Shooaaah-.

Even during the daytime, the sky was entirely covered with dark clouds, making it gloomy. The raindrops, which seemed like they would fall briefly, instantly turned into thick streams and poured down.

‘How long has it been since it snowed, and now it’s raining like this…’

It had been several days of continuous cloudy weather, and it was a surprise to have this much rain.

‘Today, I have to stay still in this place.’

Although it didn’t seem like it would rain heavily for a long time, it wasn’t the kind of rain that would stop quickly either.

Fortunately, Shalti, as soon as the rain started, took shelter inside the cave with Ren, so she could avoid getting wet as much as possible.

Shalti, shaking off the awkward feeling, looked around inside the cave. Luckily, the cave they found had more spacious interior than expected. There was enough space for both of them to stretch out and lie down.

‘Well, it still feels uneasy… Should I dig in front of the cave?’

Already, around the cave, rainwater had melted the snow, forming puddles. It was okay for now because there was a slight slope, but if left unattended, there could be a disaster of water flooding into the cave.

Shalti took off her precious fur coat and took out a robe from her bag.

“Ren, I think we should…?”

Shalti, who even grabbed a shovel, turned to look at Ren.

Ren, who would usually explore the inside of the cave before Shalti, stood still with a stiff face and no movement.

“Ren?”
In the dark and narrow cave, it was difficult to read the expression on the shadowy face of Ren.

Shalti approached Ren with a worried look in her eyes.

“What’s wrong? You don’t look good.”

Ren was holding back something difficult to endure, as evidenced by the expression on his face.

Shalti wiped the moisture from his cheek with her sleeve, uncertain whether it was raindrops or cold sweat.

Ren closed his eyes slowly at Shalti’s touch and then exhaled as he opened them.

“It’s okay now, Shalti.”

Even his deliberately forced smile felt stiff.

Shalti’s face also became serious, having sensed that something was wrong.

‘His body temperature is low.’

Perhaps due to the rain, his body temperature had dropped, and Ren’s overall atmosphere seemed to be sinking.

“There’s no fever, but… Maybe you feel chilly or something?”

“Not really.”

Certainly, there were no signs of a cold until this morning or even until they found the cave. Ren, weakly smiling, belatedly examined the inside of the cave. Taking a deep breath, Ren, who had been breathing heavily, grabbed Shalti’s hand and walked into the cave.

Shalti gently squeezed Ren’s hand, which felt heavy with unnecessary tension, as if he were on guard and overly tense.

‘Why is Ren like this?’

Knowing that asking if he was okay would only lead to repetitive assurances, Shalti remained silent.

Instead, she guided him to sit in the innermost part of the cave.

“Sit here.”

“What are you trying to do?”

Perhaps due to the narrow field of vision, Ren belatedly confirmed Shalti, who had taken off her fur coat and put on a robe. Ren, who also checked the shovel in her hand, stood up again.

“I’ll do it too.”

“I told you to sit. You’re not in good condition.”

“Shalti, if you’re going to do it alone, isn’t it just as taxing on your body?”

Stubbornness persisted despite his poor physical condition.

With a deep sigh, Shalti handed Ren the shovel.

“Instead, you have to dig inside the cave. I’ll go outside.”

“Where are you going in that heavy rain…”

“Do you dislike it?”

Shalti smiled mischievously and teased a small pouch in front of him.

If he disliked this and that, she would make sure he couldn’t do anything.

Ren tightly sealed his lips.

Given the current state of his body, insisting on more than this was unreasonable.

“…But make sure to use an umbrella.”

Ren expressed his dissatisfaction with a sigh, along with extending the umbrella.

Although Shalti wanted to yield the umbrella to Ren, there was no time to prolong the argument.

Shalti covered her head and face with the hood, left the bag inside the cave, and went outside.

Shooaaah-.

Facing the pouring rain as if there were holes in the sky, Shalti diligently dug the ground around the cave. At the same time, she discreetly checked if Ren might come out.

‘Certainly, he looks unwell.’

Even reaching out beyond the cave seemed challenging for him in his current state.
Ren, who had never shown a sign of exhaustion until now, was unexpectedly different. Shalti, digging the ground with all her might, suddenly realized the cause.

‘It’s because of me.’

Shalti, who forcefully thrust the shovel into the ground, bit her lips.

‘I carried him during the day with a body chilled from sleeping outdoors in the cold. How much fatigue must have accumulated?’

If he couldn’t properly relieve the accumulated fatigue, it was evident that his body was under strain.

Unaware, Shalti, who had comfortably carried Ren for three days, felt guilty.

‘What should I do? I brought all the medicine from the village.’