While the two were a little stunned by Marcus’s bluntness, it also made them a little less wary of him.

“That’s… Okay, but why?” Zayzal asked, as it felt like Marcus wasn’t telling the whole story.

“...I’m just curious,” Marcus replied before opening his animal pelt jacket to show off his chest. Running across his body from his left shoulder to his right hip was a huge scar that looked relatively new. “This is the result of me trying to explore it with Fenrir. We were attacked by a giant ice bear and barely escaped with our lives. The mountains aren’t any safer, so this is really my only option.”

“I see…” Zayzal muttered. Now he understood why Marcus said he was yet wasn’t trapped. He could leave whenever he wanted, but he didn’t have anywhere else to go. Clearly, he wasn’t going to leave behind his ‘pet’, and since the mountains were much more dangerous now, there wasn’t really a need to risk his life to escape.

“But are we really okay right here? I mean, you’re camping inside the cave you say is dangerous.” Sera asked, still distrusting the man. Ever since their time with Kaldrik, she’s been much more wary of strangers, especially ones living in the mountains.

However, contrary to what they expected, Marcus just shrugged. “I don’t know.”

“...”

“The larger animals outside won’t enter, and I’m safe from avalanches. There are creatures that live deeper into the cave, but so far, they haven’t come out.” He further explained, but that did nothing to reassure them.

“So, this place isn’t safe,” Sera stated with a deepening frown.

“More or less.”

Zayzal sighed, grabbed his spear, and stood up. “Haaa… Then, what are we waiting for?”

“But-!” Sera spoke up to rebuke but was interrupted by him.

“Look.” He pointed at the wall of snow covering the entrance behind them, to which Sera turned her head. “We’re blocked in. Unless you want to dig through and walk on that highly questionable snow, putting our lives at even greater risk, we can really only go forward. Since Marcus was… kind enough to invite us, we might as well join him and get through this.”

“...Fine,” Sera grumbled but accepted Zayzal’s reasoning. She understood better than him that walking on freshly avalanched snow was nothing more than a death sentence. They’d have to wait at least a few days, possibly even weeks, before the snow outside was safe enough to walk on. ‘That’s most likely the reason why Marcus hasn’t left this area yet. He can hear all the avalanches going on.’

“-but only if he guides us down the mountains afterward.” She declared, leaving no room for discussion.

Marcus shrugged and gave a light nod. “No problem.”

As the group prepared to venture deeper into the cavern, the air around them started to grow colder, and the icy walls seemed to darken, evident that the storm outside was only getting worse.

Marcus led the way with Fenrir beside him as he took confident yet cautious steps. Zayzal could see the faint trembling in his legs as he moved and inwardly nodded.

‘Despite being afraid, he’s still willing to go. He could be a great potential friend. However, whether he can be trusted or not is still up in the air.’ He thought, determined to keep a closer eye on Marcus.

There weren’t many people willing to confront dangers like this for little to no benefit. Not to mention…

Zayzal’s eyes glowed silver for a moment as he stared at the man in front of him. ‘This guy actually has two talents.’ He could see both a Silver and a Cyan orb inside Marcus, meaning he had one talent related to the mind and another that must be similar to his.

Turning his attention to the wolf, he had a guess what one of them might be, but he’d need to confirm that later. ‘For now, let’s just make a good impression.’

“So, Marcus, what exactly should we expect down here?” Zayzal asked as he walked closer to the man, gripping his spear tightly.

Marcus glanced back. “I’m… not too sure. The unexpected, I suppose? This place... it's full of surprises, and not all of them pleasant.”

“I see. Well, we’re quite strong!” Zayzal grinned while flexing his muscles. “Especially that barbarian behind us. If you need to chop something up, she’s your brute.”

“....How…. reliable,” Marcus muttered under his breath but still gave them a light nod.

As they progressed, the cavern opened up into a larger chamber. The ceiling stretched high above, and the walls were lined with intricate carvings depicting scenes from Norse mythology. The figures looked to be of ancient gods and giants locked in eternal battle, with their expressions frozen in time. They were a bit hard to make out due to the cracks and shifting of the ice, but they were unmistakably real.

Sera was mesmerized by the carvings and ran her fingers over the cold ice. “These are incredible. To think I’d see something like this so far away from home.”

Marcus nodded. “Yes, the legends of the Aesir and the Jotnar, it looks like. Quite surprising to see depictions here in the Alps.”

