The first form of the Dark Fairy had stood still in the center of the domain, throwing crystals. This one did no such thing, swooping down at Kaden to blast him with a crystal. The [Eldritch Shield] shuddered and cracked as it absorbed the blow, and Kaden got the chance to [Identify] his enemy.

[Dark Fairy Queen]

If the Light Fairy Queen seeks to challenge those strong enough, the Dark Fairy Queen seeks only their end. Dark Faries spawn in the new moon of a monster surge, and woe be to the adventures who seek them out. For every gift they offer comes at a price, and few survive the challenge to earn their choice of reward.

Level:???

Skills:???

Talents:???

Kaden led with [Mana Drain], and thrilled when it struck the Queen, sending her to her knees. Less thrilling was how she tore loose one of her own wings, wielding it like a sword as she attacked him. [Split Second] activated over and over, just barely letting Kaden dodge.

Then one dodge wasn’t enough, and the blade sliced deep into his side, drawing blood and a cry of agony, as black miasma rippled off the blade and onto Kaden’s side.

You have gained a Status Condition: Umbral Mold - Mana regen will cause health loss.

“Eve! Status Condition!” Kaden shouted.

No more [Mana Drain], Kaden hit her with a hundred point [Mana Spike]. Sara’s Herald of Life Title wouldn’t be effective. Sure, it would grant him health and mana, but with [Umbral Mold] it would offset.

Summoning Trinity would only result in her losing one—or more—heads to the Queen’s blade, so Kaden changed focus. He couldn’t win alone, but Sara was here, closing in, both swords drawn. She blocked a blow from the Queen and lashed out with her Horror.

The Queen leaped back and flew into the air, summoning a crystal shard.

But not a large one. And not a cluster.

“How much mana does she have?” Kaden asked.

“A hundred and thirteen of three thousand,” Sara said. “She’s not casting, so [Anthem of the End] will hurt us more than it does her.”

Kaden had a theory. Trella was down here, probably in [Stealth] and definitely waiting for the right moment to attack. “You have your bow?”

“What kind of Party Leader would I be if I didn’t?” Sara drew her bow and began working, using [Speeding Wind] to keep them moving and [Mana Quiver] to produce electric arrows for cheaper than a single [Lightining Bolt].

Without mana, the Queen was limited in her ability to throw crystal shards, and so it became a dance. Block, arrow, drain, block, arrow, drain.

“I can’t remove status conditions through this barrier,” Eve called. “But you’re doing well! Don’t die!”

“Get ready,” Sara said as she loosed another arrow. “She’s about to switch forms again.”

The Queen dove at Kaden, tearing two wings off to land in front of him.

[Last Man Standing] made Kaden tougher in party situations, and he needed every last bit of it since two swords were twice the trouble. The only good part was that without both hands on a blade, the Queen couldn’t crack the Eldritch Shield.

His health sat at thirteen hundred, more than enough for now, but he couldn’t quite gain an advantage.

“Let me take her this round. Dual swords are my style.” Sara stepped in front of Kaden.

Kaden drew Thorn Caster and began loosing arrows as fast as he could. Poison cost a percentage of health, and three stacks of poison on anything was a mountain of hurt. “Can you keep [Speeding Wind] going?”

“Little. Busy.” Sara said through gritted teeth. Over and over she blocked sword strikes and let her Horror lash out.

With three stacks of poison, Kaden rejoined the battle, forcing the Queen to split her attention. A war hammer was the sort of weapon you didn’t just block without another war hammer, so now he could pressure her, forcing her back—

“Backstab!” Trella burst into existence, plunging the [Inkblades] into the Queen’s back, while Kaden slammed Remembrance into the Queen’s knee. Unlike usual, Trella didn’t immediately use her Deception to disappear. Instead, she drew EverCut and stabbed deep.

The Queen exploded, throwing Kaden, Sara, and Trella across the crystal floor.

Kaden hit her with Mana spike again.

Instead of a single creature, now a swarm of fairies formed the shape of the Fairy Queen. “Set the Feast, and fill every belly!” The swarm shouted. It swooped straight for Sara.

Kaden used [Sheild Bash] to smash aside most of the swarm, but not all. The individual fairies were no more than six inches tall, but their mouths were filled with razor sharp teeth. With a single chomp, one bit a chunk of flesh from Kaden’s arm, taking the armor with it.

