Purple light appeared all around the Goliath, capturing it in a cylindrical prison. The lilac-colored sword of Mikoto’s magic descended from over its head, phasing through the beast and crashing into the ground. The beast let out an angry roar and tried to take another step, but its foot slammed back down into the ground impotently. The beast roared again, straining against the force holding it back, but Mikoto’s magic held firm.
Lilli wasn’t idle as the swordswoman held the giant down. She rifled through her pack and pulled out a bottle filled with golden ivory liquid. She tossed the priceless potion to Asuka with a yell, and the brown-haired girl adroitly snatched the bottle out of the air as she ran to assist Ouka. A few moments later, the green-eyed leader of Take Familia was on his feet, hale and hearty, only to be ordered around by Lilli once again:
“Ouka, carry Mikoto! Everyone run to the exit!”
Poor Mikoto was fighting for her life to keep the giant in place, and there was no way she was going to run on her own strength. Lilli had gathered her up in a princess carry while making her way over to Ouka, but there was only so much she could carry at once. Ouka hurried to meet her halfway, and they all made a run for the tunnel on the other side of the Goliath. As they did, the ice barrier created by the magic dagger shattered, and all the monsters that had been chasing them poured into the room. A few seconds afterward, Mikoto’s magic gave out as well, and the Goliath bellowed in triumph at its regained freedom. But the gang was already running down the exit tunnel by that point, and there was nothing the behemoth could do to stop them.
The Goliath turned to scrutinize the new invaders that had entered its home, and it began to smash some of them with a few rage fueled punches. The monster pursuers ignored the creature, however, instead preferring to run around it and towards the exit tunnel. Like a river parted by a rock, they flowed around the grey giant in search of their prey. Even the Goliath seemed confused by this behavior, and it stopped for a moment as the horde passed around it. Then its eyes flashed purple. They flipped back to red, then back to purple again, flickering indecisively for a few key seconds. They finally settled on the color of the mob. Eyes shining a bright violet, it slowly turned its head to where the adventurers had fled. And it began to walk.
…
“You are a worthy opponent indeed.”
The moment he heard the voice, he knew exactly what was speaking to him. He couldn’t help a biting response:
“A bold thing to say for a cat that needs an army to wear its' opponent down.”
Truth be told, Adama didn’t believe in fighting fair, and he didn’t begrudge the Tiger its mental powers and the legion of minions it could gather using them. It made perfect sense that the beast would fight as it had. Tim just wanted to needle the beast and see if he could make it angry. The growl that came with the monster's response showed him that he was on the right track:
“It would be a simple thing to slaughter you by myself! But you know us cats. Always playing with our food.”
“Judging by our records so far, you’re the one who looks like food to me. How many of your subjects have I killed? Not including your lizard friend? I’ve lost count.”
Another snarl:
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“Your arrogance is misplaced. But you are still worthy of my acknowledgement. It was requested of me that I test you, and I have done just that. You are worthy of becoming my slave.”
Now that got Adama interested:
“Test me? Who out there is curious enough to sic a housecat like you on a nice fellow like me?”
“Do not change the subject! It is none of your concern. Answer my question. Will you be my subject? I can assure you that you will reach much greater heights under my leadership than you would on your own, even if I let you go. Which I will not. Choose: Eat with me or be eaten by me.”
Adama took a moment to mentally categorize his options and resources. He still had a few potions left and he had cut through an enormous chunk of his Enemy’s resources. He was out of Elixirs though, since he had given his only other one to Lilli, so there would be no regenerating from the brink of death again. He had been catching his breath and allowing his Mind to rejuvenate as he bantered back and forth with the Tiger, and he had recovered to near his peak. Tim was in top form and wasn’t getting much better, while the more they spoke the more the Dungeon would replace its lost numbers, allowing the Tiger to replenish its ranks. He wasn’t sure if there was a cost to the beast for each monster it took control over, but he wasn’t about to find out. He would plant his sword in its throat before that. He just needed to draw it out of hiding.
Plan set, Adama took an offensive stance and charged the monsters with no further words. It was time to eat, after all.
…
Take Familia and Lilli dashed with all their might towards the town of Rivira. Lilli had planned all of this out in advance, and her plot had gone more-or-less perfectly. Whatever was directing the monsters hadn’t stopped them from getting to the 18th floor. Either it hadn’t been able to, due to its troops’ positions, or it hadn’t wanted to, thinking that the Goliath would finish them off if they tried. Either way, once they get help from the adventurers within the city, they should be able to weather the storm.
Still, there were Hellhounds gaining on them as they approached the walls of the settlement, but Lilli figured that the adventurers on the battlements should be within earshot now:
“Help! Help us!”
She called out, voice growing hoarse from all her yelling. It wasn’t for nothing, as several arrows streaked out from the townships walls and impaled their closest pursuers. The gate of the settlement began to close as they dashed up to it, but it remained opened by just a crack. This allowed their beleaguered party to slip through, before the door slammed shut. Their whole party was heaving like the bellows after that epic sprint, but they didn’t get much time to rest before they were confronted by a large, one-eyed man in a sleeveless, open jacket:
“What in all the holy hells is going on here!??!”
He yelled, glaring down at Lilli and Chigusa. Ouka interposed himself between the belligerent man and the girls, glaring at him, but it was Lilli who piped up in response once she had caught her breath:
“We’re being chased by intelligent monsters. They seem to be acting like drones, controlled by some higher intelligence. They're much more coordinated than normal monsters. Call the entire town to prepare for an attack!”
Bors Elder, a Level 3 adventurer and representative of the Rivira township, only glared harder at the statement:
“Well, if that isn’t the shittiest and dumbest explanation I ever heard-“
“Boss! Come look at this!”
One of the adventurers on the battlements called out, interrupting his leader. Bors whirled on the man, his gaze angry enough to melt steel:
“What is it now! Can’t you see I’m in the middle of something?”
“Just look, Boss! You’re not gonna believe it unless you see it.”
Grumbling about incompetent subordinates, Bors climbed the ladder and gazed out over the battlements. The monsters had paused in their pursuit and had backed up just out of arrow range. They stared up at the walls of the settlement with alien gazes, standing stock still as they rigidly scrutinized their new opponents. The adventurer took note of their strange eye color and disturbing behavior in a heartbeat, baffled at the uncanny sight:
“What the fu-“
The town representative’s bewildered mutter was interrupted with a loud BOOM. It shook the room around them and made some of the tinier crystals in the chandelier above chime as they clinked together. The adventurers of the township looked around in fear and confusion as the world quaked with another massive BOOM. The rumbling grew louder and louder, the sounds clearly coming from the direction of the passage to the Goliath’s room. Disbelief and fear flooded through the onlooking adventurers as they stared toward that corner of the floor. Then, their worst fears were confirmed.
In a cascade of rock and stone, the wall of the Dungeon came crashing down as a towering figure smashed its way through it. A dark-skinned, white haired behemoth slid into the 18th floor, crashing down a massive cavern of its own creation. It then stood upright with a similar rigidity to the monsters surrounding Rivira, turning mechanically to stare at the township in the same menacing, eerie fashion. Everyone’s blood ran cold as they gaped right back at it, most of the adventurers stunned into silence by their own confusion. The Goliath staring at Rivira was an unprecedented and terrifying sight, like the moon crashing down from the sky and onto the earth below. Things stayed like that for a few breathtaking moments before the Goliath began to move. Stone silent, it stooped down and picked up one of the fallen rocks it had scattered in its entrance. It took a stance and hurled the boulder through the air at the grouped together adventurers.
The Battle for Rivira had begun.