Fierce battle(1)

Five and Dreidus have long lost any form of contact with the Shades. There was no way for them to obtain any information about the army with the Encantado. The only information Dreidus was receiving came from the Undead fighting the massive army.

The first line of defense fell and soon, the second line followed. The second line of defense consisted of monsters living on the fifth to the seventh floor. There were Death knights, Abominations, Mylingars, Zombeasts, Corpse Eaters and so on. Their levels ranged from level 20 to level 30.

The second line of defense was far stronger than the first one. It was better structured and the monsters there held a variety of abilities. They fought on the sixth floor, the one resembling marshlands. The environment was advantageous to most Undead Monsters aside from the Death Knights who could not gather enough momentum for their charge.

The other reason for choosing this floor was that it was connected to the forest. The forest biome only had six floors; the invaders were now forced to enter the marshlands if they wanted to progress any further. This arrangement put a lot of pressure on the monsters. Nevertheless, the marshland was soon filled with corpses of goblins and orcs.

The enemy monsters died one after another. Their corpses piled up in the marshland but similarly, the second line of defense lost a lot of Undead. They managed to hold their ground but the situation changed as soon as the Ogryns and Onis stepped on the sixth floor. The second line of defense was obliterated in an instant.

In the meanwhile, Five and Dreidus arrived at the third and final line of defense. It was where all the remaining monsters were at. The ninth floor was usually protected by the Nosferatu but they were absent this time. The ninth floor consisted of a series of large rooms and short corridors. It was decorated to look like a giant party was taking place. The floor was huge but with so many monsters, it felt very crowded.

A few monsters still remained on the tenth floor. They consisted mainly of the craftsmen; these monsters were not very suited for battle and went to hide in their village. The Flame Sisters and Flame Belle were also protecting Tinyland.

"The second line has fallen. They should arrive here soon," said Dreidus with a serious expression.

"It is to be expected. What are the results?"

"Most of the enemies have fallen but the line collapsed when the Ogryns and Oni appeared. As for the Encantado... I don't know what monsters are coming with it but it should be the third and final wave. As long as we can hold on, everything will be fine. Based on the rate at which the Shades died, they should not be walking too quickly. It is good news for us; we'll be able to deal with the weaker monsters before they arrive," answered Dreidus.

The only real challenge was the Encantado and the monsters accompanying him. He was already at level 50; ten levels above Dreidus. If Harriet was here, it would not have been a problem. However, to console themselves, Five and Dreidus concluded that the other dungeon should be experiencing similar difficulties.

"Position the mechs properly! They will be the one to tank the damage first. Then, the Living Corpses will follow!" commanded Dreidus.

Five nodded to the monsters as he walked past them. There was no need for motivational speeches to raise their morale. Five was not very talkative and certainly did not have the necessary charisma to act as a leader. The only reason he was here instead of staying by the dungeon core was to provide support with his buff and healing spells.

They waited and waited. The enemy monsters would need to cover a rather large distance before reaching the ninth floor. The rooms were dead silent until footsteps sounded coming from the stairs.

"Boom!"

As soon as the Ogryns stepped on the ninth floor, the mechs charged at them. The Ogryns had a large imposing stature but the mechs were not intimidated by it. They could not feel the terrorizing aura of the monsters and simply followed the commands given by the craftsmen.

The mechs did not give the monsters any time to spread out on the floor; they fought right at the end of the stairs, using the narrow entrance to only have to fight two at a time. Nevertheless, the Ogryns were truly powerful. Slowly but surely, they pushed their way through, allowing more Ogryns to step on the ninth floor.

The mechs only had the strength of a level 30 monster. They paled in comparison to the level 35 Ogryns and the Onis following behind. Fortunately, there were many mechs and there were many models, each with their own specialty.

The Ogryns roared in anger while turning the mechs into scrap metal. The Onis behind them raised their wand, activating their spells. The mechs exploded upon being hit; even the model Gamma that had a higher defense than normal failed to absorb more than two spells.

Five could not see the battle from his location but he could hear the explosions. He was standing next to the stairs to the tenth floor with Dreidus and Lyra.

"Is everything alright?"

"Yes. The mechs are containing the Ogryns in the first room. Let's send the mirror spirits! If they are here, we might be able to stop their advance right there."

In the first room, the Onis once again activated their spells but this time, several Level 36 Mirror Spirits appeared. They chuckled as they activated their innate ability: [Reflection]. All the magical projectiles were sent back to their casters. The Onis got a taste of their own spells.

With the help of the Mirror Spirits, the mechs were able to fight back. The Ogryns were unable to gain any ground and soon, the last Oni fell. Even the terrifying Boss Monsters were unable to fight the Mirror Spirit King and perished under the combined attacks of hundreds of mechs. More than eighty percent of the mechs were destroyed but in the end, they managed to contain the monsters in the first room.

The mechs bought a few moments of peace but the tension did not decrease at all. The monsters knew the most terrifying opponent had yet to come and at the moment, no one could face them alone.

A few moments later, the sound of footsteps once again resonated in the first room. The mechs seemed to react to the sound and started vibrating, getting ready to spring into action. The first monster to step on the ninth floor was a handsome young man. The male idols paled in comparison to his chiseled physique and perfect face. His devilish charm could melt the heart of the most cold-hearted ladies. He wore a plain white shirt and a simple short. A straw hat was attached to his back. The young man was none other than the level 50 Encantado.

The gears of the mechs creaked as they jumped at the Encantado but before they could reach him, the Encantado reacted. He stood still with a relaxed expression but his body suddenly emitted an ear-piercing high-pitched cry that shook the entire dungeon.

Even Five who stood at the other end of the floor heard the cry and even lost 10 HP from the attack. It was the Encantado's skill: [Sonic Wave Superposition]. The damage dealt was inversely proportional to the distance traveled by the sound wave.

With just this one skill, the first room was now covered with gears and metal parts. All the mechs broke down from the sonic attack and the resulting vibrations.

"Boring! Those mechs could not even resist a single attack!" The Encantado nonchalantly played with his short brown hair.

"Makrail! Stop wasting time. I want to return to the dungeon." A voice sounded behind the Encantado. It was a Chuiael, a variant of the succubus. Behind her, more monsters stepped onto the ninth floor. Together, the monsters released a powerful aura; they were all above level 40.

Makrail, the Encantado lightly chuckled. "Fine. I also want to go back to bed. Let's liven up this place then, shall we?"

He raised his hand as he activated the ability he obtained from the dungeon core: [Pheromone Release]. Countless invisible particles contaminated the air of the dungeon. Next to Makrail, the Chuiael raised her hands in a similar fashion and activated the same ability.

With both male and female pheromones in the air, the monsters of the dungeon would not be able to escape their effect. Unfortunately, they were bound to be disappointed. 99% of the monsters of the floor were not affected at all by the pheromones.

In the final room, Dreidus frowned. "Lyra. Take your spirit form and inform the other wailing ladies to do so too."

"What? Why?" asked Lyra. She nevertheless complied.

"The enemy is releasing pheromones in the air. You are still an Undead Monster and cannot reproduce but I cannot say for sure that you won't be affected. It is better to be safe. The monsters on the next floor should be out of reach. At least for now... Master, it would be better if you leave this floor."

At the same time, Five's expression darkened.

[System prompt: You have been afflicted by pheromones. Prolonged exposition to the pheromones will worsen the debuff. Intelligence and Wisdom -2. Ejaculate once to remove the debuff.]