I run past the pile of scrap metal on the floor that happened to be my last opponent and get ready to face off against the 3 suits of armor running my way.
With my All-Seeing Eye still active and burning MP like a furnace, the thin strands of mana above their heads look like glowing targets begging to be hit.
Using my wind magic to propel each footstep forward, I make cracks in the stone tiles below my feet as I rocket at the approaching Knights.
They swing their blades, but I jump in the air and dodge the slow-moving silver swords with ease.
My weapon is covered in mana, seeping out from its already MP-saturated core. Dark red trails of mana-imbued fire magic leave my sword as it glides through the air hitting each strand one by one as I fly over the Knights below.
There's a light buzzing sound on impact, followed by a click as each strand breaks, then the clang of metal armor on the stone courtyard floor.
All 3 of them fall to the ground before I even land myself.
I smirk, looking up at the long line of Knights that all turn their heads to me in synchronicity. All of them lift their swords and charge in a predictable formation.
I let out a laugh as fire surrounds me and I jump back into battle while drinking another MP potion and Dungeon Walking into the middle of a sea of Knights.
With a combination of Air Steps and Dungeon Walks, I zip around the courtyard as the Knights pointlessly swing their swords. My speed and agility outmatch them, and all it takes is a single precise strike to their power source to defeat them completely.
Just 30 seconds and 4 MP potions later, I'm standing on a pile of swords and armor without a trace of mana in sight.
The strands of thin energy fade away into the dungeon air.
I raise my sword up at the iron gate of the castle.
"Is that all you got!?"
I chuckle, letting my flames die down and deactivating my stat-boosting skills to take a look at the scene before me.
Letting out a sigh, my link with Ember opens and the Dragon speaks up before I can get a word in.
"Very good work Master, you've improved a lot since our last battle. I can tell you're still holding back."
I bend down to examine the armor on the ground with a smirk before replying.
"Yeah, I can't wait to go all out..."
Aside from the first Knight I faced, all of these new armor pieces and swords are basically untouched. There isn't a scratch on them.
I walk around the courtyard examining each item, waiting for them to dissolve into the dungeon floor. This is how regular mobs act once defeated... but I guess these aren't regular mobs.
Come to think of it, I didn't even gain a single level form defeating any of these Knights. They're all level 430 right?
"What's going on here...?"
I scratch my chin, continuing to walk around the abandoned courtyard waiting for something to happen.
Nothing does...
Ember speaks up through our link.
"This armor won't dissolve if that's what you're waiting for. It's non-native dungeon armor, most likely from outside this Labyrinth."
I look up, slightly puzzled.
"Non-native dungeon armor? Like hunter's armor?"
Ember nods.
"It looks like it. It could be from an armed guard unit or a Noble family's private army. There are fewer Knights here than last time. The two we damaged in our previous fight aren't here."
My eyes dart back and forth, then I kneel down to feel the cold hard metal of one of the fallen Knights curiously.
I use Appraisal.
[Enchanted Armor Set] +1750 Defense
[Enchanted Long Sword] +1750 Strength
"Look's like we just ran into a gold mine of new gear..."
With money signs practically covering my eyes, I begin opening my item storage and collecting all of the fallen Armor scattered around my feet.
At first glance, while fighting these Knights, it seemed to be shiny pristine gear. Now that I'm getting up close and personal with each one, I see that there are small scratches and dents on some of the pieces.
The stat boosts on this gear are much higher than anything I own. Unfortunately, when I try imbuing mana into the sword and armor set nothing happens. As expected of normal gear.
They aren't even capable of producing mana shields like my armor or MP-imbued attacks like my sword. Whatever the source of their power was before, it gave these items some properties I can't seem to figure out.
"So.... Interesting...."
I place 26 full suits of armor and 26 swords into my item storage while leaving the one that I sliced to pieces behind.
Bri was right, I'll be seeing her sooner than I thought. This time I'll be making some profit.
I smirk, turning back to the large iron door and bursting into flames.
"It's fine to get to the real fight. Come on Ember, how about you open up that door for us."
The black-scaled Dragon grins, then flaps his wings to fly about 10 meters up in the air. With a single fiery blow, dark flames collide with the castle wall and iron door blasting it off its hinges and throwing stone rubble high up into the air.
The dust clears to show a massive gaping hole, the attack busted through multiple walls deep into the castle.
