Season 2, Chapter 6.

The Beast Within.

Haze looks through the notes and scratches his head, examining the pages in silence as he tries to figure out the door's combination. After a moment, he stops and gazes at the door. "The hissing sound and the sound of shuffling footsteps stopped," he thinks to himself before turning another knob on the door, and he hears another click.

"Alright, only 16 of these things left," he mutters to himself as he hears shuffling footsteps from within the room, and a chill creeps up on him. Nonetheless, he continues to note down which combinations are wrong so he can narrow in on the right one.

Meanwhile, Asta is sliding down a dark shaft with Millie ahead of him, and she looks as they descend.

"I smell burning?" she utters and narrows her eyes. "Get ready to hold on," she tells him, and a second later, they come to a drop. Millie takes to her wings, and Asta grabs her right ankle.

"Whoa," Asta says and looks down. He sees a huge red-glowing plant far below in the narrow, tall room, and he hears a crash. He looks to the side as the shaft they came from shuts.

"I would advise bracing yourself and covering your eyes," Millie softly tells him. He looks up at her and then down.

"Life shield magic body shield companion," she utters, and a white-tinted transparent shield forms around Asta. He looks at his body and hand. "Whoa, you can, uh-" he sees her put her hands in front of her aimed at the plant. As fire shoots toward them, just before it reaches them, Millie's mana beam pushes back the intense fire. Within another moment, she slows down the beam and undoes it, leaving scorched vines at the bottom and the light disappears.

"Now I can't see anything," Asta mutters, and Millie forms a white flame next to her shoulder. She descends and heads for the surface below.

As they land, the cave begins to shake. "Now what?" Asta exclaims, and they see the walls above closing in on themselves.

"Crap!" he says and looks around. While Millie looks at the walls, wondering how to destroy them before they reach them, he says, "Come on," and grabs Millie's wrists. They head into a narrow opening in the wall, squeezing into it. They move along the narrow path, Millie's light flickering on the walls, and the earth beneath them getting soggier by the minute as they trot through more mud.

Asta watches the path ahead, doing his best to lead them, while Millie looks at her wrist where he is holding with confusion so prevalent on her face.

They move into a big cave, and "Whoa!" Asta exclaims, slipping in the mud. Millie is dragged into the mud too, and they slide down the tilted ground until they meet the wall on the other side.

Millie sits up, flicking mud away from her hands and looking at her mud-covered clothes. "Okay, tonight I've bathed in a lake, bathed in the sea, and now I get a well-met mud bath, meaning I'll have to take another bath once we're done," she thinks to herself, looking at Asta, who sits up.

"Okay, that was not fun," he utters and looks around. "This place smells like earth."

"Well, we better keep going," Asta says and gets to his feet, looking at Millie, who looks at her glove-covered hands.

"Uh, Millie, is something the matter?" he asks.

"Well, it's just... this place is draining away magic and physical strength, so I would advise covering yourself in antimagic," she explains and gets up.

"Seriously?" Asta says, surprised, and looks at his hands. "Now that you mention it, this place does feel draining somehow," he says, looking at Liebe on his shoulder.

"I suppose it would be a good idea," he says and covers them both in antimagic.

"Since this place is draining magic, I do worry about the others," she tells him.

"Seriously, are you alright?" he asks, and she looks up at him.

"I am confused..."

"You're confused again?" Asta asks.

"There is no need to be concerned, I have plenty to spare, so I should be fine," she utters.

"Right, well, we better hurry up and find the others then," he says, and they keep going.

With Haze, he turns another knob and hears another click, but there are no more sounds coming from within, which makes it even more unnerving. "What is going on in there?" he asks himself, casting an eye behind him at Sebastian and Lydia.

After a bit, he manages to turn the last two knobs, and a click is heard. The door ajar a little bit, and an icy cold breeze passes him, making him gulp.

He slowly opens the big heavy door. On the other side of the big room, there is a semi-big fire plate with a blue flame, illuminating the big dark room.

"Strange, there is nothing here," he says, feeling a cold breeze. He looks to the side, and eight glowing bug eyes illuminate. "What the-" The giant grey spider shoots a web towards him, and Haze brings out his grimoire. "Mist balls!" he yells and shoots the net away. The spider hisses and moves towards him, and as it comes more into the light, he sees it has something similar to a scorpion's tail coming out of its rear.

The spider moves the tip of its tail, showing a purple stinger and shooting it at Haze. He moves out of its way and creates more mist balls that he flings at the spider, which only gets angrier and starts crawling after him. He runs.

