James felt a sense of relaxation when going back to the 17th floor. He had tried a few new things. Succeeded in some and was ready to tackle the 23rd floor anew. The puzzle would surely change once he bypassed the memory beasts, but it could be beaten with time, and he had plenty of that.

He was also refreshed due to how he reset the loop. He hadn’t fought for what must have been at least an hour and died painlessly thanks to the dungeon’s power. James stepped back on to the 17th floor with a plan and goal for the 23rd and 24th floors. All he had to do for now was replicate his previous success until hitting a new point in the loop.

“We need to fix your shield,” said James. “It is going to break soon if we don’t do anything and that means our deaths. We need you and your equipment in the best shape so that you can take the hits for the rest of us. If you fail to do your job then we will fail soon after.”

He picked up the skeletal knight’s sword and turned to Ian next.

“Summon your bonded beast please.”

“My panthera night cat. Why?”

“The exit gate doesn’t want to work right now so that means we all must work together to fight through each level of the dungeon. That means your cat assisting us as well. You will need to bring it out soon enough anyway. We might as well have it with us now to help us deal with the coming challenges.”

Ian focused inward and made contact with his bonded animal within himself. A moment later the panther appeared next to him in a flash of light. It had long sharp claws. Its eyes were pitch black. It was longer than James was tall and had large lynx-like ears. Its fur was a dark gray meant for stalking in the night without standing out as a dark void in its nature habitat.

“Does it have its core unlocked?” asked James.

“No. It does not have any magic available to it beyond its natural body enhancements. We bonded a year ago. I was told it would come in slowly, but I didn’t realize how slow. Nowadays she is a glorified racehorse until she is combat-ready.”

“That is a shame. She will be of help on the 19th floor killing spiders at least. I will have to judge for myself once we get properly in the thick of things. For now, have her stay nearby you and we will start clearing the floors until we get to the 25th. Because of the changes to the dungeon, I will help you fully. To help you all out I have the enchanted items for you. Ian, you will get yours on the 20th floor after repairing Wes’s shield.”

James and the novices left for the 18th floor with its minotaur maze. Ian’s panthera stayed near him as they walked the corridors. Its overall effect on their run was minimal. It stayed behind next to Ian when combined with the small corridors meant it rarely attacked the minotaurs.

Derek and Wes led them all and did a good job of keeping back the minotaurs with the assist of the others. With James’s help, they walked through the maze quickly and got to the boss fight. The boss fight was more open and allowed the panthera to show more of its capabilities. It pounced on the minotaur’s back and tore up the boss’s armor with its claws. As a stalking predator, it was a bit out of its depth fighting in the dungeon, but it fought as well as it possibly could.

Once the minotaur boss fell they moved on to the 19th floor. James and the novices collected the parts required to build the traps and repair Wes’s shield. James followed the same process repairing Wes’s shield and used Ian’s help liquefying the metal so that it could be used.

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The shield felt strange in James’s hands once it was finished. He had used almost identical wood pieces and cut up the slabs to fit. In the end, the shield gained the same two enchantments inherent to the weapons used to reforge the shield. Strength of the Minotaur and Bones of the Knight gave the added strength and health Wes needed to survive the upcoming encounters.

With the shield in his hands, Wes gained a little confidence and admired the rough craftsman shift of it all. James also appreciated it in his own way. He had seen Wes fight with the shield for days by now and it had been a vital tool for him but now it needed to be upgraded, repaired, and improved.

Fighting against the spiders became a bit easier with the help of Ian’s panthera cat. Its claws swatted away the spears of the monsters and when it came time for the boss her attacks were brutal. Using her weight and strong paws she crushed and decimated the mini-spiders just as effectively as her fire-wielding counterpart. This freed up some room for the others as they focused on the spider queen. With James’s direction and his overwhelming firepower thanks to his mana arrow they were able to clear the floor in their fastest time yet.

This confidence spilled into the 20th floor as they fought against the demon boss.

Wes was eager to face the demon with his new shield. He had only defended for a short period of time against the spider queen before it was taken down. James and Naomi pelted the demon tripping it up before it reached Wes. Their arrows had killed its momentum so it’s charge ended with a whimper instead of a bang.

The demon pushed against Wes initially before realizing that he would not budge. It pushed Wes once more before sidestepping him. It chose to go at James instead of Derek. The demon burned James and cut up his clothes.

The novices reacted quickly. Wes performed a shield bash and Derek cut at he demon’s arms releasing James in the process. Ian stepped in to perform burn maintenance. While that was occurring Ian’s panthera also joined in the fight.

The cat jumped at the demon. Its claws sank into the monster’s skin. Ian was busy putting James out as the others fought. The two beasts struggled and the panthera gained burns and it’s fur smoked. Derek went in to break up the fight but could not get a clean blow on the demon. It was ultimately Wes who forced them apart with a bash of his shield. The pair released their grips on one another and spread apart long enough for Derek to step in.

Derek kept the demon occupied long enough for Wes to shield the team. They regrouped once James was stable and brought all the firepower they had. In a more coordinated manner than they had the first time around they finished off the demon.

James fell down as soon as he got into the safe zone. His burns started to numb before the healing process started a minute later. Ian’s panthera guzzled a heath potion to jumpstart it’s healing wounds. Once it was in a more stable condition Ian pulled it into his soul space for a more complete healing. Overtime his mana regeneration would be diverted to bringing the panthera back to its healthy state. The others sat down exhausted by the fight.

James focused on his mana and decided to work on his mage exercises. He thought back to his time on the 23rd floor a brought out the water snake. It curled around his hand and began to perform its dance again.

“I recognize that.”

James stuttered in his mana outflow and that caused the water snake to dissolve. He turned and looked at Ian.

“How did you learn that technique?”

“It is something from the magic academy.”

“I know that, but you are a trained archer, not a mage.”

James thought for a moment before responding.

“I learned it a long time ago back when I was a bit younger than yourself. I originally wanted to follow the path of the mage. It is part of the reason why I can use some of the more advanced techniques in mana arrows. But it was not meant to be. I don’t have the mana capacity for it. For my troubles trying to get into the academy I learned the technique from your father, Dustin, he was a senior student at the time helping the admissions office. How did you learn of it?”

“I first saw my father practice it with his other training exercises and told me that he would teach me once my ice affinity grew in like it was supposed to and would match him. That day hasn’t come yet. Me and Kira are like that I guess. Slow in our development.”

Ian patted his heart where his panthera rested and was recovering. James took out the small, boxed reward from the 20th floor and handed it to Ian.

“I picked this up earlier. It is an enchanted ring. You should find it useful. You’ve earned it.”