I just wanted to watch TV! But now, I'm in a Fantasy World!-Chapter 67: The Harmonic Snake (2)

Thane crawled backward across the damp stone, keeping his body low as the argument among the Red Chains in front of him grew louder.

But the moment he sensed the snake’s presence, cold and oppressive as a descending storm, he knew there would be no time to retreat.

"We have to hide!" Thane’s eyes narrowed, and he gestured silently to Esau.

They could not slip back into the river this time as the serpent’s approach was coming from that direction. So instead, Thane crawled sideways, hugging the cavern wall until he found a cluster of jagged stalactites jutting from the ceiling and forming crooked pillars below. The shadows there were thick enough to hide behind.

Esau squeezed beside him, trembling lightly but remaining silent. The two waited behind the stone teeth, watching the darkness ahead.

Then a faint glow appeared far down the opposite tunnel. A narrow path stretched toward the wide hall, and shifting shadows danced as more light drew closer.

The Red Chains’ argument paused.

"Stadius! Are you there? Orders from the boss!"

Boots scraped, and armor shifted as the scouts reacted. Since their allies were arriving, there was no longer any need to remain hidden. They began to ignite their torches one after another.

The brief distraction gave Thane and Esau the opening they needed. They sprinted silently toward a deeper hiding spot, slipping behind another formation of stone.

Boots splashed through shallow puddles as a group of Red Chains emerged from the tunnel. Their torches flared to life one by one, illuminating the cavern in rising waves of orange light. Shadows stretched across the walls, revealing hardened barbarians, two archers in leather armor, and three additional battle mages in crest-marked cloaks.

Thane smiled as he watched them gather.

"Perfect. More souls to be offered. Hmm... I wonder if there’s a skilled one among them."

The sudden brightness lit the area where the first scouting group huddled behind their stones.

"Oi! You there?" one of the newcomers shouted.

The scouts, startled, lit their own torches. Dry flames sparked to life, washing their anxious faces in warm glow. With allies present, they finally relaxed.

The two Red Chains groups converged near the center of the chamber, voices overlapping in irritation.

"Well? Are we moving deeper to attack that Battle Mage who killed Captain Verdok?"

"Captain Boldred says Matthew must be there. He thinks Verdok was onto something."

"Tch. If Verdok dragged us into a dead end again..."

"It’s the boss’s orders! We press on—" 𝚏𝕣𝕖𝚎𝚠𝚎𝚋𝚗𝐨𝐯𝕖𝕝.𝕔𝐨𝕞

Their voices trailed off as a sour stench drifted across the cavern.

One barbarian pinched his nose.

"What in the blasted hells is that smell?"

The scouts turned toward the pile of dead monstrous bats lying on the stone. The corpses had not dissolved, but the blood was gone. Their twisted, swollen bodies emitted a thick, pungent odor.

"Hey! That’s the source of the stench we smelled earlier!" a scout exclaimed.

"Were these here before?"

"No! Why would we pile dead bats here...?"

Thane inhaled quietly.

It was close.

He placed his hand on his Item Storage and drew out one of the Choppy Brothers. The axe materialized in his palm, cold and weighted. He also brought out the staff he took from the fallen battle mage. Shadows flickered across his face as he closed his eyes.

He gathered Spirit into his arms, feeling pressure coil along his muscles like a living rope. Spirit flowed into the staff in his left hand, then streamed into the axe in his right. The blade pulsed faintly, trembling with a pale glow.

"I wonder... what would Spirit Point Strike become if I added mana?" Thane whispered, curiosity lighting his eyes.

Energy gathered, humming sharply like metal singing before it breaks.

A sudden splash echoed.

Water surged.

The giant serpent burst from the underground river, its burn-scarred body rising like a living nightmare.

"What the hell?!"

"That’s the missing hunt the Mad Mage asked us to kill! We had bounties for that beast, but it disappeared from its lair down south! The Blast Serpent!" one of the more educated barbarians cried.

Panic surged.

The archers drew their bows.

The battle mages lifted their staffs.

"Move back! That thing can only be defeated by someone on the boss’s level!" the lead battle mage warned.

The serpent did not attack them. Instead, it lowered its head, tasting the air, then turned toward the pile of dead bats, recognizing the scent it had followed. Its eyes narrowed. It slid across the stone, pushing rocks aside as it coiled near the corpses.

Weapons lowered slightly.

"Easy... easy... Don’t provoke it..."

"It’s after that blasted buffet of bats! Who put it there?!"

"Don’t shout! You’re agitating the Blast Serpent!"

All eyes were locked on the creature.

No one looked behind them.

Thane was already standing.

He stepped from the shadow, aimed, and hurled the axe.

