"So, I might have a plan" Mark started and got an understanding look from Alan in return. The teen really knew him the best.
"You do? Can we really get out of here?" the female asked, doubt filling her voice and Mark tried very hard to contain his irritation. So far the other had been nothing but trouble for them and yet she was a key component for the future.
"It's not our first mission in the wild so we know what we are doing. Please keep your questions inside your mind for the time being" Mark wanted to hug the teen, his words coming out to convey the message Mark himself wanted to convey.
Even if the female did not look to be too appreciative of their choice, she chose to keep quiet for the time being. She herself knew that she would not be a big help at all.
"The boss here is inside of a pit like this one. But it's not a fixed boss like in the last few cases. We can't be sure which of the three choices we will get so we need to plan for every likely case" Mark explained, his screen showing the three likely choices they could face.
"But won't that make it difficult? Even planning for one is no easy task" Alan's words held wisdom and experience now which made Mark stop back and take another look at the teen.
He looked considered older, not by his looks but the age and experience in his now dull eyes could not be hidden any longer. He grew up with the circumstances and the advice was something that actually made Mark stop and think again.
"Can't you use the same strategy for all three creatures? S-surely it would not be that different?" Rika finally joined the conversation but anyone could tell that her confidence was not back at all. Her shaky voice still held doubt in it.
"The main strategy is the same for all three - maintain the distance and shoot at the vulnerable part. However, the subtle difference in the anatomy of these creatures makes a lot of difference in how to execute this strategy" Mark pointed toward his screen, the models on it enlarging at his command.
The female gulped down the saliva that had built up in her mouth as soon as she saw the possible 'boss' monsters that were available. All three looked like worms you would commonly see but their morphology marked them too differently.
Yes, she could see that the common strategy of just attacking would not work equally for all three of them.
"The first one would be easy to deal with but the third one seems like it won't be possible by our firepower alone. The second one can be tried but it'll be a gamble too. Should we check for today?" Alan asked, his face taking a determined and curious look.
Truly, the last two would be a problem too if they were to be present there right now. But they were lucky in that regard too.
"All three bosses are present in the channels connecting the pits at the same time and work in a rotation. If we are faced with the wrong one, we will try and reset the pit till we get the easiest shot. The precautions present here are just for resetting the pit since someone would have to engage the monster before reset" Mark saw recognition flash over the faces of his two companions.
That leads to a whole round of ideas being bounced off each other while trying to find an optimal out of the current scenario. With what limited information they had combined with their present accumulated experience inside the cave environment, they finally settled on a game plan.
Rika did try and weasel her way out of everything but the sole fact that they had nowhere for her to hide effectively was enough to prompt her to come along. They did give the female a quick lesson in target shooting as well as a small safety gun.
And then came the time to leave the safe point.
The place they were at currently connected directly toward one of such pits and they could try their luck at such a place easily enough. Mark had a feeling that screamed 'wrong' as he continued walking.
Even Kuro felt uneasy in such an atmosphere and he was sure that it was not only inside his brain. None of the other two seemed to be as affected by that as he had been and yet the feeling seemed not to weaken.
The party finally made their way toward the pit and stopped as soon as they reached the clearing and took cover right near its open mouth.
"Be careful" Mark cautioned his party, his own gun out in the ready.
But the pit was empty on entering. Even the very corpse of the monster was not visible inside the huge hole and it worried Mark a lot. If the monster was not here then where could it be? They could not get outta here without the clearance reward.
"Mark, look here" Alan's voice called out to the teen and the three gathered near the place he was kneeling at.
Even before he reached the place, he felt Kuro's small growl which made him hurry. Whatever the teen had found was important enough to even trigger a divine beast as laid back as Kuro.
"These are markings, hoof markings and they're deep. Maybe as a result of a battle?" Rika's comment was on point here, Mark himself came to the same conclusion.
The claw mark looked distinctively cattle-like, the imprint and angle resembling the marks of some of the bigger cows out there but the deepness of it made a seed of doubt originate in his mind.
"A divine beast?" Alan questioned, his voice showing the hesitantly that Mark himself was feeling. After all, why would a divine beast come in such deep territory of another divine beast? Weren't they in a territory dispute in the original game lore?
"We can't be sure but this makes it clear that we can't stay here any longer. Let's head to the next pit" Mark concluded, his mind running a hundred miles right at that moment.
"Yeah, but which way do we even go? There is a 1/2 chance of running into this new problem here" Rika was right. There were three connected ways from here- two to the other pits and one back.
They had a 50% chance to get it right or they were doomed. Maybe even less since they could not be sure which one of those monsters was actually killed.
"We can't sit here and second guess our choice. Pick one way out and hurry" Mark finally concluded, his gaze looking at the other two who seemed a little hesitant but finally Alan stepped forward toward the nearest cave and the group followed the youngest.
Since Kuro looked much calmer, Mark allowed the group to move that way with ease. But he was vigilant all the while. Even so, he felt as if something landed back at the space they had just been but he ignored the tensing of his body that feeling brought.
There was nothing they could do about any of this, their power and skill too weak to actually accomplish anything at their current level of power.
The light to the pit soon came and so did the silhouette of the monster they had to face and a small smile bloomed on the group's face.
It was the first monster, the best option out of all the three they could be facing.
"We need to not mess it up" Alan whispered and Mark agreed with him wholeheartedly. The group took the formation they had agreed upon without hesitation just as the worm sensed their presence and charged with its huge body.
But it was easy to avoid this time. With their small form and limitation of available space - it was nearly impossible for the monster to be able to hit them at all. All they had to do was make sure that falling rocks did not hit them.
The monster took huge damages, its body not protected by an extra layer of armour or scales, but it was not easy.
Mark made sure his shots covered Alan who dealt the actual damage to the monster with his accurate shots and the younger one shown in such a scenario. The training he did with his brother's team really bore fruit.
But as the fight progressed, it was clear to see that the monster was not in a mood to forgive and just go down without a fight. The attacks became more vicious and the speed increased as well.
And then the place shook once again which caused Mark's system to beep and the horrible feeling just intensified all of a sudden.
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Warning: DANGER DETECTED - USER IS ADVISED TO ESCAPE BEFORE THE SHOCKWAVE ( Time left: 5 minutes)
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"ALAN, MOVE BACK HERE" Mark cried out as soon as he heard the message. Things got complicated all of a sudden.