Winter drapes the city of Sapporo in silence—snow on rooftops, frost on windows, and secrets beneath every breath of cold air. It is in this frozen landscape that two lives on opposite ends of the city begin to move toward each other.

Ichika Komori lives a life built on elegance and expectations. Surrounded by luxury and perfection, she is admired like a snow sculpture—beautiful, delicate, and cold to the touch. Her heart, long protected by ice, has forgotten what warmth feels like.

Across the city, Rikuu Arakawa survives a world far less forgiving. Raised by hardship and night fights in back alleys, his emotions burn hot—anger, loyalty, fear, and a past that left its mark. The fire inside him keeps him alive, yet also threatens to consume him.

When their paths cross, something impossible begins:

Rikuu becomes the spark that melts the frost around Ichika’s guarded heart—and Ichika becomes the snow that cools the burning storms inside Rikuu.

Their worlds should never have met. Yet winter has a way of changing everything.

The Winter That Burned is a story of unlikely connection, slow and inevitable as falling snow, where fire learns to soften, and ice discovers how to feel again. In a city of silence and secrets, they will learn that some hearts freeze to survive… and some flames burn not to destroy, but to heal.

Additional Notes:
• No need to worry about errors on this novel (except for plot errors), each chapter is checked thrice by the author and by another person (a friend) before being uploaded.
• Upload time:
Monday–Friday: 11:00PM/23:00 GMT+8

-SCHOOL COURTYARD, AURORA ACADEMY OF EXCELLENCE, SAPPORO, HOKKAIDO, JAPAN-


Morning returned to Aurora Academy in familiar patterns.


Students crossed the courtyard in steady lines, shoes crunching softly against frost-kissed stone. The air was cold, but calm—predictable in the way Ichika Komori had come to appreciate.


Leaning against the same low wall as before. Hands in his pockets. Eyes lifted to the pale sky like he was counting seconds rather than clouds.


They stood side by side, not looking at each other.


"Did rehearsal lines stick?" she asked.


She nodded. "I kept hearing them even after I closed the script."


"…Yeah," he said quietly. "That happens."


-THEATRE ARTS CLUB ROOM, AURORA ACADEMY OF EXCELLENCE, SAPPORO, HOKKAIDO, JAPAN-


No improvised lines. No lingering silences.


Ichika read with more steadiness now, her voice sure even in pauses. Rikuu listened the way he always did—fully, as if each word mattered.


During a short break, Ichika sat on the edge of the stage, flipping through her script.


Rikuu stood nearby. "You don't fidget anymore."


"It means you're comfortable," he said. "Or pretending really well."


When rehearsal ended, they walked out together, steps naturally aligned.


She hesitated, then added, "I like that it's… normal."


And somehow, that made the quiet feel warmer than anything dramatic ever could.


Chapter 31 - The Comfort of Repitition