I let out a laugh, running forward to check out the scene. With my sword flaming by my side, I peer into the destroyed castle entrance. Fragments of the large metal door are scattered about and flames crackle on the piles of stone and debris from the blast.
Embers advanced fire magic doesn't go out very easily, just like mine.
I smirk, then take a step into the massive stone structure.
The moment my foot hits the ground, a shiver makes its way up my spine and I activate all my stat-boosting skills along with a view of flames out of instinct.
The dense presence of a malicious beast lurking at the back of the castle feels like it's staring me straight in the face.
I hold my breath and freeze.
Then, it's gone.
My All-Seeing Eye picks up the twisting and fading presence that crawled up my back moments ago. It's in the form of one of the hair-thin mana strands like the ones connected to the Knights. It retreats down a dark hallway and disappears around a corner.
I gulp.
"It senses us... whatever is back there... It knows we're here already."
Ember responds.
"Well, we did just knock down its front door without even ringing a bell."
I chuckle at his response but grit my teeth and continue trying to expand the range of my perception skill.
That feeling just a moment ago... I've never felt anything like it. It's like a monster's mana presence was right in front of me. Then, it was gone. It's almost like my intimidation skill but in a physical form.
I take a deep breath in and out, then speak to Ember through our link.
"Come on, let's go."
We begin to walk down the rubble-filled empty hallways, much more cautiously than our entrance.
I scout out the surroundings, making a mental note of every stone-walled room we pass full of wooden crates and broken armor.
Some corridors are thin and dimly lit while others arch upwards and let in natural light through windows or even open ceilings.
The massive castle twists and turns as Ember and I make our way through.
The sensation of that beastly presence that welcomed me here keeps getting further and further away. I know it's near, but I can't seem to get any closer.
I drink another MP potion and try to raise my perception of the surrounding area again.
The deeper we walk, the more these walls around me keep giving off a mana reading that blurs my mental vision. They're making too much noise.
The more I concentrate, the more the humming and fine grid-like patterns of the mana-shielded walls become the main focus in my head.
It's almost like the presence of whatever is here is just watching me from afar and hiding behind the comfort of its maze-like castle.
I grit my teeth and point at the surrounding walls.
"Take them out, everything. I need to focus on something other than these walls...."
Ember Nods.
"As you wish."
The Black Dragon glows red, shielding my head with his wings and taking out the surrounding walls and ceiling while I continue to let my perception skill map out my surroundings.
The immediate fall of these skill-dampening stones finally gives me a target to lock onto. I sense that dense mana presence again, and won't let it get away from me this time around.
I grin, turning to my right side and peering through a fiery hole in the wall that Ember just created.
Dust, fire, rubble, and smoke fill the air, but my All-Seeing Eye locks onto dense mana readings with 4 paper-thin strands leading to the back side of the castle.
"This way."
I dive through the fiery mess and order Ember to continue breaking through walls as I concentrate on the mana-dense beings that show up on my radar.
We make our way further and further into the castle, paying no mind to its original layout and busting through wall after wall.
"Almost... there..."
A full minute of wall demolition and following the faint sense of mana strands pass before I get close to finding what I'm looking for.
The sound of metal footsteps clanging on the stone-tiled floor nearby sounds like music to my ears.
"Found you..."
Ember blasts through a final wall, revealing a wide open entrance hall along with the enemies I've been tracking...
Orange and yellow stained glass windows cover the arching ceiling, letting light in from above to reveal 4 suits of silver armor pointing their shields and swords at us ready for a fight.
I use Inspect and Appraisal along with my All-Seeing Eye.
____________________
[Lv. 440]
Active Items:
[Enchanted Armor Set] +1750 Defense
[Enchanted Heavy Shield] +1750 Defense
[Enchanted Long Sword] +1750 Strength
Active Skills:
[NONE]
____________________
"What a surprise..."
Their gear is almost exactly the same as the Knights I faced before, plus the shields of course. The differentiating factor is the density of the mana threads coming off of their helmets.
It hardly takes any concentration to see the dense strands that connect these guards to the looming presence just a single room away.
Less than 30 meters back, at the end of this final hallway, another large Iron door is shut keeping what can only be the Behemoth trapped behind it.
All 4 of the strands connect to a pool of mana with a dark red murderous aura putting out an intensity, unlike anything I've ever sensed before.
It's the exact same presence I felt when I entered this castle. It's time for me to finally see this beast face to face.