"Duncan, are you okay?!"
After the remaining giant scorpions had been cleared out, the rest of the party caught up. Cleaning up the eggs left behind along the way had been no easy task either, though with Letsa there to hold things together, it had at least been far less dangerous than what Duncan had faced.
"They're enhanced specimens," Duncan replied after pulling an energy potion from his waist and draining it in one gulp. "Their potential is probably around Level 3, but their shells are absurdly hard. Even with a full-strength strike, I couldn't kill one in a single blow. As far as defense goes, Level 2 adventurers won't be able to do much against them. I suspect those red thread-like lines on their shells are their magic power—using magic to reinforce their defenses so intruders can't break through head-on."
"So they're defense-specialized monsters," Letsa said at once. "Like guards."
"I'd be relieved if they were only specialized for defense," Duncan answered grimly. "If they're like a hive—different types specialized for different tasks—then we've got a real problem. How are things behind us?"
"We destroyed most of the eggs," Letsa said, "but there's nothing we can do about those disgusting flesh-covered walls. And a place this large definitely connects to an even bigger area deeper inside. A drawn-out fight won't work. We need to finish this fast. I'll move up to the front line myself, since Level 2 attacks won't get the job done against those giant scorpions. Eira, Novenel—you two provide ranged support."
"Yes!"
The two mages, both Level 2 and the only magic-users in the Artemis Familia, nodded in unison.
As mages who had awakened the Mage Development Ability, the power of their spells was greatly amplified. With a full long-chant spell, their magic could exceed their own level by one or even two tiers—in other words, their spell output could rival that of second-tier adventurers. Power like that was enough for any Familia to treat them as trump cards, which was why they were meant to stay in the rear and cast, not charge to the front.
Mages with the Mage skill—those whose spells were overwhelmingly destructive—were commonly said to wield bombardment magic.
Once everyone had swallowed potions and reorganized themselves, Duncan and Letsa exchanged a glance and charged ahead at the same time. The path had widened enough now to let two Level 3 adventurers truly cut loose.
Perhaps giant scorpions were not easy to breed, because after Duncan killed those four, no more appeared. As the party pressed deeper, most of the flesh-covered walls began to disappear, and for the first time in a while, bare stone flooring emerged beneath their feet.
There was still rotting flesh clinging to the walls, but much of it had withered away. It no longer looked "vibrantly alive" the way it had near the entrance. Whether it had simply decayed with time like dying vines, or whether it had diverted its nourishment forward to better invade the outside world and thus abandoned the inner sections, no one could say.
But even so, the pressure and tension weighing on the group did not lessen in the slightest. If anything, the sense of foreboding only grew heavier, dense and suffocating like the air before a storm—just like the feeling in the Great Tree Sea.
Then, at the end of the dark corridor, a faint light appeared.
Though they were underground, it was unmistakably sunlight.
Following it with extreme caution, they arrived at an open plaza—then instinctively held their breath at the sight before them.
That could no longer be called a monster.
No—abomination was the only word that felt right.
The same thought rose in all their minds at once.
A colossal black scorpion lay motionless in the center of the plaza, basking in sunlight. A vast trench, wide and bottomless, surrounded it on all sides, keeping it firmly isolated. Countless chains were wrapped around its body, meant to bind and seal it in place—
Or rather, that was how it should have been.
Over the course of a thousand years, something had clearly changed. The chains that had once served as seals were now half-dissolved, replaced by dark conduits like black veins, pulsing and flowing, pumping some unknown substance into the giant scorpion's body. Those same conduits also linked it directly to the temple itself.
Its massive body—over ten meters tall and seven or eight meters wide—was covered in red magic-veins, identical to those on the giant scorpions from before.
"Andares…" Artemis's face turned ashen. The moment she saw it, she understood everything. Why there had been so many black scorpion monsters. Why the Great Tree Sea was withering. It all traced back to Andares, which had been drawing magic from the Great Tree Sea, endlessly hatching offspring and gathering power in order to—
"Damn it! Get out of here, now! It broke free of the seal long ago!"
Artemis's eyes flew wide as she shouted at the others, no longer caring whether Andares would notice them.
But it was already too late.
A single crimson eye split open across the black shell and fixed itself on Artemis. The creature that had lain motionless until now suddenly raised itself and let out a shrill, piercing screech. The hatred in that cry was so overwhelming that even Duncan, a human, could feel it washing over him like a tidal wave.
The solid stone floor cracked apart without a sound.
In an instant, the entire temple plaza beneath their feet collapsed.
Beneath the seemingly intact flagstones, a carpet of crimson flesh had already spread deep below. It had only hidden itself beneath the surface for one purpose: to wait for sacrifices to arrive.
And it seemed the sacrifice that had come today was exquisite beyond expectation.
"Lady Artemis?!"
Letsa desperately lunged toward Artemis, but there was nowhere to land, nowhere to push off in midair. Everyone—including Andares itself—plunged together into the abyss.
"Letsa! Pull everyone around you together!" Duncan shouted. "I'm going to get Lady Artemis!"
Even in freefall, he was astonishingly calm. After signaling to Letsa, he did not waste a heartbeat. Planting an invisible foothold in the air, he kicked off hard toward Artemis.
For a battlefield with no ground to stand on—
This was Duncan's domain.
"Come with me, Lady Artemis!"
"Right!"
Though she had no idea how Duncan could move so freely through the air, Artemis did not hesitate for even a second. She trusted him.
Duncan didn't waste time explaining either. He had already slung his spear across his back. Reaching Artemis, he wrapped his right arm around her waist, kicked off the air again, and shot toward the cluster of Artemis Familia members who had managed to gather together.
"How are you doing that?!" Letsa blurted out, still falling.
"Skill!" Duncan barked. "Hold on tight. Get ready—we're jumping!"
He spared a glance downward. After more than ten seconds of falling, the ground was already visible. There was no time left for anything more.
Letsa immediately stopped asking questions and obeyed.
Duncan drew a deep breath and stomped hard against the air with both feet.
The enormous gravitational force dragging down all of them was abruptly checked.
Even with a Level 3 body, the strain exceeded his legs' limits. Blood vessels burst. The invisible footholds cracked with the sound of shattering glass. The air platform gave way, and they dropped again—
But at this height, it was no longer enough to threaten the lives of upper-class adventurers.
....
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