Maria’s heart stopped.

The Ringleader leaned over and squeezed her cheeks together. “Just what are you doing, little puppet? Putting on a show for dear old me?”

Maria couldn’t even open her mouth to respond. This wasn’t real, it couldn't be.

“Not real you say?” The Ringleader said with an ominous chuckle. “If this wasn’t real, could I do this?” He raised his boot and aggressively stomped it against Maria’s face. She recoiled, grabbing her nose as a loud crack was followed by a bellow of blood gushing. The Ringleader only laughed over her, kicking Maria’s side, and causing her to roll over. “No, this isn’t real at all!” he chuckled.

Maria tried to crawl away, mustering her strength to tear up the grass as her fingers clawed through the dirt. She wasn’t strong enough to fight him, she needed to get away.

“Yes, you should. Do you honestly believe you’re strong enough to face me? With rags like these? Do you honestly think what you find in this dungeon will give you a fighting chance?” The Ringleader stomped onto Maria’s back.

A cry of agony escaped her lips, but it was a feeble sound, barely audible amidst her overwhelming pain. Tears streamed down her cheeks, mixing with the sweat that glistened on her face. Her body felt as if it were engulfed in flames, the searing agony intensifying with each passing moment. She wanted it to end, for the pain to stop, for her health bar to deplete, and for her vision to darken. It all looked so red.

“I’m disappointed. For the demon king's daughter, I expected more from you. You’ll never stand a chance against me.”

Something was rising from deep within her gut, constricting her throat. She felt like she was going to puke, and she couldn't bear the foul taste in her mouth. Maria gagged, desperately trying to expel bile, but to her horror, more of it seemed to force its way back down her throat. She panicked and flailed before looking up and seeing Chariot over her, pouring a yellow potion down her throat.

“Swallow it, Maria!” Chariot barked.

“She’s going to drown if you keep giving it to her like that,” Tanalia said standing over the two.

With a gulp, Maria endured the unpleasant taste, a sickening sensation as if her gullet had been coated with a layer of viscous mucus. Thankfully, her health had stopped draining, and the yellow indicator beneath her health and mana bar vanished. Maria gasped for air, and coughed, vigorously pounding her chest with her fist.

“Are you alright?” Chariot asked, putting a hand on Maria’s back as she sat up.

Maria took a moment to gather herself, before nodding. She touched her nose, and her clothes, and thankfully, there was no blood. Had she just imagined all of that? It felt so real, every stomp, and every kick. It had to have been a hallucination of some kind. Another wave of nausea washed over her, and she gagged as the urge to vomit resurfaced. With a grimace, she managed to speak through the discomfort, her voice strained. “What the hell was that?”

“An antidote. It cures most basic poisons.”

Maria shuffled over to the wall, and slumped against it, giving Chariot a weak nod. “Thanks.”

“You should drink another health potion.”

Maria checked her HP. It had dropped again to {212/1027}. She retrieved a potion from her inventory, and gulped it down, washing away the sickening taste of the antidote, and bumping her HP back up to {468/1027}. “I found the third lever,” Maria said tiredly. “It was in a hidden passageway under the elevator.”

“Oh, good. We still haven’t figured out the puzzle yet.”

“You two still aren’t done?”

“We’re trying,” Tanalia snapped. “Chariot keeps messing everything up.”

“Me? You’re the one spinning them around randomly!”

“It’ll work eventually.”

Another raucous, metallic shriek pierced the trio’s ears. They all quickly looked over to the other team's door. The second bar was sliding out of place, ever so slowly, almost like it was taunting them. Maria sat there and sighed in disappointment. They were too late. All that was left for Irra’s team was to fight the boss, and they would win.

Almost on que, Irra, Torrin, and Yarina, emerged from their puzzle room, walking triumphant and proud. Irra quickly spotted Maria’s party and grinned. “You’re still on the puzzle?” she said, approaching.

“It’s not so easy,” Chariot said.

“Puzzles aren’t meant to be easy.”

