«Escape in the Labyrinth of Eldoria»
The heavy air of the Eldoria forest whipped their faces, thick with the smell of smoke and pine. They ran in the darkness, following the small, light-blue arcane drone Rimuru had conjured, glowing like a technological firefly.
"Run, guys! Faster! The Cerberus reeked of rage, it won't give up easily!"
Nira yelled, panting. She was in front, her body looking more agile and strong than ever. The internal energy, the so-called Draconic Ki, pulsed in her legs.
Sasha was right behind her, breathing hard, but his eyes were shining strangely.
He looked at the fist that hit the Cerberus.
"Man, what the hell was that? I never hit like that in the worst fights! I felt the power right there!"
he asked, his tone mixing pride and confusion.
Levi tripped over a root, feeling his legs wobble. He was still shaken by what he had done. The fear was still there, but something new was pushing him: the memory of the scarlet fire.
"You're not alone, Sasha. That fire of mine… I just thought, like, 'I want to burn this crap,' and poof! The barrier showed up," Levi said, feeling ashamed about his weak punch on the Cerberus, but his chest puffed up by the uncontrolled magic.
Rimuru, running and typing commands in the air with his arcane gloves, answered without looking.
"Based on my preliminary analysis, the Voice of the World didn't just give us Classes, but Mana Cores. Nira, you channel Ki. Sasha, you activate Brute Chaos through rage. Levi, you are an Arcane. Your affinity is pure with fire and blood, hence the scarlet."
"Stop talking fancy, nerd! Where are you taking us, huh?" Sasha growled, his rage from the Cerberus now channeled into irritation at Rimuru.
"Simple, Sasha. I am calculating the route of least Monster Mana density. We have an 87-second window before our magical signature attracts Rank B attention," Rimuru explained, his voice tense, but he was in his element, using logic to survive.
They ran for a few more minutes until Rimuru's drone stopped.
"Here. The Rank D Training Camp should be on the other side of that gorge. But there's a problem," Rimuru stopped, panting, and pointed at the sky.
"Oh, no, Rimuru! What's the problem now?" Levi lamented, feeling despair.
"The probability rate of encountering Andras Troop patrols on the other side of the gorge is 95%. And, worse, the access bridge is broken."
«THE BROKEN BRIDGE AND QUICK THINKING»
They looked down. The gorge was immense, about fifty feet deep, with mist rising. The wooden bridge was half-finished, with a gap of at least fifty feet in the middle.
"Great! Now we're a feast for the Cerberus and we have no way to cross!"
Sasha complained, stomping his foot on the ground, frustrated.
"Why didn't you calculate the broken bridge, genius!?"
"Bridges are dynamic structures, Sasha. They are not a constant factor. The chance of it being intact was 12%,"
Rimuru countered, his face slightly red with embarrassment at having failed the calculation.
Nira was looking at the gap, her hands on her hips. "Look, I can jump that. My Draconic Ki gives me the strength. The problem is taking you guys."
"I can't jump that, no way in hell,"
Levi admitted, breathing heavily.
"What if we use a flight spell?"
Rimuru shook his head. "Your magic is raw fire, Levi. Mine is construction. And Nira is close combat. What we need is an engineering plan. And fast!"
The Cerberus, still alive, let out a distant roar. It was getting closer.
"Hey, you nerds! Stop calculating and crying! We don't have time!"
Sasha was agitated, channeling his anger. He turned to Levi, his eyes bloodshot.
"You said you can make fire, right? Make a fire rope, damn it!"
Levi took a step back, offended by the tone.
"I only made a barrier! I don't know how to make a fire rope, you jerk!" He was hesitant; the fear of failing in front of them was worse than the Cerberus.
"Try, Levi! Think about the Barrier! You made it with the will to stop the attack. Think about connecting the two sides of the bridge! Use your head, Scarlet Arcane!"
Nira encouraged, her voice urgent.
Levi closed his eyes. He tried to calm down. He remembered Rimuru's explanation. Fire, blood, ancestral runes. He was the prodigy.
He stretched his hand toward the gap, feeling the strange heat from his Mana Core. He wasn't going to think of a rope. He was going to think of connection.
"Connect. Unite. Path." Levi whispered, his brow furrowed in concentration.
A small golden rune, looking like a knot, shone on his palm. The air vibrated.
The fire didn't come. Instead, a stream of scarlet energy thin but strong shot out of Levi's fingertips, soaring across the gorge and fixing onto the rotten wood on the other side. He was panting, feeling the energy drain from him.
