It was a small, pale hand — as though cut from some young woman, with a jeweled ring and a pearl bracelet on its fingers, painted with pink nail polish, and wearing on the wrist a small knit hat that matched the one Cheng Weicai had on.

Brian and Ed stared, mouths agape.

Neither of them had ever seen anything like… like… what exactly was this?

The moment the severed hand touched the ground, it tapped the ice surface with its index finger — knock knock — with an air of cheerful energy.

Teacher Cheng spoke in an unhurried tone. “Be good now. Watch the seedlings. If the soil gets dry, give them some water.”

“It can water plants?” Ed asked in astonishment.

Cheng Weicai smiled his good-natured smile. “It can. Just tell it properly — there’s quite a lot it can do.”

Brian stared at the hand crawling around on the ground, his expression darkening. “Is this… a tool item?”

Cheng Weicai wasn’t entirely sure what the severed hand was. Strictly speaking, it was probably part of a game character — but it had already separated from its character, and from that game. In its current state… how was one even to classify it?

“It’s a tool item…” Teacher Cheng answered vaguely, not elaborating further, and bent down to organize his pack.

He placed a bowl of water beside the flower pot, set his own water cup next to it, then rummaged in his pocket and produced a small spoon, which he dropped into the bowl.

Ed looked on curiously. “What’s that for?”

“To make watering easier for it,” Teacher Cheng explained with a smile. He shouldered his pack, tugged his hat snug. “All right — let’s head out.”

Brian took a long look at Ed. “We’re off. Take good care of… our seedlings.”

Ed’s gaze shifted slightly, evasive. “Mm… I know.”

Brian looked again at the severed hand on the ground, a sense of irritation creeping through him. He turned away, opened the door alongside Cheng Weicai, and the two left the castle.

…

Outside, the blizzard still howled with ferocity.

Within minutes, they were chilled to the bone. But knowing that if they held on for a stretch further they would clear the worst of it, their minds stayed relatively steady.

Once clear of the blizzard ring, Brian and Cheng Weicai moved quickly, looking for anything that could serve as fuel, and digging up more soil along the way.

There was a great deal to carry, and it was heavy. Fortunately the ground was icy and slick — they fashioned a simple sledge from rope and a door panel, one pulling from the front and one pushing from behind, which saved considerable effort.

Brian walked ahead, his mind still on the situation back in the castle.

Ed had been reluctant from the start. Now that the old man had left a strange severed hand behind in the castle, Ed would probably be even less inclined to act.

He’d even have a ready excuse: the hand’s exact function was unclear — how could they move rashly without knowing more?

Thinking of this, Brian felt his irritation flare.

He still believed they should act sooner. Catching someone off guard gave the best odds of success. The longer they waited, the more the other side would prepare — and then striking would become far more difficult.

Take right now, for instance — with a hand of unknown function now in the picture, who could say what other tools the old man might yet produce?

So what should he do?

Ed was almost certainly a lost cause. He would have to think of something himself… but with the game’s rules constraining him, how was he supposed to move against the old man?

He was still turning this over when Brian suddenly caught sight of something.

He froze, his footsteps halting.

At his feet, there was a set of clean, well-defined tracks — the footprints of a beast. Like a bear, or perhaps a lion or tiger…

Brian’s pulse quickened, his nerves going taut.

To encounter a wild animal in conditions this brutal would be extraordinarily dangerous.

This was a crisis — but perhaps also a golden opportunity.

The game’s rules wouldn’t allow him to go after the old man directly. But what if it was a beast that took him?

“Why have you stopped?” Cheng Weicai asked from behind.

“Oh… nothing. Just tired. Taking a short rest.” Brian picked up the rope again and quietly adjusted their course, heading in the direction of the tracks.

—