All four of them froze at the strange girl's proposal. Mina, especially, visibly trembled. She pretended she hadn't heard it clearly.
"W–What? You mean…?"
The girl burst out laughing.
"Yes. I mean that ring. Hand it over."
By pure instinct, everyone's gaze shifted to the middle finger of Mina's right hand—where an oddly designed ring sat. Ancient-looking, intricately crafted from blackened metal, its twisted engravings framed three gemstones aligned in a straight line: green, red, and violet.
Truth be told, Mina had worn that strange ring for as long as anyone could remember. Nayeon tilted her head, studying it with curiosity. Even she found it unsettling.
"Ah… that ring?" she blurted out.
Seeing this, Dao reluctantly stepped in and explained—based on what little she knew.
"Well… I heard my dad talk about it before. It traditionally belongs to the women who lead the Kamakiri clan. As for why Mina has it… well… it's complicated."
Only then did Dao realize she had said more than she should have. She lowered her voice and glanced at Mina to gauge her reaction.
As expected, Mina—and even Yu—clearly disliked the strange girl's request. Meanwhile, the girl in the black beanie nodded, looking impressed.
"Ohhh, I see. So it really is a valuable heirloom. And you're… part of this Kamakiri clan, huh? Judging by that ring, your position there isn't exactly low-ranking, is it?"
The mocking tone in her voice made everyone uncomfortable—not just Mina. Dao immediately stepped forward, brows furrowed, eyes sharp as she stared straight at the girl on top of the carriage.
"Hey! What the hell do you actually want!? That ring is incredibly important to my friend. You think she can just hand it over? Don't even dream about it!"
The girl's smile vanished instantly.
"Well, aren't you sharp-tongued," she said coolly. "But I made the offer to your friend, didn't I? She hasn't even answered yet. Who asked for your opinion?"
"You—!?"
Dao glared furiously at her, but Mina gently placed a hand on Dao's shoulder. Mina's expression was calm.
Or at least, she was trying very hard to make it look that way.
She spoke softly, eyes lifting toward the roof of the carriage.
"…This ring… means everything to me. I truly can't give it to you. But I do need to reach that forest. Could you consider another form of payment? Money isn't a problem—I can give you whatever you want."
Before Mina could even finish, the girl shook her head again.
"I told you already. I don't need money. What I want is the ring. If you won't give it to me, then forget about borrowing my carriage to get to the forest. Fair trade, right?"
Mina frowned, clearly angered by the girl's indifferent reply. Her hand even twitched—moving instinctively toward the handgun strapped to her chest.
But Dao stopped her, her voice firm, eyes burning as she glared at the girl sitting atop the carriage.
"Mina! Forget her! Don't give her the ring! If someone actually lives around here, there's no way she's the only one with a carriage. Why should we depend on her busted old junk?"
At that, the girl burst out laughing—so hard it stunned everyone. Was she insane?
"I admire your optimism," she said between laughs. "But here's the bad news: I'm the only one here who can help you. In fact—over the past hundred years—I've been the only one living here at all."
"A hundred years?" Nayeon exclaimed in disbelief. "You look younger than all of us!"
The girl merely smiled, offering no direct answer.
"So there you have it," she continued lazily. "If you want to wander around looking for another carriage, be my guest. Honestly, you'd probably get to the forest faster on foot. But let me warn you—once night falls, avalanches will keep coming nonstop until morning. You won't outrun them."
She laughed loudly.
"And I really don't care whether you live or die. Think carefully."
Whether her words were true or not, anxiety spread through the group. After all, before coming here, they had heard rumors about frequent avalanches in this area.
Dao muttered through clenched teeth,
"So what now? If we go, we die. If we turn back, we can't—and we die anyway…"
That instinctive fear only made the situation feel even more dire. Even Mina—someone known for staying calm and rational no matter what—felt shaken by the choice forced upon her.
She was standing on the edge of a decision that would determine whether this search could continue. Her gaze unconsciously fell to the ring on her finger.
What should she do?
The girl noticed Mina's expression, despite Mina's effort to hide her emotions. She was hesitating.
So the girl added casually,
"I'm honestly surprised. You don't look like people who just got lost out here. You still want to go to that forest? That takes some guts. So tell me—why are you going there, huh? Miss Kamakiri?"
Being singled out, Mina finally lifted her head. And when she spoke, there was not a hint of hesitation—her voice clear, firm, every word resolute.
"…I came here to find someone. She's the woman I love. She was taken here by another woman. I'm here to bring her back—no matter the cost."
No one was surprised. Mina had never tried to hide how deeply obsessed she was with Duyen.
Only Nayeon turned away with a sigh, muttering under her breath,
"They really do say that for a reason…"
The girl, however, looked genuinely startled. She placed a hand on her chest.
"Oh my? Such determination? That bold, huh? It's been a long time since I heard words like that from a woman. Interesting. Alright—let's say you really are that determined. But you still won't give me the ring?"
Her smile sharpened.
"Does that mean… you value your lover's life less than your own pride?"
"You—watch your mouth!" Dao snapped, furious on Mina's behalf.
Yet Mina was truly stunned by those words. Her eyes widened. That sentence had almost touched something deep inside her. Dao turned to look at Mina, worry written all over her face.
