"Now, Igris!"
Damien twisted aside just as a fist the size of a carriage slammed into the ground where his head had been a heartbeat earlier. The impact shattered the volcanic stone beneath it, shockwaves rippling outward in a circle of cracked earth and molten sparks. The Obsidian Colossal loomed above him, an irregular monster that appeared only rarely, formed entirely from black volcanic glass. It looked less like a living creature and more like a walking statue carved by an angry god, its massive body reflecting the crimson glow of magma veins running beneath the floor.
Slow, but devastating.
As the Colossal pulled its arm back for another strike, a shadow detached from the cavern ceiling.
Igris descended like judgment.
His blade came down in a clean, merciless arc, cleaving straight through the monster's head. The obsidian shell shattered instantly, glass exploding outward in a storm of fragments before the core collapsed and the Colossal froze mid-motion. A moment later, its entire body disintegrated into black shards that clattered harmlessly across the ground.
The fight ended as quickly as it had begun.
Damien exhaled and straightened, rolling his shoulders. "Whew. That was a good one." He glanced in the direction of the distant tunnels leading back toward Floor Forty Six, where faint vibrations hinted at movement far beyond sight. "All right. Let's wrap this up. We've cleaned out forty eight and forty seven... The expedition's getting close to the Ash Revenants' camp."
He turned to move when the communication device at his side flickered to life.
"Damien… you hear me?" Finn's voice came through, slightly distorted but steady.
"I read you," Damien replied without slowing his stride. "I'm about five minutes out from the camp. I'm ready. What about you?"
"We are as well," Finn said. "After clearing the Gloam Stalker nest, we camped and resupplied. Everyone's at full readiness. We should be roughly twenty minutes away from the enemy position."
"Good," Damien said, eyes narrowing as he surveyed the terrain ahead. "Then I'll hold position until you give the signal."
"That's the plan," Finn continued. "Once we initiate the attack, they'll redirect their full force toward us. The moment they do, you strike from behind. We crush them, secure Floor Forty Eight, and use it as a staging point before advancing toward Balor."
Damien smiled faintly, shadows stirring at his feet as if sharing his anticipation. "Sounds good. I'll be waiting."
The device went silent.
Damien took one last look at the shattered remains of the Obsidian Colossal before turning back toward the Crimson Mountains, his expression calm, focused, and sharp.
The trap was set.
Now all that remained was to spring it.
...
The Crimson Mountains trembled as the Loki Familia, accompanied by seasoned adventurers like Ryuu and Samira, advanced toward the Ash Revenants' encampment. The ground was cracked and glowing orange from the rivers of molten rock, the air thick with ash that stung the lungs and clung to armor. From above, the faint silhouettes of Furnace Drakes flitted like blackened birds of prey, circling the camp, awaiting the command of their skeletal masters.
Finn raised his hand, signaling the start. "Attack!"
The expidition surged forward in perfect coordination. Riveria's magic tore through the air as walls of ice speared into the ground, freezing the lava and cutting off escape routes. Her squad followed in a coordinated barrage, ice shards exploding across the camp and shattering Furnace Drakes mid-flight. The roar of collapsing skeletal warriors echoed through the mountains, a chorus of destruction that shook the ground itself.
"Take the sky!" Gareth shouted, swinging his massive greatsword, cleaving a pack of Ash Revenants and their drakes in a single strike. Sparks flew as metal and bone collided, and molten lava hissed where their bodies landed. Finn's twin daggers danced, slicing through two Ash Revenants charging with heavy axes, their tamed Furnace Drakes bucking and shrieking as they fell in fiery arcs.
Ais, Tiona, and Tione moved as a trio, their blades cutting synchronized lines through squads of Ash Revenants. Ais leapt over a collapsing wall, landing amidst a group of undead riders and slashing through their reins, sending the Drakes plummeting into molten chasms. Tiona and Tione mirrored her strikes, their blades flashing like silver lightning, leaving the enemies in heaps of ash and shattered bone.
