The Struggle of a Young TS Yuki-Onna. Chapter 23

Author:

Character cheat sheet. This is mainly for me, and people who took a break from the novel.

Yukiya Kitahara(北原雪哉) now (雪耶): The protagonist. A junior high student, 14, and  now a Snow girl. Short black hair, beautiful pale skin.

Syuuji Kitahara(北原修司): Yukiya's father, and owner of the Snow House.(雪乃亭) Which is located in Hyousei Village(氷清村)

Yukino(雪乃): Yukiya's mother, and is a snow woman/ Yuki Onna.

Hazuki Natsumi(夏美) and Saeki Tomonori(智則): Yukiya's friends and classmates.

TN: Mamuni

The wrath of god blared down in the form of a blizzard.

Five men and a woman huddled by the fire in a tiny hut. The hut was barely standing as the wind hammered down on it.

The sound of brisk wind blew in from the cracks of the wood, as the walls shook. Occasionally a bang or creak would surprise them all. 

"The weather hasn't gotten any better. . ."

"The forecast said it would be clear."

"So what do we do now? We need to be back by tomorrow. I have class and I need to go to my part-time jobs. . ."

Hopelessness covered the room.

"What are you talking about at a time like this?"

Nerves were tense. The fear continued to grow as time went on. None of their ideas they came up with seemed feasible.

"We were told not to go up the mountain. But you wanted to."

"You're blaming me? You agreed to it."

They started to turn on each other as their frustrations grew.

"Stop it you two. None of this will help our situation!"

One of the university students broke the fight up. His name was Uemura, as he pushed his glasses up and pretended to be calm. He was likely crushed by fear, but had to be solid for the others.

It was fortunate that they were barely able to reach the hut before it was too late.

However there were no signs of the snowstorm stopping. So it merely delayed the inevitable.

"More fire- – -I'll help you."

They added firewood into the fireplace.

This was the only comfort that they had.

However the most regretful was Uemura. From the bottom of his heart, he felt responsible for their situation. He felt like he could have avoided this if he judged their situation more appropriately- – –

–   – A few hours earlier.

The party was enjoying their trek up in sunny weather on the snowy mountain.

There was no wind in sight, and the weather was pleasant.

They were even able to have an enjoyable picnic, while enjoying a beautiful view.

"Hey, let's all take a picture."

One, asked after they finished their meal.

"Can you see the scenery behind us?"

"Yeah, it's fine."

They all gave a V-sigh side by side.

It was a beautiful moment, but they could have never predicted how their day was bound to change.

They actually had great luck in the beginning. Arriving at half way to their destination earlier.

But it wasn't long until it changed.

The sky suddenly began to darken, as the snow became more plentiful.

The wind changed as the cold air from the mountain began to burn their skin.

Despite the ski wear protecting them. It felt frozen around them.

"W-What the. . .The wind suddenly changed."

"And it's freezing."

"Should we head back?"

They stood still to assess their situation.

Umura suddenly remembered the words from the young woman they met yesterday at a restaurant.

("Tomorrow is the mountain god's day. If the weather suddenly changes, return back immediately. Don't go any further.")

Just imaging the beautiful woman vividly revived Uemura's mind.

However their situation matched her warning perfectly.

Is it simply a coincidence? Or is there something more to her warning?

("If you don't , you'll never be able to leave the mountain.")

Those words shook him to his core.

With him remembering those words, he had to tell everybody to quickly leave.

"Hey, guys. We can't go any further, let's turn back. We need to follow the advice we got yesterday."

He desperately appealed to them.

However they immediately refuted him.

"Oi Oi, what are you talking about? We are almost to the summit, why give up now?"

"I'm serious, we need to head back."

Their planned trip was already more than halfway done. It would actually just be more troublesome to turn back now, and throw away all their efforts. He couldn't object to that fact.

"You are too superstitious. Do you really believe that?"

His suggestion was immediately dismissed.

Even though they were frightened by that legend yesterday, that fear immediately disappeared overnight.

"Let's proceed."

"Oh, if we hurry now, we'll finish in an hour."

Uemura had no allies, and was compelled to simply follow the pack.

Originally the student circle was not a full-fledged climbing team. Trekking was simply planned to extend their ski trip. The equipment they bought was quality, but they did not fully understand how to use it. Uemura was simply swept away by their enthusiasm.

(I hope nothing bad happens. . .)

He muttered has he had no choice but to wipe his anxiety away, and follow his friends wishes.

But it didn't take long until it returned.

The fierce blizzard continued to progressively worsen as they continued to go up.

And the groups panicking quickly arose.

"W-What the?"

"What happened!?"

The strong wind and snow soon made it hard to stand, let alone be able to clearly hear each other. The snow was getting deeper and deeper, making walking difficult.

"Uwaa."

"Hya – -"

A strong gust of wind suddenly appeared, knocking a few of them over.

The wind changed it's direction several times. But even if they wanted to leave, it felt like they entered a mysterious labyrinth. Their previous steps disappeared, and the air was shrouded by the snow. It felt like they were just going around in circles. 

"W-Where are we. . ?"

One person finally took out his map, and tried to see. There was supposed to be a steep cliff, and a boulder to determine the location. But they couldn't tell. All there was was snow and nothing else.

"I-I don't know. . .An area like this isn't on the map. . ."

The party was completely bewildered.

"Crap, we aren't getting a radio signal- – -"

Their reliable scientific equipment proved to be useless.

The snow fall was still progressively getting harder.

"Ah, look over there!"

One pointed.

In front of them was a small hut. It seemed to be in shambles, but it could prove a safe haven for them.

"A, It's real. A small hut!"

"W-We're saved."

Once it was sighted they all rushed to the hut. Fighting for the warmth as the snow began to rise to their chest.

"Hey, what are you doing? Uemura. Let's go."

"Eh? Ah, yeah. . ."

But Uemura didn't feel relief. Only suspicion. 

(The timing is too convenient. It's like it's a trap.)

The poor metal door opened with a rustling cranking noise.

The stagnant old air drifted out, carrying dust along with it. 

Of course it was dark inside. There were no electricity or utilities.

However there was a small fireplace and firewood in the middle of the hut.

"Ah, let's quickly start a fire."

They quickly lit the firewood with the help of a lighter they had on hand. There was some warmth, but it was waning.

"Ahh. . ."

"Warm. . ."

Some small bliss was able to be had. Only getting out of the blizzard for the first time was a blessing in its own right.

All that was left was their hope. Either the blizzard stops or rescue would come.

However after a few hours. Uemura's had a bad realization. It was getting harder to move. As if he was caught in a trap.

It's been 22 chapters since the last third-person chapter. And on a translator side, it's fun to translate more descriptive things. It's a nice change of pace, but I doubt I would want it like this forever. Anyways, it seems like there is something dubious about their shelter. I wonder if Yukiya will get there in time, or if the hut is even real. Maybe they are in an illusionary hut, which is actually just a cave.

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/Next.

Chapter end