The revelation of a Guild's presence and manipulation cast a somber mood over Team 0 as they delved deeper into the heart of the fog-enshrouded Prospect Park. The murder they had witnessed weighed heavily on their minds, fueling a determination to clear the dungeon and expose the dangerous games the Guilds were playing.
The poor man who had been killed might not have received the authorization to be there, but he had simply been doing his job as an Awakener. He was slowly whittling the Boss down, and if James was honest with himself, he could recognize that had he not been there, they would have likely died to an uninjured Elemental Knight.
As they moved through the dense fog, their path lit only by the torches they had been forced to turn on, the team discussed their next course of action.
"We need to take down the Knight while it's still weakened.” James said, his voice resolute. "It's our best chance to end this. If we retreat now, the AA's reputation will be tarnished, and who knows what the Guilds will do with this dungeon next.”
Daniel nodded in agreement, keeping his shield ready. "We can't let them use these dungeons for their own twisted experiments. People's lives are at stake.”
“We still don’t know what Guild those bastards were from, right?” Ezekiel asked, scanning the surroundings.
“No.” Was Lauren’s curt reply. “But it doesn’t really matter. It could be any of them.”
“Now, you know that’s not right.” Daniel interjected, ever the voice of reason. “We have literally just come back from a dungeon run alongside a Guild team, and it went perfectly well.”
“There are some decent people even in the Guilds.” The Rogue gritted out. “But that doesn’t mean the organizations as a whole are not corrupt. There might be a couple of sane fruits from a sick tree, but the majority will always be bad.”
“I’m not defending the institution of the Guilds.” The Tank replied, sounding annoyed at the implication. “I’m just saying that I wouldn’t think those murderers could belong to any Guild. They are probably from one of the shadier ones, especially if they were tasked with faking the readings for this dungeon to draw us out.”
“Alright, enough!” James commanded. While he was the first to appreciate a good debate and would enjoy participating once they were safe and sound, it would not do to have one in the middle of a dungeon, especially one that contained an F-rank Boss and a team of Awakeners hunting for them.
His decision to interrupt them was proven right soon after, as the fog seemed to grow even thicker with each step, a swirling maze that disoriented and concealed. It was in this treacherous environment that they encountered more Fog Sprites, the creatures materializing out of thin air to ambush them.
Dealing with the lesser Elementals was not a problem by now, since Team 0 had fought them enough to understand how they ticked, and they could pick them apart in short order, even in larger concentration.
Their only worry was making enough of a ruckus to be caught by the Guild team, but the fog that had hidden their misdeeds also allowed Team 0 to do as they pleased.
With every skirmish, James started developing a new theory about the monsters’ sudden appearance. Before, he had been too worried about what might be waiting for them deeper in the dungeon to linger on it too long, but with the tension somewhat lowered - at least when it came to facing that kind of creature - he started noticing something.
“The Sprites, like all Elementals, don’t need anything beyond a concentration of their specific element to be born. They don’t come about through the mutation of an animal like most monsters do, but simply because one type of energy reaches a certain concentration.” He mused after they finished dispatching another group of the monsters. “Which means that as long as the thing which lets out the most mana in here, the Fog Knight, is around, they will just keep on spawning.”
“That’s not too different from other dungeons, though I understand your point. Since there is no need for a base animal to be present, the Fog Sprites can return infinitely, no matter how many we kill.” Daniel responded pensively.
“Which means we really need to kill the Boss, otherwise all our hard work will be for nothing. I don’t have enough data to say how often they can spawn, but I would be willing to bet that if we left now and returned tomorrow, the dungeon would be full of them again.” James concluded.
Pressing on, the team navigated the labyrinthine paths of the park, their senses heightened for any sign of the Knight. The once-familiar landscape of the park was now an alien terrain, twisted by the dungeon's magic.
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As they ventured further, the fog began to shift, forming patterns that seemed almost like new landscapes. The scenery changed subtly, trees and paths appearing and disappearing in the mist, disorienting them further. It was as if the dungeon itself was alive, reacting to their presence.
Environmental factors were almost always present in G-rank dungeons, but the sheer adaptability of this specific one should have alerted them to the fact that they were not in one.
Considering the presence of the Fog Knight, this dungeon could be classified as the weakest F-rank possible. One where only the Boss was at the correct Awakening Tier, while all the other monsters still needed time to catch up with the mana fluctuations.
That was also one of the reasons why they were pushing themselves so harshly. Clearing an F-rank dungeon while they were at G-rank would be an amazing achievement to have under their belt and would allow them to receive even more resources from the AA.
Despite the dungeon's growing complexity and surreal nature, Team 0 pressed on, determined to confront the Fog Knight. The further they ventured, the more the park's terrain morphed into something unrecognizable. Paths twisted upon themselves, and landmarks vanished, only to reappear in entirely different locations. The team relied heavily on James's Thakinetic Awareness to navigate the ever-changing landscape, an increasingly challenging task.
