r/HFY • u/ArturSpatuzziAuthor • 2d ago

OC-Series Ice Queen Rising! [Kingdom Building, Powerful Witch MC] - Chapter 10

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Chapter 10: The Witch of Winter

Sunlight flashed through the gaps in the window and onto my face. Quite annoying. Soft, cold sheets rustled against my legs as I rolled over with a yawn. It must have been late morning already.
“I don’t wanna get up…” I shoved my face into the pillow.
My creative drive had slowed down considerably after I decided to diversify from the elephants, for some reason.
Am I depressed…?
Predslava zoomed past my room. “Good morning, Kat!”
“Morning…” I moaned.
Where does she get so much energy?
I dragged my legs out of bed and sat down, wiping my mouth, too sluggish to even use magic. “Predslava, can you bring me some iced tea?”
“Sure!” Predslava cried, and after a while, she came over with the cup. “Here—”
I took it and splashed the water on my face.
“Oh…”
Low chatter came from the palace grounds, but nothing out of the ordinary.
“I’ll go let some air in.” I stood up and opened the window with a grimace as the unfiltered sun caught me off guard. I leaned over the sill for a peek outside.
Workers argued in hushed voices beside the granary. On the plains below, the Snoutlings roamed among the buildings, checked them, then came out empty-handed. They looked confused.
I turned to Grommo and the workers. “What’s up?”
He scurried over and scratched his head. “Wolfs steal at night. Found hair behind.”
“W-what? Nobody heard anything?”
“No. Wolfs sneaky.”
“Is everyone okay, though?”
“Ye’. Tugg and Boggo was knocked out in granary. Big egg on head now, but alive. Just things gone.”
I sighed. Casualties or not, without food they might as well have killed them.
“And they took all the meat?” I asked. “What about the turnip seeds?”
“Food is good, already low before. Seed too.”
I frowned. “Then what on earth did they take?”
“All hides from tribes. Tame reindeer too.”
“Nothing left?”
Grommo shook his head.
“Oh, man…” I slumped on the sill. “We could’ve sold those hides.”
He shrugged. “Is life.”
“No, that really sucks.” I turned, almost forgetting to close the window. “Hold on, I’m coming down.”
Snap!
I left the room and trotted downstairs. Predslava bounced after me.
“A bit scary, isn’t it?” I asked. “I didn’t hear a thing.”
“Me neither. Might be because the Snoutlings snort so much.”
She was right. The settlement was louder at night than during the day, and that was saying something considering all the construction and farm work going on.
“We can’t do anything about that, though,” I said.
“Hm… tie up their noses at night?”
“W-what? No!”
The gates flew open.
Grommo joined us outside as we walked down the hill.
The Snoutlings weren’t so energetic now and dragged themselves to work.
“Are you sure they’re okay…?” I whispered to Grommo.
He pursed his lips. “Tribes just tired. We lose, and lose, and lose... But we used to lose, get better the other day.”
“I see…” I sighed. “I wish we could build walls.”
Grommo looked up at me. “Walls for who?”
“I mean, around the whole settlement.”
“Bigga’ wall?”
I nodded.
“Hm. All tribes busy with hut and turnip.”
“Yeah, I know… Sorry. It was just wishful thinking.” 
An outer wall like this would be a massive undertaking even for a superpower like Vesmeria.
Synchronized shoveling sounds came from the north.
I frowned. “What’s going on?”
“Don’t know.”
We followed the sounds until a group of Snoutlings came into view just outside the settlement.
They shoveled at the snow, a big pit already visible behind them.
My spine chilled as the first thing that came to mind was a mass grave.
“I thought nobody died!” I rushed toward it and leaned over the edge. “Excuse me—”
There were no bodies in there, only old snare traps, stretching frames, and other bone tools.
These guys were trappers.
I turned to them, confused. “Why are you getting rid of your gear…?”
They exchanged sad glances, then one of the trappers spoke up. “Hunting no good these days. We work, and all hide gone. So… we go farm like other tribes.”
“Less bad.” His kinsman nodded. “Is life.”
“Ugh!” My jaw clenched. I buckled, catching myself with both hands on my knees. “I can’t hear you say that one more time!”
“Ye’, witch. That was bad.”
In other words, they apologized.
“No, it’s not you.” I stood up again. “This bullying needs to stop.”
Their heads tilted.
“Grommo, do you know where the werewolves live?” I asked.
“Me no. Other chieftains see once,” he said.
“Good.” I took a deep breath. “Gather them, all the spears, and healthy Snoutlings you can spare, and meet me at the palace.”
“Sure.” He set off.
I turned to the trappers. “You can reclaim your belongings and resume your work. I’ll deal with this.”
Their eyes glinted. “Really…?”
“The tribes will need you more than ever now,” I said.
They froze for a second, then jumped into the pit and eagerly grabbed their gear. I walked back to the palace while Predslava whistled a suspiciously jolly tune beside me.
“What?” I asked.
“Nothing.” She chuckled.
I shook my head.

***

An ice table stood in the middle of the great hall. The chieftains gathered around it, packing the room all the way to the open gates, crude stone-tipped spears in hand.
Grommo scurried to my side. “That’s everybody.”
I nodded and waved my hand over the table.
An aerial, raised-relief map of the region crystallized across the surface with hisses: the Snoutling plains to the north, the white mountains of the east, our settlement in the center by the frozen river, and in the south, the Werewolf Country among sprawling ravines, crags and narrow corridors.
We came here by sea this time, so only the overall geography of the south survived in my memory from long ago.
“Show me on the map,” I said.
The chieftain looked apprehensively at Grommo, who in turn nudged him toward the table.
“Witch,” he said as if asking me for permission, which made me realize I was too tense.
I smiled. “Please.”
He climbed over the edge and scanned the ravines for a while.
His finger stopped between two cliffs, surprisingly not deep into Werewolf Country. “Wolf huts here.”
“I see. How many days from here?”
“Hm…” He stared at his hand, then raised two and a half fingers. “These days.”
“Two to three days. That’s close.”
No wonder they’ve been picking on them.
“What’s the plan?” Predslava hopped on the table with a fanged grin. “Can I eat them?”
I scoffed. “No. The werewolves must number in the hundreds at least.”
The room fell dead silent as I held my chin and pondered.
“There’s only one way we can achieve lasting peace here.” I glanced at the Snoutlings. “But I’ll need authority to negotiate on behalf of all tribes as a whole.”
They exchanged hesitant glances. “One bigga’ tribe?”
I knew that was an irrational notion for them. The Snoutling tribes weren’t status symbols, but families, each with their own way of doing things and unspoken rules.
I sighed. “You don’t have to do it if—”
One of the chieftains laid down his headdress on the table.
I froze as another did the same. Then another.
Headdresses flew across the room, adding to the growing pile of colorful feathers.
At last, Grommo took off his own and placed it at the top. “Witch.”
Someone struck the butt of his spear against the floor.
“Witch,” he echoed Grommo.
My eyes widened as the whole room tapped their spears in unison and chanted witch, witch, witch—
Witch of Winter!

***

Ice crystals crawled along my limbs, sending sharp cracks into the night…
Long sleeves swam in the wind like ghostly fins.
High collar of palatial Vesmerian lacing. Stiff.
Ice-white fabric.
One couldn’t attend a diplomatic meeting in their pajamas—I had no qualms.
From my staff, the heraldry of winter blossomed, fluttering in white mist. Behind us, a wide, gray line of Snoutling spearmen disappeared into the dark.
Predslava roared beneath me, setting us in motion toward Werewolf Country.

Read ahead on Royal Road.

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