> [SIN WRAITH defeated.]
>
> [Leveled up.]
Jinyoung tried to catch his breath. Undead monsters like wraiths and skeletons were resistant to physical attacks. There was no muscle to cut and no skin to pierce and their bones were harder than stone.
But lethal blows were deadly to just about anything the dungeons could birth, including the undead.
“I wasn’t sure that would work.”
“Well, I hope you can do it again because there’s at least three more,” Hana replied.
Jinyoung paused, looking at Hana who had her shield raised and had her head on a swivel.
“Where’s the other one?” he asked.
Youngho stepped off the catwalk above their heads and landed on the ground in front of them. The old warrior was bruised, but still in one piece.
“I took one out so there should be two left,” he said.
The siblings couldn’t help but be impressed. Armed with nothing but his fists, Youngho had not only held his own against two sin wraiths, he had killed one of them.
Jinyoung [scanned] the area, looking for the two remaining wraiths but the system returned nothing.
“They’re just… gone.”
***
Halmae moved her feet quickly, but she ran slowly. There was an undeniable oldness to the way the grizzled woman ran brought a smile to Willow’s face. Willow kept pace just ahead, but turned around frequently to make sure she didn’t get too far from her new companion.
“Up ahead!” Halmae shouted.
Willow was impressed. The old woman had spotted a small group of Frostbitten congregating in front of a building.
“[Arcane shot]!”
The spell burned through the air and hit the closest monster, tumbling him forward into the other four that stood with it. Immediately, the others reacted and stumbled over each other to sprint at Willow.
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“Good job, girl!”
Halmae ran until she had caught up with Willow. The burly warrior gripped her oversized greatsword and planted her feet firmly.
“Get down!”
Willow swiftly lay down on the cold gravel and closed her eyes in preparation for Halmae’s attack. Even at lower levels, a [charged strike] by a fighter can deal significant damage to opponents. Unlike scholars who focus their mana and imbue it with an element or force, fighters focus their mana into weapons or their fists to increase the explosive force of their own attacks.
“[Charged strike]!”
The greatsword swung around like a clock hand as Halmae held on from the center. Imbued with mana, the blade glowed white hot and left a trail of light behind it as it cut through armor and flesh. Even with her eyes closed, Willow could see the glow of the sword as it passed over her face.
“Done, girl!” Halmae called out.
Willow opened her eyes and sat up to see the bodies of the Frostbitten splayed out on the street around her. It was a sad sight, but undeniably impressive to see what the aged player was capable of.
“Ain’t that a show?” Grim called out and he jogged over.
Together, he and Seunghyo had watched from afar as Willow and Halmae cleared out the last of the Frostbitten.
“What about you two?” Halmae shot back. “Or have you been leaving the heavy lifting to the women?”
Seunghyo shook his head. “We’ve cleared the other Frostbitten in the city for now.”
The pathfinder knelt down and put a hand on the ground. He could feel a slight tremble and there was an odd scent in the air. “There’s more of them, a few miles out, but they’ll be here soon enough. We need to leave by then.”
He turned to Willow, “Can you get ahold of Hana? We can hunt down Henry later, but we need to get out of here now.”
Willow nodded. After a moment, she spoke, relaying the message to Seunghyo.
“They’re looking for a way out now but the silo’s built like a maze and-”
“Third floor, west wall,” Seunghyo interrupted. “There should be a corridor that leads to a ladder. They can climb out there. What about the wraiths?”
“They’re heading there now. They took out two of the wraiths but they don’t know where the other two went. As long as they don’t run into them, it should be fine. Right?”
Her voice faltered when she saw Seunghyo’s face. He had gone pale.
“No, there should be three. We killed one of the wraiths at the gate-lock and there should’ve been three down there,” he said shakily.
Willow stopped for a second before repeating herself. “No, sunbae says there were definitely four down there with them. Why?”
Almost involuntarily, the veteran player muttered to himself softly. “No, no, no.”
Seunghyo squeezed his eyes tight and prayed he would wake up. He had dragged them all into the heart of danger and now, his worst fears were confirmed.
“Because there were four wraiths when I went through the silo, Willow. Only four.”
When Willow shook her head, he continued. “The only way Hana could have fought four wraiths now is if another appeared.”
“Appeared?”
Monsters didn’t appear out of thin-air. They could only appear through breaks. And there weren’t any breaks except-
Willow met Seunghyo’s wide eyes with a frightened expression of her own.
“The gate, the one that the barony created in the silo… it’s still open.”