“Is yours a light puzzle too?”

“Nope,” Yarina shook her head. “You three got a light puzzle? That’s rough. Don’t feel too bad, they can be pretty tricky sometimes.”

“Aye, sounds like it would have been easier to solve for me,” Torrin boasted with a hearty chuckle. “We dwarves are always doing light puzzles down in the mines. Makes me wish we had your door instead, we might have found the solution much quicker.”

“All the more reason we chose this door,” Chariot said.

“I don’t know,” Tanalia frowned. “What was your puzzle, if you don’t mind me asking?”

“Nothing more than moving a couple of rocks around into the right spots,” Torrin said. The tricky part was aligning them correctly. There were only so many paths you could push the rocks on. I suggested mining them down to match the shapes we needed them to slide into, but Yarina said it wasn’t a good idea.”

“It wasn’t,” Yarina said. “Sometimes I wonder if your brain is nothing more than a rock.”

“I’m a dwarf, I wouldn’t be surprised if it isn’t,” he chuckled.

Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit.

Maria only stared up at Irra and her smug expression. Pride radiated so brightly from her that Maria couldn’t help but squint. Slowly, she wobbled back to her feet, fighting the numbness that still plagued her bones. It wasn’t quite like walking on stilts— Maria couldn’t even think of anything to compare it to. All they knew was that it would take a while before its effects fully wore off.

“What’s wrong with you?” Irra asked her.

“Poison,” Maria croaked. “I’m fine though, just a little beat up.”

Irra peered up past Maria and at the door. “You found the third switch?”

“Y- Yeah… I also found a few dart traps. How did you not get hit with anything?”

Irra’s deadpan silence and raised eyebrow was all the answer Maria needed. She pushed off the wall and steadied herself as her legs quivered.

“You drink an antidote, lass?” Torrin asked.

“It's still kicking in,” Maria said. “Just give me a few moments.”

“Hmpf. Well, good,” Irra said. “I wouldn’t want you dying before you could complete this dungeon.”

“You know, me neither.”

“It’s a shame though that you don’t have a few moments.” Irra marched over toward her pedestal. She reached for the lever—

“Wait!” Maria said. “If you pull that, do you think snakes will fall from the ceiling?”

“What?” Irra glared back at her, before glancing up towards the ceiling.

“Why would they?” Tanalia asked.

“Because…” Chariot sighed. “Look what's happened every time we’ve pulled a lever in this place!”

Torrin scratched at his beard and slowly marched over to the pedestal. “The lass has a point. For all we know pulling that thing could flood the whole chamber.”

Irra scoffed. “You’re all being dramatic. She pulled the lever, and a loud, grinding sound scratched at Maria’s eardrums as the stone door scraped against the floor, opening inwards. Without so much as another word from Irra, she marched off into the final room, followed quickly by Torrin, and Yarina.

“Guess there was nothing to worry about,” Yarina said. “Appreciate the warning though.”

“Best of luck to you three,” Yarina said with a wave.

Maria watched them enter. There went her chances of winning. No doubt they would kick the boss's ass before they even finished the puzzle. She shrugged. Maria steadied herself as the numbness was finally wearing down. She could wiggle her toes and feel it.

“Anyways,” Tanalia said and turned her attention back to Maria. “What else did you find down there? Other than the third switch.”

“Nothing much,” Maria sighed. “A torch that ignites into blue flames, but that’s it.”

“Wait, blue flames?” Chariot said.

Maria nodded and gestured to the elevator. “I think I dropped it on my way up. Careful not to step on the pressure plate.”

Chariot rushed over to the elevator and returned with the blue burning torch in hand. “This is it!”

“What?”

“Blue flames!”

Maria stared back at her with a distant expression. “And is that supposed to mean something?”

“Blue flames can reveal secrets, like markings the naked eye can’t see!”

Maria stared at the dancing flames for a moment. “Oooh! Now that you mention it, I did see some markings down there when the torch's light shined against the wall.”

