A swarm of bats came rushing from deep within the cave.
Faced with what looked to be more than twenty of them, Emily, holding a shield in one hand and a torch in the other, raised her shield high.
“Everyone, behind me!”
Basic Shield Skill, Third Form.
Area taunt.
“Taunt!”
Emily’s shield slammed hard into the ground.
—Boom!
A shockwave spread toward the bats with a thunderous roar.
It dealt no damage, but the creatures’ crimson eyes all turned toward Emily.
It was a sight chilling enough just to look at.
“Mr. Ian! Now!”
Ian aimed her staff at the bats lunging toward Emily and shouted.
“Fireball! Fireball! Fireball!”
The spell she chose was not her favored Wind Cutter, but the basic fire spell, Fireball.
In the dark cave, spheres of flame shot from Ian’s staff and surged toward the bats.
—Kieeeek!
The light from the flames illuminated the surroundings and burned the bats’ black hides.
Because so many of them were clustered tightly together, the damage spread uncontrollably.
Bats fell, shrieking in agony, and the firelight revealed the field of vision.
“Uaaaaah!”
And that became the opportunity for the melee dealers, who had been unable to recklessly step forward until just moments ago.
Adrian, the first to charge ahead, swung his axe with all his might.
Basic Axe Skill, Third Form.
Area spinning strike.
“Whirlwind!”
A yellow arc lit up the darkness like starlight in the night sky.
With the sound of slicing, blood poured from countless bats.
“Slash!”
And Shaura’s attack, following right behind, granted eternal sleep to those that had not yet fallen.
From the rear, Ian watched the battle unfold as she cast her magic.
‘It won’t be as dangerous as I thought.’
The party’s level was 13.
Not only was that two levels higher than the level 11 Raptor Bats,
but for an improvised party, they worked well together, befitting people active on the front lines.
Starting with Emily, who properly blocked the bats’ attacks, then Adrian, who dealt heavy blows to their clustered formation, and finally Shaura, who finished them off.
Thanks to that, after the battle began, Ian only had to carry out the simple role of taking care of the ones that slipped past the defense and dug into the party’s rear, or bats that had not yet died.
Even so, Ian did not stop sending magic forward from time to time.
She had to fill up her proficiency, after all.
Amid the ceaseless barrage of skills and spells, Ian’s party steadily pushed back the swarm of bats.
And so, Ian’s party finished off nearly twenty bats.
Although they were in a cave where a bleak wind blew, everyone except Ian was drenched in sweat.
“Ugh, I’m exhausted. Let’s rest for a bit.”
“This is my first time facing this many at once, too. If their level had been just a little higher, it could’ve been dangerous.”
“Then let’s take a short break.”
The three of them went to a place without bats and caught their breath.
Ian, who had been standing some distance away, approached them.
Emily smiled bitterly.
“Aren’t you a little too fine by yourself, Mr. Ian?”
“It’d be stranger if a mage was a mess.”
“Still, didn’t a few get past us?”
“How many even came? That much is as easy as eating rice cakes lying down.”
Ian had resolved to use her staff for the day, but she was still the highest-level player in this party.
There was no way just a few bats would pose much of a threat.
Ian said,
“So, are we going farther, or are we heading out?”
They had driven off the swarm of bats, but no one knew what else might appear ahead.
Whether to continue exploring, or go outside, reorganize, and return.
The gazes of Ian, Shaura, and Adrian turned to Emily.
Though the party had gathered around Ian, Emily was still the party leader.
Her choice would soon become the party’s choice.
Emily closed her eyes for a moment and sank into thought.
Then she gave the party members an awkward smile.
“Then shall we go just a little farther?”
***
In truth, Emily knew that stopping the exploration was the correct choice.
If they encountered an enemy stronger than bats inside this dark cave, there would be no guarantee of survival.
But there was no guarantee that she would be able to assemble a party like this again.
She already knew Ian was strong, and Shaura and Adrian were both leaders of parties in name and fact.
They were far too strong to be playing the role of mere party members.
Especially in a dark and narrow cave like this, the party’s capability mattered more than anything else.
So Emily decided to make use of the current situation.
They would have to take on some danger, but as long as they survived, the reward afterward would be very sweet.
And so, Ian’s group moved deeper into the cave.
Along the way, they were attacked by bat swarms two or three more times, but the bats could not block their path.
Of course, that did not mean the fatigue from intense combat disappeared.
“This is pretty tough. My arms are aching now.”
“We killed that many, so it can’t be helped. I just wish they gave a little more experience. That’s the disappointing part.”
