The blood was, of course, frozen, and there were also some broken, blood-stained bones and fragmented clothing, making it look like these two Walruses had just eaten a person.
The poor deceased's belongings were not just bones, but also a satchel.
Simon opened the cloth bag, which contained a handful of coins, a golden ring, a small ruby, a prismatic pink rose-colored crystal, and a book.
The coins were copper, silver, and gold, all embossed with the Empire's emblem on one side and a human head on the other, quite exquisitely crafted and suitable for handling.
There was a long passage on the book's cover, and Simon was unsure if it was the title or an epigraph; in any case, he couldn't understand it, only certain that part of it was numbers and part was text.
He put away the items, then hugged the satchel; the scent of civilization gave him warm encouragement.
This time, he really had a great haul, and this crevice was sheltered from the wind, making it very suitable as a resting place for the night—as long as nothing fell from the ice above.
With two Walruses as prey, the Wolf Pack was also completely content, immediately beginning to feast, while Simon looked up at the towering ice wall, feeling a genuine sense of danger; this was what it felt like to be on the brink of an abyss, he thought. Perhaps the deceased here wasn't killed by the Walruses but simply fell to his death accidentally, with the Walruses merely disposing of his body.
While the Wolf Pack ate, Simon waited quietly, watching the plump Walrus gradually reveal its skeleton and internal organs.
Heat is very fleeting in this extremely cold world, and soon the Walrus corpse became as cold and hard as a stone. The Wolf Pack also ate to their heart's content, then retreated into the crevice to digest their meal.
The sky had completely darkened. What had he done all day? It seemed like he had done everything, and yet nothing at all.
Simon still had the mind to go check out the beach, but the Wolf Pack had become lazy, their bellies round, lying on the ground panting, truly impossible to rouse.
Simon smiled, the lives of beasts are often so simple; a full meal is one of the greatest joys. He also gave up the idea of continuing to wander, sitting down to meditate.
Darkness enveloped his vision.
Slowly, white light emerged; this was already his consciousness sinking into his heart.
The light undulated, a torrent of memories, with no visible beginning or end, just its relentless flow. Thoughts and ideas constantly surfaced in the light, then drifted away with the current.
He sank to the bottom.
A hazy world, with strange forms here: hands flying everywhere, looking like countless people cheering and waving, very chaotic and startling.
Eyes constantly opened and closed—men's eyes, women's eyes, animal eyes, different colors, different expressions, all like secret observers.
A free-floating unicycle circled within Simon's field of vision.
A white garment was layered over a black one, as if worn by an invisible person, hovering in a corner to the right of his view.
And many more.
Simon was very familiar with these things; they were a projection of his subconscious mind.
He delved deeper.
The hazy world gradually became pitch black.
Faint laughter echoed.
There was also a woman's muffled voice, speaking something he couldn't understand, then silence.
Simon's cognitive ability was withdrawn here; he passively accepted everything, unable even to remember it.
This was a corner of the subconscious.
A giant troll ambled in the darkness, raising its arms and roaring.
Simon stared at its back.
Light outlined the troll's silhouette, and when it suddenly turned its head, three pitch-black eyes gleamed with cold light.
Suddenly, Simon was awakened by urgent wolf barks.
Opening his eyes, the Wolf Pack was gathered around the crevice entrance. Simon stood up and walked step by step to a corner with an open view, discovering that the uninvited guests outside were also wolves: two male Icefield Wolves, seemingly not belonging to any pack, they were wanderers.
They stood ten feet from the crevice entrance, staring at the Walrus carcass protected by the Wolf Pack, looking very hungry.
Facing this situation, Simon was somewhat at a loss.
Or rather, the Wolf Pack faced a choice, and he, as an anomalous individual living among the Wolf Pack, didn't have much say in such matters.
Let the Wolf Pack decide for themselves.
During seasons of scarcity, controlling the size of the pack is important.
Simon stood behind, observing the standoff between the two sides: one side looking lazy after a full meal, the other struggling in hunger, like lonely souls.
Both sides whined and growled softly. Simon again smelled a faint scent of blood. He initially thought they were about to start a fight over food, but in the end, the two male wolves chose to quietly move away.
The moonlight was icy, and a mournful wolf howl echoed from afar, reverberating between the ice and the mountains.
Silence returned to the ice crevice; the Wolf Pack resumed resting, while Simon, on the other hand, felt somewhat weary.
Lying in the warmth of the Wolf Pack's fur, looking at the starry sky through the narrow crevice, he began to think about things, letting his thoughts run wild like horses on a verdant plain, and he, like a rider, bounced on horseback, watching the scenery rise and fall.
By the latter half of the night, his drowsiness gradually overtook him. After all, this body was still an infant's; at this age, he shouldn't even have coherent thoughts, and his emotions were too complex, gradually overwhelming his tender brain.
Sleep…
Simon stood under the clear, water-like moonlight, seeing the dark, sparse savanna covered in bright white light, while a snow troll quietly roamed the flat land.
If Simon could doubt a dream, then the troll could too.
When Simon carefully examined the troll, he realized that he was, in fact, the troll bathed in moonlight, and his current perspective as an observer was perhaps a subconscious spiritual journey.
He looked up.
Above, there were dazzling nebulae, with Masser and Secunda faintly visible within them. In the chaotic, layered nebulae, millions of bright and dim stars intertwined, each star a heavenly pearl.
Light permeated the troll's body, and even its ugly face radiated a gentle glow.
The troll suddenly stretched its arms, letting out a silent roar, its savage posture enough to strike terror into one's heart.
…
Simon awoke.
It was dawn.
The Wolf Pack was playing again.
The male wolf he was leaning against was still obediently lying down. Simon patted it, and it turned its head again, its eyes innocent.
"Ha."
Simon shook his head and smiled.
Work had to begin at dawn. Although the Walrus wasn't entirely eaten, there was little flesh left, so today he should go look for a suitable fishing ground.
Riding the male wolf, he gave a shout, and the Wolf Pack left the crevice, continuing down the slope.
They reached a long beach, where many icebergs floated on the sea, along with numerous large pieces of ice floe, hundreds of feet thick, like giants in the ocean.
The coastal area was vast, the water here was shallow, with many exposed sandbanks, and the seawater was diverted here.
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