Chapter 78

What the— I exclaimed in surprise.

I found myself unable to think any more than that upon bearing witness to such a mysterious phenomenon. And when I looked around, I realized that I wasn’t the only one in shock because everyone around me seemed to have been rooted in their spot. In fact, even the Flame Wolf, who just a moment ago was about to start a fight, was now standing there in a daze, frozen like a statue.

Then, as if that wasn’t nearly enough, a large-scale earthquake followed and shook the entire area. Accompanying that earthquake was a thunderous rumbling sound that seemed to be coming from afar. And as seconds passed, the earthquake intensified, as well as the volume of that thunderous sound. As far as I was concerned, it seemed to be heading towards us.

What is that?! I couldn’t help but ask. At that same moment, I heard an earsplitting blast and saw a streak of pitch-black energy passing from above. And when it hit the ceiling, it caused another small explosion.

*BOOOOOOOM!! BOOOM!!*

Large chunks of debris and broken crystal shards fell with a bang. And on the far western wall of the area, huge boulders and rocks were crashing down on the ground.

While watching that, I couldn’t help but feel relieved that we were far away from the epicenter of those explosions. Because if not, some of us would have probably died from that pitch-black energy, while the remaining ones would be busy running for their lives.

That place… Looking at the direction from where that pitch-black energy had come from, I realized that it came from the location of that path that the Gigarillon and I had collapsed. I thought so…

A thick cloud of dust could be seen rising from that spot. But as it slowly subsides, I saw a huge round tunnel that seemed to lead far back down. You’ve got to be kidding me… As the three alpha wolves gaped at that sight, I turned to look at the Gigarillon only to see him looking back.

At that moment, I became one hundred percent certain that we were on the same page. After all, I recognized that pitch-black energy from earlier, and as far as I know, there was only one monster in these caverns that could use that kind of attack.

Tsk! This might be bad! I warned as I prepared to either fight or run.

At some point, the Lightning Wolf and Flame Wolf were already standing nearby. Because of that, all three alphas heard my sudden warning and they all turned their heads to the side. But since I was still worried about what would happen next, I wasn’t really in the mood to entertain their questions so I just brushed their suspecting gaze aside. Fortunately, it didn’t take long, and the three alphas understood the severity of the situation so they didn’t ask any further clarification despite how suspicious it was.

On the other hand, the Gigarillon had also gotten serious and was now ready for a fight. Although given that this Ape had deliberately lured that monster in the past, then he should have a far deeper understanding of how terrorizing that three-headed monster was. More than that, he even got severely injured because of that stunt so I suppose it was normal that he would act in a more cautious manner this time.

With the all-star line-up of five alpha-class monsters, we should be able to at least put up a fight against that three-headed monster. But what worried me the most about our current situation was the possibility that these guys might not really in the best condition to fight. After all, I could both feel and see that I had been weakened by this strange phenomenon, so who’s to say that these guys weren’t in the same condition? Furthermore, two particular wolves in this line-up had already spent some of their energy in an unrelated fight. Worse, one of these two had just fought two and a half times.

As I lamented about all these facts, the five of us waited in silence without moving from our spot. And though this course of action was in direct contrast to these alphas’ normal response, the three alphas still chose to follow the example, our example, no questions asked.

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Minutes passed, and everything seemed to have calmed down. Despite this, the eeriness in the air had still yet to subside. To be honest, it even felt as if time itself had slowed down. But no matter how long we waited for that thing to arrive, nothing came out from that dug-out path.

“Will somethin’ even really come out?” Someone had finally voiced their doubt.

When I look in that direction, I saw the three alphas staring at me in doubt. I’m not sure… I honestly replied.

“Yev’got to be kiddin’ me! Ye made it sound like a big deal and yet yer’ sayin’ yer’ not sure?!” From how he behaves, it seemed like the Flame Wolf was already reaching the limit of his patience. Although I should have expected no less from that one who in command of the element of fire.

You have seen it right? That destructive power? Yet, you still want to risk it? I quipped back.

“But nothin’s comin’ out, right?”

As I said, I’m not sure. Which means that something may or may not come out. I explained, as calmly as possible.

“Pssshhhh! Yer just scared, aren’t ye? What, did ye get yer ass kicked by those ants or somethin’ else down there?”

Upon hearing that, something inside me snapped. Oh, I see! So, you’re one of those types, huh?!

“Hmm? Types? What do ye mean?”

Oh, you know, those BRAVE and DUMB types! The BRAINLESS ones who always rushed in and die young!

“YE BASTARD! ARE YE MOCKIN’ ME?!”

What do you think? Why not try to use that LITTLE BRAIN of yours! That is IF YOU EVEN HAVE ONE!

“SO, YER REALLY MOCKIN ME, HUH?!” The Dumb Wolf exclaimed with a growl.

Seeing that my argument with Dumb Wolf was about to escalate, the Lightning Wolf decided to interfere. “Okay… That’s enough…” He stated after standing in between us. “This is… not the… time…”

“Coward.” The Flame Wolf gibed before backing down.

Dumb bastard. I shot back.

To be honest, I kind of started to regret that I even thought of assisting this Dumb Wolf during his battle against the Tempest Wolf. Like seriously, I didn't expect that he would annoy me this much. And it wasn’t even as if I had something against these kinds of archetypes. Because as much as I thought myself to be rational, I knew for a fact that even I had some moments like that. So, of course, even though it was exhausting to associate with someone like that, I wouldn’t even think about personally holding those traits against them. But as for this one, he wasn’t only dumb and rash, the most annoying thing about him was that he’s insensitive and crass.

“Anyway… can you… at least… explain what… exactly was… that…?” The Lightning Wolf inquired after seeing both of us back down.

Do you mean that black thing earlier? I asked to clarify.

“Yes…”

Although I really didn’t want to admit it, my argument with the Dumb Wolf actually helped me ease up. In fact, I even had a thought that he might have acted like that with this purpose in mind. But upon seeing that aggravated look in his eyes, I immediately discarded that foolish speculation of mine.

Pulling my gaze away from that Dumb Wolf, I began. Well, in the short version. That black thing is an attack. In essence, it might be similar to that blast that those two had used earlier in their fight. I explained before pointing my head at the Tempest Wolf and Dumb Wolf. Only this time, it is powerful enough to open up a path as you have seen thus far. I added.

“So… you’re saying… that a… monster that… powerful might… appear…?”

Exactly.

“I see…”

Once the Lightning Wolf had nothing else to ask, the Tempest Wolf who had stayed quiet up to now joined our conversation. “Can you describe what the monster looked like?” He asked.

Despite my mixed feeling about this bastard, I still decided to comply. It was a gigantic, three-headed, canine creature. This time, I specifically avoided mentioning the exact race of the monster. After all, I was talking to my future target, so I didn’t want him to know that I have the ability to check another individual’s race. More than that, this was also the monster that somehow managed to block my Assess so it's best to be careful around him.

For some reason, all the three alpha wolves froze upon hearing my description of the Cerberus. But before I even managed to voice out my confusion, I heard the echo of multiple howls coming from that hole. And unlike the howls of these wolves, those particular howls didn’t seem to have any underlying message nor meaning underneath. Instead, the howls sounded incomprehensible and erratic, as if the ones letting them out were enrage or mad.

Damn it! What is it this time?!