Everyone except Ian had to put considerable effort into loosening up their stiff bodies.
“By the way, Ian, your magic skills were quite good. When did you raise your proficiency that much?”
At Shaura’s words, the group nodded.
In truth, when she had first said she would take the rear, everyone had thought it was just to make up the numbers.
After all, swords and magic required different stats.
She had to invest in Strength while also taking care of her Magic stat, so inevitably, she could only suffer losses in both weapon categories.
In reality, the magic Ian used had less damage than that of other staff users.
Even if her staff had high magic attack power, the difference in stats could not be ignored.
But apart from that, Ian’s sense for magic was first-rate.
Because her proficiency was lacking, she could not use a wide variety of spells, but her ability to land the right spell at the right moment was superior to that of most users.
Ian thought back on the past week and smiled bitterly.
“Just while I was at it. If I want to survive alone, I have to do all sorts of things.”
“You really do live the hard way.”
But she did not regret it.
At first, she had been bewildered and had complained about why it had to be a staff of all things, but now, together with her sword, it had become a reliable partner that protected her.
Stats?
She would just hunt hard.
Anyway.
“I do think it’s better to have at least a secondary weapon ready, even if you aren’t solo.”
“That does make sense.”
“Then would you like to learn? This is simpler than you’d think…”
Just as Ian was about to spread the advantages of using two weapons, Emily raised her torch and cut off the group’s conversation.
“Wait a second.”
“Hm? What is it?”
“Over there. Isn’t there something there?”
“Is that… light?”
It was faint, but because the cave was dark, the wavering light in the distance instantly captured the party’s attention.
“It’s not… a trap, right?”
“If it were a trap, there would’ve been one long ago. Let’s go take a look first.”
No one could refute Adrian’s words.
Now that they had come this far, they had to discover the identity of the suspicious light before their eyes, so everyone nodded and moved forward.
The closer they got, the more the pitch-black darkness was gradually devoured by pure white light.
“Ugh… It’s bright.”
In truth, the light was not that strong, but their eyes had already grown accustomed to the darkness for a long time.
Their expressions naturally twisted, their arms rose to block the light, and groans escaped them.
The world that had turned white gradually began to take shape.
“This place…”
It was a vast space, so large it was hard to believe they had been inside a cramped cave just moments ago.
Within it, stone statues about four times the height of a person stood in a circular formation.
There were seven stone statues in total.
Each of them had a different appearance, held its own weapon, and aimed toward the center.
“Is this something like an altar?”
And in the place where the weapons were pointed, a stone tablet stood tall.
Its style was extremely similar to the altars they had seen scattered throughout the Baltor Mountains.
“Looks like the light is coming in from up there.”
Only then did Ian’s party look up at the ceiling far, far above.
They realized that the light was sunlight entering through a hole in the ceiling.
“Climbing up is impossible, right?”
“Seems so. I don’t know where that hole is, but getting out that way won’t be possible.”
And that meant that in order to get outside, they had to pass through the dark cave again.
No one had to go first.
Everyone simply let out a sigh at the same time.
“By the way, isn’t there nothing here either?”
“Indeed… The only thing that could be called a passage is the cave we came through.”
The reason they had come here today was to find the hidden boss, and to find the way to Area 3.
But as Shaura and Adrian said, there was nothing in this space except the altar.
So Ian could not understand.
“Then what exactly is this place?”
Who had created a space like this, and for what purpose?
Was it simply a device meant to deceive players?
If so, where were the boss and the path to Area 3?
Amid those unresolved questions, Ian absentmindedly stepped into the altar.
It was at that moment.
—Ruuumble!
“Wh-what is it?! An earthquake?”
Along with a violent vibration, the ground began to shake fiercely.
It felt like standing inside a bus racing at full speed down an unpaved road.
Even though this was inside a game, the force was strong enough that it was not easy to remain standing.
Then—
—Flash!
“Wait! The stone tablet is acting strange!”
The stone tablet left the ground and floated into the air.
From it, a torrent of pure white light began to pour out, spreading into the surroundings like tree branches.
The mysterious light seeped into the seven stone statues.
As if a god were breathing life into his creations, the sight seemed almost sacred, and Ian’s party could not take their eyes off it.
—Ddddddd.
The hardened stone statues began to move.
To eliminate their enemies, their massive weapons turned toward Ian’s party.
At last, an arrangement of letters appeared above the stone tablet.
[Lv 16 Lord of Blight Baltor]
The corrupted lord of Baltor.
“Human, human…!”
It was the boss of Area 2 that Ian had spent the past week searching for.