Return to Jorgaldur Volume III: blood warrior

Marabunta boss

The floor boss had the reputation of being terribly cumbersome. Although, more than a boss, there were hundreds of ants, this time more than half a meter tall. Each of them could be comparable to a normal being from a dungeon. All together, they were really frightening.

A party could fight against them by taking advantage of the fact that they couldn't attack them all at once, especially if they found a narrow place, but that wasn't the hardest issue. After an ant was eliminated, another appeared, in a process that seemed to have no end. The only way to overcome it was to eliminate them faster than new ones respawned.

Therefore, it was essential to have the greatest possible offensive power. So, even Kroco started attacking with magic or his staff. Kroquia switched from the shield to a two-handed sword, though she could switch back if necessary.

Krinia and Kruloz were right behind. They were trying to use their mana and energy as efficiently as possible, and had even consumed regeneration potions.

Meanwhile, Krongo had decided to follow Gjaki's example. Maybe he wasn't as efficient as her, but his agility was enough to keep him safe. Each one went one way. They were jumping on the ants, taking them down one by one, or sometimes several at once.

If there was a gap, the vampiress placed a Dark Wall and left the area, while hoping that the ants would fall into it as they tried to move in her direction. Darkness Pillar would have been the ideal solution if she had enough mana, but the Walls ended up being more efficient.

She had located the Weak Points of the ants previously, an information that she had already shared with the rest of the party. The eyes were obvious, and the area between the antennae known. However, a certain point on the back, another just above the second pair of legs, and a final point on the abdomen weren't in the information Kruloz had gathered.

The archer and warrior made good use of that information, while the mage's attacks weren't as precise. Nor those of Kroquia, which were as powerful as they weren't subtle.

Finally, Gjaki reached her goal. As in the game, the passage to the next floor wasn't only blocked, but it was the place where the new ants spawned. Since they surged from there continuously, it was the perfect place to surround with Dark Walls. She would have created several layers, but her mana wasn't enough to sustain that many.

She positioned herself nearby, thus attracting other ants and finishing off the ones that came out, as well as making sure to renovate the Walls. With them, the reinforcements were continuously decimated, and little by little the numbers were dwindling.

When they dropped to 50%, the ants decreased in size and doubled in number. That made them more annoying and more elusive, but also less dangerous. Besides, they were more vulnerable to Walls and other area attacks

It was tiresome, irritating, even infuriating, but not exasperating. They could discern they were advancing, that the number of enemies was decreasing, that they were getting closer to the extermination of all of them. After a few hours, they succeeded.

"Next, there're spiders. They're very dangerous. If you get caught in the web, you can't defend yourself," Krongo informed, with some apprehension.

He used to be in the vanguard, and being immobilized made him totally vulnerable, since his armor wasn't very resistant. Also, those spiders were at 39, two levels above his.

"Oh, spiders. No problem. My scouts will fall on the webs first, so it's easy to discover them," Gjaki assured, with a mysterious smile.

She had already found them in the other dungeon, so she knew what they were up against. The extra skills they had here didn't seem very dangerous to her, although that wasn't the reason for her smile, but the memory of her past.

"Why are there spiders here? The developers don't understand anything!" Eldi had protested back then.

"What's the problem?" Goldmi had asked, puzzled.

"This's an insect dungeon! There're insects! Spiders aren't insects! They're arachnids! A-RACH-NIDS!" he had gotten exasperated.

"Ha, ha. No problem. We just have to slice them into small pieces like the rest," Gjaki had intervened.

Many years later, after recalling that same scene, Eldi would feel a bit ashamed of his past self, as much as he was right.

Even without the need to fight, Gjaki's presence made everything so much easier. The Bats not only discovered the cobwebs, but also made their enemies come out of their hiding place. In addition, the Blood Hound that preceded them was attacked before them by the spiders that didn't lay webs. They were waiting in hiding to surprise their prey.

Their enemies were two levels higher than them, or the same as Gjaki, but they weren't very skilled in open fights. Their specialty was setting traps and attacking by surprise. Also, they were very rarely in groups.

So the five of them could face them with solvency, thanks to their teamwork. Gjaki was gaining experience through the Dark Touch she had imbued the weapons with, so she let them practice.

The vampiress didn't feel guilty in the least. Besides she took care of the spiders if her companions needed to recover mana or energy. It was somewhat frustrating for them to see how the difference in power was growing, but they couldn't help but accept it.

The leveling speed could only be explained by her being a visitor who was regaining her strength. They didn't understand it very well, but she had assured them that she was originally level 100, something only few could reach. Although they hadn't understood very well what that level meant, when comparing it with almost mythological beings, they had been left with their mouths open. The ezihuq had even doubted for a moment if it was a joke.

Now they were still in doubt, though semi-convinced. They were waiting expectantly to be able to reach deeper floors, even if it was behind their companion. Being able to see them was more than enough, and they had plenty of time on their hands.

They had planned to spend several weeks on the second floor, and maybe the third, so no one was waiting them yet, and they had more than enough food. Their status allowed them to possess a large space container, instead of being limited to the weight and dimensions of their backpacks.

That not only allowed them a greater quantity of supplies, but a higher quality. The dry and usually tasteless food that other adventurers had to carry wasn't necessary for them. Of course, their advantage paled in comparison to the vampiress.