Deep in the mines and not too far from the village, a large group of familiar figures entered the mine lit by magic lamps across the ceiling. It wasn't long before they stopped before the forked path.
"Here's where we found the pickaxe. Deuce and I didn't go past this point when we were doing the challenge." Jack pointed to the area before them hesitantly, "It wouldn't make sense for him to go any further if he was just getting the pickaxe… But at this point, I'm pretty sure that's the only direction we haven't searched."
"Whoa, wait... Haven't we been here before?" Ace halted in his steps and froze with eyes in horror, "This is where we came looking for magestones, and then that freaky monster attacked us..."
However, his words fell on deaf ears as Leona and the others went to check the area for clues and the lion beastman spoke up as he froze in spot after a raised brow, "Hey, over here. Found something interesting."
Checking what the student was, Ruggie jumped with eyes shining brightly with great expectations, "Is it a magestone?!"
"Somethin' rarer. At least in these mines." Leona huffed choosing to ignore Ruggie.
As their eyes followed Leona's gaze, they soon found what he was looking at.
"What's this? ...A cauldron? What is a cauldron doing in the middle of a cave?!" Sebek hollered with a look of bewilderment.
Before them was a large black cauldron standing in the middle of the caves. A familiar voice echoed from the cauldron filled with great hesitation, "That voice... Is that you, Sebek?"
Suddenly, the familiar face popped out with wide yet tired eyes, "I knew it! It IS you! Whoa, and you brought a whole entourage! Even Grim and Yuu are here! What are you all doing here?"
"What kind of question is that?! We were trying to find YOU." Jack pointed at him in bewilderment.
"Ain't you lookin' swell! Why didn't you come back to camp?" Grim huffed in disdain.
Yuu sighed, "Does he look fine to you?"
"What? Woah!" Grim's eyes widen in bewilderment, "What's up with those bags under the eyes?! Did you not sleep?"
"Did you hide out in a cauldron for a whole day just to skip camp?" Ace sighed in disappointment, "Is that the punchline here? Lousy joke, if you ask me…"
"Shhh! Quit making noise!" Deuce whispered in horror.
"Huh?" Yuu raised a brow in confusion but paused when he noticed something fluttering along the side of the caves and reached out to it.
"HOW DARE YOU TAKE THAT TONE WITH ME! I DEVOTED MY PERSONAL ENERGIES TO SEARCHING FOR YOU!" Sebek hollered angrily simply furious, " NEVER PRESUME TO TALK DOWN TO ME, HUMAN!!!"
Panic stricken, Deuce jumped in horror, "Seriously, Sebek, keep it down! If you keep yelling…"
He suddenly paused mid sentence with eyes wide in terror and turned to the dark path ahead of them, "Oh no... It's coming!"
It was then that Reggie's ears twitched and pulled back in disbelief as he shouted, "Something's behind us!"
"It'ssss... Mmmm... Miiiine..."
Suddenly, dust kicked up as the familiar overblot phantom miner appeared and rushed at them with a pick axe and lantern in hand!
"What is that thing...?" Ruggie shouted in disbelief.
"MYAAAAH!" Grim leapt into all fours.
"Not again!" Ace cried out and quickly pulled deuce out of his cauldron!
"Myyy...stooone..." the monster raised a pick axe as it swung the pick axe at them!
Seeing Leona and Floyd were just fine dodging the attack, Jack breathed in relief and seeming perplexed, "A lantern and pickaxe... Inky black stuff oozing from its head... That's the monster Deuce told me about! Its whole color scheme feels off. Was it really all green before?"
Grim scolded Jack angrily as he tried to hide behind Yuu, "We ain't got time to debate the details!"
Jack frowned, "We didn't see it on our way in. It must've been hiding in one of the side tunnels."
The monster attacked again as Jack grabbed Yuu and Grim then leapt aside leaving the monster with full access to the outside. However the monster turned to them instead…
"Crud... It's blocking the way outta here. Looks like we'll have to fight our way out." Deuce scowled nervously.
"Are you serious?!" Ace cried out in disbelief and horror!
"Why are you actin' like you've just met your maker?" Leona sneered, "I got a lotta pent-up frustration from havin' to listen to Vargas all day. And I just found the perfect punching bag."
"Samesies! Ahaha." Floyd laughed childishly, "Sharksucker pulled one over on me, so I'm in the mood to cut loose and blow this inky hulk outta the water."
"Blow it out of the water?!" Ace was taken aback, "You don't get how tough that thing is!"
"Not for me. That thing's easy prey." Leona stated blatantly.
"I'm spent just from summoning a cauldron. I can't use any more magic without a magestone!" Deuce lamented, "Don't do anything rash."
"HELP! Someone, save us!" Yuu cried out as he realized that they were acting on instinct again.
"Tch. Buncha herbivores." Leona growned angrily rather irritated that they had no faith in him, "You got ME. Do I have to spell it out in crayon? Fine, if ya still think we can't handle this... Hey, Ruggie."
"Yeah?" Ruggie jumped in surprise as an ominous feeling spread through his body.
"Put up your hands and jump in place." Leona ordered bluntly.
"Uh, we've got a legit emergency and you want me to do jumping jacks?" Ruggie questioned his intention with a look of disbelief.
"I said jump." Leona growled, "Now."
There was a long moment of silence before Ruggie finally lost his patience in the end and lamented, "ARRRGH."
