As they continued making their way through the frigid corridor with pale clouds of mist created from their every breath, the young squad moved into formation, preparing for battle.
Similar to all the previous clashes, Nico and Leon took up the vanguard, with the elven duo occupying the space a few paces behind them. The siblings were ready to provide ranged cover, their frames as taut as a strung bowstring.
The cloaked figure assumed the rear of their party, amusement and hate flooding his countenance beneath the hood.
Amusement for the show he was about to witness, and hatred for the brown-haired youth.
Rounding a corner and chancing a peek at the map, Nico's face was incomparably grim.
The azure mote was only a couple of passages away now.
He took a breath to steady himself.
Strangely, he noticed the mildew scent surrounding them had grown stronger. When that had happened he did not know.
However, if the rancid smell had indeed increased, then that was not a good sign at all.
Swallowing some of the fear in his throat, as his knuckles turned white from gripping the trident-like weapon too hard, Nico and his teammates pressed on.
Eventually, they paused at the end of a long corridor.
Nico swivelled his neck left and right, scanning the new side passages with grim urgency. His ears picked up on a very faint, very muted clinking sound… as if whatever was coming was still a fair distance away.
Furthermore, the noise was similar to the first encounter he had had with the horde of Frozen Spiders, but also different at the same time.
It felt more like trained soldiers marching than the rhythmic tempo of a person walking. The sound reverberated deep within Nico's heart, causing his expression to turn bleak.
He shared a glance with Leon, both of them understanding what that sound meant.
'Blasted Fates!'
Nico bit the inside of his mouth to stop his thoughts from going on a tangent. He clamped down on the urge to empty the contents of his stomach and straightened his posture.
Like what his Aunt Beverly had said, he would face whatever he had to with his head held high.
No regrets.
Inhaling once more, the brown-haired boy signalled to the half-blood for them to turn right.
Leon nodded, cautiously moving forward in a half-crouch with the shield in front of him. His eyes peeked over the golden aegis now and again, to scan his immediate vicinity.
Small tendrils of pale fog covered the top of his shield.
Behind the vanguard, the support team composed of Oliver and Isaac carefully made some last-minute checks and preparations for the approaching conflict.
It was on them to break the momentum of whatever they would face, so they could not underestimate the importance of being ready.
As the tension in the misty corridor peaked, and the faint clinking sound turned louder and louder almost resembling a tidal roar, the squad of youths halted in the middle of the passageway.
Oliver and Isaac nocked two arrows, readying themselves to release them as soon as possible.
They ignored the strain their arms were under and watched the space like two hawks. Anxiety and apprehension bubbled deep within their Soul cores.
The seconds passed by in agony. Nico's hands hurt from how hard he was gripping his spear.
Forcing himself to release the stored tension in them, the brown-haired boy's eyes sharpened, sighting a congregation of advancing arachnids.
The roar of their march softened before they came to a dramatic halt.
He noticed with a twinge of unease that they boasted a greater size than the average Frozen Spider, in addition to being enveloped in what seemed to be thicker and more durable armour.
Worse still, they did not seem as disorganised as the previous Demons he had come across.
They still had that distinctive ember of madness flickering within their eyes. However, they now lined up in two neat rows, as if determined to protect whatever was behind them at all costs.
Nico's gaze paused on the Demon at the very rear of the pack.
Their leader.
His brain took a moment to register the information it received before his already pale face lost all its colour.
"B-Blazing Fates!" he cried in sheer shock.
For reflected in his maroon gaze, a much larger arachnid rested on all eights. Ice enveloped the vast majority of its demonic body, as the crimson flame of madness symbolic of its kind seemed to burn brighter and with more hatred as well.
That was not all, as the boy's eyes flitted toward the strange mark etched onto its forehead.
He paled once more, his face appearing as if he had just seen the eeriest ghost.
Nico's body trembled in fear. His knees shook as his legs threatened to give out.
'W-What? H-How?'
His thoughts were in disarray.
The last thing he expected to happen was to come face to face with the Dungeon Boss and what appeared to be its army of twelve loyal soldiers.
Nico gulped, fear pressing down on his chest like a vice.
He struggled to breathe, pale mist escaping his mouth in erratic waves.
Next to him, Leon exhibited a similar reaction, his breathing coming out in uneven interval periods. The only other outward sign that the Dungeon Boss's arrival had affected him greatly was the metallic sledgehammer hanging limply to his side.
