Indeed, he is such a diligent and well-behaved kid. When I was 19 I hardly ever did what others told me. Mostly out of spite.... Yet, here he is, going above and beyond. Gosh, it feels so great to have at least one normal, reliable, and competent subordinate that doesn't give me a headache!

Raven inwardly lampooned and gave the boy a thumb up, "Brilliant. Without you, we would have never cracked this floor so fast. We may have had to spend a few rounds just blindly loitering around!"

His words were genuine. Without Jeje's expertise, he had no doubt the first floor would have stumped their team, cause neither he nor his vice, Renata, were adept at solving riddles. They were undoubtedly smart and crafty, but their smarts lay in other aspects. For example: assigning the right personnel to the correct task based on their strengths and character. And of course, knowing when to give praise!

Look at him so hard at work~

The redhead elf hid a tiny smile and rolled her eyes at Raven, "To crack the floor, heh... Was this pun intentional or should I lament your vocabulary skills?"

Inclined against the wall, Leo rubbed his chin. He stared at the screen for hours and still couldn't understand a thing. Labyrinths in labyrinth? Components and composition? Deductions based on their taken roads?

The so-called map was just a bunch of hand-drawn squiggles, variegated with as many circles, rectangular, and other geometric figures. There was no legend to explain a thing. It was colorful and artistic but incomprehensible!! It made his brain short-circuit and his eyes blurred and teared up from thinking.

Three seconds later, he wisely gave up on the pointless struggle. He ignored the tension in the air and looked toward the boy with the corner of his eye. For once he felt some admiration for someone weaker than himself. At the same time, he couldn't help but find it creepy.

Noticing that Raven wasn't in the mood to bite her, the louder sounds of the collapse and Leo's quizzical expression, Renata shook her head and turned serious again. Raven sucks at praising. He is too honest and naive. He doesn't understand how people work. To provide a person confidence you need to push them further even if it's slightly overboard...

She observed the blushing Cait Sith and continued what the swordsman had already begun. "Jeje that map is anything but simple. It shows exemplary care for the details and it will be a tremendous help for our future exploration. I really can't believe you drew it on the run."

Noticing that Jeje's tail betrayed his inner happiness and that he seemed to have forgotten that they were about to die, she nodded slightly. That was good enough. Nurturing took time. At the same time, she swiped her gaze above the others. Leticia was frowning and playing with the map, Leo seemed too bored, while Raven was shooting her a glance.

Don't urge me, will ya?! I know you plan to utilize this time to distract those guys as well. Man, you are half a century too young to compare to this beauty when it comes to scheming and psychological manipulation!

She glared back and spoke again, "Jeje, correct me if I'm wrong. This time the exploration lasted more than a dozen hours but we haven't seen that many types of monsters. I presume the four species we saw correlate to the four different markings on your map. Tell me more about your thoughts regarding this."

Finding himself useful, Jeje didn't need another tug. He nodded quickly and excitedly explained, "That's right! In Euclex, the monsters also form a complex ecosystem based on their habitats, relationships, and food chains. The environment observed throughout this exploration is very dry and warm. The ecosystem on this floor is naturally poor. It's not surprising that this floor is lacking species."

His words attracted everyone's attention, even the couple of delinquents inclined against the wall, and he felt a bit embarrassed. He coughed and suppressed the excitement in his voice, continuing, "As Renata said, we encountered four different types of monsters. Yes, let me first elaborate on this. The first species was the Rock Hands. They attack in packs by suddenly emerging from the floor and walls, relying on the passersby's surprise to end them quickly. From what I saw from my Appraisal and my following analysis they won't loiter blindly in the labyrinth. Erm, I marked the few locations where we saw Rock Hands with blue rectangles. They roughly show the areas of their hunting grounds. Averagely it will span about three hundred meters along the passage length."

"Do you need to be so detailed? We know how to deal with them, so skip the pointless stuff!" Leticia sulkily injected. She felt gloomy and wasn't in the mood for pleasantries so her words got rather harsh.

Narrowing her eyes, Renata shook her head and ignored the grungy Demon. As if speaking to herself she said, "This time we had to fight them and grasp their details. Besides, we couldn't leave back any latent threats. However, in the next try, we don't need to mind them much. Instead, I suggest saving our strength and resources."

"So we pierce through their dwellings and evade the combat. Indeed, their strength mainly lies in ambushing their prey and simultaneous prolonged attacks. A general rule is that ambushers rarely pursue if their prey escapes." Jeje felt the same as her. Pinching at the map he enlarged a bright red dot and continued with his explanation, "With red dots, I marked the Crystalline Sea Slugs. They are solitary, and slow but never stick to certain areas and roam around. These monsters seem to be a bunch of apathetic creatures and will not attack unless they are threatened first. However, despite the lower danger, they are difficult to kill. We should use the same strategy. Let's just ignore them!"

