The Dragon Toad continued running toward Dash, who was ready to confront it, immediately charging with the horn on its head. Dash caught the horn and was pushed back, but then he braced his feet and stopped. Shel and Marle leaped to the side simultaneously as Dash caught the Dragon Toad's horn. Without delay, Shel shot a rock construct, which had formed into a sharp drill, toward the Dragon Toad while Marle merged her ice swords into a massive ice spear, then threw it at the Dragon Toad.
"CRACK," the large rock drill hammered into the Dragon Toad's dragon body from the left side and continued spinning into the ground, while its right side was pierced by the ice spear, which froze the surrounding earth. The Dragon Toad stopped because its body couldn't be controlled.
Dash immediately made a small jump, then broke off the horn with his elbow. As he landed, he jumped again, kicking the slime-like head from below with his knee, sending the Dragon Toad tumbling backward with its two front frog legs raised in the air.
Shel and Marle braced against the air and sped toward the Dragon Toad. Shel created a rock axe and grabbed it. "CRASH," she smashed the Dragon Toad's slime-like head with the rock axe, and "SHRIIING," Marle sliced its head off using her two ice swords. After that, they stepped on the Dragon Toad's body and launched themselves backward in a somersault.
Suddenly, "GROAAAAH," Dash fired a gray, comet-like punch wave from both hands that swallowed the Dragon Toad's entire body, preventing it from regenerating. A massive black shadow burst from the Dragon Toad's body, then floated into the air and vanished.
Dash pulled his feet back and lowered his palms. Then he stood tall and raised his palms to the right and left. "PLAK," Shel and Marle immediately high-fived Dash's palms as they landed on his right and left. Seeing the Dragon Toad defeated, five people wearing black robes immediately fled into the black mansion at the end of the settlement.
"Let's go after them," Dash said.
"Yeah, let's go," Shel replied.
"Of course, I'm ready," Marle added.
The three immediately ran toward the black mansion at the end of the settlement without hesitation. When they reached the mansion entrance, opened the door, and entered the lobby, they were instantly greeted by a troop of Mafia members, all Demons wearing armor that looked like suits.
They immediately attacked the trio. Dash struck the front with punches and kicks accompanied by dazzling moves, like a martial arts master. Marle defeated enemies with her two ice swords, like dancing, while Shel defeated enemies with her rock axe, using her strong and visibly sturdy physical power.
"TRANG," Dash let go of a man he had caught, along with his weapon, which fell to the ground. He looked back and saw Marle had successfully dealt with her enemies, and Shel stood casually among the fallen enemies, resting her rock axe on her shoulder. In an instant, dozens of Demon Mafia members were lying on the floor, none moving anymore.
"Okay, let's go meet the boss," Dash said in his terrifying Dragon voice.
"Let's go, we'll finish them off," Shel said, baring her fangs.
"You guys are amazing, I'm impressed," Marle said.
"You're great too, come on, hurry up, we can be back before dinner," Dash replied.
They stepped forward to enter the enclosed room in front of them, right past the staircases on the right and left leading to the mansion's wings. But when they reached the door, suddenly, "CLEEK," the floor they were standing on opened up.
"WHOAAAAAH," the three of them immediately fell into a deep hole, shouting. Dash grabbed Shel's and Marle's hands, then pulled both of them up to sit on his shoulders. He then stood straight up in the air, looking down. They continued to fall, accompanied by Shel's and Marle's screams. Finally, "BOOM," Dash landed in a squat, and the entire floor around him cracked.
After Shel and Marle got off his shoulders, Dash looked around. It seemed they had fallen into a stuffy, damp dungeon with neatly stacked large brick walls and only lit by torches, complete with jail bars. He then looked up and saw the hole above them looking like a tiny dot, indicating they had fallen quite far underground.
"Whoa… looks like we dropped a long way down," Dash muttered.
"Dash, look, we can go over there," Shel said.
Dash turned to look in the direction Shel was pointing. Beyond the bars was a corridor that had light at the end of it.
"Hmm… alright, let's go," Dash replied.
"Um… can you help me?" Marle asked.
Dash and Shel turned back to look at Marle, who was trembling because she was standing on a pile of various skeletons with still-attached flesh and swarming with flies. Her feet were sunk among the bones. Marle's face looked terrified, and her tail was tucked between her legs.
Dash turned around and grabbed Marle under both armpits. Then he lifted Marle and pulled her out of the pile of skeletons that had swallowed her feet. After that, he placed Marle next to Shel.
"Are you scared?" Shel asked.
"No… it's just… I'm grossed out… ugh… disgusting," Marle replied, shivering while shaking the leg that had been trapped.
"Can you walk now?" Dash asked.
"No problem," Marle replied.
"Alright, let's go over there," Dash said, pointing to the light at the end of the corridor.
Dash walked up to the barred door. "CLANG," he tore the prison gate off its hinges, then tossed it inside. After that, the three walked down the corridor, approaching the light spot in the distance, which grew steadily closer. When they arrived, they reached a chamber lit by light coming from a single human-sized red crystal in the dark room.
The crystal was positioned upright on a sophisticated-looking circular stand with many lights, resembling an ancient machine. Dash, Shel, and Marle approached the crystal. Then, the three of them jumped back in surprise and immediately stood ready because inside the crystal was a naked, sleeping girl. She had a sexy body, red hair, horns on her head, and a thin tail with an arrowhead tip behind her.
"A Succubus… aren't they supposed to be an extinct race of Demons?" Marle asked.
"Huh… really?" Dash asked.
"My mom has a list of extinct races… and the Succubus is one of them," Shel replied.
"Is she a Fallen Shadow?" Dash asked.
"Don't know… we should just go around her. There's a door over there, come on," Marle answered.
"Hmm… could she be used to control the Fallen Shadows?" Shel wondered.
"Could be, let's hurry, we need to get out of here," Marle replied.
They walked past the crystal toward the door behind it, but just as they were about to open the door, "CRACK," a breaking sound was heard. The three immediately turned back and saw a crack forming in the crystal.
The trio instantly turned around and braced themselves. "CRACK… CRACK… PYASH," the cracks in the crystal multiplied, then it shattered into fragments and splintered away. The Succubus inside fell unconscious to the ground.
Seeing that, Dash, Shel, and Marle immediately rushed toward the Succubus lying on the floor. After making sure the Succubus wasn't moving, Marle crouched down to examine her. Then she looked back at Dash and Shel.
"She's… still alive, but unconscious," Marle said.
"Oh, really? So, what now? Should we help her?" Dash asked.
Before anyone could answer Dash's question, the entire room suddenly shook like a severe earthquake. Dash immediately pulled Shel and Marle closer to him. He also hoisted the unconscious Succubus onto his shoulder, then looked around. Dense black shadows, appearing like mist, began to seep out from the walls and floor, filling the room. Shel and Marle automatically clung to Dash's arms.
"Oh, I know. That crystal with the Succubus inside must have been used to hold the Fallen Shadows back and suppress them so the Mafia could set up their base here," Shel said, holding onto Dash.
"This is no time for analysis, we're surrounded," Marle said, still clinging to Dash.