Chapter 233

They continued venturing in the deeper part of the dungeon.

Then they saw the corridor bled into a vast ancient expanse, a broken plaza swallowed by time and shadow. Towering stone pillars lay collapsed like fallen giants, their fractured bodies scattered across the ground. Cracked stairways led to nowhere. Shattered archways framed nothing but darkness. Portions of walls still stood, jagged and leaning, carved with symbols long eroded by centuries of decay.

The ceiling above was impossibly high, lost in darkness, broken in places where massive holes let pale dungeon-light pour down in ghostly columns. Dust floated in the air like drifting ash. Cold wind moved through the ruins in slow, whispering currents, carrying the scent of old stone, dry bone, and something older than death.

And through it all—

The laughter.

The woman’s laughter.

Repeatedly playing in the background.

Threaded into the air like invisible wires, vibrating through the ruins, crawling along the broken pillars, sliding across the shattered statues, brushing against their ears like cold fingers.

Lex did not vanish this time. He walked behind them.

Suri halted. Her staff lifted instinctively, blue-energy curling faintly around its head, “…My skills are working again.”

That single sentence felt like a warning bell. The atmosphere ahead seemed shifted.

The dust parted. And shapes emerged.

A defensive line carved into the ruins themselves.

The familiar Elite Skeletons stood at the front, massive frames armored in ancient steel, weapons raised in disciplined stillness. Their bones were thick, reinforced, unnatural, glowing faintly with dungeon energy. Their armor bore old symbols, insignias of a forgotten order, scratched and broken but still proud.

Behind them stood cloaked figures. Humanoid but they weren’t sure if they were humans or something else entirely. Their forms wrapped in dark fabric that absorbed light, their faces hidden, their presence wrong in a way that made Kana’s skin crawl.

And beyond them—

Floating above the broken stone—

Hovering between fallen pillars and collapsed statues—

Was her.

A towering figure suspended in the air, unmoving, as if gravity itself had not existed to her. She held a white staff, crowned with clustered feathers that drifted slowly, as though submerged in invisible water. Her body resembled a woman’s form, draped in a crystalline white gown, faceted like carved ice, reflecting pale light in fractured halos across the ruins.

But her face… was not something resembling a face. Purple-black flesh, hollowed and smooth, as if something had been carved away. Circular eyes like voids punched into reality itself. No mouth. No nose. No expression.

Just a mask of rot and emptiness.

And behind her—

The broken ruins framed her like a throne.

Fallen pillars like kneeling servants. Collapsed arches like broken crowns.

“This is dangerous,” Monde said instantly, stepping forward, shield glowing faintly. “I don’t know that monster. I’ll reinforce the frontline.”

“I’ll support,” Kier said, hands on his rapier.

The two knew themselves if something went wrong. Their very lives might end up here even with the [Teleportation] scroll in their pockets. Lex remained silent observing the unusual monsters.

Toby gulped, “That floating woman… that’s the source of the laughter. That has to be the dungeon boss.”

Kana frowned, eyes locked on the hovering figure, “The records say there should be a gate. A massive door  before the dungeon boss.”

She exhaled slowly. “This doesn’t match anything. Are those written in the records accurate at all?” 

“That thing might be an anomaly like the orc,” Yuri whispered. “Or… it already replaced the boss.”

Leo moved to Elle, voice tense. “Can you use your [Recovery Zone] during combat?”

“Yes,” Elle said softly. “But it won’t last as long.”

“They’re the ones I saw earlier,” Suri whispered. “That white figure might have commanded them. Is it afraid of us?”

Kana agreed. The white figure probably commanded the remaining monster to protect her. She nodded, “The white monster is seeing us as a threat.”

Her eyes traced the battlefield, “If I were her…”

A pause.

“…I’d do the same.”

…..

After a few minutes of finalizing their plans, they advanced.

Not charging.

Not rushing.

But stepping forward with the slow courage of people who knew exactly how fragile their lives were.

The monsters remained unmoving.

A wall of bone, cloth, and silence.

Kana drew an arrow.

The sound of the string tightening was soft, almost polite in the vastness of the ruined plaza. Her breath steadied. Her senses narrowed. The broken pillars, the floating dust, the cold wind, the distant laughter, all of it faded into a single line of focus.

She released.

The arrow screamed through the air.

A sharp whistle cut across the ruins like a blade of sound.

But the shot was too predictable.

One of the elite skeletons barely shifted, lifting its shield with mechanical precision. The arrow struck iron and deflected, skidding across stone in a shower of sparks.

Kana’s heart sank.

No reaction.

No retaliation.

They didn’t move an inch.

She fired again.

The second arrow struck lower, biting into the bony foot of one of the giants. The impact produced a dull crack and a faint flicker of dungeon light. But the monster didn’t even flinch. Didn’t acknowledge her existence.

It simply… absorbed it.

Kana exhaled slowly.

Her fingers loosened from the bowstring.

“All my skills are single-target,” she muttered, more to herself than anyone else. “If I had AOE… if I could split shots, flood the field…”

Her gaze traced the enemy formation. She lowered her bow, “I don’t want to waste arrows.”

She turned and grinned. Her eyes met Boris and Adam. “It’s your turn.”

