Chapter 2

“If you’re heading to town, this is the shortest route—but also the steepest,” Erik said. “Alternatively, you can keep going to the fork and take the path that passes by the watchtower. It’s about three or four kilometers longer, but much easier to walk.”

“Which way are you taking?” asked the boy named Felix.

“This one,” he pointed to the straight, downward hiking trail through the woods. “I can’t climb down the cliff today, but I need to get my gear bag at the bottom.”

“Then I’ll take this path too.”

Erik glanced at him but said nothing.

“My phone’s dead, so I can’t check the map,” Felix said cheerfully. “It’s my first time here, and I’m not familiar with the mountain trails at all, so it’s safer to follow you. I hope you don’t mind.”

“I don’t mind,” Erik replied.

He walked straight ahead. Felix followed behind him, maintaining a distance of about four or five meters. The fallen leaves rustled under their feet.

The steep downward path wasn’t easy to navigate: thick layers of leaves covered the ground, and some areas were damp and slippery, invisible from the surface but treacherous once stepped on. At first, Erik was a little worried, keeping an eye on whether Felix could keep up. But he soon realized it was unnecessary. Felix was clearly quite accustomed to forest hikes. His body was agile, his steps light yet steady, maintaining a good rhythm and balance—just like Erik himself. Only years of uninterrupted outdoor hiking experience could cultivate such a gait.

By the time they were halfway down the mountain, the distance between them had narrowed considerably. Felix stopped to drink water, and Erik also paused, waiting for him not far ahead. After drinking, Felix naturally handed the water bottle to him.

“Thanks,” Erik said, taking it.

After Erik drank, the two continued on their way. Felix occasionally overtook him, then stopped to look at something: a cluster of purple orchids peeking out from the rotting leaves, mushrooms growing along a tree trunk, a fire salamander lying motionless on a rock, a short-tailed mouse nibbling on nuts among the deadwood, or an eagle flying overhead (probably a common buzzard*, he thought). Erik rarely saw someone show such a level of interest in forest life. Although he was extremely familiar with the local woods, Felix always managed to spot things worth seeing before he did—and would gaze at them with fascination, as if he were seeing them for the first time.

Erik wanted to remind Felix that if he still planned to walk to town today, this pace would leave him with very little time. But in the end, he said nothing. The way Felix looked at those things made him seem more like a local resident than Erik himself—he reminded him of an animal wandering through the forest: for an animal, keen observation of the environment was a given.

Ahead on the right, the trees thinned out. Felix suddenly stopped, looking at something in the distance, as if he had discovered something again.

“Here,” he whispered, moving to the side.

Erik followed. Soon, he saw what Felix had found: a patch of ground where the fallen leaves were noticeably different from the surroundings. Large leaves had been pushed aside, revealing damp soil with some pressed marks. Felix crouched down, picking up a few strands of hair from the leaf fragments and mud.

“A roe deer bed*,” Erik said.

He secretly admired Felix’s sharp eyes. He could easily recognize a roe deer bed too, but spotting it from dozens of meters away was another matter.

Felix put a finger to his lips, silently shushing him. At the same time, Erik heard a faint rustling sound. He looked up and saw a small, slender, grayish-brown creature with pointed ears standing about forty or fifty meters ahead. It cautiously leaned forward, spotted them, and hesitated for a few seconds, pacing slowly to one side. Then, suddenly, it leaped into the air and darted away like an arrow, disappearing into the woods in a few bounds.

“It doesn’t have antlers yet, so it must have been born this spring,” Felix said cheerfully.

“You’re lucky,” Erik said. “Roe deer aren’t often seen around here; it’s too close to the village.”

“We’re lucky,” Felix corrected with a big smile. “Thanks to me, you got to see it too, didn’t you?”

This was the first time Erik saw him smile: the smile gathered on his beautiful lips, blossoming, and radiated from his green eyes like sunlight suddenly illuminating a summer pond.

“Yeah,” Erik replied. “Do you often hike in the wild?”

“Of course. I roam the Vosges Mountains almost every weekend. I’ve uploaded quite a few routes on Komoot.”

