Thorian watched as Aqua solved the puzzle with effortless ease, a smile gracing his face. He glanced around at the rest of the team before speaking, "We might as well follow suit. No sense in lingering here."

"Darn it!" Ventus erupted in frustration. "He only managed to solve it thanks to my previous attempts. If it wasn’t for me, he wouldn’t have understood the pattern!”

Observing the yellow kobold's outburst, Saxum let out an exasperated sigh. “Yes, yes. Don’t worry, we all appreciate your sublime efforts.”

Witnessing the light-hearted squabble between the two, Ifrit sighed and gave Ventus a comforting pat on the back, "Time to move on. This trial is over. I'm going to beat you in the next one."

“Like hell you will,” Ventus retorted.

The remaining kobolds traipsed after Thorian. With the pattern already demonstrated by Aqua, they faced little difficulty in duplicating his steps. Upon reaching the platform at the end of the floating staircase, Thorian couldn't suppress his awe at the wreckage strewn across the floor.

"What are these things?" Vigil inquired, holding up a fragment of metal. It appeared to be part of a larger entity.

"These are remnants of a lightning sentinel," Thorian clarified. "An invention crafted by the inhabitants of this land. It's nearly alive, but it lacks free will, obeying only the commands of its creators."

Vigil's eyes grew wide at Thorian's explanation. He looked down at the piece of metal in his hand, noticing runes that pulsed with a faint blue light. "Were the creators gods to have crafted such a thing?"

“I don’t care if they’re gods or anything, I’m gonna go kill them!” Ventus, itching to resume the competition, dashed past Vigil, rushing through the debris-laden platform.

"You're not gaining the upper hand this time!" Ifrit retorted, immediately giving chase to Ventus.

The platform they stood upon was vast and circular, covered in a dark blue material. Strewn across its surface were the remnants of the lightning sentinels, making it look as though a storm had recently wreaked havoc there.

"Where do you two think you're going?" Thorian called out to the racing magi. They were in a circular area with no clear path forward, and no visible exit.

Noticing their predicament, Ventus and Ifrit retraced their steps, their faces reflecting a blend of embarrassment and bewilderment.

"Where did they disappear to? How?" Ventus queried, "Did they jump off the edge?"

"Just follow my lead," Thorian replied, not feeling compelled to explain the labyrinthine structure of the dungeon.

Thorian guided the group, his heavy footfalls echoing throughout the vast platform. The colossal monolith, a relic of forgotten wisdom, towered at the platform's core. The runes adorning its surface began to shimmer as they neared, casting an ethereal blue radiance over the platform.

Exchanging glances of confusion, Ventus and Ifrit followed Thorian in silence, placing their trust in his cryptic guidance.

As they stood before the monolith, the runes began to pulse more intensely. Their glow intensified, the energy surged faster, casting a mesmerising display of fluid shadows that danced across their faces.

"What...?" Ventus began, his voice a whisper as he reached out, the heat of his fingertips inches away from the cold, pulsating stone.

Thorian's hand on his arm stopped him. "Don't touch," he warned, a simple, curt instruction.

The indentation in the pedestal then sprang to life. It twisted and turned, forming an actual doorway of pulsating light. A veil of iridescence shimmered into existence, hinting at a swirling vortex beyond.

Ifrit gasped. "Is that...a portal? It looks like the one where those monsters came rushing from." Her voice was a mix of awe and fear, her fiery eyes wide as she took in the sight.

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Thorian, ever the stoic guide, gave a slight nod. "Yes," he said, his voice barely audible above the hum of the portal. "Our way forward."

"Is it safe?" Vigil asked, eyeing Thorian with uncertainty.

Thorian shrugged before answering, "Yes, it is. The gods don't take pleasure in slaying us outright. That's not the nature of their game."

Without another moment's hesitation, Thorian advanced into the portal. His vision momentarily darkened, filled with a swirling vortex of black, violet, and purple, while his ears were assaulted by a deafening white noise.

