Chapter 123

Chapter 124: The Mage Turned Warrior (First Update, Please Subscribe)

After entering “Water Riddle City,” the expedition team once again donned their water elemental protective cloths.

Contrary to the fire elemental cloths used in the “Great Tree Maze,” the water ones provided resistance against water-based attacks and were essential equipment for conquering this place, “Water Riddle City.”

To specifically tackle the various terrains within the Dungeon, the expedition team prepared many targeted gears.

These two types of elemental cloths were included among them.

Thanks to the proficient and precise coordination of Loki Familia’s members, “Water Riddle City” was quickly breached. When facing the twenty-seventh floor boss, the two-headed dragon [Amphisbaena].

It seemed that Finn aimed for training purposes, as he did not let the senior members take action but instead had core second-tier members like Raul, Anqi, and Alisia handle the command and response.

Centered around Level 4 individuals like Raul, with rear-guard Magical Arts users and supporters providing cover, the two-headed dragon was eventually defeated after a battle, dropping “loot items” and large magic stones.

There were no casualties, only a few unlucky souls who got splashed into the water during the fight, swallowing quite a bit of it.

Still, thanks to Izay’s magic.

When surrounding [Amphisbaena], Izay didn’t sit idly by; ‘Starfall,’ ‘Wall Rising to Immense Heights,’ ‘Starry Prison’—these magics effectively served to restrain the enemy.

Especially ‘Wall Rising to Immense Heights.’

While battling underwater, the floor boss [Amphisbaena]’s latent Level 5 ability values even rivaled those of Level 6.

In such circumstances, Izay’s ‘Wall Rising to Immense Heights,’ which created footholds made of rock, proved crucial.

Especially when equipped with a shield.

Although he didn’t directly charge in to battle the floor boss, Izay’s contributions were indispensable to achieving victory without any casualties.

After resting at the safe floor that appeared after defeating the floor boss, they then began advancing towards the floors below the thirtieth.

Starting from the thirtieth floor, it truly became a place requiring high levels and ability values.

Monsters with potential ability values exceeding Level 3, rampant “poison,” and possible occurrences of ‘abnormal situations’ meant very few Familial Groups/Factions could explore to the thirtieth floor and beyond.

And without exception, those groups were all top-tier factions in Orario.

Upon reaching this floor, everyone in the team shed the relaxed demeanor they had in the middle layers and began to take things seriously.

The cooperation between teams also started to truly show.

That was the efficiency and skill that solo adventurers could never reach, the long-cultivated默契 coordination making Izay’s eyes widen in amazement.

Upon arriving at the thirty-seventh floor, facing the giant cavern known as the “White Magic Palace,” the rear-guards began to feel the pressure.

This floor would see the appearance of many so-called warrior-type monsters.

There would be the “Barbarian Warriors” proud of their physique, the upper race of lizardmen appearing from the nineteenth floor “Elite Lizardmen,” and the “Obsidian Soldiers” with obsidian bodies…

These monsters, having similar structures to humans and mostly above medium size, rampaged inside the white palace.

This floor, gathering experts in melee combat, posed a significant challenge for Magical Arts users.

They wouldn’t have time to chant spells before enemies closed in for an attack. There were even opponents like the “Obsidian Soldiers,” whose properties resembled talismans, reducing the effectiveness of “magic.”

Izay stayed in the ranks of the rear-guards, watching as many Magical Arts users put away their staves, taking out bows and arrows or crossbows to start covering fire.

Some even drew enchanted longswords to engage in close combat, their sharp enchantments giving them an advantage.

This situation was that of mages forced into melee combat.

“Refia…”

“Yes?”

“I’ve suddenly realized that it’s not embarrassing at all for you to learn swordsmanship. Now is the perfect time to showcase your training results. Would you like to give it a try?”

Izay offered to lend her a spare enchanted longsword.

“…”

For Izay suddenly leaning in and whispering in her ear, Refia hugged her staff tightly, lowered her head, and remained silent for a moment.

But she soon looked up and said petulantly, “Mr. Izay is mean!”

Her not-so-quiet voice caught Riviria’s attention, and though Mama-san just gave her a puzzled look, the little fairy immediately shrank back.

She emitted a “hmm hmm hmm hmm” soft sound, too afraid to speak again, merely glaring at Izay with resentment.

The walls of the thirty-seventh floor were entirely white, and compared to the floors above, the maze structure was excessively massive, differing greatly in scale.

Passageways, rooms, even walls—everything was wide and spacious, with almost all paths and caverns exceeding ten meters in width.

The entire circular floor resembled a castle, consisting of five concentric ring-shaped walls, with the staircase leading to the next floor located at the center.

Adventurers wanting to reach the central area must pass through open channels between the ring walls, climbing up and down uneven surfaces. The scope of the domain could rival that of a large city.

After continuously passing through several circular giant walls, one would arrive at the “Throne Between” of the thirty-seventh floor, where the floor boss of this level was born.

Level 6, [Udaeros].

Facing such an opponent, Ais and others also began to unleash their full strength.

It wasn’t like sweeping away monsters in the upper or middle layers; they were fully committed to launching their attacks.

“Vanguards, maintain your formation and strike from blind spots! Bert, Tiona! Don’t push too hard! Rear-guards, begin chanting your spells!”

Udaeros was a giant skeleton monster resembling a humanoid, its lower body buried underground, with just the part above the pelvis nearly ten meters tall.

Especially the great sword in its hand, which was almost as long as its upper body.

Finn took over the command, and aside from the four senior members who didn’t need much worry, the other vanguard members followed Finn’s orders to specifically target Udaeros’ blind spots.

A common tactic against large monsters—exploiting vision.

As long as they weren’t seen, they couldn’t be attacked.

Rich combat experience and top-notch command skills made Finn seem able to predict the future. Every movement of Udaeros was foreseen by Finn, who then ordered the team to dodge ahead of time.

Ais and the three others restrained Udaeros from the front, and the enchanted weapons significantly increased their damage.

Attacks landing on Udaeros’ skeleton would create cracks, and with deliberate targeting, they could break through the tough bones.

In fact, Ais and the three others could have directly defeated Udaeros.

However, to pursue efficiency and not waste time, Finn still opted for a group effort.

The battle progressed swiftly, and before the rear-guards had finished two rounds of magical artillery strikes, Udaeros’ massive skeletal body could no longer hold together and shattered into dust.

The huge magic stone produced by the floor boss fell to the ground, kicking up dust.

There were no “dropped items.”

Unlike the two-headed dragon [Amphisbaena], although the thirty-seventh floor boss [Udaeros] could also produce dropped items,

the condition was that it could only happen in one-on-one (or few vs. one) situations, forcing it into a desperate state.

Massive team wiping couldn’t produce dropped items.

Even so, the magic stone dropped by the floor boss held immense value.

The logistics members responsible for transporting supplies happily placed the magic stone dropped by Udaeros into the cargo box, alongside the dragon skin from the previous [Amphisbaena].