After our little break, we progressed forwards, making considerable headway into the caverns deeper levels. Through the multiple unexpected mana beasts charging away at us, they managed to maintain my brash display as I dispatched the now infinitesimal cubes of flesh intermingled with the arenaceous ground.

They in their own right, also contributed considerably. The three brothers were admittedly weak when their strengths were split, but when amalgamated, their proficiency and swiftness prevailed ending their bouts, against reasonably challenging beasts, in a few spear strikes. The three of them had something more than a normal bond and that was clear as their thoughts intertwined during the battle. Their styles and senses, though comparable to amateur rookies, complimented each over, creating the by-product of a seasoned adventurer. Not strong, but efficient enough to handle himself.

The calm instructions and raw strength of the eldest served as the operator for the other two, the youngest dashed in with his speed creating minor cuts along the body, and the finishers came from the naturally battle crazed middle child. His near instinctive reflexes to locate and cleanly strike the beasts weak points were something even I considered quite amazing.

“Yeah! We did it!” Millen raised his arms happily in the air, sweat dripping off him and his cheeks flaring a rosy colour.

“To your right.” I calmly spoke and Millen reflexively jumped back, terror in his eyes. But that wouldn’t remain for long, his two brothers leaping in front of him harnessing the acute tip of their weapons at the creature steadily coming to a halt. They slowly began walking in a circle, like eagles ready to swoop down, hawking the others movements. The beast riled up, snarls at them, drool hanging in hot breath and gracelessly falling to the ground in splatters. The first to make a move, disproving my thoughts, was Rokas, dashing at the beast with a brutish drive at its back leg, extending his spear forward and lunging his body in accordance with the motion. The Gaia Lion attempted moving backwards, but it's stocky and large build wasn’t able to realign its movements into a safe direction, the cold iron puncturing its back legs calf muscle and ripping away its dark stone skin complexion.

“Haghhhhhh!” Gringe roared out fiercely, dealing the final blow and skewering the lion's head.

“Are you okay, Millen?” The two of them spoke in unison, helping him up off the raw adamantine floor. He joyfully slipped them a radiant smile and reached out for their suspended hands ready to pull him up.

“Don’t drop your guard, Millen. Your brothers and I would be so very distraught if such a thing were to occur…though for different reasons.” My voice trailed off towards the end so the brothers were oblivious to my last comment, but the words that did reach them, seemed to ease their wariness of me. Especially Millen. He seemed very direct in trusting me and started to cling around me like he would to his brothers.

But do they actually like this kind of behaviour from him? All I can feel is the suffocating and annoying presence of an overbearing child. Maybe their love is beyond my understanding? Or perhaps the connection I hope to achieve between them is the wrong one? I’ve made attempts to progress my connections with my parents and I certainly see them as something. I don’t think love is the right word yet, but familiarity and dependability could fall beneath that umbrella. That is certainly much more than with them. Well, I’m not too fussed if I grow close to them. They’re just my live experiment. A living book of sorts I can hopefully use.

“Alright, follow me. We’re almost at one of the lair bosses in the caverns.” I spoke, turning away from them and resuming our march.

See the challenger caverns were a mysterious place nobody has ever mapped out. The reason? Well, the layout changes once you leave. You can never return to the same path once you’ve tread past it once. And though this may be unfortunate, it also means that the boundless excursions and dungeon boss raids you can do are limitless, or so far we speculate. This is exactly the price I’ve been seeking since entering. Once I acquire the loot and the life of the boss, I will be able to exit and return to my family.

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Hopefully sooner, rather than later.

The accessible tunnels worming around the inner workings of the cave slowly began to slim into a thin passageway strangled by two climbing walls. I’m sure the image vividly depicted from above would be looking into an unusually precarious ravine.

We watchfully side-stepped, clinging to the irregular jagged walls cementing in peaking spikes, through the passageway to arrive at a grand chamber visible already, even whilst I remained behind everybody else. The last one of them had finally squeezed past and I was to follow until an inordinate tremor rumbled through the cave. The shockwaves reverberated and the entrance began collapsing on top of me.

“Eli!” Rokas desperately tried extending his hand to meet mine and pull me in, but he would not make it. Through the tumbling rumble, a leather laced hand seemed to crawl from behind him, or at least what I caught from the little I saw.

