The world blurred for a mont as soon as they stepped into the portal, and when clarity snapped back, a whole new landscape lay before them, eliciting a soft gasp from Lyra beside him.
They stood in a massive chamber that extended as far as their eyes could see.
"A dungeon floor," Ulric murmured, his eyes narrowing slightly as he took in every detail.
The air reeked of an ancient aura. The walls at the sides gave off an unyielding sense of defense.
He doubted anyone could break them at F-rank strength. Fire torches mounted along the walls illuminated the entire place.
Further ahead, the massive chamber narrowed into multiple pathways, all leading to the depths of the dungeon.
"Impressive," Ulric muttered. The hundreds of awakened who had spawned in the chamber more or less shared his thoughts, their voices breaking into murmurs, bits of conversation filtering into his ears.
"Woah, it’s a lot bigger than I expected."
"T-this place looks scary... I want to go back ho."
"Hahaha, where are those freaking beasts? Daddy’s here to farm you."
"Wait, I found one... attack! I’ll be the one to clear the fucking dungeon!"
The murmurs escalated quickly, breaking into chaos as all sorts of reactions flared.
Rows of figures charged forward, leaving the safe zone to attack a few Level 1 Grey Wolves.
Their fras hovered around a tre tall, grey pelts covering their bodies. Yellow crystalline slits for eyes and razor-sharp teeth glinting in the torchlight.
When the youths closed in, they unleashed their talent combat power on the wolves, hurling fireballs and more in an uncoordinated barrage.
Most missed. Others barely landed. And those that hit the mark barely caused any damage.
Shifting their attention, the wolves lunged forward in retaliation. What unfolded next was nothing short of a bloodbath.
Claws tore through throats, slicing them clean in one motion. Their maws snapped heads clean off. Others barely managed to escape, gravely injured, as they scampered back into the safe zone, breaking into screams.
And as they did, reality slowly dawned on them. This was a world crafted purely for the survival of the fittest. The strong ruled while the weak perished.
Proof of that lay before their eyes. They had lived most of their lives sheltered. But now they had to face the cruelty of the world.
Friends they had known all their lives were now torn into pieces within seconds. Even worse, by the weakest beasts. Fear froze them in place as a cold silence descended, all of them trying to process what had just happened.
Watching from the side, Ulric sighed.
"Just as I expected. The strength of even the weakest beasts far outstrips regular awakened."
Those wise enough had remained back to gauge the situation. As for those who had already died...He sighed. It was a cruel fate. One imposed on the weak.
Hence why he clenched his fingers gently, determination flaring in his eyes for a mont. He was going to get rid of it.
Apart from that, he felt barely anything. Lyra at his side looked a little shaken, but with a slight tug, he pulled her from her thoughts as he walked forward, dragging her with him.
He had seen enough. It was ti to act accordingly.
The rest of the youths hurried to form coordinated groups to try to slay monsters. Even after everything, giving up wasn’t an option.
Most begged him to join their groups, but he dismissed them with a single wave, a thought circling at the back of his mind.
He wasn’t looking to add dead weight.
Joining groups posed too many disadvantages, including sharing experience points. It just wasn’t worth it.
At the side, Cedric shook his head dismissively, watching Ulric venture alone with Lyra.
"If you want to die fast, fine by ," he snickered. Only arrogant bastards thought they could clear a dungeon by themselves.
Even with an S-rank talent, you’d need to awaken your class so it could be accentuated to perform real destructive damage.
Pulling together all the C-ranks with great combat talents and Asher with her C-rank healing talent, the smile on his face widened.
This was how he would clear the dungeon.
All those with lower talents could only scowl before forming groups with other low-talented figures.
Standing at the edge of the safe zone, Ulric inhaled sharply, ignoring the burning gazes as his eyes veered to the wolves up ahead.
Their numbers had dropped to two, causing his brows to arch slightly. Was this a dungeon chanic to protect the challengers, or had the rest simply retreated after their al?
Whatever the case, it didn’t matter.
Turning to Lyra, he nodded faintly. They were all hers.
Catching the implication, her face hardened. Blue eyes glowing faintly as the air temperature suddenly dropped.
Ice ford at her hands as she activated her B-rank talent: Ice Frost.
