“Is everyone ready? Let’s give it our best!”
After my extrely short motivational speech, if you can even call it that, the light from the dungeon teleportation engulfs and my teammates. The first match is starting.
For this invasion, we aren’t bringing too many monsters with us. It’s just three sacrificial Imps from Laura, to help us against hordes of monsters or save the day in a pinch, two of Ricard’s skeleton archers, to help with focused damage, Clara’s most resilient aberration, to help with tanking as well as passive MP drain, and a very special monster of mine.
Did bringing those monsters with us lower our dungeon’s defense? Not by much. From the start, we intended to bring the imps with us, the lack of two skeletons won’t be noticeable, and the other two monsters aren’t powerful enough to change the outco by themselves.
We could have brought more monsters with us to ensure we safely reach the dungeon core, but it isn’t like bringing more support monsters is a good idea. Except for the last open field with the lakes, this dungeon is filled with narrow passages, where higher numbers are a disadvantage. Furthermore, the way the points are calculated, bringing the minimum amount of support monsters, is better. This, and making sure they don’t die, which ans that the more monsters we bring, the harder it’ll be for us.
Speed, clear rate, efficiency, and deaths are the four ways to obtain, or lose, points. The faster and further we go inside the other team’s dungeon, the more points we get. Destroying the dungeon core gives the most points; that part is obvious.
Then, we can get extra points depending on how efficiently we move around. Skillfully avoiding traps, killing enemies before they can strike back, and avoiding unnecessary fights. Or, falling for traps, taking extra damage, and allowing enemies to run away and co back later. All of that is taken into account for extra points and deductions, respectively.
And finally… Deaths.
Every ti one of us dies, we get a penalty. Support monsters’ deaths and, especially, players’ deaths (Champions) deduct a significant amount of points. The higher the unit’s cp cost, the higher the penalty.
This is how the DMA staff guarantees that only the best teams, those worthy of being watched by all the spectators, reach the ‘real’ tournant.
Anyway, let's forget about all that and focus on the dungeon.
As soon as the teleportation light disappears, I open my eyes… and imdiately regret it. “Oh, no…! Please, tell I’m dreaming.”
…You know what? I’ve changed my mind. I’d rather you don’t, I’m tired of nightmares.
Flashbacks of Clara’s dungeon co in droves. An old path, abandoned since ti immorial. Dark fog on both sides, moving around as if alive, extending tendrils towards us. The sa silence, the sa emptiness…
Why did it have to be this!? Why this of all things?
Watching the map, in which the entrance is always revealed, we thought this was a simple passage. But it turns out that what we thought were walls is, in fact, this Abyss-like, creepy fog.
At any mont now, I’m sure that those horrifying aberrations will co out of it and eat –
“Mad Rat!” Laura shakes by the shoulders. “Focus!”
“Uh, ah… yeah. Sorry…”
Yeah, let’s not forget. I’m not alone today. I’ve got my teammates with . I just need to leave everything to them while I keep my eyes closed… Quite a good tactic, if I say so myself.
I knew I’d have to face Abyss monsters today, that’s why I spent an hour or so mustering my almost non-existent courage. But nobody told I’d have to go inside an Abyss dungeon! That’s a whole different matter!
Wait. If this wall isn’t a wall but dark fog… doesn’t it an the ‘lakes’ will be like this too!? We’ll be surrounded by this fog on all sides, and monsters can co out at any ti!? What kind of joke is that!?
Will my teammates mind it if I tell them to go without ? I will just stay here and quietly wait for my death…
“Rember Mad Rat’s and Lemon's older sister's words,” Ricard says in a very serious tone. “A single error might cost us more points than we can imagine. We can’t allow any deaths. Do whatever it takes to avoid them.”
…Guess they won’t allow to stay here.
Laura sends a wary glare at Ricard, “...you’re the last person I want to hear this from.”
“Did you say anything?” Asks Ricard.
“No, I was just talking to myself, fufufu!”
Help! There’s a real demon in this Abyss dungeon! I don’t know if I should be more scared of the demon or the aberrations! Haha, just kidding. It’s the aberrations. It’s always them.
But, well, he’s indeed the most prone to ‘accidents’. Both because he’s the team’s tank, the most dangerous role, and because he’s sotis oblivious to his surroundings.
Before they can start arguing, I intervene and push the exploration forward. We can’t waste ti. The faster we move, the more points we’ll get. Can you believe it? I’m who has to stop them! Unbelievable! It’s the end of the world! If anything, it should be the other way around!
Okay, okay… I’m the party leader, so it’s kind of my job. But still…
We take the usual formation with Ricard at the front and start moving forward. Hehe, suffer, Ricard. Eat all the monsters’ aggro so I don’t have to.
The oppressive atmosphere makes shudder as I move forward, safely tucked in the middle of the group. Surrounded by our support mobs, except Clara’s terrifying minion, who’s holding the rearguard, I feel like a kindergarten teacher surrounded by children. The difference? That this teacher is using the children as a atshield.
Ricard stops. “They’re here. Get ready for battle.”
“What’s here? I don’t see anything?” Clara tilts her head. But she’s right behind Ricard, so whatever he has seen, Clara quickly sees it too. “Ah, it’s shadows! Like a horror movie!”
From within the fog, darker silhouettes start appearing all around us. They crawl closer with an unsteady gait, eerie blue eyes observing our every move.
The sight of the blue burning eyes calms down. “Ah, it’s just the undead– Kyaaaaaah!”
A black tentacle suddenly shoots out of the mist, grabbing one of Laura’s sacrificial Imps, dragging it into the fog. Laura, knowing that the Imp is very weak and is already dood, quickly gives the order, and the Imp activates its special skill I’m The Bait, taunting every enemy in a large radius.
