Live Dungeon!

”…This should be the place. Let’s check inside, just in case.”

Korinna, who had grown accustomed to the environment of the ninety-second layer, pointed toward a massive tree, its shape almost a copy-paste of the ones they’d seen back in the Forest layers. Her face was streaked with mud like a guerrilla fighter in ambush, eyes sharp as she gauged their surroundings. The tree would have been hard to pick out among so many other similar ones, but once she knew what to look for, it became identifiable enough.

The hollow at the base, glowing faintly from within, gaped like an open door. The light came from a colony of luminous mushrooms, the same kind that thrived in the Forest layers’ Safe Zones. A quick inspection of the interior showed no signs of monsters.

As Safe Zones did not actively repel monsters the way the Black Gate did, it was possible to lure them inside if necessary. Fortunately, the little Fenrir, who had already learned to understand a simple degree of human language, responded well to Daryl’s explanations. As he coaxed her inside, she bounded at his heels, playful and eager like a puppy begging for a walk.

Before stepping in, the cub stopped just shy of the threshold and glanced inside, her expression skeptical. She sniffed the air, gave a low rumble, then turned her sharp gaze on Daryl as if to ask, ‘Are you sure this is safe?’ After another low growl, she barked once at the Gnome perched on his shoulder, as if entrusting herself to the earthen Spirit, then trotted over to Korinna’s side with her fluffy white tail swaying behind her.

It seemed Pico’s Safe Zone plan was off to a promising start.

”All right then, little Fenrir,” Daryl said with a polite nod, ”You’re staying here with me. Things might be a little boring, but for your safety, try to put up with it, all right?”

*Woof!* The Fenrir barked in response and proceeded to playfully nibble at Daryl’s tail.

As Daryl gently scolded the Fenrir cub, Diniel watched the pair, smiling faintly as if glimpsing a scene from an idyllic paradise. Korinna, noticing this, decided to tease her a little.

”If we take down that elephant and bring back a tusk or two,” she said with a grin, ”maybe she’ll finally start respecting you–ow!”

”Don’t toss around idealistic nonsense so casually,” Diniel said flatly, giving Korinna’s side a firm pinch.

”S-sorry…”

Tears welled in Korinna’s eyes as she winced and clutched her stomach. Hannah, watching from the side, muttered a nervous ”Scary…” and scooted away, while Leleia let out a sigh, her half-lidded eyes betraying a great degree of exasperation.

Not long after, they located signs of forest devastation: trees torn from their roots, deep gouges in the earth… evidence of the Rampage Elephant’s trail. As the group triangulated the beast’s position, Hannah idly rolled a small Lightning Magic Stone between her fingers and mused aloud,

”You know, it’s kinda refreshing not having any guys in the party for once.”

”Well, Absolute Helix usually runs with two Tanks, which means one of the three men will always be in the group,” Leleia replied. ”So yes, it’s rare.”

”Then it’s time to show what us girls can do!”

”……”

”What? Why’re you looking at me like that?”

Leleia said nothing, but she couldn’t help thinking that of all the women in Absolute Helix, Hannah, despite her clearly feminine figure, had the personality of a mischievous boy. There wasn’t much ladylike about her beyond appearances. Truth be told, the only member who might be called ‘feminine’ in the traditional sense was Korinna.

”I’ve found Rampage. Head right from here, and we should be able to intercept it quickly,” Diniel reported.

”All right,” Leleia replied. ”The best option for this terrain would be… binding it with vines, then.”

”I’ll start prepping this side,” Hannah said.

”I-I’ll start applying support skills as well,” Korinna added.

”Good. Let’s get moving, then.”

Thanks to the mother Fenrir’s presence, monsters were keeping their distance. As they passed time in conversation, Diniel had been scanning the area with her [. Leleia now formulated a strategy to stop the Rampage Elephant, nicknamed Rampage, and glanced toward the Fenrir, signaling with her eyes that they would soon engage.

Hannah crushed a Lightning Magic Stone in her hand, channeling the magical power into her limbs. It was not just her fists, but her entire body. A thin aura of static shimmered across her skin. The feathers on her blue wings writhed, alive and charged. It was her usual warm-up before unleashing her signature-ish skill, the Magic Fist.

Seeing the other three spring into motion so suddenly, Korinna scrambled to catch up, applying [ before trotting after Leleia. Less than a minute after reaching the designated point, the ground began to tremble beneath their feet.

Rampage had arrived. A living natural disaster, the massive creature burst into view. The moment the Fenrir saw it, she bared her fangs and bolted forward, unleashing a sharp, challenging howl. Rampage answered with a deep, resonating bellow.

The Fenrir took the initiative, summoning jagged ice from the ground, though Rampage crashed straight through it, momentum only slightly slowed. The two behemoths of the ninety-second layer collided, the shock of their impact sending smaller creatures fleeing as the forest itself seemed to quake in terror.

”[. The Fenrir should keep it distracted for a while. Korinna, you’re free to engage.”

”All right. [!”

”Let’s do this!”

”[.”

Leleia stayed close to Korinna, offering much-needed tactical advice as this was the latter’s first time fighting the Rampage Elephant. Meanwhile, Hannah took to the air, her body cloaked in lightning magic. From behind her, Diniel’s arrows flew sharply and precisely, piercing Rampage’s thick gray hide.

”[!”

While the Fenrir fought, Hannah launched her first attack mid-air. The [ skill grew stronger with each successive hit, and she used her boosted speed to maximum effect, darting around Rampage in a flurry of strikes.

While everyone in the party except Korinna had experience fighting the beast before, Hannah’s improvement was particularly noteworthy. As an evasion-based Tank, her theoretical potential was already high, and against a monster they’d fought enough to learn its patterns, she was proving just how powerful that potential could be.

