Nova and Adam stepped through the rift, the Beastaria dungeon swallowing them in a pulse of wild energy, the city's grit fading behind a shimmering veil. The air shifted, heavy with the scent of damp earth and blooming vines, a stark contrast to the urban stench they'd left.
They stood on a grassy knoll, their boots sinking into soft soil, the dungeon unfolding before them like a painting torn from a mythic tale. An invisible shield, a faint glimmer rippling like heat haze, encircled the dungeon, a barrier locking out Beastaria's fiercer beasts, its magic too potent for low-rank creatures to breach.
The landscape was a breathtaking sprawl, a valley carved by ancient hands, its beauty raw and untamed. Rolling meadows stretched wide, their grasses a vibrant green, swaying in a gentle breeze that carried whispers of lavender and honeysuckle.
Clusters of wildflowers—crimson poppies, violet lupines, and golden marigolds—dotted the fields, their petals catching the light of a strange, amber-hued sky, where clouds swirled in patterns too perfect to be natural.
Streams crisscrossed the valley, their waters crystal-clear, gurgling over smooth pebbles that glinted like polished gems, reflecting the sky's eerie glow.
In the distance, a towering mountain range loomed, its peaks jagged and snow-dusted, their slopes cloaked in dense forests of emerald pines and silver-barked aspens. Mist curled around the mountains' bases, a ghostly shroud that softened their edges, while vines heavy with sapphire berries draped over rocky outcrops.
Waterfalls spilled from high cliffs, their spray catching the light in prismatic arcs, the roar a low hum that vibrated through the ground. The mountains framed the valley like sentinels, their presence both protective and foreboding, as if guarding secrets older than Earth.
Scattered across the meadows stood ancient stone pillars, their surfaces etched with faded runes, moss and ivy clinging to their cracks, glowing faintly with residual magic. Some leaned precariously, half-claimed by the earth, while others stood tall, their tips catching the amber sky's light.
The ground beneath was uneven, pocked with shallow craters and tufts of glowing fungi, their bioluminescent caps casting soft blue halos in the shade. Butterflies with wings like stained glass flitted between flowers, their patterns shifting in hypnotic swirls, while small, iridescent birds darted overhead, their songs a sharp trill that echoed off the cliffs.
Far across the valley, a large flag snapped in the breeze, its crimson fabric emblazoned with the Guild of America's crest, planted on a low hill. Nova's crimson eyes locked onto it, his grin sharp as he recognized the checkpoint, a beacon marking their goal.
The flag's pole gleamed, its metal polished, standing defiant amidst the wild beauty, a human claim on Beastaria's domain. The invisible shield shimmered stronger near the flag, its magic a subtle hum, ensuring no creature, F-rank or lower, could slip through to the restricted zones beyond, where E-rank and D-rank monsters prowled.
The dungeon's air was alive, warm and thick, carrying the musk of wet stone and blooming flora, a primal scent that stirred Nova's blood. His golden circles itched, pillarless but restless, while Adam adjusted his glasses, his wide eyes drinking in the valley's splendor.
The landscape felt like a paradox, serene yet savage, inviting yet laced with the promise of violence, its beauty a trap for the unwary. They stood still, the checkpoint flag a distant lure, the dungeon's mythic heart pulsing around them.
Nova and Adam crouched behind a jagged boulder, its mossy surface cool against their skin, the Beastaria dungeon's mythic beauty sprawling around them. The valley's wildflowers swayed in the amber-lit breeze, their scent mingling with the musk of damp earth.
In the distance, five Beastaria wolves prowled, their sleek gray fur rippling, red eyes glinting like bloodied rubies. Nova's crimson gaze traced each beast, his mind sharp despite his pillarless golden circles itching fiercely.
Five wolves, deadly in packs, he thought. I lure two, Adam takes three, then we mop up together. Simple as baiting fish into a net.
He leaned toward Adam, his voice low and gritty. "Here's the plan: I play bait, draw the two stragglers off, you shred the other three," he said, his smirk cocky but focused. "These bastards are fiercer than holograms, real teeth, real claws. Don't freeze, or we're both fucked." Adam nodded, his glasses fogged, his face pale but his eyes were steady.
Nova peeked over the boulder, spotting two wolves drifting from the pack, their attention on a rabbit-like creature with twitching ears. The other three hunted as a unit, their growls low and guttural. Nova bolted across the meadow, his boots silent on the grass, his body low to avoid the wolves' keen ears.
He slid behind another rock, its surface slick with dew, heart pounding as a wolf's head snapped toward him, its nose twitching. Adam followed, his breaths heavy but controlled, ducking beside Nova, his hands trembling but gripping his staff tight.
With a sharp nod, Nova lunged from cover, letting out a yell that startled one wolf, its ears flattening. The pack split as planned: two wolves peeled off, chasing Nova, their claws tearing the earth, while the other three locked onto Adam, who sprinted toward a cluster of rune-etched pillars. The valley echoed with snarls, the invisible shield shimmering faintly, locking the dungeon's dangers within its bounds.
Nova ran, his legs pumping, snatching a fist-sized stone from the ground. The two wolves closed in, their breaths hot, their red eyes blazing with hunger. He spun, hurling the stone like a disc, its arc precise, smashing into one wolf's eye with a wet crunch.
The beast yelped, blood oozing from the socket, but kept charging, slower now, fury driving it. The second wolf surged faster, its growl a thunderous rumble, claws glinting in the amber light.
"Fuck," Nova muttered, skidding to a halt, facing the oncoming beasts.
One wolf leaped, its body arcing through the air, while the other barreled low, jaws wide. Nova closed his eyes for a split second, sinking into his martial arts stance, his body coiled like a spring.
