Elaria was able to dodge just enough out of the way that the kobold’s sword only grazed her shoulder rather than cleaving her head from her neck. It still shaved off a few of her health points but left the offending kobold open allowing her to channel some mana into her hand for a quick counterattack. Compression Blow exploded its head like a watermelon, showering her and the nearby kobolds in brain matter and bone shards. The other monsters became more wary of her after seeing their ally get taken down so fast and backed off, forming a circle around her with their weapons facing inward.
That gave her a moment to examine the strange patterns on the ground that seemed to be disrupting her ability to use her skills. Unable to use her mana, she was restricted from that method of examination and instead had to rely on only her eyes to judge what it was. The patterns covered the entire room in a circle, intricately weaving in and out of itself while glowing bright red. A small use of Compression Blow to crack the floor where the pattern was inscribed only served to ruin the stone and didn’t have any effect on the disrupting effect.
It was most likely to be a feature of the dungeon to prevent the boss fight from being too easy, but Elaria was really starting to get frustrated. Every time she mastered a form of combat the world seemed to make her unable to utilise it. First it was going up against all of the stone based monsters with her sword and now her magic was proving to be ineffective. The world clearly wanted her to become a master of all trades, or perhaps it was just the Chain being sadistic and thrusting her into ever more dangerous scenarios.
Her and Luna were facing off with the kobolds surrounding them when the patterns on the floor flashed and vanished as quickly as they’d appeared. While they were active Elaria had felt as if some kind of film covered her mana veins, preventing her from channelling any of her skills. Like a bursting dam her mana flooded from within as she started to prepare a Firestorm. It only took a few seconds to complete the spell construct and she kept the mana usage low to ensure the entire cavern didn’t come down around them.
As soon as it was complete she unleashed the spell without delay, a wave of flames that burst outwards from her location and engulfed the surrounding kobolds, incinerating them within seconds and sending a rather nauseating scent of charred flesh and burnt hair wafting through the cavern. She idly noted another level up notification from the Chain, opting to leave investing the stat for later. There wasn’t anywhere Elaria could put it that would make a huge difference to the upcoming fight and it was better to save it in case there was a situation that demanded an increase in a particular one.
There were now just a few more kobolds left alive, hanging around their leader, the still arrogant kobold lord lounging on his throne of bones while looking at Elaria and Luna as if they were insects to be swatted. It felt grimy to be looked down on by a monster and she wanted to finish it off as quickly as its lesser brethren. It would be risky to initiate a fight immediately however, when she still didn’t know how the mana disrupting patterns on the floor worked. It would be useful to find out whether there was a set timer that caused them to turn on and off or if they were an ability that was triggered in response to a magic user or by the kobold lord itself.
“Luna, there’s a few snacks waiting for you over there. Don’t be shy. Just don’t let yourself get caught by the big bastard,” joked Elaria.
The wolf was eager to comply, having eyed up the original encirclement of kobolds as potential meals; her disappointment when they were charred beyond recognition was palpable. Despite their low numbers, the kobolds which remained alive, guarding the kobold lord, all looked much stronger and better equipped than the rest had been. Luna showed no fear as she confidently prowled towards them, fangs bared and ready to counter attack at the first sign of trouble, but the kobolds preferred a defensive stance that kept the kobold lord covered from all angles.
Elaria was still yet to figure out if monsters, tamed or otherwise had access to the Chain. Luna had definitely been a powerful enemy when they had fought but she was unsure of her exact level. It probably wasn’t a match for the kind of monsters they were facing now and yet the silver she-wolf seemed to have no trouble tearing apart enemies of all kinds and had been doing so for the entire duration of the dungeon. There must be some kind of strength progression available to them. Monsters had levels so that suggested they followed a similar path, or perhaps they simply spawned at a fixed power level?
If her and Luna were ever able to communicate then she would try asking her. While talking with a wolf might have seemed insane to her old self, with all the incredible skills and magic floating around in this world Elaria wouldn’t be surprised if there was one that allowed some sort of speech or telepathic communication with monsters or animals. Definitely near the top of her list of things to look into in Cloudvale. There was sure to be an organisation or at least a highly skilled tamer who could point her in the right direction.
