The Yeti opened its mouth slowly and displayed rows of yellow razor-sharp teeth. The monster began smiling as it began staring at Reinhard, enjoying the creaking sound of his body.
The pressure around Reinhard's chest was becoming unbearable and his bones began to crack. His vision was starting to blur from lack of oxygen and the darkness creeping around the edges of his sight, his mind was still working.
Reinhard finally raised his head as the monster fully leaned in and then he spat a compressed ball of ice straight into the Yeti eye. During his final tumble through the snow, he had managed to scoop up a mouthful of the frozen precipitation without the Yeti noticing.
The snowball rushed ahead and smashed into the one eye of the One-Eye Yeti.
The Yeti screeched in pain and surprise, its grip loosening as it instinctively tried to bring its hands up to protect its injured eye. Ice and moisture from the snowball had soaked deep in, leading to irritation and a temporary blindness.
Reinhard didn't waste the opportunity.
The moment he felt the creature let him go, he squeezed the white sword and hurled it straight towards the Yeti eye. The weapon pierced through the air and ludged itself right into the single eye of the monster.
The weapon penetrated deeply, and the creature's screech turned into a full-throated roar of agony that echoed across the entire winter landscape.
The Yeti stumbled backward, its hands clawing at its face as dark blood began to pour from the wound. The creature's balance was completely disrupted, and it crashed to the ground with an impact that shook snow from every nearby surface.
As the monster fell, Reinhard rushed towards the monster and then leapt on top before running on its body. He sprinted across its torso and onto its face, his boots landing on top of the monster fur.
The Yeti was still crying out in pain and trying to dislodge the sword, but the sword was too small to grasp.
Reinhard reached the Yeti head, jumping over its mouth and landing on its bleeding eye before then gripping the white sword. Then ripped the sword out before diving the sword right back into the eye. Then he pulled it out before striking, over and over did he drive the sword into the Yeti eye.
Blood splattered across his clothes, but he continued his relentless assault until the Yeti's thrashing finally ceased and its massive form went limp beneath him.
Only then did Reinhard allow himself to step back, his chest heaving with exhaustion and his entire body shaking. He pulled the sword out and slowly walked to the side but stumbled as his leg felt weak. He fell into the snow, but he didn't care as the snow cooled him off and helped with the pain through his body.
Reinhard stares at the sky, feeling the snowflakes falling down and landing on his face. He closed his eyes as he sighed before rising up and getting back on his feet. He moved around his limbs before flinching from the pain but it only lasted for a second.
"Just a bit sore, I can still move around." Reinhard muttered after jumping up, swinging his arms and walking around for a couple seconds.
Reinhard then glanced at the Yeti body once more before walking past it. He continued moving on the snow path while ignoring his aching body and the exhaustion filling his body.
His legs were heavy, each step requiring a conscious effort to lift and place down. Only the knowledge that this was the final floor kept him pushing forward, one foot in front of the other.
As he continued his walking through the snow and glancing around. He paused when he saw on the left side was a small opening in the tree trunk and after squinting.
He saw it was a hole barely big enough for a person to fit through but partially blocked by some roots. He became curious and wondered if this might be the pathway that will lead him upwards.
Reinhard quickly rushed towards the roots and then he crouched down to push aside some of the smaller roots and look inside. But he sighed in disappointment when he saw it was nothing more than a dead end.
The space inside was cramped and shallow with a solid wood of the tree trunk at the end.
Would have been a good hiding spot, had I ran from the Yeti.
Reinhard moved back from the hole before turning around and walked away. He then continued walking on his original path while raising his left arm to block the worst of the blizzard. At the same time he used his right hand to drag the white sword through the snow.
His shoulders were hurting a bit more from keeping his left arm raised but he knew the blizzard would fade soon. While it would have been good to just wait out the blizzard, he knew the moment he sat down, his body would give out.
And only moving through his determination and the desire to reach the top.
The path had him moving through root formations, bushes, and icy rocks that were appearing in the path. Reinhard crouched down under an arch root with the blizzard fading and him placing his hands back into his pocket. With the blizzard gone, he can see a lot better and it's then he sees the roots on the left not covered in ice.
The roots looked rough and climbable, with some of the roots being extended out. And looking straight ahead, he saw the snow path was rising upward. Before then curving to the left and most likely rising upwards into either a circle or just fully rising up like stairs.
"Finally," Reinhard chuckled to himself before rushing towards the roots. He didn't know if there would be more monsters on the snow path after the Yeti. But just in case he decided to take the root option and push through his exhaustion.
But Reinhard could only take a couple steps before he paused as the area around began shaking and trembling. Instantly recalling his encounter with the Yeti and how it had emerged from beneath the snow without warning.
Reinhard quickly raised the white sword with both hands and began backing up cautiously as he felt the vibration through his body. His eyes looked around the snow, searching for any signs of movement of another Yeti bursting up from the ground.
But he didn't see any movement in the snow, which made him narrow his eyes and stare ahead more intently. If the shaking isn't coming from below, then it might be coming from the pathway going upwards.
Perhaps it was Frost Giants approaching and their massive footsteps causing the ground to tremble.
I should find a place to hide…Reinhard was brought out of his thoughts when a huge shadow fell on him. He blinked in confusion before slowly looking up, and then froze as he blankly stared up at the sky.
"Is that a... Dragon?" he muttered in disbelief.
Above him was the figure of a terrifying black dragon.
It had jagged blacked scales that seem to push away the snow around and dark azure patterns that glowing on its body. Six powerful wings spread out from its body with one flap stirring up a strong gust and then crimson eyes that shined above.
And its gaze was looking down at him.