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The five of them stood at the edge of the massive circular altar's highest tier. Below them, broad stone steps cascaded down like guiding threads dropped by a god, silently inviting them toward the dormant center.
The space was perated with a dry, ancient scent, a stark contrast to the rotting dampness of the Dungeon.
"Are we... still inside the Dungeon?" Hyacine asked, hugging Little Ica and looking around, her voice filled with curiosity.
"This place... is magnificent," Lefiya murmured. As an Elf, she held an innate reverence for such grand architecture that seed fused with nature and history.
Aiden didn't answer. His gaze swept past the two wider circular platforms and the lonely, broken pillars, finally landing overhead.
"Let's go. Be careful," Aiden withdrew his gaze and was the first to step onto the descending stairs. "The monsters should be below."
As soon as his voice fell, Robin followed close behind. Tifa and Hyacine flanked the sides, protecting the newly joined Lefiya in the center, forming a standard exploration formation.
The stairs were long but not steep, as if designed for ancient pilgrims to walk step-by-step toward the altar's center.
As they ventured deeper, the surrounding light began to shift subtly. The light filtering down from the skylight grew from a pale green to sothing brighter.
When they stepped onto the first broad platform, a group of colorful creatures noticed them.
There were dozens of round, jelly-like Slis—Cryo, Electro, and Hydro variants—bouncing aimlessly. Behind them, over twenty Hilichurls wielding crude wooden clubs turned around, the eyes beneath their wooden masks radiating primitive hostility.
"That's a lot of them..." Tifa whispered, assuming a fighting stance.
"But they're spread out," Robin analyzed calmly. "They didn't rush us all at once. We can take them down pieceal."
"But we have to be fast." Aiden's eyes sharpened. "These aren't stationary targets. Once the fighting starts, the noise will likely alert the other monsters deeper in the platform. We have to finish this group before they can encircle us."
"Understood!" the group responded in unison.
"Ride upon this wheel of fla."
Aiden chanted in a low voice, and surging magic power instantly erupted from his body.
In the next mont, scorching flas ignited around him like a magnificent feathered cloak. The air distorted from the heat; he looked as if he had transford into a miniature sun. Even the ordinary longsword in his hand began to glow with an ominous red light.
Almost simultaneously, Robin closed her eyes.
[Family of Harmony].
An invisible ntal network was instantly woven, tightly connecting Aiden, Tifa, and Hyacine.
In a split second, the thoughts of the three rged as one. Their fields of vision, hearing, sense of direction, and even their next combat intentions beca crystal clear and shared among them.
This was a skill with high consumption, so Robin would only activate it the mont battle comnced and deactivate it imdiately after to save precious ntal energy.
However, Lefiya, positioned in the center of the formation, felt a sense of alienation.
She could clearly feel the rising fighting spirit from Aiden and the others, but she also felt excluded.
This was natural. Robin's skill, [Family of Harmony], had strict conditions. Lefiya was rely a temporary teammate they had just t; subconsciously, she wasn't recognized by Robin as "family," and thus could not enter the Harmony network.
Before she could think further, the battle erupted.
"Ya! Yika!"
The Hilichurls at the front let out strange roars, waving their wooden clubs as they charged.
Aiden moved.
He didn't exchange a single word with his companions, yet his body reacted with perfect precision.
He took a step forward, the fla-wreathed sword in his hand tracing a precise arc, instantly severing the necks of two Hilichurls.
At the exact mont of his attack, Tifa slid out from his flank, keeping her body low. A swift sweeping kick tripped three other charging Hilichurls. Without a pause, her fists howled through the air, delivering a rapid barrage of strikes to the fallen enemies in the blink of an eye. The crisp sound of cracking bones was incessant.
From the rear, Hyacine waved her staff gently. Several condensed wind blades whistled out. They didn't fly toward the Hilichurls but aid precisely at several Slis that were preparing to spit elental orbs.
The wind blades sliced through their soft, gelatinous bodies, striking their cores directly and detonating them just before they could launch their attacks.
All of this happened within re seconds.
Lefiya was completely stunned.
This level of coordination... it was as if they didn't need words or even eye contact to understand each other's thoughts.
Every ti Aiden lunged, Tifa filled the gap on his flank perfectly. Every support attack from Hyacine accurately predicted the enemy's movents and the gaps in her allies' attacks.
The four of them seed controlled by an invisible thread, moving as a seamlessly coordinated whole, harvesting the lives of monsters efficiently and ruthlessly.
No wasted movents. No hesitation. Every person's action seed to be the perfect prelude to another's attack.
Such amazing teamwork... Envy welled up in Lefiya's eyes.
Flawless cooperative combat like this represented deep trust and bonds. Their relationship must be incredibly close...
She couldn't help but think of herself and Miss Ais.
She yearned to have this kind of coordination with Miss Ais, to beco her most reliable support, to gain her recognition and praise...
In the mont she was lost in thought, Aiden's group had already cleared out nearly half of the Hilichurls and Slis like cutting through lons and vegetables.
"I can't just watch!"
Lefiya quickly gathered her focus, tightening her grip on her staff.
She took a deep breath, and a clear chant in the elven tongue flowed rapidly from her lips.
"Noble warrior, forest archers. Let the invading plunderers be before you, take your bows. Respond to the voices of your brethren, nock the arrow and kindle the fla, forest light. I command you to loose, elven fire—"
She raised her staff high, the magic gemstone at its tip erupting with brilliant light.
"—Rain down, burn the savages!"
[Fusillade Fall]!
As her final chant fell, a massive magic circle unfolded in the air above her.
In the next second, hundreds of spears composed of fire, like a dense teor shower dragging long tails of fla, poured down overwhelmingly toward the area where the monsters were most concentrated.
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