Rudy and Irelia had been throwing everything they had at their enemy but managed to land only grazing blows with how hard its hide was, confirming Douhlim’s observation. Now, with the second head focusing on them again, they struggled against four massive blades, even with Irelia’s mighty shield.

  With a powerful double roar, the Voidline succeeded at its intended feint and smacked Rudy away, giving the warrior woman a slight gash on her thigh. Its right side now free of any disturbance, it swung from both directions at Irelia, adding one blow from above to the mix. She couldn’t do anything but defend in that situation and made herself as small as possible.

  All weapons slammed into her at once and the force of the multi-directional squeeze sent the lithe girl back with a pained, slightly undignified squeal. To her credit, Irelia didn’t let go of her shield and sword the entire way she tumbled on the ground. The armor on her arms had dented slightly under the beast’s strength.

  The Voidline lunged after her to finish off the pesky annoyance but its overhead swing struck a see-through dome and bounced back off it, pushing the monster away a few steps in the process. Its furious eyes locked on to the mage who had cast it from a distance and it snarled angrily.

  For some reason, the Priest wreathed his staff with golden energy and broke into a run, sending a barrage of prismatic bolts at the furious beast. He caught its attention as intended and smiled wryly under his nose. Asterios and Althea observed the entire situation ready to jump in at any moment since that move seemed risky and perhaps desperate.

  Fortunately, it wasn’t completely reckless.

  The violin resounded in the hall once more, making the Voidline’s four ears twitch. It managed to turn one of its heads towards the source of the music and noticed as the dwarf zoomed in its direction while sliding on his knees as ice covered the path between them. That reaction was still too slow, though, and Douhlim sped between the monster’s legs and slashed at its ankles while cackling loudly, his daggers covered with a bluish coating of mana.

  As the agonizing yowl shook the chamber, Viona’s friendly spirit finished enchanting Rudy’s blade too and she sent the warrior forward in a similar fashion. Expecting that the feline would be expecting her movements, Rudy used her previous enchantment still swirling around her feet to jump into the air and turn herself upside down. Her mad, spinning slash caught the beast’s shoulder, stopped only by the thick bone on its way out. While the monster’s arm remained attached, it hung limply without any feeling in it.

  Irelia joined the fray as the last person, her longsword ready to cause some real harm too. With the three of them now capable of properly wounding the Voidline, it was its turn to struggle a little. It still caused some moderate injuries, but the ones piling up on its massive frame were much more serious.

  The more it bled, the more desperate it grew. It swung and sliced wildly, its only goal to deflect the incoming blows or attempt to cause some damage to the trio cornering it. Rudy became slightly overconfident and didn’t notice a shortsword hidden in the shadow of another one, saved from a grievous wound by Irelia’s quick reflexes. Still, the warrior woman suffered a critical injury to her arm and had to retreat for healing.

  That event bolstered the ferocious feline but Douhlim and Irelia knew they had to end the fight soon. They weren’t secretly Dragons like Asterios and thus their stamina wasn’t as endless as his. So, camouflaging their next attack as the dwarf man seeking protection behind the safety of her shield, the human girl took a violent onslaught onto her guard.

  When her opponent drew its arms for another mighty attack with all limbs, she hastily knelt and angled her shield towards herself. Douhlim vaulted over her shoulder and landed on its sloping surface. Irelia hit the edge with her sword and activated the blast, sending the dwarf up with a merry laugh from the burly Rogue.

  Before the Voidline registered what was going on, Douhlim drove his daggers into one pair of its eyes. Making use of the distraction, Irelia discarded her shield and grabbed her longsword with both hands. Briefly closing her eyes, she focused deeply and the blade crackled as zapping particles of lightning hopped over its length.

  With a courageous shout, the young lady sprinted forward, stepped onto the shield resting face-up on the floor, hit it again with her sword, and soared into the air too. Such maneuver clearly hadn’t been practiced before as she wobbled awkwardly during her lunge, but it didn’t stop her from stabbing her weapon right into the middle of the monster’s chest.

