On a cold winter day, as the chill grew harsher, Lil was enjoying a box of cookies in one of the three warm spots she had set up.

These cookies were Lil’s favorite, sent regularly in large quantities by Livian. She often shared them with Marron, Kohaku, and the divine beasts. They tasted just like the cookies Michiru used to love.

For some reason, eating them made her heart feel warm. They were that kind of cookie.

As she ate her cookies and gazed at the sky, small white flakes suddenly began to fall from above.

“It’s snow!”

“Wow, it’s already started!”

Lil was thrilled. The divine beasts, on the other hand, seemed unimpressed, but Lil had only ever known snow through Michiru’s memories. This was her first time seeing it with her own eyes.

“I hope it piles up soon.”

At her words, the divine beasts protested loudly.

“It’s cold! It doesn’t need to pile up!”

Was snow really that troublesome? Lil didn’t understand.

“You’ll get it once there’s more,” Kohaku remarked.

“I understand! Snow is beautiful, and most of all, it’s romantic,” Marron chimed in, the only one who seemed to share Lil’s excitement.

Lil reached out to catch a snowflake falling from the sky. It felt different from the snow in Michiru’s memories. The snow in those memories had been wetter, more slushy. But this snow held its shape beautifully in her hand. Maybe there were different kinds of snow, she thought.

Just then, Rosaline stepped out from the base. Noticing Lil, she draped a soft, pale pink shawl over her shoulders.

“You need to stay warm, or you might catch a cold.”

It seemed she had come out after seeing the snowfall. Lil was touched by Rosaline’s kindness.

In fact, when winter began, Rosaline had made several outfits for Lil. She always made matching accessories for Kohaku and Marron too, so Lil mostly wore the clothes Rosaline crafted. Today, the three of them were all wearing matching capes.

Suddenly, Lil felt as if the sky had darkened. Looking up, she saw a large flock of pure white birds flying overhead.

“Oh, they’ve arrived again this year,” Rosaline said with a smile, gazing up.

“Again?”

“Yes, swans are migratory birds. They come here to escape the cold of their original habitat and spend the winter.”

A place colder than here? Lil couldn’t even imagine it.

As she watched, the leading swans in the flock descended into the bathing area.

‘Hey, what is this? This wasn’t here last year, was it?’

Apparently, the swans were divine beasts. One of them, floating skillfully on the water, questioned Lil.

“That’s a bathing area for divine beasts.”

‘Wait, you’re the interpreter, aren’t you? We finally found you!’

The swan sounded overly excited. It wasn’t what Lil had imagined at all.

‘Hold on, this place is amazing! Did you make all this? That’s a playground, right?’

“Yeah, I asked the Saint’s knights to build it.”

‘Wow, not bad! Looks fun!’

The swan looked around curiously, moving restlessly.

“I’m Lil. Nice to meet you.”

‘We’ll be staying around here for the winter, so let’s get along.’

Did she mean somewhere in the forest? Lil asked.

‘Yeah, we’ll be at the lake deep in the forest. But we’ll drop by here too, so let’s chat!’

“I’d love to! You come from somewhere even colder, right? Tell me about it!”

The swan told Lil about a land so frigid that the ice never melted, even in summer. Lil was shocked to learn that humans lived in such a place.

Meanwhile, the divine beasts shivered at the mere thought, convinced they could never survive in such a climate.

‘By the way, why is everyone standing on the stones? The ground is warmer, isn’t it?’

When Lil explained that the stones were warmed using magic tools, the swan was delighted.

‘That’s so interesting! Humans really come up with the most fascinating things.’

The talkative swan continued sharing stories. Apparently, sometimes they mingled with regular swans and even received food from humans. The others teased her, calling her a daredevil.

Before long, the snowfall grew heavier. The wind picked up, and Ian came to fetch Lil. Saying farewell to the swan and the divine beasts, she returned inside the base.

It seemed she had gotten colder than she realized—her fingers were numb, making it difficult to remove her cape.

Seeing this, Ian helped her take it off and suggested she take a bath.

After her bath, Lil looked outside. The snow was still falling. Martin Butler mentioned that by tomorrow, it would likely accumulate. The knights had the day off from their patrols—it seemed that venturing into the forest during snowfall could lead to getting lost.

Lil felt a little restless seeing everyone gathered at the base in the afternoon—it was a rare sight. Hayden Cooper invited her to play a card game. Sitting by the fireplace, drinking warm tea prepared by Martin, they all played together.

This was a first for Lil since coming to the base. Usually, everyone was busy.

She had so much fun.

Back when she lived underground, winter had been nothing more than a season of unbearable cold. But today, she felt truly warm—not just in her body, but in her heart.

She realized that from now on, winter might just become her favorite season.