"Oi, oi, I get the damn stones, but these are crystals! Besides, they seemed hard, but very fragile. We can kick them on our way." Leo joined the conversation.

"No Leo, their fragility is a misconception. Each Slug seems to be composed of different crystals. Often more than one. The monolithic ones indeed are fragile. A single forceful impact from your shield will be enough. But the majority are polylithic. They are composed of numerous smaller crystals stacked in different ways. In such a structure fractures don't expand too deep. Besides these guys feed on minerals and use them to repair their bodies. Some are even blessed with the ability to repel the majority of spells." Jeje disagreed.

Nodding slightly, Raven closed his eyes and sighed, "I agree. The Crystalline Sea Slugs are this floor's creeping, material treasure chests. They are perfect for harvesting materials but time-consuming. If, I mean, when, we get this dungeon for ourselves we can hunt them all we want. But until then we should leave them be. Just think of them as slightly quirky neighbors."

"Makes sense..." Leo rubbed his chin before looking at the Cait Sith, "What's next? The Rats?"

"Yeah. The third type - the Cavern Rats. They are fast, agile, and often travel in larger packs. Their bites can likely lead to illnesses but they are physically weak. To us, their speed and numbers pose no threat at all. However-"

At this moment, Leticia rolled her eyes and cut him short again. She was getting more and more impatient, shaken by the tremors passing through the stones. "We don't need to waste our time discussing weaklings. I will fry them all."

How snappy and immature. Leticia is acting like a teen. No, a scared little girl... I really understand her cause I feel the same...

If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. Please report it.

Jeje sighed and shivered. The rumbling was intensifying. Time was running low. Unwilling to let his thoughts return to gory matters, he forced himself to continue the explanation, "The last species, or should I say species, is the one responsible for this collapse - The Takatopa."

His words made everyone turn serious and silent.

Finally, it's about that damn bastard. The one responsible for our...

The Demonoid's hair flared slightly and her tattooed wriggled eerily. Her fear, anger, and frustration made her look extremely sinister.

Gulping a mouthful of saliva, Jeje peeled his eyes away and broke the silence. He whispered, "While we were running I examined the surroundings and succeeded in appraising information. The Takatopa is a colonial organism composed of plant and fungi cells. The colony permeates the stones and stretches for hundreds of meters in diameter.

"I don't know how it sensed us, but I heard a noise right before the fractures happened. I suspect that once we entered its vicinity it 'attacked' us by quickly contracting and expanding its intercellular connections. As it is ingrained inside the tunnel structure and inside the rocks themselves, its oscillations cause the following collapse. The rest is simple. The collapse buries its prey and later the colony will feed on the nutrients provided by the corpses."

"Fucked up bastard! I will burn it into crisp!"

"I'm a pass. I have no idea how to deal with that thing."

Raven rubbed his chin and ignored the hot-blooded pair. He couldn't help but feel a tiny bit of admiration for this creature. "A colony of different cells. The plants likely draw nutrients from the inorganic matter, and the fungi deal with the living flesh. They work together, sustain the colony through thick and thin, and fight in such a quirky method. That's rather amazing, isn't it?"

"It is, but it's not unseen in nature. Many small or simpler organisms rely on meticulous traps to capture their prey. For example spiders, venus traps, and carnivorous fungi. It's just that in Euclex things are on a larger scale and sometimes magic is involved."

"Fair point. However, I didn't feel its threat. There was not a speckle of malice. I guess, this means that to the Takatopa we are simply food and nothing more. Or perhaps, it doesn't have enough intelligence to feel emotions. Anyway, my Precog is useless once again." Raven slowly spoke a bit depressed. He was vexed by his inability to sense yet another creature. I guess, it can't be helped. My Origin skill is aimed toward PVP encounters or those higher-level creatures.

"It's not just you. I can't sense it either" Renata read his mind and pursed her lips. For once, she understood his feelings. "This thing is magically imperceptible..."

Together with the elven words the Demonoid slowly shook her head indicating that she wasn't any different. Her fervor burned so bright, yet there was no outlet. Mages of their level couldn't even feel this monster, not to mention, taking timely countermeasures with a complex spell. Things looked bad.

"It doesn't have a scent. I can hear it now, but that's only cause it's earnestly attacking." Jeje nodded, but unlike the others, he was rather calm. Faced with their downcast gazes he licked his lips and mentioned, "I have a hypothesis..."

"Speak."

"Interesting."

Raven and Renata simultaneously spoke, their voices overlapping. By now the collapse had reached the beginning of their tunnel and they had to shout to hear one another. Their death was imminent but the Cait Sith's words overtook the tension. They were like the hope hidden at the bottom of Pandora's box; Small but dazzling.

Cough

"As I said the monsters form an ecosystem." Urged by the rumbling close behind, Jeje didn't dilly-dally and spoke as fast as possible. "On this floor, the Takatopa is the ultimate carnivore. It stands on top of all food chains and feeds on every other creature. However, in nature nothing is unreasonable. What I mean is that we need to change perspectives. If we can't analyze the hunter we should look toward its prey. There is a saying that the victims often know their hunter best!"

