Sandwiched between a frightened Japanese kid and Melinda the swordmage, I can only surmise that Sorcerer Laserian had enough of our shit. Maybe it was always the way his tower was meant to work: the moment a trespasser dispels an arcane lock, he’s portaled to another floor, separate from his team. And maybe, just maybe, we should have let the dumb sorcerer tell his dumb backstory.

Too late now.

A dagger in each hand, I hold them arced in front of me, ready to shadowstep.

Melinda just sighs, her sword sheathed. “Is that really what you want to do?”

“Not die? Yeah, pretty much.”

She tucks a lock of blonde hair behind her ear. “I’m fine with leaving the fight until later if you are.”

My eyes narrow. “Why would I believe that?”

“It’s convenient,” she shrugs. “For what it’s worth, I’d rather not hurt you.”

“But you did.”

“True. And quite honestly, I probably will again. It doesn’t have to be now.”

I steady my hands as I try to read her face, her tone, her stance. Watch the body, not the weapon. She’s entirely relaxed, casually surveying the room as if there’s no threat to her at all. Either she’s as quick on the draw as her partner, or she’s really unconcerned that I might attack.

It could be her charm again. But if that’s the case, she appears to be using it to diffuse the situation. She hasn’t directly asked me to lower my weapons either. Besides, whatever threat this tower poses, I’m sure it’d be easier to face as a group.

“And what about the archer?” I ask. “Do I have to worry about him attacking my people?”

“If he ends up with the girl or the big one, I doubt it. If it’s the other one, I’d worry about his tendencies instead.”

“Elias’ll do what he needs to get back to Luci. He won’t waste time fighting your partner if it’ll slow him down.”

“Right,” she says, unconvinced. To be fair, I’m not convinced either. “Dave only cares to get stronger. He won’t miss the opportunity to reach the pinnacle of the tower over a petty grievance.”

“You guys chased us into the dungeon. How is that not petty?”

“Oh, I apologize,” she sneers. “Were we supposed to avoid it only because you were there? An opportunity to clear a dungeon and remove an opponent presented itself.”

“You just had to kill a kid on the way.”

She pauses, then says quietly, “I didn’t make the rules.”

I consider her for another moment. Her neck is bare. No amulet. I don’t remember seeing one on the archer or their berserker friend either. Do they even know about the amulets? If they did, they could wipe out our entire team with a thought. Of course, with Elias hoarding one in his bag, there’s still an opportunity for them to nab it. We should have buried it when we had the chance.

“Did you kill the one that got your partner?” I ask.

“And then some,” she replies, revealing nothing.

This entire time, she hasn’t touched her sword. She doesn’t appear cautious or nervous at all. If anything, she just looks exhausted.

Carefully, I allow one dagger to return to its sheathe. However, I keep one blade in hand, just in case.

My attention falls to the Japanese boy. He’s a chubby, anxious looking kid, all tucked up in baggy cargo pants, a giant orange sweatshirt, and a ratty cloth robe.

“Kenji, right?” I ask. “You’re a lightning mage?”

He nods quickly, then scoops up his dropped staff. “Yes. Yes I am.”

“What can you do?”

“Do? Oh. Yes. I can shock monsters when I hit them. And- and I can ward a small area to shock enemies who enter. At Level 15, I can zap monsters from a distance. But I’m- I’m not a Level 15.”

“Alright.” I would say more, but just looking at him is feeding my own anxiety. The kid’s just going to have to take care of himself.

For the first time, I check out the room. It’s a drab circular chamber. No windows. No furniture. A wooden chandelier spits smokey, flickering light across the stone floor. Along the wall hang dozens and dozens of swords of all different types: broadswords, shortswords, curved guards, tapered guards, ornately engraved grips, and grips of plain wood. Most of the blades are spotted in rust and old blood.

On the far end of the room sits an old stone well. I imagine we’re too high up for it to make complete physical sense, but there you have it.

“There’s a monster in that well.”

“You don’t say.” Melinda rolls her knuckles over the pommel of her sword. “How do you want to approach this?”

