Chapter 80 The Greatsword

As the group descended deeper into the mine, their sense of worry began to mount. They had been working for almost an hour, clearing one floor after another, but the descent seemed endless. The walls and floor of the mine were rough and jagged, and the only light came from the flickering pearl that David carried.

Each time they cleared a floor, the group paused to inspect it for anything of value. But to their growing frustration, they found nothing but debris, and the remains of any armor or weapons they found were rusted beyond repairs. The silence in the mine was oppressive, broken only by the sound of their footsteps and the occasional drip of water from the ceiling.

David was starting to panic. "This is madness," he muttered. "We're wasting our time here. There's nothing to be gained from this, and we're risking our lives for nothing."

 Larry tried to calm him down, assuring him that they would find something of value soon. But David was not convinced. "We're being used as fools," he insisted. "The reward for this should be ten times bigger. We should retreat while we still can."

As the group continued their descent, the sense of unease grew stronger. They couldn't shake the feeling that they were being watched, and that something was lurking in the shadows just out of sight. The Pearl light cast eerie shadows on the walls, and every creak or groan of the mine seemed like a harbinger of doom.

Suddenly, there was a loud crash, and the ground beneath their feet shook violently. The group stumbled and fell, and David dropped the pearl by the impact. In the darkness, they could hear a low growling sound. The scrape of metal and sparks dragging across the stone floor illuminated a figure. David's heart was pounding with fear, he lost the pearl, and the dark settle in. Larry realized that without the light they are dead.

As Suzuka caught sight of the approaching figure, her heart raced and her instincts took over. In an instant, she triggered her full body transformation, feeling her muscles bulge and her senses sharpen. Her yellow eyes turned red and flickered with a glow as she surveyed the darkness, seeing everything with a clarity that normal humans could only dream of.

And what she saw was enough to make her blood run cold. The monster before her was a Skull Knight, a notorious 3-star threat-level creature known for its terrifying strength and insatiable hunger for human flesh. This was no ordinary opponent like the weak Zimmers she had defeated before; this would be a true test of her abilities.

Suzuka watched as the Skull Knight lumbered closer, his massive frame draped in rusted armor that had once been grand but now seemed twisted and malevolent. The monster dragged a towering longsword behind him, its blade covered in blood and gore.

Suzuka tensed, ready to strike, as the Skull Knight let out a bloodcurdling howl. She knew that the creature was about to unleash a ferocious assault, and she steeled herself. As the two foes closed in on each other, David and Larry were blinded by the darkness of the mine. 

 David and Larry watched in terror as the Skull knight and Suzuka closed in on each other. The only source of light was the occasional rain of sparks as their blades collided, illuminating mysterious red eyes that darted around in the darkness of the mine. The clash of swords was deafening. David and Larry could do nothing but wait for the outcome, blinded by the darkness.

Suddenly, there was a loud thud, and the sound of metal hitting the ground echoed through the mine. They held their breath, unsure of what had just happened. It wasn't until Suzuka walked over to them and picked up the pearl that David dropped. She focused her mana on it, and a bright light illuminated the area. As the light subsided, they saw Suzuka in her normal form, holding the pearl.

But their relief was short-lived, as they then saw the Skull knight lying motionless on the ground, headless. The sight of the lifeless body sent shivers down their spines, and they couldn't help but wonder what kind of dark magic had been at play. The stillness of the scene was only interrupted by their labored breathing, as they tried to make sense of the horror that had just unfolded before them.

Suzuka grabbed David by his clothes and pulled him up on his feet while handing him over the pearl, "You had one JOB, David! To keep the light going. Now, I don't care if that skull knight killed you. But because of you, Larry could have died today, isn't he your friend? We did all the work here and what you did, almost get us killed."

Larry stepped in to calm Suzuka down, "Hey, hey now. Let's keep it cool, I know David slipped with that light, but cut the man some slack, please. I am almost as upset as you are but a conflict won't solve anything. Let's leave that for after we get back to the guild, okay?"

Suzuka walked off to inspect The skull knight while Larry continue speaking with David. As they were speaking Suzuka shouted, "Dibs on the greatsword!" 

"David, buddy. Look... one slip-up, don't let it get to you, okay? Everyone makes mistakes, don't worry about it just learn from your mistakes, it's all about the experience. Now turn that frown upside down and let's go on, eh?" Larry knew, no matter what, no matter how angry he is, he needed to maintain a positive mood in their group.

"Larry, thanks for the kind words... but she is right. I let you down... you almost died because of me, we almost died. Larry, you are my best and only buddy... you did so much for me, and not just me, for a lot of rookies like me. You've been landing me on your shoulder since I was 10, helping me out. And what do I do? I almost got you killed Larry, I don't know how to make up to you."  

