The group had been exploring the labyrinth for about a day. On the way they came across several shattered buildings and structures scattered across the ground, a dead zone. Despite this, it is not as if the environment is safe. Not only did the group have to watch out for sudden buildings collapsing around them as they explored, but there were also several magical traps scattered throughout the city
Still, this alone was not enough for the labyrinths to be worthy of the name 'Forbidden Zones'. No, the real reason they were given such names was…
BOOOM!
With a loud explosion, a cloud of dust rose up covering everyone's vision. Taking advantage of this, a long figure crawled out of the ground and jumped towards Marco
"Hmpf, like that would work"
Faced with the surprise attack, the latter, trusting in his vast experience, was still able to react and with a fluid and quick movement not befitting his enormous physique, the mercenary stretched his right leg, sending his attacker away with a powerful front kick, revealing a strange creature
The creature had an animalistic appearance, being quite similar to a mole, with the biggest difference being that it was dozens of times its size, measuring approximately 150 cm (4' 11''). Attached to the creature's mouth were dozens of small slimy tentacles that swayed chaotically. The enormous mole also possessed a huge pair of front claws, which were as long and sharp as a saber. Finally, a thick layer of stone, similar to armor, surrounded almost its entire body, exponentially increasing the creature's defense
This strange creature was a monster known as the Stone Mole. A monster well known for living in dark places, such as caves. Although these creatures are blind, on the other hand they have excellent hearing, which allows them to ambush their victims through the vibrations of their footsteps
"SQUEEEAAK!"
Having failed its ambush, without even giving the others the opportunity to attack, the Stone Mole let out a harsh, piercing scream. Before quickly using its sharp claws to crawl underground, hiding
"Dark Wolves, battle formation number 8, now!"
Along with the mercenary's furious shout, the group quickly opened a circular formation around Jake and the twins. As if waiting for this cue, dozens of creatures identical to the one that attacked the mercenary began to crawl out of the wreckage. Clearly different from common moles, their monstrous versions liked to live in packs. Thus, in an instant the group found themselves surrounded by an angry horde of Stone Moles
"Tsk! Those damn rats keep showing up," Jake complained as he reluctantly looked away from the beauties, turning his attention to the ugly monsters
Tension filled the air as the entire group prepared to enter combat. In complete dissonance, Samir simply stood still, with the same gentle smile, completely indifferent to the appearance of the creatures
"""SQUEEEAAK!"""
Not giving the group any more time to prepare, the Stone Moles let out high-pitched screeches, as if they were roaring, before using their sharp claws to open holes and crawl under the ground. Seeing this, without thinking twice, the mercenaries still in battle formation raised their weapons
BOOOM! BOOOM! BOOOM! BOOOM! BOOOM! BOOOM!
Several explosions sounded, as the ground around the group opened up, revealing several attacking Stone Moles, trying to use their tentacles and sharp claws, to tear apart the intruders who dared invade their nest. As if they had already expected this, the group's squires advanced and used their shields to attack the monsters, using all their strength to deflect the attack. As they threw the creatures against the ground with their bellies up, revealing a small area on their stomachs not covered by the stone armor
Taking advantage of the creatures' momentary stunning, the rest of the mercenaries quickly advanced and using their swords, or even small fireballs, attacked the unprotected area in the monsters' stomach, finishing off a small part of the monsters. As for the survivors, they quickly retreated back into hiding underground, waiting for another opportunity to attack
BOOOM! BOOOM! BOOOM! BOOOM!
"Hold, hold... attack!"
The truth was that this was not the first time that the group had encountered an attack from such creatures, which for some reason were flooding the labyrinth facilities. Apart from the first encounter they had with the monsters, where unfortunately seven mercenaries ended up losing their lives during the creatures' ambush. In none of the subsequent attacks did the group suffer any casualties
Furthermore, under Marco's leadership, after a few encounters with the monsters, the mercenaries ended up developing the strategy they are currently using, thus managing to eliminate them much more easily than before. These facts alone show the true importance of the presence of an experienced leader during such explorations
BOOOM! BOOOM! BOOOM! BOOOM!
With another wave of explosions, yet another group of Stone Mole jumped towards the mercenaries. Seeing one of the monsters jump towards him, Marco, now ready for combat, had a slightly different reaction to that of his companions, advancing with long steps towards the monster. At the same time as Marco raised his huge mace above his head, the strange symbols on his head and hands began to emit a strong blood-red light
As soon as it appeared, the light quickly spread throughout the mercenary's entire body, covering not only his arms and head, but also his torso and legs, as if his entire body was made of blood
"ARHHHHHHH, DIEEEEE!"
With a loud battle cry, Marco unleashed all his power, before forcefully swung his mass towards the creature. Marco's mace then hit the monster hard, causing its head to explode instantly
"SQUEEEAAK—"
Letting out one last muffled scream, the headless monster, now enveloped by Marco's strange blood-red energy, flew away from there like a burning meteor, crushing all the monsters it encountered in its path. The body only hit the ground after flying for almost twenty meters, hitting one of the collapsed buildings
When the curtain of dust fell, a headless body was revealed, completely mangled with twisted bones and what was left of the organs leaking out