The leading snowman swung its massive, crystal-covered fist, the size of a giant sandbag, ready to crush the two young mages.
“Binding Light!” Elliris hurriedly channeled her light magic, interrupting the attack before the snowman’s massive fist could fall.
“Sister Elliris, here’s our chance! Watch me!”
Nino raised her hand and chanted. Blue frost condensed into a barrage of ice spikes that rained down on the lead snowman. Meanwhile, the snowmen in the rear were unable to assist their leader due to the blizzard Nino had unleashed.
“Magic Augmentation! Ice Spike Rain!” Nino immediately enhanced her ice magic. She knew that monsters like snowmen, which possessed ice magic resistance, required strengthened spells to deal significant damage.
A multitude of ice spikes, like arrows, pierced the snowman’s crystal armor, but they failed to deal a critical blow.
Elliris activated her [Appraisal Eye] to record the moment. The snowman tribe’s [Ice Skin Regeneration] skill caused the wounds to be quickly covered by ice crystals, and the injuries were actually slowly healing.
“Whoa, they can use the ice and snow to self-heal! This is a bit tricky!” Elliris quickly channeled her Divine Mark, binding the other snowmen along with the leader.
Suddenly, the leading snowman let out a loud roar that made the snow within the cave tremble.
[Glacial Roar]!
“This isn’t good, Nino! This might be a skill to break the binding and release a crowd control effect. Be careful!” Elliris gave instructions to Nino while keeping her [Appraisal Eye] active.
As expected, after the [Glacial Roar], Elliris’s [Binding Light] gradually crumbled. A sharp, ear-splitting boom rang out, leaving the two young mages dizzy and disoriented.
“Stupid Sister Elliris! Watch your back!” Nino recovered her senses first. She made a split-second decision to block the snowmen’s charge with an ice wall while simultaneously activating [Mental Fortification] to resist the [Glacial Roar].
“Thank you, Nino. These snowmen must be under some kind of control. Even a tribal leader wouldn’t charge blindly like that.” Elliris quickly analyzed the situation and shared her theory with Nino.
“Let’s use the [Phosphorus Fire Potions] first. I’ll cast some small-scale fire magic. Since we’re inside a cave, we can’t overdo it.”
“Alright, Sister Elliris. I also think these snowmen are acting strange. I noticed it during my last scout—their movements are a bit like the zombies in Sindar Town…”
The two girls each took a [Phosphorus Fire Potion] from their waists and hurled them at the group of snowmen behind the ice wall.
*Fire in the hole!* A large amount of phosphorus fire liquid splashed onto the snowmen, staining their white fur orange-red.
Nino immediately dispelled the ice wall. Elliris’s left fingers blurred as she raised her staff with her right hand, firing dozens of [Fireballs] at the snowmen.
The snowmen hit by the potions were temporarily unable to use ice magic to harm the girls. Furthermore, the [Fireballs] Elliris fired were amplified by the potion’s effect, dealing massive damage despite being minor spells.
The dozen or so snowmen, howling in pain, collapsed on the ground in a messy heap, completely losing their ability to fight.
Fortunately, their average level was only around Level 35. Elliris’s fire magic was exceptionally effective; combined with her level advantage and the weakness exploit, it made them unable to retaliate.
The two girls then proceeded deeper into the cave. Before they had even walked 200 meters, Elliris noticed something strange.
On a bizarre altar filled with dense dark magic energy, a black ice crystal core sat in stark contrast to the rest of the white cave.
Elliris activated her [Appraisal Eye] and caught a glimpse of several dark magic connections stretching from the direction of the snowmen to this black ice crystal core.
**[Dark Magic Ice Crystal Core: All members of the snowman tribe within the Snowy Plains Cave are currently under the control of a dark magic curse. Breaking the core will restore their sanity.]**
‘Good grief! It’s a good thing we spared that group of snowmen, or else Nino and I wouldn’t have been able to get any useful information from them.’
“So they didn’t do it on purpose… Nino, those snowmen were all cursed by this Dark Magic Ice Crystal Core,” Elliris murmured.
“Then shouldn’t we just destroy this core? Honestly, bullying those low-level, stupid bears is quite beneath the God Race,” Nino complained, crossing her arms.
With a single [Ice Spike] from Nino, the cursed core shattered, turning into a cloud of ice shards.
They returned to the snowmen from before. The murky, clouded eyes of the snowmen had now regained their former clarity.
The snowman leader slowly straightened up and walked toward the two of them.
“Don’t move!” Nino raised her staff and shouted sternly. After all, they couldn’t let their guard down just yet.
“You two girls of the God Race, thank you for your help. I am profoundly grateful. I am the chief of the snowman tribe here.” The leading snowman actually spoke, and his tone was extremely sincere.
“We didn’t intend to cause trouble; we were just following our ancestors’ guidance to this place. As for injuring you and your clansmen, we only acted in self-defense. I am Elliris Arielis Omnia. I will provide healing for you and your people.”
Elliris got straight to the point, bluntly declaring her name. “It’s all right, Nino. Put down your guard. I can sense the sincerity in the chief’s eyes.”
She could see that the snowman chief, having regained his sanity, was a sensible person. Being honest at this moment would help them gather more information.
“So, you are of the great Omnia God Race. It is truly a pity that you had to come to such a place. I presume that you, if I am not mistaken, are the current Holy Maiden.” The snowman chief’s sharp observation made Elliris feel quite refreshed.
“Yes, Chief. I am indeed the current Holy Maiden.” Having said that, Elliris pressed her palms together. As she channeled the Divine Mark on her forehead, holy light descended upon the entire area. The gentle light magic energy instantly healed the fire burns the snowmen had sustained.
“Ah! Praise the Goddess! I have witnessed a miracle once again. It has been nearly 50 years since I last saw the light magic of the God Race.” The snowman chief mimicked Elliris, pressing his palms together devoutly as he shared his information.
“That person must have been the Holy Maiden’s mother. She was a head taller than you, but the two of you look like you were cast from the same mold.”
“You’ve seen my mother? Then do you know what she was doing here?” Having caught a crucial piece of information, Elliris followed up immediately.
“Your mother came here and went alone through the Gate of the Dark Realm deep within this Snowy Plains Cave. Shortly after, she emerged looking panicked and never returned to this place again,” the snowman chief continued in a solemn tone.
“Roughly 20 years later, an emissary of the so-called Dark Goddess Sebrine came here and forcibly built that altar. After that, as you have seen, my clansmen and I were brought under the control of the curse…”
***
It seemed this expedition to the Snowy Plains Cave was not in vain. Elliris had learned several secrets, though her confusion and doubts had only grown.
“Nino, let’s go check out the Gate of the Dark Realm further inside. We won’t trouble the snowmen further; you all don’t need to follow us. We won’t go in, just have a look,” Elliris said to Nino with an apprehensive heart.
“Sister Elliris, even if the sky falls, Nino will protect you. Hehe~” Nino said, showing no sign of fear.
Subsequently, the two girls headed toward the deepest part of the cave. As they went further, the path became narrower and narrower, eventually leaving only enough space for two people to pass side by side.
With anticipation and a hint of unease, Elliris placed her hand on the massive stone gate. It stood 20 meters high, radiating a thick aura of dark magic energy.
**[Warning: Elliris Arielis Omnia’s current level is below Level 70. Access to the Dark Realm is denied.]**
*Hiss…* As expected. I’ll just have to explore the area ahead later!