“This is a great honor for you to be taught by us. As said before we do not normally talk to outsiders no matter who they are,” said Sliam.
“That's right we are a people that like to keep to ourselves and not cause trouble with anyone. Some have come to see us as unfriendly. But we don't mind since we are a wandering desert clan,” said Slazz.
“Since we live in the desert we must know ways different ways of fighting to combat the dangerous monsters that live here. We can teach you some of the ways of the desert warrior. As a way for us to help you complete your mission,” said Sliam.
“It is as you say. We have little time to teach everything since you need to go soon, so we'll start immediately,” said Slazz.
“My name is..”
“No need for names! Nyantail girl, go train with Slorie she will show you some finer points on hunting with daggers. Werewolf, Orc you two can come with me and we can have some fun while I teach you some pointers,” said Slazz.
For the rest of the afternoon Mileena was instructed in the finer details of using dual dagger it was far more in-depth than what Akira could have ever taught her on the subject. While Varbu and Akira were forced to fight 2 vs 1 against Slazz. The old Lamia was strong and loved to point out any minute mistake that they made.
The Lamia race was able to use their tail and scales as an alternative weapon and somewhat shield. Since the scales were thick and slick, most weak attacks would either bounce off or not do any real damage.
Due to the scales slickness, it was hard to grab onto any part of their lower body let alone the tail as it would slip right out of their hands if they didn't use their full power to try and hold it for a few seconds.
“I heard from Slorie that you two fought and won against a desert sandworm. I am ashamed for the desert sandworm with the lackluster skills that you have shown,” said Slazz during one of their breaks.
Akira and Varbu stayed silent it was just another one of Slazz's comments poking fun at their inexperience.
By the time dinner came around Slazz led the two who were exhausted back to his tent with a smile on his face. They found that Mileena was already waiting inside.
”Sir there will be a dance put on tonight so why don't we have our guest come watch it,” said Sliam.
“This one agrees we should relax tonight before the test tomorrow,” said Slazz nodding his head.
“Test?” asked Akira.
“Yes, werewolf pup did you think I would send you away without testing whether or not you understood what you had been taught? That would be a waste of this one's time and yours.”
“I'm not a pup, I'm an adult,” said Akira.
“To me, in both skill and age you are but a pup who may have a sharp bark but still needs to hone his bite,” said Slazz before leaving the tent and leading the way to the large fire pit located in the middle of the camp.
A wooden platform had been set up on the opposite side of the large fire. No one was focused on it right now as everyone near the fire was cooking all types of desert food for dinner and maybe a snack to eat while watching the dance later.
Slazz grabbed a few plates of fresh cooked desert animal meat and vegetables grown by the clan and handed them over to Akira's group.
“Let's hurry so we can get some good seats,” said Sliam.
“You're acting just like a hatchling,” said Slazz.
They chose an open area near the fire pit right across from the platform which would give them the best view.
As time went by more and more people started to crowd around them as they joined to watch the dance.
A group of ten beautiful female Lamia appeared on the platform and spread out so that there was the same amount of distance between them.
They were all wearing the same type of silk clothing that revealed there stomach and arms, Each silk outfit was a different color. Along with their silk outfit, they wore a veil that only covered the lower half of their face allowing the audience to see their eyes.
Dum!DUM!Dumm!
A drum and a flute started to play near the platform which caused the murmuring crowd to become silent as the dancers started to silently move.
Akira was amazed at the graceful movements of a dance done by someone without legs. The light from the flickering fire in front of them caused an even more enchanting sight when added to the desert nights stars that could be seen above and behind the beautiful dancers.
Their the smooth skin of their belly's was shown off as they did various different belly dances that went along with the beat of the drums, some fast-paced others slow.
One of the dancers on stage who was dressed in blue caught Akira's eye. She looked to be putting in over 100% into her dancing and it had captured his attention.
“Ah, you have noticed Slaiza. she is my youngest child and only daughter,...who I love very much,” said Slazz sitting next to Akira. It felt as if he was warning him not to get any funny ideas.
“Oh, Is that so?” said Akira awkwardly as he scratched his head and looked away from Slazz.
The event continued for over 2 hrs as the Lamia dancers completed many different dances that Akira had never thought could be possible due to limitations of two legs.
“Father did you see my performance?” asked Slaiza rushing over to her father after the dancers bowed and left the stage.
“I did,” said Slazz.
“Huh, Who are those outsiders?” asked Slaiza looking at Akira curiously.
“Do not worry they are guest staying with us for a few days.
“I am Akira, and this little one is Millena, and that big guy is Varbu,” said Akira with a slight bowing to Slaiza while dodging an elbow attack from Mileena.
“Akira, Hmm... I will remember it,” said Slaiza.
“It has been an eventful day already so we should sleep now for we have a long day tomorrow,” said Slazz.
The three of them led to a large tent near Slazz to sleep in for the night.
***
“So what is this test we have to take?” asked Akira as they walked alongside 30 other lamia warriors.
