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"Didn't they clean this dungeon three days ago?" Theodore mutters, incredulous.
"Hey, I'm glad they missed this one. More XP for us," Darius whispers.
He clearly wants to raise his voice—that’s his usual state. But when faced with a creature they’ve never seen or fought before... I think it's impressive that he's able to hold back and avoid drawing the naga's attention.
Although, thinking about it, if it’s a boss, it won’t do anything as long as we stay outside the room, even if we're watching from the entrance.
Vincent is on guard. So is Alistair. Mary has taken a step back, looking nervous. Ronan... Oh my gosh! Ronan's staring at the creature, eyes gleaming like he's just unwrapped the best present ever.
Up until now, the necromancer had only shown interest in the lizards we encountered at the beginning. He even leaned over the edge of the cart to get a better look, but after a quick glance, he settled back without much thought.
Darius notices Ronan's excitement too, giving him a curious look.
"Alright, let's get into formation," the prince starts.
"My lady," Ronan interrupts, speaking only to me. "Watch out for the dead that hide. I’ve felt them since we entered the dungeon, but in this room, they are much closer."
The naga, calm and waiting until now, lifts its head at that moment. It hisses, locking its vertical pupils onto Ronan. Another hiss, then it glances at the rest of us, raising its swords into an attack stance.
"Thanks, Ronan," Vincent says, ignoring the fact that the information wasn't meant for him. Somehow, ever since the skeletons started obeying him, he's been accepting our new teammate's peculiar ways.
He's a prince—not the firstborn heir, but he’s still been educated in leadership and diplomacy. Maybe that's why he doesn’t mind Ronan's odd behavior as long as the necromancer and his undead follow his orders.
Honestly, I’m glad his pride isn't so fragile that he’d be upset over being interrupted.
“So,” Vincent continues, gesturing to us, “we’ll hold our ground in the corridor, since that room could wipe us out."
"Understood," Alistair nods.
The naga hisses mockingly and waves us forward, taunting.
"Joe," Ronan commands.
Immediately, the skeleton archer nocks an arrow, pulls back the bowstring, and fires. The naga keeps taunting, but the arrow strikes it square in the chest. The creature dips its chin to examine the wound, then lifts its head again, flaring its crests and hissing louder.
Theodore reacts, launching a frost spike at it. The naga swiftly crosses its swords, intercepting the spell mid-air and shattering it, leaving behind a long shard of ice and many small splinters. The ice splinters scatter in every direction as the main body of the frost spike rebounds heavily.
Joe fires again. This time, the arrow strikes its abdomen.
The naga glares at us, furious, and swiftly coils around one of the columns, slithering up with surprising agility. Within moments, it vanishes from view.
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“Bob, it’s your turn. Be careful,” Ronan says.
Curiously, his words aren’t devoid of emotion—they sound worried.
The skeleton nods and steps into the room, slow and cautious, examining the walls, ceiling, and columns before taking each step. We watch him intently. I can feel my heart pounding, afraid he might shatter into pieces at any moment.
After a few meters, multiple traps are triggered—or perhaps the naga activates them. First, a clicking sound is heard, and Bob stops, raising his shield. Immediately, large stone slabs shift away from the floor and walls. On the ground, the slabs land on neighboring stones, and sharp metal spikes shoot up from the gaps, propelled by springs. Bob steps back just in time—one of the slabs he was about to step on is among those with spikes.
As for the stone slabs that fell from the walls, they crash to the ground, some shattering into pieces while others remain intact. From the cavities in the walls, human-sized mummies emerge, dressed in light cloth garments and wielding swords in their right hands.
They begin charging at us.
Bob, zigzagging to avoid the squares with spikes, tries to return to his position in the formation —but fails. The naga descends from one of the nearby columns and intercepts him halfway. With agility far superior to the skeleton’s, it pierces him between the ribs with both swords.
Ronan shouts as he watches.
The skeleton drops its spear and grabs hold of the swords, confusing the naga greatly.
I admit I’m a bit baffled myself. Why did the naga try to pierce him as if he were an enemy with flesh and organs? Has it never fought a skeleton before?
Meanwhile, Alistair runs toward them, positioning himself so Bob’s body and tattered clothing obscure him as much as possible from the creature’s line of sight. I think he succeeds because the naga continues staring at the blades in its bony fingers.
The redhead leaps and strikes the naga’s tail with his heavy mace while casting an explosion spell right where the weapon hits. The mace crushes the naga’s tail, and the fire spell severs it in two. The blast sends flames surging outward, setting Bob’s cloak on fire.
The creature screams in pain, releasing the swords. Without its main structural support, it falls face-first to the ground. The mummies are now closing in on them, attacking Alistair and Bob—some directly with their swords, while others try to encircle them, cutting off their retreat to us.
It’s my turn.
The earth wall I’ve been preparing for the last few seconds surrounds our two allies, encasing them in a hardened dome of earth.
The mummies’ swords clang against my spell. For now, they fail to break it. They begin pounding it from every angle.
However, not all the undead are distracted by my wall; more than half advance ferociously toward us. As they approach, Vincent sheaths his sword and unleashes a flurry of wind blades—slices of magic that cleave many of the mummies in two. With their numbers reduced, the battle starts turning in our favor. We gain ground and push into the chamber.
The naga is nowhere to be seen. The last I knew, it fell when its tail was severed, and my wall left it on the other side of our allies.
The prince has drawn his sword again, engaging in close combat alongside Darius, Tom, and me. It’s hard not to channel an element into my blade, but I can’t risk anyone noticing. Earth tempts me most—it would make my weapon heavier and more durable. It’s the most discreet element. Still, there’s a faint glow on the blade, and in this world, no one can infuse their weapon with magic.
Theodore stays close to Mary, ready to protect her. Joe is firing arrows from the rear alongside them.
With the odds increasingly in our favor, we start spreading out to better combat the remaining mummies.
The ones trapped by my wall are still hammering away at it. I feel the connection with the earth I shaped—it’s holding for now, but I can sense weak spots forming. A few more strikes, and it’ll give way. Fortunately, we’ve dealt with the mummies charging at us, so we move to assist Alistair and Bob.
Seconds tick by, consumed by the chaos of battle.
Suddenly, I see the naga again.
It’s perched on one of the pillars. The missing part of its tail has made climbing harder, but not impossible. Its claws and powerful arms make up for it, so it’s no surprise it managed to get up there. Its reptilian eyes are fixed on Darius, staring intently.
"Darius, above!" I shout to warn him.
The warrior has just dispatched a mummy and is searching for his next target. Hearing me, he looks up and freezes under the naga’s gaze.
The creature leaps toward Darius, arms outstretched, aiming its long claws at him. Fear grips me. Those muscular arms could easily tear my friend in half.
He’s not moving, not dodging. Time seems to slow for him too, paralyzed by fear.
It’s going to kill him! I think, panicking, unable to act.
Then Joe, who must have seen it from behind, throws himself at Darius, pushing him to the ground. The impact snaps the redhead out of his stupor. But now Joe is in the exact spot where the naga lands. The creature strikes, crushing his skull with a bite and ripping off his arms—one in each hand—its muscles straining with raw power.
I hear Ronan scream in anguish.
"No!"