His eyes snapped open, crimson and fierce, as the wolves closed in. He sidestepped the grounded wolf, his fist slamming into the airborne one's throat, a sickening crack echoing as it choked, crashing to the grass.
The second wolf lunged, but Nova grabbed its tail, muscles straining, and swung with all his might, hurling it meters away. It landed with a thud, ribs cracking, blood flecking its muzzle, but it scrambled up, snarling.
The first wolf recovered, its injured eye a bloody mess, and both charged again. Nova leaped, meeting the one-eyed wolf mid-air, his fist crashing into its jaw, bone splintering with a grisly pop. The wolf's claws raked his arm, tearing through his jacket, blood welling in deep gashes, the pain a searing jolt.
They hit the ground, Nova rolling to his feet, blood dripping down his arm, staining the grass. The second wolf circled, smarter than Earth's beasts, its eyes calculating. I'm fucked at this rate, Nova thought, his sneer defiant. Gotta stall till Adam's done. The wolves paused, a tense standoff, their growls low, waiting for an opening, their intelligence unnerving.
Across the valley, Adam faced three wolves, his Adaptive Hide flaring. His hands shimmered, sprouting curved claws mimicking the wolves' own, his skin hardening like scales. He lunged, slashing the nearest wolf's flank, blood spraying as flesh tore, the beast howling.
Another wolf charged, its claws raking his leg, blood gushing, but Adam's skin toughened, the wound shallow. He spun, his claws ripping into the second wolf's shoulder, sinew snapping, blood soaking the grass.
The third wolf pounced, jaws aiming for his throat, but Adam ducked, his senses razor-sharp, and slashed upward, gutting the beast. Intestines spilled, a steaming, bloody mess, the wolf collapsing with a gurgling whimper.
The first wolf lunged again, but Adam's claws vanished, his ability's time limit hitting hard. He swung his staff, cracking the wolf's skull, brains oozing as it dropped. The second wolf, bleeding heavily, charged, but Adam sidestepped, driving his staff into its eye, blood and fluid bursting, the beast crumpling.
Adam staggered, blood streaming from his leg, his chest heaving, his glasses askew. He spotted Nova, still dodging his two wolves, blood dripping from his arm.
"Nova!" he shouted, sprinting across the meadow.
Nova grinned, luring his wolves toward Adam, who met the one-eyed beast with a flying kick, his foot cracking its ribs, blood spraying. The second wolf leaped, but Adam's skin hardened, deflecting its claws, and Nova tackled it, his fist smashing its snout, teeth shattering.
Together, they overwhelmed the beast, Nova's kicks breaking its legs, Adam's staff crushing its spine, blood pooling beneath its twitching corpse. The one-eyed wolf lunged one last time, but Adam's claws flickered back briefly, slashing its throat, a crimson gush ending its snarls. The claws vanished instantly, his Adaptive Hide spent, and both collapsed onto the grass, exhausted, blood-soaked, their breaths ragged.
Nova and Adam sprawled on the blood-soaked grass, their chests heaving, grins cracking their sweat-streaked faces as they locked eyes.
From High Heaven, Freya watched Nova through a celestial veil, her golden eyes glinting like a lovesick stalker, her heart swelling with joy. Her former God of Destruction, once bored to death as the Universe's second-in-command, was finally alive, reveling in the mortal grind.
"Let's chill here a bit, then hit the checkpoint," Nova said, his voice rough with exhaustion, his crimson eyes fluttering shut.
His body screamed for rest, his pillarless golden circles itching fiercely, a nagging reminder of his unawakened state. I'm too damn weak, he thought, his grin fading. Need to get stronger, which means I need to hit the gym and pump some iron. Then after a brief second: And cardio, can't forget to get more faster as well.
Adam nodded, his glasses fogged, his single F-rank pillar dim but steady. "S-sure," he stammered, his shy, nervous self creeping back, his bloodied leg trembling as he sat up.
The dungeon's beauty was a cruel tease: meadows of vibrant green, streams gurgling over gem-like pebbles, ancient rune-etched pillars glowing faintly under the amber sky. The invisible shield shimmered, a faint hum sealing the F-rank zone from Beastaria's deeper threats.
Nova's breaths slowed, his torn jacket sticky with blood, while Adam clutched his staff, his Adaptive Hide spent, his claws long faded. The checkpoint flag, crimson and proud, snapped in the distance, a beacon of their goal, its Guild of America crest a stark claim on this wild land.
Silence.
Then—
A sudden explosion shattered the calm, a deafening roar that shook the valley, sending birds scattering and pebbles rattling. The ground quaked, a plume of smoke and flame erupting near the checkpoint, the flag toppling as the earth split.
Nova's eyes snapped open, his body tensing, while Adam yelped, his glasses slipping, his face pale with panic. The invisible shield flickered, its hum stuttering, cracks of light spiderwebbing across its surface, as if something had punched through from the restricted zone.
Snarls and screeches filled the air, chillingly unlike the wolves' growls. Shadows moved beyond the checkpoint, their forms jagged and massive, claws glinting in the amber light. E-rank goblins, their green skin pocked and eyes yellow with malice, scuttled forward, wielding crude blades, their numbers swelling.
Behind them loomed D-rank drakes, scaled beasts with barbed tails and jaws dripping venom, their roars shaking the ground. The shield's breach had unleashed a tide of monsters, far beyond the F-rank wolves Nova and Adam were meant to face.
Nova staggered to his feet, blood dripping from his gashes, his smirk gone, his crimson eyes wide with alarm.
Adam clutched his staff, his F-rank pillar flaring, his voice a terrified whisper: "W-what the hell?"
The monsters surged closer, the goblins' blades flashing, the drakes' claws tearing the earth, their advance a deadly promise of carnage.