CHAPTER 63: EPIC CHASE

Ahead, nestled between the rocks, was a massive structure—no, not a structure. A nest. Woven together from thick branches and broken tree trunks, it was so large it could have been mistaken for the ruins of some ancient place.

And inside, coiled around itself in a slow, rhythmic motion, lay a giant white serpent. Its pale scales gleamed faintly in the sunlight like polished marble, its length wound into a mountain of flesh. Each slow exhale from its nostrils sent the grass bending under its hot breath.

But what drew Astrael’s eyes even more were the three massive eggs lying between the coils, their golden shells gleaming like buried treasure.

His breath caught. "...That’s..." He didn’t finish the thought.

The moment hung heavy in the air, the oppressive presence of the beast making Astrael’s chest tighten. Even in sleep, its aura was suffocating.

Clawdia crouched low, her fur standing on edge, silver eyes narrowing on the serpent. Her growl was faint, restrained, but her body trembled with unease.

Astrael’s jaw clenched as he slowly stepped back, weighing the situation. A serpent guarding golden eggs... this has to be the kind of thing people risk their lives for. His eyes flicked once more to the glimmering shells. But if that thing wakes up...

He looked down at Clawdia, who glanced back up at him as if to say, This isn’t prey.

Astrael exhaled sharply through his nose, whispering under his breath. "I didn’t come this far to die like an idiot..."

Still, he couldn’t tear his eyes away from the eggs, glimmering faintly with the promise of power.

The nest loomed like a fortress of bones and branches, and the massive white serpent coiled within it stirred faintly, its scales glistening like frost. Astrael narrowed his eyes, sweat already forming along his temple. Even without the oppressive aura of beasts like the direwolf earlier, something about this serpent felt wrong.

He leaned closer to Clawdia, whispering low. "It’s not giving off bloodlust... yet it feels more dangerous than anything else we’ve faced."

Clawdia’s tail lashed once, her ears flattened. She pressed low against the ground, silver eyes fixed on the serpent with an intensity that confirmed his suspicion.

Astrael’s mind raced. Why can’t I feel its presence clearly? Is it hiding its strength? Or... masking it on purpose?

His eyes darted to the golden eggs nestled between its coils, radiant even in the shade of the nest. So that’s why it’s staying still... It’s guarding them. That explains why the nearby forest is silent. Everything else already fled.

But then—

HISS!

The serpent’s tongue flicked once, forked and black, sliding through the air with a hiss that prickled at Astrael’s ears. Without warning, its massive head snapped up, blue eyes locking on him.

"Shit—!" Astrael barely ducked as a spray of green liquid shot past him, sizzling through the bark of a nearby tree. The wood hissed and crumbled instantly, eaten away into black mush.

Clawdia snarled, leaping aside as another spray followed, the acidic stench choking the air.

Astrael gritted his teeth. Acid?

The serpent reared, its body unwinding, and Astrael realized in that moment this was no ordinary beast—it was the sovereign of this stretch of forest.

Clawdia growled sharply, her gaze flicking toward the slope on their right. Astrael followed her line of sight, spotting a massive boulder perched on the incline. His mind clicked instantly.

"You clever girl..." he muttered under his breath, a grim smile tugging at his lips.

The serpent slithered forward, crushing twigs under its girth, acid glistening along its fangs. Astrael’s heart pounded. He whispered urgently, "We will push that thing. Aim it straight for the nest."

Clawdia’s ears flicked back, then she bounded toward the rock without hesitation. Astrael darted after her, boots crunching over loose gravel.

The serpent hissed sharply, its tail smashing against the ground, but it didn’t lunge yet—it was still half coiled around its eggs, unwilling to abandon them outright.

"Good... stay there," Astrael growled, bracing himself against the rough boulder’s side. His muscles screamed, fatigue from earlier battles still weighing him down, but he dug his heels into the slope. Clawdia pressed her small but fierce body against the stone as well, her claws scraping against it.

"Push!" Astrael shouted through clenched teeth.

The boulder groaned, shifting slightly, then more as they strained together. Pebbles tumbled down the slope, dust kicking up around them.

Below, the serpent’s head shot up again, tongue flicking—its body tensing as it realised what was happening.

The boulder shuddered but refused to budge, the sheer weight testing every fibre of Astrael’s strength. His arms burned, veins bulging as he forced his shoulder harder into the stone. Clawdia clawed at the dirt with frantic growls, her paws digging trenches to gain leverage.

