Raven tried to run onwards but then the creature fixated her eyes on her, Raven could feel her ancestors crying for her to get the hell out of there, it was dangerous... damn dangerous! She jumped to the side to evade the massive hammering of the Mammoth trunk which shattered the ground, and rolled to avoid the stomping that followed. The creature was toying with them, it wasn't even using skills. The creature kept stomping until it impacted the roof throwing Fuwa against the icy wall, getting saved from getting impaled just by the power of the protagonist, and cheering stupid luck.
Raven's heart pounded in her chest as she barely evaded another massive stomp from the mammoth-like creature. The icy floor trembled beneath her, shards of ice flying through the air as the beast's trunk hammered the ground once again, narrowly missing her. It was toying with them, each attack more terrifyingly casual than the last. Raven's cat ears flattened against her head as a wave of fear washed over her.
"Damn it! This thing's not even trying!" she growled, her instincts screaming at her to retreat. She rolled out of the way of another attack, landing behind a jagged wall of ice for cover, trying to catch her breath.
Fuwa, who had been sent flying into the icy wall, groaned as she slowly pulled herself back to her feet. Her body ached from the impact, but she couldn't let that stop her "Ugh, that... hurt," she muttered, wiping some frost off her cheek.
As she was starting to recover she was forced to the ground again by Raven who violently threw herself at her, just a second ahead of a strong avalanche of snow that had been thrown at her from the trunk of the mammoth, the creature had skills too, and it seemed it was time to get over from those annoyed pest that were molesting it.
The freezing spell used by the creature touched the tip of Raven's cat tail, sending a shiver down from the point of her tail to the point of her forehead, the pain was intense and she dropped to the floor agonizingly. It wasn't big damage on her body but the sensation was too intense to bear "Hiiiiiiigh!?" Raven writhed in pain, her body curling as the freezing magic shot through her like a bolt of lightning. Her cat tail twitched, stiff and burning cold from the mammoth's spell.
Fuwa stood up quickly carrying Raven out of another massive stomping, the creature was enjoying this. It was too easy, as it roared, or did some kind of sound that Raven wouldn't know how it was called, but it sounded like a massive trumpet.
"『Aqua Heal』" She cast on both of them, recovering strength, Fuwa still carrying her rushed toward another corner of the room "You were damn too cocky this time Fuwa!!" Said Raven angrily, she had gotten carried away, even if their level had been inflated, this world had other rules "『Fire Butterfly Swarm』!"
The crimson butterflies flew towards the creature exploding against it, causing it to rise in two feet and trumpet again in pain. Raven's spell wasn't strong at all, but the difference in temperature was extreme, thus potentiating the effect of the spell, and for a monster who dwells in cold ice it would be enough to send it into a panic.
Just as the beast stood up and was getting ready to cast another spell, a spear was thrown at its exposed belly. The guild master and just another party of adventurers who had bluish metal plates on their necks, a mithril adventurer party, arrived at the scene.
"Let's collaborate to eliminate this thing!" He said.
Raven, still being carried by Fuwa, blinked in disbelief at the sudden reinforcements "About time someone showed up" she muttered, feeling a mix of relief and frustration. The butterflies of her earlier spell still flickered in the air, their crimson light fading as they completed their explosions against the monster's thick hide.
The guild master smirked, this morning he had been terrified to face the two again, and he had just rushed here with whoever wanted to follow him, it had been many years since he had cleared this place, but he still remembered the intense battle "Focus on its legs! It's losing its balance from the fire and the spear. Keep it off its feet!" He turned back toward the monster, unsheathing his gleaming sword, it was enchanted with an aura that crackled like lightning "We'll handle the offensive! You two, back us up!"
"『Aqua Shield』!" Cast Raven once again, but this time on all the people fighting the monster.
Raven's spell surged forth, a shimmering blue barrier forming around each of the adventurers and herself. The icy air crackled with energy as the shields shimmered, offering protection from the mammoth-like creature's devastating blows. The adventurer's party was composed of three people, it was a dwarf with a crossbow, a human girl with a glimmering staff, and a human guy with a heavy shield and a spear. The shield man shouted some instructions to his party and they got into position, as he rushed forward activating some form of martial art that made his shield glow, some runes inscribed on it resonated with the energy injected in it projecting another barrier. The creature struck him with its trunk but he dodged and kept charging.
"Now it's the chance!" Fuwa screamed and she began to charge forward leaving Raven behind, the guild master charged too.
Fuwa's feet pounded against the icy floor as she dashed forward, her twin tails streaming behind her like ribbons of determination. The air crackled with energy as the guild master charged alongside her, his sword sparking with raw lightning magic. Raven, standing behind the protective barrier she had cast, watched them go, her heart racing. This was their chance... the moment to end this fight.
The shield-bearing adventurer raised his glowing shield high, intercepting another swing of the creature's massive trunk with precision. The impact sent a shockwave through the cavern, the ice under his feet shattered forming a small crater for the impact, but the runes on his shield held strong. He gritted his teeth, absorbing the force as his comrades worked in sync.