"Mina, don't listen to that bitch," she said anxiously. "She's just trying to provoke you!"
"Am I provoking her," the girl cut in smoothly, "or am I simply telling the truth?" She tilted her head, her gaze locking onto Mina.
"Seems like even your friend doesn't really understand you, does she? Kamakiri? Mina? You went through all this trouble to come here, claiming it's for your overwhelming love. But in the end, wasn't it just to satisfy your own ego?"
Her voice sharpened.
"What are you even living for, Mina? Everything you've fought for until today—was it really for love… or just to help you run away from something you don't dare face? Your insecurity?"
Those words struck Mina's mind like fatal stabs, so brutal that everyone else froze in shock. The girl's voice echoed again, relentless, almost haunting, as if reverberating inside their heads.
"…You keep talking about your wealth. Your power. But that's somewhere else. Here? You have nothing. No money. No power. No strength."
The girl let out a mocking laugh.
"And now you say you want to save your love? What a pathetic fantasy."
Stop…
Stop…
Mina lowered her head, struggling against the storm of voices flooding her mind. Her body began to tremble violently. Her heart pounded—so hard it hurt. She frowned and pressed a hand against her chest, making everyone jolt in alarm.
"Mina! What's wrong with you?!" Dao shouted, her voice on the verge of tears.
Even Nayeon noticed how wrong Mina looked—this was nothing like her usual self.
"She keeps clutching her chest," Nayeon said nervously. "Don't tell me she has a heart condition?"
Dao shook her head frantically while helplessly rubbing Mina's back.
"She doesn't have a heart condition. She's just—"
She stopped. She couldn't finish the sentence. It was a secret Mina never wanted anyone to know.
Mina's breathing grew labored, her expression clearly showing distress. The situation became critical when her legs finally gave out and she collapsed onto the snowy ground, gasping for air.
"Mina!" Dao screamed.
Even Nayeon rushed in, grabbing Mina's hand and rubbing it, desperately trying to help her regulate her breathing. Despite her panic, Nayeon couldn't help snapping,
"Seriously! If something happens to you right now, we wouldn't even know how to save you! Breathe! Just breathe!"
"Yeah! Mina, breathe!" Dao cried.
But none of their voices reached her.
Inside Mina's mind, a single question thundered again and again:
Who are you without the ring?
I am…
Her thoughts spiraled into chaos. She began to hallucinate, reliving the moment when Shana carried Duyen away from her—when she could do nothing but watch.
I couldn't do anything…
I couldn't defeat her…
Damn it…
Her trembling gaze fell onto the ring on her finger. Dao followed her line of sight and instantly understood what Mina was about to do.
Without hesitation, Mina pulled the ring off and hurled it toward the girl in the black beanie.
The girl snatched it out of the air, as if she had just won a trivial game.
"Oh? Thanks."
But Mina's condition hadn't improved, and no one cared about the ring anymore. Only then did the girl look at Mina again, smiling faintly as she whispered,
"You're tougher than I thought…"
With a light snap of her fingers, Mina's mind suddenly cleared. Her heartbeat slowed. The pain in her chest gradually faded away. She sucked in air desperately, as if someone had stolen it from her moments ago.
She was stable again—completely. Nayeon and Dao both collapsed onto the ground in relief.
The ring was gone. Mina's fingers felt strangely empty.
Yet she couldn't understand why… she felt lighter.
Her face grew warm—partly from embarrassment at being seen like that. With Dao's help, Mina slowly stood up and looked at the girl, who was now examining the ring with idle curiosity.
"…Hmm. The gemstones are worth something, I guess. But other than that, this ring is pretty unremarkable. If you tried to sell it, you'd barely get anything. Someone might even mistake it for plastic."
That tasteless remark made Dao furious. She scooped up a snowball and hurled it straight at the girl.
"Ow!"
Instead of getting angry, the girl burst out laughing. She hopped down from the carriage roof. She was short—barely reaching Mina's shoulder. Standing next to Yu, she looked downright tiny.
She studied Mina for a moment before speaking.
"Relax. I'm just holding onto this thing for now. It's worthless to me anyway. Just a pile of metal."
Mina blinked in surprise.
"Really?"
The girl shot her a sideways glance.
"I mean… if you manage to come back from the forest alive."
That sentence instantly put everyone on edge. Just what the hell was waiting for them in that forest?
But there was no time left to hesitate. The girl slipped the ring onto her thumb, then pulled open the carriage curtains.
Warm air spilled out, along with soft yellow light—completely different from the freezing darkness outside. The interior was larger than expected, and there was even a lit grill inside, its smoke making their stomachs growl all at once.
They exchanged glances, then decided to climb into the carriage. The girl spread her arms cheerfully.
"Oh, by the way, my name's Dali—"
Mina walked straight past her and said flatly,
"I don't care."
They were all utterly exhausted after the long journey. Dali stood there with a crooked smile.
"Damn, you girls are vicious."
Then she climbed into the carriage with them.
At the front, the two large black horses suddenly surged forward, as if an unseen hand had whipped the reins. A narrow path materialized before them, stretching into the distance.