The wind was blowing very strong. There were a few snow brought along, adding the thickness of the snow pile on the ground. Maybe it was a few minus degrees, but there was a small house standing alone in the snow.
A man was walking in the blizzard. He was wearing a black coat which also covers his head, but he was still walking frantically while holding something in his hands. The wind blew stronger by time, as if it was trying to beat down the man, but he didn't budge and kept walking. He was dragging his feet across the snow as it was so thick, but the snow quickly covered the trace.
He finally reached the house and knocked the door several times. The door seemed to almost frozen itself and if it was, he would be dead. He quickly put his hands together and rubbed it to keep warm.
The door flew open and a man with big body quickly pulled him in and slammed the door shut. Some cold wind got into the house, and the man with big body trembled a little as it was so cold. He looked at his guest, then he touched his shoulder.
"Let me take your coat," he said. "Coffee on the table. You're alright, aren't you?"
The man walked to the table, where a few other men was sitting around it. He saw a cup in front of an empty place, then he circled his hands around the mug and smiled as something crawled to his skin.
"It's warm."
"You should warm yourself by the fireplace, Alphonse..."
Alphonse quickly put the thing he has been holding all the time - a scroll of paper. The other men quickly took it and opened it.
"Let's discuss this now," one of them said as Alphonse walked to the fireplace. He watched the fire which burned the woods, which was burning red. He coughed a few times, then the discussion behind him quickly stopped.
"Alphonse?"
"Hey, you alright?"
He coughed a few more times, then he wiped his mouth with his sleeve and shook his head.
"I'm fine, it's just flu..."
"No, you're not, and it's not just flu," one of them said. "You should go find a doctor or..."
"No!"
The other men startled, not expecting him to shout. Alphonse shook his head as he tried to stabilize his breaths.
"I'm... really alright."
"Maybe you need a break," another man suggested. "How about in the Bavarian mountains..."
"No," Alphonse rejected again. "I'm not going anywhere."
"Look, you always work so hard, so maybe you need some rest. Why not go somewhere warm, maybe around the Balkans..."
"Oh, yes! Why don't you go to Romania, Alphonse! There are a lot of interesting things there..."
"And I guess it should be warmer, too, ALphonse. Why don't you go there?"
Alphonse remained seated in front of the fireplace, looking at the fire which burnt the wood to ashes. And before he knew it, he was thinking about everything - how his life has been up to that day, and how it would end.
'Yes, maybe I should go,' he thought. 'Maybe I should go travelling for the last time, before I die.'
(btw, you'll see this stamp in every ch. please wait for spring~)
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