Within the cold, tense atmosphere, Galen stood frozen, his eyes fixed on the mysterious boy standing before him, who just happened to appear out of nowhere to save him and his party.
His mind racing with questions. 'Who is he?' After a moment, he found his voice, his throat dry. "Who are you?" He asked.
The boy slightly turned his head, meet Galen's gaze with a calm determined look in his eyes. "I'm an adventurer," He simply replied.
However, before Galen could process the answer, the wounded Nightmaw, still reeling from its severed paw, let out a monstrous cry of pain—mixed with pure, unbridled rage.
The beast's blood-red eyes locked onto the boy, its hatred palpable. Then, with a deafening roar, it sent shockwaves throughout the air. The sound was unbearable. Galen and the rest of his party instinctively covered their ears.
"Dammit! My ears!" Thorne shouted, wincing from the sheer volume of the roar.
Yet, despite the earth-shaking sound, the boy remained unfazed, standing calmly as if the roar had no effect on him.
In addition, after what felt like an eternity, the Nightmaw finally stopped, and silence fell over the whole area.
Thorne, still recovering, muttered in confusion, "What the hell was that all about?"
"I have no idea," Galen replied, gripping his sword tightly. "But something isn't right."
However, after a brief moment, the silence was short-lived. The ground then suddenly began to tremble, faint at first but growing louder and louder with each passing moment.
Galen's eyes narrowed and he scanned at the distance. "What is that?" He asked himself.
The boy, still standing with his hood drawn, finally removed it, revealing his face. He wore a defining scar going across his left eye, a serious expression on his face. "They're coming," He said flatly.
Thorne spun around, his eyes widening in disbelief. "No, no way… this can't be happening!" He gasped.
The rest of the party followed his gaze, their hearts each skipping a beat. Lyra, still kneeled beside Raine's body, trying desperately to heal her, looked up in shock. "No… it can't be…"
Charging towards them from the distance was another horde of Frostclaws, their glowing white fur and vicious eyes cutting through the misty air. However, this time, there were more of them—far more than before.
A sea of these terrifying creatures approached their numbers seemingly endless.
Thorne's voice trembled as he spoke. "More of them? B-But How? Why? We barely beat the last of them!"
"They must have been drawn here by the Nightmaw's roar," Galen deduced, gripping his sword even tighter.
"What? You mean that thing called them here?" Thorne said, his frustration boiling all over the place. "You have got to be fucking kidding me!
Despite the fear gnawing in his core, Galen squared his shoulders, his resolve hardening. "So what? No matter how many of them there are, we have to stand our ground."
Thorne took a deep breath in, regaining some of his composure. "Alright, alright… Not like, we have a choice huh? Let's just get this shit over with." He readied his bow, his hands still shaking slightly from the mounting pressure.
Galen then glanced at Lyra, who struggled to save Raine life. "Lyra, you just focus on Raine. We'll handle the rest from here."
Lyra nodded her head, her voice shaking but resolute. "Right. I'll do everything I can…."
As Galen turned back towards the incoming horde, the mysterious boy suddenly spoke again, "There's no need for any of you to intervene. We don't need your help. We can handle this ourselves. So just stay out of our way." He said his tone firm.
Thorne's temper flared, by the boy's words. "Like hell we're just going to sit on our ass! Just who the hell do you think you are, and who is this 'we' you keep talking mentioning? Because I don't see any one else around." He said.
However, before he could say another word, the two figures from before, emerged from the shadows, their backs turned, standing behand the boy. Both Thorne and Galen stared in surprise at the sight of the newcomers.
Even Lyra, focused as she was on healing Raine, but could not help but glance up and mutter, "Who… who are those people?"
The girl with a confident smirk tilted her head. "So, what now, brother?"
The boy, still calm and collected, glanced over his shoulder. "You guys deal with them, I'll take care of the big guy over here." he said, without a hit of hesitation.
The younger brother, with a playful grin on his face, cracked his knuckles and said with amusement, "Understood."
End of Chapter 5.