Ryuu and Samira swept in together, a perfect combination of precision and ferocity. Samira's twin daggers flitted faster than the eye could track, cutting down squads before they could regroup. Ryuu's strikes flowed like water, her icy magic cutting deep into armored skeletons, freezing joints and shattering shields mid-combat. "Keep moving!" Ryuu shouted, her green eyes ablaze with focus. "Don't give them a chance to counterattack!"
And then came Damien's signal. His voice came faintly through the communication device: "Now."
From the shadows beyond the camp, Damien's army emerged in perfect silence. Igris led the charge, his blade gleaming as he struck the first line of Revenants with surgical precision. Behind him, Damien's new Ice Elf cavalry thundered in on massive ice bears, their gleaming armor reflecting the molten light, crushing skeletons beneath their paws. His adventurer troops surged alongside them, cutting down anything in their path, while elite shadows materialized from the edges of the camp, cutting through enemy lines like living blades of darkness.
Damien himself appeared at the center of the chaos, daggers whirling, shadows slicing independently in perfect coordination. His movements were impossible to track, each strike cutting deeper into the Revenants' ranks. Furnace Drakes attempting to flee were caught by Riveria's ice spells, frozen mid-flight and smashed into the ground. The Ash Revenants fought with intelligence and ferocity, attempting ambushes and counterattacks, but Damien's shadow assault struck faster than they could adapt.
"Keep them contained!" Finn shouted, leading a squad to ensure no enemies could escape. Gareth cleaved through the remaining Drakes, their shrieks echoing against the cavern walls. Ais, Tiona, and Tione spun through squads like a hurricane, leaving only charred and shattered remains in their wake. Ryuu and Samira cut off retreating groups, ensuring no skeleton would rise again.
In the heart of the camp, Damien's shadows converged, Igris striking the final blow against the last cluster of Ash Revenants. Damien's daggers slashed cleanly across the rear of the camp, and with one precise motion, the skeletal leaders crumbled, their tamed Furnace Drakes falling beside them. The battlefield fell eerily silent, the smoke and ash settling over what remained of the once-thriving army.
Riveria stepped forward, her staff glowing with a brilliant white light. She pointed it at the largest Furnace Drake still twitching on the ground and unleashed a concentrated burst of ice magic. The spell struck with terrifying force, cracking bones and crushing the beast's skull beneath layers of frozen magic. Her voice was calm, commanding, "This ends now."
As the dust settled, the survivors of the expedition regrouped. No one had been injured. The Ash Revenants were gone. The Furnace Drakes destroyed. The camp itself was a shattered ruin of ice and fire. The mountains echoed with silence, broken only by the occasional roar of molten rock.
But the victory was short-lived. Even as the adventurers caught their breath, the remnants of the Ash Revenants' siege engines — massive cannons of bone and reinforced stone — began firing uncontrollably, aiming not at the expedition, but at the surrounding walls and cliffs of the Crimson Mountains. Each shot slammed into the rock with a deafening explosion, shaking the very ground beneath them.
Finn's eyes went wide as he raised his voice, "Everyone, brace yourselves! The dungeon is reacting…"
Before anyone could fully comprehend the scale, the impact of the final shot tore open the mountain itself. From the molten, shattered earth, a massive shadow emerged — a Juggernaut, awakened by the destruction, its body radiating power that dwarfed even the Ash Revenants' might.
Damien's hand tightened around his dagger as he glanced at Finn, Riveria, and the others. The expedition had won this battle… but the war had just escalated to a whole new level.
The Juggernaut's roar rolled through the mountains, shaking the air and the hearts of all who stood before it. Silence fell across the camp, only broken by the molten echoes of destruction.
And then, with an almost imperceptible tilt of its massive head, it focused on them.
"I knew this wouldn't end so easily...." said Damien as he looked at the Juggernaut
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