Sora nodded gently, respecting the man's choice to live in seclusion from the world. He understood, in a way, the need to get away, even if he'd never had the opportunity to live like this. The soup warmed gently, and the comforting aroma filled the hut, making the atmosphere warmer despite the cold outside.

The old man looked at Sora for a few moments, then finally broke the silence. "And so, what's a mercenary doing in this remote part of the mountain?"

Surprised by this question, Sora hesitated for a few moments before answering. He wasn't sure whether it was a good idea to reveal information about his mission, so he preferred to give an evasive answer. "As I told you, if I'm here, it's for a mission."

Pouring a ladleful of soup into an earthenware bowl beside him, the old man held it out in Sora's direction, who took it in his hands. "Wait a few moments before eating, it's likely to be very hot." He then waited a few moments before continuing. "With all due respect, why did the Order send someone so puny to carry out a mission on this mountain?"

Unaccustomed to receiving such frank words from a stranger, Sora coughed up the soup he'd just swallowed wrongly. "You're not really wrong... I'm clearly not the strongest, but the mission I've chosen doesn't require the services of a mercenary better than me."

Shaking his head in understanding, the old man still seemed slightly surprised by Sora's answer. "You're surely not here to make an excursion into the caves..." Thinking for a few moments, he then raised his index finger in the air, as if he'd had an epiphany. "I take it, then, that you're here for the Mouthstones."

As he began to slowly sip the soup in his hands, Sora was amazed that the man had found out on his own why he had come from this mountain. "Indeed, you're right. I need to get to the outskirts of a cave to get rid of the Mouthstones there."

The old man raised an eyebrow, setting his own bowl of soup down on the rickety table. "Hum... Mouthstones aren't easy opponents, especially for someone who, as you said, isn't the strongest. You've got to have a hell of a lot of courage to take them on on your own."

Sora shrugged, trying to mask his apprehension. "It's not a question of courage, but of necessity. I have to face all kinds of adversaries so I can grow stronger."

The old man chuckled thoughtfully, his calloused fingers playing absentmindedly with the rim of his bowl. "Getting stronger, eh?" he murmured, as if to himself. Then, raising his eyes to Sora, he resumed with an almost innocent tone. "This is something I have absolutely no control over. I've never been in search of any kind of strength. I wouldn't be on this floor if I'd had the slightest interest in it."

Sora smiled nervously at the old man's reflection. "You may not be a fighter, but living alone on this mountain requires a very different kind of strength, a strength of mind."

The old man laughed softly, a hoarse laugh that echoed through the hut. "Strength of spirit... Perhaps. But you know, young man, solitude is unforgiving. It either forges you or breaks you. I chose to embrace it, but it's not a life for everyone."

Sora remained pensive, staring at the hot liquid in his bowl. His words echoed some of his own doubts. Silence stretched on, broken only by the distant sound of the wind rushing between the rocks.

"Anyway, there's no point in going on and on about such things." The man replied, once again breaking the silence. "You'd better get some rest as soon as possible if you want to beat those plants tomorrow. Finish eating, and I'll prepare a place for you to sleep."

Watching his soup diminish with every sip, the old man moved from one side of the hut to the other, picking up various objects and setting them up to create a bed for Sora.

By the time Sora had finished his soup, the old man was packing a few tools and wooden trinkets into crates in a cupboard at the back of the cabin.

Sora waited a few moments for the man to finish putting everything away before addressing him. "Thank you very much for this meal and for welcoming me into your home for the night."

"My pleasure, it's rare to meet new faces around here. Settle in here and you're free to leave whenever you like in the morning."

Thanking him with a friendly nod, Sora laid his sword on the floor beside him and settled into the makeshift bed reserved for him.

It didn't take him long to fall asleep. The old man hadn't even had time to finish what he was doing, and Sora had already fallen into the arms of Morpheus.

...

As he opened his eyes, Sora was amazed by the warmth of the cabin, and the smell of soup from the previous day was still present, which was strangely pleasant.

Sora gently picked up his sword without making a sound, and heard a light snore coming from the old man's room. Before leaving, he took a pen and paper from a desk a few meters away and wrote a few words on it. He then took out a few leather ecus from Systeme0's inventory and placed them on the paper in thanks.

He then went outside and felt the icy cold characteristic of an early morning in the mountains. As he looked towards the top of the mountain, he saw a strange white light.

It was the first time he'd seen such a sight: several hundred meters above him, everything was white, snow as far as the eye could see. Although he was far too far away to touch it, he was almost moved to see it so close up.

"It's beautiful..." he whispered, admiring the almost idyllic sight.

Sora breathed deeply, letting the icy air rush into his lungs. The view of the snow-covered summit gave him a sense of peace he had not felt for a long time. Yet he was not there to admire the landscape; his goal was waiting somewhere, hidden at the entrance of the dark caves upstream.

He took his mission sheet in hand and looked at the map drawn on the back. He spotted himself quite quickly on it and estimated his walking time at about 30 minutes.

But with the cold weather, 30 minutes could be very long, so he couldn't waste time and began to head towards his goal. Only the sound of his breath emitting a white mist and the sound of the crumbling stones under his feet accompanied him. Everything else was very quiet, which was quite relaxing.

As he approached the cave, the atmosphere changed. The wind seemed to calm down, and a strange tension developed. The few trees he had crossed were now becoming more and more rare as he went up, giving way to imposing rocks, eroded by the icy winds. The gaping entrance to the cave was in sight, dark and threatening, a striking contrast with the bright light of the snow at the top.