The dwarf let out a low grunt as he took aim with his crossbow, a lonely bolt was fired from his crossbow, and under his bear a smile "This is the moment we were waiting for, an opportunity to clean this damn dungeon!" He fired, the bolt zipping through the air and striking the creature's exposed legs. The mammoth-like beast let out another thunderous bellow as the bolts exploded on impact, small bursts of magic eating away at its icy fur.
The human mage, staff glowing brightly, began to chant "Oh chain of the innocent, bindings of the tyranny, oppress those who oppose me!『Arcane Bind』!" She slammed the base of her staff into the ground, and magical chains of light shot up from the ice, wrapping around the creature's legs and hindering its movement. The monster's struggle grew more frantic as it tried to shake off the bindings, but the combination of the dwarf's enchanted bolts and the mage's binding spell kept it grounded.
Fuwa took advantage of the distraction, charging in low and fast. She was putting so much effort into this lone action, she had to make this count, her will to survive this, unleashing a new technique learned in the moment. Her fists crackled with energy as she gathered her strength for a devastating strike "『Blazing Meteor Fist』!" she roared, her fiery fists glowing even brighter as she launched herself into the air. She slammed both fists into the creature's front leg, the impact shattering the ice around it and sending a shockwave of fire rippling through its body.
The beast roared in agony, its balance finally breaking as it staggered back, crashing down onto one knee. The cavern shook violently from the impact, loose ice and snow falling from the ceiling as the creature's weight pressed into the ground.
"Now! Hit it hard!" the guild master shouted, his voice cutting through the chaos. He raised his sword high, lightning surging along the blade. With a battle cry, he brought it down in a powerful arc, aiming directly for the creature's exposed neck. The sword struck true, lightning dancing across the mammoth's thick hide as the blade bit deep.
The creature let out a final, mournful trumpet, its body convulsing from the combined attacks. The magic coursing through it flickered and dimmed, and with one last tremor, the colossal beast collapsed, its head crashing into the icy floor with a resounding thud.
A stunned silence followed, the adventurers breathing heavily as the echoes of the battle faded.
Raven let out a breath she hadn't realized she'd been holding, the tension finally releasing from her body. Her cat ears twitched as she took in the sight of the fallen beast, still crackling with residual magic. They had done it. Together, they had brought down the strongest creature of the dungeon... or so believed Raven.
With a loud rumbling part of the cave wall began to crumble, to collapse... Raven felt a chill on her body.
...
...
...
Outside the dungeon, the adventurers who were looking, at the portal started to panic, the guild master and the strongest party of the sector were still inside, and those terrifying new girls were too, the color of the portal was changing... it went from its pale purple glow to a deep red, the dungeon was evolving. The clerk who worked as a butler for the adventurers in this dungeon looked through his glasses... a small tower was beginning to emerge from the top of what had only been solid ground...
"Orichalcum... Adamantite..." The tower kept growing his mouth dropped the thing had become huge "...!"
The guards who were posted and were helping the wounded felt their hearts pounding in their chests"
"Go to the royal capital, now!" Said the clerk to one of the guards "Take my horse, just go!" The guard stood up and ran towards the horse "The Ice Cavern Dungeon is no more!" He screamed "It's elementium level now!"
This was the stuff of legends, what conditions had been fulfilled!? Was this the demon lord's work!?
...
...
...
Inside the dungeon everything is distorted, and the scenery is changing fast, none of them can move because of the oppressive aura around them, the temperature at least wasn't freezing anymore, but the violent change was taxing to handle.
"What's going on!?" Screamed the dwarf.
The rest of the people who were trapped there were screaming too, the only one who was standing and analyzing the situation calmly was the guild master, he didn't mention his name to the girls, even the people just called him master, he didn't care about fame, not anymore at least, his name was Zephir, he used to be a brilliant adventurer, but he lost all his party members on an event like this back then.
'So it happens once again' Thought as the scene seemed to change infinitely, forests, mountains, caves, volcanoes, seas, all kinds of situations, it seemed like a roulette 'Adamantite?' He asked himself trying to make sense of the situation.
The adventurers divided their ranks and the dungeons they faced using metals as reference.
From copper to steel were ranks that normal people with hard work could easily achieve. But then started the hard metals.
Mithril could be a monster who threatened an entire city.
Orichalcum could be a monster who threatened an entire kingdom.
Adamantite were beings that could threaten various kingdoms.
'No, this sensation... it's impossible' He sighted 'This is absurd... the world never ceases to surprise me'
Elementium, none was on this rank in the entire guild. It was just a theory, made out of a weapon that had been forgotten in the secure vault of the royal capital, made of a metal stronger than the adamantine, if a monster was cataloged over adamantine it would be elementium, a creature that could threaten the entire continent. Only the Demon King was on this level and now, an entire dungeon had spawned.
"Calm down, we are about to get puked down once it is stabilized" He called the rest of the people with him.
"What?" Said Raven.
Then the scene finally came to a pause, they were in the gardens in front of a big castle, that was built on dark stone.
<
Raven and Fuwa looked at each other, all the rest were panicking.
<
The three adventurers, the guild master, Raven, and Fuwa were violently thrown behind, sucked outside to the portal, and collided with all the people who had been injured during the assault to the Ice Cave.