After our little break, we progressed forwards, making considerable headway into the caverns deeper levels. Through the multiple unexpected mana beasts charging away at us, they managed to maintain my brash display as I dispatched the now infinitesimal cubes of flesh intermingled with the arenaceous ground.

They in their own right, also contributed considerably. The three brothers were admittedly weak when their strengths were split, but when amalgamated, their proficiency and swiftness prevailed ending their bouts, against reasonably challenging beasts, in a few spear strikes. The three of them had something more than a normal bond and that was clear as their thoughts intertwined during the battle. Their styles and senses, though comparable to amateur rookies, complimented each over, creating the by-product of a seasoned adventurer. Not strong, but efficient enough to handle himself.

The calm instructions and raw strength of the eldest served as the operator for the other two, the youngest dashed in with his speed creating minor cuts along the body, and the finishers came from the naturally battle crazed middle child. His near instinctive reflexes to locate and cleanly strike the beasts weak points were something even I considered quite amazing.

“Yeah! We did it!” Millen raised his arms happily in the air, sweat dripping off him and his cheeks flaring a rosy colour.

“To your right.” I calmly spoke and Millen reflexively jumped back, terror in his eyes. But that wouldn’t remain for long, his two brothers leaping in front of him harnessing the acute tip of their weapons at the creature steadily coming to a halt. They slowly began walking in a circle, like eagles ready to swoop down, hawking the others movements. The beast riled up, snarls at them, drool hanging in hot breath and gracelessly falling to the ground in splatters. The first to make a move, disproving my thoughts, was Rokas, dashing at the beast with a brutish drive at its back leg, extending his spear forward and lunging his body in accordance with the motion. The Gaia Lion attempted moving backwards, but it's stocky and large build wasn’t able to realign its movements into a safe direction, the cold iron puncturing its back legs calf muscle and ripping away its dark stone skin complexion.

“Haghhhhhh!” Gringe roared out fiercely, dealing the final blow and skewering the lion's head.

“Are you okay, Millen?” The two of them spoke in unison, helping him up off the raw adamantine floor. He joyfully slipped them a radiant smile and reached out for their suspended hands ready to pull him up.

“Don’t drop your guard, Millen. Your brothers and I would be so very distraught if such a thing were to occur…though for different reasons.” My voice trailed off towards the end so the brothers were oblivious to my last comment, but the words that did reach them, seemed to ease their wariness of me. Especially Millen. He seemed very direct in trusting me and started to cling around me like he would to his brothers.

But do they actually like this kind of behaviour from him? All I can feel is the suffocating and annoying presence of an overbearing child. Maybe their love is beyond my understanding? Or perhaps the connection I hope to achieve between them is the wrong one? I’ve made attempts to progress my connections with my parents and I certainly see them as something. I don’t think love is the right word yet, but familiarity and dependability could fall beneath that umbrella. That is certainly much more than with them. Well, I’m not too fussed if I grow close to them. They’re just my live experiment. A living book of sorts I can hopefully use.

“Alright, follow me. We’re almost at one of the lair bosses in the caverns.” I spoke, turning away from them and resuming our march.

See the challenger caverns were a mysterious place nobody has ever mapped out. The reason? Well, the layout changes once you leave. You can never return to the same path once you’ve tread past it once. And though this may be unfortunate, it also means that the boundless excursions and dungeon boss raids you can do are limitless, or so far we speculate. This is exactly the price I’ve been seeking since entering. Once I acquire the loot and the life of the boss, I will be able to exit and return to my family.

Hopefully sooner, rather than later.

The accessible tunnels worming around the inner workings of the cave slowly began to slim into a thin passageway strangled by two climbing walls. I’m sure the image vividly depicted from above would be looking into an unusually precarious ravine.

We watchfully side-stepped, clinging to the irregular jagged walls cementing in peaking spikes, through the passageway to arrive at a grand chamber visible already, even whilst I remained behind everybody else. The last one of them had finally squeezed past and I was to follow until an inordinate tremor rumbled through the cave. The shockwaves reverberated and the entrance began collapsing on top of me.

“Eli!” Rokas desperately tried extending his hand to meet mine and pull me in, but he would not make it. Through the tumbling rumble, a leather laced hand seemed to crawl from behind him, or at least what I caught from the little I saw.