Not just Zack. Ryu and Kenzo also felt the commotion behind them. Turning around they couldn't help but get scared.
“KENZO, ZACK, GET OUT OF THERE!!” Ryo yelled with all his might.
Just a few meters away, a two-meter-tall humanoid creature had appeared out of nowhere and pounced on them.
Everything happened too fast, without giving them time to react. All Kenzo could only watch as the monster approached at high speed towards them with nefarious intentions.
Before the creature could reach them, Kenzo instinctively closed his eyes, perhaps to avoid watching his own body get squashed like a pancake.
There's no way he could survive a surprise attack from a monster like that.
This was all could think in his last moments.
(Guys, I'm sorry)
…
..
.
Hmm?
The expected blow did not seem to arrive.
As the seconds ticked by, Kenzo wondered if he'd already been hit, and he felt nothing from the shock.
"You can open your eyes" Zack's voice, who was still on his back, sounded somewhat amused.
He slowly opened his eyes to see what had happened.
"Ahhhhh!"
Kenzo couldn't help but scream when he saw what his eyes were witnessing.
A huge, clawed-end hand was only inches from his head. The owner of the said hand was looking at them with hungry eyes that promised violence and destruction.
"W-What's going on?" asked Ryu, who was just as surprised to see the monster frozen in midair.
Seeing the expression of his companions, Zack couldn't help but want to laugh a little. At the same time, he was deeply relieved that they had arrived on time.
"It's dungeon magic" Zack replied.
"Magic?"
"Do any of you know how a dungeon works?" Zack took advantage of this moment to dismount from Kenzo's back and put his feet on the ground.
Ryu and Kenzo shook their heads at the same time.
"Each dungeon is basically a huge magical array with the goal of retaining the chaotic mana in the area, preventing it from spreading to the surroundings" Zack began to explain the nature of the formation.
Learning from past situations, Zack tried to explain it to him in the simplest way possible.
In short, the dungeon is a formation made up of overlapping spells that vary in intensity as you get closer to the core of the formation. Each of those spells only has one function, contains chaotic mana, and each spell has a maximum amount of chaotic mana it can contain. The closer you are to the lower floors, the more powerful the spells placed there. Once that limit has been exceeded, the remaining mana flows to the floor above that, where another spell of the same type prevents that mana from dispersing to the surface until it reaches its limit, and so on.
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"Wait" Ryu interrupted mid-explanation.
"If each layer of the formation can only hold mana up to a limit, then the dungeon formation should have been broken by the time it evolved" Kenzo nodded with him.
This will be a secret to take to the grave, but Zack was mildly impressed that Ryu could ask an intelligent question like that.
He responded to the question by shaking his head. "The promotion of the dungeon is not only a quantitative change but also a qualitative one"
Zack felt that the universe return to its place when they looked at him again as if he had grown a second head. Without the slightest idea of what he was saying.
“What makes the formation work is the core of the dungeon, which uses chaotic mana for energy. When a dungeon ascends rank, the chaotic mana transforms qualitatively, and the mana the core receives to function also increases qualitatively, so the formation becomes stronger with the dungeon”
"Yes Yes. That's all very well, but how do you explain that ”Ryu interrupted the explanation again, apparently his patience had run out, and he began to point at the floating monstrosity next to him.
“You don't like my explanation? Then find out for yourself ”Zack said jokingly only to receive a punch on the shoulder from him.
“Ouch. That hurts!"
"You should have thought better of it before being a smartass" Ryu said smiling. Kenzo who was next to him had a neutral expression on his face, but the trembling of his shoulders indicated that he was trying not to laugh.
At some point in the conversation, Zack was also smiling as he rubbed his shoulder with his hand.
It's strange, Zack had never experienced anything like this. It is obvious that they are in an extremely dangerous situation, and are at risk of losing their lives. Despite everything, Zack still has the strength to joke with his teammates.
This feeling was not bad.
"Ahem"
Zack cleared his throat and continued the explanation. "The reason why that monster is paralyzed is that the formation prevents it from entering here" Kenzo and Ryu also acquired expressions of concentration as they listened to Zack.
"What do you mean?"
“The function of the dungeon is to retain the chaotic mana. The monsters in the dungeon possess a huge concentration of chaotic mana in their bodies, enough to materialize into a solid form,” Zack said as he pointed at the monster.
“That is why, the moment the dungeon creatures try to leave their floor, the spell on that floor will prevent them from leaving. The stairs act as a connection point between the multiple spells in the formation but are not part of any of said spells. That is why we can go from one floor to another but the monsters cannot” Zack concluded his explanation.
There are many more aspects of the dungeon that Zack hasn't explained. Forget the true form of the spell, even the chaotic mana distribution theory he relies on is enough to give many scholars a headache.
The first dungeon was created a long time ago, so long ago that the name of the creator was forgotten. Multiple kingdoms and races claim to be related to this figure, but nothing has been proven.
One thing is for sure, the mage who designed the formation of the dungeons is the first documented tier 4 mage to date.
Although Zack doesn't know how strong a true tier 4 mage is, that doesn't stop him from having some respect for someone who has gotten to such a point through his efforts.
During the short time that Zack has been studying magic, every day he learns something new, and secrets that he had never imagined before were slowly unfolding before him.
Zack is unaware at exactly what point magic became more than just a means to survive. It may not be much now but someday...
"And what do we do now?" a voice sounded, waking Zack from his ideas about the future.
“If what you say is true, monsters stronger than we can deal with are now on the way back. How are we going to get back?" Kenzo asked as he and Ryu looked at Zack, hoping he had a solution.
During their time here, they are starting to consider Zack as the team´s leader. Zack has proven to be the most prepared of the three. Not only in the fight against the wolves but also when their guard tried to kill them.
If it hadn't been for Zack, it's easily predictable what would have happened to them.
Seeing the looks of his companions, Zack approached them slowly.
"It's true. In these circumstances, it is very difficult to return to the surface. Although we did have some strength, and we were able to get rid of the monsters on the upper floors, that was before the promotion of the dungeon. If we go now, as we are, the chances are that we won't be able to cross a single floor. Don't worry, I have a plan"
Noticing the attention of his companions, Zack looked into their eyes and said:
"We wait"
"Eh?"