Empiricism, so furious I’m shaking!

Under the conditions of Death Reversal, Reg this time adjusted his speed, doing his best to avoid bumps and slopes, and took it as slowly as possible.

This allowed him to safely escape the area.

“I can meet powerful Youkai even when I’m just idling. My constitution is truly invincible.”

Although the Youkai of Gensokyo were not all terrifying—some were even quite amicable—Reg had seen groups of Youkai and humans drinking together at a certain tavern.

However, whenever he was out and about, Reg was more or less subjected to Youkai attacks.

For instance, right now, in the vicinity of the Misty Lake. There was always a guy fairy roaming here, accompanied by a green-haired fairy named Daiyousei.

Reg actually couldn’t figure out why someone was named Daiyousei (Great Fairy), but in any case, that’s what she was called.

When this group of fairies was noisy, they would always sneak a few popsicles from his refrigerator, but they were generally friendly, and the fairies often gathered around him.

They were always calling him the “Fairy King.” Reg didn’t really like that name; it always brought up unpleasant memories.

Speaking of which, just as he was thinking about it, a scatterbrain and her little shadow appeared from the Ice House in the distance.

Reg had handcrafted a refrigerator that generated electricity using kinetic energy. If money weren’t an issue, Reg could even transform this trailer into a proper automobile.

But that was just a thought. He ate, drank, and slept in this trailer. If the battery capacity was too large, Reg might not survive the explosion if it occurred.

The air by the Misty Lake carried a damp coolness.

Reg parked his creaking old trailer on a slightly flat piece of ground not far from the lake.

While rubbing his still-stiff shoulders—a lingering effect of the last escape—he habitually scanned his surroundings, confirming the potential hazards that could bring about an accident.

The exposed tree roots not far away, a few slippery patches of moss on the ground, some floating ice chunks on the lake… and the noisy sounds coming from the direction of the Ice House.

“Reg!!!”

Sure enough, along with a spirited shout, a blue figure zoomed out of the nearby Ice House. Ice crystal shards trailed behind her, closely followed by a slightly nervous, skirt-wearing figure—it was Cirno and Daiyousei.

“Do you have yummy ice cweam today too? da☆ze!”

Cirno stood with her hands on her hips, hovering boldly at the entrance of Reg’s trailer. Ice crystals danced around her, lowering the already cool air a few more degrees.

Her small face was flushed, and her eyes sparkled with an endless craving for sweets.

“Oh, don’t pick up Marisa’s catchphrase! You’ll turn into a delinquent!”

Reg admonished her, tapping the head of the rushing Cirno.

“Got it, Reg-san… I’ll be good!”

Cirno was usually a mischievous child, but in front of Reg, she behaved like an incredibly obedient one.

Perhaps this was something Reimu would consider absolutely impossible, yet it was happening.

“Cirno-chan, don’t fly so fast, you’ll scare Mr. Reg…”

Daiyousei hurried up, smiling apologetically at Reg.

“Good afternoon, Mr. Reg! We… we just wanted to ask if you still have any ice cream in your refrigerator? Cirno-chan really wants some today.”

Reg looked at the foolishly cheerful fairy duo, but the thread of vigilance in his heart hadn’t completely relaxed.

Cirno’s power was top-notch among ice fairies. She was an idiot, but the cold air she unintentionally leaked could cause trouble.

“There’s still some in the refrigerator. Feel free to eat.”

He sighed and nodded. Reg still liked these fairy children. After all, they were obedient and sensible. Sometimes, when he asked them to collect things from the mountain, they brought back decent finds.

He turned and opened the trailer door. A blast of cold air mixed with the scent of wood rushed out.

The homemade, kinetic-powered refrigerator was nestled in a corner.

To ensure freezing effectiveness, Reg used a compressed refrigerant circulation system. While the efficiency was mediocre and the pipe seals might not be perfect, it worked. He had cobbled it together himself using scrapped mechanical parts and a little material reinforced with Trait Points.

Given his superhuman Physical Constitution, he didn’t need to worry about the electricity itself.

“Yay! I want strawberry flavor!”

Cirno excitedly circled the refrigerator door. The cold air grew denser with her movements, and a layer of white frost instantly condensed on the doorknob.

“Cirno-chan, be careful. Too much cold will make the machine malfunction.”

Daiyousei warned anxiously, trying to pull her away slightly.

“I know, I know! I’m the strongest! I can control it!”