“The Vosges?”

“Yep,” Felix said, looking up at him again. “I’m from Strasbourg.”

“You came here from Strasbourg by train?” Erik was surprised. “Doesn’t that take a long time?”

“Sure does. The transfers are a pain,” Felix said, spreading his hands. “But what can I do? I don’t have a car.”

They returned to the hiking trail and continued descending. The sunlight in the sky gradually dimmed, and dusk enveloped the forest.

A fork in the path appeared ahead, and Erik stopped.

“If you’re going to town, take this path. It’s about two kilometers to the rural highway,” he pointed in the distance. “You can follow the bike path parallel to the highway west all the way to the town center. It’s a little over seven kilometers in total. At your pace, you’ll reach town before dark.”

“What about you?”

“I’ll take this small path to the starting point of the climbing route, then head home from there. I live a bit south of town.” He hesitated but still extended his hand. “Good luck on your journey.”

Felix shook his hand. “Thank you,” he said. “I need to say it again: I’m sorry for what happened earlier.”

“Forget it.”

“Technically, I should leave you my phone number in case you find out later that there’s some injury or aftereffect and want to hold me accountable. The problem is, I can’t remember my number, and my phone’s dead.” He looked at him amiably. “How about you write down your number for me?”

“Forget it. I don’t think a couple of hits like that will leave me disabled,” Erik said. “But next time, you might want to double-check before acting in self-defense.”

“I’ll keep that in mind. I think you might also want to double-check before attempting to save someone’s life next time,” Felix said with a smile. His words carried a hint of sarcasm, but his soft accent made it harmless. “—Goodbye.”

“Goodbye,” Erik said, turning to the side path.

After walking a few dozen meters, he couldn’t help but look back. Felix was no longer at the fork.

He continued forward, walking along the leaf-covered path to the end, arriving at the base of the C11 route. His gear bag was still on a rock nearby, just as he had left it hours before.

He sat down on the rock, took off his climbing shoes, and put on the lightweight hiking shoes from his bag. He quickly gathered the protective rope from the cliff. The quickdraws would have to stay for now, but there was no need to worry about someone taking them. He hurriedly rolled up five coils of rope and stuffed them into his bag.

Erik slung the gear bag over his shoulder and walked toward the hiker’s parking lot a few hundred meters away, unconsciously quickening his pace.

When he finally reached the car and opened the trunk to toss in the gear bag, the thud felt like something in his heart had also settled.

Damn it. How could he have left him behind?

Erik slammed the trunk shut. Then he quickly ran to the front and got into the car.

He didn’t understand what he had been hesitating about earlier. He was always the type to stop and ask if someone looked lost on the side of the road. But at that moment, facing Felix, he had hesitated for a long time and then just walked away.

The dark blue Volkswagen backed out of the parking spot, made a sharp turn, and turned right onto the rural highway.

He’s alone in an unfamiliar mountain area, knows no one, it’s getting dark, his phone is dead, and he’s lost his luggage… Erik thought anxiously. Why did I just leave him? He remembered how, as they parted, he had almost forced himself not to look at Felix, not to think about what he would do next.

He hadn’t wanted to mention that he had a car, hadn’t wanted to give him his number, hadn’t even wanted to tell him his name.

I acted like a complete asshole, he thought. Why? Because he hit me? But it was just a misunderstanding. And I didn’t even mind that…

Erik drove along the highway and soon saw the fork leading into the forest on the right. He pulled over at the intersection and peered down the small forest path. His heart was racing. The sun slanted through, illuminating the woods brightly. But there was no one in sight.

No time to dwell on his earlier behavior. He quickly calculated the time and then started the car again, getting back on the highway.

He drove slowly, constantly glancing at the bike path on the right—the road was lined with winding willows, and it was easy to miss someone. A car behind him honked impatiently.

Then he spotted a small, slender figure walking briskly ahead. Like a roe deer or a stag, moving at a leisurely but fast pace.

Felix.

