"He's a necromancer," Jean growled, his teeth clenched and one hand tightening around the hilt of his sword.
"Jean, calm down," Bekhan said gently, pressing his prayer beads to his chest as if the motion alone could ward off tension.
Jean's voice rose, sharp with alarm. "He's a fucking necromancer!"
The group pressed forward, now reduced in size from its original formation. Ahead of them, a battle raged, but not a normal one.
Massive cyclopes clashed against ghostly versions of themselves, shadowy, grey silhouettes formed in their likeness. Beside them slithered equally spectral centipedes, each as long as ten carriages, their bodies hissing with unnatural movement.
"I've never seen a necromancer before," Daisy said quietly, watching with wide eyes as the impossible battle played out before them. The last two members of her party murmured in agreement behind her, voices tinged with unease.
"Trust me," Shade muttered, eyes narrowed. "None of them are like this. We never saw him perform any rituals to bind those cyclopes. And there's no way he got his hands on them before we entered this dungeon. And the centipedes…"
He didn't finish the thought. He didn't need to.
Kitti blinked, confused. "But… those are his only forces."
Ahead, the shielder's spectral army was holding the cyclops horde at bay, for now. But there were simply too many. The undead warriors were beginning to falter under the sheer weight of the assault. Piece by piece, they were being crushed beneath the relentless advance.
And yet, the shielder hadn't moved.
He stood at the cusp of the battle, his cloak billowing slightly in the wind, unmoving. At his side stood the twins and their silent attendant. None of them had joined the fray.
The shielder's gaze was fixed forward, locked onto a single enemy.
Gorgath.
The largest of the cyclopes stood like a living siege engine, his obsidian hammer resting on one shoulder. Gorgath, son of the One-Eyed Tyrant, towered above his kin, his chest rumbling with laughter as he watched hundreds of his brethren fall beneath claw and shadow.
"To think my first conquest would be a necromancer," he said, voice a low, guttural thunder. "A practitioner of legend. A conduit of death."
He swung his hammer in slow, heavy arcs, testing its weight. The air whistled around the weapon's massive head with each motion.
"My legend starts here," Gorgath proclaimed, slamming the hammer head into the earth with a thunderous crack.
He raised it again and pointed it at the shielder.
"Fear me," he roared. "If you dare."
The shielder chuckled softly, his voice barely rising above the clash of battle. "A mini-boss, huh? I think I've collected enough souls now."
The air around him darkened instantly, shadows pooling unnaturally at his feet. A low hum echoed as he raised one hand.
"||Soul Eater||."
From the countless fallen cyclopes scattered across the battlefield, small grey orbs began to rise, wraithlike fragments that shimmered faintly as they lifted from the corpses. They streaked through the air, homing in on the shielder with frightening precision.
He tilted his head, watching them approach. "This was that technique… the one Ursagorath used back then," he murmured. "Huh. Who would've thought."
As the orbs touched his body, they were absorbed into his armor like droplets vanishing into a storm. His eyes flickered with an eerie grey light, glowing brighter as he exhaled.
"||Bestow||."
The world exploded in a blast of grey wind.
The force rippled outward from his form, an ethereal shockwave that blew back everything in its path, cyclopes, adventurers, loose weapons, and even chunks of debris. The only ones untouched were the undead army, the twins, Alice... and Gorgath.
A single fallen cyclops, its body skewered in several places, twitched violently, then convulsed. Thick grey smoke poured from its wounds, engulfing it.
It wasn't alone.
All across the battlefield, the bodies of the slain cyclopes that had been touched by Soul Eater were now shrouded in that same smoke. One by one, they rose, glowing eyes igniting beneath their shattered visages. Warriors once felled now stood again, reborn as revenants under the shielder's control.
"Yui. Mai."
His voice was calm, commanding.
The twins turned toward him in perfect unison.
"The cyclops army is yours," he said, resting his massive cleaver on one shoulder. "I'm going to interrogate the big guy."
"Interrogate?" Yui tilted her head, confused.
Beside her, Mai didn't respond. Two heavy hammers materialized in her hands, while ghostly phantom arms appeared beside her, each one wielding a massive crystalline hammer of its own. She stepped forward wordlessly, eyes locked onto the battlefield.
