CHAPTER 235: CHAPTER 234 - CLUCKLES THE WISE.

The moment they emerged from the mountain pass, the group fell silent.

There, across the frozen valley, lay a scene pulled from a painter’s dream: a glassy lake nestled in a pristine glacial bowl, untouched by time.

At the lake’s center sat an island bathed in silver moonlight, with snow-frosted trees, crystalline blossoms, and a gentle steam rising from a bubbling spring.

It shimmered like a mirage—soft, surreal, and suspiciously romantic.

"...Okay, so," muttered Tevin, the child of one of the officials in the Elvarine family, "that’s either a forbidden paradise or the start of a horror story."

"Shhh," hissed Lyra, the daughter of the vice patriarch of the Elvarine family, elbowing him. "Don’t jinx it!"

Aira, standing at the front, narrowed her gaze. "That’s where the smoke came from."

The group slowly nodded, still awestruck by the impossible beauty of the place.

Then someone asked the question hanging in the cold air.

"Shouldn’t we... You know... call an elder or something?"

Everyone turned to Aira.

She hesitated. Her fists clenched as she stared ahead, not turning back.

For a while, she stayed silent, her jaw clenched.

Then, her voice was heard.

"...I came here to prove I don’t need to."

The others didn’t press her further.

They knew her mother was the Matriarch of the Elvarine Family, and they also knew that Aira hated being called "sheltered snowflake daughter of the duchess."

Despite being the daughter of one of the strongest women (excluding the women from the Vaise family) in the kingdom, she wasn’t permitted to do as she pleased.

The only places she had ever been were the Velmoria Academy and the Elvarine Dukedom.

Even in the dukedom, she could rarely leave the main estate.

The only reason she could move so far out in the restricted area was that her mother was out dealing with some demon matter.

However, for her, this was the only opportunity when she would have the chance to show everyone that she could do things on her own.

So, with renewed resolve, they moved forward, quietly crossing the frozen edge of the lake toward the island clearing—only to stop dead in their tracks.

A chicken blocked their path.

Not just any chicken.

A two-foot-tall, puffed-up, snow-feathered chicken wearing a fur coat like an ancient philosopher. One eye half-lidded in judgment. Tiny feet planted with authority.

It was clutching a single twig like a staff.

"Hark!" The chicken bellowed in deep, formal Common Tongue. "Ye stand before the sacred ground of Cluckles the Wise! Trespassers shall face eggstream consequences!"

"...That chicken just made a pun," Tevin whispered in awe, and the boys behind him nodded.

Aira’s face twitched. "It talks. That means it’s at least... level seven."

Someone whimpered. "We’re gonna die to a bird..."

"Cluckles the Wise hears your fear," the chicken declared, flaring his wings. "He finds it... well-seasoned. But unnecessary."

"Good god," Lyra, despite feeling fearful, facepalmed, muttering. "We are standing before a chicken that talks in third-person POV."

Aira, ignoring her friend’s words, took a brave step forward, bowing slightly. "Esteemed... Sage Chicken... may we confirm the identity of the individual occupying this island? This land is marked restricted, so all we want to know is the identity of the person who came here."

Cluckles narrowed his beady eyes.

"No. Turn back. Or face... The Penguins of Peril."

The bushes rustled behind him.

Out stepped half a dozen penguins.

Each one waddled in perfectly timed synchronicity, little eyes glowing with dramatic purpose.

They carried perfectly round snowballs in their tiny flippers.

One licked its snowball like it was prepping for battle.

"...We’re dead," someone muttered. "We’re gonna be frostbitten to death by bowling pins in tuxedos."

Cluckles flapped once, dramatically. "Final warning. This sacred land is under Cluckles’s protection. For he owes a debt most meaty."

Aira bit her lip.

She wanted to argue. But even she knew that if this bird were level seven and coordinated, the whole group would be turned into snowmen before they could say cluck.

She lowered her head and turned.

"Everyone, back. Slowly."

The group retreated in silence, their honor in tatters. One penguin gave a menacing waddling pursuit merely to mess with them.

As they vanished into the night, Cluckles turned toward the bush behind him and raised a tiny wing in a thumbs-up gesture.

Behind the leaves, Raven gave a quiet chuckle while Selena shook her head, holding back a giggle.

"...Repayment complete," Cluckles muttered proudly. "Cluckles’s karmic poultry ledger... is now balanced."

Then he turned, waddling away with gravitas. "Cluckles will now go soak in warm soup. Not as food. As a vibe."

