When Barda got a good look at his opponents, he realized that the middle river-snake was 40 meters from head to tail, rising to 4 meters tall. It was essentially bigger than all the others, and the other 2 stood as though they were the beast's bodyguards.
Barda immediately dispelled his five conjurations. He did not plan on taking the beasts on himself, he just needed a change of strategy.
Barda produced 3 humanoid Fire Elementals, each having 20% Magical Energy. He then armed one Elemental with a sword and another with a spear.
Watching the Elementals approach, the beasts charged at them with reckless abandon. They had the air of tyranny about them as if nothing could get at them. Normally, Barda would have sneered at this, but now all he could do was shudder.
Although Barda was trying to do his best to remain hidden, he had to take advantage whenever he could. He took out his assault rifle and equipped a silencer. He then fired six times. The beasts squealed and tumbled. Barda had shot out their eyes.
Not giving them a moment's respite, Barda charged the Elementals to attack the wounded river-snakes. Barda was in a hurry to end the fight.
Unfortunately for him, the river-snakes were not easily bullied. Spinning while still on the ground, they spat out purplish liquid at the offending Elementals.
Tssst.
The moment the liquid came into contact with the Elementals, it was transformed into a dark purple mist, significantly reducing the size of the Elementals. However, 20% was no small thing, it could only slow down not stop the attackers.
What baffled Barda was that no matter how well he ducked, the enemy still managed to acquire and hit him. Even blinded, the beasts still managed to find their targets.
That was when it hit Barda, all reptiles had a section under their nasal cavity meant for detecting heat signatures, and these were Fire Elementals. In front of the river-snakes, these Elementals lit up like a Christmas tree.
At first, Barda wanted to take out these organs, but then if he did, these things could go wild and start firing aimlessly. While he wasn't sure the fire could get to him, he was not stupid enough to think himself invincible. The Elementals were not affected, so why not use them.
Moving like parkour experts, Barda's Elementals closed the distance between them and the river-snakes in no time. Despite the toughness of the beasts' scales, Barda's onslaught and the heat of the blade tore through the scales like a hot knife through butter.
Barda did not stop there. He transformed the Elementals into 2 trebuchets and started firing fireballs at the remaining river-snakes. He had one Elemental stand guard to cater for any that got too close.
As it turned out, this was an unnecessary precaution. After watching their King fall, the river-snakes were terrified of Barda and his Elementals and would not get anywhere near them. Barda was pleasantly surprised to see the body of the 3 large river-snakes disintegrate, and he went to collect the essences.
He was conflicted about whether he should consume them or not, but on remembering what happened last time, he decided to wait until he was in a secure location.
Upon reaching the second floor, Barda was shocked by what he saw. Instead of the large hall, the second floor seemed as though he was in open grassland. He could still make out a cave on the other end, which he assumed was the exit.
Barda summoned 3 of his Elementals to surround him like bodyguards as he looked for trouble. He was feeling encouraged since he was in the grasslands. Whatever the next challenge would be, it would not be river-snakes.
His smile froze as he watched the white blobs emerge from the forest. They looked like eggs only they were half a meter tall. They looked like human heads but their faces had a clown's makeup.
Barda's face that had been smiling suddenly transformed into horror. Even now he recognized these figures.
As a child, one of the local toymakers on the planet decided to shut down the production of a brand on account of low purchase. however, they still had loads of toys in their warehouses, so they gave to the destitute.
These toys were in the form of a local comedian who had gained some fame, Duh-Duh the clown. However, instead of being appealing to the masses, children were scared of them, and little Barda was no exception.
He remembered the nightmares that he would have, making him wake up screaming bloody murder. In his dreams, he was in some grassland and giant Duh-Duh the clown doll was coming to eat him. He never did find out what the doll would do or how it would attack.
Even now he waited to see the form of attack his brain would think of. He figured out that to fish such a personal memory, the hall was simulating events based on his memories. That would also explain why there was an open grassland inside a castle.
Without much ado, Barda conjured 3 wyverns and sent them carving their way through the multitude, he wasn't even giving them a chance to attack. Just like that Barda cleared the first 10 floors of the castle.
***
A ballista bolt struck hard at a group of soldiers advancing to meet the invaders. The ordinance tip exploded on impact, sending the group sprawling, some with lost limbs.
In the cloud of smoke that ensued, a horse dashed out. On it rode a man wielding an assault rifle. Commander Manga was on fire as he rode through the city square, stomping at anyone in his path. His focus was not on these, so he was not firing.
At a hundred meters away, the horse he was riding was shot down, sending him tumbling on the ground. He quickly got up, grateful that his weapons were all strapped to him, none got lost.
Before rushing the palace, he took a moment to look at his men. Their performance was impressive. They looked like regular GIs, charging the enemy with fury.
Fired up by what he saw, Manga made his way to the palace. Already, some of his men had stormed the castle, clearing the path for him. Barda gunned down any enemy in his path, and within the hour, he got word: The palace was clear.
"Any sign of the monarch?"
"None, My Lord."
"That sly old bird, she abandoned her city?" Commander Manga was hit by disappointment. No wonder the city as so easy to capture.
"Send word to the King, have the captains gather to me," Manga commanded as he went to the throne room. For a moment, he was tempted to sit on it, feel how it feels to be at the top of the mountain.
***
Meanwhile, at the summit of the tower, Barda had the same feeling of an anticlimax as he approached the table.
It had been arduous work grinding each floor. On every floor, he met something that had given him some form of fright in his past. In some cases, he encountered some undead, vampires, and werewolves. In some cases, he had to fight in dizzying heights, while in others, he fought underwater, negating his use of Elementals.
With each increase in level, the complexity and combat standards of the mobs increased. None of these posed any problem for Barda as he was able to quickly lay them to waste. On every floor, he fought a boss with a few subordinates and from them, he would reap some essences.
Finally, on the top floor, Barda felt that all this had been too easy. Surely he couldn't be so overpowered that he could bully his way through a contest that has lasted for generations. He had to admit he was feeling underwhelmed, but he still couldn't find the key.
Looking at the table, he saw inscriptions on it, which looked like instructions. They were telling him to place the essences collected onto the table, which Barda obliged. The essences started forming around each other, like pieces to a jigsaw puzzle.
They melted together to form one giant sphere, which then morphed into a key. Just as Barda was about to reach for it, the key moved on its own and inserted itself into what looked like a keyhole on the table.
Incredibly, Barda watched as the table opened and brilliant light shot out. The next moment, the light was sucking him into another dimension.
***
"How are you, Lady Gwendolynn?" Lord Otto asked.
"What do you expect, she just lost her city?" Lord Falk barked, "and mine is next!"
"Patience brother, we will pay Tristan back a hundredfold," Lord Otto consoled.
"That's easy for you to say, it's not your city that's been," Lady Gwendolynn answered.
The King of Reuze shot a glance at the Prince of Gumina before saying, "We all have had to make sacrifices."
"Unlike some of us, the sacrifices we make do not make us Kings!" Lady Gwendolynn shot back.
"Enough!" The Prince of Gumina shouted, "The preparations are nearly done. Vengeance will be bitter!"