Trapping the snake had been easier than I thought, but something was wrong. The snake began to strike the rocks with increasing force. Each blow was harder and stronger than the last. If it continued like this, it would not only collapse the rocks but also break free.

I realized that I had to get away from there first. Otherwise, I wouldn't survive the snake's attack. I didn't know where to go, but I could try to distract it. I ran back to my hiding place and threw the torch in my hand towards it, hoping that the snake would follow the light.

From my vantage point, I could see the snake clearly. But it looked different from before. Its eyes were red and spikes protruded from its body. I had never seen a snake like this before. It must have been some kind of defense mechanism triggered by its anger. But what kind of snake could do such a thing?

As I had hoped, the snake followed the light and moved away from me. I could take advantage of this and return to Wedan, but things didn't go as planned. I accidentally stepped on one of the pieces of ice that Wedan had scattered on the ground, making a small noise. It was enough for the snake to hear me.

It started to follow me quickly. I didn't know where I was going. I just ran towards a burning torch that I saw ahead of me. Luckily, there was still a torch burning on the wall.

Without thinking, I grabbed the torch and kept running. The fire was attracting the creature, but I needed the light to see. I ran breathlessly until the snake started throwing its spikes at me. Somehow, it could not only retract its spikes but also launch them at me. The first one missed, but the second one was unlikely to miss because I was in a tight spot.

When I saw the dead end ahead of me, I barely managed to stop myself. There was no turning back now. As I turned around, I saw a spike flying towards me. I ducked to avoid it, but the snake was closing in for the attack. I dropped the torch and jumped through a hole on my left, narrowly avoiding the snake's bite.

I found myself on a slide-like mechanism and began to slide down. The hole didn't stop the snake. It continued to chase me, smashing through the wall with a single movement of its head. The slide was close to the ground and it was only a matter of time before the snake caught me. I saw a rope hanging in the air ahead of me and prepared to jump for it. As the slide collapsed under the snake's weight, I leaped onto the rope.

The snake on the ground tried to hit me with its spikes as I swung through the air. When I saw a path ahead of me, I jumped towards it. The snake rose up from the ground and stretched towards the path I was on. I kept running without looking back. The snake was getting closer and closer. It tore down wooden supports and damaged the mine as it pursued me, but it didn't seem to care about its nest anymore.

I thought I could escape by jumping into a wagon on the tracks in front of me. I quickly pushed the wagon from behind, jumped in, and began to roll downhill. The snake kept coming. Every time it got close, it would try to bite or spike me and I would duck to avoid its attacks. I used my sound wave to try to collapse the wooden supports on top of the snake.

It slowed down as rocks fell in front of it and the distance between us widened. But then I realized that the track ahead was blocked. A signboard loomed in front of me and when the wagon hit it, I was sent flying into the opposite wall. When I hit the ground, it was hard to get up. I was out of breath and couldn't see anywhere to go. The snake was stuck in the rocks, thrashing left and right as it tried to free itself.

I had to get away before it did, but my body wouldn't cooperate. When the snake finally threw off the rocks with a few powerful blows, it turned towards me. I was out of breath and threw up my hands in a futile attempt to defend myself. It was impossible to escape in my current state. The snake was about to finish me off with one swift move.

It opened its mouth and lunged towards me, but then Wedan appeared out of nowhere. He thrust his left hand into the snake's open mouth.

"Hey there, big guy," he said.

Using his ice power, he blasted a full force of ice into the snake's mouth. The creature froze in place as ice covered its entire body.

When Wedan was sure that the snake was immobilized, he turned to me. "The inside of the serpent isn't as thick as I thought," he said.

I slowly stood up and approached him. "Thank you, Wedan," I said. "You saved my life once again."

"Yeah," Wedan replied. "You seem to be getting used to it. Can you walk?"

"Don't worry about me," I said. "I can walk."

By sunrise, we had made it out of the mine and back into the open air. I had never been happier. It was quiet. Apparently, the elite soldier had already left. As we watched the sunrise, Wedan motioned for me to follow him.

"Come with me," he said. "I want to show you something."

We followed Wedan back to his house. When we arrived, he went inside and began to search for something. He soon found it and approached me with a bow in his hands.

"This bow was forged in the knight's quarry," he said. "It used to belong to my sister. No one uses it anymore and…"

I understood what he meant but didn't want to accept such a valuable gift.

"No," I said. "I can't take it. It's probably the only thing your sister left you."

"I'm sure she would have wanted you to have it," Wedan insisted. "I can't let it rust away here. At least let it go to someone as beautiful as you. Besides, I'm not good with a bow. I'm more of a close combat fighter."

"Wedan, I don't know," I said hesitantly.

"Here," he said, pressing the bow into my hands. "You need this more than I do. Don't worry, I know princesses receive training in archery. I feel comfortable giving it to you."

The bow was slightly long but very sturdy. It bore the crest of the paladins and came with a quiver of light arrows with blue fletching. I had never seen such a beautiful bow in all my time as a princess. I did as Wedan said and accepted the bow.

"Thank you," I said. "For everything. What are you going to do now?"

"I guess I'll just keep hanging out here," Wedan replied.

"Well, have fun," I said. "Ice Prince Wedan."

"Thanks," he said.

Taking the bow in my hand, I left Wedan's side and continued walking. Just as I began to think that this was it, Wedan called out to me. "Wait!" he said. He approached me and spoke again. "I'll regret saying this, but I'm joining your team."

"Are you serious?" I asked.

"Yes," Wedan replied. "After seeing what happened today, you don't stand a chance without me. Plus, I want to find and punish my sister's killer. I can't do it alone. And remember, I was seen with you. They're looking for me too, so it wouldn't make sense for me to stay here."

"A sensible choice," I said.

"So where are we going, partner?" Wedan asked.

"Where the tournament is being held," I replied.

"I see," Wedan said. "Let's go then. We don't want to waste time, do we?"

Wedan and I headed in the direction of the sunrise, towards the tournament. I was happy once again because I had accomplished the task I had been given. Now I could successfully return to the others.

As we walked, Wedan continued talking, trying to lighten the mood. "Can you really talk to the fish?" he asked.

"Well," I replied, "It's a bit complicated."