Free Web NovelChapter 29: Rift Mix-Up 3
Worms burrowed out of sand, each flying towards one of two targets. There were tens of holes in the ground and frost and ash spread all around. A bat made from flame flew around the battlefield, lighting every bone-reinforced monster on fire while protecting its master from any incoming attacks.
On the other side was a man casting icicles at the wave of monsters. With no summon to rely on, he had to continuously weigh his choices. Sometimes he would dodge-roll away from one monster just to end up face-to-face with another. While other times he would just summon a mold of mana to cover his body, taking the brunt of an attack.
Tens of worms had fallen to the young explorers. Their spell usage and strategy had become optimized for their foes. Devastation scarred the sands of the rift. The only place left unscathed was the large opening at the end of the walled-in dunes.
The bat rammed into the last worm as it swam out of the sand towards Leon. Flames burned through its exoskeleton and a flame spear penetrated straight through its skin.
Silence washed over the rift.
Both Leon and Luke fell to the ground. Leon had almost no mana left, while Luke, with his significantly increased mana pool, was sitting at around 40%.
Luke looked at the ring on his finger, its golden exterior shone brighter than any grain of sand. For a moment, he thought about why he was fighting so hard, and the ring was more than enough to yank him back to reality.
He was not a college student anymore.
Luke was an explorer.
And most importantly, he was a husband.
Leon was splayed out on the ground, his chest heaved up and down. He looked towards Luke who quietly stood, gazing into the sand beyond the walls.
"How do you still have mana?"
"Because you killed everything with your spells."
Leon just sighed, knowing that Luke was right. Even after training his entire childhood to have the most optimal mana usage, he was still being beaten by a low noble who had only graduated a day ago.
Luke was more focused on the amount of monsters they had to kill just to reach the boss. When he looked back across the dunes, there were at least three dozen behind them and twenty more frozen and burnt on top of the dune where they stood.
There were at least triple the monsters in their rift, compared to his first.
"I mentioned that it must have been a mix-up, but how could they have messed up this rift. I mean, this is pushing D-Rank in enemy count alone, plus its an elemental dungeon with monsters that benefit from the terrain. There may not even be a F-Rank dungeon harder than this."
Leon was still looking up at Luke, he thought about responding but Leon had come up with the same conclusion as Luke.
"You know, if I hadn’t asked you to come along, I would have been dead about 3 dunes ago."
He chuckled awkwardly, as one would when talking about their own death.
"I could still throw you to the boss if you want."
They both laughed, as Leon finally rose from the ground.
Luke found Leon surprisingly easy to work with, especially for high noble, their witty banter in between battles had kept their spirits high. Luke had learned a few things about him during the time, mainly that he was a fire-spell-obsessed explorer. He even admitted to declining a C-Rank spell as a gift, just because it was ground-shaping spell rather than aligned with fire.
Leon dusted off his equipment, the light leather had seen better days, as it became worn through the few hits he took. Otherwise, he still looked like a noble.
"How much mana do you have left?"
"Maybe 10%. I can probably cast two more flame spears or an F-Rank version of my bat. Other than that it’s on you."
"Great."
They started to walk down the dune, heading towards the large opening past the walls. As they passed into the opening, Luke noticed a large hump of sand in the middle. Not tall like one of the dunes, but a large knoll that was wide instead of tall.
He could take a guess as to its identity, but there was no need.
The moment they stepped into the arena, a large wave of sand covered their exit while the boss erupted from the knoll, raining down sand on top of Luke and Leon. Even through the sand, they could feel its weight shake the ground.
Its head burrowed back beneath the sand. As it slithered through the sand, its large bony body poked out.
It moved like a sea dragon from a medieval map.
The boss bobbed up and down as it circled around the outer region of the arena. Luke and Leon didn’t even bother taking a defensive stance, holding their ground against something so big was a death wish.
Instead they were prepared to run at any moment, with the moment coming sooner rather than later. The boss finally turned towards them, kicking up sand as it barreled towards them. Its head disappeared and Luke reacted.
"Roll!"
Leon didn’t ask questions, he just threw his body forward and put as much distance between their original location as he could.
The boss’s mouth swallowed the sand where they had been. Hundreds of pointed teeth were crammed into its jaw.
Luke didn’t miss the opportunity and prepared a Frost Spike, sending it spiraling into the worm’s eye and causing it to shake in pain.
As it writhed, the two could see the full length of its body. If the other worms were as thick as a telephone pole and as long as a car, the boss was overall the size of an airplane. Its bones stuck out in points, unlike its weaker counterparts.
From his knowledge, the spitter queen was known to be one of the largest bosses in F-Rank and this worm dwarfed it by at least 20x.
When it crashed back down into the sand, it shook the arena so hard that both Leon and Luke fell down, slightly trapping their legs in the process.
He couldn’t help but think about his rift luck, as the worm started to swim through the sand again.
This time setting its sights of Leon, who was struggling to get out of the sand.