“You know Norse Mythology?” Zayzal asked in mild surprise, but Marcus shook his head.

“Only a bit. I took a class in school and did a bit of research.”

Suddenly, a low rumble echoed through the chamber, causing them to freeze. The ground and walls ahead of them seemed to move, shaking the entire cavern and causing the ice to crack. Soon, a large cylindrical ice-like worm revealed itself. Its skin glistened like diamonds, and its breath exhaled a misty frost.

“A worm…?” Zayzal whispered, tightening his grip on his spear.

“Looks more like a Wyrm,” Sera added, causing Zayzal to take a closer look at it.

“Isn’t it a bit too small? I feel like a Wyrm would be a lot bigger.”

Sera just shrugged. “Maybe it’s a baby.”

“Can you two shut up?!” Marcus barked and drew a large bowie knife. “Stay behind me. Fenrir and I can handle this thing.”

The ice worm lunged forward with its maw wide open. Marcus met its attack, his knife clashing against the creature's scales with a sound like shattering glass. Fenrir silently moved alongside him and hopped on the monster’s back, scratching away as it tried to break through its thick skin.

Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon.

The thing flailed around, screeching in pain and frustration, but the two kept up their attacks. However, the worm was a bit too simple-minded, and the hallway was too narrow. It rotated its body in an attempt to throw Fenrir off and crush it, but Marcus would show up and stab the inside of its mouth to distract it.

Eventually, Fenrir created a weak point on it and started ripping apart its flesh. However, seeing that the thing was making too much noise and causing too much damage, the two in the back glanced at each other and nodded.

Zayzal joined the fray, thrusting his spear through the wyrm's underbelly, while Sera launched herself in front of everyone and started hacking away at it with her axe.

Marcus grumbled in annoyance but said nothing as he understood their concerns.

After a tense battle, the wyrm let out a final, pained cry and collapsed, its body hacked and shredded to pieces. Bluish blood covered the ground, making the cave smell like feces, but everyone ignored that for now–except for Fenrir. His sensitive nose couldn’t take it, so he hopped over its body and created some distance.

Breathing heavily, Marcus wiped his brow. “We should be more careful. This cave could have more monsters hidden within the ice.”

“Got it.”

“Understood!”

They continued their journey, passing through chambers that seemed to be frozen in time. In one room, they found remnants of what appeared to be a giant's feast, with enormous utensils and bones scattered and frozen around a massive table. In another, a frozen waterfall created a natural barrier to the rest of the cave, which they carefully climbed over.

As they delved deeper, they stumbled upon a small, hidden room, its entrance almost concealed by a series of ice stalactites and stalagmites. Inside, they found an ancient chest covered in runes.

“Treasure?” Sera asked, her eyes wide with curiosity.

Marcus approached the chest cautiously. “Possibly. But it could also be a trap.”

He carefully opened the chest, revealing its contents: old scrolls, a beautifully crafted necklace with runic inscriptions, and a small, old map with an intricate drawing of Yggdrasil, the World Tree, on it.

The scrolls were written in an unknown language that looked similar to Old Norse yet had distinct differences, making Sera unable to translate them.

“We’ll have to find someone to decode these,” Sera said.

“Once we get to Greece, my parents should be able to help us with that.” Zayzal patted her on the shoulder and carefully packed away the scrolls. “My mom’s a pretty famous archeologist and historian.”

Sera nodded and looked over the rest of the stuff.

Marcus was a bit irked that Zayzal just put away part of the loot for himself, but since it was useless to him, he let it be.

Sera picked up the necklace, feeling a strange energy coursing through it. “This could be useful.”

“I’m taking this,” Marcus stated as he put the map in his satchel. Zayzal and Sera could only shrug, despite wanting it as well.

Once they finished looting everything, they left the small, hidden room and continued down the main cave.

The path grew more treacherous as they ventured on, with hidden crevasses and sudden drops.

At one point, they crossed a narrow ice bridge spanning a deep chasm. Marcus tested the bridge with his weight, finding it stable enough to cross.

As they crossed, Sera suddenly stopped, her gaze fixed on a carving on the wall. It was the Norse letter ‘þ’, which she understood to most likely be for þursar, or in other words, Jötnar.

“This... this could be a sign,” she said, her voice filled with awe. That symbol was practically declaring that this place was of Norse origins!

Marcus nodded. “However interesting. I’ve never seen anything like this in all my travels.”

