98

Dark Fight

The two hunting groups departed from their meeting point, maintaining a certain distance between them as they headed east.

The dragon's cave was located quite far from here, requiring several days of travel even at a relatively fast pace.

Over thirty hunters traversed the woods with boisterous chatter. Naturally, no wild animals dared approach, and the nights grew tense as they neared the dragon's lair, making sleep difficult.

"These guys are shameless, blatantly eyeing the giant dragon we discovered," Bart muttered quietly during a rest at night.

Forseti remarked, "Competing for a giant dragon leaves little room for etiquette... The pressure on the two princesses must be intense."

*Crack, click.*

As he spoke, Forseti shattered a large stone with Verrigan's fist, breaking it into pieces to feed the small stone creature.

"Hey." Shilut wasn't picky; despite having tasted gems, he still enjoyed munching on stones.

Hermond sharpened his short blade. "We'll reach the dragon's lair tomorrow... Have any of you seen a giant dragon before?"

"No." Several shook their heads.

Hermond continued, "My first encounter with a dragon was at the last hunting festival. Baldr sent the dragon he captured to the Cave of Time for sacrifice. I witnessed the dragon's funeral there."

Bart blinked. "Are dragons specifically used for sacrifices?"

Hermond nodded. "Mostly. Many dragons caught during the hunting festival are offered to the Norn's spirit in exchange for prophecies... Though I've always felt it's rather pointless."

"How can prophecies be pointless?" someone asked.

"My father once told me that the Norn's spirit is the biggest profiteer in the Nine Realms... The prophecies she delivers are fixed and unchangeable, rendering them useless," Hermond explained.

Hodr, who had been silent, suddenly spoke in a low voice, "Perhaps prophecies aren't meant to predict fate but to advance it."

Uninterested in further discussion with the gloomy Hodr, the group fell silent, and individuals retired to rest.

Forseti patted Shilut's head. "Stay close behind me tomorrow, don't wander off, alright?"

"Hmm." Shilut replied between mouthfuls of stone.

Forseti affectionately stroked the little stone creature's head again.

Though cute in its own way, it felt coarse and dry, far from smooth.

The night passed restlessly amid sporadic conversation.

"Get up, quickly!"

Forseti was jolted awake, pushed and prodded.

"What's happening?"

"They've left early; we need to move fast," Bart urged, hastily dressing.

Forseti turned and saw another hunting group entering the forest, already trotting away and quickly disappearing from view.

Hela wasted no time. The resting members stirred awake, quickly donned their gear, and rushed out.

In no time, they caught up with Skadi's hunting group.

Skadi's group, realizing they were being pursued, hastened their pace.

"Watch this!" Hermond invoked his speed magic.

With a *whoosh*, Hermond darted ahead of Skadi's group, only to slow down awkwardly, swaying as he ran, disrupting their pace.

Skadi, leading from the front, sighed in exasperation. "..."

Hermond's sluggish blockade forced them to slow down, narrowing the distance between the two groups.

"Damn it." A hunter from Skadi's group gritted his teeth in frustration.

The man, oddly ugly with a toad-like face and eyes like broad beans, yet robust with a black sledgehammer, was clearly one of Skadi's confidants, known as the Honorable Hammer.

The Honorable Hammer extended a tentacle-like appendage, swiftly wrapping around Hermond's leg.

Caught off guard, Hermond cried out as he was yanked to the ground.

Skadi's group surged ahead.

Hermond stared at the tentacle ensnaring his leg, ready to slash it with a knife until Hodr intervened urgently, "Wait!"

Hermond paused, looking up to realize the tentacle was actually a part of the man's body. Severing it would constitute a serious foul and cause injury.

But the Honorable Hammer showed no intention of letting go, sneering at Hermond.

"Who's this guy with tentacles on his body? Disgusting..." Hermond feigned retching, convincingly.

"It's Angler," Hodr remarked casually, producing a small vial, sprinkling its contents on the tentacle.

The tentacle writhed violently at the touch of the powder, Angler's face contorting in pain as he withdrew it hastily.

Retracted, the tentacle seemed to merge seamlessly back into his body. However, his leg remained green and white, sweat beading, indicating the strange appendage's nature.

"You, blind man, I heard you fancied your cousin Baldr's wife?" Angler jeered, visibly aggressive.

The taunt struck Hodr deep, despite its obvious provocation. Hodr trembled with anger, nearly drawing his bow.

"Calm down, there's no point arguing with a brute wielding a hammer," Hermond interjected swiftly.

Forseti, arriving just in time, puzzled: "???"

Hodr took a few deep breaths. "Angler, you deceitful, dishonorable... You'll pay for this."

Angler chuckled. "Haha, the blind man's sore spot hit home! So you did have eyes for Karnilla, but being blind and ugly, how could she ever fancy you?"

Without another word, Hermond dragged Hodr away, putting an end to the confrontation.

Thus, bickering and stumbling along, the two groups approached the dragon's cave, harassing and provoking each other with tensions running high.

"Is the Hunting Festival always like this?" Forseti asked a seasoned hunter with a beard beside him, experienced in many festivals.

"No, this is unusual," the seasoned hunter replied. "Without incident, someone might commit a foul, harm, or even kill."

Pausing briefly, the hunter continued, "So, in essence, we're not just vying for the giant dragon; we're also testing the limits of the festival's rules."

*Roar-roar-*

Suddenly, a dragon's roar echoed ahead, seizing the hunters' attention.

"It's a dragon!"

In the darkness, a fiery red dragon descended from the sky before them, wings beating as flames enveloped its form, exuding formidable power.

*Roar!!*

Oddly enough, despite the dragon's strength, the Aesir were no weaklings, especially with skilled hunters present. Faced with over thirty Aesir experts, the dragon stood little chance.

Yet, disturbed by some unseen disturbance, the red dragon roared, charging directly at the Aesir hunters, nostrils flaring with dragonfire.