Tap. Tap. Tap.

The stone legs moved as the Crakan Spiders ran along the walls of the Worm Mines. In just a few minutes, they reached the Crystal Brink, where the Elder of the Arakta Worms was already waiting for them.

One of the spiders carried Merina, who was still alive, although her wounds and bleeding were serious. It seemed that she had already accepted her fate.

But the other Crakan Spiders were not free either.

Crack.

Something fell from the spider with a dull thud. Then another, but the fall was softer.

"Fucking hell!" Kreyn exclaimed as he got up from the ground, holding his lower back. "Couldn't you move more carefully!"

Daren just rubbed his shoulder. He tried not to notice that he had just ridden a giant spider, as if it were a horse that could run across the ceiling. It was beyond his control.

"What's more," Kreyn narrowed his eyes at Vaarh. "Why the hell do they listen to you? Or are you a spider too, just too long and big?"

"Hahahaha..." Vaarh's deep laughter echoed through the free caves. "What kind of perpetually dissatisfied person are you? I just saved you time."

His eyes turned to the Crakan Spiders that remained at the edges of the ledge.

"They are not part of my species, it's true... However, if they want to enjoy the benefits of these caves, they must carry out my orders from time to time. Whether they want to or not."

Kreyn waved his hand. "Blah, blah, blah. Enough talk, I have a lot of work to do." He pointed at Merina. "Here, an Origin, she's still alive. Are you satisfied now?"

In response, Vaarh leaned over and looked into Merina's eyes, which were filled with fear.

"She's not the strongest one, definitely not, but that wasn't the point... You've proven that you can be worked with, Kreyn Skard. You can be sure that I will follow your plan. I give you my word."

"Great, then I'm off."

Kreyn turned to leave when Daren touched his shoulder. He pointed to the Crakan Spiders.

"It'll be quicker this way, won't it?"

"Damn it!" Kreyn rolled his eyes. "Vaarh, next time you come to us, not the other way around!"

"Hah..." Vaarh croaked. "I can, but I'm afraid I'll destroy everything in my path. I don't think you'd like that."

Kreyn and Daren left as the Crakan Spiders ran through the caves.

Seconds after they left the Crystal Brink, a piercing scream filled with pain and animal terror echoed through the caves.

Merina's life was coming to an end, a dark and painful end. Vaarh's hundreds of sharp teeth would turn her flesh and bones to nothing, ignoring her screams. All for one purpose — to gain energy and become a little stronger.

No matter how much stronger Merina was compared to ordinary humans or even other First Manifest Origins, to someone of Vaarh's level, she was nothing, just a drop in the ocean of energy he needed to become stronger.

Soon, Kreyn and everyone else would have to focus on this as well. He had to become stronger if he didn't want to end up in the jaws of a monster like Vaarh one day.

But now he had another task ahead of him. The Wurhen Family was after him, and after what he had done to Merina, they would no longer hold back. Everyone understood this well.

"Alright... Kreyn..." Vaarh muttered as he headed into the depths of the abyss. "It's time for me to show that I deserve your trust as well."

...

The blue moon, floating alone in the night sky, illuminated the prison courtyard, where Kreyn and Daren soon appeared. The Crakan Spiders did not appear. They had done their job.

Drip. Drip. Drip.

Tears streamed from Laura's eyes, falling to the ground as she couldn't believe what had just happened.

Step.

"Get up."

Laura looked up, meeting Azura's cold expression.

"Stop crying. You have to decide whose side you're on. We can't get our freedom while we're threatened by the Wurhen Family, your family. They want to kill us, and we have to respond in kind, no other way."

She had no answer. After all, she wasn't as cruel as her siblings or her mentor, Enor. Unfortunately for her, being kind was not an option in this world, not in her position.

Kreyn glanced in their direction.

"I see. It looks like we'll have to say goodbye soon. Her words and actions don't match. Well, she still has a chance, and in any case, she can be useful."

"It's almost dawn, right?" He shook his head, making a decision. "Alright, it's time to go."

...

This time, there were changes in Kreyn's team. Liam, Azura, and Valyra remained in prison, while Groza and Daren went with him.

Why did he make that decision?

The first supplies, namely food, water, and clothing, were to arrive from Boneveil Village at dawn. He needed someone in the prison who knew about their agreement and could establish contact with the villagers.

But... Where was Kreyn going, and why now?

Step. Step. Step.

"Do you think we'll find anything valuable there?" Daren muttered, blowing out a cloud of smoke as they left the prison gates.

Groza looked back. "Hmm? What are you talking about?"

"Well, as you know, we made a deal with the Boneveil Village, so as one of the conditions, they told us about an interesting cave."

Kreyn grinned, he had a feeling he would like this.

"The Crimson Crystal Cavern. We're sure to find something powerful there, something much more dangerous than simple dynamite. We don't know how many people the Wurhen Family has or what their Origins are capable of, so even though we have abilities, we need powerful weapons."

He turned his head to look westward, far beyond the hills lay Varthon and the Wurhen Family mansion.

"I'm sure they'll send their troops after us first thing in the morning, but one particularly large worm will buy us some more time."

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