The archer was already used to Tia's nonsense. She's very detached from reality at times. That's why he wasn't so affected by the mage's blunder.
As for Dragomir… he didn't have much patience for this kind of thing at a moment like this. He was already here against his will, and now he had to deal with this nonsense.
He was a little irritated, and he would certainly complain about it.
The swordsman sheathed his sword with a strange calm, something that, in a way, Raiziquer had learned to fear over time.
In a calm movement, which disguised his true feelings, the gray-haired man turned towards the mage.
His face was impassive, ready to unleash liters of pure hatred on anyone who dared to stand in his way of imminent destruction and moral violence.
But he was prevented from doing so. His whole body stopped moving. The hostility focused on the mage dissipated.
Something drew his attention back to the two asteroids linked by the bridge.
His expression was serious, focused, with sharp eyes and threat detectors. A sudden change that affected his two colleagues.
Magical auras emanated from the archer and the mage. Dragomir gripped his sword tightly with his knuckles.
Once again the trio was silent, but now for a different reason. The anxiety of waiting for danger to come was no longer on their minds. That feeling had transformed. Now they were completely certain of what existed around them.
"Just to be clear, you can feel it too, right?" Tia asked, already knowing the answer. She just wanted to make the situation clear to everyone; the group was no longer dealing with suspicion, now it was absolute certainty.
Neither Dragomir nor Raiziquer showed any interest in answering, not that an answer was necessary.
Now they were sure they weren't alone. And to confirm this certainty, a sound filled the silence left by the trio, a sound that made clear the trap they had fallen into.
*Hehehe
Laughter echoed mockingly through the darkness; the unfamiliar voices jeered at the trio, remaining mysteriously hidden, unseen by any of them.
"Tia was right, there's something here!" the archer declared calmly, his words belittling the anxiety they felt at that moment.
"Yes, I was," Dragomir's words carried a hint of mockery, but he was taking this matter seriously. "We're in a difficult position. We need to get off this bridge, and the best time to do that is when the enemy reveals themselves."
Raizicher and Tia agreed. They had to be quick; as soon as the first enemy movement was detected, they needed to act.
Therefore, each was already in position to act. Tia stood guard at the rear of the group, responsible for blocking any attacks coming from behind.
Dragomir kept his gaze as sharp as a razor, scanning from one point to another in search of any sign. Unlike the other two, he didn't unleash his magic; only his posture was used by the young man, who anxiously awaited his window of opportunity.
Raizicher used his experienced gaze to analyze the surfaces of the two asteroids. He was between his two companions, his bow loaded, the string stretched, the energetic and magical arrow ready to fly.
And it was the archer's trained eyes that perceived the enemies.
Just two milliseconds before their self-revelation, he saw the difference that certain parts of the asteroids had.
It was something that a normal person would never discover unintentionally, and even trained people like Raiziicher himself would have difficulty finding, even if they searched.
But his eyes finally saw the various optical distortions with vertical rectangle shapes scattered around him.
There were countless of these translucent objects of various sizes. The height variation was somewhat diverse, but not very large. The largest rectangles reached 1.78 meters, while the smallest reached 1.20 meters.
These objects had no color of their own; they were constructs of mana enchanted with multiple spells of concealment and camouflage. Something meticulously designed to blend perfectly into the environment and hide any trace of its users.
He didn't have time to warn his companions; the creatures revealed themselves before he could.
The unknown objects gradually fell and disintegrated, folding in on themselves like a fabric no longer suspended.
Finally, the appearance of their besiegers was revealed, surprising the three.
The creatures, now revealed, had reptilian features; their scaly skin displayed a simple yet consistent resilience. Their elongated, lizard-like snouts were divided into several pointed segments, giving these small beings a dangerous appearance.
Their heights weren't great; most didn't exceed 1.40 meters. But this didn't diminish their lethality. Their bodies were dressed in tattered, old cloth clothing. Some had pieces of metal armor, the most rudimentary possible.
In their hands, most carried shaft axes, which were a few centimeters longer than their bodies. The areas where they held them had handguards to protect their limbs from any attack. But these weren't the only weapons they possessed. Some of them used clubs half their height, with a semi-rounded tip that resembled chipped stone, a blunt weapon.
There were also those who carried clubs, short spears, crossbows, and just simple sticks that didn't appear to be anything special. They all carried their weapons awkwardly, in a way that could be mistaken for amateurism or inefficiency. But it concealed their mastery, honed and practiced almost daily.
But the most striking detail of their appearance was, firstly, their long, single, pointed horns. They looked like large, pointed cylinders atop the heads of these creatures.
And what stood out most in their appearance was a floating ring around their necks, and they also had a smaller variation at the tip of their tails.
They circled their throats like floating rings, giving a slightly divine touch that contrasted with their worn and poor appearances.
Both the single horn on their heads and the rings on their throats and tails were made of a mixture of calcium and ivory, which for some reason was a dull green, but suspiciously reflected the light that touched it.