Eye of the tornado

Huff… Huff… Huff…

Alex and Rey couldn't handle it anymore and sat down on the bloody mound to catch a breather.

This last mob had taken everything out of them and they felt like their body had been squeezed dry.

No matter how realistic games were, they had never experienced something like this before.

It was as if they had physically battled just now, instead of just a mere projection of their mind.

"Brother… Aiooo… please tell me that was the last mob." Rey panted and pieces of fruit sprayed from his mouth as he munched while talking.

"That should be the last mob." Liam absent-mindedly muttered but his tone implied that he wasn't satisfied with his answer.

"Next should be a monstrous raven with the ability to cast a lot of stun skills. It likes to paralyze the healer and kill them first. So, Mia, you should watch out."

Liam tried his best to explain while at the same time drinking a potion to restore his mana.

All the ravens he had resurrected for the last bout were already useless, so he once more had to cast the undead spell [awaken].

This time a total of 10 ravel ghouls flapped their wings and arose from the cluster of bones and flesh that laid around like garbage.

"Eh? Why's the boss taking so long?" Rey asked, looking up at the sky.

His action made Liam subconsciously look up as well and suddenly his eyes widened.

"Get Down, Now!" Liam crazily shouted.

"You have to get down immediately and leave the dungeon." He shouted.

Everyone glanced at each other wondering what was going on and looked up as well, their eyes trailing Liam's to check out what could possibly be so damn terrifying.

At first, they couldn't see anything, but slowly things became clearer as the small movements became bigger and bigger.

The insane number of birds swirling in the sky were unexpectedly showing some sort of activity.

Liam had at first assured them that these birds wouldn't be moving or attacking but now that didn't seem to be the case.

The rest of the sky slowly started to clear up and the sky above the mound alone was becoming darker and darker.

The others did not know what was happening but Liam could most definitely guess.

"Move! Now!" He once again shouted.

No one had to tell them thrice. Alex, Rey, and Mia scrambled on their feet and jumped out of the mound in a hurry.

But to their surprise, Liam was still standing at the mound not showing any intention of jumping down and following them.

And before anyone could even think about what he was doing, the ravens formed a tornado and started descending.

The hundreds of ravens flying high in the sky started descending one by one.

Alex stumbled and fell back staring up at the sky dumbfoundedly.

Rey had shock and fear etched all over his face.

Mia also stood with her mouth wide open.

"Get down! Get down now!" She stuttered looking at the man who still stood without budging.

"You!!! Why are you so stubborn??" Alex was speechless.

"Brother. It's not worth it. Jump down from the mound. Let's come back with a full party and make other prepa… preparations." Rey gritted his teeth.

In all honesty, he had no idea just what preparations he could do against such a monstrous phenomenon, but all he wanted was for them to get out safe and sound.

Death itself was not a big deal. At most, they would lose a level or so, but being pecked to death when the game was so realistic was something no one should suffer through.

Liam, however, hadn't even heard any of Rey's words. He simply shouted again. "Leave, Now!"

He only warned them these many times because it was after all because of him that they were also facing this dungeon anomaly.

They might not know it yet but he knew the cost of single death and he didn't want to be responsible for theirs.

At the same time, he also didn't want to move.

It was now more than clear to him that everything that was happening was quest-related.

If he left the dungeon now, quitting the run halfway he might never get another shot at this hidden quest and this unexpected turn of events.

Normally, missing a single opportunity perhaps wouldn't matter that much.

But Liam was not ready to lose even a single opportunity this time around. Otherwise, what was the point of his miracle, his second chance?

If he failed this time, he wouldn't have anyone else to blame. He needed to make this count.

Otherwise the repercussions…

He would rather die than live the life that was waiting for him...

"No. I cannot give up now, I have to fight. I have to do it right here and right now. I cannot lose everything again, I will not."

"I cannot falter with just this much. I have to fight through this, no matter the cost."

He turned around to look at the three and shouted at them one last time. "Did you not hear me?! GET THE FUCK OUT NOWWW!"

Mia, Alex, and Rey heard his thunderous roar and for some reason, they couldn't ignore his command.

The pressure and the ominous aura coming out from the deadly swirl of ravens in the sky were also putting them under a lot of stress.

They couldn't stand still frozen any longer and snapped out of their trance. They ran out of the dungeon at full speed and did exactly what Liam asked them to.

[Ding. Alex Thornwood has left the dungeon]

[Ding. Alex Thornwood has left the party]

[Ding. Mia Hofstadter has left the dungeon]

[Ding. Mia Hofstadter has left the party.]

[Ding. Rey Thornwood has left the dungeon]

[Ding. Rey Thornwood has left the party.]

Continuous notifications rang as the others exited the dungeon and the party as well was automatically disbanded because they quit a dungeon abruptly.

Liam was the only one remaining now. He looked up to see the tornado of ravens swirling in the sky above him and the birds finally began their descent.