(Hell Gargoyle)

(HP: 999)

(Rank 1 Stray!)

Swoosh!

Each fire tendril met three Hell Gargoyles, instantly piercing through their scaly, rocky hides.

Molten fragments and ash scattered across the walls as the monsters were torn from within by the fire chain.

The remaining two shrieked and dove toward Darien, but the warrior was already airborne like them.

In his grip was a glowing sword that moved in harmony with his fluid motion.

The weapon slashed, twisted, and cleaved them, destroying the winged monsters in just a couple of seconds mid-air.

[You slayed a Rank 1 Monster] x4

Vynsera didn't fight in the first wave of gargoyles; she simply stood back and watched Darien slaughter them in a manner worth applauding.

The girl had to admit silently to herself that she hadn't seen that kind of accord between a warrior and his blade since the days she and her twin brother were briefly trained under an old Paragon Knight with divine mastery.

Apparently, Darien's combat was beyond hers.

Even though she wanted to deny it, Vynsera found herself wondering if she could emulate and become better.

And that sword, unabridged and glowing, drew curiosity.

Not only did she wonder where the bastard had gotten it, but also how he was activating it so easily.

Magi often found it difficult to control their meridians for casting spells; even Vynsera, gifted as she was, faced channeling instability from time to time.

So, to wield a magical weapon was impressive first, and then to activate one was soul-demanding, requiring instinctive attunement between the wielder and the weapon.

In Vynsera's grasp was a Rare Luminara, a blade of Light, and so far, Vynsera could only make it glow, just like her brother could.

Hence, Darien's sword's arsenal left her wondering how splendid his Flow was.

~groul! Gruul!

The cavern of the lair was filled with more gargoyles within moments. They emerged from the green mist with flapping wings and gurgling throats.

Upon sighting the two warriors, the winged beasts had enough distance to hurl volleys of molten fireballs from their mouths toward them, especially targeting the nearest threat, Darien.

Vynsera decided it was her turn to exhibit some dexterity.

She acted before Darien could move, launching similar balls, but of Light, that intercepted the fireball headed straight for him.

~fwoom! blash!

Immediately after that, a tiny spark bloomed in between the hovering monsters before it erupted.

The blast tore through the cluster of gargoyles, their grotesque bodies bursting apart into shards and smoke from their corpses.

Only one survived the detonation of Vynsera's spell.

Darien dealt with it by unleashing that same fiery serpent chain of <Mythic Pyrolash>.

It pierced through the wounded gargoyle, coiling around its spine before Darien pulled back, tearing the creature's backbone from its stony flesh.

[You slayed a Rank 1 Monster]

'Sickening!' Darien exclaimed.

Vynsera pretended not to notice the same surplus of drops from each of her partner's kills.

It could be luck, but she was too experienced in her sense to mistake consistent fortune for coincidence, as true luck was rare and never this repetitive.

That, on its own, was a mystery. What intrigued her most was Darien's true identity as a fire mage, as she perceived.

"So, when did you know you had an affinity for Fire?"

Vynsera asked as they continued deeper into a hall with dark stone and the mist lowering to the floor alone.

Darien heard her question, but he didn't reply. He only kept moving forward as they passed a row of rigid statues that traced their movements with hollow eyes.

After being snubbed, Vynsera lost all attention on the lair to her younger partner.

She sensed that Darien could be either a late awakened or, more plausibly, a false dormant.

There were several well-known false dormants in Valurion.

Said to be powerless, these kinds of awakeners only had their spirits sleeping until a remarkable event awakened them without items like the Awakening Orb.

For some reason, false dormants usually bloomed quickly into formidable warriors, defying the average cultivation and progression.

In fact, according to Vynsera, that was the standard for them.

During her own awakening, she had half-wished to be one!

Overshadowed by her twin from birth, the girl had craved the kind of story that would make her suddenly outshine her brother!

So, if Darien was truly a false dormant awakened, then he had the potential to be a conqueror.

And in a world governed by power, Vynsera found herself staking her place near potential.

"Oh."

Vynsera halted when Darien stopped walking, his posture stiffening as if ready to strike.