  As it fully sank into the tough flesh, she twisted it strongly and it released a snapping and sizzling burst of lightning which concentrated right on the feline’s penetrated heart. Blue arcs jumped off its body and zapped everything and everyone else around, charring the surfaces they struck as the Voidline spasmed frantically.

  When all the energy finally discharged, the unmoving, smoking, and sizzling corpse of the two-headed giant fell to the back with a reverberating thud. Douhlim rolled onto the ground with a grunt while Irelia bounced off the monster’s chest with a soft yelp. Finding each other’s gazes, they glanced at their kill once more and looked back at the rest of the team. Understanding passed through everyone and they all raised their fists in victory.

  Asterios met Althea’s gaze and they chuckled together in amusement. Not without some trouble and moderate injuries, but the party had succeeded in defeating a tough boss on their own.

  Their future definitely looked bright.

  Chapter 44

  Former Acquaintances With a Twist

  As the party gathered around the fallen monster, Tesser began healing their injuries with proper care. It hadn’t been possible to focus all of his attention on the more complex spells but he still had done quite an amazing job in the middle of the fight. Asterios and Althea joined them, offering their regenerative potions and other consumables to the wounded.

  “This guy was tough. It was like a bigger and angrier Miria. We barely got through,” Rudy said with a satisfied sigh as her friend tended to her leg.

  “If it was like Miria, you wouldn’t have stood a chance.” Asterios chuckled. “Her current self is incredible. She would have toyed with that Voidline like a house cat with a poor mouse.”

  “Not to mention the quality of the blades she has in her possession,” Althea added. “But, your quick thinking and the ability to adapt are worthy of praise. Your spirit friends are really versatile, Viona.”

  The creative bard lowered her head with a faint blush. “Thank you. I try my best to utilize everything at my disposal in the best possible way. They truly are a helpful bunch.”

  She smiled as something seemed to tickle her cheek and Asterios was sure it was one of the cheeky Sprites. He had been able to catch a better look at the woman’s usually invisible companions. While they could be categorized as spirits, most of the entities that accompanied her assumed tiny humanoid forms with butterfly wings, their entire bodies made of translucent, single-color energy. They were slightly more powerful relatives of Pixies, but usually unable to converse with beings other than their bonded allies or caretakers.

  “I think it’s time we thought a bit about expanding our team.” Douhlim groaned, working out his shoulder joint. “I’ve never felt so comfortable on the battlefield before. Having a capable defender to further divide the monster’s attention and a capable magical support to control the fight is a blessing.”

  “Yeah. You might be right. We are moving up the ranks. It will be difficult to stay as effective with just the three of us. At least as long as we don’t suddenly gain immense power from a mysterious source.” Rudy smirked at Asterios.

  He spread his arms wide. “I’m afraid I can’t exactly turn you into Dragons or anything like that. There are some minor benefits to being my subordinate, but you wouldn’t suddenly turn into an S-rank killing machine. Maybe save for becoming my mate and spending a lot of time with me, but I’m fairly sure that doesn’t exactly suit your designs. And I’m not really interested in bringing a guy into the family either.”

  “You win some, you lose some.” She shrugged. “It is a tempting offer, but I think I will still have to decline. Who knows, maybe one day I’ll find my own Dragoness simply by hanging around you. Your very presence seems to attract lots of attention from mystical and magnificent ladies.”

  “You should be careful not to bite more than you can chew.” Althea let out a delicate chuckle. “A True Dragon might be a little bit too much for you to handle.”

  “There is no love without some sacrifice. I’m even tougher than I look.” The warrior woman flexed her well-trained body.

  Asterios didn’t doubt that. She had to be rather strong not just physically but also mentally to remain unaffected by all the secret crushes he had unintentionally stolen from her. A lesser woman would have given up long ago and escaped as far from him as possible so he didn’t ruin her chances forever. Rudy was instead looking at it from a completely different angle.