He couldn’t use it to map out the environment, but he could follow the greatest concentration of mana, which they believed to be where their quarry would be.
After what felt like hours of navigating the disorienting fog, they finally arrived near Prospect Park Lake. The water, usually a serene spot for park-goers, was now surrounded by a swirling vortex of mist and energy.
They passed the Wellhouse, which gratified James because it meant they were finally close to where he believed they should be, and turned sharply to the left, ultimately taking the path to the Peninsula that would take them almost to the middle of the lake, where he believed the Knight was.
Eventually, James felt its presence after a couple more minutes of walking. He immediately alerted the others, and they cautiously approached, finally coming into sight of it.
The massive creature stood at the water's edge, seemingly drawing in vast quantities of fog, its form gradually solidifying, regenerating from the injuries inflicted by the Awakener they had witnessed earlier.
Hiding in the shadows, Team 0 observed the Knight's actions. The fog seemed to flow into it, swirling around its armor and sword, healing its wounds. It was an unsettling sight, the creature growing stronger with each passing moment.
"We can't wait any longer.” James whispered. "If it regains its full strength, we'll lose our only advantage.”
The team nodded in silent agreement. They knew they had to act fast. Formulating a quick strategy, they prepared to launch a surprise attack. The plan was straightforward - they couldn’t afford anything too fancy with such a mighty foe - hit the Knight with everything they had, focusing on disrupting its regeneration process.
Maria would initiate the assault with a barrage of fire, aiming to disrupt the fog absorption. Ezekiel would follow up with his debuffs to weaken and slow the Knight further. Daniel would engage in close combat, drawing its attention and providing openings for James and Lauren to deliver decisive blows.
With a nod from James, the team burst from their hiding spot, charging towards the Fog Knight. Maria unleashed a torrent of flames, the fire cutting through the fog and enveloping the Knight. The creature recoiled, its regeneration process disturbed by the intense heat.
Ezekiel's spells flew through the air, landing on the Knight and sapping its strength. The creature's movements slowed, its armor momentarily flickering under the magical onslaught before it solidified again.
Daniel, his shield up, Bash skill active, charged forward, engaging the Knight head-on. His powerful attack was aimed at one of the creature's weaker points - the armor around its left side, which had received a significant blow from the now-dead Awakener - as identified by Ezekiel's debuffs, which also acted as a laser pointer.
The Knight, however, was far from defenseless. It swung its massive sword, clashing against Daniel's shield with such force that it sent him flying back, his heels digging into the sand.
Using her agility to her advantage, Lauren moved around the battlefield, looking for opportunities to strike. She launched a series of precise attacks, her daggers coated with a slick substance similar to oil, which she had poured on with great care. Her strikes were quick and targeted, aimed at the joints and gaps in the Knight's armor.
She could only get one good hit in before she had to retreat, lest she suffer a similar blow to what had pushed Daniel away, but without the enhanced durability he boasted.
All of them had been blessed with Ezekiel’s best buffs, despite how expensive they were to maintain, and the youngest of the group was forced to down a mana potion to keep them active alongside the slew of debuffs he had already cast on the Knight.
They were all hoping that no more fighting would be necessary after this battle since they’d be tapped out, but going in half-assed was a very efficient way of committing suicide by Elemental.
James, meanwhile, focused his energy, waiting for the right moment. What he had achieved against the Wolf Boss at the end of their fight - using his mana explosion in a much more controlled and disruptive manner - would be extremely useful right now.
Unfortunately, thanks to the urgency they had been called with, he hadn’t had time to properly figure out how to apply it consistently in the same way he could with his simpler explosions or mana “barriers”. Still, he had managed to get the same result a couple of times, and he strongly believed it would work wonders now, too.
It’s the way these things are built. The Knight is much more corporeal than the Sprites or the Mephits, but it’s still made of the same stuff: mana-dense fog. If I can disrupt its internal flow for a single moment, weakened as it is, I’ll do real damage.
The moment Lauren retreated, barely avoiding a sword swing that could have decapitated her cleanly, a barrage of fireballs occupied the Boss’ attention.
It conjured a barrier of mist around its shield, protecting itself from the worst of it, though it once again had to stop its recovery efforts, now entirely focused on the battle.
Small but powerful fireballs continued for a while until James signaled that he was ready. Maria stopped immediately, her chest rising and falling quickly with the significant expenditure.
Before the Knight could try to do anything, James was already there, dense, chaotic mana roiling angrily within his system, waiting to be unleashed.
He leaped forward, thankful to Ezekiel for his boosts, which allowed him not to waste any power to enhance his legs beyond what was strictly necessary.
He reached the Knight, that brought its shield to bear in a swift motion. James, however, was waiting just for that.
Almost gently, he brought his hand forward, tapped the construct and unleashed destruction.