Then the serpent’s hiss cut the air like a blade.

Its massive body uncoiled, scales grinding against the nest as it lunged, the ground trembling under the force. Its maw opened wide, fangs dripping with acid that smoked where it splattered the soil.

"Move—!" Astrael yelled, shoving Clawdia aside as the serpent’s head slammed down where they had been, splintering earth and stone in an explosion of dirt.

The shockwave knocked him off balance, his shoulder slamming into the boulder painfully. His hands slipped, nearly losing their grip as he tumbled forward.

’Damn it, it’s faster than I thought!’

The serpent reared back for another strike, tongue writhing as its blue eyes glowed like ice.

Clawdia darted around its flank with feline grace, a silver streak against the earth, clawing and snapping to draw its attention. Her sharp yowl echoed across the forest, buying Astrael the briefest moment.

He staggered to his feet, grit clinging to the blood and sweat along his jaw. "You want me?" he snarled, voice hoarse but defiant. "Then try and stop this—!"

With a roar, he threw his entire weight against the boulder again, every muscle screaming as he pushed.

But the serpent wasn’t finished. Its body whipped like a tree trunk swung by a giant, tail slamming toward Astrael’s blind side with enough force to snap bone.

Clawdia leapt. She collided with the tail mid-swing, her claws digging deep into the scales. The impact tossed her aside like a ragdoll, but it stalled the serpent’s strike for a crucial heartbeat.

That was enough.

"GO!" Astrael roared, shoving with every ounce of rage and desperation left in his body. The boulder lurched forward, rolling past the lip of the slope. For a heartbeat, silence fell—

Then gravity seized it, dragging the massive stone down the incline straight toward the nest.

The serpent hissed, realisation flashing in its glowing eyes as it whipped around to shield the golden eggs.

The boulder thundered down the slope, rattling the earth with every bounce until it slammed into the serpent’s side

BOOOOM!!!

The creature’s shriek split the air, a piercing wail that rattled Astrael’s skull and sent a flock of crows screaming from the treetops. Scales cracked and tore beneath the crushing impact, blood the colour of molten silver spraying across the dirt. The serpent’s body convulsed, twisting violently as it thrashed against the pain.

But the eggs remained untouched.

The nest quivered with the serpent’s movements, but miraculously, the golden shells rolled safely within the coil of roots and branches.

Astrael braced against the slope, chest heaving. His vision blurred from the effort, and sweat poured down his back, but a grim satisfaction burned in his eyes. "Got you... at least once."

The serpent’s gaze snapped to him, blue eyes now blazing with unholy fury. It no longer slithered cautiously, but it stormed, dragging its massive body forward with murderous intent.

Clawdia limped back to Astrael’s side, blood streaking her silver fur where the tail’s earlier strike had caught her. She crouched low with fangs bared and tail lashing furiously.

The serpent reared, its body towering like a wall of scales and muscle, acid dripping from its fangs in long, sizzling strings. The wound across its side steamed, flesh sizzling as it tried to regenerate.

Astrael tightened his grip on his sword, blood still humming faintly with the remnants of his berserker energy. His arms trembled, but his stance held steady.

"Looks like... you’re not going down easy," he muttered, glaring up at the beast. His lips pulled into the faintest smile. "Good. Neither am I."

The serpent lunged faster this time, rage fueling its speed with an unhinged jaw with venom spraying.

And Astrael charged to meet it.

The serpent’s fangs glistened inches from his face, venom hissing as it scorched the dirt where droplets fell.

Astrael’s boots skidded against the slope as he barely twisted aside, heat searing across his cheek. His grip on the sword faltered, not from fear but from the weight of decision. His mind spun even as his body moved.

Blood Berserker again... but if I trigger it now, my body might collapse before this fight ends. One more burst of that power and I’ll be nothing but meat for this thing’s fangs.

The serpent’s tail whipped around. Astrael raised his blade, but the strike still sent him flying into a tree, bark exploding around him. His ribs burned, his breath cut sharp and shallow.

That wound from the boulder, it’s not healed. It’s my only opening.

He spat blood, staggered to his feet, and locked eyes with Clawdia. The feline’s silver gaze flashed back.

"Clawdia..." His voice was hoarse, but steady.

Astrael narrowed his eyes, sweat stinging them as his heart thundered.

If I time this wrong... we both die.

The serpent lunged with full force to grind the enemiesinto meat paste.

Astrael’s muscles coiled, blood surging wildly in his veins.

And then—