“Lure it out. Hit it a lot.”

“It’s a wonder your team made it this far.”

“Why, what would you suggest?”

She tilts her head, squinting in thought. “The kid’s only real attack is a stun. I doubt there’s much damage to it, so he’ll need to use it once and then retreat until he’s needed again. My best attack is fire. However that beast, or beasts, will be exiting from a well. So I can only guess that it won’t catch. In this instance, that’s probably good. That’ll allow you to attack too. Your best attacks are from behind and in succession, correct?”

“Behind is just so they don’t hit me. It only does more damage if they’re not alerted.”

“Interesting. Then why…” She looks me up and down.

“What?”

This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.

“It’s nothing. Anyhow, you’ll-”

“No, seriously. What.”

“Fine. Not like I should be telling you this, but you’re incredibly stilted in combat. You zip back and forth in almost a straight line. I assumed you moved that way due to an advantage, but it’s seriously the only way you know how to fight, isn’t it?”

“Well, you fight like… like you were trained. So good work.”

“Only in Pharos. I still need to work on my maneuverability. Just not as much as you,” she answers. “Still, you’ll most likely do the most damage in melee. Unless your points are just as bad as your moves.”

“They’re fine,” I say coldly.

“Good. Here’s the order then.” She looks at Kenji. “You begin, then leave. During the battle, when I say ‘shock him’, you make your attack again, then retreat. Nothing else. I’ll use my long-range fire attack next. If it catches, I’ll move in to continue the assault until the fire is extinguished, as I’m immune. If the monster doesn’t catch, then it’s your turn… Helen, right?”

“Yeah, it’s Helen.”

“Continue fighting until either you need to recover or I call in another shock attack. Retreat, and we’ll begin again. If I’m not accounting for any other abilities, tell me now.”

“I guess it works.” I turn to the kid. “Kenji, how close do you need to be to do the lightning trap? Can you trap the well without touching it?”

“No. No. But I can trap the floor in front of the well.”

“Can we still touch monsters if they’re electrocuted?”

“Yes. My ability only hurts enemies.”

“Then let’s use that to kick us off.”

I glance at Melinda. She gives me a nod, then steps a comfortable distance away as she draws her sword and leashes it in fire. She might be a Grade A Bitch, but somehow, even in a pinstripe pencil skirt and a designer blouse, she looks sufficiently badass.

No one moves.

Melinda sighs. “Kid.”

“Oh, you want me to go now?”

“Yes. Now.”

Nervously, Kenji nods. Then, as slowly as humanly possible, he slinks across the room toward the well. Halfway there, the water gurgles. He freezes.

Melinda groans. “Kill me.”

“You can do this,” I call out.

Clutching the staff in both hands, Kenji proceeds. With another gurgle, water sloshes over the side of the well and trickles down the stone bricks. The kid stops in his tracks. Trembling, he stretches out his arm, his staff quivering as he extends it as far as he can. Then, he lightly taps the floor and bolts back to safety.

A soft halo, about ten feet across, hovers an inch over the stone floor.

“Good work,” I say. “Now to lure it.”

Without a word, Melinda launches a fireball at the well. It splashes over the stone, wisps of flame curling and winking out in an instant. From within, something rumbles as more water spills over the edge.

Okay, now I’m getting impatient.

Inventory item removed: (1) Common Sword

With an overhand arc, I chuck the sword into the well. To my surprise, it hits the rim and plunks right into the water.

Well, that seems to have gotten its attention.

The ground quakes, the sound of water rushing beneath us. Then a geyser erupts. The stonework bursts. I duck as fractured rocks whip across the room. Something monstrous slaps against the ceiling, then smacks down on the floor with a slimy splat.

The entire room ripens with the stench of sewage and rotten fish. A fat wreathe of slick scales uncoils, sinuous fins unfurling like flags as a draconic head rises above us.

💀 The Serpent of Loch Cluhir (Level 17)

This colossal sea serpent once lorded over the lake of Cluhir before two brothers promised to kill it in a bargain for their freedom. Now it’s back, currently downsized to fit within the walls of Laserian’s tower.