Behind the vanguard, the two archer's eyes widened. Their heartbeat thumped with a deafening pulse while their arms slowly lost their tension.
The flaming arrow heads nocked on the strings of their recurves burned silently, awaiting release. Unfortunately, with how paralysed the two delicate youths seemed, that didn't seem like something that would happen in the next few seconds.
Nico tried to control his fright to no avail.
Why was the Dungeon Boss here? Hadn't the Saintess revealed that they had taken measures to prevent it from meeting them?
Why was it specifically seeking them out?
What hope did they have to come out alive if even one of the four pillars of the Augustus Empire warned them of their inability to beat this extremely powerful foe?
Worse still, as Nico's brain buzzed at a million miles an hour, he had a sinking suspicion that this was the source of the unease he had been feeling from the start.
And, that apprehension and anxiety, had only started to show after he had encountered the cloaked figure.
The brown-haired boy clenched his fist. If his gut feeling was to be believed… then his hooded peer was most likely related to the appearance of the overlord.
Nico struggled to understand what purpose the cloaked figure could have for participating in such a scheme.
Gritting his teeth in a sudden bout of frustration, he inwardly swore to beat his unruly teammate black and blue if they survived.
Their enemies, meanwhile, remained still. Their chelicerae twitched, itching to sink their fangs into the succulent group of youths.
Something seemed to be holding them back, though.
As embers of rage, resentment and vexation flickered within his soul, Nico straightened, forcibly pushing his fear to the side.
"Leon, Oliver, Isaac! Snap out of it! It's not over yet. No matter what happens, we still have to go down with a blasted fight!" A wild look crossed the brown-haired boy's face.
The three youths he had called out to flinched, finding the savage air swirling around their peer to be extremely disconcerting.
They shook their heads a moment later, determination taking hold of their juvenile features.
The brown-haired boy had said it perfectly: they would not be going down without a fight.
As adrenaline began to flood every inch of their veins, allowing them to escape from the clutches of a sinister fear, they quickly returned to their positions.
The cloaked figure observed all this with a growing sense of excitement.
The first step towards fulfilling his burning desire had never been so near.
***
As she flicked through the papers on her desk, the Saintess sighed.
This was the part of the day she dreaded the most.
Alas, as the deputy headmistress of an academy renowned for churning out talented fighters who would go on to make mighty Descenders, this duty couldn't be avoided.
It was better that she did it; the pillar thought to herself. She didn't want someone else to suffer if she could help it.
Even if that was at the hands of some daunting pile of documents, rather than a harrowing abomination instead.
A wry smile formed on her face.
As she finished scanning the latest report on her desk, she leaned back in her chair and stared at the ceiling. The hue of her eyes shifted to a pale grey.
She wondered how Nico was doing.
She hoped that the Awakening Ceremony would not leave a gruesome mark on him. Physical harm aside, the Saintess was a little worried about the young boy's mental state.
After they had parted ways, she had taken it upon herself to research what had caused the Stanburg Family to hold such a grudge against him.
In the process of doing so, she had come across his official file. She vividly recalled feeling her heart clench as she read the details.
The loss of anyone was a terrible thing.
To experience that twice at such a young age was truly saddening.
The Saintess sighed again, this time much more dispirited.
A knock at the door a moment later caused her to straighten.
She quickly schooled her face into a neutral expression, hoping her eyes did not give away too much of her emotional state.
"Enter."
The door opened, heralding a woman garbed in midnight black clothing, with two inverted swords crossing each other stitched on the chest.
Two stars rested on each side of her lapel.
The deputy headmistress inwardly frowned. The presence of a member of the Descender Association was not a good sign.
The black-clothed woman promptly saluted, "Ma'am!"
The Saintess nodded, sitting a little straighter.
"The Descender Association are requesting your presence. We have a code black. The Dungeon Boss within the Tombs of the Frozen Spider has gone berserk and attacked its handler. It's currently on the loose, and we fear the youngsters inside may be in danger."
The deputy headmistress abruptly stood up, her neutral expression faltering to reveal a look of deep-seated surprise and shock.
"Tell them I'll be right there," she instructed the Descender, before grabbing her sword and armour from a nearby chair.
The woman dressed in black nodded and excused herself without needing to be told.
As she scrambled to get her things, the Saintess's jaw tightened. Her eyes shifted to a grey and green hue.
She inwardly prayed that Nico and his team did not come across the Dungeon Boss.
If they did, the price they'd have to pay just to escape would be an astronomical one.
And one... they might not willingly want to make.