"Dead?!" Aster raised his voice, reeling back in shock.
Party 3, like Party 4, was composed of mbers quick on their feet, and skilled at escaping even when surrounded. Hearing that his other party mbers had died, leaving only one survivor cast a heavy silence over the group.
"... Can you tell us what happened?" Lizandrea asked gently, moving closer to the lone survivor. She understood the pain of recalling such events but knew they needed information to proceed.
"It happened so fast..." The man spoke in a detached tone as if recounting a story rather than his own experience. Aster noticed he was still in shock, unable to fully accept the reality.
From his recounting, their party was exploring the cave without much trouble, diligently marking dead ends. However, as they checked the second-to-last branching path, another dead end, disaster struck.
"A large spider, over five ters tall, with a red carapace blocked our path."
"...!" Everyone gasped.
This monster's description did not match the known appearance of the Cave Spider Mother, which was pitch black and about three ters in size. The creature he described was nearly twice as large and a different color.
"A mutant?!" Lizandrea exclaid.
The survivor explained that they entrusted all their gathered information to their fastest mber, their leader, and created an opportunity for him to slip past the giant spider. However, before he even reached the passage's end, half of the party was killed instantly, and the other half sustained severe injuries.
"... Here is the map we made," he said, handing over a crumpled piece of paper. "This... my party... Gert, Mina, Billy, Tina..."
Lizandrea watched as the man broke down, sobbing. "I know. We'll avenge your party, for sure."
As she stood up, her expression shifted from somber to a mix of determination and anger. "Everyone! Stay alert! Let's go kill that bastard mutant!"
Within a minute, the party was reorganized. Party 4, having finished checking all the paths on their side, joined them. They were now a few mbers short, but they had to complete their mission. They couldn't let Party 3's sacrifice be in vain.
The jaguar-kin man was tasked with guarding the path leading to the boss. Given his current state, taking him along was impossible. Two more from Party 4 stayed with him to prevent any Small Cave Spiders from attacking the main party from behind.
The team moved forward, their formation tight and senses heightened. The path indicated on the map twisted and turned but was mostly straight. The occasional skittering of spider legs echoed through the cave, keeping their nerves on edge.
As they progressed, the air grew colder, and the sense of impending danger intensified. The fact that they hadn't encountered even a small group of spiders suggested that the enemy was intelligent, conserving its forces and waiting for the right mont to strike.
"This is the last branching path Party 3 checked," Lizandrea announced as they reached a large space similar to the one they had rested in earlier. "I'll gather the ntos of his team mbers. Anyone coming with ?"
"..."
Nobody volunteered, not wanting to see the bodies of their fallen comrades.
"I'll go," Aster raised his hand.
Though he disliked seeing corpses, he couldn't let Lizandrea go alone.
"Alright. Everyone else, be wary of the paths. The boss could be lurking anywhere." She warned. "We'll be back in a few minutes. Party 2, take command if anything happens."
Aster ran after Lizandrea, who had already started walking, with Celestinya close behind.
"Wait, why did you follow?" Aster asked, confused.
When Lizandrea had asked for soone to accompany her, only Aster had responded. Now, another mber had joined them.
"I won't let darling go with another woman alone!" Celestinya exclaid. "Darling is mine, and mine alone! I won't let so random bitch get you!"
"You..." Aster sighed, feeling a bit exasperated. "Alright, follow if you want."
"Ehehe, I knew darling understands ~!" She giggled while grabbing Aster's arm.
The pair quickly caught up with Lizandrea. Standing beside her, Aster felt dwarfed by her two-ter height, even taller with the thick heels of her boots. It was a bit refreshing, after all, he was surrounded by girls shorter than him.
The path they followed was short, and they soon reached their destination. "We're here," Lizandrea announced, stopping.
Before them, lit by a mage's small light, was a pool of blood and scattered pieces of broken equipnt. There were no ntos left, not even a strand of hair.
Lizandrea gritted her teeth, her hands curling into fists so tightly that her gauntlets creaked. Aster could feel her anger and regret radiating, understanding the reason behind it. She had promised as the raid party's leader not to let anyone die, and now there were four casualties.
"How pathetic...!" she groaned, berating herself.
Aster stepped forward, intending to pat her back to comfort her, but then his Carved Seal activated, reacting on its own.
"...!"
In a panic, Aster pulled Lizandrea and Celestinya into a tight embrace, ensuring they wouldn't be affected by his Legacy Level Carved Seal's power.
*CRACKLE!*
In an instant, the entire scene froze. Not just the cave walls, but even the bloodstains on the ground and the small spiders stealthily creeping toward them were encased in ice.
"This is...!" Lizandrea gasped, seeing the spider ice sculptures falling from the ceiling.
Though surprised by their sudden appearance, she was more worried about sothing else. The spiders had co from behind them, down a straight path, which ant...
"The main party is in danger!"
She tried to slip out of Aster's grip, but he tightened his hold. "Stop! Don't move!"
The Carved Seal was still active, and moving beyond the one-ter safety region around him would result in being frozen solid. Celestinya, anwhile, was lting into his embrace, taking advantage of the situation and even sniffing his neck, making him a little uncomfortable.
Detecting the desperation in his tone, Lizandrea decided to follow his instructions for now.
For fifteen more seconds, they stayed in the sa position, with Lizandrea's head resting against Aster's shoulder and Celestinya clinging to his chest. Finally, as the light of his seal waned, Aster let go.
"It should be fine now," He said, releasing them.
Celestinya raised a small complaint, going: "Ehh~? I want more! Hug tighter, darling~!"
On the other hand, Lizandrea nodded her head while clearing her throat.
"Umu! Let's head back! They need our help, your help!"
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