"I should've stayed in bed today," I muttered as the Iron Fang Beast charged toward us, each step sending tremors through the ground. Its red eyes glowed menacingly, and jagged metal plates shifted with a sound like grinding gears.
Titan took the lead, his massive form bracing for impact. Leah darted to the side, already vanishing into the shadows like the sneaky assassin she is, I thought she was a mage but nope! The girl's actually an assassin. Seriously, Titan has insane physical strength AND can use magic? Leah can use strong magic AND be a fucking assassin? WHAT ABOUT ME? DID THE GOD WHO PUT ME HERE FORGOT TO GIVE ME SOMETHING INSANE TOO? DO I EVEN HAVE ANY?!
[System Response:
Yes, You're INSANELY stupid. ]
What the hell?!
That's it?!
I'm gonna uninstall you stupid hologram!!
[System Response:
Go ahead and try. You will really lose something GOOD in your life. ]
For some reason I feel like it's smirking at me, as if, if I did, it would really be my loss.
Fuck! Let's just focus on the battle!
"Alright, big guy, let's see what you've got!" I yelled, more for my own morale than anything else.
The beast roared, raising one massive claw to swipe at Titan. He blocked it with his shield, the clash of metal on metal ringing through the chamber. Sparks flew, and Titan staggered back a step but held his ground.
"Leah, anytime now!" I called, dodging to the side as the beast swung its other claw in my direction.
"Working on it!" she snapped from somewhere in the shadows.
I drew my katana, this sword was something the merchant lady from before gave me. I didn't use it with the squirrel cuz this one was enchanted with magic, I think? I mean it's glowing and has a few unknown words on the edges. I tried turning it down but the merchant said it was thanks for saving them in the stampede, although I had a nagging feeling there was more to it than meets the eye... Oh, well, time to see if it was worth it to take this with me.
I charged in, aiming for the beast's exposed flank, but it was faster than it looked. Its tail—oh great, it has a tail—whipped around and nearly took my head off.
"Okay, noted," I said, jumping back. "Flanks are off-limits."
Leah finally made her move, appearing behind the beast like a ghost. Her daggers flashed, carving into its exposed joints with precision. The Iron Fang Beast roared in anger, spinning around to swipe at her, but she was already gone, disappearing into the shadows again.
"Show-off," I muttered, circling around to find another opening.
Titan, meanwhile, was trading blows with the beast like a heavyweight champion. Every swing of his sword sent shockwaves through the air, and every block with his shield deflected sparks. But even I could see he was starting to slow down. The beast was relentless, and we needed to finish this quickly.
Alright, time for me to shine. I activated Spore Manipulation, focusing on the cracks in the beast's armor.
Tiny, glowing spores seeped out of the air around me, gathering into an almost invisible mist that hovered near the beast's injuries. The spores latched on and began to spread, creeping into every crevice.
"What's that?" Leah shouted, mid-dodge.
"Hopefully, my ticket to not dying first!" I called back, activating Spore Cloud
The spores exploded outward in a cloud of glittering particles, enveloping the beast's head. Its movements turned sluggish, the toxic effects starting to take hold.
"Keep hitting it!" I yelled.
Titan took advantage of the beast's disorientation, his glowing blade carving deep into its side. Leah's attacks became more precise, each strike landing with deadly accuracy.
"Alright, let's add some ice to the mix," I muttered, activating Ice Magic and Frostbound Aura. A chilling mist spread out from me, the temperature in the chamber dropping noticeably.
The beast roared in frustration as frost formed on its metal plates, slowing its movements further. I followed up with Glacier Spikes, sending jagged shards of ice erupting from the ground.
One of the spikes impaled the beast's leg, pinning it in place.
"Yes! That's how it's done!" I cheered, though my excitement was short-lived. The beast reared up, shattering the ice around it with a roar of defiance.
"Don't let up!" Leah shouted, her daggers flashing as she went for another joint.
"Yeah, yeah, I'm on it," I grumbled, activating Spore Burst.
The spores clinging to the beast detonated in a chain reaction of small explosions, weakening its armor further. I followed up with another Glacier Spike, this one driving straight into its exposed chest.
The beast staggered, its movements growing weaker with every attack.
"Finish it, Titan!" I yelled.
Titan raised his sword, runes blazing with power. With a thunderous roar, he brought it down, cleaving through the beast's head.
The Iron Fang Beast let out one final groan, collapsing in a heap. Its glowing red eyes faded, leaving the chamber eerily silent.
"Finally," I sighed, dropping to the ground in exhaustion.
"Nice work," Leah said, appearing beside me. "You're not completely useless after all."
"Gee, thanks," I said, rolling my eyes. Couldn't she just not have said that?
Titan, ever the silent hero, pulled a glowing crystal from the beast's remains and handed it to me. Hm... I wonder what this's for?
"Sweet," I said, turning it over in my hands. "Dungeon loot. Maybe this trip wasn't a total waste."
"Don't celebrate yet," Leah warned. "We still need to get out of here alive."
I looked around the chamber, my excitement fading. She was right. The boss was down, but the dungeon wasn't over.
"Fine," I grumbled, pocketing the crystal. "But next time we come across that thing, you get to distract the giant metal death machine."
"Deal," Leah said with a smirk, already heading for the next tunnel.
And with that, we ventured deeper into the dungeon, because apparently, we never learn and, we still couldn't find a way out ヽ( ´¬`;)