The Animagus: From Hunter to Monster-Chapter 29: Dual Dungeon

Buji squinted beside Kirex as the rays of light pierced through the darkness of the dungeon. It was blinding compared to the suffocating shadows they had been battling in moments before.

Buji studied Kirex as they moved out into the broad bright light. He walked with his spear still resting on his bloodied shoulder, probably thinking of what next they were going to do.

Kirex had told him that the treasurers were only going to be available but that is when the body decays. From the look of things, it decays within the limited time given to hunters to raid a dungeon, and that was a chance given to those hunters to earn.

Although, they were going to submit whatever treasure they found.

’Injustice! Just why should they submit it after all they’ve gone through in here.’

Soon, they came out under the bright light. The air there was different. Cool. Clean. Almost unreal.

"We’re… outside?" Buji mumbled words. Trying to adjust his vision to the brightness. His legs wobbled under the stress from the fight, and Kirex’s hand shot out in time to steady him.

"Not really. Look closer," Kirex said quietly.

As Buji’s vision cleared, he realized they were standing in a spacious pathway. The "light" wasn’t sunlight at all. It was emanating from massive crystal formation embedded onto a rope, which extended from the end of the dungeon wall they had come out from, far into the distance.

Ahead of them, were the rest of their team.

They were a sorry sight.

Instead of four members, there was one left. Just like Buji and Kirex, the member looked wounded, haggard, and clearly shaken. Probably from the fight in the cave.

As Kirex and Buji approached the young girl who stood there, in a weak position, she greeted them with a smile.

It was Tyga.

"You made it! I thought…" she paused, her eyes flicking between the two of them. "…you had faced the same fate like others."

"But I trust you, you know," Tyga lightened up, hitting where Kirex injured on his shoulder.

"Ouch. That hurts," Kirex said, and as if not clearly understanding what the girl meant asked. "Where are the others?"

"We lost Clara and Moses to some fierce bats in there," she said pointing at the way they had come out from. "Lian went to check out what’s in that distance."

When the girl pointed to the doorway, Buji noticed a strange thing. They had all entered from different doors, but from what the girl said, they came out from a single door. Just, how?

Even, his heart sank the more. He thought of the loss of their team members. It only meant they weren’t the only ones who faced a brutal battle. He looked at Kirex, hoping he would answer, but Kirex’s jaw tightened.

Then for a while, Kirex said something. "Survivors will talk later. This isn’t over, so, we’re not done."

"What do you mean?" Tyga asked, stopping Kirex who already started to make movements towards the distance afar.

But instead of a response from Kirex, someone shouted from afar.

"Hey! There’s another entrance over here."

Kirex and Tyga rushed over to the place, leaving Buji to close their distance trudging on one foot.

"There really is another entrance," Tyga commented. "Could it mean, this is a dual dungeon?"

"And we’re here without a healer or even, a mage," Lian chipped in.

Buji who had advanced close froze at the spot.

In front of them stood a massive door. It was unlike anything he had seen in the dungeon so far. It towered into the air, stretching impossible high.

"What is that?" Buji breathed.

"Another dungeon," Kirex said quietly. "A hidden door. We’ve heard of things like this happening. But we were told it only happened in S-rank dungeons."

If not for Buji, he wouldn’t need to explain further. Other hunter there, except Buji, had heard of the stories. The legend of dual dungeons.

The first dungeon would be nothing more than a test. A trap to weaken adventurers before pulling them deeper into the true hell.

The boss’s domain.

The moment Buji realized what it was, he fell to the ground. Is this how they were going to face their early death?

’For God’s fuckin’ sake, I’m still 17 years old. I’m not ready to die prematurely!’

They came with no healer, at least to heal their injuries and strengthen them for the next lap of the battle. No mage too. And it happens the mage for the group seemed to be the strongest of them all.

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And their intuition member, they had lost her. As precious as she was.

Slowly, the door let out a low rumble. The inside of the hall hidden behind the door seemed to be well lit. Just as the door opened widely, Buji saw it.

A chess board. But it was incomplete on one side. It only had the black players, and it seemed they are blocking something—the boss.

Only if they’re able to cross these chess players will they be only to know what’s behind. But how were they going to do that?

The whole representation from the portal, to this point they had reached, was similar to that of the Inner Sanctum.

Buji swallowed hard. The door had not been a barrier. It was also a warning that shielded a puzzle. A gate into something far worse than the Stone Bats they had just fought.

"We can’t seriously be going in there… right?" Tyga whispered, staring at the chess players. The chess players held different weapons—sword, axe among others. But what marveled Buji was that they all looked like statues. Like non-living entities.

"We are going in there. Remember, we can’t move out of this dungeon without killing the boss, and at the expiration of the raiding time… there will be more danger."

"We won’t survive this if we’re this broken. We’re not here to back out either. We have to finish this. Whatever’s beyond those chess players is the boss, and we need to defeat it."

Kirex stated, his gaze scanning the remaining members of the team. And as if seeking a response, he locked his gaze onto Tyga.

Tyga nodded reluctantly, her face pale.

Buji on his own part felt his knees trembling again. The fight with the Stone Bats had nearly killed him. His arm still burned where the claws had struck him, and the exhaustion weighed heavily on his body.

He knew he wasn’t ready for this. None of them were. Not without a healer or a mage.

And yet…

There came the female voice again.

[02:00:000 remaining…]