A Dragon Idol's Reincarnation Tale

[Shadow Armament] [Lifetaker (13 kills)][Various Spell Buffs] inflicted on [Young Stygian-Scaled Fenrir, Saori Segawa]

Experience has reached multiple breaking points. [Young Stygian-Scaled Fenrir, Saori Segawa]’s Job [Shadow Warrior] has risen from [Level 6] to [Level 11]

Attributes have increased due to level up

Acquisition requirement fulfilled. [Lava Resistance Lv. 1] gained

Multiple proficiency requirements fulfilled. [Concentration Lv. 9] [Inferno Resistance Lv. 2] [Lava Resistance Lv. 2] [Mana Recovery Lv. 7] [Monster Synergist Lv. 2] gained

“Here you go, eat up.” I offered the helmetless Grimnir a bowl of meat and vegetable stew. It was easy and fast to make, especially with the help of these red-hot rocks, heated from staying close to that magma lake.

“You have my thanks, Saori… I apologize for all of this. It is my fault,” Grimnir confessed, looking down with regret from what happened. “Never would I have expected to misjudge the stability of the ground. I haven’t mined in ages, and my own bladdarg overconfidence forced you to come to my rescue.”

“For scouting, you moved far too far away, Mister Grimnir. I am glad Hestia got there before that monster killed you, but… let us stop blaming people, alright? I am not in the mood, and I do not think you are, either,” I shook my head, to get rid of my urge to complain in his face. He explained to us how he got into that predicament in the first place, naming his greed for the voldunna ore as the reason.

Grimnir nodded, accepting the bowl of stew. “Yes, I understand. Still, my life was saved, that is unquestionable. A tazong is honorbound to repay his savior in any way or shape if it doesn’t dishonor their clan, so once this is over, name whatever you want, I will make it with my honor as a blacksmith on the line. If I fail, I shall lay down my hammer.”

After giving Grimnir his bowl, I went over to Tasianna to check on her, “How are you holding up? Will the igloo be able to last?”

“Not with this heat. If I don’t keep pouring mana into it, the mana slime will melt eventually.”

We managed to make it out of the magma lake with only a few more fights, and fortunately, nothing came of that bad feeling I’d had. However, we had to leave the volchark corpses behind since we didn’t have Hestia around, and my storage couldn’t handle this many bodies with my meager Mana capacity. It really makes you appreciate how much her [Storage Magic] can carry.

After entering the cave, Tasianna created an igloo out of mana slime for us to rest in. We were deep in the tunnel, but the heat from outside was blazing, making it quite uncomfortable to rest in. Tasianna couldn’t have [Fairy of Winter] active all the time, since it drained mana, so she made an igloo when I described it. Unfortunately, due to the heat, that plan isn’t working too well.

“Forget it. It’ll cool the air long enough for us to eat and then go to sleep. It is more important for you to rest and regain your mana, Tasianna.”

After everybody ate their fill, Tasianna and Grimnir immediately fell asleep while I kept watch. I also took this time to sort through our potion stocks, Health and Mana. Without Hestia around, the only spell we had to heal our wounds would be Tasianna’s [Ocean Healing], which she recieved from leveling [Torrent Magic] to level two, so we had to rely more on potions for now.

I need to prepare. This can be considered an emergency.

Acquisition requirements fulfilled. [Mid-Air Maneuvering Lv. 1] [Mounted Fighter Lv. 1] [Rider Lv. 1] gained. 8100 SP remaining

Multiple proficiency requirement fulfilled. [Multi-Cast Lv. 5] [Delayed Cast Lv. 3] [Sundering Enhancement Lv. 10] [Piercing Enhancement Lv. 10] [Crushing Enhancement Lv. 10] [Air Walk Lv. 7] [Inferno Resistance Lv. 5] [Lava Resistance Lv. 5] [Mana Recovery Lv. 8]. 2250 SP remaining

Skill requirement fulfilled. [Sundering Enhancement Lv. 10] [Piercing Enhancement Lv. 10] [Crushing Enhancement Lv. 10] merged into skill [All Damage Enhancement Lv. 1]

Ok, finished. Thank you very much for all the SP. I should not spend everything, keep some in reserve just in case. This should be good enough to help me handle whatever.