[Fortress of Stone] allowed him to ignore the agony and focus on killing each of the fairies.

Sara’s pseudopods worked to devour others.

And Trella, wisely, stayed hidden.

Kaden pursued the swarm, pushing it away from Sara to give her a chance to get on her feet. Remembrance was a liability against small, fast opponents, so he banished it and drew the Levicon Blade.

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Were all of the mini fairies poisoned? Or had the boss put the three stacks of poison on one?

A vial arced through the air to explode on the ground near the swarm. [Agony Cloud,] Kaden recognized from the orange color. Hundreds of fairies screamed as one.

The ground shook, and Kaden had only a moment of warning as the throne became a swarm of crystals that circled the room, throwing blasts of black mana back toward the Queen, who had re-coalesced into her single form.

“Don’t get caught between them and her,” Sara said. “Also, I think they’re buffing her.”

Kaden spun and unleashed Remembrance, shattering a crystal. “I’ll take care of these.”

Before he could smash another, the Queen dove at him.

“Did she have four arms before?” Kaden asked, as the Queen tore off four wings and attacked him. “I don’t think she did.”

Bosses having different patterns was expected. Different attacks, expected. But changing the number of arms just felt unfair. Kaden pushed the attack, using [Shield Bash] not for damage but for the side effect, a split-second [Stun] that gave Sara the chance to use [Shocking Grasp], which was an actual stun.

“There!” Sara shouted as a blazing ball of electricity exploded.

Kaden dismissed his [Eldritch Shield] and drew Thorn Caster, putting three bolts straight into the Queen. “She’s about to go swarm.”

This time, he had his shield ready and Sara safe behind him.

This time, the Queen soared backwards and as she transformed into her swarm form, an [Agony Cloud] burst around her. Sara used the opportunity to loose arrows at the swarm, spearing several.

Kaden was waiting with Remembrance the moment crystals began rotating, and this time, he destroyed two before they even buffed the Queen once. Her scream signaled the shift in phase.

“Back to single blade,” Kaden called. The Queen was no longer a dark beauty, but a hulking monstrosity carrying a single greatsword made from one wing. The last of his mana powered a [Mana Spike] that ensured she wouldn’t be launching crystals.

“Backstab! Frontstab! Damnit, still not a skill!” Trella attacked again and again. [Ink] didn’t seem to affect the Queen, but the distraction let Kaden attack.

Backsmash would have been perfect, but without mana to power it, Kaden had to rely on regular blows. She was still faster, but now Kaden had a feel for her attacks and blocking with Remembrance bought opportunities for Sara to use [Shocking Grasp].

The Queen dropped all pretense of defense, attacking Kaden with all her might.

[Immovable] didn’t stop him taking damage from sheer impact but it let him go toe-to-toe with her, and Remembrance began to hum, then sing, and finally scream.

[Shocking Grasp] struck, paralyzing the Queen for the slightest moment.

Kaden spun, burying Remembrance’s axe in her chest and unleashing all the stored up power, just as Trella materialized to [Backstab].

The impact sent the Queen—and Trella—sailing.

One of the two had [Acrobat] as a talent and landed light on her feet.

The other hit the ground and rolled, unmoving.

You have helped defeat a Secret Challenge Boss: Dark Queen

Challenge Reset Timer Started: 99 years, 364 days, 23 hours, 59 minutes.

You are no longer elligible for Dark Queen’s Challenge.

You have gained experience.

“Level!” Trella shouted. “Oh, that feels good. That was a ridiculous amount of XP. How much did you get?”

Sara seemed lost in thought. “Twenty Seven is close. I’m three quarters of the way. Kaden?”

He shook his head. “Let’s just say I’ll need a bunch of those to hit thirty.”

“So sad. That’s me feeling sad for you. Do you feel the sad?” Trella asked. “I was always lower level and now I’m not even in the same tier. But a few more of those and I’ll be at least earning my keep.”

The crystal barrier that kept Eve from joining had retracted, and she applied [Life Burn] to Kaden repeatedly until [Umbral Mold] finally cleared. His health and mana immediately ticked upward.

“Kaden. Trella.” Sara’s voice held an edge. “Perhaps we should finish.”