Chariot raced back into the spherical room, with Maria and Tanalia close behind. As she waved the blue flames around, its radiant light illuminated lines once invisible. The path for light around each crystal was finally revealed. The trio moved quickly around the room, adjusting each crystal until the beam of light perfectly reflected the lines on the floor. Maria had to get onto Chariot's shoulders to reach the crystals on the ceiling. Finally, each of the light beams had been lined up with the newly illuminated lines. The steel bars gating off the lever lowered.

Chariot approached it but hesitated before pulling it.

“What are you waiting for?” Tanalia asked.

“Something bad is going to happen if I pull it, I just know it.”

“I don’t doubt it,” Maria groaned. “Open the chest first, just in case.”

“What about the race?”

Maria frowned and shook her head. “We already lost. I wouldn’t be surprised if they haven’t killed the boss yet.

“So, you’re just giving up?” Chariot asked.

“I… I don’t want to, but… It’s just gold.”

Chariot frowned. “Well… we gave it our best shot.”

“You two gave up quickly for people who seemed interested in doing this,” Tanalia said.

“Honestly, I’m tired,” Maria said. “I don’t feel too good anymore.”

“That’s not a reason to give up,” Tanalia narrowed her eyes at Maria.

“Are you about to give us a pep talk?” Chariot asked.

“No, I’m just a bit disappointed.”

“You didn’t even care about this!”

“And I still don’t. I’m just saying I’m disappointed to see you giving up so quickly.”

“I’m… No, I won‘t give up,” Maria said. “Even if we lose to Irra, I still want to finish this dungeon.”

Chariot glanced at Maria and nodded. “Yes. We may have lost, but we won’t lose.”

“That’s at least better than just giving up,” Tanalia sighed.

Chariot nodded and turned back to face the chest. She slashed at it first to make sure it wasn't a mimic. When nothing happened, she bashed the lock and slowly opened the chest. A soft golden light illuminated her figure.

“What is it?” Maria asked.

Chariot reached in, and retrieved a sack of coins. Maria only sighed, knowing that they would have to give those up once this was all over. Chariot then reached back into the chest, and fished out a sword. It was made entirely of ruby, polished to a flawless sheen. Its vibrant red hues seemed to pulsate with inner energy like the weapon had veins. The blade was long and narrow, and close to the hilt, the blade twisted and turned like a jagged array of metal. At the center of the straight crossguards, a large crystal rose emerged, its golden thorns and vines intricately wrapping around the tanned leather handle to form a distinctive guard.

“What… is this?” Chariot said, pulling the blade out.

“Looks like a sword,” Tanalia said sarcastically.

“Made out of a rose?” Maria tilted her head.

“No, this isn’t…” Chariot tapped the blade, and it’s item description appeared before her.

Crimson Petal

Damage: 120

Perk: Summons a barrage of barbed vines to entangle and damage enemies.

Chariot fell quiet as she read the item description. “Both of you stand back.” Both Maria and Tanalia stepped out of the spherical room. Chariot held the sword aloft, before directing its gleaming tip towards the central crystal. As she did so, a series of glowing red holes materialized on the floor. From them, numerous long golden tendrils erupted forth and struck the crystal. Writhing and twisting with almost violent energy, the barbed tendrils constrained the crystal like a nest of snakes, tightening against it until they could no further.

“What the hell was that?” Maria asked.

“It doesn’t even cost me mana,” Chariot chuckled.

“Oh, that’s cool,” Maria chuckled.

Tanalia crossed her arms. “It is, I suppose. But is it as good as boots that let you jump twice?”

“Maybe not to you,” Chariot said with a smile. “I’m using this from now on though.”

“At least you two found something,” Maria said.

“I’m sure we can find something for you.” Chariot sheathed the sword and looked back at the lever. “And now…”

“You know what,” Maria said. “We’ll wait out here, just in case.”

“Yes, better us out here than in there,” Tanalia added.

Chariot sighed and grabbed the handle. She waited for Maria and the elf to get to a safe distance, before taking a deep breath and pulling the lever.