"You hold off the queen, I'll cook the swarm and join you." Rio yelled, already moving forward to flank the swarm.
The Vorilks army poured out like a flood, their clicking growing louder as they closed the distance. Rio moved fast, using his thread magic to create webs behind him, just like what he had seen the spiders use earlier.
He was alone so he couldn't get them all in one trip, so he just zig-zagged between the swarm. The art of rebound creating a thin mana barrier around his body, protecting him from those sharp teeths and swinging claws. Once he felt the weight of threads being too heavy to pull, he simply swung his arm, throwing whatever crabs he caught into air. Followed by a ball of hellfire that ignited it all.
Though their bodies could reflect the magic, threads of fate and Hellfire were two spells way above their league. Maybe their queen could do it, but not these small minions. So in a few seconds, all that remained of those crabs was flying ashes that poured down like rain.
After doing this trick twice or thrice, he formed a small opening in the center where these crabs seemed to feel the danger and avoid the webs. Going back towards their queen who was facing an onslaught of ice and sword against Katherine.
Seeing them trying to run away, Rio just smiled and started forming barriers of ice all around them. Not to trap the army inside, but to funnel it. With nowhere to go but forward, the swarm surged back at him in a single line.
Some of them crawled against the wall, eating at the walls, munching on the mana within, _but their dinner was cut short as Rio threw another ball of hell flames inside.
The screeching sound echoed heavily and the gloom of death, smell of burnt shells and charcoal filled the air. The icy walls started to melt and collapse under the heat of hell, but Rio kept supplying his mana and making new layers to support them.
It didn't take long for the screaming and cluttering to stop, as the army was cooked crispy.
In the novel, this is how Leon had killed this swarm. With barriers of light and flames of sunshine to help him.
"A little help." Katherine's yelling voice reached his ears, over the sound of slashing sword and Vorilks's mad screeching.
It seemed the mama queen bear wasn't happy that her army got wiped out.
"Thought you could handle it." Rio said, as he sat down on the ground. Pouring a healing potion on his burned hands, and enjoying the cool sensation.
Fucking Hellfire, it always burns his skin.
His response seemed to surprise Katherine, who couldn't help but turn her head and look at his lazy appearance.
"I would've killed her easily, if you hadn't wiped her swarm and started her mad second phase. Now she's crazy." She couldn't help but throw the blame at him back. No wonder she'd say she's struggling.
Rio smiled as his eyes lit up for a second, giving him a view of the monster's anatomy and possible weaknesses. "Turn it over and stab the pouch on its stomach. I don't know about death, but it should hurt her a lot."
Seeing that he really had no intention of helping, Katherine stopped dodging and turned her attention back to attack it.
[You want her to kill Vorilks knowing she'll be marked and hated by Arachne.] System said, talking about how Vorilks was a favorite creature/mount of spider demoness Arachne.
"Come on, I have enough demons to worry about, I don't want one more." Rio explained, "And besides, According to the novel's prophecy, Arachne can only be killed by someone she doesn't see as an enemy. If I kill Vorilks now, I'll never be able to kill her in the future."
"And if I don't kill her, then how will I update my blessing of threads." Rio explained everything, "I'm not Leon, who can cause a change of heart in her cold heart and get her gifts as she willingly accepts death. If we become enemies, chances of her dying after cursing my 7 generations are much higher."
[Still a piece of shit move. She's a friend, you know.]
"You're making it sound like I'm pushing her to die or something. Mara is more powerful than a dozen Arachne , she can protect her avatar."
[Whatever helps you sleep at night.]
'Motherfucker, I shouldn't unmute you at all.'
(Like your ever running head can stay sane without my chitchat. You'll be bored to death.I'll just stay silent for two more minutes.)
After muting the system for the 5th time since entering this dungeon, Rio turned his attention back to Katherine.
"She's stronger." He muttered watching her fight, and comparing her progress with her counterpart in the novel. He was sure she could even rival or beat even Leon if Apollo didn't sneak his nose in.
Her blades flashing sparks as she cut through the Vorilks from behind, avoiding it's reflective shells, and attacking only the shining eyes. Her movements were a blur, each strike more lethal and precise than the last.
She was controlling over a dozen ice crystals continuously. Stabbing them straight if the Vorilks opened its eyes.
Since she couldn't see them, she forced the monster to keep them closed.
The second monster opened it's eyes to stare at her, trying to target her mind, a sharp ice crystal would come down to prick it out. Forcing the monster to blink and close them again.
It was almost like a race of instincts between them. To see who was faster. Katherine, who felt the brunt of headaches, or Vorilks, who had to dodge shooting spears.
'Guess all that hard work and training wasn't a total waste.' He thought. Wondering how it was funny and marvelous that every character he came across could get stronger under his influence. Not just friends, even extras and enemies too.
Sometimes it made him wonder if someone out there was doing it to increase the difficulty at the ending. Maybe for him, or maybe for this whole world.
Rio was lost in thoughts when a heavy screech broke his focus. Looking forward, he saw Katherine panting heavily as she stood over the monster's corpse. Barely balancing herself onto her sword, so she doesn't fall into this bloody mess she had made all around her.
"Not bad." Rio said and went forward to help her. Giving her a high grade healing and mana recovery potion. "Call it a gift." He said, shoving them in her hands, as he noticed her reluctance.
The girl was nearly on verge of mana depletion and falling down, yet still had the pride to play games.
He helped her move away from all the chaos and freezing forest floors, and helped her sit down. "You can rest and recover now. I'll look for a cave or something." Rio said and closed his eyes next to her.
Sharing vision with the ravens once more. The vision felt hectic and heavy on mind. Making him wonder how Indra and Maximus could manage a thousand eyes simultaneously, when he couldn't handle two.
It had just been a few minutes of silence, when a sudden earthquake woke them up instantly. The sudden jolt of movements shook their bodies, making their stomach churn in displeasure. It was like someone suddenly pulled the rug beneath their leg, and then set jets on their back and sent them flying before they even got any balance. All done in one swift motion at the same second.
When the jets ended, they opened their eyes, it was one freaking surprise awaiting them.
Katherine hit the ground and fell first. The sudden pain, jolting her senses to kick in. She found herself kneeling on a flat stone platform. She glanced to her side, seeing Rio standing there with a frowning expression. Staring at the blank space in front of him. Though his unkempt hair and clothes showed that the sudden teleportation had rattled him too.
She looked around and found that the surroundings around them had changed. There was no open forest, burning woods, or frozen floors _ all that she could see were damp humid walls of stone, covered in moss and muckus.
Eisjer was known to have land shifts randomly, and it can only be considered their bad luck that they encountered it on the first day.
"I guess we found a cave." Katherine spoke, slowly standing up and readying her sword.
Though Rio's response was much grim, "We need to leave. Now."
His words carried a sense of urgency in them, and a large shadow covering their bodies, the hot breath hitting their backs, and then the angry roar that shook them and sent them flying across the cave_ yeah, that was the answer why.
"Fuck.." Katherine cursed for the first time as she tried to steady herself and turned around to stare at the monster whose lair they were thrown into.
It had to be one of the boss level one.