Chương 133: Chapter 132: Three Caves

I spent the rest of the afternoon getting back to Carpa. A quick meal at one of Tidemark's harbor stalls, a boat to Oakenlight that took a couple of hours, and then a walk through the farmlands and forests that connected the coast to the central plains, and soon enough, there I was. Home. It was weird seeing the village without the Spring Festival.

The last time I'd been here was before the Oakenlight tournament ages ago, and the lack of tents, music, and festivities was strange to take in, but it was still the good old village I'd grown to know and love. I logged off in Carpa's inn and spent the next couple of hours on the forums, catching up on everything I'd missed. The guild race was heating up. Seven guilds had formed across the kingdom now, including a second one in the Silverwing region. And it was not Second Wind, nor Crimson Court.

An outfit called Iron Mandate had apparently claimed Furrowhold county as their base. I wondered if that was the real reason Phantom wanted to visit the neighboring county. I knew Athos was still hunting for seals, but the fact that Crimson Court hadn't formed their guild yet surprised me. With Skull's resources and Mädusa's move against King's Glade, I'd expected them to be near. Something was holding them back, and I didn't know what. I set the alarm, slept well, and logged back in at 7: 30 the next morning.

Carpa was waking up. The village's small square was already busy with low-level players heading out for morning quests, and the Association Hall had a line forming at the counter. I stopped at Danza's workshop for my new gear. Rhys was a quiet woman with calloused hands and an appraiser's eye. She looked me up and down when I introduced myself, nodded once, and pulled a crate from behind the counter without a word.

"Danza said you'd be here at eight. It's seven forty-five," she smiled.

"He also said you'd be early." She opened the crate and laid the pieces on the counter one by one. Greaves, boots, gloves, and a bundle of arrows wrapped in cloth. The greaves came first, and I stopped breathing for a second.

[Feathersteel Chausses] Epic Level 25 Medium Armor Defense: 60 Agility: +12 Dexterity: +8 Vitality: +4 Armor Skill: Light as a Feather, Sturdy as Steel On activation, choose a stance: Feather Stance: +20% movement speed, -20% defense Steel Stance: +20% defense, -20% movement speed Duration: 45 seconds Cooldown: 90 seconds Restriction: Art of Finesse Danza had done it. Epic rarity from the Exquisite Ravenkin fangs, and the result was beyond what I'd expected.

The greaves themselves were beautiful: dark grey metal with a faint sheen, lighter than they looked, with articulated joints at the knee that moved without resistance. The Ravenkin material gave them a sleek look, and the color still fit in my Black Ranger alias. But the skill was the real prize. A toggle stance that let me choose between speed and durability on the fly.

In open combat, Feather Stance would make me nearly impossible to catch, and in a dungeon where I needed to survive a hit, Steel Stance would shore up my biggest weakness. The boots and gloves were Rare, but far from disappointing. [Ironhide Boots] Rare Level 25 Medium Armor Defense: 36 Agility: +8 Movement Speed: +5% Restriction: Art of Finesse [Ironhide Gloves] Rare Level 25 Medium Armor Defense: 28 Dexterity: +8 Attack Speed: +5% Restriction: Art of Finesse Solid across the board.

The boots gave a movement speed bonus on top of the Agility, and the gloves pushed my attack speed even higher. Neither piece had a skill, but at level 25 Rare quality with these stats, they didn't need one. The arrows were the last item. Rhys unwrapped the oilcloth and set a quiver on the counter. A new version of the Bottomless Quiver I had been using since level 1, with new arrows. [Bottomless Quiver] Current Arrow: Blackraven Arrow (attack power +8)"Danza threw these in," she said.

"Said you'd appreciate the upgrade." The attack rating was a clear step above what I'd been using. Not a massive jump, but across a hundred shots in a dungeon, the difference would add up. And the quiver itself brought my aesthetic to the next level. It was slender, black, with a raven's eye at the top made of a small, clear ruby. I equipped everything right there at the counter. The Feathersteel Chausses clicked into place, and I felt the stat changes through my character.

My defense, my agility, my attack speed; all of them climbed. The boots were lighter than my old pair, and the gloves fit like they'd been measured for my hands. I toggled Feather Stance just to test it. My body felt lighter instantly, and I became even faster. My defense dipped, but I figured that wasn't much of a problem when nothing could hit me. I looked at Rhys.

"Tell Danza he outdid himself."

"He knows," she said, and went back to work.

Cyrus's team arrived twenty minutes later, coming up the road from the village in a loose formation. Cyrus led, his new staff across his shoulders. Scale walked beside him, daggers on his belt, already scanning the tree line out of habit. Behind them came Alysanna, her bow slung across her back, and Adaptive, who walked in his usual silence with his sword resting on his shoulder. If you come across this story on Amazon, it's taken without permission from the author. Report it.

