“Holy-crap…”

I couldn’t help but let out an audible gasp at the scenery. I know it’s mostly my fault for not asking Isaac what to expect, or if he knows where we are heading since it seemed like he knew a lot. Even if he told me everything, I still wouldn’t be prepared. Not even in a million years.

The first thing I noticed was that the sky was on fire, with plumes of black smoke that stretched endlessly across the horizon- on par with the ocean in terms of scale. Ragged mountains that looked to be made of obsidian littered the plains, as tall as mount Everest. Harpies and wyverns alike flocked the skies, with some of them even duking it out. A harpy lost the battle when the wyvern bit one of its wings off and had it careening toward a cliffside. It was then eaten alive by the victor, the wyvern having the feast of its life. Just breathing in the air stung my lungs, like I was inhaling fire and brimstone. My [Heat Resistance] mastery wasn’t helping in the slightest, meaning that my mastery was not at a high enough level to bear with it.

“This place,” I croaked. “Is this hell?”

“It’s similar, but not really.”

I turned around to see Darion and Isaac walking side by side with grim faces as they looked around this hellscape.

“This place is the infamous Tartarus,” Isaac said.

…This is Tartarus? The portal we entered just now, it was a gateway to Tartarus, of all places?! I think I made a grave mistake in coming here.

“What a hellhole,” Darion muttered, wiping away a bead of sweat. I could tell that he was putting up a front, but was visibly nervous as the fingers wrapped around his spear were fidgeting. Isaac, on the other hand, seems to be completely fine. Is he not bothered by this?

“Why do you seem fine? I don’t see you sweating or making any faces that signify you're uncomfortable.”

“It's because my [Heat Resistance] mastery is at level six. This is basically room temperature to me,” he replied with a shrug.

Level six? What the heck did he do to get that high of a mastery?

“I see no signs of that rat bastard anywhere. They couldn’t have covered that much ground though...” Isaac reached into his pocket and pulled out a navigation tool. The holographic red arrow appeared, pointing south of here.

“The item is around here somewhere. Those bastards can’t have gone far.”

“…Excuse me. What exactly is this item?” I asked Isaac. He stared at me blankly for a couple of seconds until he smacked his forehead.

“That’s right! You guys don’t know what’s going on. My bad, I totally forgot about that. Basically, this item-“

An immense shadow appeared from the dark clouds above. “Behind you!”

A red wyvern was flying straight toward Isaac with its maw wide open. As I was running to intercept the wyvern, I soon found out that I was worrying for nothing. Without even acknowledging the monster behind him, Isaac simply snapped his fingers, still facing our direction. An icicle the same size as Darion’s spear pierced right through the wyvern’s skull. The wyvern’s corpse crashed right into the black soul, leaving behind a trail of dark dust.

“...Is a powerful object capable of rewriting the world to the user’s desire. I heard it was being closely guarded by a powerful creature. Or creatures. Cardinal Nicholas wants to acquire this item for the Pillars, our enemy, and hand it to them. If that were to happen, big changes will be coming, and it won’t be pretty,” Isaac finished. He waited for us to respond if we had anything else on our minds, but Darion and I were still in shock.

“Uh… Any more questions?”

“No, don’t do that! You can’t act like nothing happened at all!”

“What’s the problem here? All I did was kill a single wyvern…” Isaac was at a loss for words for why I was acting like this, but I didn’t care.

“It’s not what you killed, but how you killed it!”

“Ohh, you mean that! Well, because of my magic, I'm very sensitive when it comes to sensing mana, and that wyvern’s mana signatures were right there, so I knew it was coming a mile away. Also, because I hone my skills every day with barely any rest I’m able to cast my magic quickly.”

Obviously! With just a snap of a finger, you were able to conjure an icicle spear in an instant and killed a wyvern all in a single second! It would’ve taken Leo four seconds, at most, to do what you did! Is he a stronger magic caster than Leo? Just where in the world was he this whole time? To have never heard of someone of this caliber…

My train of thought was interrupted when a booming scream from behind had us all turning our heads. From afar, a flock of wyverns was gliding over a mountain, snapping their jaws.

“U-Um… guys. I think they’re coming this way."

“Well? What are you waiting for? Lead us to them,” Darion urged.

Isaac stared at the flock. “Yea, I don’t want to fight all of those monsters so let's book it!”