The shielder gave a half-smile. "I'm really tired of not knowing what to expect in this dungeon. Back home, we had threads for this stuff. And Sally…" His voice softened slightly at the name. "Sally was good at finding information. No dungeon ever caught us off guard."
He shifted his cleaver, the metal gleaming under the rust-colored sky. "But this place? No records. No clues. Just chaos. And since Gorgath's a prince, I'm betting he knows something about the king."
"The king…" Yui repeated, her eyes lighting up with realization. She smiled brightly, now holding four massive hammers. "We'll handle the army then! Let's go, sis!"
Mai nodded beside her, calm and focused. "I'm just really, really tired of this dungeon," she muttered. Her grip tightened on her weapons. "So if anyone stands in our way…"
She stepped forward, her voice low and resolute.
"…we'll smash them."
Kitti stepped forward, determination burning in her eyes, only to feel a firm hand clamp down on her shoulder. She turned sharply, finding Shade staring at her, his expression calm but serious.
"What do you think you're doing?" he asked, voice low.
"I'm going to help," Kitti replied curtly, raising her gauntleted fist. "Isn't that obvious?"
BOOM!
The thunderous impact echoed across the battlefield.
Mai had met the charging cyclops head-on, her twin hammers crashing into the front ranks like falling meteors. Several cyclops were reduced to dust instantly, their bodies crumbling as if they had never existed. Others were launched skyward, spinning like ragdolls, while a few smashed into the stone walls of the coliseum with bone-shattering force.
Shade let out a long breath, watching the devastating display unfold. "It's more than obvious now. The Shielder and his team… they're on a different level. They're not like us."
"So what?" Kitti snapped, brushing his hand off her shoulder. "I'm still going to help."
She took a step forward, but Jean moved to block her path.
"Why?" he demanded. "Why are you trying to help him, of all people?"
Kitti stared at him, stunned. Jean's jaw was clenched, his hand gripping the hilt of his sword tightly.
"He's a necromancer, Kitti. He doesn't care about life. How many of our comrades has he let die just standing there? He has that power, all that power, and he just watched!"
"The twins too," Jean continued, his voice rising. "They're monsters. No one should have that kind of power. Especially not kids who don't deserve them."
Bekhan stepped beside him, clutching his prayer beads close to his chest. He nodded solemnly. "That, my friends, is the harsh truth of this world."
Daisy, who had remained silent until now, stepped forward, her brows furrowed.
"You guys are dicks, you know that?" she said bluntly. "They've saved more lives here than we ever could."
Her gaze drifted toward the battlefield, watching as another wave of undead surged past the twins to clash with the cyclops army.
"After all this," she added, "I'm joining the Maple Tree Guild."
Kitti blinked. "You're what?"
Daisy nodded. "I don't know much about their leader, but… I sure as hell want to meet her."
Behind her, her teammates groaned in unison, but their tone was lighthearted, nostalgic.
"Never change, Captain," Prim said with a soft laugh, though her trembling hands still gripped her bow tightly. "Never change."
As they spoke, Alice stepped backward toward the group. She positioned herself firmly between them and the chaos unfolding ahead.
Shade tensed at the movement, his hand drifting to the hilt of his claymore. "What's going on?"
He glanced around the area, expecting some sort of ambush.
Alice shook her head, expression calm but focused. "Master Shielder ordered me to protect all of you. While he and the twins deal with the threat."
Her eyes scanned the battlefield, ever vigilant.
There was a pause, then a collective exhale from the adventurers. Relief flooded them from knowing someone like Alice now stood guard between them and the worst of it.
Jean scoffed, arms crossed as he gestured toward the battlefield. "Protect us from what, exactly?" he snapped.
Before them, the undead forces, shadowy, grey phantoms, clashed with the advancing tide of red-skinned cyclops. Each swing of the twin girls' hammers sent waves of devastation through the enemy ranks. Limbs flew. Skulls cracked. Entire clusters of cyclops disintegrated with every impact.
"They're already mowing them down," Jean said bitterly. "Like they should've done from the very beginning."
He jabbed a finger toward the far side of the colosseum, where Gorgath, the largest of the cyclops, stood watching like an excited spectator.
"And just look at the big dumb one," he sneered. "He hasn't moved since this fight started. He's just standing there, waiting to die. They'll take care of him, and we can finally get out of this gods-forsaken..."