After losing [Tenebrous Magic] to create [Stygian Voltage], someone might think that casting spells shouldn’t become my focus anymore, as most of my offensive power now came from my black lightning, garm pack, and dagger skills. However, that's not how I saw it. Two spells I do use quite often would be [Shadow Dash] and [Dark Tendrils], and the more I could cast them simultaneously, the better. Furthermore, I have a couple skills that directly improve the power of my dark magics, so there’s a ton of room for growth as well.

That’s why [Multi-Cast] should be one of my first priorities, along with [Delayed Cast]. The latter allowed me to create the magic circles for five [Shadow Dash] casts and delay the execution of them until I needed to use them, making my “teleportation” faster and more seamless. I wouldn’t have to deal with the magic materialization process, after all.

I already knew about [All Damage Enhancement] from Gael, so increasing my overall damage isn’t a bad investment. [Air Walk], [Inferno Resistance], and [Lava Resistance] are there to help me fight better in this place as well as allowing me to maneuver and tank better. And [Mana Recovery] is generally just good, especially with my new focus on stygian lightning.

Mid-way through the “night,” the garms woke up from their sleep and we switched watch duty. Uno, Song, and Sarasa were with us, while I believe Quatre should be with Ellaine right now. My sleep quality was pretty bad; I was sweating to the point I had to put my coat into my storage, and I even considered taking off my shirt, no matter how indecent it was.

When I woke up, my fur was just drenched in my sweat and the humidty from the last of the melted igloo. It did make me learn that I could continue producing black electricity with my white fur no matter how wet I got. Good to know if I ever needed to fight underwater.

Before we departed, Tasianna used her magic to give everybody a refreshing cold shower, getting rid of yesterday's fatigue and the sticky feeling after our sleep. After a quick sandwich breakfast, we were off, journeying through the tunnel until we found a herd of those four-legged pachycephalosaurus monsters.

Rock-Breaker Rachycephalarus

A rachycephalarus with thin fur and the ability to store water inside special organs to cool down the body internally and keep it hydrated on long journeys. Adapted to live inside volcanoes, these fire-resistant beasts have a rock-breaking skull smash to dissuade any would be hunters. Rank D

They were initially wary of us but, after we showed we had no intentions to attack them, the herd simply ignored us and began to move away. Grimnir, knowing life inside tunnels and caves better than us, suggested we follow them since the monsters inside this place should know the surroundings better than us. As the maps we had of this place didn’t depict every single tunnel and we just had no idea where we were on the maps, this idea was better than nothing.

After one of the monsters growled at us for following them, we decided to stay further back from them. With how labyrinthine this tunnel system was, choosing to follow them was the best choice we had, since they helped us find the exit eventually. The only unfortunate part was that it was by another magma lake, only passable through leapfrogging across a series of islands or by going completely around it.

I really wanted to reunite with Hestia and Ellaine as well as my students as soon as possible, but my [Detection Sensor] confirmed that a few signals were inside the lake. If those volcharks continued attacking us, it would only slow us down and possibly endanger us. Rushing wasn’t good, even though I really wanted to do it right now.

Magma Belcher Volchark

A four-legged volchark whose main diet consists of consuming rocks, able to deconstruct it into valuable nutrients. Able to survive in rivers of extreme heat, these creatures gorge upon large amounts of magma and rocks in their expandable stomachs, to either consume or use as a projectile against aggressors. Evolution has given them the ability to walk on land. Rank C

Tasianna quickly casted [Fairy of Winter] to cool us down and surround us in an [Air Shield] to prevent the gases from knocking us out. Tazics like Grimnir were highly resistant against volcanic gases but breathing clean air was still preferred.

As we followed the herd of rachychephalarus around the magma lake, my [Detection Sensor] suddenly caught something interesting in the depths of the lake. It isn’t moving much, but that bad feeling from before seems to have crept back up. I called for my garms, telling Tasianna and Grimnir we should ride on them for the rest of the trip, the signal worrying me a bit.

“Argh, a tazong should not be riding a damn mount. By Crustacia’s twintails, how do you tall people even keep yourself balanced on them, guh,” Grimnir grumbled, finding it uncomfortable to stay on Sarasa since dwarves have trouble staying on them due to a balancing problem.

