CHAPTER 87: DUNGEON RAID

The stairwell twisted deeper, each step echoing like they were walking into the ribs of something long dead. The air grew heavier, hotter, as if the dungeon itself resented their presence.

[ Floor 2 – The Charred Hollow ]

The chamber opened into a cavern lit by rivers of molten sap. The stench was choking—sweet and rotten, like burning flesh.

From the ceiling, blackened boars of fire dropped, tusks glowing white-hot, eyes dripping violet embers.

Bounce crouched low, growl rattling in his chest, silver aura blazing to life.

Puddle rose higher, halos orbiting fast, black-and-white light crackling in anticipation.

Rhys drew the Verdant Scholar Sword. Its emerald glow cut through the haze like a beacon.

"Let’s clean this floor."

The first boar charged—steam hissing off its body.

Rhys shifted.

[ Swift Cut ]—a blur of motion. He carved across its flank, sparks of molten sap bursting from the wound.

Bounce slammed into its side, fangs glowing silver as he dragged the beast off its feet.

But the second one came from behind—

Puddle’s [ Light Bullet ] streaked across the chamber, smashing it in the eye and staggering it just enough for Rhys to pivot.

[ Vertical Slash ]—his blade cleaved straight down the boar’s skull, splitting it open like rotten wood.

The monsters didn’t crumble instantly—here, the dungeon resisted. But Puddle’s halos pulsed—

[ Abyssal Grasp ].

Tendrils ripped from beneath the molten sap, wrapping the boars’ bodies tight, holding them while Bounce tore through their throats and Rhys’s [ Fireball ] detonated inside their wounds.

The cavern shook with the echo of their collapse.

[ Clear Condition: Defeat all monsters – Floor Complete ]

The molten rivers dimmed, their glow shrinking into trickles, and another stairwell revealed itself, curling downward.

Rhys exhaled, leaning briefly on his sword. "They’re getting tougher. Dungeon doesn’t want us touching its heart."

Bounce padded forward, silver glow still pulsing steady despite the burns streaking across his fur.

Puddle bobbed wearily, giving a quiet, determined "kuyuuuuu."

Rhys grinned faintly. "Yeah, I know. But we’re not stopping now."

He turned toward the stairwell. The pulse—the second heartbeat—was louder now, vibrating through the stone beneath his boots.

And they descended again.

[ Floor 3 – The Screaming Canopy ]

The stairwell spat them out into a cavern filled with roots that stretched like twisted trees. Their bark wasn’t wood—it was bone, warped and hollow, with skull-like faces pressed into them.

The chamber screamed.

Wraith-owls burst from the branches, wings of shadow trailing violet flame. Their cries were knives of sound, forcing Rhys to stumble, his vision cracking at the edges.

He bit down hard. "Puddle—shield!"

[ Light Shield ].

A veil of white light expanded over them, muffling the banshee shrieks just enough to move.

Bounce launched upward, claws slashing through the owls, silver aura blazing like a comet.

Rhys swept the Verdant Scholar Sword in an arc—

[ Whirlwind Slash ].

Emerald trails shredded through roots and wings alike, cutting down a flock in one stroke.

But the owls reformed from shadow, gathering again in the rafters.

Puddle’s halos spun—[ Gleaming Halo ] burst outward, a radiant pulse that seared through the illusions, forcing the true cores into view.

"Now!" Rhys roared.

He and Bounce struck in unison—sword carving, fangs crushing. The wraiths’ screeches cut short one by one, dissolving into silence.

When the last echo died, the chamber stilled.

[ Clear Condition: Defeat all monsters – Floor Complete ]

The skull-trees cracked apart, their bone-bark splintering to reveal another stairwell.

The second heartbeat was louder now. Not just beneath the dungeon—it was inside Rhys’s chest, syncing with his own rhythm, daring him to keep going.

He tightened his grip on the Verdant Scholar Sword. "Alright. Let’s see what’s waiting for us below."

And the three of them descended, step by step, toward the Core.

The stairwell twisted again, narrower this time, as though the dungeon itself tried to choke them before they could reach deeper. The air tasted metallic—like blood left too long in the sun. Each step made the pulse stronger, the second heartbeat now drumming in Rhys’s ears.

[ Floor 4 – The Ember Catacombs ]

The stone split into a cavern of cracked coffins. Hundreds of them lined the walls, some half-sunken into the molten rock, others hanging open like broken jaws. Ash drifted like snow.

Then—crack.

One coffin lid split. A skeletal warrior pulled itself free, blackened bone fused with ember veins glowing red. Another followed. Then ten more. A chorus of dry, rattling moans filled the chamber.

Rhys lifted his sword, smirking despite the exhaustion burning in his limbs.

"Undead this time? Fine. Let’s burn them down."

The first surged forward—

Rhys swept wide—[ Whirlwind Slash ] erupted, emerald trails slicing through bone and ash, scattering limbs across the floor.

