Chapter 28

As we entered the imposing room, we saw four large marble statues. Each statue has an empty circular slot in its chest.

In the middle of the room, there's a pedestal with four orbs, each engraved with symbols corresponding to the elements. The orbs are colored green for earth, white for air, red for fire, and blue for water.

The door to the next room is locked with no visible keyhole, only a hard-to-find mysterious inscription that I almost did not see that reads: "Balance the elements, and the path forward shall open."

"Looks like we are in a puzzle room," Ariadne pointed out the obvious.

"Yeah, I hate this kind of obstacle. It would be better if they just sent us mobs instead of this," Liz whined.

"Any idea how to solve this?" Our impromptu leader asked the party.

"None, as I said, I'm terrible at puzzles."

"N-no…" Clarissa shook her head.

I stayed silent.

I have an inkling of ideas on how to solve the riddle, but I'm not sure it's the right solution, I'll just let them handle it for now and intervene if necessary.

"It seems that we need to put the orbs in the correct slots in the statues' chests, but the tricky part is the arrangement. I have a bad feeling that if we mess this up, we will trigger a difficult trap," Ariadne continued to ramble her thoughts.

"Ohh I know! let's just open my stream and ask my viewers," Liz made a horrible suggestion.

"That's a good idea. The more heads, the better. I will also ask my guild for a helping hand too," Ariadne agreed to the atrocious suggestion.

Please don't! No streaming, please! You guys just want to show off! Besides, I'm not sure if the world is ready to see Clarissa's cuteness right now. She might get some online stalkers if they even have a glimpse of her angelic face. Looks like I have no choice but to try and solve this myself.

"Wait a sec, I have an idea of how this puzzle works. Would you guys let me try first before you call for help?" I interrupted their dangerous schemes.

Ariadne eyed me contemplatively for a second before agreeing to my request.

"Sure, be my guest, but don't mess up too much or we might trigger some dangerous traps if you fail to solve the riddle."

That's a fair concern. Some riddles, especially in abyss dungeons, trigger traps or send monsters after you when you fail to solve them.

"Don't worry, Kat's got this. She is the smartest person I know!" Liz defended me.

I appreciate the sentiment but please, like I said, don't use my real name in a game setting, especially when someone whom I have a history with is nearby!

"Y-yes I agree too…" Clarissa shyly chimed in "K-Ka… Novo is the smartest person in the whole world!" Clarissa tried to say my real name but failed.

Please do use my real name even if we are in an online game setting! Even if you say it to the whole CoA community I don't mind! I encourage it even if it comes from such a cute voice!

"Leave it to me," I said faking nonchalance.

Although deep down inside, I'm more motivated to solve this now than ever while maintaining my poker face. I can't fail now after all of that praise or it would be extremely embarrassing. It might even lead to the most awkward dungeon run if I fail here now after what they said.

I walked towards one of the statues while explaining my thought process regarding the puzzle.

"I think… the objective is to place the orbs in the correct slots on the statues. Each of the statues depicts a Celtic god of some sort." I recognize most of them being in the lore. "This statue, for example, is a statue of Belenus, the Celtic God of fire," I said as I tapped the statue next to me.

I then proceeded to point to the other three statues, describing them each respectively.

"That is the statue of Manannán, the God of the sea. That is a depiction of Borrum, the Celtic God of wind, and lastly, Danu," I said while pointing to the last and only female marble statue. "The Celtic Goddess of Earth."

A look of comprehension appeared on all of their faces as if solving the puzzles themselves.

"I see! So we just have to put the fire, water, wind, and earth orbs in their respective sockets?" Liz voiced out the thoughts the other two had.

I pondered for a bit, then shook my head.

"No, it's not that simple."

"What do you mean?" Ariadne chimed in.

I pointed at the mysterious inscription near the locked door that is too easy to miss if you don't pay much attention to your surroundings.

"Huh, so there is an engraving there. Hmm, 'Balance the elements, and the path forward shall open.'" Ariadne read the inscription. "You have a keen eye, I almost didn't notice that inscription with how well it is hidden in plain sight. It blended so well with the background, making it harder to spot," she praised with a bit of astonishment seeping out of her voice, a far cry from her usual stoic tone.

