As soon as Balin's curse rang out, the temple ground crumbled and the previously dark room was now illuminated. It was illuminated all too well. By lava.
The 20- no, 19 squad leaders and Balin all reacted rather quickly. Unfortunately for them, unlike those elementary pitfall traps, the lava trap didn't give them much time.
"""Aaah"" "This burns!" "Damn it!!!!" The squad leaders all had different reactions but most of them were able to handle themselves. Though they had lost their step, they were still able to land into the lava on their two legs. All of them reinforced their body with mana as well allowing them just enough time to minimize their injuries and granting them the time to cast spells or drink potions.
Those that didn't stick the landing didn't do all that well in comparison...
"Aaaah!!! Aaaargh!" An exaggerated yell came from the weakest of the squad leaders. He was still at the peak of the B-class but his skills didn't quite help him deal with the current predicament.
The back of his body started to melt, third-degree burn alone didn't seem like an apt descriptor. His incessant screaming didn't stop, he continued to slowly sink while feeling the tortuous pain of having one's armor melt together with one's flesh.
Balin who had fared much better wanted to help but he had been too late to help himself.
The crumbled floor which sank into hot liquid was manipulated by him to quickly form a small island below his feet. Thanks to this he only had to dip his ankles in lava which with his mana reinforcement and armor... were still quite the pain.
"Urgh…!" Nonetheless, he only let out a small grunt and grimaced inwardly. He didn't pay the pain any mind as he focused on trying to help the others who had stuck their landing but weren't capable of getting themselves out of the lava.
Lava was extremely dense meaning that while it was quite possible for them to lose their legs as well as be in unbearable pain, they could still survive. The mana reinforcement which was a basic requirement to enter the B-class ensured this.
Diar, as a peak B-class warrior incapable of harnessing elements, was one such poor soul.
"Aaaah! Help!" His scream for help was heard and answer as the ground beneath him lifted.
Diar, feeling his legs touching the ground for just a brief second was instantly elated. At least until he felt it penetrate his entire body.
"Gurgh" Diar was in complete disbelief. The spike retreated back into the lava and he sank into it. All along, Dair looked at his commander's figure with widened eyes through his helmet.
'You are pretty good' Ed had tried to impale all of them as soon as he saw them surviving but this was all obstructed by Balin. The main reason was that Ed's view was obstructed but merit where merit was due. Though that did beg the question of where exactly he had gone…
A green sword materialized in Ed's hand. As usual, he swung it casually before getting a proper grip and slashing at the wall in front of him.
[Dragon Blade Vient]
The sword swooshed across the air as it cut the temple wall. it created an opening from which Ed was able to look down on the knights in the pit of lava.
As soon as he heard the knights' steps he manipulated the earth to stay behind the wall. That was why he was there right now.
Ed then watched as his sixth sense brought him the three souls he reaped on this occasion. One was the man he killed and the other was the knight who screamed initially, the third was another poor soul who fell headfirst into the lava.
Before Ed got a chance to speak a single word, a stream of fire flew right towards him. Not only that, but the wind seemed to be pushing towards it!
Ed used the momentum to spin and cut apart the flames with the dragon blade.
'For a fake dragon you are pretty good' Ed thought as he began to fall into the lava himself. That was obviously not part of the plan.
[You've been dealt damage. - 33 hp]
'Aaargh!' Ed who was about to manipulate the earth to land safely was then struck by lightning. The temporary lapse in judgment made Ed completely unable to defend himself. By the time he came to, he was already dipping into the lava
[You are burning. -12 hp]
His landing wasn't easy either though, water spears flew towards his position and the air was cut apart by sharp blades of wind.
Ed didn't think twice before teleporting out of the predicament.
'Damn, I only opened that up so I could see them' He had thought that it would help him attack better but perhaps he had been too conceited. He wasn't facing one A-class adventurer, he was facing multiple. Not only that but these multiple had B-class magicians for backup.
Luckily, the robe of stars he had equipped lowered the mana consumption of space element spells by at least two thirds. This was another reason as to why he had swiftly teleported out, if the robe was burned in the lava he just might cry.
But he wasn't out of danger just yet. Ed cast an earthen dome in nearly an instant after catching a glimpse of a flood of spells darting his way.
The dome shook wildly for only a second before a hole was clearly made into it by an arrow.
'The hell was that!?!' Ed yelled inwardly before creating a wall of earth in front of him.
Starting with the hole made by the arrow, the dome quickly cracked as the spells hit it. The wall, unfortunately, fared no better.
'Damn!' As soon as the wall crumbled and light seeped past, Ed held firmly onto his sword and swung down.
[Swordsmanship has leveled up]
The basic overhead swing shot out a wall of air. The air collided with the bombardment of spells and was immediately… torn apart.
[You've been dealt damage. -94 hp]
[You've been dealt damage. -95 hp]
[You've been dealt damage. -96 hp]
'Wh- Why!?' Under the blast of spells, Ed put up another dome. The bombardment struck it fiercely for only a second before finally stopping. As the vibrations lessened, Ed was able to feel relieved. This also clued him in on something.
'They can't do that continuously' The reason why they seemed so overwhelming was due to the spells being cast in tandem. Nevertheless, spells were finite and they also had cast time.
That meant that Ed would only be allowed to breathe during cast times. This would be his opportun-
[You've been hit by your weakness. -66 hp]
A beam of light penetrated his new dome which had already been full of cracks and graced Ed's robed figure. Not only that, but the dome crumbled after no longer being able to support its own weight.
'That damn arrow isn't a spell!?!' Ed could see an archer holding an elegant set of armor as well as a holy white bow. Aiming at his direction while charging up an arrow tip with white light. That was the life element.
Ed's nonexistent heart skipped a beat which instantly threw him into action. He had to kill that man!
Regular archery wasn't necessarily the best method for hunting the undead but the situation here was different. The arrows had the life element in them! Ed was simply grazed but he lost 54 hp, he only had 900 of that to spare and the amount had to have been lowered by a third at this point.
"Protect Ray!" Balin yelled clearly noticing Ed's killing intent.
This however worked against him as Ed who was initially ready to leap at his enemies decided against it. Instead…
Ed turned and ran. He could still hear the spells being chanted by squads of mages as well as the heavy armor of the knights that protected them as they took a step forward towards him.
'If you can't beat them… run away from them!' Tactical retreats never failed when in danger! Ed ran towards the boss door.
'Space hop!' An arrow missed after being shot at his initial position. Ed could only sweat anxiously from the sweat glands he didn't own before ramming his body onto the boss gate and entering through the opening it created.
With a bam, the boss gate closed.
"Di- Did it just run away…?" Ray muttered in bewilderment while almost dropping his arrow.
He wasn't the only one left shocked, the mages were all also dumbstruck. They had the rest of their chants stuck in their throats! A bit quick to run, no? Weren't the undead supposed to be unafraid of dying?!
It was at that moment that Balin spoke up.
"Be careful, there's no way that thing ran away without a plan" Balin said solemnly.
The mages then stopped coursing mana through their bodies and nodded.. That made sense, the skeleton definitely had something nefarious cooked up for them in the boss room.