Chapter 26

Level 101 Burning Flare

The mask of bark came towards us slowly. Though it was made entirely of bark, it moved and bent with an unnatural plasticity. The mask smiled wickedly. Its glowing eyes narrowed. Its nostrils flared and inhaled sharply. It had no teeth, but when it opened its mouth, monstrous insects with sheening shelled backs came crawling out.

I could see the rest of the dungeon through the mouth, so the insects came from some other part of the world. They simply manifested. They were fast and large. Their antennas bounced and their spindly limbs carried them in a blur of activity. Just like the spiders, these all had human eyes in place of insect eyes. They were monsters that seemed to have been born from a combination of the most wretched humans and the most wretched bugs of ancient history.

To my horror, we were forced to defend ourselves without grouping up. We were once again plunged into an ‘every man for themselves’ circumstance. This was exactly what I wanted to avoid. Worse yet, we could not kill the monsters faster than they arrived. They began to pile over themselves and something had to be done.

This is exactly why I leveled up Burning Flare!

I cast Spectre Sentinel to either side of me. I gave one my spellbook and the other my flagstaff. I directed the one with the flagstaff to strike it upon the ground repeatedly. I directed the other to open the spellbook to the Silver Light Kite Shield and cast it multiple times in a circle around me. The monsters crashed like a flood of water upon my shields. They’re slicing mandibles cracked and clattered on the kite shields. Then I cast my level 101 Burning Flare from the spellbook.

Fifty points of lights formed along the ceiling of the tunnel. They each looked like distant stars and twinkled through a multitude of sharp lights. The lights grew in the blink of an eye until they were each the size of apples. Every one of those sparkling lights burst into flares, crackling like fuses, before raining down upon battle. My Party members each received 50 points of healing for every flare that touched them. The monsters received 150 points of damage for every flare that struck them, instantly killing them.

Meanwhile, every article of my flagstaff continued to be cast every few seconds. The monotonous thwack of the flagstaff upon the stone provided a percussion of battle that filled me with adrenaline.

The monsters dyed as they came from the mouth of the mask. Vynk, Arris, and Filo battled the insects while Lep and Robern used ranged attacks to deal damage to the boss itself. When the monsters overwhelmed our frontline, I simply cast Burning Flare each time, and put an end to the flood of insects.

Whether the boss had a second phase or not, we never had the chance to see it. Its death was swift. The mask shook with a tremendous vibration, blurring its entire visage. Its mouth opened and it let out a horrifying screech. Then it fell apart in a mist of sawdust.

“Holy Felke, Tosin,” Arris said. “That was you? The meteor shower?”

“Yea,” I said. “I think it’s going to come in handy.”

“I’m impressed,” Vynk said. “That Area of Effect mechanic is pretty decent, I have to say.”

“I think we all did our fair share,” Robern said. “I mean—yea Tosin helped, but that’s what we expect everyone to do, right? To help out and pull their own weight?”

“Coming from the one who plunged us into battle without warning or caution?” Pelle said.

“If you’re not confident in our abilities to overcome challenges, then just say that,” Robern said.

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“No, no, no,” Lep said. “It has nothing to do with that. Pelle’s right. Confidence in our abilities to win battles doesn’t mean we shouldn’t care to be cautious.”

“I’m just saying that Tosin did what he was supposed to do. You don’t see Vynk or anyone else gloating about it.”

“I haven’t said a word,” I said. “I’m not gloating.”

“I’ve had enough of this,” Lep said. “Me and you Robern. We’re going to go talk.”

“I’m not going anywhere with you,” Robern said, crossing his arms over his chest.

“Do you guys mind giving us some space then?” Lep said, turning to us.

I was surprised to see Vynk give a thumbs up and usher the rest of us away from Robern and Lep. When we were sufficiently far, Vynk decided to open up a bit.

“I’m sorry about him,” he said. “I don’t know what’s gotten into him lately.

I leaned against the wall and tuned out the rest of the conversation. My mind was preoccupied with thoughts of my future as an adventurer. I enjoyed adventuring with Pelle, Arris, Lep, Filo, and even Vynk. Robern was a different matter. I did not enjoy fighting alongside him. Part of me wanted to be obsessively as careful as possible when choosing future party members, but the only way to do that would be by getting to know someone by fighting alongside them. After our time at the Beginner’s Guild, we would all go our separate ways, so I’d have to find new companions all over again.

“Hey,” Pelle said, having come over and leaned against the wall beside me. The others had taken a seat against the far wall and were laughing and joking. “What’re you thinking?”

“I’m thinking of dungeon crawling by myself from now on.”

“Wow. Robern’s getting to you that much, hunh?”

“It’s not just Robern. Just like you, I’ve had less than stellar experiences with some other adventurers before. Robern’s just another reminder of that.”

“Don’t let him get to you.”

“He has gotten to me.”

“Ok. Well. I don’t think dungeon crawling by yourself is the best idea. That’s how adventurers die.”

“Yea, I know,” I said with a massive sigh.

“The thing is, Pelle, it’s not so much the fighting and the dungeon crawling that I’m interested in. I want the mana and the opportunity to create a legendary artifact, the likes that will save lives.”

“There’s only one way to get there,” Pelle said. “Either you’re born a god, or you’ve got to become a legendary adventurer. That means dungeon crawling, especially if you want more mana. To be honest, your spellbook is putting you leagues ahead of the rest of us.”

“I know,” I said. “Trust me, I’m not taking that for granted.”

Someone cleared their voice and Pelle and I looked up. Lep and Robern had come our way. Robern looked a bit downcast and Lep seemed fairly pleased with himself.

“Uhm,” Robern said and fidgeted with the edge of his cloak. “Lep and I were talking, and I just wanted…”

Robern looked around at all of us, only briefly making eye contact with me. The rest of us shared curious glances with each other until Robern at last continued.

“I just wanted to say that I’m sorry. If I’ve been a bit… moody, I’m sorry. It’s nothing against anyone, I promise. I just… yea. I’m sorry. That’s all.”

“We’re good then?” Vynk said, getting up. “Everything’s good, and we can go find some more monsters to fight?”

I wasn’t convinced by Robern's apology. Something about it seemed forced to me. It sounded like there was more he wanted to say in defense of himself, but if Lep was able to tame him for a while, I was more than happy with that.

We gathered our things, and Robern led us forward once more, checking for traps and anything suspicious along the way. Filo conjured her Steed of Elwohire and rode upon the horse of bark and leaf and vine and earth.

“You seem mighty comfortable up there,” Arris said, approaching her.

“Can you please keep your torch away from my steed?” Filo said.

“Oh yea, sorry about that,” Arris said. “Why the steed though?”

“The poem said, ‘Each day is marked by a sleeping master,’ right?”

“Hmnh,” Arris said. “You think it’s literal? You think we won’t get to the next boss for another day of traveling?”

“You wouldn’t be able to fit two people up there would you?” Pelle said.

“Hop on,” Filo said and directed her steed to pause while Pelle climbed up.

“Shame your statues can’t move, Tosin” Lep said, walking beside me.

“Why’s that?” I said. “You’re not thinking you would piggyback if they could walk, are you?”

“I mean…”