Versatile: Alternate World

After the arduous battle between Alpha and Beta against the group of mongooses, the victors are Alpha and Beta. Of course, they didn't win without damage to their body. They barely managed to win and after the battle, they are almost down to zero health and are suffering from [Poison(Mild)] and [Bleeding(Minor)] due to the attacks of the mongooses capable of inflicting them. The two snakes shouldn't be poisoned as they are snakes but it turns out Alpha and Beta are constrictors and they don't possess poison in their bodies. As for the mongooses that shouldn't pose a poison in real life currently have them as their main weapon against enemies. It wasn't that impactful until the mongooses managed to tear a few of their scales and a bit of their flesh off allowing the monsters to inflict these debuffs.

Currently, Chase is healing the two snakes while Sigma and the others started to dismantle the carcasses before it attracts more monsters. Alpha and Beta refuse to eat the mongooses, perhaps due to the poison and maybe also due to how they are not in the mood to eat at the moment. The only thing that the group can do is to take the materials and take them for themselves. They also gained some meat to use in the future since they will have to remain for quite a while in the cold environment without the company of other NPCs unless they get really lucky, they will have to camp out once in a while. Everyone is happy that the meat is not poisonous and only the claws possess the poison according to Bladeheart's mother who is capable of finding things that possess poison due to the passive skill Alchemists have, [Poison Tracker] and with her Chef Ex Job, she can easily identify whether a slice of meat is something that can be eaten or not.

"We got quite a haul this time, but how many hauls are we going to get in this quest by the way. There is no way we will keep on getting this fortunate later on," Iron is worried about their situation for the long term.

"Stocking up with monsters we kill is a good thing. I will assume that most monsters here in this cold environment will always have something we can use to eat. We can gather up as much as we can as we progress. As for water, the snow alone can be used as water. We will not worry too much about it," Sigma explained.

"You seemed to be familiar with this, Sigma-nee-chan. Are you an expert in camping and a survivalist?" Topaz asked.

"Me? No. I didn't even have any experience in a single night camping sleeping in a tent outside our house, let alone being a survivalist. I only have the knowledge but have no actual skills to show it up," Sigma sighed.

They continue to gather up the materials and the parts they can salvage before they managed to clean up the surroundings. The only thing left behind are the red spots of blood which were due to how the monsters started bleeding. It's not much of a problem though since most of the blood has already seeped deep into the snow. It will only attract a few monsters but not to the point it will be dangerous for them.

Sigma decided to recall the two snakes and let them rest in her summons area. She might be a harsh instructor but she is not heartless enough to keep her pets out and fight despite their injuries.

After a while, Hagane and Bladeheart's father arrived from scouting the nearby area.

"We are back, is everything done around here?" Bladeheart's father has a smile on his face.

"Good work you two. What did you guys find?" Sigma asked.

"The cave up ahead seems to be the place we needed to go. It's a bit dark and cold and I can't see anything beyond it. Should we get there and see for ourselves?" Bladeheart's father pointed in the direction where the cave was located.

"Let's have a good rest first. Let's use the front of the cave as a shelter from the snow before we go deeper. Even if we are in the game, we still get quite tired. Let's not make that worse," Sigma answered.

Once everything is done, they returned to the carriage and continue to move until they reach the cave that Hagane and Bladeheart's father found earlier.

"I thought it was a big cave but it was just your typical cave huh?" Dolly went outside the carriage first and tried to peer inside the cave.

"Careful there, we don't know what dangers the cave possesses, it would be best to proceed carefully," Sigma reminded Dolly.

"Sorry, I just wanted to see if it was not bad and we will be able to relax here. There are some caves that are not that good in letting humans accommodate the inside so I just wanted to check."

"So, how is it?"

"I think we will be fine. It doesn't look as bad. And the floor is not damp or wet with water. We can sit without getting wet."

"That's good. Let's go now, everyone."

After unpacking and shrinking the carriage, Sigma immediately noticed the changes in the surroundings and how it suddenly fogged around them.

"Guys, prepare for battle, it seems we will not be able to have a good rest for a bit," Sigma pulled out her greatsword and readies herself. The fog is ominous and she can feel some presence hiding in the fog. The problem is that she cannot determine the exact location of the enemy and how many they are. Not only that but it seems the monsters are getting sneaky and ready to pounce and hide in the fog whenever they can.

Sigma stabs her Greatsword to the ground and her eyes started glowing gold.

"[Guardian's Domain]!"

Five crosses fall down to the ground, encircling everyone and forming a small yellow defensive barrier. Everyone inside the domain who is allies of the one who cast the skill will have increased HP and defenses with a small chance to repel the attacks towards the attackers. If the enemies entered this domain, they will lose 50% of their defense and they will have a chance to be silenced.

It doesn't really have the tenacity of the skills the Paladin possesses and if someone compares the two paladins will win.

'What are we gonna do, Leader? We can escape or we can just proceed inside the cave and hopefully, the entity on the fog won't follow us along?"

Sigma started thinking for a bit, trying to determine whether they will try to face off against the enemy or escape deeper into the cave.

"We have no choice. We don't have any info against the enemy before us so we will have to escape instead of facing it. Let's head deep inside. Although there is a risk we will be failing this if the monster lives inside the cave, we still have some chances it will just leave and not follow us. Let's head deeper. If we fail, I will take every responsibility for failing the quest."

Everyone nodded and they slowly went inside the cave. Their plan of resting for a while in the cave was replaced with a hasty retreat to the deepest part of the cave. Sigma knows this is a bit of a hasty and dangerous plan and they could end up dead if the monster is just trying to make sure they would get inside the cave before they resume their attack, but she is already having millions of situations playing out on her head for every possible situation that might occur after she made the decision to retreat into the cave.

They started running deeper and Sigma occasionally looks behind them to check if there are any enemies who followed them inside the cave and when after a bit further into the cave, they stopped running and readied themselves again. There is a small chance they will be surrounded by enemies right now and a smaller chance that they will be safe after that. Sigma is ready to deploy another [Guardian's Domain] anytime again in case things get real sh*tty for them and the odds are not stacked in their favor.

A few minutes passed by and nothing happened. The monster that they anticipated to have followed them also didn't appear. Nothing at all. The whole cave's surroundings are pretty quiet and the only sound they can hear is the sound of a small droplet of water dropping from the ceiling to the ground and their own footsteps every time they walk, It's pretty quiet a small noise can become quite a disturbance to the whole quiet atmosphere the cave has.

"Don't let your guard down everyone. Let's proceed much cautiously. We don't even know if we have already stumbled inside the domain of the boss and we didn't know about it at all."