"I'm guessing we should make a plan to defeat Allen's team," Alya suggested.
"Yeah, but it sounds impossible... I mean, you saw what he did to me," Cinister replied, shaking his head.
"So, any ideas?" Micheal asked, glancing around the group.
"For now, let's just clear this floor quickly. We'll talk strategy afterward, okay?" Ragna proposed.
"Sure, let's meet up at the exit after we beat the boss," Cinister offered.
"Yeah," we all agreed in unison.
We split into two teams:Team 1 – Ragna, Micheal, and BraydenTeam 2 – Alya, George, and Cinister.
As both teams made their way through the cave on the 9th floor, they fought their way past swarms of ants, bats, spiders, and crabs.
"Talk about dark I can barely see anything," Alya groaned.
"Well, we should discuss strategy now," Cinister suggested.
"Wait, why now?" Alya asked, confused.
"Because the more strategies we have, the better our chances," Cinister explained.
"Okay but how exactly are we going to defeat Allen?" George questioned, his tone uncertain.
"I'll take him down," Cinister declared firmly.
"What?! Have you lost your mind? Last time you tried, you got absolutely fried!" Alya exclaimed, her voice full of concern.
"This time it will be different," Cinister reassured her.
"What, you think you're suddenly going to get a random power-up? You're not a manga protagonist," Alya shot back, trying to snap him out of it.
"No," Cinister said with determination. "This time, I'm going to use all my buffs."
"Buffs? Like [Ashen Veil]?" Alya asked, raising an eyebrow.
"Yeah. Secretly, I've been training my [Fire Ring] so I can use three of them now," Cinister revealed.
"How do those even work?" Alya questioned, still skeptical.
"Glad you asked!" Cinister said, his eyes lighting up with excitement. "Each ring increases all my stats by +5. But since I'm only an average mage, I can't use the spell to its full potential. For example, with every additional ring, the effectiveness decreases a lot. So, three rings is the most efficient setup for me."
"Too much information," George muttered, rubbing his temple.
"Sorry, my bad, bro," Cinister replied with a sheepish grin.
As the group continued talking, they suddenly came to a dead end.
"Well, too bad looks like it's the other way," George said, turning around.
We retraced our steps and followed the path toward Team 1's direction. When we arrived, the sight stopped us cold Micheal and Brayden were lying on the floor, unconscious or worse. Ragna stood tall above them, his body drenched in blood, fresh drops still dripping from his hands.
"What happened?" Cinister asked, panic rising in his voice.
"There's an enemy that only sneak attacks us and I can't hit it or parry it" Ragna said exhausted
"Hold up" Cinister said "[Heat Wave]"
Quickly the room feels up the smoke settled in.
"Okay, your instincts should kick in, so you should be able to dodge-" Cinister was cut off as something slammed into him, hard-like getting hit by a truck.
"Cinister! You okay?" George shouted, eyes scanning the haze.
"Yeah, I'm fi-" Cinister began, but before he could finish, the force struck him again, sending him skidding across the floor.
"This thing is fast," George said
The creature stopped and its silhouette twisting and shifting until the full horror stepped into view: a grotesque fusion of a spider and a bat. Eight jagged legs scraped against the stone floor while leathery wings twitched behind
[Mini Boss: Widowwing — The Skittering Terror]
"Of course it's a hybrid," George muttered, gripping his weapon tighter.
"Calm down we got this" Cinister said and though to himself "It's fast like Allen but way slower maybe I can learn something from this fight"
Then the hybrid shot a web toward what seemed like empty space but Alya was there, invisible. The sticky strands wrapped around her, catching her off guard.
"Damn spider… it has some sort of instinct, so watch out" Alya grunted, struggling against the webbing.
The hybrid spun quickly in the tight cave, its many legs striking relentlessly as it kept attacking us.
"I can't hit it one time and it's starting to anger me" Ragna said
"Hey do you have a mastery 2 attack like my Pyroclasm?" Cinister asks
"Yeah but it won't help much." Ragna said "My [Aqua Blades] are now 150 and every attack has a chance to apply soaked which slows the enemy down"
"Spam it, I'll protect you," Cinister said as he stood in front of Ragna. "[Ashen Veil]."
The semi-sphere quickly appeared and healed us in four seconds. Some of the [Aqua Blades] seemed to be protecting the semi-sphere.
The spider tried to attack the sphere, but the swords protected it. It was as if both spells were working in perfect sync. This phenomenon is called a Conjoined Nexus, and it is used to unleash massive damage.
[Ashen Blades] with this spell, the spider was now lying on the floor, twitching.
"Is it over?" Cinister asked
"Yeah I think so" Ragna confirmed
As The hybrid died it dropped 3 epic scrolls.
Ragna, Cinister and Micheal grabbed one of the scroll and we used them
[CryoShard Spell: Ice Cage]
Summons a large ice cage around the target.
Inside the cage, the opponent is slowed and has a higher chance to slip due to the freezing terrain.
[Ignivar Spell: Fire Gun]
The user begins channeling energy into their fingertip. The longer they charge, the stronger the attack becomes.
1 second – A basic fire shot with a small chance to burn the enemy.
5 seconds – A larger blast on contact.
50% chance to burn the target.
The next Fire Gun will deal 2× damage.
10 seconds – A devastating, bazooka-level impact.
100% chance to burn.
50% chance to knock back the enemy.
The next Fire Gun will deal 5× damage.
All incoming damage from the enemy is reduced by 50% for a short time.
[Aqualith spell: Water Surge] - the next attack deals knockback depending on the users hp.
"Hey, can I get some help?" Alya asked.
"Yeah, coming!" Cinister said as he freed Alya and caught her in his arms.
"You okay?" Cinister asked.
Alya blushed and looked away. "Yeah… and you can put me down already."
"Sorry," Cinister said quickly as he gently set her down.
We help Micheal and Brayden and we set up camp where we all went to sleep
Editor's Note:This is lowkey plot armor, but it is what it is. Also, I think I should give Alya some more character development.Anyway, here's today's segment:
"It's raining a lot out here," Cinister said, standing in the downpour.
"Here, silly." Alya appeared beside him, holding an umbrella above their heads.
"Thanks a lot," Cinister replied with a smile. "Look Ragna's over there. We should include him."
Alya pouted. "Fine."
"Hey, Ragna! Come here!" Cinister called out.
"Nah, I can get home safely," Ragna responded, waving them off.
"How?" Cinister asked, raising an eyebrow.
"Like this."Ragna activated [Bubble], forming small shields to parry each raindrop.
"...Not taking a shower cannot be this serious," Cinister muttered "And why are you happy".
"Because I get to spend time with you" Alya said happily.