The two dungeon delvers, the swordsman and the spearman, launched themselves towards Mars the Lizardman and Virtus the Hobgoblin. Spear was matched against spear and shield, sword against dual-wielded swords. Their weapons clashed, sending sparks flying in all directions. The weapon mastery and experience of the dungeon delvers were obviously greater than the monsters’, but a monster’s physical stats can bridge a gap in technical skill if they’re close enough. If this were simply a two-on-two fight, the dungeon delvers would probably win eventually, even as tired as they are from dealing with that flood of monsters. Unfortunately for them, there were three other monsters waiting in the wings. Caelus the Quazit circled above their heads, waiting for a moment to strike. Vesta, the Arachne, laid a web around the combatants, waiting to trap either delver and ready to sink her venomous fangs into flesh. Mors the Skeleton shot at the few injured delvers who barely had enough energy to stand, making sure they wouldn’t recklessly charge into the fight. Based solely on fighting prowess, the dungeon delvers are superior, but their situation is a pitiable one. After Mars and Virtus conduct a few exchanges, Caelus begins his dive bomb attacks, forcing them to dodge attacks from above and in front. On top of all that, they had to stay aware of the Arachne circling them. They were stretched too thin, and all the injured delvers could do was watch as their last bastion crumbled. A spear pierced flesh, a sword spread blood across the floor in a fury of swings. Wounds were rapidly accumulating across their bodies as they fought against these odds. Eventually, they were overwhelmed. The swordsman swung down, but had to stop midway and twist his body to dodge Caelus’ spear, stepping on a web and falling backwards. Caelus, his momentum preserved, continued his flight straight for the spearman, lodging his spear through the back of the man’s calf and ripping the muscles apart. Then, on his side, the venom-tipped fangs of Vesta pierced his leather armor, bringing a painful end to his battle. And for the swordsman, a single arrow flew in and pierced him through the chest.
?
The only ones left in the room were the injured, practically unable to fight. I could see the despair in their eyes as they watched the battle unfold, incapable of aiding their companions. Apart from the blood-soaked monsters, the only other beings standing tall in the room were Vulcan, quietly watching the battle from the entrance of the room, and the zealot, a face that could only be described as apathetic. There was only one outcome left for the injured and despondent dungeon delvers, so I blinded all of them and turned my focus elsewhere, although I was still aware of what was happening, no matter how much I wanted to ignore it. The zealot is moving; he’s walking past Vulcan’s team as they run past him, as if they’re completely unaware of him. Without a care in the world, he makes steady progress to the door, escaping the notice of even Vulcan and Mors, who don’t rely on physical sight to see. He must be doing something to mask his presence, just like how he escaped notice when he set off the Chaos Infuser on the fourth floor. If I don’t do something, he’s going to escape, and probably notify the rest of the dungeon delvers of what’s happened. He stops in front of Vulcan, murmuring something about a good return on energy, and begins to walk past him, well, at least he tries to.
?
“Vulcan, punch the light.”
?
Using my skill ‘Glow’, I outline the zealot’s head in a pale blue flame, illuminating the surroundings a bit. Vulcan then punches in a straight cross, delivering a heavy blow to the zealot’s head. The rest can probably be guessed. I’ll have his belongings brought back to the throne room so I can identify them and find some good uses for them. If he has other devices that contain Chaos’ mana, I might be able to use them to increase the dungeon’s Entropy for further development. But it looks like Vulcan’s team has just about finished, all of them gaining a good amount of levels from this, especially Vesta and Mors, as they’re both still base-level evolutions. Now, the only problem left to deal with is the main force on the fourth floor. They’re almost halfway through the floor already, but I need to give Vulcan's teams a little time to catch their breath after an actual fight. When they do confront those dungeon delvers, they’ll be the ones at a numeric disadvantage. They’ll have to rely on guerrilla tactics to safely win, and I’ll need to help them. My ‘Illusion Magic’ is still only level three, but that should be enough to at least help. I’ll also have to keep in mind that Arachne and Mors aren’t as fast as the other three, so putting them into direct combat could go bad quickly.
?
Dungeon Delver POV:
?
Coryn led the main force of dungeon delvers through the fourth floor, nearing the halfway point already. The scouting party had already explored the new layout of the fourth floor, allowing them to make quick progress. Additionally, the recent flood delayed the spawning of monsters, giving them a brief window to exploit to get as far as they can. The only real obstacle to the bottom for the next thirty minutes or so was the traps located in every tunnel between rooms. Their trigger mechanisms were more complex, requiring more time to disarm, and were hidden better, taking all of the remaining Scouts’ focus to spot. So, apart from stopping and taking a couple of minutes to disarm each trap, they moved quickly enough that they would be able to reach the end of the floor in less than twenty minutes. The new layout had more intersections that could lead dungeon delvers astray, but their knowledge allowed them to only need to cross a minimum of twelve rooms to get to the end. Afterwards, they should be able to get at least halfway through the fifth floor before any new monsters spawn, and the newly expanded sixth floor is reportedly half finished. With this clear plan in mind, Coryn persevered to see the end of this dangerous dungeon.
?
It should have been simple, at least until monsters started spawning again, but something else happened. Pale blue glowing orbs, reminiscent of the Wisps that littered the dungeon, yet moving as if they’re alive, moving with a purpose. One, two, then enough to match the number of dungeon delvers appeared. Coryn recalled what happened during the monster flood, when half of his force became blinded and quickly overrun.
?
“Squint your eyes! Those orbs will blind you if you look directly at them.”
?
Yelling his warning, the rest of the dungeon delvers listened, wary of those unfamiliar lights. As if to taunt them, the orbs flashed bright, blinding no one, but now moving in synchronized movements around the delvers, casting shadows across the walls. They knew those orbs couldn’t physically hurt them, so they continued on, even with reduced vision. As long as their experienced scout could feel the trap’s mechanisms, he could disarm them without sight. They moved quickly with their reduced vision until a new threat appeared. From the shadows, dark figures emerged, light glinting off their weapons and silhouettes. They rushed at the dungeon delvers, swinging their weapons wildly, forcing a response. The dungeon delvers held their ground, swinging at the dark figures, still wary of the dancing lights' blinding attacks. Although they swung their weapons, they couldn’t feel any physical sensation of the weapons contacting them. One of the dungeon delvers took a closer look when the orbs were away from him, letting him realize the truth of these attackers.
?
“They’re just illusions. They’re not real!”
?
The rest of the delvers heard his words and waited, allowing the dark figures to launch their attacks instead of dancing back on impossibly quick feet. Weapons were raised to defend, but the shadowy figures didn’t follow through with their attack. Their weapons stayed back, hanging in the air to not reveal the illusion. Another dungeon delver threw a rock at the shadows, watching as it passed straight through them and skipped across the floor. The dungeon delvers realized the trick, so they continued on, reaffirming the need to destroy this unpredictable dungeon. As they began to march forward, the shadows moved forward, as if to attack, but the dungeon delvers mostly ignored them, viewing them as dangerous as a Wisp. So, even though two of the delvers were watching the groups back, it took them a second too long to realize something was different about the shadow approaching them. So far, the shadows were completely silent, but the ones approaching now were making quiet plodding noises, in line with the groups walking. They noticed the noise, but it was too late to react, as a pair of swords and a spear found each of their targets. Two dungeon delvers fell, and the shadows, as quick as they came, ran back into the darkness before the bodies could hit the floor.