“The other day we found the nest of those [Fire ants]. It looks to be some sort of dungeon. Since it is near one of our campsites we normally use when we pass by we cannot allow it to remain. You will join us in the fight to show off your skill,” said Slazz.
Ding!
Quest automatically received!
Slazz's test of knowledge and strength
Reward: none
“How long will it take us to get there?” asked Varbu.
“We should be able to reach it around nightfall. If you are able to help complete the dungeon using what we have taught you, then you should be able to head to the capital without to much worry,” said Slazz.
The night sky was darkening when they arrived near a large mound of black sand that rose into the air. At the very top of the mound of dirt was a large hole used as an entrance to the ant nest.
Plumes of fire erupted out of the ground near the entrance every once and a while lighting up the surrounding area for a few seconds, causing problems with Akira and the others night vision.
Only a few [Fire ants] could be seen entering and exiting the anthill completing whatever task was given to them.
“You three watch as we clear out the majority of the ant's guarding the nest you might learn a thing or two. Your real task will be to help when we go inside the dungeon,” said Slazz.
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The lamia warriors silently slithered up to the hill and buried themselves into the sand waiting for the enemy to approach.
10 level 28 [Fire ants] exited the hole at the top of the mound and began to move down the sand to the Lamia warriors who were still hidden under the sand.
With a burst of sand flying into the air the lamia launched an attack killing all but one allowing it to run back into the nest to summon more [Fire Ants].
The lamia made sure to find another spot near the last position and burrowed into the sand waiting to ambush the numerically superior enemy.
This continued multiple times for a while until the [Fire ants] finally brought out over 100 to deal with the enemy hunting them at their doorstep.
The lamia warriors were able to immediately kill thirty of them with their ambush but then they were surrounded by the remaining 70.
Akira, Varbu, and Mileena were getting ready to help them but stopped when they saw that they had it under control.
“KIAhhhhhhhhhhhhh!” multiple Lamia warriors let out screeches that froze the [Fire ants] for several seconds which allowed them to clean up the rest fairly easy.
When the last [Fire ant] was killed Slazz motioned for them to rejoin them.
“This is the way you deal with an enemy that has far more numbers than you or an enemy that is far stronger. You don't go to them on their terms unless there is no other way. You lead them into your own ambush. Make sure you have enough power to hit them hard, and if needed to have an escape route ready. With this we should have an easier time clearing the ant nest since we've lured a large portion of the warriors outside and killed them,” said Slazz.
Akira looked at the multiple hundreds of dead ants on the ground and had to agree with his assessment.
“Werewolf, you will help the other shield bearers in blocking the enemies from the front. Orc you will help the rear guard kill anything that tries to attack us from the rear while we push forward. Nyantail you will help with the clearing of the enemies wherever they appear. We're going to try to get to the Queen before the rest of the hive can respond to our invasion. Be careful of their stingers they have a painful toxin that hurts like hell. It won't kill you if you only get stung a few times. But too much toxin will act as a poison.”
Slazz was still not using their names even though he had heard them when Akira had said them the night before.
Akira was pumped and ready to fight he transformed into his werewolf form in mere seconds and summoned Nox.
“Oh! Never seen a werewolf transform before.” “Who is that other wolf next to him?” asked the warriors.
Nox ignored the lamia warrior gazes and hide inside Akira's shadow.
“Quiet we don't have time to gossip. Let's go!” Shouted Slazz.
Ding!
You have Entered the dungeon: Fire ant's nest.
Akira took a deep breath before continuing to walk down into the dark dungeon the only light was the random fire exploding from the ground and the red glowing sand that was slowly being turned into glass from the fire.
The pathway they chose to walk down was large enough to fit numerous shield warriors in the front.
As they continued to walk Akira could tell that the pathways were not built in any logical way. They curved up, down, left, and right with tens to hundreds of other pathways branching off.
Akira had no clue where they were going and just followed the lead of the lamia warriors next to him.
In the beginning, they only encountered a few small pockets of [Fire Ants] but as they walked deeper into the ant nest their numbers began to increase.
But with the Lamia warriors screech, they were able to easily clear the pockets of resistance and continue down deeper into the ant's nest where the queen lived.
“Halt!” ordered Slazz. “I can sense that we are getting closer to the main room where the Queen lives. Orc, we need your strength to continue and help the rear guard clear anything that tries to attack us while we fight the queen. Werewolf, you will be at the front of the fight keep the queen's attention focused on you. Nyantail, you will be fighting with the others to help take down the queen. Show us that you all have what it takes to be called a warrior.”
They were forced to clear one more cluster of [Fire ants] before they reached the core of the nest.
The core was a large round room with multiple passages from all over connected to it. The dim light from the burning sand revealed numerous eggs laid out all over the ground and wall.
In the middle of the room, Akira found their target the [level 35 Queen Ant].
It was as large as an elephant. It was currently sitting down and spurting out new eggs while worker ants took them to an empty hole in the wall.
“Destroy as many eggs as you can while we charge forward no time to play this stealthily. We need to get this done and over with and get out quickly!” said Slazz.
“Nox, protect Mileena,” ordered Akira.