Following his gaze forward, she realized they weren't as close to the Forsaken Magus as she had thought.

More monsters of the Shrine were approaching, stronger than the last, and more intelligent, too.

(Ghost Knight)

(STR: 65)

(AGI: 40)

(PER: 55)

(Skills: Phantom Slash (2-Star), Swordsmanship (2-Star), Haunting Step (1-Star), Vengeful Wail (2-Star), Totem Shield (1-Star)

Clad in Uncommon armor, the Ghost Knights were monsters with no true bodies beneath those steel plates, only a dim green essence burning within the cracks.

They wielded both swords and heavy physical shields alongside their magical barriers, and their health points stood at 1,250 each.

Darien was worried.

He wondered just how many creatures and people Vincent had sacrificed to this lair, because these monsters were beginning to rival what he had faced in the Novice Depths sub-dungeon!

"We have to be careful," said Vynsera.

She was right to be cautious because these were learned swordsmen monsters. Every single one could cut down a novice warrior without effort.

Vynsera doubted she could take on seven of them at once, but she was confident Darien could.

However, Darien didn't go melee. Raising his hand, he unleashed the same fiery spell he'd been spamming since the start of their trial.

BOOOM!!!!

-580! x7

<Mythic Pyrolash> detonated at the feet of the armored monsters. The roaring burst lit up the dark hall instantly, and the Ghost Knights were flung backward.

Their magical shields were uselessly penetrated by the damage, leaving them half-defeated.

Darien had intentionally targeted the lair's floor. It would be better to defeat disoriented monsters than attack them head-on.

Vynsera loved it. The opening he created was perfect, so she lunged into the haze with her glowing blade.

At Expert level with Darien, she was aching to make it to Ascendant level and then break through into Rank 2.

~swish! Swish!

It was an illustrative sight as Vynsera's glowing sword flashing through the dust with consecutive Light spells in between.

Darien didn't interfere; he only watched his partner annihilate the Ghost Knights that had once seemed so menacing.

-350!

-325!

-355!

Her sword's damage was considerably lower than Darien's, and even Vincent's.

Darien smiled at this, knowing he was better than the two Velgrane heirs in sword art.

Then, if those two were considered prodigies, Darien didn't know what to call himself!

He watched as she cleared every last one of the knights despite his observations, until their armor crumbled into heaps of silver dust.

After the kills, Vynsera only had a few seconds to acknowledge her acquired exp before something struck her.

It came from her blindside, so she couldn't evade in time.

~fwooosh! WHAM!

From the deeper depths of the hall, a massive, unseen fireball smashed into the warrior's chest.

The impact was so brutal that Vynsera was flung backward, tumbling and scraping across the cold floor in a trail of sparks and heated air.

Darien didn't panic when the sudden blast struck his partner, even as the force sent her sliding past him in agony.

His eyes quickly tracked the direction from which the attack had come, one hand gripping his sword and the other spread wide with all fingers, ready to cast.

As the dust settled, Darien turned slightly toward Vynsera out of formal concern—they were, after all, partners.

He asked, "Are you okay?" before tossing three healing potions her way, not waiting for an answer.

He knew Vynsera wouldn't be genuinely grateful, so he didn't bother expecting thanks.

(Demonic Sentinel Gargoyle)

(HP: 1050)

(Rank 1 Stray!)

Once Darien saw the swarm of advanced gargoyles, he did his best not to let his jaw drop.

"I knew Vincent had been feeding the Shrine, but I didn't think he'd make it this powerful," Vynsera said from behind.

She, too, was perplexed by the swarm, but after recalling the hundreds of sacrifices her brother had made to brutalize the trial, she was humbled.

Ironically, Vincent's essence, too, was part of this very enhanced trial!

Darien's blade was already glowing, and like sprouting crops from its shaft, he activated <Soulfire Feast>.

But seeing the overwhelming number of monsters, he outstretched his hand instead.

He had to protect his partner while she recovered.

Taking the Demonic Sentinel Gargoyles one-on-one would be too risky, as a stray spell could strike a weakened Vynsera.

FFSHHHH!

Like a screaming ghost, Darien's palm unleashed a wide, roaring rug of fire and heat.

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