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In her usual style, Luna suddenly broke her steady walk to strike at the nearest kobold, a cat variant with black fur the colour of the night sky. It reacted hastily, ducking under the heavy swipe of the wolf’s claw and attempting to stab into her head with its twin daggers that had some kind of suspicious liquid coating the blade - definitely poison. Unfortunately for the kobold Luna’s senses were exceptionally sharp and having smelt the danger approach thanks to what was likely a foul smelling set of daggers to her, used her powerful hind legs to twist out of the path of the strike before clamping her jaws shut around the monster, shaking it like a chew toy and slamming it into the ground a few times for good measure, leaving naught but a mangled corpse.
The other kobolds reacted immediately, moving to surround Luna as a group and prevent the huge wolf from escaping their encirclement. Unafraid of the four monsters who were a fraction of her size and physical strength, Luna simply charged once more, catching a dog headed kobold unprepared, opting to take out its leg with her opening strike rather than go straight for a killing blow. Having been worried about facing the same fate as its pulped ally it guarded its head and chest which left the leg wide open, the wolf’s claws tearing through scale and bone like paper and leaving the monster crippled.
Sensing the other three closing in from behind, Luna smacked one away with her tail, doing little damage but opening gaps in the formation that she could take advantage of. One kobold managed to land a blow on her rear left leg, leaving a deep cut that dripped blood down her leg and forced the wolf to refocus her attention lest she allow herself to get worn down over time. Not wanting to leave Luna completely unsupported, Elaria started to create a brand new mana construct, taking aspects from her Earthen Shield but adjusting it to create an offensive spell. The result was a large spike of compressed dirt around the size of her forearm which was propelled at an impressive velocity towards one of the still standing kobolds.
The spike embedded itself in the monster’s head with a thunk, spraying blood over the ground and breaking back into dust and debris having completed its job. Luna capitalised on the assist by furiously assaulting the kobold who’d sliced into her leg. It held up against a flurry of claw strikes and bites for a second or two but the unceasing attacks eventually started to break through its slower movement and cause a crescendo of minor injuries that climaxed with its face being torn off and bowels carved up by the aggressive beast.
Due to your actions you have earned a skill!
Earthen Spike
Craft a spike of compressed earth which can be propelled at your enemies
The remaining kobold which had been buffeted by the earlier tail strike recovered and attempted to seek revenge but two more Earthen Spikes sailed from Elaria’s direction, finding a home in the head and heart of the final kobold standing. Luna returned to the crippled monster and finished it off with a stomp to the chest, eliciting a ding from the Chain as the 50th kobold was defeated, leaving the kobold lord as the only obstacle standing between them and completing the dungeon. Right at that moment the patterns on the floor lit up once again, which meant they weren’t a reactive defence mechanism to a spell being cast.
However due to the awkward timing it might be a feature of the final battle or simply on a timed loop, hopefully Elaria would be able to figure it out before the towering lion kobold was able to defeat the two of them. It was disrupting any attempt to cast a spell right now so Luna would have to do the heavy lifting. For the first time since they entered the cavern, the kobold lord made a move from his laid back and relaxed position. He stood up from the eerie throne, the ground shuddering with each step he made. The fearsome monster towered over even Luna at nearly two and a half metres tall, sporting a muscular body and claws that looked even sharper than the deadly wolf’s.
Luna retreated to a safe distance, making sure to be closer to Elaria to ensure they could cover each other. Thankfully for Elaria, physical combat was still an option against the kobold lord but without the power boost of her Compression Blow simply her strength stat would not be enough to deal consistent damage. Hopefully the strange disruptive patterns would disappear at some point during the fight and she wouldn’t be forced to rely on Luna as she had been for a large portion of the dungeon. The kobold lord strolled forward with supreme confidence, a hybrid of the jungle king and deadly dragon blood it seemed as if nothing in the world would faze it. Then it did something completely unexpected, catching Elaria off guard.
“Mighty challengers! To reach my throne means you possess great strength and courage. If you wish to test yourself against me, step into the ring and declare your intent!” Roared the kobold lord.