The piercing cold reclaimed its domain and started stinging its prey. Asura shivered and took two more steps forward. Unexpectedly, she bumped into a wall and, pressing on it lightly, opened a door.
"You're back already?" An astonished Freya was waiting behind the door.
"Yes, I found out everything I needed to. Thanks for bringing me here. We need to hurry; I've already lost a lot of time here."
"But you entered there just a couple of minutes ago," Freya raised an eyebrow in surprise.
"For me, it felt like at least an hour had passed. Hmm, the power of the White Goddess is truly remarkable."
The sun was setting behind the western ridge when we reached the cave. It was situated at the very edge of the range, with only a few small mountains behind it disappearing into the sea. The cave was located at the summit of the highest mountain in the central ridge. The last few kilometers required us to climb a steep slope; finding this place from the ground was not an easy task. Unfortunately, Ragni couldn't carry us up to this height; it was far beyond her limits. I don't know how many times I used fire magic just to warm myself up; the conditions here were clearly not meant for humans.
"This must be it," Hilda said, making openings in the rock with her axe as she climbed up a sheer ledge. "Come up here."
Above the ledge loomed the cave, and the size of the entrance made it clear who its owner was.
"I hope we didn't make a mistake. I don't think any other dragon will be pleased with our intrusion," I said, lighting a small magical light and entering the cave. Beyond the short passage, there was a round chamber illuminated by a dim light reflected from the icy walls. "It's beautiful."
"The light from outside passes through cracks in the rocks and reflects off the ice. You can observe this phenomenon in many of our caves, provided the walls are thin enough," Hilda explained, walking ahead. At the far wall, there was a structure made of branches, straw, and clay.
"Hmm, it really is a nest. I hope your warm clothes will be enough," I said as we hurried after the princess and peeked behind the wall of the nest. "Or maybe not..."
Inside were three eggs of a light blue shade, each the size of a grown human. Moreover, they had already started to be covered with snow from the top.
"We need to check if everything is fine," Ragni rushed to the clutch and listened to the shells. "Hmm, they're still warm, and I hear a heartbeat. If we're lucky, the hatching is just around the corner."
"Help me wrap them up," Hilda unfolded a massive bundle she had been carrying on her back. I still marvel at how it didn't weigh her down on the road, as it was almost twice her size. "Let's cover them more tightly with furs and try to warm them with magic; that way, we can maintain the heat in the nest."
"Hmm, how long are we going to stay here?" Katrina anxiously looked around her companions. "With what we found on the way, we have supplies for a maximum of three days."
"I was prepared for this. Stay here in case that monster appears; you'd better return when we deal with it. I can sit here for a month with the remaining supplies," Hilda said.
"Well, I don't think it'll come to that," Ragni leaned back from the shell. "I hear movement inside; it means they should hatch any day now. But if something attacks them now, they'll be an easy prey. I guess we shouldn't light a fire here, better do it outside."
The dragoness fluttered out of the nest and began her transformation. After a few seconds, the black dragon returned to us and carefully settled next to the clutch.
"I won't be able to fully cover them, but it's better than starting a fire here," Hilda said.
"But still, where could that creature be that attacked Askareza?" I scanned the room. The walls were covered with ice up to ten meters high, and beyond that was a stone vault with several stalactites. But apart from the nest, there was nothing in the cave, absolutely nothing. "It looks strange."
"Is something wrong?" Katrina followed my gaze.
"Don't you find this situation strange? Freya said that Askareza took the bodies of people to her lair. It would make sense if she wanted to feed them to her offspring or eat them herself. But it's too clean here for that," I explained.
"Bones!" The princess looked around. "You're right, no bones or skulls."
"Yeah, and not even any traces of blood. I doubt she devoured the victims elsewhere."
"But what if someone took them..." Katrina stood in a fighting stance and surveyed the area. "Perhaps that creature is guarding the entrance and comes here to collect the prey. Be ready."
The place was open, and the light from the walls wouldn't allow anyone to approach us unnoticed, but I couldn't shake off the feeling that someone was watching us. Although the light wasn't too bright, we would have noticed any shadow. The enemy could only hide in one place.
"Katrina, create a brighter light and throw it towards the center of the hall," I whispered to the princess, trying not to move.
"Alright," the girl clenched her fist and gathered a tiny ball of lightning in her hand. She threw it at the ceiling, and the discharge exploded, illuminating the entire room in golden light for a few seconds. In the flash, I noticed a shadow on the ceiling.
"In a scattered formation!" At my command, the girls rushed to the sides, and at the same moment, the shadow leaped from the ceiling to where we had just been.
"S-s-s-spider!!" Katrina's voice trembled. She was clearly among those delicate girls who were frightened by such... "trifles."
Indeed, there was a spider standing in the center of the room. Black with a gray pattern on its back, hideous furry legs, and about two meters tall... I don't know what they feed them here, but I wouldn't want such a creature for myself.
"Kat, calm down. Make the light even brighter and try not to let it bite you," I warned her, looking at its sharp mandibles. You could be impaled through with those, but I believe it would first want to torture its prey. It's better not to be hit by that, or you could end up like Askareza.
The spider lunged first towards the trembling Kat.
"Don't go near!" The princess released a lightning bolt that would be enough to kill an adult human, but it had little effect. It bent down to the ground, and the lightning, bouncing off its carapace, hit the wall.