"Come on, get killed already! I am nearly out of magic here," he tells the spider, which only hisses and throws more web after him. A big clod hits the wall above him, and he stops and looks for a second. Then, the spider begins to pull the wall towards it, managing to force off a big chunk that falls towards Haze. He runs out of the way, and the spider's tail adjusts itself, shooting stingers after him.

With Asta and Millie, they move through the cave corridors, and Asta stops for a moment. "This ki," he utters, bringing out his blade and beginning to hack at the cave wall. With a dozen strikes, the wall crumbles.

"What the-" they hear a voice on the other side say.

"Finral and Sally," Asta exclaims.

"Oh, thank goodness, it's you. I thought you might have been another worm monster," Finral says as Sally runs over to Asta.

"Woo-hoo, it was fun! This place's creatures are so interesting, but not to worry. It's never as interesting as you are," Sally reassures.

"Interesting? Everything in here tries to kill us. And on top of that, I can only use my spacial-magic to get to places that I can see in here," Finral mutters.

"What? That sucks. So, we have no way of getting out once we find the teens?" Asta exclaims nervously.

"Yeah, sorry," Finral replies.

"Hmm, if they are looking for something that the pirates sent them on, then they are probably at the center of this place," Sally utters.

"But how do we get there? No path in here makes any sense," Finral says.

"Huh, well, yeah, I guess," Sally says.

"No path is making sense, huh?" Asta utters and looks at Millie.

…

"I just had an awesome idea!" he exclaims.

"What is it?" Finral asks.

"Why doesn't Millie lead the way?" he suggests.

"What? How does the one with zero direction sense suppose to get us out of here?" Finral asks.

"Zero direction sense?" Sally asks, looking at Millie.

"Come on, it can't hurt to try."

"I guess," Finral replies, and they all look at Millie. She looks around herself and walks in a direction.

"See, at least she seems to know where to go," Asta says.

"I guess," Finral utters, concerned, and walks along with the rest. (''I really hope this doesn't lead us on a random goose chase'') Finral thinks to himself.

Meanwhile, Haze dodges another shot and creates mist balls that he sends for the spider. "Come on," he mutters and runs away from more stingers. ("I am just wasting magic at this point.")

"Whoa!" he screams as his leg is caught, and the spider pulls him towards it. He grabs a rock, and as the spider is over him, he flings his arm around, hitting the spider's jaw. It lets go and hisses.

"Shit!" he exclaims and shoots away the web from his leg, getting up just in time before the spider can do anything.

("Man, I am getting dizzy. I need to find a way to end this, but how?") Haze ponders as his lungs heave for air. He keeps his magic at the ready, locking eyes with the spider at the other end of the room. It stares him down, and he grits his teeth. The spider runs for him.

("Come on, I need something sharp to do any damage at all. But my magic isn't exactly suited for that.") Haze thinks to himself, crouching down to the rubble of rocks. The spider turns toward him.

("My magic is just about shot. I only have maybe a couple spells left in me, so...") he thinks as he tosses a heavy rock that gets one of the spider's many eyes.

The spider lets out a high-pitched scream and launches a stinger towards Haze. He manages to dodge it, but the stinger catches his sweater, pinning him down.

''No, I'm stuck!'' he yells, struggling to free himself from the stinger's grip.

(''My strength and magic...'') he thinks, his vision blurred as he gazes at the spider. The creature approaches him, its mouth coming dangerously close to Haze's arm. Instinctively, he raises his arm to shield his face, but it's too late. The spider's fangs sink into his arm, and he cries out in pain as his arm becomes bloody. He watches in a daze as a thin purple liquid drips from the spider's fangs.

(''Was that poison?'') Haze wonders, his mind racing as he sees the spider making its way towards the exit.

''No, Lydia, Sebastian,'' he utter weakly, struggling to get up but finding himself pinned by the stinger.

He hears the sound of the spider's web being tossed and the creature moving around in the adjacent room. Haze desperately tries to free himself from his bindings, his heart pounding in his chest.

Time seems to slow as darkness envelops Haze's vision. The spider retreats into the room, holding onto its web. His gaze shifts to the other two, who are now encased in cocoon-like structures woven from the spider's web.

(''Everything is so bleak and fuzzy, and there's a ringing in my head... Is this... the end?'') his mind ponders as he turns his head towards the blue flame at the heart of the room.

(''No, if it ends here, then Laure...'') he thinks to himself, his thoughts trailing off as a vision of a brunette in a blue dress appears before him, smiling in a meadow.

''Damn it,'' he murmurs under his breath, determination welling up within him. He grips the stinger with his trembling hand and takes several deep breaths.

''COME ON!'' he roars, summoning all his strength to force the stinger out. He tosses it towards the spiders, but it scuttles away, its many feet moving swiftly. The spider then turns its attention back to Haze, who is on his knees, panting and struggling to keep his head up.