"It worked! A Mana Bridge! But… it's too thin! It won't hold Sasha!" Rimuru exclaimed, analyzing the structure.
"I can reinforce it! Hand me the lightest materials you have in your backpack, Rimuru!" Nira said, determined.
Rimuru tossed her some pieces of wire and small metallic plates he had. Nira, with incredible precision, began to weave the materials into Levi's Mana Bridge, using her Ki to harden everything in seconds.
"It's now, guys! Hurry! The Scarlet Bridge!" Nira shouted, jumping to the other side without hesitation.
«RIMURU'S REINFORCEMENT»
Sasha was the first to try. He stepped onto the bridge, which swayed.
"Holy crap! My ass is clenched, damn it! This thing is gonna break!" Sasha yelled, feeling the fear, but advancing quickly.
As Sasha crossed, the ground where Rimuru and Levi were standing began to shake.
"They're close! The Cerberus and two more Rank D monsters!" Rimuru yelled, panic taking over.
Rimuru looked at the gorge. He had to buy time. He stretched his hands out to the leftover wire in his backpack.
"I am a Strategic Technomancer. If magic is a program, I can hack the forest!"
With a quick mental command, Rimuru's gloves glowed intensely. He aimed at the unstable rocks on the gorge's edge.
"ArcaneInterface: Programmed Collapse!"
A deafening sound echoed. The rocks didn't explode, but vibrated at a specific frequency. The vibration caused the edge of the gorge to collapse in a giant landslide, blocking the Cerberus's path for a few minutes.
"Yes! What a genius, messed-up plan!" Sasha yelled from the other side, impressed and relieved.
"Now, Levi! Quick!" Nira shouted.
Levi, shaking with exhaustion and relief, ran across the bridge. When he got to the other side, Nira pulled him hard.
"You were great, Levi! That's how an Arcane uses his head!" Nira smiled, and the compliment made Levi blush with embarrassment and satisfaction.
Rimuru followed close behind. As soon as he arrived, the Scarlet Bridge flickered and disintegrated.
"Phew! Just barely,"
Rimuru gasped, adjusting his glasses.
"The success rate of our plan was 63%. It could have been better."
« THE RANK D CAMP»
They turned around, finally seeing the open area: a rustic military complex, surrounded by a high palisade, lit by torches with green flames. It was the Rank D Camp.
A large man, wearing thick leather armor and an axe on his back, stepped out of the gates, looking them up and down. He had a stern, scarred face.
"You. Four smelly brats. Who are you and why are you attracting Rank C Cerberus to my camp!?" The man growled.
"W-we were transported! We're the Four From the Otherworld! The Voice of the World sent us!" Levi stammered, trying to catch his breath.
The man crossed his arms. His expression didn't change.
"Transported? Yes. Four From the Otherworld? Maybe. But here, you are just Beginners (Rank F). My name is Commander Vark. And in my troop, you don't have a Voice of the World. You have rules," Vark said, seriously.
He looked at their classes. "A Wizard with toy fire, an untrained Monk, a kid who talks to machines, and an undisciplined brute. You'll be lucky if you last a week."
He pointed to a wooden building. "Go. Eat, rest. Tomorrow, at sunrise, you'll find out what suffering is. Because here, Rank F only has one function: bait."
Levi swallowed hard. Bait? The fear returned, stronger than ever. They survived the escape, but the commander saw them as… disposable.
They went inside, exhausted. Rimuru was analyzing the base map on the wall, Nira was doing stretching exercises for her Ki, and Sasha was punching a wooden wall, releasing his anger.
Levi sat in a corner, thinking about what Vark said. A Wizard with toy fire. He had to change that. He looked at his hand, where the 'Connection' rune had shone. He needed control.
Suddenly, Vark entered, throwing four iron medallions onto the table.
"Your Status Cores. Use these to see the level of tragedy you are. And there's one more thing. We received a report. One of the Demon Kings is moving towards our sector."
"Which one!?" Nira asked, her face pale.
"Andras, the General of Shadows. And he's coming because of a 'strongmagicalsignature ' that appeared in the forest. The signature the Cerberus was following," Vark said, looking directly at Levi.
"It was your fire, Scarlet Arcane. Your power attracted the Demon King."
The fire that saved their lives had now doomed the camp. Levi had attracted Andras. What would Commander Vark do with the freshman who brought a Demon King to the door?