After weighing his decisions, Isaac ran as fast as he could. Darion and I followed along. As we sprinted for our lives, I made a mental note of my surroundings in case we were to be lost. Tartarus was a dark and gloomy place. The only sources of light came from the burning sky and the lava pools that littered our path. The pillars of dark smoke above could be considered the ‘clouds’ under here. Geysers made from lava would sprout from the bottom, and transform into molten rock moments later. The place was so bad, I thought it would be impossible for any living creature to survive, but thoughts are meant to be proven wrong.

All manner of creatures lived here, the most notable are harpies and wyverns like the ones before. There were fire-breathing oxen the size of rhinos, two tails flicking back and forth. Lizards ranging from all sizes, the average being as tall as a three-story building with tails that could probably snap my bones like twigs. The freakiest of them all, in my opinion, is the floating eyeball creatures. They were in the shape of spheres, with two red horns on their leathery, blistery skin. When one of them got too close, I would punt them away like they were a football, and then I would regret my decision instantly when a wet squishing sound followed after. I’ve only been here for four minutes, and I already want to go home and curl into my soft bed and read manga while petting my fluffy dog bucky. This is just way too much stimulation for a nineteen-year-old girl!

Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on Royal Road.

I peeked over my shoulder to check if the wyverns were still chasing. Sure enough, they still were, and their speed was progressively rising.

“U-Um, I don’t think we can outrun them! And I don’t see any places here to hide… It’s just rocks, rocks, and more rocks!"

“You’re right. Looks like we’ve got no other choice,” Isaac said as he put away the navigation tool for safekeeping. He halted his pace and faced the swarm of wyverns heading our way.

Isaac held up a palm, facing it toward the monsters. “This is a good time to see your skills in action. Now, I don’t want to expend too much mana here. Gotta save it for later, so a lot of them will still be alive. Meaning, you guys pick them off. Capeesh?”

I can’t tell if he’s being cocky, or if he’s truly confident in his magic. All I can do is hope he can back up his words.

“…You’re making it sound like you’ll kill more than half of them. There’s at least fifty of them.” Darion was doubtful of Isaac's skills. I guess he doesn’t believe that Isaac can kill even a quarter of the monsters.

“Heh. Watch me."

Suddenly, rows of icicle spears were being created right above our heads. The air has gone a little bit cold after Isaac finished constructing them. Then, with a flick of his wrist, unleashed a hailstorm of ice at the wyverns as soon as they entered his strike zone. A symphony of screeches resonated throughout Tartarus as the monsters were being pierced through one by one. Unfortunately, the ones in the back were unscathed and adapted to the new situation as they flew far apart from each other. It’s a smart tactic since the ones killed were tumbling into the other wyverns, causing a domino effect.

“Sophie, they’re coming,” Darion warned, twirling his spear around. He would do this whenever he was about to use one of his masteries. A slew of scattered monsters was barreling toward Darion with hungry eyes, but he wasn’t intimidated by their numbers or reptilian appearance.

On Isaac's side, he had just finished killing at least half of the wyverns, just as he pledged. I quickly counted that twenty-five were left, with thirteen of them being handled by Darion. The leftover wyverns had their eyes set on me instead. It’s shocking that they haven’t tucked tails and run away even though half of them were slaughtered. I guess wyverns are fearless creatures…

“Okay… let’s do this.”

I took deep breaths, mentally keeping note to focus. I still have about twenty seconds before the wyverns are on top of me. Before that happens, I’ll dwindle their numbers as much as I can. For how I’ll do that, I have a mastery that I’ve been practicing in times like this. I had to figure out a way to combat my one fatal flaw: reach. As someone who does kickboxing for self-defense, and for… other reasons, I am a close-range fighter. My reach is limited to how far my arms and legs can extend, and that is a flaw that needs correction.

Joel knew of my dilemma and gave advice on how to narrow the gap. He guided and instructed me on how to control my mana and infuse them into my fists. At first, it was difficult since my mana control wasn’t the greatest, but I persevered through the tribulation just so I wouldn’t hold my teammates back. I didn’t want to be seen as useless and be tossed aside like a rag. Every day and night, I practiced my mana control to the point where my arms grew numb, and my bones creaked. I practiced every day by going through the motions of punching and meditation, day in and day out. Frankly, as time went on, I thought I would never be able to accomplish my goal, but I still pushed through. When things were looking bleak… right when I was going to give in… it finally happened.