“Stop complaining, Mister Grimnir. Let us just get this do-”

“Gueeeeeeeeeeeehhhhh!” The loud, pained cry of one of the herd’s youngs interrupted my sentence, echoing through this whole place. Looking over to them, it looked like some magma popped, sending a large amount of the molten rock onto the rachychephalarus young. The herd seemed agitated, trying to scrape off the magma and calm down their young at the same time, even pushing it forward as multiple members of the herd began to run.

Huh? What is-oh no!

The signal from the depths, it was coming closer and closer to us, causing my [Danger Perception] from [True Wolven Instincts] to ring even louder and louder, to the point ignoring it was impossible. As Grimnir and Tasianna were about to move forward, I ordered my garms not to move any further but to retreat instead.

Because we were in trouble.

“Slarrrghhhhhhhh!” A high-pitched motor-like sound erupted the moment magma exploded into a geyser, rocks breaking as the panicked cries of the herd of rachycephalarus pierced through all the other noises. As the dust and smoke settled, the silhouette of a giant beast became visible, having broken through the ground while its large jaw was lodged into the wall next to it.

With one swift movement, the creature closed its mouth shut, crunching through the wall before storing it all in its elastic-like stomach. There was blood smeared on its lips and teeth, the remains of the herds.

“Mheeehhhhhh!” However, some of the rachycephalarus seemed to have survived, crying desperately in vain for their lost members. This however, just attracted the humongous shark’s attention, snapping its head around in a split second.

Identify!

Volcano Furnace Volchark

An overgrown volchark whose body has turned into a portable volcano from overconsumption of ores and minerals. Able to sustain a high body temperature from consuming voldunna ore, these volchark ooze magma and lethal fumes from their pores to defend against attackers. Their hide is made from a shell of sturdy rock, able to contain the flames burning inside. Rank B

Shadow Armament!

With the threat on hand, I immediately activated [Shadow Armament], wrapping not only my garms but also Tasianna and Grimnir with it, shouting that we had to retreat as fast as possible. The volchark jumped and crashed onto the fleeing remains of the herd, sending them deep into the lava lake to be consumed by this horror.

While running away, my skills were warning me of the approaching monster. “Tasianna, ice spike!” I shouted to her. Understanding what I meant, she shot three human-sized [Ice Spike]s forward, perfect for me to use as movement tools. My garms each cast [Dark Tendrils], attaching them to one of the ice spikes, helping them fly through the air the moment Tasianna blasted us all forward with [Wind Blast].

However, even that wasn’t enough to outrun that terror. Cleaving through the magma with its dorsal fin, I couldn’t help but frown, before dropping my jaw when the school bus-sized shark jumped out of the magma lake, showing off its jagged teeth and razor-sharp claws on its four legs. With a gaping mouth, it dived at us with intentions to devour.

Bad!

[“Sarasa, let go!”] Grimnir on Sarasa were the ones farthest behind and looking from the trajectory, I had the feeling they wouldn’t be able to dodge it. So, I ordered her to cancel her [Dark Tendrils] so Tasianna could blast her backwards with [Wind Blast].

When the giant shark landed, it crashed against the pathway, destroying everything in its way and blasting Tasianna and me away with the subsequent explosion. We were only protected by the shower of magma when Tasianna cast the level four [Torrent Magic] spell [Sapphire Membrane], something she gained by spending her SP after we woke up.

Looking through the blue translucent barrier of flowing water, I heaved a sigh of relief that both Sarasa and Grimnir were fine. Since Grimnir was armored in my [Shadow Armament], Sarasa was able to bring him along with her [Shadow Dash], appearing from my shadow.

Smoky Haze will distract it only for a moment but not long enough for it to be worth it. We should just run!

Reorganized, we rushed towards the cave entrance, intending to avoid this whole battle entirely since we were at a disadvantage in this environment, but before we could enter it, the volchark acted. It shot a bomb-like ball of magma that exploded in our path, blocking off our best way out, leaving us only two more options.

A chill went down my spine when the volchark began to leisurely swim inside the magma lake, as if it understood we didn’t have any other choice but to cross the lake for the cave entrance on the other side. However, how are we supposed to cross the lake when this thing will pursue us? Even if we made it, couldn’t it just close the entrance with one of its magma spit?

The stress will give me grey hair at this point…

“Tasianna. Grimnir.”

