Over the next few days, Hazel and I would continue trading spots as we went up against different groups. For a while, the only enemies we would face would be harpies, but we didn't complain. By the end of the second day, after we encountered eight or nine groups of harpies, both Hazel and I had accumulated exactly 14,000 XP, which allowed us to both level up. I only leveled up once, mainly due to the huge amount of XP I needed, so I only reached level nine. Hazel, on the other hand, didn't need as much XP, so she managed to level up twice.
Even Icarus, who only participated a few times, managed to get 3500 XP from the harpies that were left behind whenever we would encounter a group of eight. By the time we went to sleep on the second day, our stats looked like this:
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Arthur Aureys
Race: Dragon
Form: Young Red Dragon
Level: 9
HP: 520
MP: 720
AC: 250
DMG: 170 FIRE
Rank: SS
Titles: Dungeon Master
Skills: Appraisal, Morph, Summon, Flight, Dungeon Visit, Fire Breathe
Skill Sets: Flame Manipulation
Status Effects: Flame Immunity
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Hazel Conley
Race: Dragon
Form: Young Black Dragon
Level: 8
HP: 470
MP: 320
AC: 250
DMG: 200 CURSE (+)
Rank: S
Titles: Curse Dragon, Partner of the Dungeon Master
Skills: Morph, Curse Magic, Curse Breath, Flight
Status Effects: Flame Immunity
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Icarus Aureys
Race: Dragon
Form: Dragon Wyrmling
Level: 7
XP: 777.4/6400
HP: 40
MP: 45
AC: 15
Rank: A
Titles: Son of the Dungeon Master
Skills: Flight (LOCKED), Dragon Fire, Fire Breath, Respawn
Status Effects: Flame Immunity
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As we continued fighting harpies, I began to wonder why they were simply loitering around the mountain. There weren't any trees nearby, so they couldn't perch on anything. There was simply dirt and rock, almost as flat as a board with a slight incline. It was a dreary and lifeless place, though the sky was still vibrant and full of life so it was comfortable to be among the clouds rather than stuck on the ground. When we flew, we would always travel further up the mountain, only ever lowering ourselves to the ground when we found enemies. We never found any of the harpies in their homes or while they were eating. Hell, most of the harpies we fought looked too thin to be eating.
Eventually, we found the reason why. Near the middle of the mountain, a few hours away from the base, was a large cave system. This cave system was nothing compared to my dungeon's first floor, but it was still a surprise to find considering most of the mountain had been featureless thus far. Luckily for us though, the cave itself wasn't too small for Hazel or me I. Or rather, we weren't big enough yet.
Not long after we took our first steps into the cave system, we encountered our first group of harpies. They were almost like guards, protecting the cave from intruders. Just knowing these harpies weren't loitering, but instead had a duty, piqued my interest.
These harpies were all large, almost twice the size of ordinary harpies, which made them look like goliaths with their half-human bodies. None of them carried weapons because there weren't any limbs that they could use to carry them in the first place, though some of them had sharper talons than the others.
When we encountered the group, I stepped up to fight them. It was, after all, my turn. When I walked up to fight the harpies, I quickly noticed that there were only four of them. In the groups that we had seen so far, we usually fought seven while occasionally meeting a group that had eight.
The harpies were the ones that began the battle. Much like their smaller variants, the goliath harpies charged in with no hesitation or caution. I waited until they came closer to me, then chose to open my mouth and let out a fierce stream of fire.
There were only four of them and they were all bunched together. In conditions like that, not using my fire breath would be a crime. So, when the stream of fire left my mouth, the harpies instantly began to panic. The cave around them lit up like the morning sun, though the lights were fierce and filled with the intent to kill.
Three of the harpies went to the sides of the cave, hoping to escape the blast. One harpy, who appeared to be the largest of the group, stood still and began to prepare herself for my attack by putting her wings in front of herself like a shield.
I watched in amusement as the stream of fire slammed against the harpy, destroying her in the process. She didn't even have time to scream before she was incinerated. Not only did my attack completely outclass her AC, but it dealt enough damage to leave absolutely no chance for survival.
The other three harpies, who had dodged to the side, seemed to sigh in relief as the attack narrowly dodged them. One of them, who had been a little slower than the others, nearly stumbled in the air when they felt the severe heat of the flames.
'You think you're safe?' I thought with pleasure as I redirected the flames by moving my head. My breath slammed into the other harpies in the same way that it slammed into the first harpy and similarly incinerated them.
Even the stone cave wall that laid behind them was smoldering, red hot flakes of stone falling off as the ash of the harpies slowly dropped to the ground. I closed my mouth, letting the flames dissipate, as I looked at my MP.
『 MP: 600/720 』
'I used a little bit too much there,' I thought to myself. Although that was an ordinary fire breath attack, it should've used only 100 MP, 'It looks like I can use a skill for a little longer, but that'll obviously cost me more. Nice to know, I guess.'
Then, with the four harpies that guarded the cave system dead, Hazel took my place and began to lead the group. As we walked, I kept an eye on my MP and made sure to mark the time it took to increase.