  “Regardless, I agree that recruiting more people into your party is a fine idea,” he said, bringing them back to the initial topic. “You five work amazingly together, but I don’t think Irelia will be able to join you for longer sessions considering her training and upcoming education. I don’t know much about Viona yet to say anything about her plans.”

  The minstrel-in-question raised her gaze and glanced at Rudy’s squad. “I would be honored to accompany you occasionally, but music is my main focus. I’m a rather free spirit, pun intended, and I’m afraid it would be difficult not to wander off on my own while traveling under someone’s care.”

  “Bummer.” The dwarf clicked his tongue. “But, hey, temporary grouping for some sporadic delving is fine with me. It seems like we’ll be staying here at least for a little bit so I can see that happening.”

  “Definitely,” Tesser agreed. “Now, do we get anything from this monster or does this dungeon still act stingy and murderous?”

  Excusing himself, Asterios walked up to one of the beast’s massive blades and drew upon his draconic mana to strengthen his arms. He lifted the giant, curved shortsword with minimal effort and examined it closely. Unfortunately, he didn’t feel anything special from it and nothing happened when he tried to prod it with his mana and essence.

  “What are you doing?” Rudy approached him from behind and asked curiously.

  “The Voidtaur we have fought in the past wielded an artifact sword capable of changing its size to best fit the owner and also evoking specific magical effects depending on the wielder,” he explained. “These don’t seem to be more than big slabs of durable metal.”

  “You always get the best toys.” She scrunched her nose at him. “It’s gotta be worth something at least, no?”

  “We’ll have to ask our knowledgeable blacksmiths and perhaps Abyss too. I don’t recognize this material. It looks sharp and strong, though, so it should bring you at least some coin,” he answered ponderingly.

  “Great. We could use some spare change—AHHHH!”

  Ast’s head snapped to the side and he watched Rudy disappear into the floor right next to him. A feminine scream reached his ears from further away and he noticed some kind of shadowy appendages curling themselves around Irelia’s ankles and pulling the young lady down too. One by one, all of them were grappled by thick, black tentacles as the floor had somehow become a massive pool of darkness.

  He tried to fight his assailants off, but for every creepy feeler he destroyed, three more took its place. Soon, he was being dragged down too, no matter how much he resisted. Everyone had already been taken. Save for one single person.

  Abyss.

  For some reason, the tentacles didn’t even dare to approach her. They kept themselves close, wiggling around the mocha-skinned woman, but were too hesitant to come any closer. The last thing Asterios saw was her usual, impassive expression as she observed him disappear into darkness.

  A moment later, he was thrown out of a swirling pool of black energy and landed in a massive, irregular cavern riddled with creepy, natural-looking rock structures all around. They made circles, loops, and plenty of other shapes over the mountainous landscape. Plenty of them were filled with purplish, swirling matter, similar to the surface of the shadowy portals, but not exactly the same. As far as Asterios could tell, they weren’t a means of transportation but something else.

  “Everyone is alright?” Althea’s voice caught his attention and he found the others getting up around him, confirming their presence one after another.

  “What the hell was that?” Rudy shook her head to clear her mind.

  “I think we might have disturbed the owner of this place a bit too much,” Abyss answered her, suddenly appearing by the woman’s back. “This is the Core Chamber.”

  “Great.” Douhlim snorted. “We should have packed things up after that mental trap.”

  “Is that the Core, then? It doesn’t look like anything I’ve read about in books.” Irelia pointed in a certain direction and everyone followed her gesture.

  Somewhere in the middle of the extensive formation sat a raised, thorny hill. Above its flat top hovered a pure black ring the size of a merchant carriage, its edges glowing with ominous purple energy that illuminated its surroundings. The spooky ring floated over its resting spot in a vertical position. The space in its middle swirled with dark, galaxy-like glitter, focused towards a single point in its dead center, curving the spirals beautifully.