Behind him, the penguins followed. One slipped. Another face-planted into a snowdrift. Another tried to eat its snowball.

They left as they had come—like fluffy legends of ice and absurdity.

Raven leaned closer to Selena, whispering, "Best chicken I’ve ever fed."

Selena whispered back, "Best date security system ever."

However, before the silence could settle in the surroundings.

"AAHHHHHHHHHHH—!!"

A terrified yell was heard, only to be cut short.

"That... doesn’t sound good." Raven narrowed his eyes, and Selena nodded.

Cluckles, on the other hand, paused, his head raised as he turned in the direction from which the yelling came.

"That’s where Cluckles sent the kids," the chicken muttered to itself, realizing that the children might be in danger because of its actions.

...........................

A while ago.

The group had just begun retreating down the snowy trail, their pride bruised and their dignity pecked to death by poultry.

Tevin was still muttering about tuxedoed penguins plotting world domination when Lyra suddenly stopped, her brows furrowing.

"...Why is the fog getting thicker?" She asked, glancing around. Visibility dropped like a stone in a lake.

What had been a scenic, icy wonderland moments ago was now a dense, suffocating cloud of white.

They didn’t notice it before, as they were busy thinking about the absurdity of what they had faced, but they all finally noticed it.

The moment they did, a gust of cold wind blew past them. Too cold.

Then—

THUNK.

A startled yelp came from their left. One of the boys—Joren—had stumbled back, landing on his butt, clutching his face.

"I—I hit something—!"

The group turned... and froze.

Standing before Joren, rising from the swirling mist like a nightmare carved from frost, was a massive snowy wolf.

Its fur was as white as the fog, blending seamlessly into the landscape—except for its eyes.

Those eyes were glowing blue, a cold and predatory light shining within them.

"AHHHHHHHHHHHH—!!" Joren screamed in terror, trying to crawl back.

A moment later, the scream cut off.

Cleanly.

The wolf’s jaws snapped shut. Blood sprayed into the mist like ink across a canvas. Only half of Joren’s body dropped to the ground with a wet thud.

"Ah... Much better," the wolf growled, its voice deep and guttural. "It’s been far too long since I’ve tasted human."

The group collectively took a step back. Tevin turned pale. Lyra was shaking. Someone vomited.

"W-We’re gonna die..." Another choked.

The beast was speaking, so it was at least a level seven beast, and unlike the chicken from before, this one didn’t have any intentions of talking things out.

Aira was frozen in her spot for a second.

Like others, she realized that their situation wasn’t something she could emerge from unscathed.

But then, the face of a boy in her class—someone she had only seen during the trials—flashed before her eyes.

The Vaise boy with black hair and red eyes. He looked devilish.

However, that wasn’t what she recalled.

What flashed past her mind was the way he walked, the power he carried, and his talent in leading a group of misfits.

He was everything she wanted to be.

Brave, powerful, fearless, and above all, free.

Even in his death, he died for others. He was now a hero.

So, thinking about him made her ask herself. ’Would he have stood frozen in his spot like I am?’

The answer automatically formed in her head. It was a no.

Then she looked at her situation and scoffed inwardly. ’Pathetic.’

How could she ever become like him with this weak resolve?

Gritting her teeth, Aira stepped forward, her eyes hard, fists clenched.

Yes, she was weak, nothing when compared to the wolf before her.

But she wouldn’t run away now.

Even if she were going to die, she would die like a hero.

She felt sad for her friends as they were merely following her, and now they would die, but she couldn’t do anything.

’I will apologize when we meet in heaven,’ she muttered to herself, as frost began to spiral around her hands, her innate Ice Magic forming sharp, flickering spears in the air.

She was one of the few people who could use a high element since birth.

Now, she was going to show how special she was.

"Take another step, and I’ll make sure you regret it," she warned, voice steady.

The wolf tilted its head, amused. "Oh? Brave. I like that."

Its claws dug into the snow. "But courage won’t save you, girl."

It leapt.

Or rather—it tried to.

CLAUCK—!!

A thunderous, dramatic cluck echoed across the clearing like a divine decree. A blur of snow and fluff dropped between them, wing-flared, staff twig held aloft.

Cluckles the Wise had returned.

The snowy wolf landed, sliding slightly to a halt, its glowing eyes narrowing.

"...You again."

The majestic beast that had just ripped a teenager in half sounded less like a proud predator and more like a grumpy older sibling dealing with a persistent gnat.

Cluckles didn’t flinch.

He stood between the children and death, puffed up with holy righteousness.

"Yes. It is I, Cluckles."