When we arrived at the carriage, I stepped out into the unforgiving wind as if thrown headlong into a living storm. The wind roared around me, its icy fingers tugging at my clothes and unsettling my balance with every step.
As I ventured deeper into the forest, the snow grew heavier and the world became a monochrome haze of gusts and drifting white—each flake a tiny shard of frozen despair. Visibility blurred, as if time itself were melting into the swirling storm.
"Damn! Where are they?" I cursed softly into the howling wind. Every nerve screamed that if I were to scream, the wilderness might divulge its dangers—wild animals drawn by the noise, or worse, enemies lurking in the shadows. My breath came in ragged gasps, mingling with the cold air in ephemeral clouds.
"Hey... You..." A fragile voice, barely audible above the wind's clamor, reached my ears. I halted abruptly and scanned the ghostly white landscape, my eyes straining for the source.
