Chapter 42: Showing Strength
“Nothing, I just threw it.”
Vincent shrugged, then walked over to help the stunned female Vyrmin still seated on the ground. Reaching out his hand, he asked, “Are you okay?”
When she finally regained her senses, the female Vyrmin let out a loud scream, realizing how close she had come to dying. Calming down, she took the offered hand, only to freeze again when she recognized the mask. It was the same face she’d seen earlier when caught in a private moment with her partner.
“You’re the…”
Before she could finish, Vincent cut her off.
“We’re even now.”
“Huh?”
“I accidentally saw you two earlier, and then I saved you. So, we’re even.”
“Oh, right…” she replied in a daze, then recalled her partner, who had left her to die.
“S’van!!”
Jokyr walked up, his eyes glinting with curiosity. “I guess that was the guy who ran the fastest. He’s probably escaped by now,” he said, joining the group.
Turning to Vincent, Jokyr asked, “Do you know her?”
“No, just happened to run into her this morning. I owed her one,” Vincent replied casually.
“What are you going to do now?” Jokyr asked the female Vyrmin.
Still fuming over S’van’s betrayal, the female Vyrmin seemed torn. She sighed, glancing at them with a conflicted expression. She had an escape scroll—one given to her by her boyfriend—but she felt reluctant to impose on these strangers who had saved her.
“I have an escape scroll, so I’ll be going. But first, let me thank you for saving me. What’s your name?” she asked, looking directly at Vincent.
“Shroud,” he answered curtly.
She nodded. “I’m S’hannah. I’ll repay you someday for saving me, Shroud. Goodbye.”
Without waiting for a response, she tore the escape scroll. Three seconds later, her form dissolved into particles of light and disappeared.
With S’hannah gone, Jokyr and the others fixed Vincent with sharp gazes, almost making him uncomfortable.
“What?”
Seizing the moment, Clauny spoke up, “I told you guys, Shroud is stronger than the leader. You didn’t believe me.”
Her tone was triumphant, her hands on her hips as if she’d been the one to take down the Thornback Rat with a single blow.
Swordy and Rossy remained silent, but Jokyr eyed Vincent cautiously. Initially, he’d thought Vincent was a mere novice, but now it was clear he was a formidable warrior, perhaps as strong as himself. This realization made Jokyr wary. In the worst-case scenario, if Vincent—or Shroud—betrayed them, Jokyr wasn’t confident he could protect his companions.
Yet, he trusted his instincts. He felt that Vincent was not a malicious person.
They resumed their journey, descending to the third underground level.
The third level of the Blackbite Rat Labyrinth greeted them with a stench as foul as rotting corpses. The space was larger and brighter than before, more suited for a big battle, though the nauseating smell lingered in the air.
Fortunately, Vincent’s mask filtered out the smell, while the others took out nose plugs and blocked their nostrils. Amused, Vincent asked, “Why are you all plugging your noses? Can’t you use origin energy to block the smell?”
Clauny replied, “We can’t afford to waste origin energy like that. We need to conserve it if we want to reach the next level.”
The others nodded in agreement. Swordy reached into his pocket and pulled out an extra pair of nose plugs.
“Good thing I brought an extra. Here, take these, Shroud.”
Vincent glanced at the plugs but shook his head.
“I’m fine. I can handle it.”
Swordy clicked his tongue, slipping the plugs back into his pocket.
“Tch. Don’t come asking for them later when you’ve used up all your origin energy.”
Just as Swordy finished speaking, Vincent sensed a presence approaching from a distance, though the others seemed unaware.
“Something’s coming.”
The statement caused everyone’s brows to raise, especially Jokyr, who prided himself on his scouting abilities.
“What are you talking about? I don’t sense anything,” Jokyr replied, doubting Vincent’s claim. His own sensing skill detected presences within a 40-meter range, so he assumed Vincent was being overly sensitive.
Clauny, however, trusted Vincent’s intuition.
“How many?” she asked.
“At least ten…”
Vincent wasn’t surprised that Clauny trusted him—she’d been his one believer from the start.
“And their strength?” Clauny pressed further.
“About four stars.”
Jokyr still seemed skeptical. He couldn’t detect anything, yet Vincent could pinpoint both the numbers and strength of the approaching enemies? It didn’t add up.
More than that, the last time they’d been here, they’d never encountered a group of four-star Tier 1 primals. Most late and peak Tier 1 creatures roamed solo.
“You’re talking nonsense—” Swordy started, but Jokyr interrupted, his expression shifting to disbelief.
“Positions! We have incoming!”
“You can’t be serious!” Swordy exclaimed, gripping his sword.
Soon, several large shadows appeared in the distance, kicking up clouds of dust as they advanced. When the figures finally came into view, Jokyr recognized them instantly.
“Blackbite Rats… Toxic Toads… Razorfang Rats… and even a Poisonous Toad Leader!”
“There are so many…”
Rossy, usually silent, couldn’t hold back.
“Leader, what’s the plan? Are we fighting?”
Swordy asked, his voice tense under the pressure radiating from the Poisonous Toad Leader, which was stronger than him.
Jokyr hesitated, torn between retreating and advancing. But retreating would be risky; they’d have to climb or locate one of the rare exit points on this level.
He made a decision.
“Prepare yourselves! We’re moving forward!”
“But how?” someone asked.
“Help me handle the other primals. Buy me time to kill the Poisonous Toad Leader,” Jokyr commanded.
“Rossy, create a barricade around the Poisonous Toad Leader—separate it from the others!”
“On it!” Rossy replied without hesitation. She raised her hand, which glowed with an earthy hue, and commanded, “Sprout!”
Instantly, thorny branches erupted from the ground, isolating the Toad Leader at the back and immobilizing it.
Clauny suddenly leapt into action. She summoned a wooden staff, raising it as it glowed faintly yellow.
“Boost!” she cried.
The yellow light fell upon Rossy, who was still summoning the thorny branches. Her speed increased, forming a dense cage around the 2-meter-tall Poisonous Toad Leader.
“Great work, Rossy and Clauny!” Jokyr praised.
“Swordy and Shroud, buy me time. I’ll handle the Toad Leader.”
Swordy met Vincent’s gaze, and they nodded, moving into position. Vincent had no intention of hiding his abilities. He summoned his [Duskedge Blade], activating Venomstrike Lash along with Duskedge Wave. A dark-purple, crescent-shaped slash flew toward the advancing primals.
The attack was also enhanced by his C-rank talent: Origin Power Enhancement.
A loud explosion shook the ground as a cloud of purple smoke erupted upon impact. Jokyr and the others stood stunned, their jaws dropping as the smoke cleared.
At least ten Tier 1 primals, ranging from two to four stars, had been obliterated, reduced to particles of digital light.
“Are you kidding me?”