He yanked the steering wheel, and the car veered off the highway, bumping over the grassy area between the bike path and the road, leaving deep tire tracks, and came to a screeching halt less than half a meter from a tree.

The car behind him honked furiously, blaring several times before speeding past. —I hope the people in that car don’t report me for reckless driving, Erik thought. But screw it.

In the rearview mirror, he saw Felix walking toward him. He quickly rolled down the window and leaned out.

“Get in,” he said curtly. “I’ll take you to town.”

Felix looked at him, seeming a bit unsure. But soon, he smiled.

“Common sense tells me not to get into a stranger’s car,” he said lightly. “So you’ll have to tell me your name first.”

“Erik. Erik Bergmann.”

“Alright, Mr. Bergmann. You know parking isn’t allowed here. May I see your ID?” he mimicked a traffic officer’s tone, his green eyes twinkling with mischief.

Erik pulled out his wallet from the glove compartment, took out his ID, and handed it out the window.

“Hey, hey, I was joking,” Felix waved his hand. “Erik, what’s wrong with you? Do you never joke?”

Erik’s hand remained on the window.

“I’ve seen your ID, so it’s only fair you see mine. That’s reasonable,” he said. “After all, anyone on the road could be a bad guy. It’s always good to confirm identities.”

Felix looked at him and sighed. “I’ve already confirmed it,” he said softly. “Please put it away.”

He opened the car door, about to sit in the passenger seat, then backed out again. “Sorry, I’m too dirty,” he said, quickly taking off his jacket, turning it inside out, and laying it on the seat before getting in.

“You really didn’t need to do that,” Erik said.

“You really didn’t need to do that either—come back for me,” Felix retorted.

Erik fell silent. His heart was still racing. He didn’t know why.

The car returned to the highway. A few minutes later, they saw the bright yellow regional sign ahead.

“Which hotel are you staying at?” Erik asked.

“I don’t know,” Felix said. “I didn’t book one. Just drop me off at any hotel in the town center.”

Erik was genuinely surprised this time.

“What? You travel without booking accommodations in advance?”

Felix looked even more puzzled than he was.

“Do I need to book in advance?”

Erik barely managed to keep his hands on the steering wheel instead of grabbing his hair.

“Of course you do! Were you born yesterday?”

“Oh,” Felix said. “Well, can I borrow your phone? I’ll call around and ask.”

“I didn’t bring my phone,” Erik said. His thoughts were a tangled mess as he quickly considered which hotels in town might still have rooms available. But it was the German Unity Day holiday, with a bridging day* and the weekend, so those places were probably fully booked weeks or even months ago.

“I thought I could just find something when I got here,” Felix said, looking completely unfazed. “Even on a long weekend, a small town like this wouldn’t have many visitors, right?”

Hearing this, Erik couldn’t help but turn to look at him.

“What are you talking about? At this time of year, the town is packed with people coming to soak in the ‘Roman’ hot springs.”

“Oh, you have hot springs here? Since when?”

“Built in 2014 or 2015, a large ancient-style hot spring resort, ‘The Romans,'” Erik replied. He tried to focus on the road rather than the conversation that was starting to confuse him. “It was featured in a ZDF regional culture special. It’s one of the most famous attractions around here. …Wait, you didn’t come here to visit the hot springs?”

“Of course not. I had no idea there was a hot spring resort here,” Felix said. “Besides, I’m just wandering around. I wasn’t planning to visit any tourist spots.”

Erik’s feelings shifted from shock to mild amusement.

“You don’t research your destination or plan your itinerary when you travel?” he asked.

“Of course not,” Felix said as if it were the most natural thing in the world. “I travel to wander aimlessly and relax completely. If I had to make plans, it would feel like work—so why bother going out to give myself a chore?”

“That’s really unsafe.”

“Well, I’d like to know,” Felix said, looking at the highway and the town emerging in the distance, a hint of a smile on his face. “Which is riskier: climbing a cliff with a difficulty rating of 8.5 without a protector or communication device, or traveling without booking accommodations in advance?”

Erik was stumped by the question. After a moment, he exhaled.

“Stay at my place,” he said. “If you’re willing.”