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“There shouldn’t be,” Martine replied, withdrawing her sword carefully.

“Did you tell anyone we were coming here?” Dagmara reached into her bodice, finding the edge of her throwing stars, ready to withdraw them.

Martine was quiet.

Snapping her head, Dagmara glared at her guard. “Did you?”

“Shhh,” Martine held out her hand.

Suddenly Dagmara heard a faint noise. It was like a quiet shuffling on the cool floor, or a slight shift of fabric.

It was neither of those, however. It was the sound of the dead animal in the corner catching their scent.

With another sniff, the mysterious hound began to stir. The scales on its stomach seemed to radiate, and its eyes jolted open, revealing glowing circles beneath its lids. It pounced to its four massive paws, standing nearly four feet tall, its jaw opening to release a snarl. Drool fell from its massive canines before it launched itself forward.

Dagmara already held a throwing star in her hands and chucked it at the creature. It raked across the hound’s cheek, causing it to stumble, but it didn’t draw blood.

Martine launched herself across the cave, thrusting her sword underneath its neck. With a slick crunch, the sword went straight through the creature’s throat. Martine kicked the hound to dislodge her sword, and it collapsed onto the stone with a harsh thud.

Martine reached down to pick up Dagmara’s throwing star and examined it meticulously. “Where did you get these?”

Dagmara didn’t have time to answer. She heard more snarls and her attention was pulled to the gaping hole in the center of the room. One by one, the massive hounds began to crawl their way into the open, their talons scratching against the stone. They clobbered into one another, each fighting for the surface.

“Run!” Martine yelled at Dagmara, widening her stance as she prepared to fight.

Nearly a dozen hounds were making their way out into the open, and it was impossible to fight them all. And yet, Dagmara knew she wouldn’t be able to outrun them. However, it was either stay and be mauled to death, or run until her health gave out…then be mauled to death. She prayed her adrenaline would keep her heart in check.

“You can’t fight them alone, come with me!” Dagmara screamed. “Run!” She withdrew the jasny bomb from her belt and chucked it at the center of the room. In one bright explosion, the cave shook, and a few hounds stumbled back into the depths of the pit.

Martine let out a shriek, but used the distraction to take off running toward the exit. They could both hear the thumping of the hounds’ paws on the ground behind them. Dagmara severely underestimated their speed.

“Don’t stop!” Martine yelled before turning around to face the nearest hound. It clobbered her to the ground in seconds. Martine crashed to her back, thrusting her sword upward, and it caught in the hound’s massive jaw.

Skidding to a halt, Dagmara flung another throwing star at the hound who had Martine pinned. Her aim was true, this time lodging into a soft section directly behind its ear. It let out a loud cry before crumpling onto Martine in a heap.

The others were too close. Dagmara made eye contact with the nearest hound, seeing nothing but pure evil in its eyes. She stumbled back as the monster leapt for her, about to dig its talons into her chest. Moments before, a whiz of an arrow pierced through the air. It sliced through the scales of the hound, driving straight through its chest. The monster slammed against the wall and crumpled to the ground.

Glancing over her shoulder, Dagmara saw their rescuers. Claude stood in the center of the tunnel, flanked by his two guards. Pierre, the one who had pulled Dagmara from the balcony on the first day, was still holding the bow that saved her life. Claude wielded his shining sword, and the third man, his large size humorous in the narrow tunnel, wielded a longsword.

The king’s eyes glowed silver in the dimly lit space, and three large dogs manifested.

“Get down!” Claude yelled, his voice booming.

Dagmara obeyed immediately, dropping to the stone as his three dogs leapt forward into the oncoming hounds. Watching in fascination, Dagmara noticed that they were merely a distraction. The monstrous hounds went after the dogs, but they were projections of Claude’s mind and not a physical entity. The real hound’s talons raked through the air, unable to make contact with something that didn’t exist.

The burly guard raced into the chaos first, decapitating the first hound that leapt toward him.

Pierre fired an arrow into another violet creature’s chest before skidding to the ground beside Martine. He shoved the dead beast off her and helped her to her feet.

Claude didn’t race into battle. He strode into it. His dogs distracted the hounds so that Claude could slip behind one of the monsters and kill it in one blow.

Another creature leapt toward Claude, but he knocked it aside with his forearm before slaughtering it.

Blood splattered the walls, thick and black. The dozen hounds were eviscerated in moments. They stood no chance against the Guardian of the Mind and the Ilusaurian guards.

It was both horrifying and mesmerizing to watch how fluid Claude’s motions were as he killed one after another. He wasn’t even wearing armor, but voluntarily fought off the beasts. Dark blood splattered his clothes, his back muscles visible through the garment. Every thrust and stab of his sword should have sent pure fear through Dagmara, but there was an underlying attraction she didn’t want to admit. By the guardians, the Mad King was a force to be reckoned with, and Dagmara wanted more.

After Claude slayed the final monster, the cavern fell silent. His two guards scanned for more threats while he stood still, eyeing the destruction before him.