The Queen’s corpse had disappeared, and the Light Queen once more sat atop a restored throne, beckoning.

Choose your reward:

3x Redfire Crystal

3x Bluefire Crystal

2x Starfire Crystal

1x Blackfire Crystal

“Wait.” Kaden spoke before anyone could move. “Don’t choose. Don’t choose yet. Before the challenge, she said ‘Greed will be your undoing.’”

Trella swore. “It’s a trap. What are these crystals?”

“Your guess is as good or better than mine,” Sara answered. “I’ll go first, I’m choosing a Blackfire Crystal—Ok, I received one.”

Kaden looked to Trella. “The safe thing to do is choose the Blackfire Crystal.”

“Safe is good.” Trella received hers.

Kaden considered his options. There was no telling what these crystals actually did. The warning had been clear, but the question was, what did it actually mean? But he had a thought. He took the Starfire Crystal from his Inventory and held it out.

The Light Queen reached out and took it from him—or he thought she did.

You have received 1x Soulfire Crystal.

The crystals lighting the room went dark, and the Queen disappeared, leaving Kaden in darkness. Kaden climbed out, using Remembrance to hook the cavern floor, and joined Eve, Sara, and Trella. First, he handed over Eve’s crystal. “Does anyone know what these do?”

Eve frowned as she studied it. “Yes. These are skill boosters. Major skill boosters. They’re ridiculously rare. I’m going to apply mine to [Life Explosion]. Five points! Five skill points!”

Sara held up her [Blackfire Crystal]. “Let’s find out what these do. It’s not offering me a prompt to apply it to a skill.”

The crystal faded away, and Sara stumbled, nearly collapsing. “That feels strange. That feels so very strange. I dont understand. I think it just multi-classed me. That is not a bonus, that’s a penalty. I’ve got [Swordsman] as a secondary class and [Double Cut] as a skill.”

Shit. That meant Sara’s leveling would basically stop until [Swordsman] caught up with [Summoner], and then she’d gain at half the speed.

“Wait.” Sara shared a set of system logs.

This is an elective class. You may only gain experience toward one elective class at a time. You must select to dedicate experience to the elective class. Other skills will not be available while leveling the elective class, but elective class skills remain available while leveling your primary class.

Now, that changed everything. “Think about how quickly you’ll gain the first ten levels. We can hunt and boost you the first ten. Will you get another talent? What skills will you get?”

Trella didn’t hesistate, activating her crystal. And she laughed.

There was always a healthy amount of laughter.

Then there was this.

“Guess who is an optional [Huntress]?” Trella looked to Kaden. “Well?”

Kaden shared what he received. “I just tried to use it. It’s not for me. I don’t know what it does, but I literally can’t use it. So let’s catch up to our mages. I’m going to set some ground rules.”

“Acually, I’ll be setting the ground rules,” Sara said.

Trella grabbed Kaden’s hand. *I’ll catch up. I’m going to run the edge in both directions for the map.*

*Be safe*. Kaden unleashed Trinity and ran to catch up with the others. By focusing on where Skully was, he could navigate. The undead monstrostity had taken his orders literally and loomed over one of the mages. Instead of picking their way around, they plowed straight through the monsters. Kaden made certain Sara got at least one cut in before Trinity demolished them. Cave spiders, giant centipedes, a [Lava Scorpion] and thirty [Fire Bats] later, Sara called a halt. “Kaden, circle around and come from the north. Eve, you’re with me. Follow my lead.”

Kaden dropped into [Stealth Aura] and sprinted around the edge with Trinity at his side until he stood on the other side. *Ready*.

Sara practically shouted. “All clear this way.”

“There’s a level thirty [Lava Scorpion] that way,” Kaden called. Which was probably true. Somewhere in the cavern network, there probably was a level thirty lava scorpion, and since Kaden hadn’t said which direction, it wasn’t his fault if they assumed it was the way he came from.

The Mages, generally, looked deeply pleased with themselves. Odds were they’d all applied their skill points. The Nocto Mage and her Life Mage lackey looked less pleased.

“Hello, my little darlings,” Sara said. “We didn’t get a proper introduction. My name’s Sara Scylla. My party is providing you protection from the greater threats, and we’re going to come to an agreement. Which is to say, I’m going to tell you how it is, and you are going to agree.”