 Larry's eyes were fixed on his friend's face, and he could see the pain and regret etched into every line. He knew his friend was suffering, he wanted to ease his burden. But even charismatic Larry was struggling to come up with the next sentence. The weight of the near-death experience still hung heavily on him, and he struggled to find the right words.

Finally, he spoke. "Listen, man. I know you're hurting right now. And I'm not gonna lie. What happened out there scared the hell out of me. But we're both still alive, and that's all that matters. We can't change what happened, but we can choose how we move forward. You don't owe me anything, buddy. I was happy to be there for you, and I'll always be there for you. That's what friends do. So let's put this behind us and keep moving forward together. What do you say?"

David thanked Larry for his kind words and said, "Thanks, Larry. Let's get moving. I'm fine now." David felt a sense of relief wash over him as Larry reassured him that everything was okay. 

They continued their descent into the mine, grateful that Skull Knight was no longer there to summon more Zimmers. As they trekked through the dark caverns, their footsteps echoed eerily off the walls. As they journeyed further into the mine, the Zimmers dwindled in number until only a handful remained. They killed a total number of 112 Zimmers and one Skull Knight.

Finally, they reached the end of the mine and entered the final room, where David placed the pearl in the center. The room was disappointingly empty, with no valuable loot to be found.

Just as they were about to give up, David noticed something glinting in the corner of his eye. A big bead-shaped mana core was buried in a massive pile of boulders and debris. David was curious and started to dig, hoping to uncover something of value. He finally unearthed the core, examining it closely.

"Hey, look what I found!" He called out to Larry. "I'll try to focus some mana in it, maybe it will illuminate the room, and we can see better." 

But David was taken aback when Larry let out a sudden and uncommonly panicked shout, "Noooo! Don't!"

David's heart sank as he realized he had made a grave mistake. Despite the warning, he had already poured a small amount of mana into it. To his horror, the once-inactive core began to pulse with life, and a faint rumbling sound filled the air.

With a gasp, David stumbled backward, his eyes locked on the core as it crackled with ominous energy. As he turned to run toward Larry and Suzuka, his heart raced with fear and his mind whirled with panic. What had he done? And how would he stop this now?

As he reached his friends, they turned to look at him, their expressions filled with hate and anger. They could hear the sounds of rocks shifting and grinding against each other, growing louder by the second.

At that moment, all three of them watched in growing horror as a massive pile of boulders began to circle around the core, their movements becoming more and more coordinated until they finally coalesced into a towering Rock Golem. It stood at least four times the height of a human, almost reaching the ceiling of the cave room.

The golem's eyes glowed with an otherworldly light, and as it took its first steps, the cave trembled under its weight, and the walls and ceilings started to crack making the place unstable. David and Larry were frozen in terror, unable to move. Suzuka said with a touch of sarcasm, "Good job David, Skull knight didn't finish us off so you decided to settle with The Rock Golem. Are you serious right now? We should leave you here as bait to escape ourselves!" 

But as she finished that sentence, she remembered how she was left behind by Clive for Razor Rabbits to kill her, then she apologized, "Sorry, I didn't mean it. We will get out of here."

She looked at Larry, he was fazed by the monster before him, "Larry! Focus! The whole place is coming down, I will hold him back with my magic. Slap some sense in David and get out of here! Go!" 

Larry grabbed David by the shirt, "Let's GO! No time to be scared! Every second counts, we need to get out before this place collapses!" 

Larry turned to Suzuka as he ran, "Whatever you do! Don't attack the mana core with your box power! It will not damage it. Golem core will leech the mana from your spell to power itself!" 

"Wait what?! Then how am I supposed to kill it?" Suzuka asked but Larry was already gone. 

Summoning her gravity magic, Suzuka sent a barrage of energy blasts toward the rock golem's core, hoping to destroy it before it could absorb her magic. However, to her dismay, the golem was able to deflect her attacks with ease, and she realized that she needed to change her strategy.

She used full transformation again, gripped tight the massive greatsword she looted from Skull Knight, and charged toward the golem, dodging its powerful attacks and unleashing a series of devastating blows to its body. With each hit, she could feel the golem's stony exterior cracking and crumbling under her assault.

But as she continued to fight, Suzuka noticed that the golem's core was starting to pulse with an ominous light. She knew that she needed to finish the fight quickly, she used her magic to enforce the power of her swing on greatsword and delivered a powerful blow. The body of the golem crumbled but her greatsword shattered.