Cirno waved her hand carelessly, but the ice crystals near the refrigerator door visibly thickened.

Reg didn’t pay much attention to the fairies’ antics. He grasped the chilling, bone-cold doorknob, covered in thick frost, and pulled hard.

The door didn’t budge.

Perhaps Cirno’s cold air had frozen the door seam, or the ice inside the refrigerator was too thick and jammed it.

He clicked his tongue and increased his force.

Just then…

“Crack! Psss!”

A faint cracking sound and a sharp hissing of escaping gas rang out simultaneously!

The moment Reg yanked the door open, perhaps because the metal had become brittle in the extreme cold, or perhaps the aging pipe joint was exacerbated.

A less conspicuous copper pipe joint near the inner side of the refrigerator, wrapped in insulating material, burst open without warning!

A jet of extremely cold, visible white refrigerant gas violently sprayed out!

The gas was far below zero degrees and under high pressure.

Like a cold viper, it instantly enveloped Reg, who was closest, densely covering his hand gripping the refrigerator door and his upper body nearest the unit.

“Ugh!”

The bone-chilling cold instantly penetrated Reg’s thin clothes.

The feeling was not mere cold, but an excruciating pain and numbness as all heat was instantly wicked away.

It felt as if his blood had frozen and solidified upon contact. Sensation in his skin and muscles rapidly disappeared.

He subconsciously tried to let go and retreat, but his body was unresponsive, frozen in place. Even his scream was trapped in his instantly paralyzed throat.

He looked down in horror as his arm and the clothes across his chest rapidly froze, covered in a thick layer of white frost, turning stiff and blue-purple within seconds.

“Mr. Reg?!”

Daiyousei was the first to notice the abnormality and screamed.

“Eh? The refrigerator is broken? Did I break it?”

Cirno was also stunned, looking at the hissing white gas and the rigid, motionless Reg. Her ice-blue eyes were filled with helpless panic.

She instinctively waved her hand to try and disperse the cold air, but instead stirred up more cold mist, making the situation worse.

The piercing cold felt like countless fine needles stabbing deep into his bone marrow.

Reg felt his heart struggle to beat a few times before its speed sharply decreased.

The edges of his vision began to blur and darken, and his thoughts became sluggish and slow…

Hypothermia… a weak thought flashed in his nearly frozen brain.

This time was an accidental leak… So cold…

So quiet…

Even the pain had vanished, leaving only the endless, sinking cold and an overwhelming, crushing drowsiness.

The feeling of death wasn’t a tearing like being stabbed, nor was it violent like being evaporated by a magic cannon. It was like the silent embrace of the Ice Queen, gently yet cruelly dragging him, bit by bit, into eternal, frozen silence.

Cirno’s startled cry and Daiyousei’s weeping sounded as if they came from an extremely distant place.

Reg’s pupils dilated, the last thing they reflected being the gap of the old refrigerator, constantly spewing out fatal cold.

Then, everything returned to cold darkness.

[Absorbing Ice Fairy and Refrigerant Bad Luck: 550.] [Death by Special Environment (Hypothermia/Refrigerant Asphyxiation): 0.2] [Trait Points: 5951.1] [Physical Strength: 3] [Reiryoku: 0.01]

In the pitch-black void, Reg opened his eyes.

“Heh… there’s no way to guard against it.”

The cold settlement screen was reflected in his numb consciousness. He felt that desolate sensation, and the space almost drove him mad. He pulled at the corner of his mouth in a bitter smile.

“Died from my own refrigerator’s refrigerant… or was it urged on by the fairies… a truly commonplace ending.”

Reg gave up thinking, simply waiting for the space’s cooldown to end. During this time, no one spoke to him; there was only endless silence.

[Omni-Competent]: “Welcome! Did you die because of a fairy this time? What a strange way to go!”

[Ordinary Man]: “Can I add some resistance to my body? I feel like my body is getting stronger with every death, but why does it feel completely unreal?”

Reg painfully sorted out his memories. Soon, he saw the pitch-black space again, but this time, it seemed there was a screen he could converse with.

[Omni-Competent]: “The smart me would leave behind skills that won’t lead to a dead-end save. Unless it’s an extreme will, misfortune and bad luck will dissipate with death. You can’t be frozen in a refrigerator indefinitely; even if you were, you would eventually develop immunity.”

[Ordinary Man]: “What an ability—to grow stronger through suffering…”

[Omni-Competent]: “Being too strong is not necessarily a good thing, you know.”