In a cave somewhere within the underground space of the Chaotic Rock Cave, the remaining members of the Loving Squad sat dejectedly on the ground. Some cried others pounded the earth in frustration, while the old hunter stood guard at the entrance.
With red eyes, Priest Anna stood up and began collecting the relics of her fallen comrades, storing two blood-stained axes and a dull greatsword in her spatial ring, discarding the rare materials they had gathered to make space. Unfortunately, she couldn't fit the captain's large shield.
After a long rest and careful preparation, the group filled their statuses and buffs, discussing strategies before forming a tight formation: the spearman in front, hunters guarding the sides, and the mage and priest in the middle, as they cautiously moved towards the exit.
As they reached the narrow cave entrance, old hunter Glass sensed something was off; it was too quiet outside. The team exchanged knowing glances, fully aware that this might be their last moment together.
Following their pre-discussed plan, the spearman, under the protection of shield and wind spells, cautiously moved forward with his shield held high. As soon as he stepped out of the cave, a deafening roar stunned him, rendering him immobile. A massive maw lunged at him, and Kent's Double Bite killed him instantly.
Kent noticed the other members of the Loving Squad were spaced five meters apart, preventing them from being stunned as well.
"Run!" the remaining mercenaries shouted, except for the mage. The old hunter Glass led the charge, running to one side to buy time for his teammates with his life.
With the wind spell enhancing his speed, Glass moved too quickly for Kent to catch without resorting to his widest-range skill, Mad Tail Whip. His tail, as thick as a barrel, lashed out like a whip, reducing Glass to a bloody mist.
"Die!" Mage Harry, who had retreated into the cave, unleashed his most powerful skill, Consecutive Fireball, forcing Kent to interrupt his casting by entering the cave.
Meanwhile, Priest Anna and Hunter Taros used the opportunity to run out of the cave in different directions. Kent ignored the mage; with his health and magic resistance, he could endure Consecutive Fireball without much issue, and a mage out of mana would be too weak to escape.
Kent still had his Savage Charge, reserved for chasing down any escapees. But now there were two targets—should he pursue the hunter or the priest? The hunter, with the wind spell buff and his speed, would be difficult to catch. The priest, however, was a sure kill.
Just as he hesitated, he locked eyes with the young hunter who had looked back. Those eyes, filled with bloodshot veins, hatred, and regret, made Kent's decision for him. He charged after the priest.
Anna saw the giant wasteland dragon lizard closing in and smiled in relief, thinking that Taros would now survive. But to her surprise, the lizard abruptly halted its charge beside her.
She widened her eyes in confusion, unable to understand why. The next moment, Kent provided an answer.
"Ah!" Anna's painful scream echoed through the underground space. Hearing it, the distant Taros stopped, biting his lip hard, his nails digging into his palms in a clenched fist.
"No! Ah!" The agonized cries seemed to hammer into Taros's mind. That bright and lovely girl, the team's darling, the one who would tearfully insist she wasn't hurt even when injured, was now in excruciating pain.
It was all his fault!
The girl's cries shattered Taros's reason. He turned and sprinted back toward the cave, drawing his bow to unleash his fury and hatred, launching an attack at the torturing giant lizard.
The moment the arrows struck him, Kent felt a surge of joy. He had gambled correctly!
He stopped biting the near-dead priest, lowered his head to protect his eyes from the arrows, and stood still, enduring the hunter's attacks.
Taros's stamina quickly ran out, forcing him to stop and catch his breath. His quiver was empty of armor-piercing arrows, leaving him with only a few dozen regular arrows.
Despite standing still, the hunter's damage output was still explosive. In less than a minute, Kent, who had taken the full brunt of Consecutive Fireball, was down to just 40% of his health due to the barrage of arrows.
To be safe, Kent consumed a green herb from his internal storage. As expected, this consumable potion's main ingredient didn't boost attributes but restored 2000 health points.
With Savage Charge's 60-second cooldown over, Kent ended the priest's life with a single bite and charged toward the hunter, who had lost all his buffs.
Faced with the charging giant wasteland dragon lizard, Taros didn't choose to flee.
"Captain, Uncle, Drunkard, Madman, Tin Can, Anna, I'm coming to join you all. This is all my fault. Let my life be the redemption price."
Finally, Kent returned to the depths of the cave to deal with the mage, who was out of mana and had developed a temporary resistance to mana potions. With this, he managed to annihilate the mercenary squad, ensuring that none escaped to endanger his life.