“Miss Saori, you aren’t expecting us to fight this monster, right?! The two of us can handle it from the skies but what about Mister Grimnir? Even the environment is bad for us. Lady Hestia might be able to survive in it, but if we drop into the lake, we are dead!” Tasianna replied grimly when I gave her a “we have no other choice” stare.

“What would you suggest we do? There doesn’t seem to be another way out. The ceiling is blocked, there is no cliff or waterfall for us to jump off from and hope for the best. We are inside a magma chamber, trapped in here with that damn thing,” I then pulled out one of Hestia’s bombs. “We have two choices, either somebody distracts that monster so we can blow up the entrance to escape through — which is not even guaranteed if the shark reacts well enough — or, hear me out, we fight and kill that Rank B, Tasianna.”

“What?! But those choices are-”

“Pretty much the same, I know! The only difference is that we either run the moment there is an opportunity or we press on,” I cut Tasianna short. “However, think about it, if Hestia were here, wouldn’t we be more brave? The moment she says we should fight it, I bet you would feel more confident in yourself and follow her. However, this was the exact same issue we had with that High Ogre! We ran the moment we knew we were outmatched, but we fought when Hestia was in trouble. What is this? I evolved into a B rank and you’ve gotten far stronger, but all we’re doing is run away. Run away from every hard encounter. What pride do we have as members of Aurora?!”

I was elated when Hestia decided to rely on us for the Davison raid, trusting in our strength that we could handle it. We did a good job wiping out those mercenaries and bringing Davison to his last breath, only needing Hestia to take out his mangled corpse for us. I was happy with our overall performance, but I did not like what happened during the Grimgarian battalion encounter.

Near death experience is part of our occupation and lifestyle, but all it proved to me was that Aurora wasn’t strong enough. Hestia couldn’t defeat the high ogre alone and Tasianna and I were basically little better than fodder until we got lucky and wounded him when we flooded the cave. When I evolved, I thought I could boost Aurora’s strength by a lot.

But instead of pride, rage and anger was filling my chest. Anger that this bastard was blocking me from advancing forwards, risking my meeting with my students. Rage that escaping was the more appropriate choice for us, since we had literally zero advantage in this fight. I needed complete darkness to fight in my best while Tasianna’s ice was melting from the heat.

I could feel the electricity coursing through my body, jolting my cells into action from the emotions I was feeling. It didn’t hurt, but it was uncomfortable. How would it feel if electricity were to flow through your body so naturally like blood? I haven’t gotten used to it yet.

“With a body like that, it would have a heart perfect for a catalyst,” Grimnir suddenly voiced out.

““Huh?”” Tasianna and I exclaimed.

“It needs a body fit to sustain itself in that lava, which means its organs need to be strong, attuned to the elements. I’m not an alchemist, but I know my monster materials. The heart is the strongest muscle in our body, and it needs to be strong enough to survive our lifestyle. The lass needs a catalyst, right? A catalyst made from that monster’s heart would be the perfect alchemical stone to fuel fire-elemental spells.”

“… We have not gotten Hestia a birthday present, yet,” I stated, desire of want and need came into my mind as I eyed the volchark, imagining wrapping its heart in a present box. My lightning crackled on my arms, influenced by my thoughts.

“...I wanted to make a catalyst for Lady Hestia,” Tasianna blurted out without thinking about it, eyes widened in greed as she gazed at the volchark. White mists escaped her gaping mouth, the temperature around her cooled down significantly to the point I felt like shivering even with my fur. Did Grimnir just give her a reason to fight?

She then snapped her head to me, a look of determination was on her face, “Miss Saori! That Volchark is level four, nowhere as strong as that high ogre! Can you detect the other volcharks in the lake?”

I grinned with her, “No, they ran away the moment that one appeared. Mister Grimnir?”

Putting his helmet on and taking out his blasthammer, he replaced the mana battery on it with a new one, making it able to use its blast function, “I’ve said it already, I owe you lasses. If I can help get all of you geared up, then I will do it with my honor and life on the line!”

Call me a hypocrite if you want, because I am. I admit it. For somebody who minds risks so much, I’ve been bringing my party into more and more dangers. In this situation, where we had no time to plan, I still took out my daggers, prepared to exterminate the threat lying before us.

I’m sorry for all the times I did this to you, Hestia, but watch me now! This is where the brilliance of Aurora will truly shine!

“Spread out!”

Stygian-scaled fenrir, ice fairy, and stubborn taz are moving out.