93: The Little Ice Mage


    Beatrice looked at her hands as the crushing responsibility of parenthood set in. <em>What is this? Trembling already? </em>Beatriceughed at herself. <em>It hasn’t even been a day since conception, so it’s literally nine months away, and I don’t even know the mother… What the hell?</em>


    Beatrice’s mind shed to her three daughters from her past life. How could she have failed so horribly? She had so many chances to make things right… In the end, those arguments seemed so petty… Beatrice wondered if they even bothered showing up to her funeral. <em>Did anyone?</em>


    <em>I have another chance! </em>Beatrice clenched her fists.<em> This time I will not fail my children! And all the more reason to fix this broken world! No cannibalism or starvation! They will be able to walk out of their home without fearing for their lives! I’ll make them proud!</em>


    <em>… I just need to figure out who the other parent of my child is…</em>


    The reinvigorated subus walked down the steps toward the light that came from the corner turn at the bottom of the stairs. It was getting hard to believe that Beatrice was supposed to be in some kind of livable home and not a dungeon.


    And just as Beatrice got to thest few steps and was actually now able to see where she put her naked feet, the door opposite of the stairs opened, unleashing a cold gust of air as if it was a walk-in fridge. And—remembering what exactly was stored past that door, and how cold the walls felt on the second building attached to this house—Beatrice concluded that the door did in fact lead to a giant refrigeration unit.


    The surprising part—that in hindsight should have been obvious—was when Beatrice saw the butcher’s little daughter walk through that door and close it behind her with hands that were paler than a corpse. No, not pale—they were covered in a thinyer of ice. From her elbows to the very fingertips, the girl’s hands looked like they belonged on a snow witch.


    But Jenny’s hands and fingers were not frostbitten. Nor did they have gangrene that should have developed had she literally let ice build up on her arms. The girl moved her fingers freely when she closed the door shut behind her.


    When the girl turned around, she did not show any sign of surprise or embarrassment. The girl simply took two steps toward the mostly-naked subus, bowed, and said, “Good morning!”


    “G-good morning!” Beatrice replied, feeling the chilling air that Jenny emitted. That’s not because she spent too much time in that ce. <em>She’s the one who maintains the cold, </em>Beatrice now realized.<em> What a “nice” system they’ve developed here. The old man butchers mutted gang members and murder victims for meat, while his own daughter makes daily walks through the bs of human meat, preventing them from spoiling until delivery.</em>


    “Breakfast is ready—” Jenny informed, but then noticed the subus carrying some leftover veggies from yesterday. “Oh, you’re already… I can pack what I’ve prepared for you so that you can take it with you…”


    “I-it’s fine,” Beatrice didn’t want to trouble the little girl too much. She felt even more pity for the little redhead now. <em>What a way to let a child grow,</em> Beatrice thought, imagining how fucked up Jenny’s <em>psyche will be by the end of it all. Or does this count as a decent life in this world?</em>


    <em>Enough! </em>Beatrice clenched her fist and stormed past Jenny, through the corridor that led to the guest room where Ember and Olivia were already eating, sitting on the opposite sides of the room, as far away from each other as possible.


    Ember was sitting at the table, opposite of Samuel who kept his head down and avoided making eye contact with both Ember and Olivia. Utensils nking against the tes were heard clearly, as neither of the trio said a word. Ember merrily took a drink from her cup and seemed to pay no mind to the fact that neither Olivia nor even Ember’s own brother enjoyed herpany.


    “Ember!” Beatrice called out to her bodyguard and walked straight toward her.


    “Oh? Good morning!” Ember said as her lips formed a cheeky grin. “How wasst night? Did you get a good night’s sleep? I thought I noticed someonee into your room, but I—”


    “What can you tell me about those Demonlings the King mentioned?” Beatrice interrupted Ember’s bullshit and got straight to the main point.