Sensing the new arrivals, the two wolves averted their attention toward them. Guttural growls slipped from their throats as they charged forward, primal bloodlust burning in their eyes.
Watching their incoming fras, she crouched slightly, assuming a battle stance.
The ice solidified into silvery shards that she gripped tightly.
When the first wolf lunged for her throat, her waist jerked back suddenly. Leaning at an almost impossible angle, just as the beast was above her mid-air.
She growled, wrenching one of the spikes into its belly, tearing its innards open. The beast let out a painful howl before collapsing to the ground.
Immobilized, she shifted her attention to the other wolf that had circled behind her, aiming for a sneak attack.
Creating distance, she hurled an ice spike toward the wolf’s vital organs. Conjuring one after another, she shot them at the beast. So it avoided.
But most struck true. After a short while, it was impaled by multiple ice shards, blood leaking continuously from its fra.
Barely monts later, both beasts collapsed lifelessly before bursting into motes of golden energy that flowed into Lyra’s fra, now slick with sweat.
She breathed raggedly, barely remaining upright after the short battle. As the energy flowed into her, a soothing wave washed over her and a slew of notifications flared before her, prompting her to choose her class. But she dismissed them all.
Ever since she had awakened her talent, she had already known which class she was going to choose.
The whisper that echoed from her lips was only a confirmation.
"Mage."
Having watched the entire exchange, Ulric smiled in appreciation. Seed like soone had taken their combat classes seriously, he nodded slightly as he replayed her tactics in his mind.
Using the wolves’ generated force against them instead of trying to brutally overpower them instantly.
The cheers echoing from behind only confird that thought as hope relit in the youths’ eyes. Slaying the beasts wasn’t impossible, they just needed clearer tactics.
His thoughts were cut short as the golden light encapsulating Lyra’s form lessened before entirely dissipating, her figure coming into full view.
The fatigue and sweat had peeled away. While her figure remained relatively the sa, he could feel sothing fundantal about her being had shifted.
Her next words confird it as she rushed toward him, a smile covering her face as she chirped excitedly,
"Look, I’m finally a mage."
Extending her hand, two spikes ford in the air instantly. Their edges oozed a sharper aura and felt more durable, a big improvent from before.
And judging from her excitent, he supposed the improvents extended far beyond just this.
But it was to be expected. The combination of a talent and a class enhanced one’s capabilities significantly.
Looking down into her blue eyes, he smiled faintly, grabbing her waist and pulling her closer as he whispered teasingly into her ear,
"My little ice queen."
The words caused her face to flush. Before he could relish in the mont. Deafening howls echoed out, pulling his attention to the depths of the dungeon where multiple youths were rushing toward them.
Leading the charge were familiar Level 1 Grey Wolves. At the back, another set of wolves caused his brows to furrow slightly.
Covered in dark fur, their fras towered over two tres each.
The auras seeping from their beings were crushing. A quick glance with his appraisal allowed him to gauge their true strength.
"Level 5 Dark Wolves," he murmured quietly.
The words caused Lyra’s face to fall as she grabbed his arm tightly.
"Quick, let’s run back to the safe zone."
Even after awakening her class, she was sure she could now easily slay Level 1 beasts. Maybe two, even three. But beyond that was pushing herself.
What stood before them was basically unwinnable. Ten Grey Wolves at the front and five Level 5 Dark Wolves behind them. This was bad. They had to get back fast.
But as she tugged at Ulric’s arm, he remained unyielding, not budging an inch.
Why wasn’t he moving? she scread inwardly.
Only for his next words to freeze her in place.
"Looks like the wolves hadn’t gone to rest. They just called up their buddies for a feast," he surmised, a smirk spreading across his face.
Turning to Lyra, he exhaled softly, watching her face slick with worry. Caressing her cheek gently, he reassured her.
"There’s no need to run."
Before taking a step forward.
"Huh?"
Lyra murmured. What was that supposed to an? He hadn’t even awakened yet. This was basically suicide.
But what unfolded next froze the words in her throat. Extending his arms, a maniacal grin stretched across Ulric’s face as he stared at the approaching beasts.
While others saw death, he saw opportunity.
Finally, sothing to test my talent on, he mused, tapping into his Monarch of Darkness.
A mont of silence descended.
Before he breathed.
"Unfurl."
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