CHAPTER 105: CHAPTER 105: KALAMUS HOUSE(3)

The ground shook violently as the gates opened and eight magma golems emerged from the fiery depths of the dungeon. Their bodies glowed like living volcanoes, fissures of molten rock exhaling waves of scorching heat. There was no warning, no pause—the eight giants charged at once, raising weapons forged from solidified lava.

The first golem lifted its hammer and brought it down against the group. The shockwave hurled them through the air like ragdolls. Riven rolled across the ground, spitting blood, barely raising her axe before another golem tried to crush her.

Manaia raised her staff instantly, spreading a veil of healing light that shielded the front lines, saving Riven from being flattened.

"Stay on your feet, I’ll cover the wounds!" she shouted as green energy seeped into her companions’ battered bodies.

Zela and Zyra, both warriors, rushed at the legs of the first golem. Their blades gleamed in unison, cutting into the burning cracks of stone. Vira and Riven joined quickly, forming a solid steel front that clashed against the colossal wall of magma.

Meanwhile, Lira unleashed a storm of arrows. Each shaft struck the weak points carved open by the warriors. Elnara, moving like a shadow among the rubble, sought impossible angles to pierce her arrows into the glowing eyes of another giant.

The air turned unbreathable when two golems spewed flames directly at the group. That was when Anya and Karely, the mages, raised their hands together. One conjured a wall of water that burst into steam against the fire, while the other summoned lances of ice that drove deep into the burning bodies, making them crack and shriek.

Amid the chaos, Lyra and Leila, the healers, stayed behind, weaving constant healing spells that closed wounds before they became fatal. Every scream of pain was answered by a flash of restoration that returned strength to the front line.

And in the shadows, unseen by the stone eyes, Jayde, the assassin with feline instincts, slipped between the giants. She scaled one’s back, plunging her daggers into the cracks of its glowing neck. With a swift twist, she ripped free a magma core that exploded, sending the golem collapsing with a hollow roar.

Jax did not lag behind. With overwhelming force, he leapt onto the rubble of a fallen colossus and drove his blade straight into another’s chest. The heat seared his skin, but his eyes burned brighter with fury.

"Bring these damned giants down, one stone at a time!" he roared.

The warriors kept cutting, the archers pierced, the mages drowned the flames with water and ice, while the healers lifted the fallen from behind. Even the weakest, Jayde, vanished and reappeared like a specter, harassing the golems until their massive frames faltered.

One by one, the magma golems fell, until only the last remained standing. The colossus raised its blazing hands to crush them, but the entire group hurled themselves at it with everything they had left.

The final impact was deafening. The golem exploded into shards of molten rock that lit the hall like a volcano erupting.

[You have cleared the Second Phase]

The doors at the far end opened slowly, revealing a dark, icy corridor that contrasted sharply with the infernal heat.

Jax smiled calmly, still breathing steadily, unlike the girls who seemed utterly exhausted.

"If that was just the warm-up..." he spat on the ground as he sheathed his blades, "then what’s coming next will be even more fun. Let’s go."

The frozen passage opened into a wide cavern where the air turned so cold it cut into their skin. Icicles hung like blades from the ceiling, and the floor was coated in slippery frost.

A guttural hiss shattered the silence.

From the shadows emerged four ice-and-poison basilisks. Their bodies stretched as long as war carriages, held aloft by eight powerful legs that scraped against stone. Their tails lashed like whips, and their jaws dripped corrosive venom that sizzled as it struck the ice. Their eyes, shining like cursed jewels, radiated hunger and malice.

"Level eighty-five..." Jax muttered calmly, gauging their strength. Then he glanced at the eleven women and smiled proudly. "This one’s your fight. I’ll only step in if you’re in trouble."

The basilisks’ roar was the signal. They lunged forward like lightning, agile as serpents yet heavy as mountains.

Zela, the warrior, stood her ground first. She raised her shield and blocked the brutal impact of one beast. The ice beneath her cracked apart, but she held firm. Beside her, Zyra and Vira struck with swift blades, slicing into the creature’s front legs. Riven joined seconds later, hacking a wound that tore a roar from its throat.

In the air, Lira and Elnara unleashed a rain of arrows. Their enchanted tips glowed as they pierced eyes and joints between scales. One arrow struck true, blinding a basilisk in one eye. The monster writhed in fury, smashing against the cavern walls.

Poison began to flow. One of the beasts spat a stream of acid that melted the icy ground and splattered toward the warriors. Anya reacted instantly, conjuring a wall of wind that deflected the attack. At her side, Karely hurled a sphere of fire straight into another’s gaping maw, forcing it to swallow flames.

But the battle was far from over.

Another basilisk darted swiftly around the group. Its tail swept the ground like an iron whip. Jayde, the assassin, vanished in a feline leap and reappeared on its back. She drove her daggers into the cracks of its neck, twisting with surgical precision. The monster shrieked, but Jayde had already melted back into shadows and ice.

In the thick of combat, several warriors were struck by venom and claws. Manaia, Lyra, and Leila—the three healers—worked without rest. Their staffs glowed, sealing open wounds, purifying toxins, and restoring vigor.

"Don’t stop! You won’t fall as long as I breathe!" Manaia cried, pouring all her energy into the battlefield.

Jax watched from an icy ledge, arms crossed. His eyes tracked every movement. He could have ended the fight in an instant, yet he stood still, a proud smile on his face.

"This is how true warriors are forged," he murmured.