The Spirit Point Strike detonated the instant the weapon left his hand. A narrow beam of white energy shot through the air, piercing the darkness like a spear of light. The spinning axe followed behind it, wrapped in a comet tail of Spirit-infused mana.

It struck the serpent squarely in the face.

BOOM.

The axe shattered, destroyed by its own empowered force. The Blast Serpent shrieked as its scales cracked open, a thin glowing wound carved across its snout.

The cavern exploded into chaos.

"ROAR!"

The serpent surged forward with terrifying speed.

The nearest archer froze mid-breath as the monster’s jaws engulfed him.

CRUNCH.

His head and shoulders vanished between the serpent’s fangs.

"Ahhh!"

Another barbarian turned to flee back through the narrow hall—

But massive boulders and a gigantic stone club now blocked the path.

"What?!"

Esau and Thane braced their bodies behind it, keeping the blockade sealed.

The fleeing barbarian tried to squeeze through the small gaps, but he was too large.

CRUNCH.

The serpent pulled him back by the spine, tearing him in half.

Screams and steel clashed. Fire spells detonated. The serpent thrashed wildly as the battle began.

Thane watched through gaps in Big Bonky’s stone bulk, observing the unfolding battle.

The captain of the Red Chains snapped out commands at once.

"Shield Bearers! Form up! Barbarians, left flank! Mages and archers behind! We have to fight."

Thane observed the battle.

"Four barbarians... Three of those Shield Bearers... Two battle mages... and two archers..." Thane counted.

"Let’s see the experience of this Red Chains..."

With the death of two of their men and the blocked path, the Captain made the quick decision to hunt the beast.

And the serpent lunged.

The Shield Bearers slammed their tower shields into the ground, three forming a curved front line. The serpent struck them first, smashing its head against the shields.

THOOM!

The impact reverberated through the cavern. Two shield bearers braced and held. The third staggered but recovered with a roar, pressing back.

"Hold the line!" the captain shouted.

The serpent hissed, whipping its tail around.

CRACK!

The tail tore through a stone pillar and lashed across a reckless barbarian charging in too early.

A spray of blood burst from his chest. His body flew backward like a broken doll.

"Idiot! Wait for orders! Give him a potion quick!" the captain barked.

The remaining barbarians flanked wide, circling the serpent from opposite sides. Their axes glowed faintly as they harnessed Power to release tremendous power.

But the coiling serpent was fast as it sensed danger and lashed out. But before it could strike...

BOOM!

The battle mages began to work as they harnessed their staves to shoot magic and run around the field, leaping and evading as they began to move around and use their magic to aid their ally.

"ROAR!"

The serpent’s tail whipped, but the Battle Mages moved swiftly to escape and used Power to make quick dashes to evade and shot an attack at the Serpent.

Thane saw the strength of the Battle Mages and now understood its worth.

"Stratus couldn’t do that. If I could gain a Harmonic Core, I could have the best of both worlds!" Thane saw the potential of the path he had chosen.

The serpent recoiled, twisted, and lunged toward the right flank.

"Archers!" the captain cried.

It was as if the arrows were spears as they pushed back and knocked back the serpent’s attack. The charging maw stopped for a quick second as the arrows appeared to ’push’ against the snake.

The shield bearers rushed and took the initiative to attack, using their shields to bash the face.

BOOM!

The serpent’s head smashed against them. Sparks flew where scales scraped against metal.

With three shield bearers charging up, the Serpent was pushed back in a daze.

"Now!" The Captain roared as he motioned to his team.

Fireballs and arrows shot up from around the Serpent, and the Captain, along with his barbarians, charged forward utilizing their Power to strike.

"Great combo! They clearly know how to work as a team... Too bad." Thane knew that the warriors did not fully know of the Serpent’s capabilities.

As the Barbarians charged in, and as the Serpent’s head was sent back, the warriors aimed for an attack on the part of the serpent that seemed to have been wounded by a fire attack. But before they could land a blow...

BOOM!

The Serpent spat out a blue flame that struck the middle Barbarian, and the charge was canceled as the Serpent had recovered.

"What?! Magic?!" The captain was shocked. His ally had a deep hole in his chest, and it was certain that he would die. No potion could save him!

SLICE!

The tail whipped and finally struck one of the battle mages, who dropped their guard, thinking they were victorious.

"Ahh!" The battle mage tried to evade, but still received a grievous blow to his shoulder.

"It’s shooting!" An archer warned as the Serpent’s maw grew bright blue and shot another round of blue fireballs at the group.

The Captain barked new orders.

"Ervin! Use your magic to blow up a path! Zib! Aid him! Clear that damned stone so we can escape!" The Captain ordered to focus on their escape as he and the Shield Bearers bought his team some time.