Chapter 177 - 177 An Ice Dragon...

177 An Ice Dragon...

Meanwhile...

Eric trudged up the icy slope of the mountain, his breath visible in the frigid air. He was on a mission. The path ahead was treacherous, but he was determined to reach his destination, the basement of the ice palace atop the mountain.

As he descended down a narrow stairway, a low growl reached his ears. He stopped in his tracks, his hands clenching the metal knuckles he wore. Out of the shadows, a pack of white wolves appeared, their eyes gleaming with malice.

The wolves circled him, their teeth bared, their breath forming puffs of steam in the frigid air. With a fierce battle cry, Eric lunged at the pack leader, his fists slicing through the air.

The wolves were quick, darting in and out of his range, their jaws snapping at his heels. Eric fought with all his might, dodging and parrying their attacks, his muscles burning with exertion.

But the wolves were relentless, their numbers overwhelming. Eric felt his strength waning, his arms growing heavy. He knew he couldn’t hold out much longer.

Just when all seemed lost, a ray of sunlight pierced through the clouds, illuminating the battlefield. The wolves hesitated, their eyes darting up to the sky. In that moment of distraction, Eric seized his opportunity. With a mighty swing of his fist, he struck the pack leader a fatal blow.

The other wolves, sensing their defeat, retreated into the shadows. Eric breathed a sigh of relief, his heart pounding in his chest. He knew that he had narrowly escaped death, and that the wolves would come back later.

“What the hell happened...”

.....

Eric lifted his eyes to the sky and noticed a lizard or rather a dragon flying towards the castle.

His heart raced as he sprinted down the narrow staircase, the sound of his own footsteps echoing through the frigid air. He knew he had to hide from the dragon, or risk being burned to an ice statue by its icy breath.

As he reached the bottom of the staircase, Eric darted into a nearby alcove and flattened himself against the icy wall. He held his breath, praying that the dragon wouldn’t notice him.

The dragon’s massive wings beat against the air, creating gusts of wind that threatened to throw Eric off balance. He squeezed his eyes shut, hoping that the beast would pass him by.

After what seemed like an eternity, the sound of the dragon’s wings receded into the distance. Eric breathed a sigh of relief and peeked out of his hiding place. The dragon was nowhere in sight.

Eric had spent countless hours within the ice palace, slaying every monster in his path. He knew that once all the monsters within an area were killed, they wouldn’t respawn until the player left the area. It was his only chance to make a run for it.

With a deep breath, Eric sprinted through the icy hallways, his boots crunching on the snow. He had to reach the basement, the only place which he had yet to visit.

The ice palace was a maze of twisting corridors and hidden passageways, but Eric knew his way around like the back of his hand. He dodged traps and fought off the occasional stray monster.

“Finally...”

Eric stood in front of the intricately engraved door that led to the basement of the ice palace. He knew that whatever lay beyond it could be the key to his success. He took a deep breath and pushed the door open, revealing a dark, frozen chamber.

As he stepped inside, he felt a chill run down his spine. The air was colder here, and the ice seemed to glow with an eerie blue light. Eric knew he had to be careful – there could be any number of traps or monsters lurking in the shadows.

He cautiously made his way through the icy chamber, his footsteps echoing on the frozen floor. Suddenly, he heard a noise – a faint clicking sound, like the grinding of ice against stone.

Eric drew his weapons and crept forward, his eyes scanning the darkness for any sign of danger. That’s when he saw it – a giant ice golem, its eyes glowing with a malevolent light.

The golem was massive, towering over Eric like a frozen colossus. Its arms were made of ice, each one the size of a tree trunk. Eric knew he was in for a tough fight, but he was determined to prevail.

He charged forward, his weapons flashing in the dim light. The golem swung its icy arms, but Eric dodged the blow and struck back with all his might.

Both kept fighting for some time, but finally the HP bar of the golem reached zero and it fell to the floor, shattering into a million pieces, its ice shards glittering in the dim light.

Eric stood over the defeated golem, his chest heaving as he tried to catch his breath. His body ached from the relentless battle, but he couldn’t help feeling a sense of pride and accomplishment.

As he looked around the chamber, he noticed something glittering in the shadows. Moving closer, he saw that it was a small object, nestled among the shards of ice.

He picked it up and examined it closely. It was a key, made of the same ice as the golem.

“Hmmm...”

Looking at its transparent material, Eric shrugged his shoulders, moving forward through the huge ice room, seeing some kind of trapdoor.

Eric cautiously made his way towards the trapdoor, his heart beating rapidly in his chest. The cold air of the icy chamber was now biting at his skin, but he knew he had to keep going.

He approached the lock, examining it closely. It was like nothing he had ever seen before – intricate patterns of ice crystals adorned its surface. He tried to pick the lock, but his knuckles were useless against the ice.

With trembling hands, he inserted the ice key into the lock, turning it slowly. The lock clicked open, and the trapdoor creaked as it swung open.

As Eric descended down the ladder, his eyes widened in amazement. The basement was like nothing he had ever seen before – a vast cavern filled with glittering stalactites and stalagmites, and frozen waterfalls that sparkled like diamonds.

In the center of the cavern lay a massive block of ice, easily twice the size of the ice golem he had just defeated. Eric approached it, his breath forming clouds of mist in the frigid air.

“What is this...”

Eric’s heart raced as the sound of cracking ice echoed through the otherwise silent room. He scanned his surroundings, looking for any signs of danger, his hand instinctively moving forwards.

Crack...

The ice cube began to crack, making Eric’s curiosity grow. He cautiously approached the block of ice, watching as small fractures raced across the surface like spider webs. Suddenly, a larger crack split the block in half, revealing a stunning azure-colored egg within.

Eric’s eyes widened in awe as he took in the sight before him. The egg was the size of a basketball, and its brilliant blue color seemed to glow in the dim light of the icy cavern. He carefully stepped forward and reached out to touch the smooth surface of the egg. It was surprisingly warm to the touch, and he felt a strange energy coursing through his fingers.

As he looked more closely at the egg, he noticed intricate patterns etched into its surface, like delicate snowflakes. Eric wondered how such a thing could exist in this frozen wasteland. He decided that he needed to investigate further and carefully lifted the egg from the broken pieces of ice.

[ +? ? ? ? ]

[ ? ?: ? ?... ]

Eric carefully placed the egg into his inventory and couldn’t help but notice something strange about the message that appeared. There was an incubation time listed beneath the usual notification, indicating that something was going to happen to the egg soon.

For a moment, Eric froze, unsure of what to do. But as he looked back at the egg, he couldn’t help but feel a sense of excitement building inside him.

“Will I also get a pet like Leo?”

Eric’s smile widened as he realized that he might have just stumbled upon something truly special. He knew that taking care of an animal would be a big responsibility, but he was up for the challenge.

Besides, having a strong companion like Fenrir would increase his power by a lot.

Roar...

Suddenly, the entire palace shook and trembled under the force of the deafening roar.

“I think someone’s angry...”

Eric stood frozen in fear, he realized the magnitude of his mistake. He was now aware whose egg he had stolen. A dragon, one of the most powerful creatures in fantasy tales, with a reputation for being fiercely protective of its young.

“...”

He tried to remove the egg from his inventory, but for some reason the game disallowed from dropping it.

“Damn...”

Eric knew that the dragon would stop at nothing to get its egg back.