Chương 140: The Castle (VI)
Snow went over to the next five more doors, giving them the same choices repeatedly. Each time, everyone was hesitant at first, until the first group of players came over to relieve the reality of her words. Which, in turn, made their decision much easier.
Nobody wanted to get left behind. Hope fueled their eyes at the thought of getting out of the dungeon alive.
Their silence was their answer to Snow. Their bodies were tired and weak, but that didn't stop them from pushing forward with vigor.
With a flick of her finger, Snow cast a special magic that increased their stamina and even healed all their light wounds. It didn't take much energy as there weren't that many people, but the Players instantly realized who she was--the Saintess Snow.
Some even went out of their way to help her break down the door with excitement, while others would surround her like a bodyguard, watching for any danger that they could throw themselves at.
Quite often, she was warmed with their gestures, but it also irritated her as she needed to be the first to take point. She believed that the Players weren't strong enough to last long with food and water, which she had personally taken out her own stash to fill their hungry stomach.
It wasn't that she was running out of food, but that she didn't think they would stay stuck inside the castle for too long. She betted on herself and her guild members to complete this raid.
Every room they raided, she either found Players, Natives, and even weapons and armor. They quickly changed clothes, throwing away most of the rags, which Snow was immensely grateful for. Their stench was horrendous, making it a bit difficult to be around them personally.
She even splashed them with water and used a simple cleaning magic spell that temporarily washed away the dirt, grime, and smell.
They looked a lot better and not like a ravaged cage animal that has been stuffed away from society for years; they were a lot more alive than before.
Even though they weren't fully equipped with armor, it was enough to keep most of them safe. Their tired body was held up with Snow's magic that kept them going and the food in their stomach, but she wasn't sure how long they would last before they were utterly exhausted.
The cells were many, filling up her small group quickly over a few hundred Players. They stormed through more cells until there weren't any. What was strange about the castle was that there were no guards that walked the hallways.
It was too easy.
They continued on their pathway, finding a winding staircase that took them up a few flights of stairs. Until they arrived at what looked like a large room. It was a bit dusty, filled with cobwebs, and broken down tables and chairs. No light entered through the room, and only darkness welcomed their presence.
There was only one way out, and that was across the room.
A large double door that seemed to be made out of metal was present, locked tightly. Compared to everything else that was dirty, old, or filled with cobwebs were a clean door that seemed it was just recently replaced.
Snow pulled out her sword, looking ahead with caution.
She didn't like how eerily quiet and easy the whole thing was, but that didn't stop her. With weary steps, she moved.
Clunk!
A sound of something heavy fell on the floor, causing the ground to slightly tremble.
"What was that?" One of the Players whispered towards her, hoping that they weren't the only ones who heard the strange sound.
Snow squinted; her hand tightly gripped her sword even a bit harder as she strained her ears to hear around her.
Torch Lights flickered on one-by-one, giving off a heavy atmosphere.
Standing frozen in the middle of the room was a grey gargoyle sitting in place. It wasn't like the rest of the gargoyles that Snow had fought. It had neither wings or a tail. It looked a lot more human with beast features. Large mane covered its head that came straight down to its chin, its eyes still closed and sitting in a praying position. Its expression in a peaceful smug smile, while its legs were crossed together in a lotus position. In front of the gargoyle were two weapons: a whip with spikes and a cane.
More and more lights turned on, Snow noticed that over twenty similar stone gargoyles were standing by the wall, but smaller than the one in the middle. They each had in their hands a spear with their eyes closed.
The gargoyle in the middle cracked and groaned. It shook, standing up to its full height, making them all feel dwarf in comparison.
"The guardian of Terror: Hondell." The Player next to Snow spoke out loud in a gasp. "It's a named monster. What is a named monster doing here?"
"No time to ask the question why. Quickly, get ready for battle." Snow called out. She waved her hand, summoning up her magical power to increase the people's physical and magical strength. It was like a warm blanket that covered over the Players, giving them the much-needed boost.
Everyone realized what Snow had done. They shuffled around, getting into their position that they usually used in their old guild, protecting their mages and any healers. Many thought of surrounding Snow, but Snow wasn't having it. She needed every space she could have, allowing her to fight the named monster in front of her.
"You guys take care of the gargoyles on the side!" Snow dashed ahead, her sword in hand. "I'll take Hondell."
With a deadly swish of her sword, she slammed it against the Hondells throat, which Hondell reached out his hand and stopped it from slicing it. It's stone hand bounced away from impact, leaving it exposed for another attack.
Snow took this chance, she ducked under, spinning around in a sharp hook. Her sword swung upward, cutting the monster in half. A large gaping hole was present, leaving behind an ugly wound, but that didn't stop her from continuing to rain down even more powerful attacks one after another.
She didn't want to give Hondell a chance to retaliate quickly by breaking it down even further to small chunks of rocks.
It was a blurry of motions, leaving behind pieces of Hondell scattered on the ground. She eventually stopped, stepping back to give herself space.
The Player gaped, awed by her speed and ferocity. They have heard and saw Snow's powers before from afar, but never so close that they could barely follow with their eyes.
Snow slammed her sword into its sheath. "It's not over yet!" She burst forward, aiming for another entanglement with the monster.
As if on cue, Hondell's broken pieces shook, coming back to life. It tremors on the ground, lifting it up into the air. All the pieces started to come back quickly together.
The other gargoyle's on the side started to move. Even though many of them were Players, they were still exhausted as their strength wasn't fully back to their usual self. Even still, they fought with as much vigor as their body would allow, pushing back purely with skill.
Their focus hone, their heartbeats, and breath in sync, the Players flew through the battlefield as if they were endowed with wings.
Snow, on the other hand, made it when the Hondell was halfway through completion. It's core partially opened up for Snow to see. She had explicitly broken it up into many pieces to find the core that she had missed, knowing full well that she could' sense it the first time when she had attacked.
Hondell reached out to stop her from attacking, but she slightly moved out of harm's way, dodging from getting her head blown away.
The moment she took the last step, she unconsciously leaned forward, drawing her sword from the sheath, giving it a high speed of motion that she would not normally do without the right circumstances.
At the same time, her light, magical energy swarmed through her sword, glowing in brightness, giving it an alluring aura of power.
In the instant that both the core and her sword collided, the monster's core was cleanly sliced in half. The light in Snow's sword flashed, erupting the whole room in its own light. Even Snow squinted, trying not to get blinded by her own attack.
Hondell froze in between its own attack, trying to save itself from being dominated. But its feeble attempt failed. It's body crumbled into fine dust, leaving nothing behind but a few crystal items on the ground.
She reached downwards, picking up the item in hand. It was two crystals for personal body enhancements. A rarity that didn't often appear in a monster, except a handful in the dungeons.
Snow gobbled it up without a thought. A rush of energy paired with a few quick spasms of her muscles told her that the crystals were doing their job.
The other players followed suit, smashing the gargoyles. Especially after Snow destroyed Hondell so easily and effortlessly that the other gargoyle lost most of its vigor. A wind of excitement blew through the people.
"Saintess!" With a cheer, the Player yelled, throwing up the hand with weapons in the air.
Snow cheeks slightly burned red. A soft smile crept upon her lips, causing a wave of silence as everyone stared.
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