"I see, so we just have to put the elements in their opposite statues, like placing the fire orb to the water god statue to 'balance' it… right?" Liz asked for confirmation while staring at me.

"Yes, that is what I believe we should do at least."

"Well, none of us has any better ideas, and yours seems rational enough so let us go with it," Ariadne declared.

No one contested her and we proceeded to place the orbs as I instructed. Once the orbs are correctly placed, the door to the next room unlocks, allowing us to be able to proceed with our abyss dungeon run.

"Huh, you're pretty good… in many ways," Ariadne commended after we completed the puzzle room.

"It was just pure luck that I know of the statues."

"Not just the statues though, you are very observant for noticing even the smallest details, and if I'm not mistaken you haven't even taken a single point of damage from the start of this dungeon run."

"You just both did well in guarding us," I countered.

"Hmm, not really. You manage aggro quite well and force the ranged enemies to attack you so that they won't target your mage friend," she retorted.

Healing party members can cause the aggro of enemies to fall onto the healer so spamming heals would not be a good idea unless you want full aggro for yourself. She must have taken notice that whenever I see Clarissa about to get attacked due to her aggressive fireballs, I always cast support spells to take the aggro for myself. She is even more perceptive than before, likely thanks to her being a vice leader now that she pays extra attention to her party members.

"If you want, I could let you join into one of our branch guilds. You know how famous our guild is right? Even if it's just a branch guild, I'm sure it's better than your current one," she offered.

"Hey! That's daylight robbery! You can't just poach one of my members in front of me you know!?" Liz protested.

"Can't blame me for trying whenever I see potential. It is my job as the vice leader of Paragons after all. In the end, it all depends on her if she wants to join right?" 

"Well... I can't refute that, but I guarantee Kat won't trade my guild for the world!" Liz proclaimed with a confident smile.

"Yeah, sorry but I'm not interested," I declined politely.

"A shame. Well, let us leave it at that for now. I will give you time to think. You might even get to join our main guild if you prove your worth and gain enough levels," she said as she walked towards the exit of the puzzle room.

We proceeded more carefully than ever as we delved deeper into the dungeon with Ariadne leading the way and Liz right beside us both as a form of protection in case something unexpected happened.

We arrived at a large open area where a giant humanoid golem was blocking the entrance to what I assume is a king's throne room.

I watched in awe as the gigantic humanoid golem prepared itself for the confrontation against our party. Its towering form loomed over us, casting a menacing shadow that seemed to swallow the light.

Our dodge tank, Ariadne, stood at the forefront, her daggers gleaming ominously. I knew she was surveying the golem, looking for weak spots, planning her attack as I had always instructed her back then when fighting a tough battle.

To her right Liz wears a confident grin, unwavering even in the face of such a formidable and intimidating opponent.

In contrast, Clarissa stood tall and resolute, with her usual determination (whenever we played together) to pull her own weight and not slow her teammates down. Her staff was aglow with a fiery light, likely preemptively casting a spell.

I would likely have to only focus on healing since we already have a balanced team. Going DPS for no reason might be more of a deterrent in this kind of situation. I also haven't equipped my unique staff for this dungeon run, meaning I can only use healing and support spells and not chronomancy spells.

"Finally! Something I can hit," Liz celebrated.

"What a battle maniac," Ariadne sighed at her teammate's attitude.

"Clarissa, limit your fireballs, don't aggro the sub-boss too much or it may kill you instantly," I lectured her in preparation for a hard battle.

"U-understood!" She replied, nervousness evident in her voice.

As the golem advanced, the ground shaking with each of its lumbering steps, Liz charged. The golem swung a massive arm, but Liz was quicker, deftly dodging the attack and striking back with a powerful stab.

*Ting

The golem, even while receiving damage, was undeterred by the attack. Although its aggro went on to Liz because of her actions.

Ariadne, seizing the opportunity, darted forward, her daggers finding purchase in the opening Liz had made. The golem roared, reaching for Ariadne, but a sudden burst of fire from Clarissa's staff sent it reeling back.