(''Yep, that was definitely venom,'') he acknowledges internally, feeling the warmth of his own blood running down his arm.

'''RAAH'' the spider bellows, charging towards him. Haze attempts to summon his grimoire, but it slips from his grasp, falling to the floor.

(''No, my magic is completely depleted!'') his mind screams as he watches the spider draw closer. (''He must know that I'') he begins to think, his thoughts fragmenting as his world seems to blur and fade.

But then, a sudden impact resonates through the room. Haze's eyes snap open, and he witnesses Asta smashing the spider into the wall above the blue flame. The spider crashes to the floor, dazed and disoriented.

(''What the... I smell honey?'') Haze wonders, glancing towards Asta, who stands ready to confront the creature.

''Hey, you just attacked a Black Bull, you spider freak!'' Asta taunts.

With a sigh of relief, Haze sinks back, his gaze shifting to the side as he hears a soft voice uttering incantations. ''Life shield magic, shielded healing,'' the voice murmurs, and Haze can't help but wonder why it sounds strangely familiar, like honey to his senses.

(''This girl again, why does she smell like honey?'') Haze's mind muses, his senses still hazy from the venom's effects. (''Guess smell is all I have right now.'')

As the voice continues its work, Haze begins to feel a sense of relief. He watches as Millie focuses on him, as her hair gets pulled up into a bun as she activates her bell, to get the proper tools to retract the poison. Her soft voice, continues to explain, what she will be doing step by step to keep him calm, and he can't help but admire her composure and skill.

Amidst the chaotic battle, Asta swings the blade to cu thorough the spiders web but his blade is stopped and pulled towards the stone floor. ''What the- my sword gets stuck in this'' he utters.

''That spider's web is made of physical material—it's pretty thick and sticky,'' Sally explains with a bright smile, her eyes fixed on the battle, and shoots slime magic to free Astas blade from the floor.

''Thanks, Sally! Now it's my turn to take this thing down!'' Asta exclaims, his determination unwavering. He charges towards the spider, effortlessly evading the web it shoots in his direction. The spider's stinger approaches, but Asta swiftly flicks it aside with the flat of his blade. With remarkable speed, he closes the distance, hacking at the spider's legs.

Millie's attention shifts to the other side of the room, where she spots the cocooned forms of the other two. ''They need to replenish their mana,'' she utters, her heart filled with concern.

''It will appear so. If you can do anything to help, it will ensure their survival,''' Sally's voice comes up besides Millie, prompting Millie to take action. ''But Haze...'' she hesitates as the poison may do way more damage if left untreated for too long.

''I can extract the poison, it's no problem. I can see that you have everything I need,'' Sally communicates, and Millie chooses to trust Sally with the task.

''Right, thank you, truly, Miss,'' Millie responds, her determination solidifying. She rushes over to the other two, utilizing her claws to delicately slice open the cocoons. With practiced grace, she administers her healing magic, revitalizing their strength and restoring their mana.

''Hang in there, you two,'' Millie whispers softly, her focus unwavering as she tends to the teens.

As the battle rages on, Asta's triumphant cry fills the air once again. He slashes through another of the spider's legs, causing it to wobble and lose balance. The spider attempts to retaliate, its tail lashing out, but Asta seizes the opportunity, flipping the creature over his shoulder and sending it crashing out the door.

''There you go!'' Asta exclaims, grinning as the spider struggles to right itself.

Swiftly he runs over as the spider turns towards him, and with one final, powerful strike, he brings down his sword upon the creature's head. The spider's frantic movements subside, its once-menacing presence now reduced to a twitching and curling tail.

''Good, now we can get everyone out of here, right?'' Finral asks, his relief evident as he peers out the door, catching sight of Asta's grin.

''Sure, we'll just have to ensure the others are alright,'' Asta says.

''Right Finral replies.

Asta looks at the magic knights on the floor. ''Will they be okey?'' he asks Sally and Millie.

''I have just extracted the poison but I will need to close the wound but after that we are ready'' Sally explains.

''Well that is a relief, and the other two?'' Asta asks.

''They might-'' Millie utters.

''Ngh'' Sebastian lets out and slowly opens his eyes.

''Sir you are alright'' Millie utters and Sebastian looks around to gather him self.

''I am better at least'' he says and sits himself up. ''I will advice you to take it easy sir, you two were very drained'' Millie kindly tells him with concern.

''It is fine thank you,'' Sebastian tells her.

''Mgh'' they hear Lydia wake up and sits up as well.

''what happend?'' Lydia asks and Asta explains it to her.

