the beginning after the end perfect duo

Tunnels

I took a look back towards Lilia, convincing myself to just get inside the dungeon already. We're already quite many, and with Arthur and Jasmine, we're more than safe. Nothing bad happens at this time in the plot.

"Tone! Aren't you going to move?" Mira yelled from the front of the pack.

"In a minute," I answered in the same tone.

I hurried to the front, passing by many of our teammates: the blonde siblings, Ragnar, and our shield.

Their faces were firm and determined. This raid, this day, is just like any other to them.

Arthur and Jasmine were walking together. All of us were heading towards the darkness of the dungeon. No signs of any monsters ahead, only piles of rocks.

It looked like the place had an earthquake.

Jasmine wore her usual face, but her tone softened when talking to Arthur.

"Your parents have given me a responsibility, Arthur. I know you are strong on your own, but no matter what happens, you should never risk your life in the slightest. And just so you know, I'll be there to stop you if you try. Is that understood?" Jasmine said.

Arthur could only answer with "yes." Nothing else would please Jasmine.

"That applies to you too, Tom," she added.

"Understood," I said.

"Hey, Jasmine, do you mind staying with Lilia? Arthur and I would look after each other, but she needs the specialist to be around," I asked Jasmine.

"You really don't sound your age," Jasmine said, then quickly got to where Lilia was.

"How are you feeling, Arthur?" I asked my brother, keeping my eyes on the floor.

"Pretty anxious, I have to admit. It's our first raid, after all. You too, I figured," he answered with a laughing-like voice.

"That obvious?" I asked, suppressing a half-laugh, beaten by his great observation.

"Yes, it is. Got any sleep yesterday?" Arthur asked me, holding eye contact and maintaining a trying-to-be-relaxed expression.

I was about to answer when a weird mana signal caught my attention, and I wasn't the only one to notice.

Ragnar and our shield jolted into action, closing in on the upcoming mana signals. Mira joined, while Sylvie took the back. Lilia was on Jasmine's side, so there was nothing to worry about.

Arthur and I joined the front field of the battle when I finally noticed the arriving beasts.

A wolf-like creature with more mana than usual, and there was a whole pack of them.

Their speed was something not to miss.

Ragnar took his shield out and, with the other hand, waved his warhammer, throwing a bunch of them off guard.

Mira, with her daggers, slaughtered a few. Arthur used his earth attribute to crush them while I conjured ice crystals to kill two.

The remaining ones sent a howling voice that shattered the ground, and we fell into darkness.

We reached the ground after a few seconds of falling down.

With a feeble try to manipulate gravity, I slowed down my fall in the last seconds, landing with a loud crack.

"Damn it, I should've been more careful," I whispered in the dark.

I inspected my new environment after lighting it with some fire.

Long tunnels extended towards the shadows. Not a whisper of movement, of sound, in the place.

"The others should be close. I should try to find them," I thought to myself, suddenly remembering having read about these tunnels.

"If these are the ones mentioned in the novel, then it's no good. This might lead us straight to the enemy's ground. I'd better be quick."

I moved my torch sideways, revealing many spikes rising from the ground level, something only a retainer named Uto could do.

"Damn it, damn it, damn it. I was right about these tunnels," I said, my voice a tiny bit of its usual volume, sweat dropping from my face.

"I have to find Arthur, and Lilia, Jasmine. I brought us here to get stronger, not to suicide. None of us is safe here," I kept talking to myself, moving through the tunnels at my maximum speed.

Mana was quickly being consumed, all for the sake of finding my family.

Wolf-like beasts appeared on my track. Their usually hornless heads weren't what I saw-they were infected.

Their violet manes and great claws reminded me of those of Regis, but I had no time to keep staring at them.

I charged at the wolves, earth spikes rising from the ground, fire arrows launching from my hand.

The wolfish creatures fell to the ground, some easily, some with resistance. Vibrational waves were heading my way, and I maneuvered around them with gravity magic.

Those who survived my first assault got to see another, but they weren't exactly what I'd call weak.

Some bit, some scratched, and piles and piles of them kept coming my way.

My regeneration magic slowly pulled a move on my wounds.

I could've taken my time with them and left intact, but time is a resource I don't want to waste.

My brother is out there, Jasmine and Lilia too, and they absolutely don't know what they might be facing.

Blood spilled and spilled, part mine, part theirs, but I was the last one standing.

I left the piles of corpses behind me as I kept pushing forward, looking for my family.

I never really thought about how these characters might have felt going through this as their real life-the amount of suffering they had to endure.

They were fictional, so I never really cared, but going through all of this is not a good fate.

My exhausted core and body both needed rest, but I wasn't the priority here.

I pushed forward and forward until I finally heard a voice from the distance.

In a minute, I was there, only to witness one of my teammates being absolutely dominated by these stupid wolves.

"Mira!" I called.

A wolf was chewing on her right arm, while another was trying to get her from her back.

She was resisting the first, trying to keep her hand intact, while also holding back the other.

I charged down my sword into the first one's heart, using Thunderclap Impulse to increase both my speed and the blade's lethality.

An ice spike tore up the other's stomach as he fell in an instant.

"How are you holding up, Mira?" I asked.