  “It almost feels like a summoning gate,” Asterios commented. “At the same time, I can tell that’s not it. I can feel some kind of connection between the Core and the space between dimensions, but it lacks other aspects of Summoning Magic.”

  “Your observations are correct.” Abyss nodded lightly. “And it looks like it’s going to show us what exactly all these intriguing surfaces are for right now.”

  Just as she finished her sentence, multiple of the purple pools spun faster and released a buzzing noise while the Ring Core’s edge shone with greater intensity. The shapes flashed in random order and Ast’s group watched them spew monsters into the cave. Antrunners and Eidolons began gathering into a small army. Out of two bigger ponds, a Voidline Twintail, and an Antrunner Queen crawled forth. Bit by bit, the chamber was getting filled with enemies they had previously encountered.

  “That explains where those fuckers come from.” Rudy snorted. “If they are not being summoned, this is like their breeding grounds. This might be tough.”

  “I’m sending you back to the surface. We will handle this with Althea.” Asterios shook his head.

  “We want to help,” Viona joined in. “We might not be as strong as you, but we can at least distract the lesser monsters or try to figure out how those pools work while you two handle the Core.”

  He met her eyes and they looked at each other in silence for a brief moment before Asterios sighed softly. “Fine. But I’m having Umbra watch you and pull you out at his own discretion. Plus, you are getting an additional healer.”

  A crimson gate rose from the ground next to him and Bryn stepped out of it. “I’m ready to serve, Master.”

  Pecking his winged mate’s cheek lovingly, he let her back away and focus on the others, turning towards the Ring Core. “You might not be aware, but I’m the lord here, and anyone who wants to settle down on our land needs to properly introduce themselves first. I don’t think we had the pleasure to discuss the terms of your stay but I’m willing to offer you a second chance if you surrender right now. Otherwise, painful eviction might be the only solution. Do we have an agreement?”

  Behind him, he could hear the girls whisper.

  “Can Cores communicate with people?” Irelia asked quietly.

  “No one really knows much about them,” Rudy replied. “It’s worth a shot, at least.”

  But, the Ring Core either didn’t understand, or it chose violence as its answer. The swirling pools churned out more small monsters at an even faster rate. Asterios nodded at Althea and the duo rushed forward, bringing out their draconic features to enhance their bodies. They both took a deep breath at the same time and released a crimson-emerald inferno onto the grunts, he from above and she from the ground, clearing up a decent chunk of their enemy’s army, leaving the rest to the party.

  The Antrunner Queen crossed Ast’s path to the core first. It screeched at him viciously, causing the cavern to shake, but he didn’t let himself be intimidated. Summoning his big Spellslinger greatsword into his hand, he activated one of the tokens and launched it right at the massive insect with a mighty throw. The sharp weapon pierced through the chitin carapace with ease, striking the ground with a loud thud.

  Right away, the rocky floor burst outwards with a few dozen deadly spikes aimed at the monster’s underside. Before the monster could react, it was skewered like an apple falling onto a hedgehog. Some spires went through its head too and the big Antrunner dispersed into a cloud of dark purple smoke which sailed towards one of the large pools. With a snap, Asterios recalled his greatsword to his grasp.

  To his side, Althea evaded the Voidline’s barrage of swings, jumped onto its thigh, and triggered her extremely quick transformation. Her long, sinuous, draconic body wrapped around the beast’s frame tightly, preventing it from doing anything else. She then squeezed with everything she had and Asterios saw the feline monster whimper in agony before it got crushed into a broken mess, disappearing shortly after.

  “I’m starting to wonder if we defeated the correct serpent back then.” Asterios laughed as she flew towards him.

  She released a reverberating chuckle and winked at him.

  As they resumed their journey, another big shape swirled to life, a separate one from the two that had birthed the previous creatures. Something long crawled out of it, hissing cautiously as it slithered over the ground. A sizable snake Asterios had already seen once today stared up at them with its tongue flicking out of its snout.