''well it sounds like you got here in the nick of time'' she says with relief.

''I wonder what is supposed to be in here, I see no treasure'' Finral says and they all look around.

''you are correct'' Asta says and looks around.

''Uh I see a chest up there'' Sebastian says looking to the sealing where they see a black chest with purple lines going along its edges and old runes goes along its sides.

"That must be it," Finral utters, as Asta looks at both it and the wall.

He gauges the distance, and with all his might, he runs up the wall. With a powerful jump and twist, he closes in on the hanging chest. With a swing of his sword, he cuts the web, catching the chest in mid-air. He then lets himself fall, using his legs to cushion the impact as he crouches down.

"Man, this thing is way heavier than it looks," Asta remarks.

"Okay, so we've got the artifact, but how do we get out of here?" Finral asks, glancing at Millie. "Do you think you can lead us out?"

"I must apologize, sir. I only found this place by following the direction where the subtle trace of mana felt the weirdest. However, I can't use that technique to get out, as every direction feels less weird now. That could lead us anywhere."

"What? How do we get out then?" Finral's voice edges toward panic.

"It will be alright. We can just follow the notes I used to get here and take the appropriate steps in the opposite direction," Sebastian suggests. As Sally finishes tending to Haze's wound and Millie walks over to Haze, Sally joins Sebastian and peers into the book.

"Hey, this is actually kind of impressive—to be able to know where north, south, and east are inside a place like this," Sally compliments.

"Thank you," Sebastian replies.

Millie pulls Haze's unconscious body onto her back, then stands up with him in place.

''Hopefully, nothing else happens,'' Lydia utters, voicing the hope that resonates within them all.

''It'll be all right,'' Asta reassures them all, while carrying the big heavy box.

After some time, the group manages to find their way to the beach of the island, their journey through the treacherous caves finally coming to an end. Exhausted yet relieved, they take in the view of the beach and the mist shrouded, sea before them.

''Finally, my magic should work from here,'' Finral remarks, a hint of weariness in his voice. The team stands on the shore, gazing out at the large ship anchored just off the coast.

''Should we do something about the ship?'' Sebastian inquires, his eyes fixed on the vessel.

''We'll inform headquarters, and they can determine the best course of action,'' Finral responds, his tone practical and focused.

''Good call,'' Asta agrees.

As they pause to catch their breath, sunlight breaks through the mist, casting a warm and inviting glow over the scene.

''Morning already? No sleep before I have to get the mages at HQ to take care of this,'' Finral grumbles, his fatigue evident in his voice.

''Oh, stop being such a whiner,'' Sally chimes in, her playful tone bringing a hint of levity to the moment.

''Right,'' Finral concedes, realizing that there are more pressing matters at hand. With a collective sense of purpose, the group makes their way to headquarters.

As they enter the headquarters, they find a man behind a desk who seems to hold a position of authority. They share their account of the events, describing the challenges they faced within the cave and about the pirates, and the battle against the spider-like creatures. Millie, ever attentive, gently places Haze on one of the benches and carefully lays him down, ensuring his comfort.

''Woah, that was quite the report you're giving. I'm certain Marx and King Julius will want to review this as soon as possible,'' the man behind the desk responds, his expression a mix of curiosity and gravity. He takes the chest from them and makes his way into the inner chambers, leaving the team to await further instructions.

In the wake of their ordeal, the group stands together, as the sun continues to rise, casting a golden hue over the headquarters as the new day comes to the land.

Haze slowly opens his eyes, greeted by the sight of Millie crouched by the bench where he lies. He takes a moment to gather his surroundings, noticing the magic knights conversing by the desk. As Millie's attention shifts from them to him, their eyes meet.

''Oh, Haze, you are awake. Thank goodness,'' Millie utters softly, her voice carrying a sense of relief and genuine concern. Her words bring comfort, reassuring him that he's in the company of friends.

"I'm relieved that it's all over," Lydia admits, her tone carrying a mixture of exhaustion and relief. "But I can't help but wonder what's inside that chest that the pirates were so determined to get."

Sally chimes in, her curiosity evident in her voice. "You're right, Lydia. The runes and patterns on the chest are unlike anything I've seen before." she says still with excitement to her voice.

The man behind the desk offers some insight. "Well, if anyone would be able to decipher its secrets, it's likely Julius. But for now, you should all head back and get some well-deserved rest."

With a nod of agreement and a unified Clover salute, they express their readiness to follow his advice. The group is comforted by Haze's recovery and united by their eagerness to uncover the mystery within the chest. As they disperse, each returning to their respective magic knight strongholds, the promise of rest and the anticipation of what lies ahead keep their spirits high.