On the Edge!
Chapter 14 - On the Edge!
"Shit!"
As he opened another passageway at the end of the tunnel in front of him, Cain involuntarily cursed. Deeply frowning, his brain worked at the limit, calculating all probabilities.
He could see that there was a pile of coffins lying in front of him in a large, bath-like hall, and there were countless bats upstairs. This was not what everyone was writing about. Almost all the reports said that the boss room was with a monster lord of the undead type.
In the middle of the room stood a huge, dark-red tree shrouded in black chains. Tied to its top were two particularly prominent coffins.
Why was he now, instead of a slow lich skeleton, seeing this disgusting picture!? He identified at a glance the type of monsters and the lord's likely monster, or rather the lord's monsters...
They were paired bosses. The worst nightmare of any high-ranking pack. And that was at the first level?! Cain had never heard of such a thing. But that didn't change the fact that he needed to get to the core of this nest and steal it.
In all that time, only a handful of groups were able to bring to light information about a secret boss passage. And even fewer managed to remain unharmed and not suffer any losses when encountering these bosses.
No one ever managed to get their hands on the monster lord's core. Later, when people learned of the possible value of that core, many began to tear their hair out in regret. At the initial stage, that core would have given a tremendous boost to the level of the lord's core. And in some cases, it might even grant special effects. A sense of loss overwhelmed everyone who was undergoing some sort of training. Making them regret their missed opportunities. Surely many would now risk their lives to at least touch this treasure.
There were many assumptions and theories. Someone later even thought of a separate model of a raid on a boss without attacking the boss itself. Based on this case, many have successfully stolen different jewels, right out from under the nose of the monster lord.
True, this only worked until the 10th floor. Later, the monsters became much smarter.
These monster lords, in this boss hall, were probably a couple of vampires. Which wasn't just a joke. Cain could have said goodbye to his life here, never having begun his journey as a lord.
But the frenzied production of adrenaline, in his over-pumped, magic-stimulated body, would no longer allow him to stand there and ponder. Without even realizing it, Cain had already rushed forward.
If he'd been the least bit sober, he would have just turned around right there.
To go and steal from under the noses of two monster bosses, with enhanced dexterity type, their most precious thing. It was nothing short of suicide. But Cain could no longer think straight. His main goal was to steal the core and escape with it.
With red eyes and a shield under his arm, he began to run at a speed unthinkable for a mere man. When Cain ran one-third of the way through, the bats rapped down, surrounding Cain in a tornado of bats.
Cain, with his shield raised, began to tear through the countless horde of bats. His back was already bleeding badly, awakening more bats. When Cain broke free of the tornado, he rushed forward as fast as he could. It was only a hundred yards or so to the center.
As soon as the Cain got halfway across, the lids of the coffins on the ground began to open. Slowly, half-asleep, the inferior vampires began to rise from their coffins. When they saw what was happening, almost all the vampires seemed to have lost their minds. They sprinted toward the center, preventing the stranger from approaching their treasure.
Slashing a few vampires, Cain kept ducking to try and make his way to the giant, bloody tree.
There were a dozen bodies on Cain's tail. And pesky, annoying bats were swarming overhead. Things were as bad as they could get. But there was no turning back now. Only forward.
Running up to the core at point-blank range. The two coffins hanging high above the nucleus began to stir.
"Just a little more. Yes!"
Grabbing the core, the hall shook slightly, and the chains on the two hanging coffins shattered to shreds. Two shrieks of exasperation ran through the hall. Blood flowed profusely from Cain's ears.
But he didn't wait for the two monsters to finally wake up. Instantly he spun around the crowd of stupid-headed monsters and sprinted back toward the exit.
When the crowd of bats blocked his way again, he used the same trick and covered himself with his shield to fight his way out. But the furious and endless stream of bats would no longer allow him to pull the same trick. Then Cain had to use the inferior spell [Flash of Light].
"Away! Mean rats!"
His face began to show signs of wrinkles and the hair on his head turned gray. The life resources of his body were slowly being used up. But it was taking its toll. The dense, black cloud of bats flew apart, screeching painfully. Which allowed Cain to break free of the encirclement.
Behind the horde of bats were dozens of inferior vampires using bloody blades, constantly hurling them at Cain. The same shield that was already native to him covered him from most of the deadly attacks.
Throwing a pair of daggers at the blocking vampires, he didn't look back and sprinted for the exit.
As he neared the exit, a lightning-fast figure flew over him. Before he knew it, his arm was flying in front of him. The stunning vampire landed just behind him.
"Kha!"
Instantly Cain's brain sobered up, he quickly raised his shield with his remaining hand and covered himself with it. Seconds later, a hard blow threw Cain deeper into the tunnel.
Standing up, Cain began to run as fast as he could. His body was already at its limit. The sound of wings flapping could be heard behind him. The male vampire, controlling the blood stream formed a multitude of arrows of blood directed into the narrow passage.
At that second, Cain felt goosebumps run down his back. As soon as he turned around, he was curled up like a turtle in a corner, shielding himself. Countless, seemingly slender arrows pierced the stone walls almost through!
Cain knew they wouldn't let him go just like that. Gritting his teeth, he hurled the shield at the vampire who attacked him, shocking him a little.
But Cain did it to buy himself some time. And he succeeded; the dazed vampire flew back a bit, dodging such a strange attack. He was afraid there were no traps built in.
Cain, meanwhile, whispered five seconds. His body immediately evaporated and appeared 50 meters further away. The stunned vampires stood in a stupor for some time before they smelled the strong smell of blood coming from the tunnel.
Cain's appearance resembled that of a blood demon. The veins on his forehead were swollen and blackened, and his eyes were flooded with blood. His body was covered in a multitude of cuts, his left arm was gone.
And from using teleportation, his body was gradually starting to dry out. Cain knew that he could not escape from these creatures in the usual way. So he decided to take his chances and bet everything on the two jumps he had left in reserve.
If Cain missed the second jump, it was safe to pack his bags and take a direct flight to heaven. Cain's eyes were already beginning to cloud over. He pulled an enhancement scroll from his inventory and quickly used it on the core. Without even looking, he tossed the improved core into the transfer slot.
He could hear the screams of the two vampires right behind him. Already falling without strength, he uttered the last syllable of the spell. When a vampire woman grabbed him by the leg.
A strange situation loomed in the transporter room. A half-naked, bloodied man, fell into a dark portal in the arms of a shocked blonde vampire.
Unfortunately, Cain no longer understood what was going on. Otherwise, he would have been very surprised. When he touched the portal, the vampire wasn't torn into bloody powder. As is usually the case with monsters that touch the portal. But, she was enveloped in purple flames, just as Cain had been. And together they vanished into the purple flames.