The remaining serpent, witnessing its companion's demise, whipped its body around to face Arlene. However, before it could strike, Liam's giant shield manifested above it, pinning the creature down.
The serpent squirmed beneath the shield, its wings flapping desperately in an attempt to escape. Argus seized the opportunity, quickly slashing off the creature's wings, rendering it immobile.
The serpent roared in agony, its cries echoing through the temple. Alexander, his sword raised high, began to approach the restricted creature with a powerful surge of wind swirling around his blade.
Argus stepped aside with a smile, watching as Alexander closed in on the helpless serpent.
[Wind Manipulation: Vortex Slash]
With a single, decisive swing, Alexander brought his wind-propelled blade down upon the creature's head. The sword sliced cleanly through the serpent's scales, cutting its head in half.
Poisonous purple blood spurted from the wound, and Alexander quickly stepped back to avoid contact with the toxic substance.
And with that, the battle was over.
'They took out those two monsters without any difficulty... I thought magic was overpowered, but I guess I can't look down on abilities either... Still, I think magic is the best,' Arlo mused, feeling a twinge of competitiveness as the group regrouped at the center of the interconnected bridges.
Argus, noticing Arlo's expression, commented, "What's wrong, Arlo? You've got a weird look on your face."
"Nothing's wrong, I was just thinking how impressive your teamwork was. It was pretty cool..." Arlo responded with a nervous smile, scratching his cheek.
The group, pleased with the compliment, smiled in return. All except for Arlene, who humphed and said, "Well, that's to be expected, isn't it?"
Arlo glanced at her, frowning. 'Can't you just take a compliment...?' he thought to himself.
"Now we have three different paths to choose from again," Argus muttered, contemplating their options. "Do we keep heading straight, go left, or go right?"
As he mentioned, the temple's bridges led to four distinct paths. Behind them was the cave they had emerged from. To their right, a large, shiny temple door blocked the way. Directly ahead, an even grander door stood, flanked by two large, lit torches burning with flames. Finally, to their left, a door similar to the one on the right awaited them.
"Hm... we picked the path down the middle last time, so why not go with it again?" Argus suggested.
With no objections, the group proceeded down the center path. As they walked, Argus pointed to the glowing crystals dotting the temple walls, their brightness casting a unique glow.
"Aren't you going to mine those?" Argus asked, glancing back at Arlo.
"I-Is that a joke? Of course I'm not going to mine those! How am I even supposed to get up there?" Arlo asked.
"Climbing, isn't that obvious?"
"And risk falling to my death? A-All it'll take is one slip, and I'll be heading straight down into the abyss below, you know!" Arlo retorted, pointing fearfully at the darkness beneath the bridges.
Seeing Arlo's reaction, Argus broke into laughter. "I was joking, joking~" he said.
Arlo frowned, staring at Argus's back as he walked ahead of him. With a sigh, he continued forward, the group making their way towards the grand door that awaited them.
As they reached the grand temple doors, the group came to a halt, their eyes drawn to the large torches burning with dark flames. The fire flickered, showing no signs of extinguishing.
The patterns inscribed on the door were incomprehensible to everyone, but they seemed to capture Arlo's attention as he gazed at them intently.
Liam stepped forward, placing his hand on the door, ready to push it open. Just as he was about to apply pressure, the sound of something approaching from below the bridge reached their ears. It wasn't just one or two things, it was multiple, and they were closing in fast.
"What's that sound...?" Liam asked, turning around, his brow furrowed in confusion.
The others were equally perplexed, their eyes scanning their surroundings, trying to locate the source of the noise.
Sensing the urgency of the situation, Argus decided to use his foresight ability to its maximum output, allowing him to peer a few seconds into the future. His eyes widened as he caught a glimpse of what was to come.
"Door! Push it open, now!" he yelled..
Liam, hearing the desperation in Argus's voice, quickly began pushing against the door with all his might. The others, seeing the urgency of the situation, joined him, their combined strength quickly causing the door to budge.
As the door finally swung open, a horde of winged serpents came flying past the bridges at breakneck speeds. It wasn't just one or two; there were several dozens of them, their numbers overwhelming.
Before the monsters could launch an attack, the group rushed through the open door. As soon as they were all inside, the door slammed shut on its own, sealing them off from the impending danger.
"Haa..." Arlo sighed in relief, staring at the closed door. "So that's where the monsters were."
"No wonder we hadn't spotted any earlier…" Argus muttered as he also stared at the door.
The others shared his sentiment, a surge of relief rushing through their bones, grateful for having escaped the situation.
"It... It can't be..." Liam muttered, his voice trembling with fear.
Confused by his reaction, the group slowly turned around to see what had frightened him so much. As their eyes fell upon the sight before them, their eyes widened in disbelief.
"Oi... is this some kind of joke...?" Argus whispered, as they all stared at the scene that had rendered them speechless.
Before their eyes was a vast, spacious temple chamber, its ceiling soaring several hundred meters into the air. However, it wasn't the size or appearance of the room that had shocked them, but rather the single creature lying on the polished floor at the center of the chamber.
The monster was huge, its size incomparable to the winged serpents they had encountered outside. Its serpentine body was covered in crimson scales, its long, muscular neck supporting a powerful torso and a lengthy barbed tail. Large, bat-like wings were connected to its body at the shoulders, giving it the appearance of having arms.
The creature's head was triangular, with a pointed snout and a large mouth filled with razor-sharp teeth. Two horns protruded from the back of its skull, adding to its menacing appearance.
As the group stared at the creature, they could feel their hearts racing, their bodies trembling involuntarily as every instinct screamed danger.
In that moment, the monster's bright golden eyes snapped open, revealing reptilian pupils that narrowed into vertical slits. Its gaze locked onto the group, piercing through them with an intensity that sent shivers down their spines.
"T-That's... a wyvern," Arlene whispered, her voice trembling as she took a cautious step back. "What's something like that doing in a C-Rank Labyrinth...?"
Suddenly, a red screen appeared before Arlo, its words glowing with an ominous light.
[Quest Update!]
[Unique Quest -> Emergency Quest.]
[Emergency Quest: Wyvern Slayer.]
[Objective: Kill or be killed! You must slay the Wyvern in order to survive.]