But they didn’t fall apart. The molten veins pulsed, stitching them back together.

"Persistent bastards..." he hissed.

Bounce barreled into their ranks, silver aura bursting out like a storm. He slammed one skeleton into a wall, shattering its skull, while his fangs crushed through another’s ribcage.

Still, the horde pressed in, embers sparking with each step.

Puddle floated higher, body glowing with both dark and light. Halos spun faster until—[ Dark Mist ]. A wave of shadow poured out, choking the embers, making the skeletons stagger and swing wide.

"Good—now take this!" Rhys roared, thrusting his palm forward.

[ Fireball ]. The blast tore through the mist, detonating in the middle of the pack, flames consuming ash and bone in a thunderous roar.

The wave of heat knocked several apart, their veins dimming to nothing.

Puddle followed up with [ Gleaming Halo ], radiant pulses knitting Bounce’s burns and Rhys’s cuts while forcing the embers to flicker weaker under holy light.

The last skeleton lunged, its ember-core glowing like a heart.

Rhys darted forward—[ Swift Cut ]—a green blur, piercing the core in one stroke. The ember shattered like glass, and the skeleton collapsed into dust.

The chamber fell silent. Ash swirled, then settled into the cracks.

[ Clear Condition: Defeat all monsters – Floor Complete ]

The coffins split apart, collapsing into molten rubble, revealing a stairwell spiraling downward—deeper than before.

Rhys wiped sweat from his brow, smirking faintly.

"They’re making sure we bleed before the Core... good. I’d be insulted if it was easy."

Bounce padded closer, fur ash-streaked but glowing with silver resilience.

Puddle bobbed tiredly, but his halos still hummed with determination.

The heartbeat below thundered now, like a war drum. Every step made the stone tremble underfoot.

Rhys rested the Verdant Scholar Sword against his shoulder, staring into the dark stairwell.

"Floor five’s next. And after that... maybe the Core itself."

He grinned, sharp and defiant.

"Let’s finish what we started."

And together, the three descended, the pulse of the dungeon waiting for them like the breath of some ancient beast.

The stairwell seemed endless this time. The walls were slick, damp with something that looked like condensation but smelled like rusted iron and rotting bark. The heartbeat wasn’t just below them anymore—it was around them, inside the stone, vibrating through their bones as if the dungeon itself was alive and aware of their trespass.

[ Floor 5 – The Maw of Roots ]

The stairwell spat them out into a cavern so massive it felt like stepping inside a lung. Roots coiled across the walls, the ceiling, and the floor, pulsing faintly with reddish light, each throb syncing with the dungeon’s heartbeat. In the center, a gaping chasm split the chamber, and from it, a grotesque form slowly pulled itself free.

A Root-Titan.

Its body was a writhing mass of roots and sinew, each limb tipped with jagged bone, its face half-formed like a skull pressed into wood. The air shook as it exhaled a fetid gust, hot as a furnace.

The dungeon’s voice rumbled through the chamber— not words, but intent: You will not reach the heart.

Rhys tightened his grip on the Verdant Scholar Sword, sweat stinging his eyes. His lips curved into a grin.

"Finally... a real guardian."

Bounce’s silver aura flared, his growl shaking the floor. Puddle rose higher, halos orbiting like miniature suns and eclipses both.

The Titan moved first—roots lashing outward like whips. Rhys darted forward, [ Swift Cut ] flashing emerald arcs as he severed tendrils mid-air. Bounce crashed into another, fangs tearing through bark-bone. But the Titan’s body regenerated instantly, roots twisting back together.

"Tch... won’t be simple."

The Titan slammed its arm down. The ground erupted, roots spearing upward. One scraped Rhys’s side, nearly impaling him, but Puddle unleashed [ Abyssal Grasp ]—dark tendrils rising from the floor to bind the Titan’s limb. For a moment, its regeneration faltered.

"Now!" Rhys roared.

He leapt, blade igniting with fire—[ Fireball ] merged with his strike, erupting as a [ Steamburst Edge ]. The vaporized explosion ripped across the Titan’s chest, burning through layers of wood-flesh.

Bounce pounced, aura flaring like a comet. His fangs crushed one of the glowing cores embedded in the Titan’s torso. The monster screeched, shaking the cavern.

But the Titan wasn’t finished. Its body split, roots unraveling into dozens of writhing appendages. From the chasm, more skeletal shapes began to climb—smaller root-spawn, their eyes glowing violet.

Rhys grit his teeth. "Figures... floor five’s the horde test."

Puddle’s halos spun faster, flaring with dual light. [ Gleaming Halo ] expanded, bathing the battlefield in healing radiance, while [ Light Bullets ] streaked outward, shattering spawn one by one.

Rhys exhaled, steadying his stance.

"We break its heart, or we don’t get out."