-Change of scene.
In the heart of the forest, in the dense fog and where most were concentrated.
A great ancient castle stood, towers rising skyward, ruined gardens filled with death. The castle walls, cracked, seemed on the verge of collapse.
Rubble covered the floor, cobwebs hung, and the furniture, old and worn, bore witness to its neglect.
In a nutshell.
A ruined castle, desolate, with only one living being inside, seated in the largest hall, where a shattered throne with cracks and debris surrounded it.
An imposing figure rested on the throne, gazing at a sphere radiating a faint light. His eyes did not leave the sphere, not even blinking.
This was the head of the dungeon, watching over what was happening to the humans who had dared to enter his territory.
His appearance.
A body similar to that of a human, but with imposing muscles and skin as hard as steel, deep black. On his chest, a large red tattoo with intricate details. His face exhibited two green eyes and black pupils, and two horns rose from his bald head.
The Dungeon Chief.
An ancient guardian of a family from the dark ages, trapped in this dungeon for ten thousand years.
A guardian with demonic features, the result of a fusion between demons and the magic of his human creator.
In times past, less than 0.99% of mages could create guardians, using parts of other living beings and huge amounts of mana.
However.
This demonic-looking guardian was just a half-grown 7, just as strong as the Wraith King, another resident of the dungeon and owner of the labyrinth.
But the dungeon boss had the ability to alter the structure of the labyrinth, disorienting humans who wandered into it.
Outburst.
"Damn it... Shit, shit!"
He slammed the throne angrily, his gaze grim and sharp, as anger at the failure of his plan to separate the humans consumed him.
However, his fury vanished in an instant.
"Hahaha..."
His laughter echoed through the ruined castle, shaking the walls.
"What does it matter? The strongest one, the only one who could kill me, is injured, isn't he?"
"I have the advantage. All the humans who came in are wounded."
They had fought each other, wearing each other down.
The places they passed through left them exhausted, with no strength to face the dungeon boss.
Observing the sphere, the chief noticed that the seven humans were severely wounded.
However.
"Those two... they are completely unharmed."
They were the only ones who hadn't exerted themselves too much since entering the dungeon a day ago.
But despite that, they had cleared almost the entire dungeon of monsters.
The boss knew that.
If any more humans entered, it would be the end of him.
For there were no monsters left to wear them out.
He would have to fight for his life and survive the invasion.
Though the thought consumed him, it also frustrated him.
The fact that these humans had come so close to the castle meant they were powerful.
Had they been in their best condition when they arrived at the castle, the demonic guardian would have been easily defeated.
They were first circle mages at their peak power, and one of them was even a third circle mage.
Moreover, there were seven of them.
The semi-demonic guardian could not against the seven of them. He would die quickly if he faced them.
They had broken through the labyrinth, eliminated almost all of the monsters, and even defeated the Wraith King.
"How?"
The guardian wondered how they had killed the Wraith King so quickly.
The Wraith King was almost as strong as he was, perhaps only slightly outmatched.
And yet, he died so quickly.
Then, the guardian looked at the mana beast along with the humans and understood immediately.
The mana beast was helping them.
That was the reason for the Wraith King's death in a matter of minutes.
Of course, three humans alone would not have been able to defeat the Wraith King.
"Damn..."
He struck the throne again, enraged.
The mana beasts.
When the guardian arrived, those beasts dominated the dungeon.
Although it was a low-ranked dungeon and any human could clear it, the only variable was the mana beasts. They were the cause of the dungeon's destruction.
But now...
"I can kill them," he thought.
He needed to wait for the humans to reach his castle, because they were weak and he could finish them off. The strongest one seemed to be in a serious condition, he was even unconscious.
What unexpected luck.
"I'll kill you all, you damned humans," he muttered spitefully.
The humans, his creators, had abandoned him and, moreover, had given him that appearance he now detested: a nasty body with demonic parts. Although the demonic race was the second strongest, just behind dragons, it was repulsive to have those features on his guardian body.
"Tch," he clicked his tongue.
Soon the humans awoke and the guardian awaited their arrival, certain that he would kill them and regain control of this territory.
***
-Scene change.
-Gloriana Mengral's point of view.
Emilia, who was standing to one side, looked at Asher in the same way Gloriana did. However, they were both smiling.
They had recovered the original Asher and his other personality had gone who knows where.
But he was back.
Only now he was asleep.
"..."
Then, Emilia and Gloriana opened their mouths in surprise to see that Asher's wounds were healing instantly, without using mana or any healing spells.
"It's my magic," Gloriana thought, as she felt her energy flowing through Asher's veins.
After all, his mana was still inside him, since that was how they got it back. However...
"That's amazing," she murmured, amazed at Asher's quick recovery, thanks to her light magic.
Gloriana smiled, nodding inwardly, and looked at Emilia.
"All is well," she said.
Emilia returned the gesture.
"Yes, it is," she replied.
But they still hadn't finished clearing the dungeon.
Both Emilia and Gloriana looked at the others. Only the two of them were not unconscious. Luna, Julian, Grey, Freddy and Asher were passed out, exhausted from the recent combat.
The battle a few minutes ago had been intense, they all ran out of mana, suffered severe wounds and lost a lot of blood.
It was then that Gloriana spoke.
"Can you hold Asher?" she asked Emilia.
She nodded, shaking her head, and settled Asher on the ground, placing him carefully on her legs.
As Gloriana watched, her thoughts began to wander. But she knew she couldn't be distracted; now she had to test her affinity for light and use her magic to heal others.
After all, his light magic was not only useful in combat; it could also heal anyone, regardless of their condition.
However, there was a limit at the moment.
"I have very little mana," he thought.
She had spent almost all of it to restore Asher to his original state.
Next, Gloriana let out her light mana, which flowed to her friends, one by one.
It took several minutes before it was finally over.
At that moment, Emilia, who had watched everything happen, asked in surprise:
"That affinity... what is it?"
"Eh... well, I didn't want to show it yet, but it's not a unique affinity. It's an affinity from the 'Unknown Era', known as 'Affinity of Light', or at least that's what Asher told me."
"An affinity from the unknown era?"
The unknown era... although he was actually referring to the dark era.
Magicians and scholars call that era 'the unknown era', but its real name is the 'era of darkness'.
This is because no one knows its true name nor is there accurate information, so the term 'unknown era' is only temporary, until its true designation is discovered.
However, Asher had known for a long time that its true name was the dark era.
"So, you used that affinity to do all this?" asked Emilia.
Gloriana nodded and replied, "That's right. With this affinity I seem to have been able to bring back the original Asher, and it also has healing effects. But... other than being a healing and combat affinity, I'm not sure what else it can do."
It was understandable.
After all, it was a completely unknown affinity with no prior information.
Gloriana looked at Asher, however.
"But Asher seems to know all about this affinity, since he was the one who told me its name."
Of course, she didn't mention that she had a fairy watching her from over her shoulder.
If she did, it would be complicated to explain.
"I get it, you and Asher are? opposites," Emilia said.
Simply put, Asher represents darkness and Gloriana represents light, two opposing forces that shouldn't be compatible with each other.
"True, but that doesn't mean we can't be together...", Gloriana replied.
"Hehe, I see," a mocking laugh came from Emilia, hinting that she knew more about what was going on between Asher and Gloriana.
Suddenly.
Muffled sound.
They both looked toward the others.
For they were finally waking up, one by one.
"Only Asher is yet to wake up," Gloriana said, a little uncomfortably, for he had not yet done so....