Frostfire Legacy

"Hurk...!"

Right as he finished his words, Aster felt the pain multiply. A cold sweat fell from his face as he gripped his right arm. Looking closer at the wound, it was turning an unhealthy purple, a sign of poisoning.

"Oh no!" Kali, who arrived at the scene, realized what it was at a glance. "That arrow is coated with a Death Viper's poison! We need to hurry!"

"Death... Viper?!" Aster's face turned pale after hearing Kali's words.

Although he wasn't that knowledgeable about monsters, he did learn the names and properties of all monsters from the first to the tenth floor, at least. And the Death Viper was one of them.

It was a snake monster, about as large as an anaconda, that lived in the forest on the tenth floor. Its main feature was its pure black body with silver diamond marks along its spine, possessing a deadly poison that could kill one afflicted with it in minutes.

The problem, however, was that the first effect of its venom was a powerful muscle relaxant. It effectively paralyzes one's body in a few seconds, making it impossible to survive alone.

Kali stopped talking and even ignored the black cat below Aster before lifting him in a bridal carry and running at her top speed, heading for the nearby portal.

It was fortunate that they were near the exit. If they had been further, the chances of Aster dying along the way would have been higher. As soon as Kali got out, she rushed to the medical tent by the side and shouted at the personnel present.

"DEATH VIPER POISON!"

"...!"

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All personnel present in the tent moved without delay, knowing the urgency of the matter. The closest healer quickly chanted the Antidote Spell, while the others moved to prepare a rinse solution for the wound, among other things.

For a full minute, the quiet medical tent was filled with activity.

Aster's wound was addressed properly, removing the foreign object and source of poison, washing it off with antiseptic, before applying another antidote skill, followed by a heal. Aster was covered in healing light a total of five times!

"Dook Scree Sirreo! Detect Poison!"

As a last measure, one of the healers cast a poison detection spell, checking if they did succeed in removing the poison from Aster's system. After the spell returned negative, showing that he was already cleared, everyone finally heaved a sigh of relief.

"He's clean. No more poison can be detected in his bloodstream or anywhere on his body."

As soon as the resident healer said this, Kali let out a deep, long sigh.

"Thank god..." She, who had been tense the entire time, finally sat down, relieved.

She was more tired mentally than physically. After all, she was supposed to protect Aster, and he got hit by a deadly poison. If he died, then it would weigh down not only on her conscience but also on her records. It would be weird if she didn't feel pressured by such a close-call situation.

"Hnggh!"

Aster raised his body from the bed, moving his hand while checking for its sensations. He was able to move it without problems, despite having an arrow pierce through it just a short while ago.

After he confirmed that there was nothing wrong with him anymore, he moved to Kali and offered a hand.

"We should return to the dungeon first. Those assassins are still after that girl."

"You..." Kali's frown deepened.

"Don't you realize you almost died for covering for that ingrateful vixen?! And now, you're going to stick your nose in her business? Do you want to die that much?!"

Aster scratched his head, wondering if he had a death wish. However, it was true that he couldn't simply ignore it when he knew someone nearby was in danger. It's not his sense of heroism acting up, but rather a more calculative side of him.

'If my guess is right, helping that girl should give us a few benefits at least.' He thought. 'At worst, we would still lose the bad blood between us, so that's good in its own way.'

Of course, Aster already had an inkling of the black-haired cat girl's identity. After all, there were only a few Adventurers with such a strong personality and striking characteristics present on the Second Floor.

"Hah, men..." Kali sighed derisively, staring at Aster like she was looking at shit. "They always go crazy when they see boobs. Is it really that great? Enough to put your life on the line?!"

"Huh? Wait, do boobs have anything to do with this?" Aster was confused, but Kali didn't seem to listen at all.

"Big ones are nice to look at, right?! Sorry for not having such a voluptuous figure!"

"..."

Rather than commenting on the situation, Kali sounded as if she were venting a personal grievance. Aster realized this and decided to keep his mouth shut, waiting for Kali's outburst to end.

"Star?! Are you alright?! I heard what happened from the Uncle Gatekeeper!"

"Cassy?" Aster turned toward the entrance, where an orange-haired bunny entered. "Yes, I'm fine now." He nodded, trying to change topics from Kali's rant.

"Really? Thank god..." Cassy sighed, patting her chest in relief.

"Oh, and also, there's someone right at the tent's entrance, peeking over here. Is she your acquaintance? She looks familiar, but I can't really recall where I saw her..."

"...?"

Curious about what she pointed out, Aster turned to the side, peeking toward the entrance once more. And there, he saw a pair of glowing blue eyes staring right at him while hiding.

"...!"

For some reason, Aster felt chills run down his spine.

"YOU!" Seeing his reaction, Kali stood up and moved as if to protect Aster. "What did you come here for?! This is outside the dungeon, I remind you!"

The figure, the same woman from before, continued staring intently at Aster, not even daring to blink. It was honestly creepy, unsettling all three of them, but he resolved himself, standing up and walking up to her.

The woman followed Aster's every move, not moving from her hiding spot beside the entrance. When Aster reached two steps away from her, he stopped and smiled.

"You... You're Celestinya Zirroth, am I right? What do you say about joining our party?"

"..."

"W-Wait, Star?!"

"You... horny bastard!"

It was a sudden request—an illogical one—making all three girls confused.