Meanwhile, Zayzal just made a mental note of it. With all the dungeons, monsters, and folklore-related creatures popping up, it made him very concerned about whether gods and giants were roaming the Earth.

‘...How could we compete against the gods? Are they on our side? Is this just the beginning?’ He inwardly questioned before feeling a sudden sense of urgency. If gods really were roaming the Earth, they had to get stronger. Now.

However, there wasn’t anything he could do about that now, so he put that to the side and focused on the present: making it out of these mountains.

The final chamber they entered was vast, the ceiling lost in darkness. In the center stood a towering statue of a Jötnar, its features much more fearsome and defined than the other depictions. It almost looked lifelike.

“This must be the heart of the cavern,” Zayzal said, his voice echoing off the walls.

They noticed a series of runic inscriptions around the base of the statue, but since they couldn’t read them, they ignored them. Fortunately, Sera could make out bits and pieces enough to understand the gist.

“It says something about a different realm, a portal, and a guardian. I can’t make out the rest.” Sera explained.

As they finished speaking, a rumbling sound filled the chamber. From the shadows emerged a giant ice bear with fur as white as the snow around them and bigger than the one they fought outside.

Marcus stepped forward, his sword ready. “This must be the guardian.”

Sera glanced at the statue, thinking otherwise, but seeing that it wasn’t moving, she put away her speculations and focused on the bear.

Meanwhile, Zayzal grew a bit concerned at not seeing the usual dungeon core.

‘Is this not a dungeon?’ He bit his lip as a sense of foreboding enveloped him before it quickly went away. Shaking his head, he readied his spear. ‘Whether it is or not, we just need to leave.’

***

The ice bear loomed before them, creating misty clouds with its breath. Its piercing blue eyes fixed on the group with unconcealed rage for daring to enter its territory.

Marcus was the first to move, his body shifting into a combat stance. Fenrir mirrored his actions as its muscles tensed in anticipation. Sera readied her axe while Zayzal eyed the beast, calculating the best strategy.

“Marcus! You and Fenrir go for its legs. Sera, you know what to do! I’ll follow your movements!” Zayzal commanded, and everyone subconsciously nodded. Marcus glanced into the wolf’s eyes, and as if they were communicating with each other, they nodded and glared at the beast.

The ice bear roared and charged forward. Marcus and Fenrir sprang into action, coordinating their movements in tandem. Marcus darted around the bear's massive paws, slashing at its legs, while Fenrir nipped at its heels, both working to hinder its movements.

Zayzal maintained a mid-range distance and thrust his spear at the bear's exposed areas, each strike precise and calculated. He targeted the beast's underbelly and joints, exploiting any opening that Marcus and Fenrir created.

Sera delivered powerful blows. She aimed for the bear's shoulders and back, with each heavy hit resonating with a thud against the creature's thick hide.

Marcus's swift strikes left deep cuts on the bear's legs, slowing it down. Fenrir's relentless attacks further aggravated the creature, keeping it off balance. Zayzal's spear found its mark time and again, weakening the bear with every hit.

Sera's axe was quickly creating injuries that it couldn’t ignore. With her bear-like strength, barrier talent, and shield, she could tank the beast head-on, allowing the rest to do their work as she struck when the opportunity arose.

Under Zayzal's unspoken command, they moved as one, each complementing the other's strengths and covering their weaknesses. The ice bear, formidable as it was, could not withstand their combined might.

With a final, concerted effort, Marcus and Fenrir created an opening, distracting the bear and exposing its neck. Seizing the opportunity, Zayzal lunged forward, his spear driving deep into the creature's throat. At the same moment, Sera's axe came down in a powerful arc, cleaving through the bear's skull.

The ice bear couldn’t even let out a final roar before collapsing onto the icy floor. The sound of its fall echoed through the cavern, cracking the ice below it.

Panting heavily, the group stepped back, looking at the fallen behemoth.

Marcus, with a faint smile on his face, wiped his blade on the bear's fur. Fenrir sat beside him, its chest heaving as it caught its breath. Sera leaned on her axe, a triumphant smile on her lips. Zayzal, still holding his spear, surveyed the scene.

"Looks like that’s it," Zayzal finally said, breaking the silence.

"Seems that way," Sera replied, her voice filled with pride.

Marcus nodded, sheathing his knife. "This should clear our path through the cave. Let's move on."