Sora pulled out his sword, his fingers clenched on the handle. He crouched behind a rock a few dozen meters away to observe the entrance. "No rush," he thought. He carefully inspected every nook and cranny of this entrance to try to notice any suspicious movement on the part of one of the Mouthstones, but everything seemed motionless, as if they were in fact only real stones.

He breathed deeply, closing his eyes for a moment to calm the frantic beats of his heart. "Come on, it's now or never," he murmured.

Advancing cautiously, he arrived at the edge of the cave. A slight draft seemed to come from the bottom of the cave. The more he tried to observe the darkness in front of him, the more he felt that he could not discern anything.

So Sora decided to keep approaching it slowly. The sound of his steps was resonating slightly, despite his efforts to remain silent. He suddenly stopped when he arrived at the entrance of the cave. He took a few moments to inspect each rock in front of him more closely, while staying far enough away so that he would not be caught.

Not noticing anything strange, he advanced a few meters, until a crack behind him made him turn sharply. Grey fangs, as long as a finger, sprang out of the shadow, and Sora had only time to raise his sword to parry. The creature, massive and threatening, stopped a few centimeters from his face, his body covered with rock plates. His eyes shone with a disturbing yellow glow.

"For a first contact... they don't joke," he thought, clenching his teeth.

He took a few steps back and noticed that 3 other plants had just shown up at the same time. While he was sure of having observed simple rocks, he realized that in fact all the rocks that stood at the entrance to the cave were actually Mouthstones.

As he tried to concentrate on a strategy for eliminating all these plants, a rain of rocks quickly came in his direction.

Sora quickly rolled to the side to avoid the projectiles coming in his direction, but he could not avoid them all and some came crashing into his left leg, while he hit the rocky ground. A dull pain invaded his right arm, on which he had just recovered, but he did not have time to dwell on his wounds.

"System0, is this a skill?"

[ Affirmative ]

A slight smile appeared on his face, as he stood up quickly to face his enemies who were slowly approaching him. "Perfect, then use Collector's Catalogue."

[ Affirmative ]

[ COLLECTOR CATALOGUE ]

[ - Name: Mouthstones ]

[ - Age: 10 months ]

[ - Status: 100% ( 86 PV ) ]

[ CAPABILITIES ]

[ - Strength: 0.28 ]

[ - Intelligence: _ ]

[ - Agility: _ ]

[ - Speed: 0.17 ]

[ - Vitality: 0.42 ]

[ - Magic: 0.48 ]

[ Magic Resistance: 0.31 ]

[ SKILL ]

[ - Rocky Shot ]

As the translucent blue window appeared in front of his eyes, Sora dodged a second stone assault approaching him quickly.

This time, he manages to avoid them all and to land again without getting too much hurt. "Rock shot, I'd love to have that skill too, it could be useful."

When he stood up, he felt his fingers clench more and more on the hilt of his sword. But this movement was not due to his own will, it was in fact the cold that began to gain his whole body. Sora started to shiver more and more.

At the same time, he was always dressed in his clothes that he had on Earth in the middle of May, where temperatures can exceed 20°C, except that on this mountain, the temperature should not exceed 5°C, and with the wind blowing, feeling dangerously close to 0°C.

Sora knew that if he didn't hurry up to finish this mission, the situation could get worse. Currently, he did not see many options to be able to complete his mission quickly, he had to use his sword skill. He had thought of using his skill Piercing Teeth, but it was not powerful enough, and use plants against rocks, it did not risk to be very effective.

While paying attention to his 4 assailants who approached him, while throwing repeated showers of stones, Sora concentrated and began to feel this heat spreading throughout his right arm. It was even more pleasant than usual, since she warmed her whole body which began to stop shivering.

Sora dodged two more attacks of flying stones, but was touched in some places anyway. The pain only increased, but it didn't deconcentrate him and he used the skill of his sword: Big Cutting Edge.

A large white sail headed in the direction of the Mouthstones who had attacked her first and came crashing on his mouth wide open. A great cloud of dust came out and pieces of rock scattered all around. Having not seen the projectile heading in his direction, Sora bent in two when it landed right in her belly.

Sora grimaced, the pain pierced through his concentration. He fell to his knees, short of breath, but his determination did not falter. Seeing one of the Mouthstones on the ground gave him even more hope for the success of his mission. The others did not appear to be damaged. One of them came forward with a heavy step, her fangs scratching the rocky ground, ready to melt on him.

Sora hastily removed the projectile planted in his belly and a spray of blood stained his white T-shirt bright red. He clenched his teeth, straightening himself up with difficulty, and concentrated his energy in his legs numb by the cold. His gaze was fixed on one of the Mouthstones who had taken a little step back, probably to restart a rocky shot. He knew it, he had no time to waste.

Sora rushed forward, dodging another stone throw, his left leg burning with pain. He still felt slightly the heat of his right arm that was spreading, but it was not enough to erase the surrounding cold. As he got closer to the nearest Mouthstones, he could feel his heart beating harder in his chest. Every blow he was going to throw would be crucial.

Just as he was within reach of the creature, Sora raised his sword with all the strength he could muster. A second before the Mouthstones attacked him again with other projectiles, he shot down his sword in a clear and precise movement.

The sharp edge of the blade sank into the body of the creature with a sound of broken rock. Sora didn't even have time to move as the shock of the attack sent another rain of rocks in his direction. He rolled to the side, barely dodging, but a rock landed in his right shoulder, forcing him to howl silently.

There he realized that he could not continue like this. He was not sufficiently prepared for this kind of long and hard fight, and he was beginning to lose control. His thoughts became confused, the exhaustion becoming more and more heavy, but an idea sprang in his mind.

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