Hannah had died to Rampage at least ten times, but each death had taught her something; through trial and error, she adapted and emerged stronger. With Tsutomu in the party to amplify that learning process, her combat finesse in the Ancient Castle layers rivaled even Diniel’s.

”Everyone, back off a little!” she called out.

Her control over Magic Fist, taught and honed under Melchor’s guidance, had become far more refined, and the number of self-inflicted accidents had dropped dramatically. Now, the magical energy coursing through her body was of the lightning attribute. This was an increase in variety from before, as she had been able to only wield fire back during the ninetieth layer.

In the past, her repertoire had included reckless moves like the so-called Flame Attack, where she’d channel the energy of a Fire or Inferno Magic Stone throughout her body, effectively turning herself into a fiery phoenix… that usually exploded mid-dive. The technique’s backlash was, quite predictably, enormous. But ever since Tsutomu saddled her with debt, perhaps driven by survival instincts, she’d become capable of handling even expensive Stones like those of the Lightning variety.

Afterward, she trained in the art of lightning under Melchor, learning to circulate its magic throughout her entire body to boost her physical abilities. Her mastery improved rapidly, and eventually, lightning became as natural to her as fire, forming the new cornerstone of her combat style.

Now, her blue-feathered wings sparkled with static as she moved in close. Once she confirmed that the Fenrir had disengaged, she leapt up and latched onto Rampage’s back, clinging tightly like a cicada on tree bark.

*Boom!*

Any gentleman watching on the other side of the Monitors might have envied the elephant… until they saw the blue-white light explode around its back, tendrils of electricity rippling like a miniature thunderstorm. Whatever envy they’d felt would instantly evaporate. Rampage’s already-whited eyes puffed smoke, and under the shock of the unanticipated attack, it dropped its massive body with a heavy, stunned thud.

From its elongated trunk slithered a glistening mucus-like ooze. But this was no ordinary secretion; it was a Slime that symbiotically lived inside Rampage’s nasal cavity. Judging by its lifeless slump, Hannah’s lightning had cooked it alive. She had learned to target the creature specifically, having once been immobilized when one launched from the elephant’s nose and latched onto her face.

”[! Hey, big guy, over here!!” She shouted.

Discharging the last of her lightning magic, Hannah crushed a Colorless Magic Stone in her palm, extending her enhanced physical state and continuing to draw Rampage’s aggro. She dodged the whip of its trunk, then slipped back into motion while Leleia and Diniel’s support fire rained fiercely from afar. Meanwhile, the Fenrir danced around the battlefield, launching icicle projectiles while keeping out of the line of fire.

”Repositioning soon! Leleia, it’s that way, right?” Hannah asked.

”Yes. Korinna, we’ll be drawing Rampage toward the vines. Please stay close,” said Leleia.

”R-right!”

Rampage, wielding a fallen tree like a club with its trunk, swung wildly in frustration. Korinna, momentarily distracted by Hannah’s nimble acrobatics, blinked herself back to awareness and nodded quickly.

”Let’s go too, Fenrir!” Hannah called out.

”……”

The Fenrir, unmoved by the chaos, calmly watched Hannah flitting around Rampage’s flailing limbs without a scratch. After a single sharp bark, she summoned a towering ice wall to obstruct Rampage’s path, then leapt and landed gracefully beside Leleia.

Now robbed of a target, Rampage bellowed in fury and smashed through the wall with its tusks, charging again with renewed wrath.

”[!” Diniel called.

”[!” Leleia followed.

Diniel’s fire-imbued arrows peppered Rampage’s legs, halting its momentum, while the small Salamander Spirit belched a torrent of fire far beyond what its size would suggest. Rampage screamed as the forest floor became a burning carpet beneath its feet, then stomped violently, shaking the ground and extinguishing the flames. The shockwave sent Korinna stumbling, until Leleia caught her and instructed her to take to the air using [.

”I’ll buy us time!” Hannah shouted as she dashed back toward Rampage.

”Don’t push yourself too hard,” Leleia cautioned.

”Got it! Korinna, you might want to start channeling a revive, just in case!”

[Not that she looks anywhere close to dying…] Korinna thought, watching Hannah’s aura glow brightly with life. She rushed after Leleia, determined not to fall behind.

”This is the perfect chance to get some cardio in,” Diniel quipped as she effortlessly dashed ahead. ”C’mon, get down on the ground and run — burn off that excess belly fat.”

”Y-you don’t have to say it like that…” Korinna muttered, cheeks puffed slightly.

Flying with the aid of [, Korinna kept pace. Behind them, Hannah continued her acrobatic onslaught, drawing Rampage’s attention while chaining attack skills to rack up the combo bonus. She moved like lightning incarnate, keeping the rampaging beast from targeting the rest of the group.

*Bwaaaooo!?*

About three minutes later, they reached the patch of thick, sticky vines. Hannah, who had been accumulating enormous aggro, baited Rampage straight into it. The moment the elephant entered, Diniel and Leleia synchronized their next strike, aiming at its enormous fan-like ears. The pain sent Rampage thrashing wildly, causing it to entangle itself even further in the vines.

[It’s less like a battle and more like pest control… Still, this is amazing.]

Still solely doing support and mid-range attack skills, Korinna couldn’t help but be awestruck. She watched Leleia down a Blue Potion in one hand while drawing her rapier with the other, moving with practiced, elegant ease.

[Honestly, a Buffer would probably be more efficient than a Healer in this situation… Still, I’ll do whatever I can. It’s rare to even have the chance to cast this many attack skills.]

Though she’d used a morning star in previous battles, acting as a frontline bruiser without relying on mental energy, fights with this much breathing room were rare. Gripping her talisman tightly, Korinna prepared to unleash her signature attack, [, one of the core offensive skills in a Channeler’s arsenal.