Talion brought up the rear in his green robes, talking animatedly to the sixth member of the group. Corral was a Guardian I'd seen in VODs of the Battle of the Salt Plains. He was built similarly to Denxy — broad, heavy-armored, shield-first. His shield was a rectangular tower design, different from Denxy's round Mythril piece, and he wore an iron plate that looked freshly repaired.

"Orion!" Cyrus greeted me.

"You're early."

"Couldn't wait." Scale grinned.

"The man's eager. I like it." Alysanna eyed Spriggan's Will on my back.

"Is that the Unique bow? From the Spriggan raid?"

"It is."

"Can I hold it?"

"Are you level 25?"

"... no."

"That wouldn't work then, would it?"

"Fair enough." We settled at the crossroads, and Cyrus started laying out maps and notes from his previous cave clear. The others gathered around, familiar with their leader's briefing style. Verdugo's team showed up ten minutes later. They were impossible to miss. Verdugo came first, a new battleaxe strapped to his back, his voice carrying across the field before he was even close enough to see clearly. Rafael walked beside him, shield on his arm, and Carmen was at Rafael's side.

The Cleric's fierce expression softened only slightly because she was holding his hand. Diego followed, rolling his wrists and cracking his knuckles, and Mano Roja walked in his shadow, as Rogues tended to do. The sixth member of Verdugo's team was someone I hadn't met. A young woman with short brown hair and a staff that looked too big for her frame, topped with a crystal that flickered between blue and orange.

She hung back slightly from the rest of the group, observing rather than participating in Verdugo's loud greetings.

"Hermanos!" Verdugo threw his arms wide.

"The dungeon crew is assembled!"

"Not yet," Cyrus said.

"We're still waiting for—""Details, details," Verdugo clapped Corral on the shoulder hard enough to make the Guardian's armor ring.

"How's my favorite backup tank?"

"I'm the only backup tank," Corral said.

"That's what makes you my favorite." I walked over to the new member while the others caught up.

"Orion," I said, extending a hand.

"Leona." Her grip was firm, and her eyes were sharp. Up close, the crystal on her staff shifted colors again, and I could feel a faint warmth radiating from it. It was a good weapon.

"Arcanist."

"You're new to Second Wind?"

"She joined Godsrealm after the patch notes," Cyrus said. So not one of the early birds? I thought. That would make her…

"Don't worry, hermano," Verdugo put his shovel-sized hand on my shoulder.

"She's good. Already level 20."

"That's impressive," I nodded. Being a high level despite the one week disadvantage was definitely not something most could do.

"Verdugo found me soloing Shadowcats in Tidemark's western region and said, and I quote, 'Come with us or I'll cry.'" I glanced at Verdugo.

"I did."

"I know I'm new," she said, anticipating my next question.

"Lowest here by a margin. But I pull my weight." I wasn't worried. Athos didn't hand out charity spots. If she was here, she'd earned it.

"Good to have you," I said. The next arrivals came from the east: two players I'd never met in person but recognized by description. Somnus walked the way Lothras had described him: shoulders loose, weight on one hip, as if he'd taken a wrong turn on the way to a nap and ended up at a dungeon briefing instead. His dark robes were slightly wrinkled, a black staff resting in the crook of his arm like a walking cane. Redcap was his opposite.

The Lancer was alert, bouncing on his feet, spear across his back and a grin already in place. Golden hair, wiry build, eager to start whatever we'd planned.

"Orion?" Somnus asked, stopping in front of me.

"That's me."

"Somnus. And the excitable one is Redcap." He gestured vaguely at his partner.

"Lothras wasn't exaggerating about you. The Phantom duel VOD is already circulating in Midnight Sun's channels."

"Already?" I wondered who had made a recording of it.

"News travels fast when someone beats the strongest in a 1v1. Ajax sent it to every officer before midnight." A pause.

"You're shorter than I expected."

"Uh, thanks?"

"Yup." He found a rock to lean against and somehow made it look comfortable.

"So. Three caves, simultaneous clears, something big at the bottom. When do we start?"

"Soon. We're waiting for three more." The last group arrived fifteen minutes later. Alice came first, walking fast. Denxy followed, his Mythril shield on his back, along with Desirae, staff in hand.

"Sorry we're late," Alice said.

"Denxy had to stop at the workshop to fix his shield."

"You're not late. Everyone just got here early." She looked around the crossroads, counting heads. Eighteen players from four different groups, gathered in a small village some had never visited before.

"That's a lot of firepower," she said.

"We'll need it."

Cyrus called the briefing once everyone had gathered. We formed a loose semicircle around the maps he'd pinned to a tree trunk, and the chatter died down when he started talking.

"Alright," he said.

"For those who don't know the situation, here's the summary. Fang Forest has three cave systems. They're connected underground, and they lead to something bigger. My team cleared the middle cave — the Cave of Bones — four days ago. After the boss, we entered a room with three alcoves. One was glowing. A timer started: thirty minutes. When it ran out, we got booted back to the entrance." He pointed at the map.

"The three caves are here, here, and here. North, middle, and west. They're spaced about twenty minutes apart on foot."

