The swarm of insects began to make their way around Freon's spell. At the same time, the knights sprung into action. The Arcanists were restricted in their spell usage, so everyone had to rely on their own flesh and blood. The Grand Knights charged into the fray to rescue Elizabeth, Benedict, Shirley, and Freon. Lady Kalasena, Yuna, and the Arcane Knights fought against the bugs to secure the exit. Elizabeth gritted her teeth. It would be hard to escape unscathed. Benedict and Shirley were the furthest from everyone, right next to the monster. She and Freon were a bit better, about half-way between the monster and the exit.
The light from her spell dimmed again, which made it harder to see. It would only last for another ten seconds. Once it fully faded, she would be unable to cast it again. Escaping from an army of insects and a Rank 2 Beast Lord in the darkness… while there was a dead zone and nobody had any energy left. Elizabeth could not help but laugh bitterly. Was that not impossible?
Rumble… Since there was so much going on, nobody felt the tremors coming from the exit. And since they came from that direction, nobody felt the need to watch it. That was why… nobody saw when 'it' appeared. Boom! An explosion of rock and dust went off, blasting everyone that was nearby. The Arcane Knights closest to the exit were thrown into the air, but they did not go very far. Whoosh! Mangled corpses rained down amidst a pool of blood and flesh. Everyone was shocked to see a pair of mandibles emerge from the darkness followed by a head, then a long body, and finally eight girthy legs. It howled furiously! A second Rank 2 Beast Lord had arrived! This thoroughly drowned everyone in despair. It already took them so much effort to fight one. How were they supposed to fight a second Beast Lord? Not to mention, it was blocking their exit!
Upon seeing the state of his partner, the Beast Lord flew into a frenzy. He released an unbearably loud, ear-piercing screech! It was a martial technique! Like before, the screech was so loud that it produced a massive shockwave of air that blew everything away. It was even stronger than the one the first monster did! Lady Kalasena, Yuna, and the Arcane Knights were thrown like dolls. It felt like their innards were liquefying as blood spewed from their wounds. Elizabeth, Benedict, and Freon clutched their heads. Their heads threatened to explode!
The shockwave crashed into Freon's flames, which were burning the first monster, and suppressed it! Freon was incredulous. His Bloodline Ability enhanced Infernal Dragon was actually being defeated by a shockwave of air! Perhaps the first monster felt invigorated by the presence of her partner, but she gathered the strength to repel the flames. Freon's spell gradually disappeared to reveal a smoldering Beast Lord. Her shell sizzled and smoked, which hinted at the extreme temperatures involved. Despite losing a leg and being roasted alive, she survived the assault!
Elizabeth was on the verge of losing consciousness. In fact, the physically weaker people like Yuna already lost consciousness due to the martial technique's shockwave. Some even died! Lady Kalasena tried to hold on, but willpower was not enough here. She and her two maids succumbed eventually. The same went for the Arcane Knights like Sir Melvin, Lady Rainie, and Sir Pelton. The Grand Knights were better off, since they were further away from the monster when he released that shockwave. However, it was the difference between being gravely injured and heavily injured. Nobody was in a position to fight.
Elizabeth saw everything through her dark, bloody eyes. Benedict could barely move, while Freon failed to cast his spells. Shirley was still nowhere to be seen. The Grand Knights tried to take a formation, except it was pointless. The army of insects and the two Beast Lords would not allow it. The light finally faded. The last thing Elizabeth saw were people dying, as she was helpless to stop it. Their battle ended… in their complete defeat!
She punched the ground to vent her anger. Crack! Although she was not particularly strong, the hard rock cracked under her attack. This crack raced across the cavern at the speed of sound, surprising both human and beast alike. It was a sound nobody wanted to hear! A second crack split from the first. Then, a third. The cracks rapidly multiplied! In an instant, the ground was covered in a forest of thin lines! Elizabeth twitched, as did everyone else, even the bugs. Nobody moved! They froze fearfully when… rumble! Boom! The ground caved in and swallowed everything whole!
Sometime earlier, before they started fighting with the monsters, Nassandra walked gingerly through the tunnels with two people that she rescued: a six year old boy and an elderly grandmother. They each held a glowing rock that served as illumination on their path. Nobody said anything, since they were afraid of attracting attention. Nassandra stayed at the front, the six year old was in the middle, and the old lady followed in the rear. They advanced without speaking. Nassandra did not even know their names, yet she was risking her life to save them. Was it foolish? Would she regret it? She did not know. However, she could not second-guess her decisions now. She needed to be steadfast! But… it was hard to remain strong in this situation. It was dark, she was lost, and there were monsters about. Nothing was comforting.
The old woman struggled to walk because of a bad leg, so they moved very slowly. That was fine, since they made less noise, except it meant staying longer in this nightmarish place. Every second felt like torture. Nassandra wondered if the slow and steady approach was right. After all, the monster could be back any moment now and from how strong its aura was, she doubted she could defeat it. She would be meat on the chopping block, waiting to die. In that case, maybe it was better to run and reunite with her brother as fast as possible? But what if she ran right into that monster instead? That would be suicide! Not to mention, there were so many branching paths in this vast nest. There was a chance she was going further from the surface. The stress weighing on her tiny shoulders was humongous.
The girl let out a quiet sigh. This was where it would have been nice to have a Bloodline Ability or double casting. It would have expanded her options and given her more comfort. Currently, she could only cast one spell at a time. Spells usually excelled in one aspect. For example, offense, defense, mobility, investigation, recovery… These five aspects of a combat system. Of course, it was not impossible for a spell to cover more aspects, but its effectiveness would be limited. The drawbacks outweighed the benefits. She did not know any spells like that anyways. Therefore, in a battle, Nassandra had to choose between attacking, defending, or running away. And given her nonexistent battle experience, she would undoubtedly freeze or make a mistake. Double casting would have given her the safety and flexibility to stumble and not be punished for it immediately. Probably. She never really fought before, so this was all theory.
But still… Nassandra was suspicious. Why was it so quiet? They had not encountered anything since leaving the cocoons. Their journey was almost too easy. It almost felt like… everything was gone? The ground suddenly shook, scaring the trio. They quickly covered the glowing rocks, huddled against the walls, and held their breaths. The boy whimpered, so the woman covered his mouth. Nassandra wanted to cry too, except she forced that feeling down. She was the only one who could fight! This was where she had to step up! She gripped her wand and prepared to cast a defensive spell at any moment. Her spellcasting speed was her forte!
Seconds passed and nothing happened. How strange. Nassandra released her Magic Perception to discover someone was fighting! It was Sir Pelton casting a fireball as an opening move against the monster! What soon followed was a fierce barrage of spells from Elizabeth and Freon. Their powerful magic washed over like a tide on Nassandra, hinting at the extreme intensity of battle! She grimaced. She should have been there, standing alongside them and fighting whatever threat they faced. She was a Ten Dawn, no!? That was right! This was not the time to cower! After gathering the courage, Nassandra moved.