He finally did as he was told and something shiny fell out of his pocket. Seeing this, Grim quickly pointed out in bewilderment and went to pick it up, "Hey, somethin' fell outta his pocket. What a sparkly stone... Hey, wait a minute..."
There was another long silence before everyone shouted in bewilderment, "A MAGESTONE?!"
"YOU UTTER KNAVE!!!" Sebek wasted no time in scolding his upper classman, "Even in this moment of dire peril, you STILL kept a magestone from us?!"
"And it's way bigger than the one you used in the swamp..." Jack growled angrily.
As he watched Leona pick up the stone, Ruggie cried tearfully, "Nooo... My shiny meal ticket! How could you do this to me, Leona?! You could've just kept your mouth shut!"
"You're one greedy dude." Floyd looked to him with a look of surprise, "I'm actually kinda impressed. You could give Azul a run for his money. But hey, now I can bring my A-game. This fight just got turned up to 11! Campin' on land RULES!"
The monster moaned aloud, "Stone... Stoooone..."
"Now I've got nothing to lose!" Ruggie shouted as he vented his frustration on the monster and shot out water magic followed by a solid punch in the jar face by Floyd, "You're gonna pay for making me lose MY stone!"
The monster raised his pick axe and screamed, "MYYY STOOOONE!
"...The upperclassmen are nuts." Ace noted in defeat as he helped Deuce out of the cauldron.
"For real…" Deuce sighed as he managed to stand outside of his cauldron with Ace's support, "That monster is just as strong as the one we fought... Maybe stronger, from the looks of it."
"And they're wipin' the floor with it!" Jack pointed out in bewilderment as soon as the monster was pulled to the ground with Leona's and Floyd's sheer strength.
"That all you got? I've had steaks tougher than you." Leona sneered with a seemingly crazed look across his face.
Noticing Ruggie wheezing after having launched a bunch of magic attacks at the monster, Leona huffed a smirk across his face, "What's wrong, Ruggie? You're gettin' kinda wheezy.
"Just having a teensy bit of trouble. No biggie." Ruggie shrugged it off with a sigh knowing better than to complain in his current situation.
"Leona's magic is way more powerful than any of ours..." Jack noted in awe as watched Ruggie struggle to launch another attack at the monster, "And Ruggie's baiting the monster's attacks out as far as he can, then dodging them."
"They're incredible!" Yuu responded with a look of shock.
"Nooo" The monster struggled under their attacks, "haaave...my...stooone!"
"You just don't know when to quit, do you? People who can't take a hint really grind my gills. But you better not just give up. 'Cause if you did that..." Floyd cracked his shoulder with a menacing look across his face, "...You'd bore me to TEARS!"
Watching his upper classman actually able to break another crack in the ink jar head, Ace shuddered in fear as he shrinked back next to his classmates, "Man, Floyd's brutal. He keeps throwin' huge spells right at the monster's squishy bits..."
Seeing them fall back in disdain, Sebek jumped to his feet and raised a fist, "Freshmen! Are you content to relinquish all glory to the sophomores and juniors?! Weaklings, the lot of you. If you cannot muster any valor, then stand back before you get hurt! I shall slay this creature!"
Ace sighed in dismay and muttered, "Those are some bold words, bro."
"Yeah!" Deuce hopped next to Sebek, "We've definitely improved since last time!"
"Sounds like things are gettin' spicy." Floyd sneered and turned to the Savanaclaw duo, "Hey Sea Lion. Sharksucker. I'm tired of this thing. What's say we wrap it up?"
"Sounds good." Leona laughed as he shook off the weariness creeping up his limbs, "Doesn't feel right to keep kicking a whatever-this-is while it's down."
"Okay, let's send it packing!" Ruggie shouted hoping to bolster up whatever magic was left in himself so he may survive this fight and avoid whatever may come later.
After ten minutes of fighting, Ruggie finally plopped himself on the cold and hard floor as he looked up in disbelief, "Is it...over?"
"Looks like it." Leona grumbled as he finally stepped back from the disintegrated body.
"Wheeew. I am BEAT." Ruggie cried out and laid back on the ground disregarding the grime and dirt on the ground, "Things got dicey for a moment there. Everybody make it through?"
Sebek sneered under the sweat from the heat of the battle and laughed victoriously, "I would never lose to a creature whose basic nature I cannot even discern."
"Wish it would've stuck it out a bit longer." Floyd whined.
"Now I can finally leave this tunnel." Deuce collapsed with the wound on his knuckles opened over the callouses, "I came back for the pickaxe, and that thing attacked me. I fled further into the mine, summoned a cauldron, and jumped inside. But I think...I've had enough…"
"Whoa there, Mr. Wobbly Legs. Are you okay?" Ace reached out a hand to him with a shocked expression upon seeing his bloody knuckles.
"Were you hiding in that cauldron this whole time? You must be exhausted..." Jack responded in bewilderment.
After hearing this, a loud grumble could be heard echoing through the caves as Grim laughed aloud, "Myahahah! Was that your STOMACH? That was loud enough to cause a cave in!"
"Look, I haven't eaten since yesterday! What do you expect?" Deuce stammered with a pink blush over his facial expression as he revealed himself to be the source of the sound.
"Boy, way to make a fool of yourself." Ace chuckled weakly before affirming in relief, "But hey, at least you're okay."
"Yeah." Jack sighed, "I'm glad we decided to come. I wouldn't have been able to sleep if we'd left you in the lurch."
"Thank you for coming to get me." Deuce smiled wide full of gratitude and relief.