Chapter 939: Climbing Mount Hakodate Again!

Fortunately, a good dinner was enough to melt the situation at the table. Before everyone knew it, they had already been chatting with each other, forgetting the awkward feeling before.

Kumiko herself didn’t just come empty-handed. No, she and her mother brought pastries here, something sweet that would fill their stomach after the heavy dishes were done.

Higo decided that he loved the pistachio tiramisu cake with all of his heart, taking a note in his head that whenever he had a cheat day, he would have a big one just for himself.

In the end, the nice Christmas dinner of the two families became a night out, as Yumiko and Kumiko decided to stay for one night with them.

Of course, Minami was more than happy to invite them to come over. Yumiko was her friend for a long time, and Kumiko was her boy’s girlfriend. In her book, they were family already at this point, and it would only take some formalities to make it official.

So, yeah, they spent the whole night watching movies and munching all the snacks on the table, getting themselves warm under the kotatsu.

From the classic Home Alone to Elf, they ran a marathon to finish all the classic Christmas movies in one night, and in the end, they all somehow lost consciousness due to exhaustion.

The next thing Higo knew, he woke up at around 05:30, when the sky outside was still quite dark. Even though the snow was already stopped, the cold temperature was still lasting in the air, and even though he was still in the kotatsu, the boy couldn’t help but shudder at the chill feeling around.

The boy shook his head strongly, groaning a little while also stretching his stiff body as he tried to wake up from his comfortable position.

Around, still with a thick blanket and under the warmth of the kotatsu, everyone was also sleeping soundly, probably getting too tired from watching movies last night.

In the end, Higo just shook his head once again, getting up quietly before waking up Kumiko as gently as possible.

"Urgh... What time is it now?" She groaned, her voice raspy from the sleepiness.

"Around 05:30. Still want to do it?" Higo asked, his voice barely a whisper.

The moment the answer registered through her brain, the girl tried her best to force herself to stay awake.

"Ugh... Let me get ready first. Wait for me twenty minutes."

Before Higo could even answer, the girl blitzed away quickly, leaving the house to go to her home next door.

Higo shook his head in exasperation, getting up quickly before starting to change his attire as well. He picked his thickest winter jacket, used the warmest scarf to warm his neck, the most comfortable winter cap, a light, and a hiking stick that would help him on the next journey.

Yeah, even before the dinner last night, they had decided to go for a morning hike to the Hakodate mount just like what they did two years ago, the fateful hiking that would end up with a kiss that sealed their relationship.

At that time, it was New Year’s Day, and they used that time to pray for their success in the national tournament. However, this time, they could only do so on Christmas Day, what with them not being able to be here for too long.

Still, Higo was quite satisfied with what he got, especially the chance for him to make another sweet memory with his girlfriend.

Once he was ready, the boy opened the door carefully, not wanting to make a creaking sound that would wake up everyone. The moment the cold air hit his face, he could see his own breath, and the boy took a deep breath to adjust to the cold weather outside.

Fortunately, Kumiko didn’t make him wait for so long.

Soon enough, she came out with a similar kind of attire, one that covered her whole body so tightly to make sure that no cold air would bite her in the ass later.

"So, ready to go?" Kumiko asked; her breathing was also visible.

"Sure. Come on."

With that in mind, they started walking slowly, getting through the thick snow terrain with extra care to avoid slipping stupidly.

The distance between their place and the mount itself wasn’t that far, just fifteen minutes away with walking. Then, they would need to climb for another 40 minutes, and that was when they could enjoy the first sunrise of the day in Hakodate.

Higo walked behind Kumiko quietly, letting her take the lead. They didn’t really speak any words in the process, and the only sound that could be heard was their heavy breathing as the terrain started to get harder.

"You okay there?!" Higo asked while still trying to keep himself steady.

"I am okay! Don’t worry about me!" Kumiko shouted from the front, not even turning her head around. "Let’s speed up a little bit!"

Higo gritted his teeth as he picked up the girl’s pace. Honestly, he didn’t know how she got all the energy to do this kind of activity in the middle of the cold.

Fortunately, he wasn’t the same boy who would question his sanity while panting like a dog that he was when he climbed this mountain for the first time two years ago.

No, his stamina was better, and his motivation was stronger than anything else right now.

’I cannot be left behind here... Come on...’

It took quite a while, with them having to fight against the snowy terrain and the hill that went upward drastically at some point. Higo also tightened his scarf, starting to feel the cold becoming fiercer than ever.

In the end, though, after what Higo couldn’t truly pay attention to for how long, the ground suddenly went flat once again, and the moment he raised his head, he could see the sun starting to rise on the horizon.

That was when the boy stopped for a few seconds, inwardly muttering, ’Wait, so we have reached the summit already, huh?’