Gorgath vanished.
None of the adventurers saw him step, no one saw him lunge... he simply vanished.
For a heartbeat, the world fell silent.
Then instincts screamed. Every adventurer in the group turned in unison, too late.
Behind them, Gorgath appeared in a blur of red and black, his massive frame sliding to a halt with deceptive grace. One thick, muscular arm was raised, his colossal warhammer gleaming in the half-light.
And then he swung.
[Cover Move]
[Multi Cover]
The Shielder appeared an instant later, stepping between Gorgath and the group with his massive tower shield raised just in time.
BOOOOM!
The colosseum shook. Dust and debris exploded outward in all directions as the impact cracked the very floor. The adventurers screamed as they were thrown backward, scrambling for handholds, slipping and tumbling as rubble rained around them.
'Fast,' the Shielder thought grimly, straining under the force. 'Far too fast for something that size.'
He dug his heels in, raising his shield again just in time to block a second blow, then a third, then a fourth. Each strike came heavier and faster than the last, hammering into him like thunderclaps. 'He's relentless.'
Clang! Boom! Crack!
Gorgath roared, eyes alight with joy. "That's it, necromancer! Is that the best you've got!?"
The Shielder scowled beneath his helm, waiting for an opening.
Then, there. As Gorgath raised his hammer high for another wild swing, the Shielder moved.
He leapt into the air, cleaver drawn.
Gorgath twisted to evade, but not fast enough. The cleaver carved through his shoulder and raked down across his chest, spraying violet blood into the air.
"YES!" Gorgath bellowed, almost laughing. "Good! Give me more!"
The Shielder didn't answer.
Instead, he landed against the wall of the colosseum with a thunderous crack, crouched like a spring ready to launch. The next second, he rebounded with explosive force, leaving a crater behind him, his cleaver raised high.
Gorgath barely managed to block, bringing his hammer up horizontally.
But the cleaver came down like a guillotine.
The blade slammed into the handle of Gorgath's hammer, shattering it, then continued its arc downward.
It struck Gorgath's head.
The resulting detonation of gore painted the colosseum in a splatter of purple blood and viscera. The air was filled with a sickening wet thud, followed by stunned silence.
Chunks of brain and bone sprayed across the stunned adventurers.
The massive body of Gorgath stood frozen for a moment… then collapsed backward like a felled tree.
The battlefield went quiet, just for a moment.
Then Mai's hammer slammed into another cyclops, and the chaos resumed.
The Shielder rose slowly, his movements deliberate. His tattered cape, fluttering behind him like a bloodied banner in the wind. The violet gore of Gorgath stained his deep red armor, painting his figure in gruesome hues.
And with the skull-like mask obscuring his face, he looked less like a man… and more like a devil risen from the depths.
Kitti's breath caught in her throat. Her heart skipped another beat. "Are… are you alright, Shielder?" she asked, her voice softer than intended.
The Shielder turned toward the group, and for a moment, all of them froze. His eyes, glowing with a dim, ghostly grey light, swept over them.
Then he let out a loud, frustrated groan. "Damn it… I was supposed to interrogate him."
Kitti blinked, then let out a relieved chuckle. The tension snapped like a string, and beside her, the rest of the adventurers exhaled as well, the momentary terror giving way to nervous laughter.
---
From the shadowed pillars high above, 'HE' watched them laugh.
Watched them cheer, as the red one, that damned necromancer, split his son in two.
'HIS' teeth clenched hard enough to grind.
'HE' didn't move, didn't speak, didn't breathe too deeply, for fear 'HIS' killing intent would give 'HIM' away.
Then, slowly, 'HE' turned to the cyclops warrior standing beside 'HIM'.
"Tell every guard to retreat to the royal chamber," 'HE' said, voice like stone cracking. "They are to make their final stand there."
The cyclops bowed. "And you, my lord?"
The figure turned back toward the battlefield, 'HIS' fists tightening until blood welled beneath his nails.
"I will complete the ritual," 'HE' said, a flicker of dark energy coiling around 'HIS' form. "And ascend."
A pained smile twisted across 'HIS' lips as the air around 'HIM' pulsed with unnatural heat.
"Then… I will unleash hell on this world."