"Fire Blast!"

*Roaarrr

Berserker Golem

HP: 71%

It was an extremely practical use of her element as fire was the golem's weakness. Although Clarissa was under-leveled, we are currently in an abyss dungeon, so her stats were on par with the rest of us due to the normalization of stats. Her fireblast was super effective, making the golem flinch for the first time.

It made me feel conflicted. On one hand, her coordination with the two was immaculate. On the other hand, this means that I'm the only one doing nothing now. I put that thought to the back of my mind while secretly wishing that one of my teammates got hurt just a little so I could show them that I at least have some use in team fights.

As the golem staggered from Clarissa's spell, it reached the threshold for its enraged state which I would guess was somewhere below the 75% hit points range. Just when it seemed like we might be gaining the upper hand, the golem let out a roar that shook the earth. It drastically increased in speed while blindly swinging its massive arm, catching Liz off guard. She was thrown back, skidding across the ground. My heart leaped into my throat as I saw her hitting the castle wall, the overall damage almost resulted in her death.

"Ack!" she yelped in surprise.

Lizbeth

HP: 14%

"Miss Lizbeth!" Clarissa cried out, worry showing on her face.

I immediately regret wishing that they would take some damage as I cast my pre-chanted healing spell, a warm, golden light enveloping Liz. The opponent is easy to micromanage but hits extremely hard. One hit from that giant arm and I or Clarissa would not be able to survive with our builds seeing as Liz almost died.

Slowly, she stirred and got back on her feet, a little shaky but ready to fight again with a glare sent towards her adversary.

Meanwhile, Ariadne had climbed onto the golem, driving her daggers into its back intent on taking the aggro. But the golem was undeterred yet again. It reached back with incredible speed, grabbing Ariadne and flinging her away.

"Eeekk!" she made an uncharacteristically cute sound.

Ariadne

HP: 63%

She made a summersault just as she was about to land, reducing any more incoming damage by landing on both of her feet like an acrobatic cat.

After the golem's wild rampage, it seemed to slow down to a more manageable speed, though its movements were still far faster than it was when the fight started. Liz, now back on her feet thanks to my healing spell, charged once more. She used her weapon skill to instantly close the distance between her and the golem. She did a feral strike with her rapier, her sword slashing across the golem's leg. It stumbled, giving Ariadne the opportunity to leap onto its back again.

This time, Ariadne was ready for the golem's attempt to grab her. She swiftly dodged its massive hand and drove her daggers deeper into its back. The golem roared in pain, its movements becoming even more sluggish.

Meanwhile, Clarissa was pre-casting a spell. She began to chant, her staff glowing brighter and brighter. I could feel the energy building and could see the concentration on Clarissa's face. She was preparing a powerful spell, one that would hopefully end the fight.

The two vanguards kept the giant golem busy, being extra careful this time to not get hit. It went on for a while and, eventually, Clarissa released the spell that she had been pre-casting since earlier.

"FLAME RAY!!!" Clarissa cast her spell.

The front liners took that as a cue and leaped out of the way to avoid friendly fire.

A brilliant beam of light shot from Clarissa's staff, hitting the golem square in the chest where its weakness is. It roared, staggering back, and then fell, crashing to the ground with a resounding thud.

Berserker Golem

Hp: 0%

Flame Ray is a high-level fire spell Clarissa has just learned recently. It shoots a beam of light toward the target, which is effective against large or slow mobs that can't dodge the attack easily. While it has extremely strong firepower, it lacks accuracy and can be easily dodged, all the while needing huge amounts of mana to cast. I think it's a bit overkill as the two already had a clear grasp on the golem's attack patterns. She should have just conserved mana for the final boss and just spammed low-level spells, but she seems a bit rattled by what happened to Liz and forgot to conserve her own MP. A classic newbie mistake but a forgivable one due to her inexperience.

"Phew, good work guys, that was a difficult fight but we managed to win," Ariadne praised the party.

She's right, we had defeated the golem. Although it made me dread to think that, if this is just a sub-boss, and not the boss itself, then how hard the fight would be with the enemy just on the other side of the large ornate door to the throne room.