Both of them stepped forward. No weapons but shields.

Boris carried his shield instead of his spear this time, its surface scarred from countless impacts. The cloaked figures behind the skeletons radiated danger in a way that made Kana’s instincts scream, probably the monster was some variant of [Mage] the way she was holding a large staff.. Too risky for reckless charges.

Boris and Adam advanced.

Shields pounding the stone floor.

Thud.

Thud.

Thud.

Each step echoed through the ruins like war drums.

Boris slammed his shield against the ground, the sound booming across the broken plaza. Adam followed, striking stone with metal, raising noise, presence, pressure.

Thorne shrieked, but Kana swore it was a harmless type of shriek.

They were the live bait.

But the elite monsters didn’t move a bone.

Not a step. Not a twitch. Not a shift in stance. No head turns. No weapon raises. No change in formation.

They stood like statues carved from death itself.

“They look stupid,” Suri muttered as Boris and Adam repeatedly slammed their shields against the ground while the monsters in front of them were ignoring them completely.

Rin snorted.

Yuri covered her mouth, laughing.

Even Elle couldn’t stop a small smile.

Two massive people though nothing compared to the Elite Skeletons in front of them pounding the ground like raging titans… and the enemy simply ignored them.

Kana scratched her head, eyes narrowed, tension and disbelief mixing in her expression.

“…Yeah.”

A pause.

“We’re going with the third plan.”

The atmosphere changed. Because going with the third plan meant the monsters were not behaving like monsters. Something was giving commands to these powerful monsters in front of them.

It was waiting.

Not for noise.

Not for provocation.

But for the right moment they showed any weaknesses.

They executed the third plan. Not with a shout. Not with a charge.

But with formation.

The group moved as one body, closing the distance in a tight, disciplined advance. Shields forward. Support protected. 

Kana took her place in the middle, the heart of the formation.

Her bow was already drawn halfway, muscles coiled, senses sharpened to needle points. From here, she could fire forward, pivot to the flanks, or cover a collapse. If something broke the line, she would be the one to plug the wound.

The tense air grew heavier with every step. She could feel the heartbeat of everyone from her [High Awareness]. They were all beating loudly except for Suri.

As they drew closer, the monsters became more visible to their naked eyes.

The cloaked figures were no longer shadows.

Their robes were ancient, layered, stitched with unfamiliar sigils, the fabric stiff with age yet unnaturally preserved. The cloth moved without wind, as if the dungeon itself breathed through them.

Andel’s eyes narrowed.

“Those cloaks…” His voice dropped. “They’re familiar.”

He leaned forward, squinting through the broken light.

“Kergastel House kept records. Relics. Old war archives.” His jaw tightened. “My ancestors collected artifacts from the empire’s different [Mage] corps. And those designs…” He exhaled slowly. “They match the uniforms of imperial [Mage] units from the old war.”

Kana turned her head slightly. “You’re saying those things—”

“…might actually be old imperial [Mage],” Andel finished.

Before Kana could respond—

The air collapsed. Not wind. Not sound.

Pressure.

A sudden invisible wave slammed into them, like the world itself inhaled and exhaled all at once.

And the monsters moved.

The elite skeletons surged forward in perfect unison.

Not chaotic. Not wild. But disciplined.

Shields lifted.

Weapons angled.

They lunged.

The frontline met them.

Leo. Adam. Monde.

Steel crashed against bone. Shield met blade. Impact thundered through the ruins.

Behind them, Boris and Andel stepped into position, anchoring the second line.

A golden shimmer flared.

[Holy Barrier] was activated by Monde.

Light rippled across shields and armor just as multiple elite skeleton weapons struck.

The impacts rang like cathedral bells made of iron.

Sparks scattered. Stones beneath their feet cracked.

Suri raised her staff, eyes glowing as illusions surged forward.

Massive spectral beasts formed in front of the line, towering constructs of shadow and magic, roaring into existence.

They charged.

But the monsters in front of them did not hesitate.

Did not react. Their formation didn’t break. Their attacks didn’t slow. Whoever commanded them knew. Knew the illusions were false. 

And ignored them.

Then—

Light erupted.

Behind the skeleton line.

From the cloaked figures.

A volley of fire formed in the air, layered circles of skills igniting at once.

Multiple spells.

Overlapping trajectories.

Targeting them.

“I can’t hold all of that!” Monde shouted, planting his feet. “Brace yourselves!”

Suri clenched her staff. “I’ll reinforce—but this will drain my mana fast!”

Kana nodded, jaw tight. Her mind was already moving. Tracking angles.

And above it all, the hovering white figure.

Probably the commander.

Her fingers tightened around her bow.

I need to hit the cloaked old imperial figures. She couldn’t imagine the catastrophe if Monde and Suri ran out of mana. After all, their frontlines couldn’t shield all those volleys of [Mage] attacks.

“If we can’t hold them, don’t hesitate to use the [Teleportation] scroll from Sir Lex.” She shouted and everyone nodded in response. Except for Lex who seemed flinched at her announcement. 

Why do I feel like I’m in the middle of the war? Not a dungeon raid. 

Post note:
Have a great week ahead!
Hope you enjoy the chap! 🙂