A second later, my MP bar changed.
『 MP: 602/720 』
Then, another second later, it changed once again.
『 MP: 604/720 』
'Two MP every second isn't bad,' I thought to myself, 'It's minuscule, but it'll add up quickly. My only question, though, is whether that will change in a fight. If not, then I might be able to rely on my natural regen in the future.'
We continued walking for another ten minutes before running into another group of harpies. This time, there were five of them. I looked at Hazel, who already met my gaze, and nodded. Hazel quickly understood and turned her attention back to the harpies as she began her attack.
At the same time, Icarus rushed forward and baited the attention of the harpy closest to him. The harpy instantly noticed the dog-sized creature running toward it and grew elated. It quickly began to ignore Hazel and charged toward Icarus. I was baffled that the harpy was capable of pretending Hazel didn't exist, but then I remembered they weren't smart enough to understand tactics anyways.
Once Icarus got the attention of the fifth harpy, he quickly changed directions and ran away from it. This seemed to excite the harpy and brung out age-long predator instincts. The harpy, who had never seen a dragon and was probably wondering what one tasted like, chased after Icarus.
Icarus didn't falter under the pressure. He continued running, easily reaching a safe distance from the main fight to work confidently. At the same time, though, he made sure the distance between himself and me was enough for me to work with. Then he turned around and began the fight.
While Icarus fought the harpy, I watched the fight closely as I used『 Appraisal 』on the harpy. It was larger and looked slightly different in complexion than the other harpies, almost as if it were younger, so I quickly made the connection that it was a different species or variant.
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Large Harpy
Race: Monstrosity
HP: 140
MP: 100
AC: 65
DMG: 50
Rank: D
Harpies are known as a monstrosity that was born of an ancient curse that combined bird and woman. Ever since then, they have used their sweet song and voluptuous bodies to prey upon unsuspecting men.
﹄
'If Icarus couldn't use fire magic, he probably wouldn't have been able to beat a normal harpy,' I thought to myself as I looked at the large harpy's stats, 'He'll have trouble with this one, but it'll be a good experience for him.'
When the fight began, Icarus was the one that charged forward first. Unlike all of his other fights, Icarus wanted to be on the offensive for once. His quick speed, which was slightly slower than his enemies took the harpy by surprise. It would've never thought the creature in front of it was so fast, so she froze for a moment as she attempted to recover from her shock.
Icarus took this quick moment of surprise to his advantage as he quickly jumped through the air and created a fast-moving stream of fire that singed the harpy's neck. The harpy yelped in surprise and backed away, leaving a safe moment for Icarus to land back on the ground.
The harpy quickly took twenty damage, which was only half of what it would've taken if it didn't have a high enough AC, leaving its health pool at 120 HP. As the harpy yelled out in rage, Icarus charged in once again.
The harpy tried to defend, but it couldn't do much against Icarus's attack. Then, soon after his attack landed, Icarus turned around and let out another stream of fire. He did so again, then again. His attacks were furious, never letting the harpy have a moment of rest. Icarus would land on the ground but wouldn't stay grounded for long.
I watched from a distance and grew chills as I watched Icarus fight. He seemed determined, pushing himself to his limits. I grew proud as I watched him fight, even dazed as he seemed to bully a creature far stronger than him. If I were sitting down, I did not doubt that I would've been at the edge of my seat.
The harpy's HP had dwindled down to 40, which meant Icarus only needed to land two more attacks to kill the harpy. The harpy seemed to notice this so she began to lift herself into the air. The harpy was looking at Icarus in a new light. He no longer felt like prey just waiting to be devoured. Instead of the tiny creature, he was like a tornado. She had never met a creature that was so aggressive and so relentless with its attacks.
Even if he was weaker than her, Icarus was not an enemy that the harpy wanted to fight against. The thought of it alone was too terrifying that a few feathers began to weaken from stress. I turned my attention back to Icarus, who had already prepared himself for another attack.
He lifted himself into the air once again, using his flaming breath to create an arrow of fire through the air. The harpy, who had suffered multiple attacks from Icarus's flame and hadn't managed to get the time to attack once yet, yelled out in rage. Icarus ignored the harpy as the arrow of flames continued forward, making its way through the air with a passion that even I hadn't managed to imitate.
The arrow easily struck the harpy, stabbing right through its stomach as it passed through an exit wound on the other side. Her wound sizzled for a moment and the harpy's painful screeches grew primitive and instinctual. The harpy looked back at Icarus and understood something vital.
There was no running away. She needed to end the fight in the next attack or she would surely die. However, that attack needed to be prepared first. She was already halfway to the ceiling, why not make her way up all the way before she began her attack?
So, with Icarus stuck in motion as he fell to the ground, the harpy continued to fly. She flapped her wings with as much effort that 20 HP allowed her, but managed to reach the ceiling after a short struggle.
Once Icarus fell to the ground, the harpy began to prepare her attack. I looked up at her, then noticed a small glow on her wings, almost like the glow of fireflies in a dank atmosphere. I looked back to Icarus, who was staring at the harpy from the ground. My body began to move on its own, but then I stopped.