*grrrrrr*
A giant monster with the body of a dog but with three heads stands in our way, drooling and growling at our presence—a Cerberus.
…
I give the witch a silent gaze, and she took a step forward, the atmospheric mana coalescing mana around her almost instantly.
Why did she question me so much when she can wield mana much more efficiently than I could?
「Skill 'Instinct' is activating」
I conjure a barrier immediately, sensing the incoming danger.
The mana coalesces in the air above the witch, forming into a blade-shaped form. The Cerberus immediately attacked, opening all three of it's maws.
*whish*
In a flash, two of the three heads of the Cerberus falls to the ground unceremoniously. I didn't even see what happened, it was like the heads just fell on their own.
But that was unlikely
Blood splattered the ground, the gaping wound on the Cerberus' neck was just too large. However…
No way…
Black-tinted smoke immediately cauterized the wound, making the beast heave heavy breaths, along with the accompanied trembling knees. The beast looked at the witch with a weak gaze, most likely begging for pity.
She couldn't care less
The witch cast an ice-cold gaze at the whimpering beast before cutting off it's remaining head in a similar fashion to the rest.
"Come on." She beckoned me over.
I follow suit, just a step behind her. I also made sure to absorb the Cerberus' residual mana.
"Your really like doing that, huh? Y'know, it's technically unethical to do that? Something about degrading a being's life and all…"
I just giver her a shrug of my shoulders. Not my problem if people don't like it, that sounds like something completely preposterous, anyway.
The witch led me down deeper into the 'Guardian's Lair'—as she called it. I was still waiting for an explanation.
The witch strode with confidence and poise as she walked down the marble halls of the paved path. Unlike outside, the inside of this place looked man-made, this included the signs of previous battles.
Passing the white halls with lighting artifacts constantly burning within them, multiples scratches, burnt spots, and crumbled walls could be found just about anywhere. That would, perhaps, mean that we were not the first ones here.
Though that could just be witch scouting beforehand, still, that doesn't explain the monsters constantly getting in appearing…
We made our way deeper, eventually reaching a pure-white spiral staircase. The witch shrugged and beckoned me over, prompting the two of us to start trekking down the winding stairs.
The witch, still, did not say a word.
Agggghhhh…! This is getting annoying
I chase after the witch, then tap her on the back. Just as I did so, numerous blades of wind surround me immediately. There was no escape.
"… Huh? Oh, sorry 'bout that."
She dispersed the wind blades and rubbed the bridge of her nose.
"Sorry, I was just so focused with detecting enemies that I forgot all about you."
That doesn't really make it any better, though…
"… Right. As I said, this is the Guardian's Lair. I found this place while you were in recovering. The Guardian that I fought before must have been the one in-charge of it, I found it near where we fought. I've made it down a couple of levels, though that was just me going at my own pace. I still haven't reached the bottom, actually, since the place was just so big. I'm trying a new strategy this time, which is why I brought you here. Also, it might serve as good experience for you… well, that was the plan. It would seem that I may have been to preoccupied that I COMPLETELY forgot about you."
… You didn't have to emphasize that part…
*hic*
"Anyways, since the big bad of this place, the Elder Arachnid, has already been killed, along with the others I've killed on the way here is gone, this place should be relatively safe… oh, and watch out for traps."
Traps…?
*click*
"Ah."
Ah
「Skill 'Instinct' is activating」
The wall besides me opened up, a dozen arrows launching afterwards. My skill made me take a step, just a step backwards, and the arrows missed by a hair's breadth.
That was dangerous
"… I warned you."
A little late, don't you think?
Moving further down, this time much more carefully, we reach the next floor. This one was practically the same as the one above, except this floor practically reeked of blood—either something really big, or a lot of something died here recently.
The witch stepped forward, casting a cold gaze across the floor. "Come, the next staircase isn't very far."
We moved further in, taking multiple turns, the witch didn't even waver as she confidently made her way through the Guardian's Lair—a fact that I admired and somewhat feared.
Soon, the second staircase was just a couple of steps away.
"Come on already." The witch whined as I absorbed the residual mana from a nearby corpse.
This place is, in a way, a feast for me. Because the witch took care of most of the monsters here, the amount of residual was much more present here. Not to mention the abnormal amount of dark attribute mana. If I had the time, I would have like to absorb it into my Core and purify it.
We went down the staircase, and apart from the witch nearly tripping over herself, nothing really happened.
"There's a shortcut over there." She pointed to a path filled with monster corpses. "That'll take us down a couple of levels, though it would mean a longer descent."
*nod*
The same thing as before, other than the corpses, nothing else was here. We made our way further in, and I made sure to absorb and purify as much mana as I could. I had spent quite a bit fighting that Centurion, so I needed to recover as much as I could. With the overabundance of mana here, that shouldn't be a problem.
*clack*
The witch stopped walking, her heel echoing in the winding halls. She stopped just before the staircase… is what I thought.
Uhhh….
She pointed at a hole in the wall.
"Shortcut."
… What?
「Skill 'Instinct' is warning you」
No, no, not again!
The very next moment, I was once again sent flying.