"Go on. This time I'm all ears and won't stop you."

"Ahem, thanks I guess. Anyway, I believe the most sensitive of all toward the Takatopa, are undoubtedly the Rock Hands. They similarly live inside the walls and are made of stones themselves. I suspect the colony can invade inside their structure and the collapse it causes is destructive too. Therefore, I speculate the Hands will never come too close to the Takatopa's lair."

"Logical deduction." Raven and Renata nodded, but the cat was far from done.

"Another clue is hidden in the Cavern Rats. I am certain they can sense it too."

Leticia and Leo looked at him in stupefaction. The rats were obviously mobs. They were the lowest in the food chain. It was ridiculous to think these meatballs could do something that the players couldn't!

"Wait, hear me out." Jeje waved his hands and spoke," They are weak, but precisely their weakness hones their senses. In the face of such a predator, there are not many things that they can do. Have you noticed? We haven't seen a single rat lurking in this area despite them being common everywhere else. Besides, a couple of times we spotted rats near Rock Hand lairs. However, unlike their brethren far away those didn't rush at us. They seemed too quiet, even nervous. They must have known the Hands were nearby!"

A special skill? A type of sixth sense given to the weakest? That's it!

Renata's eyes lit up and her lips stretched to form a smile. In the gloomy thunderous environment, she portrayed a real witch. "I get it now. What we need to do is carefully observe the other monster's behavior. No, we can even go one step further, and just like Jeje said we change our point of view. Instead of passively observing we make it active. We should attempt to subdue a rat or two. They are small and light. We can bring them on our way and use them similar to how miners of the olden days used canaries when mining. If the rats turn fidgety or silent..." Before she finished speaking her meaning was transmitted to the rest. It was a simple and somehow cruel plan.

"I can't wait to see Harumi's reaction toward this animal abuse." Raven laughed aloud supporting her decision.

"Precisely. However..." Jeje pursed his lips in thought. His next words could douse their newfound hope but he couldn't keep it to himself. They had to know. A moment of contemplation later he bit the bullet straight ahead, "According to the labyrinths' design from our current spot our way is blocked. Even if the tunnel was intact there was no way to reach the exit for we took a wrong turn half an hour earlier. We can't penetrate the walls but the exit itself is nearby..." His words were nearly inaudible covered by the noise of falling rocks.

"To put it simply the area around the exit is the Takatopa's lair. No matter what we do we need to deal with it to pass this floor." Raven had a headache but his gloom had dissipated. Dealing with the given was simpler than fighting the unknown.

"That's fine." Suddenly the elven lady said and grinned, "I have a spell in mind. One that can deceive the fucked up creature. If Jeje's hypothesis is correct all problems that I face are solved. First, I have a creature that can sense the monster. I can analyze it and use it as the focus of my spell. Once I know the way that thing can sense us, I can reverse-create a perfect shield; A blind spot.

The second problem is the complications of the structure. First, I can't sustain it long, so I need to know the Takatopa's active range. And two..." She turned to glare and Leticia and licked her lips. It wasn't the seducing kind but the way a predator looked toward its prey. "I need some help. You see, it's not a spell that I can cast alone."

Fuck, don't look at me like that...

Leticia's first reaction was to shiver before reading the meaning hidden in the mage's words.

A complex structure that can't be cast by her alone. Something to deceive all senses of the enemy. A magical design with additional material elements involved in it. Vision, sound, vibrations through the ground, smell, magical fluctuations, and whatever else this monster has in stock has to be countered by the shield. Isn't this impossible at our level? No matter the complexity and diversity of elements involved a common array spell has certain limitations... Common array spells...

Her eyes trembled and she blurted out, "Don't tell me it's a double array..."

Oh my hell, when did Renata study this?! Did she somehow sneak inside the city library??? Weist's Lord prohibits the entry of the players. How? Wait, that's not important! Does she want me to join her in a double suicide? We are not that fucking close!

As her thoughts galloped, she saw the elf's bright green eyes turn into thin slits and the creepy smile bloomed even more exuberant. She giggled in a rather condescending manner, as if asking 'What is wrong with double arrays? Are you scared? You seemed so eager earlier, yet now you chicken out?'.

This woman is a lunatic. Oh the greatest demon, I joined a scary guild...

Leticia's pride wouldn't let her back out now and she suppressed the acceleration of her heartbeat.

Double or triple whatever. I will kick that monster's butt and swoop the position of the best mage right under Renata's feet!

She ground her teeth and bit the bullet, "Fine."

Rumble.

As if waiting for her words a screeching sound tore the hidden hollow. A crack broke the ceiling and an avalanche of rocks fell toward their heads. Before they could look up, they felt the pain and the descending darkness envelop them entirely.