With that, they burst into the room with Akira and the shield bearers at the front of the charge causing mayhem and alerting the workers surrounding the queen.
A silent command was given to the worker ants and over two hundred swarmed forward to stop the intruders.
But due to the lamias innate skill, they were able to fight them off easily.
Akira along with the other lamia shield warrior reached the queen first gaining the queen's full attention.
Akira stopped running and used his skill [Cross attack] sending it right into the Queen's large head.
In its anger, the queen stopped laying eggs and stood up crushing multiple of the eggs it had just popped out a few seconds before.
The queen's mouth pincers smacked together a few times creating loud clangs like that of swords hitting each other before trying to slice Akira in half.
Akira was forced to ducked and rolled under the queen's body and hopped up behind it. The pincers snapped shut missing Akira and the other warriors next to him. In its anger, the [Queen ant] slowly turned around to face Akira.
Akira's dodge was a dangerous move that could have killed him in numerous different ways but served its purpose of escaping the attack and forcing the queen to turn away from the main force of warriors and presenting it's unprotected back to them.
Mileena and the remaining fighters joined the fight and attacked the queens rear end. They landed numerous attacks before the Queen got angry and turned to attack them.
Before it could do anything Akira jumped forward and used the skill [shadow chain] to try and hold queen in place.
It only lasted for one second but it was enough to halt the queen and its attack allowing the warriors to retreat and reposition themselves.
The Queen was truly frustrated now and started to repeatedly slam all her legs into the ground causing vibrations to go through the ground throughout the entire nest. Multiple eggs fell from their holes in the wall and broke.
Mileena and other warriors were being forced back even farther due to the vibrations making the ground unstable.
“Guys we got a problem they're swarming in from everywhere!” shouted Varbu who had been helping the rear guard destroy the eggs.
An almost unending stream of ants began to stream into the main room by ones, twos, and threes.
Varbu along with the rear guard were forced to switch their priorities and did their best to block the swarm, but there were too many and a large number of them were able to rush past them and head towards the main group forcing a few of the warriors attacking the queen to turn and deal with them.
In another fit of anger, the Queen kicked out with her back leg before Akira could stop it.
Mileena was near the leg when it lashed out and was just barely able to block the attack with her daggers.
“oof”
She and two other lamia warriors were knocked back into a swarm of ants killing a few that they landed on.
The Lamia warriors had taken the full brunt of the attack and had been thrown deep into the swarm. Before they could get back up and fight, the Fire ants swarmed them and delivered hundreds of stings and bites killing them.
Mileena was lucky and was only thrown a short distance into the less dense swarm. With the help of Nox keeping the Fire ants at bay, she was able to quickly stand up.
The fire ants began to get antsy as the number surrounding Mileena and Nox began to swell and got ready to attack the intruders.
Mileena looked down at her daggers and saw they had been broken from the force of the queen's attack. It did not look good for her.
A short distance away Akira who was forced to regain the queen's attention, saw Mileena fly through the air into the swarm of Fire ants.
Letting out a Howl of anger Akira charged forward with his shield in front of him. He slammed into the fire ants blocking his path dealing a good chunk of damage and temporarily stunning them.
Like a farmer in the spring, he continued to plow through the ants until he reached Mileena.
A quick glance showed she had revived a few strings to her legs.
Ding!
New skill created!
Shield Slam: charge in a straight line towards your enemy/enemies with your shield in front slamming into them dealing damage and stunning them for a certain amount of time depending on their level compared to user.
Good for starting fights and gaining aggro.
Akira scooped Mileena up and held her to his back with one arm while holding his shield in front of him.
The ants that had been stunned were getting just now getting back up and starting to surround them.
'Guess there's no time like the present to try out the new skill,' thought Akira as he used the new skill [Shield Slam].
Akira could feel a power surge into his muscular legs allowing him to easily plow through the ants and return Mileena back to the little bit of safety that the other lamia warriors could provide.
“Th...Thank you!” stuttered Mileena.
“Get your head back into the fight,” said Akira handing her a potion and a short sword so she wasn't left without a weapon.
He ran from the back to the front of the queen to rejoin the lamia shield warriors who were struggling to deal with the queen's attacks.
***
“Focus on attacking!” shouted Slazz.
By now the queen was in her death throws throwing out numerous wild attacks trying to kill as many as she could before dying.
Akira watched as Mileena who had somehow nimbly climbed up on to the queen, dealt the last critical blow to the queen's head causing it to crash into the ground with a thump.
Multiple system messages rang out signaling the end of the boss fight.
Mileena fell off of the head and landed into Akira's arms.
“It seems I am always catching you and carrying you around,” said Akira.
Mileena's cheeks redden ever so slightly.
Akira quickly let her go and jumped back just in case she got angry attacked him.
“Not time to be playing around you two, we still have to break out of this dungeon before it collapses, Everyone head back to the entrance were leaving!” shouted Slazz.
Akira hurriedly checked the ground for anything that might have dropped and stuffed multiple items into his bag. He didn't have the time to see exactly the items were before he rejoined the lamia warriors in their fighting retreat out of the dungeon.