A second later, the monster seizes as the electric trap triggers. Countless volts surge through it, blue bolts rippling over its scales.

Beside me, Melinda summons a fat flame and thrusts out her hand, flinging it into the fanged maw of the serpent. The monster barely flinches.

“It’s too big for one person!” I shout. “I’ll take its front.”

“Understood.” Twirling her shortsword into position, she charges toward its exposed belly.

I take a running leap for its face, launching from the floor like the stone is made of springs. One hand tight around the grip, the other flat against the pommel, I plunge the dagger into the serpent’s eye.

The blade shatters.

As I land, steel sprinkles at my feet.

What the hell is that eye made of? Diamond?

Just as I’m about to whip out my second twin dagger, I catch sight of Melinda’s blade snapping in two.

“Ratshit!” She tries jamming the broken sword into the serpent, but it only splinters further. With another curse, she sends the hilt spiraling across the floor.

The monster begins to shift.

“Shock it again, kid!” Melinda yells.

Kenji looks like he’s about to piss himself. “It- it takes thirty seconds to recharge.”

Melinda scowls as she hurls another fireball. It dashes uselessly against the serpent’s scales.

Its head rears. A long blue tongue curls behind its teeth. The musculature of its neck tenses. And then it roars. Gills billow, the fleshy fins along its jaw warbling. A torrent of air gushes from its throat.

The gust hits like a truck. One second, I’m standing. The next, my scalp scrapes against stone. My knees clack, my back cracks, then my head, then my knees and back again. I land upside-down, contorted like a ragdoll, somewhere across the room. Behind me, the swords along the wall crash to the ground like daggered icicles.

My head swims, my back spasming in pain. A warm buzz vibrates through me as I down a health potion.

In a staggering blur, the beast hurls toward me.

I lunge sideways. The wall quakes as the serpent’s head smashes into it, followed by its undulating body. More swords rain down, the blades glancing against its scales and cracking into steel splinters. The serpent twists and comes flying toward me once more.

Scrambling to my feet, I grab the nearest sword and slash across its face, then tuck and roll in a storm of sharp slivers. When I stand again, all I see is teeth.

The serpent crashes to the floor. Its body arches, convulsing beneath an onslaught of electric waves. Kenji tucks his hand back into his robe, his expression nearly as shocked as his prey.

Melinda stands. There’s a nasty gash in her arm. Her starched shirt is soaked in blood.

“Its skin… is impenetrable,” she says, her breath heavy.

“It can’t be,” I say. “There has to be a trick to it.”

“What makes you think that?”

“Because otherwise we’re fucked.” I glance around the room. “Maybe there’s something we can do with the well. Or the swords.”

“The well is broken,” Melinda replies.

Kenji gasps. “I- I have an idea. Indiana Jones!”

I blink at him. “Yeah, that means nothing to me.”

“In the Last Crusade. Indiana Jones must choose which cup is the Holy Grail. One of these swords is- is the cup.”

My gaze flits across the walls. “One of them won’t break…”

It makes sense, in a fairy tale sort of way. I snatch the nearest sword and lob it at the monster. It breaks into shards.

Again, the beast begins to stir.

“Go! Come on, go!” I shout, hoisting a broadsword off the wall.

Melinda and Kenji join in, grabbing swords, hurling them, slashing, doing whatever it takes to test the blade against the monster. It doesn’t matter how or where we hit it. Each weapon shatters like glass.

Soon, there are only ten blades left. Kenji jogs around the monster, dodging over its tail in an awkward hurtle, and swipes down with a broad blackened blade. It barely nicks the creature. But it doesn’t break either.

He raises the sword in victory. “I found it!”

Like a whip, the serpent’s body smacks the kid into the wall. The blade spins across the floor…

…and stops just between Melinda and me.

Our eyes catch.

I’m bad with two-handed blades. My strength probably won’t cover the requirement either. But can I really afford to give her a weapon?

Dammit. I swipe up the blade and hand it hilt-first. “Take it.”

“With pleasure.” Sword in hand, Melinda plunges it into the serpent.