I was able to shoot a blast of mana out from my fists. I was astonished at what I accomplished as I stared at my sweaty palms. It was a remarkable day for me as I finally achieved the goal I’ve been fighting for. My blood, sweat, and tears weren’t for nothing. As I looked at my Status screen and checked my masteries, the skill I’ve been working hard for was shown in white: [Mana Fist].

When activated, I’m freely able to transfer the mana within my body and allocate it to my fists. I then create a mental picture of mana being released from my fists and project it outwards. The more mana I input, the more powerful the attack becomes.

I widened my stance while facing the wyverns and extended one of my arms. Picturing myself releasing a fist of mana was second nature to me. Immediately afterward, a wave of power was released from my fist. It soared through the air, striking a wyvern squarely in its face. Blood splattered upon impact, instantly killing it in one blow. These monsters are no match for me if they were to die by a single blow.

Without stopping, I continued bombarding the squealing wyverns as they tried desperately to avoid my attacks. This went on until a mountain of corpses was jumbled on top of each other, leaving one wyvern left. Unsurprisingly, instead of running away, the wyvern simply charged forward. I didn’t even need to use [Mana Fist] anymore. Assuming a defensive stance, with my arms level with my face, I waited until the wyvern was now a few feet. It leaped high into the air and dove headfirst with its maw open, showcasing a row of sharp teeth.

A mighty uppercut from me sent the truck-sized creature spiraling into the sky, and back down to the dirt moments later. A large chunk of its scaly face was blown away from the impact as if a small grenade exploded. I heard someone whistling from behind.

“Whew… That looked like it came straight out of a cartoon! Remind me to never mess with you!” Isaac joked as he pointed at the monster.

“…Tell me about it.” Darion clicked his tongue, standing behind Isaac. Over at his end, many of the wyverns he defeated have gaping holes in either their chest or head, like they were hit by a concentrated beam of air.

“I wish I could’ve had a bag of popcorn on me! Watching you two fight was preeeeetty neat. Are you guys like, one of the strongest on Earth, or are you average?” Isaac was beaming with joy as he awaited our reply.

I blushed at his attentiveness. “Er… H-Have you never heard of us? We’re the Six Hunters… It’s hard for anyone to not recognize us." I kept averting my gaze from Isaac's piercing stares.

“The Six Hunters? Is that some sort of group? Wait, don’t tell me… Is it a guild? Please tell me it’s a guild. I always wanted to join one ever since I’ve been in Athiens,” the excited boy rambled.

“You aren’t part of a guild? Someone as strong as you? I-Impossible!”

There’s no way he cannot be affiliated with a guild! I refuse to believe that! He’s got to be messing with us. If not…. I have to recruit him!

However, Darion was already one step ahead of me.

“If you aren’t in a guild, you should join mine, Dungeon Squadron. We’re a raiding team that conquers Dungeons. We also pay our members handsomely.” Darion sounded like an army recruiter inspecting a batch of fresh meat.

“Say no more. I’m in! Where do we start?” Isaac grinned. I don’t know if it's my imagination, but I could’ve sworn I sensed an unhealthy amount of enthusiasm in his eyes…

Creepy…

“U-Um… if you haven’t noticed… we have people to chase. It's not a good idea to stand around…" Not to mention that we are in a monster-infested hellhole like Tartarus!

“You’re right. Recruitment will have to wait. Lead the way Dungeon Squadron rookie.” Darion remarked off-handedly.

“Sir yes sir, guild leader!” Isaac saluted, not caring that he was formally greeting someone younger than him. After that, they both ran off together, leaving me behind as I stared hard at the two. Not wanting to fall behind, I hurriedly chased after the boys as I glanced at my Status screen.

Status Inventory Name: Sophie Rank: 14th Strength: 63 Agility: 50 Durability: 58 Mana: 42 Masteries Martial Arts Lvl 5 Violent Fist Lvl 5 Fist Barrage Lvl 5 Mana Barrier Lvl 3 Night Vision Lvl 3 Muscle Strengthening Lvl 4 Mana Fist Lvl 4 Heat Resistance Lvl 3