staring at the dry land below him, a single snowflake landed on his nose, making him sneeze out loud.

’Wait, was that a snowflake that made me sneeze??.’