Once the sensory overload diminished, the cacophony was replaced by the orchestrated chaos of battle. In front of him, direwolves and warriors clashed against a gargantuan lightning creature, an elemental entity that wielded lightning bolts and electric shocks with commanding authority.

Though the direwolves and warriors skillfully dodged its strikes with their superior agility, their retaliations appeared ineffective against the lightning elemental. Their attacks only resulted in self-electrocution, leaving their hands and paws scorched. Aqua, with his water spells, was the only one landing successful hits. Even so, the lightning elemental merely recoiled momentarily from the water-based attacks before regenerating its form within seconds.

Witnessing the ongoing chaos, Thorian decided to impart some advice to his companion. "Aim deeper," he suggested.

Upon hearing Thorian's telepathic voice, Harald cast a puzzled glance back at him. "What do you mean?"

"Do you see that metallic orb within its chest? That's its core. If you shatter it, you'll vanquish the elemental," Thorian conveyed telepathically.

Processing Thorian's guidance, Harald activated his Bestial Form, his body morphing into a more formidable version of himself. With a resonant growl, he readied himself for a decisive strike. Displaying a dizzying speed, he charged the lightning elemental, utilizing his Wind Leap to enhance his assault. The glow from the Direwolf King's paws was intensely bright as he prepared his rending spell, launching it at the elemental's core.

Crack

With a final, electric wail, the lightning elemental gradually dissipated, leaving behind only its fractured core, which rolled listlessly on the ground.

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"Well, that's one way to do it," Forlune guffawed, a deep laughter resonating from his belly as he approached Harald. "I'm jealous you claimed that kill, but I must admit, it was impressive. Truly amazing."

Harald didn't join in Forlune's laughter, instead responding to the compliment with a graceful nod.

"I'm impressed you noticed its core," Aqua interjected as he sauntered over. "I was attempting to hit it with my jet stream, but it kept evading somehow. It was very much aware of its own vulnerability."

"It wasn't me who noticed it," Harald refuted with a grunt, turning his gaze to Thorian who was standing apart from the group. "Thorian informed me of its weakness."

Forlune looked surprised before following Harald's gaze and spotting Thorian. The sight of his king elicited a chuckle from him. He playfully protested, "My king, this isn't fair. You can't be helping your companion telepathically."

Thorian reciprocated the chuckle, "My apologies. I simply didn't want to distract you with my voice amidst the battle. If—"

"Oh, don't tell me you've finished already?!" Ventus's voice cut through Thorian's sentence. "I am seriously out of luck! How come I never get to join the fights?"

Turning to Ventus, they saw the rest of the group materialize beside him one by one. Before long, all ten kobolds of their party were reunited.

"There are still plenty of monsters to slay, and the guardian awaits its downfall," Thorian comforted the disgruntled Ventus, before shifting his attention back to Harald. "Are you still keeping track of everyone's kills?"

Upon hearing Thorian's question, Harald flashed a victorious grin. "I am. And unsurprisingly, I'm in the lead."

"Not for long," Forlune retorted. “The guardian’s kill will be mine and that would put me above you in points.”

"You all can keep daydreaming," Aqua interjected. "I was unfortunate to miss this elite monster's core with my spell, but it won't be the same with the guardian. I will be the one to kill it.”

Witnessing the trio confidently laying claim to victory in the competition, Ventus ground his teeth and turned to Ifrit and Saxum. "These guys are taking us lightly, acting as if they've already won. We can't let them have another kill."

"As long as there are no more stairs, I'm not worried," Ifrit replied, cracking her knuckles with a confident grin. "I'll blast those monsters away before they even get a chance to lay a finger on them."

Seeing his companions riled up, Saxum merely shrugged. "You two can try your hardest. Harald and Forlune are too far ahead in points for me to catch up."

"I knew you were a—"

Just as Ventus was about to berate Saxum, Thorian tapped him on the shoulder. "Stop wasting time, the others are already on the move."

Heeding Thorian's reminder, the last group turned to see the direwolves and warrior kobolds already navigating their way out of the hall through a colossal gate and into a grand corridor. As soon as they all exited, the eyes of the giant statues adorning the sides of the corridor ignited with light.