The moment they entered, the world transformed.
The air turned icy, stinging their skin like needles of frost.
The setting whispers had become a storm, howling inside their heads, a chorus of ghostly wails that tore at their sanity.
Twisted roots, thick with thorns, crawled over the floor and walls, pulsing with a sickly violet glow like veins pumping poison.
The only other illumination came from clusters of glowing, poisonous-looking fungi.
"My-my gods…" Timid Light, the Cleric, was trembling so hard her staff clattered against her armor.
"I can feel it… something is watching us."
Rageclaw, for all his earlier bravado, had his axe held in a white-knuckled grip, his eyes darting into every shadow.
"This is madness," he muttered.
"Absolute madness."
"Everyone, shut up and listen." Jason's voice cut through the panic like a sharp blade.
There was no fear in it, only the chill of pure, unshakable command.
From this point on, you do exactly as I say, when I say it.
Stoneguard, you're on point.
Keep your shield up.
Timid Light, stay right behind him and focus only on his health bar.
Rageclaw, you and Solitary Gale flank me.
Jay, you're in the back.
Don't attack anything until I give the order.
Got it?
They all nodded, his sheer confidence a temporary anchor in the sea of fear.
"Good," Jason continued.
The mobs in here are not the main threat.
The real danger is a dungeon-wide mechanic called Hell's Roar.
It will trigger periodically.
When it does, you'll feel immense mental pressure, and your stats will drop.
The key is to end fights quickly and be ready for it.
Now, move forward, slowly.
They walked down the twisting path, the tension pressing in around them like a vice, each step harder to take than the last.
Suddenly, a creature burst from behind a cluster of glowing mushrooms, skittering into their path like a nightmare set loose.
It looked vaguely like a rabbit, but it was the size of a large dog, its fur a matted, dirty gray.
Its eyes glowed with malevolent red light, and its teeth were a row of needle-sharp fangs.
A Gloomfang Creeper (Elite).
"It's here!" Solitary Gale shouted, raising his sword.
"Hold!" Jason commanded.
Stoneguard, taunt it.
Just one taunt.
Don't move from your position.
The Shieldbearer slammed his shield with his mace.
CLANG!!!
The Creeper's red eyes locked onto him and it hissed, digging its claws into the dirt.
"Jay, now," Jason ordered.
"Hit it with your weakest curse, a single tick of damage is all we need."
Jay nodded, a bead of sweat tracing a path down his temple.
He pointed his staff, and a small wisp of dark energy shot out, striking the Creeper for a pitiful 11 damage.
The effect was instantaneous, but not what the party expected.
The Creeper shrieked, but it didn't charge.
Instead, the shadows behind it deepened, coalescing into a solid form.
WHOOSH!
A blur of absolute darkness exploded from the shade.
It was a larger, leaner version of the Creeper, covered in slick, black fur that seemed to drink the light.
Its claws gleamed like obsidian blades, and above its head, blood-red text burned: [Shadowstalker Alpha – Special Elite].
"AMBUSH!" Rageclaw roared, his fear instantly replaced by battle lust.
He charged forward with a guttural cry, swinging his massive axe.
"DIE!"
"Rageclaw, NO!" Jason yelled, but it was too late.
The Shadowstalker Alpha moved with impossible speed.
It sidestepped the clumsy axe swing as if it were moving in slow motion.
With a flick of its claw, it swiped at Rageclaw's chest.
CRACK!
The sound of tearing metal rang through the cavern, sharp and jarring as a scream.
A visible shockwave pulsed from the impact.
Rageclaw was sent flying backward, tumbling through the air before crashing into the earthen wall with a sickening thud.
A massive -347 damage number popped over his head, wiping out over half his health.
The party froze in horror.
This one creature had nearly killed their strongest damage dealer in a single hit.
But Jason was already moving.
BOOM!
The ground cracked under his feet as he shot forward, leaving only a blur in his wake.
The wind howled, pulled into the vacuum left in his wake.
The Shadowstalker turned its attention to him, its claws flashing in a series of lightning-fast strikes aimed at his throat.
Jason didn't meet them head-on.
He swayed, twisted, and ducked, his movements fluid and economical.
He was a leaf on the wind, untouchable.
His Agility, boosted to an insane level, allowed him to perceive the attacks as if they were coming through water.
The Alpha shrieked in fury and lunged, jaws wide and fangs gleaming.
This was a direct, powerful attack, too fast to dodge completely.
"Now!" Jason thought.
He raised his Abyssal Blade.
CLANG!
He executed a perfect [Parry].
Sparks flew like fireworks as his sword met the Alpha's fangs.
A shockwave of force shot up his arm, but he stood firm, stopping the beast's charge cold.
The party stared, dumbfounded.
He had blocked an attack that should have killed him.
Before the Alpha could recover, Jason's blade glowed with a faint silver light.
[Chop]!
He slashed downward, the sword carving a clean arc through the air and biting deep into the monster's shoulder.
Black ichor sprayed, and the beast howled in pain.
A -98 appeared above its head.
It wasn't enough.
The monster was still too powerful.
"Time for the fireworks," Jason muttered.
He clenched his fist, channeling his mana.
The air around his sword began to vibrate violently.
"Eat this!"
[Thundering Flash]!
VROOOM!
VROOOM!
VROOOM!
Three ghostly blades of crackling lightning burst from his sword, tearing through the air like thunder made flesh.
They ripped through the air with thunderclaps, each one shaking the cavern to its core.
The blades slammed into the Shadowstalker Alpha in rapid succession.
BAM!
BAM!
BAM!
-185!
-222!
(Critical!)
-264!
(Critical!)
The monster was blown off its feet, its body riddled with smoking wounds.
It lay on the ground, twitching, its health bar now dangerously low.
The rest of the party could only watch, their jaws on the floor.
The damage numbers were beyond anything they could comprehend from a Level 3 player.
It was a miracle technique.
Jason didn't give it a chance to recover.
He dashed forward, his Abyssal Blade held in a reverse grip, and plunged it straight down into the Shadowstalker Alpha's skull.
The creature gave one last, shuddering gasp before its body dissolved into particles of light.
Silence.
The only sound was Rageclaw groaning on the floor and Timid Light's frantic healing spells.
Then, Jay broke the silence.
"YEAH! THAT'S MY BRO! DID YOU GUYS SEE THAT?! HE WENT 'BOOM' AND THEN 'WHOOSH' AND THE MONSTER WAS ALL 'ARGHHH' AND JASON WAS LIKE 'NOT TODAY, SATAN!'"
Solitary Gale simply stared at Jason, his expression one of pure, unadulterated awe.
He had brought an expert.
No, he had brought a god.
Jason calmly wiped his blade and picked up the loot: a pair of Mysterious-Iron leather boots and a skill book.
He tossed the book to Timid Light.
"It's [Restore]. A good healing spell. You'll need it."
He then looked at Rageclaw, who was slowly getting to his feet, his face a mixture of shame and disbelief.
"Next time," Jason said, his voice level.
"Stay behind me."