“Wait! I don’t think this is a good idea–”
My warning is too late. The shadows turn their glowing eyes towards the Imp at the sa ti, and as if in a frenzy, they disregard everything else to approach Laura’s minion. The ones on the sa side as the Imp are fine; they just jump at our monster, revealing themselves in the process. The problem is those on the right side. They, rushing straight ahead, cross right through our formation to reach the other side.
Skeletons crash through our formation, with their glowing eyes and sothing else attached on top, obscuring their torsos from my view. Sothing with a disgusting amount of tiny tentacles, swirling around as if they were real hair.
As soon as the monsters reveal themselves, Ricard warns, “Those are the support skeletons I told you about. The Abyss monsters latched onto them, must have poison touch or area skills, stay alert.”
I shiver at the horrors approaching . As if the Abyss monsters weren’t enough by themselves, now they look as if they ate their victims and used their remains as hosts to find new victims. As if even eternal rest wasn’t allowed!
“I-It touched . It t-touched …!” I panic.
The horrors congregate around the temporarily invulnerable Imp. That’s the only reason it’s still alive. Soon, we can only see a dark clump near the fog’s edge, as well as the monster’s eerie blue eyes.
anwhile, the rest of my teammates and support monsters remain in position, waiting for my orders. Orders I can’t give because I’m not in the right state of mind.
“Brother, it’s your turn!”
“A-ah, yes, I know!” I must, purify, the EVIL. I must do it before they scatter. “Chain Lighting!”
I don’t know about the Abyss monsters, but the skeletons are weak. Chain Lightning should be very effective here.
Lightning leaves my hand, jumping towards the clumped enemies. I watch as the lighting jumps from one monster to the next, and the double HP bars, one for the skeleton and one for whatever that thing is, fall until they’re almost empty, leaving them stunned at one HP.
Since the fog obscures them and I can only see their silhouettes, it’s bearable. I can keep my eyes on them without feeling the urge to close my eyes and run away.
“Now!” I shout, “Go and kill them!”
Following my orders, my teammates quickly jump into the fog to deal the finishing blows. Like this, with a single support monster’s death and one spell cast, we safely and effectively deal with the first monster encounter. It’s good for our score, but…
…but what about my sanity!?
“Aaaaaagh! Save ! Soone, save eeee!” I run as if my life depended on it. Which it does. If I get caught, I’ll never be the sa ever again. “Aaaaaaaaaaaah…!”
My eyes spin in a panic. There’s nowhere I can safely place them. I an it literally.
Do you rember that monster I used from the Dream Vestiges faction a long ti ago? The one that paralyzed the invaders if they locked eyes for so ti? This is the sa, except on a much larger scale.
The ground is covered with eyes. The sa with the columns, which resemble life-like monsters, and even the ceiling. If I keep my eyes on any elent for too long, I’ll be paralyzed… and then die.
Andreu, ignore the eyes. Ignore the eyes and the mouths and the tentacles trying to grab my ankles and the disgustingly humid and putrid sll as if I were inside a giant abyss creature, and the…
…just ignore everything and keep running, Andreu!
*Thuk, thuk, thuk, thuk…* Each ti I hear the wet sound of the monster’s steps behind , a shiver runs down my spine.
A group of six monsters is chasing after . With eyes at the tips of their six tentacles – the source of that squishy sound every ti they take a step forward – and a large mouth on both the top and bottom halves of their bodies, the half-ter-tall monsters shift forward with moves that are a mix of a caterpillar, a tumbleweed, and a cockroach.
Please, don’t ask how that’s even possible. I have no idea.
As if those weren’t enough, two large balloon-like monsters, those with eyes that turn into mouths that turn into eyes to restart the cycle, are chasing from behind the other six.
“Save eeee! I can’t do this anymooooore!”
Why did it have to be !? It makes no sense! I understand that, excluding Laura’s Blink, which consus MP, I’m regrettably the fastest. But this doesn’t an I have to be the one to do it!
I suddenly turn, taking a side passage. My feet slightly sink into the squishy ground, but I refuse to acknowledge it and sprint forward.
As soon as the monsters turn around the corner to chase after , the ‘squishy ground’ suddenly lifts, engulfing them. The two floating balloons, slightly late to the party, are spared from the trauma.
“Stop running, Mad Rat. You’re safe now.” Laura tries to calm down. But I…
“No! Never!”
…I keep running.
“Rember to heal The Surprise so it doesn’t die, Lily,” says Ricard. “Our dungeon exploration will be a lot easier if we keep it up like this.”
“Don’t have to tell .”
Laura makes a sour face, possibly recalling the ti when she was trapped inside The Surprise, and starts healing my monster, making sure it doesn’t die. The Surprise’s body shakes under the constant struggle of the six Abyss creatures, but it holds thanks to Laura’s healing.
As I’ve said before. The best offense is a good defense. If you can place a trap and drag the enemy into it, that’s the most effective way to kill them.
It’s just… Why …? Why did I have to be the one to bait them here!?
“Baldy, help deal with Wayr and Matilda,” says Clara, pointing at the two floating horrors. “Let’s see who kills them first! Hehehe!”
Damn, my little sister… She even gave them nas!?
‘The one on the left is Charlie, the one in the middle is Gargantua, and the last one is Paul, who you already know from our last invasion. The next group is–’
‘Ugh, I don’t feel that good… Can we stop doing this?’
‘But you told it was fine if I showed you the photos…! Muu, so unfair!’
‘Fine… You can continue.’
‘Okaay! So, as I was saying, this is Caroline, this is Milky, this one with the cute bowtie is Baton, and then this one with the slightly lighter tole is Caral. Oh, and then it’s…’
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