Quickly recovering from the attack, the spider pounced on its next target.
"Don't just stand there!" Hilda leaped in front and tried to decapitate the creature in one strike.
But with its eight eyes, it saw any movement around it, and it stopped just centimeters from the blade. The spider spat on the ax and made a powerful push, returning to the ceiling.
"Ugh, disgusting," Hilda tried to free her ax, but the spider web tightly bound her to the ground. "Could you give me a hand?"
The web was sticky, and cutting it was useless, but there was something I could do. I gathered a small ball of fire at the tip of my blade and threw it at the ax. The web lit up brightly, and the valkyrie was freed once again.
"Hey, be more careful," Hilda brushed off the remaining flame from the ax's handle and glared at me: "You could have set me on fire!"
"There's no time for that. We need to get rid of this creature," I said, trying to keep an eye on the spider, which almost blended in with the vault's color.
"What's going on over there?" Ragni's voice came from the nest.
"Don't stick out, the creature is still here. Guard the eggs!" Hilda cared more about Askareza's children than herself. But a dragoness unable to leave the nest could be much more defenseless prey.
"Ragni, be careful," I rushed to the dragoness, and the spider attacked again.
It leaped at Ragni and clung to her back.
"Ow, what the hell!" Ragni couldn't actively fight near the clutch. She flapped her wings and flew up to the ceiling. After hitting the spider against the cave's vault, she managed to unhook it and threw it away to the center of the room. "It seems it did bite me after all."
The dragon landed near the nest, and before our eyes, she transformed into a human.
"Ragni, it's better to change back. In human form, you won't be able to do much," Katrina supported her weakened friend.
"I can't. This damn creature did something to me," two wounds from the spider's mandibles were visible between her wings. "It seems its venom blocks my transformation, but I can still fight."
Thank goodness, one bite wasn't enough to take down the dragoness, giving us a chance.
The spider released webbing from its tail and attempted to escape, but I threw a fiery arrow at the thread before it could push off the ground. It was difficult for the spider to jump, and if we didn't let it spin more webbing, we could keep it on the ground.
"Now what?" Rumy circled the spider slowly from the side. "These creatures have pretty strong armor."
"We'll test its resistance to magic," Katrina clasped her palms together and began to gather a powerful discharge.
"Then I'll try too," Hilda raised her ax above her head, and it emanated a bluish glow.
The spider pressed itself to the ground and covered its mouth with its front legs. Two powerful streams of magic hit its carapace. The attacks clearly caused discomfort, but they couldn't penetrate the armor. Under the powerful pressure, the monster slowly retreated, but its two attacks sometimes overlapped, giving it a second to catch its breath. Taking advantage of one of those moments, the spider opened its mouth and produced a sound so disgusting it felt like it was tearing you apart from the inside.
A grinding scream echoed from its mouth. The girls stopped their attacks and clasped their heads. The sound caused them unbearable pain; even Ragni fell to her knees, clutching her ears. I heard the sound too, and it made my vision blur, but the pain wasn't as unbearable for me. I don't know what affected the princesses, but Rumy seemed to experience only mild discomfort.
"Krito, as soon as it stops, it will attack again, be ready," Rumy got into position, and she was right.
Closing its mandibles, the spider jumped at the nearest Hilda and knocked her to the ground. It poised its mandibles above her chest, and at that moment, I attacked it from the side. My blade easily penetrated its carapace but got stuck inside. I couldn't deepen the cut; its armor resisted my blade.
"What are you doing?" Rumy approached from the other side and swiftly severed one of its front legs. The spider recoiled and prepared for another attack. "I've fought creatures like this before. Their armor is hard to cut through unless you strike at the joints. If you get the chance, try to sever a leg."
I looked at the spider. Rumy could easily talk – its front legs were not thicker than ten centimeters, while the rear ones were almost twenty. You couldn't sever them with a single strike.
"Like all insects, this spider has weak spots," we slowly closed in on the enemy, cutting off its path to the girls. "Try to distract it."
"Alright."
I gathered flames on my blades and rushed forward. The spider crouched and blocked my attack with its legs. With a single push, it knocked me back and spat on its hands. The webbing extinguished the flames, and I couldn't free my hands to create new ones. The monster took advantage of the moment and leaped at me.
I fell to the ground from the impact, and it attempted to sink its mandibles into me. Crossing my blades, I managed to block it, but it pressed its entire body against me.
Rumy circled the spider in the shadows, taking advantage of its confusion, and jumped on top of it. Expertly riding the creature, she plunged both blades into its red eyes. Screeching in pain, the spider recoiled.
"Don't forget about me!" Ragni, recovering from the shock, slipped under the venomous mandibles and struck it forcefully on the head.
The spider began to fall on its back, and Rumy pulled her blades out and jumped to the side.
"Krito, aim for its belly; it won't last long," she said.
I winked at Ragni, and she exhaled fire onto my blades. The flames burned away the webbing, freeing my weapons. I leaped at the monster before it could cover its belly with its legs, and I drove the blades right into its center. Emitting a piercing shriek, the spider nervously twitched its legs, trying to shake off the danger, but I only drove the blades deeper into its body.
"Now it's time to finish it off," Rumy slid between its legs and struck twice at the base of its neck. The blades only went halfway in, but by leaning with her full weight, the girl managed to sever the monster's head. Yellow blood spurted from the open wound, and in its final convulsions, the spider died.