Ramiel disinterestedly walked past the desiccated corpse of the Night Deuce. His battle was now a thing of the past, and there could be only one winner. Its scale and effects were evident in the devastated area.
Numerous trees were destroyed, leaving fallen trunks or uprooted roots behind. All vegetation within a one-kilometer radius died. Even the dark gray grass, resistant to the cave's harsh conditions, didn't survive the clash between the two warriors.
The Dark Spectrum alternately covered the barren and desiccated ground with indeterminate patches of black matter. It was a remnant of the failed spells of a relic of the past.
Ramiel couldn't complain about his familiarity with the element of darkness. Given his career as a hunter, it was the element he understood best. He might even have been tempted to make the arrogant claim that it had no great limits before him. But life will always prove the truth.
Even Ramiel couldn't define the dark and corrosive smear. For good reason, he avoided it like a fire. He didn't want to take unnecessary risks; besides, his senses told him it was nothing good.
The element of darkness contained in it was strange. It was the first time Ramiel had encountered something like this. His chaotic and destructive nature was ten times stronger than usual. The situation was similar with mana. The energy that is the basis of all life gave off aggressive and disturbing vibrations.
Ramiel could have spent hours studying the mysterious phenomenon, but he had to hurry. He wanted to leave the battle area before it became overrun with Night Rippers and Night Terrors.
Ramiel wasn't afraid of a clash with monsters. He was sure of victory but still tried to avoid it at all costs. The idea of annihilating them seemed perfect at first glance, but not for him. He was looking at the bigger picture.
There was a reason that Ramiel ordered the Legion of Death to avoid fighting after killing the biggest threat. The monsters living in the forest of the Night Rippers were his only source of monster cores. Completely destroying them wasn't the answer. It would take months for the Abyss to restore the minimum number of monsters, and that's far too long.
Ramiel didn't know what new territories the core's evolution would uncover and didn't smile at betting everything on an uncertain bet. He liked gambling, but only if he could manage the risk.
And so his actions over the past six months had depleted the forest's population enough. Day in and day out, Ramiel organized hunts, setting traps and snares or testing the specifics prepared by Felix and Darwin.
The six months were laborious but yielded the intended results. Finally, thanks to them, he could enter the forest without fear. All he had to do was cleverly distract the monsters living in them.
This task belonged to Asme. The woman carried out numerous diversionary actions on the outskirts of the forest, attracting monsters. Small shock units caused confusion, leaving the hunter free. Ramiel wasn't foolish enough to go unprepared into the maw of a hungry Lion. He had to be 100 percent sure that he would be successful, and that was what Asme provided.
Of course, he hasn't forgotten the cave where the mandrake grew, but it is beyond his reach even now. Pushing into a nest of enraged snakes didn't fill him with enthusiasm. It would be a long time before he dared to approach the area of the collapsed tunnel.
After a quick glance at his surroundings, Ramiel moved toward the cave that once served as the Night Deuce's lair. He was guided by one goal. According to an ancient and unwritten rule, the winner takes all, and Ramiel intended to do just that.
The man focused on the potential prize that the Abyss could bestow upon him. He had no illusions about finding anything, but there was always a small spark of hope.
Just a week ago, he would have immediately retreated, unaware of the treasures waiting for him. It was all Avi's fault. The fairy has once again proven how incompetent she is. As always, she forgot to tell Ramiel the most important details. And it was so good that she remembered it a week before and not in the middle of the fight.
After killing a Boss or the ruler of a given abyssal segment, she may or may not have rewarded Ramiel for her efforts. The rewards could have been literally anything. Starting with seemingly useless junk and ending even with a rare and unprecedented weapon he found in an Infirnyt crystal mine. In fact, it could have been anything and nothing at the same time.
As for the fairy, Avi was carelessly sleeping in Ramiel's hair. The loud and chaotic battle didn't make any impression on her. To say more, it didn't even disturb her sleep. The fairy's abilities put Ramiel in a daze every time. He would like to be as carefree as she is.
Avi's behavior only confirmed the bond they shared. The fairy fully trusted him, and he trusted her. Their relationship couldn't be described in words. When they were separated for too long, they felt as if their world would collapse. An agonizing and endless feeling of emptiness rolled over their hearts like an unbearable and incurable disease.
In no way was this healthy or good. Maybe even toxic in some ways, but that was the relationship between the dungeon fairy and her first master. It was both magical and amazing, something worth killing for, but it also had unpleasant consequences.
Ramiel's search was a tough one. His mane-sensitive senses didn't help him find anything. Searching through piles of bones, which were piling up, became tedious and monotonous.
The first thing Ramiel thought of was burning them, but he quickly abandoned that idea. The flames could have destroyed a potential object, and starting a fire in an enclosed space is not one of the wisest decisions.
An hour or so later, Ramiel gave up. He thoroughly searched the small cave but found nothing but bitten bones and rotting flesh. It was pointless to waste more time.
" Huh? " - Walking away, Ramiel tripped over an object. Immediately, a ball of yellow light appeared above him, shattering the darkness prevailing in the area.
" Hi, beautiful. " - The corners of Ramiel's mouth lifted upward as he picked up an object covered in dirt and dust from the ground.
Clearly, the goddess of fortune had not forgotten her favorite. It's just that, from time to time, she liked to tease him. Life would become boring if she handed everything to him on a silver platter. It wouldn't hurt to show a little willingness and effort.
An old wooden mask rested in Ramiel's hands. It was similar to those used by fierce tribes at the time of the great geographic discoveries. It had hollow oblong openings for the mouth and eyes. Its oval and elongated shape, which covered most of the face, and the exotic ornaments carved into the wood caught the eye.