"Verdugo's team," he continued, turning to the Berserker, "attempted the western cave yesterday. How did it go?" Verdugo crossed his arms.

"Hard. We wiped a lot. Cleared it once, in two hours and thirty-seven minutes."

"My team's best time on the Cave of Bones is two hours and eleven minutes," Cyrus said.

"We'll be taking that one again." He looked at me.

"Orion, your team takes the northern cave. It's the hardest of the three based on forum reports. Level 23 to 25 mobs, lethal traps, and puzzle mechanics that punish brute force."

"Understood."

"Now, the timing." Cyrus pulled out a hand-drawn diagram.

"All three boss fights need to finish within a thirty-minute window. If one team clears and the others don't finish in time, the whole thing resets."

"Why don't we just message each other from inside?" Verdugo asked.

"Coordinate in real time?" Cyrus shook his head.

"The caves block all communication. No messages, no party chat, no raid text. Nothing gets through once you're inside. We tried." The crossroads went quiet.

"So we're going in blind," Alice said.

"Pretty much," Cyrus agreed.

"Here's the plan. Each team enters at the same time. We clear everything except the boss. Once two hours and thirty minutes have passed since entry, we start the boss fight. That gives everyone two and a half hours to get through the dungeon content, and then we have up to thirty minutes for the boss fights themselves. If all three teams kill their boss within that window, the convergence chambers should all activate simultaneously."

"And if one team finishes the dungeon faster?" Denxy asked.

"You wait. Sit outside the boss room and watch the clock. The boss fight starts at the two-hour-thirty mark, not before."

"Two hours and thirty minutes for a cave none of us have seen," Redcap said.

"That could be tricky."

"It could," Cyrus admitted.

"But if we give it more time, unknown variables could happen, and it's already quite hard without communication. He looked at me.

"Orion, I'd recommend a practice run this morning. Enter the northern cave, learn the layout, and attempt a full clear this afternoon when—""No." Cyrus paused.

"We go now," I said.

"All three teams." Verdugo let out a whistle. Scale raised an eyebrow. Alysanna looked at me like I'd lost my mind.

"Orion," Cyrus said carefully, "the northern cave is the hardest one. Your team has never been inside. A blind attempt with a timed coordination mechanic—""The more time we waste, the more people could try and clear it. Besides, they are open dungeons, as the forums said. We are still early, but the later we go, the more risk of other parties emerging there. And those are exactly the variables we should try to avoid," I looked at him.

"Besides, this is a team I wouldn't doubt for a second. Alice had commanded a hundred-player raid against an Enhanced Field Boss. I saw Denxy tank three summoned constructs from the region's strongest summoner at once, and Desirae is someone who constantly keeps these people alive." I glanced at the rest of my group.

"And according to Lothras, Somnus and Redcap are some of the best players he'd ever seen. An Acolyte with insane debuff skills and a Lancer who fights like he was born with a spear in his hand." I stretched after the monologue, flung my bow off my back, and said: "And then there's me." I needed no introduction. Cyrus looked at me for a long moment. Then he looked at Alice, who nodded once.

"All right," he said.

"We're all almost at zero percent EXP after yesterday's wipes," Verdugo said.

"Zero percent means zero risk. Let's do this, hermanos!" Rafael bumped his shield with his fist.

"I'm in."

"Always was," Carmen said beside him. Somnus stood from his rock with minimal effort.

"Well. At least it won't be boring." Cyrus rolled up his maps.

"Teams, sort yourselves. We move to the caves together and split in the forest. Each team enters their cave at the same time. Synchronize your clocks now." Everyone pulled up their in-game timers. Eighteen clocks set to the same second.

"When I give the signal at the cave entrances," Cyrus said, "all three teams enter. Two hours and thirty minutes on the clock before you start the boss. Not a minute sooner." The semicircle broke apart as players moved to their teams. Cyrus's group gathered around him. Verdugo started talking tactics with Rafael and Leona. My team formed up beside me. We marched north toward Fang Forest.

The forest swallowed us within minutes of leaving Carpa. The canopy thickened, the underbrush grew dense, and the temperature dropped as the morning sun lost its reach. The Fang Highlands rose ahead, jagged stone ridges cutting above the tree line like broken teeth. The three cave entrances were spaced along the base of the highlands. We split at the fork in the trail.

"Cave of Bones, that way." Cyrus pointed his team west.

"Verdugo, the western cave is yours. Orion, the northern entrance is up the ridge, about ten minutes."

"See you on the other side, hermano," Verdugo said, his grin sharper than usual. This was the content he lived for.

"Good luck, everyone," Alice said. Soon enough, I was standing inside the goblin camp that started my journey. We cleared the mobs, and I pulled the Rusty Key, one of the first items I had ever looted, and opened the gate barricading the cavern entrance. Cyrus: Everyone ready? Orion: In position. Verdugo: Let's do this. Cyrus: Go. We entered the cave.