The mask looked like an ordinary object. Ramiel looked at it from all sides but couldn't find the slightest connection to the mana. Nevertheless, his instinct told him that it wasn't as simple as it looked.
Unfortunately, he had to pause for further inspection. Clearly, he had spent too much time in the lair of a relic of the past. A muffled growl and the sound of bones breaking reached his ears from outside.
It didn't take long before the familiar silhouettes of monsters crossed his path.
" Are you in such a hurry to the grave? " - Ramiel threatened the approaching monsters. If they didn't understand human language, they could sense intentions carried along with the words.
The Bight Terror, standing at the head of the group, stopped. His feline eyes glowing in the night, he appraised the man standing confidently in front of him. The monster was furious. The stranger hadn't only killed the pack's afla but also desecrated their sacred place.
However, boiling anger didn't blind his common sense. The Night Terror aggressively growled, ordering the intruder to clear the passage. The monster may be a ferocious creature, but not stupid. The difference in their strength wasn't great, but something in the man urged him to give way. Perhaps it was the influence of the cold and emotionless gaze or the surrounding aura of death... Only the monster could know.
" So it's like this. " - Ramiel laughed. He was prepared for a fight, but the beast's behavior surprised him. Not that he would have complained. If he could avoid a baseless fight, he will. And so he found what he came for.
~~~~~~
Ramiel stood against the core of the dungeon. It had been a long time since he had done so, and the excitement floating in the air could betray what was about to happen. His eyes were fixed on the black sphere inside which mana was playing at its best. From time to time, dark purple streaks broke through from the impenetrable darkness.
Ramiel swallowed, placing his hand on the cold surface of the sphere. A pleasant and tingling-inducing electric pulse spread through his body.
" Here we go. "
Ramiel felt like a child opening his first Christmas present. A note of uncertainty lurked with every movement.
What if nothing improves? What if I receive absurd demands again? Is this worth it? - A slight hesitation crept into Ramiel's heart, but he had waited too long to worry about such trivial things.
The man scolded himself quickly in his mind for his absurd approach. It wasn't why he had waited so long and agonized to let it go now.
The simple thought of wanting to grow initiated a chain reaction. The dungeon's core exploded with a cacophony of colors, releasing breathtaking amounts of mana. Particles of free and unfettered energy instantly gathered together to form gusty rivers.
The whole thing reminded Ramiel of his first time connecting with the core. Everything looked very similar. He felt like a fish in water. One thing he was sure of, he would never get tired of it, no matter how many times he witnessed the miracle unfolding before his eyes.
The dungeon was shaking in its foundations. The walls of the throne room moved deeper into the dungeon, creating more free space. The crystal providing a source of heat and light fused together to form large and compressed clusters.
The abyssal gate now looked more like a gate rather than two bare rectangular boulders acting as a door. Numerous runes appeared on its surface, the meaning of which couldn't be guessed. Perhaps Ramiel's silent companion could say something about it, but the latter remained silent.
The dungeon's core levitated in the air, giving space for the columns supporting it to develop. These didn't surprise Ramiel. They hadn't changed much from their predecessors. Other than thicker stems and more stone leaves, he didn't notice any major changes.
The same couldn't be said of the core. The radius of the glass sphere increased by several centimeters. The black space inside it inevitably gave way to purple clouds, through which glaring lightning flashed.
It seemed to Ramiel that he sensed a familiar element of space in them, but he couldn't confirm it. The fleeting sensation lasted only a fraction of a second and passed even faster than it showed itself, leaving him with a confused feeling.
Mana raged through the air, penetrating literally every nook and cranny of the dungeon. The life-giving energy alternately exited and entered the dungeon's core, bringing with it a series of changes. Somewhere in the distance, there was a series of explosions behind it, but no one paid much attention to it. Everyone was preoccupied with something else. Everyone was captivated by the magical spectacle.
Even Seraphine left the lab, letting the excitement lead her. The necromancer lost herself in the multicolored energy. The concentrations of mana were so large that they caused her bones to crackle.
Usually, such large concentrations of mana are insanely dangerous. The slightest interference can lead to the annihilation of a small kingdom size. But now, the risk was virtually nonexistent. The dungeon took care of the stability of the energy particles. Seraphine could cast the strongest spell, and it still wouldn't disturb the prevailing harmony.
The mana dancing around Ramiel gathered around his hand, forming multicolored ribbons.
" Tsk. " - A short gasp escaped his lips, and the sudden movement startled him. Ribbons of mana tightly bound his left hand to the levitating core of the dungeon.
" Why is it the left hand again? What on earth did it do to you? " - A short thought appeared in his mind. Ramiel had to complain a bit. The hatred the universe had for his left hand seemed irrational to him.
Every time he suffered a serious injury, he ended up losing his left limb. Confirmation, one need not look too far. A bite fight... or the aftermath of the first fight with Night Deuce, and that's just the beginning of countless instances in his career.
Ramiel was snapped out of his musings by the throbbing heat from inside the glass sphere. Ribbons of mana inevitably piled up, binding most of the hunter's arm. At this rate, they would engulf his shoulder in a minute.
Ramiel knew that the core wouldn't hurt him, but at the same time, he felt uneasy. Instinct told him to prepare for the unexpected. And Ramiel trusted his instincts more than his eyes.
Ribbons stopped the expansion at the elbow area, then jammed his arm with an iron grip.
Ramiel groaned in thought but kept his mouth shut at the same time. The ribbons of mana melted into his, causing unbearable pain. It was ten times worse than a session of intense cultivation.
Ramiel gritted his teeth, not letting anything show. The high pain tolerance he was proud of was slowly returning to its peak form from when he was still a hunter.
The mana crammed into his arm gathered on the top of his hand, forming the symbol of a moving star bound by dozens of chains stretched to the limit.