The expedition team snapped into the formation they had planned.
The students formed a tight knot in the center. Some raised weak protective wards from their mystic art.
The two professors were with them. Using their grimoire spells to target opponents from ranged distance.
The guardians, meanwhile, became a whirling wall of death on the perimeter.
The steamrune shotgun in Jack's right hand boomed. And a lizardman's chest erupted. The [Chains of Vengeance] simultaneously erupted from his left bracer. Lashing and entangling with other lizardmen.
Reina's handguns cracked with deadly precision. Each shot found its target in an eye or an open mouth. She would disappear in a puff of smoke, reappear several meters away, fire two more shots, and vanish again. She was like a ghost in the red grass.
Leon Drake fought like a spell-casting knight. Ignoring attacks that failed to penetrate his draconic armor. And casting lightning-based grimoire spells that blasted the crimson lizardmen.
It was a hard fight. But it was still manageable. The lizardmen were fierce and many. But they were disorganized. The expedition team was holding its own. Weathering the storm.
That was when an unexpected thing happened. That was when the shadow appeared.
It was different from the lizardmen. It didn't erupt from the grass. It flowed from it. A patch of shadowy darkness that seemed to glide among the tall, red grass.
It ignored the fighting guardians. Sliding through the chaos with a singular purpose. It bypassed Dr. Crafton's [Water Wall]. It effortlessly evaded the students' attacking spells.
It went straight for Chloe Chase.
A tendril of pure darkness lashed out. Not to strike. But to wrap. It coiled around her mouth. Stifling her scream. And another moved around her waist. Yanking her off her feet.
In the blink of an eye, the shadowy entity had its prize. And quickly, it was fleeing south. Moving with impossible speed towards the distant rocky hill to the south.
"Chloe!" Dr. Crafton screamed.
Jack saw it the moment it happened. His mind, already operating on a battlefield calculus, processed it instantly. The precision. The target selection. This wasn't a random snatch. This was specifically targeted.
Why her? The question immediately appeared in his mind. Was it her Fortune Inheritance? Did she possess something else? Was it...
Many questions were about to appear in Jack's mind. But it wasn't the time for that. A student he was supposed to guard was kidnapped. And it was Chloe Chase. One of his first 'friends' in this world. He had to act.
"I'll get her back! Reina! Hold the line!" He shouted.
"Dear..."
"You know how to track me. Use the card." He reminded her.
He had given his [Blood Oath Tracks] spellcard to her. It was the special tracking card he acquired from the coin used to summon the ghost ship. The one in Sapphire City's case. It was useless for him as he had Rune. But, for Reina, when they got separated, it would definitely be useful.
Jack said no more words. He trusted her to understand. He broke from the perimeter. Kicking a lizardman on his way aside effortlessly.
"Rune! Track them!" He commanded.
The fairy blazed a brilliant blue and shot forward like a sapphire comet. Jack sprinted after her. His feet pounded against the strange earth rapidly. Following the guiding light of the mechanical fairy without any hesitation.
The sounds of the ongoing battle behind him faded rapidly. Replaced by the rustle of the red grass.
Once they were out of sight, Jack activated his [Incarnation Shift]. Transforming into his kamaitachi form.
Instantly, his human form shrunk and morphed. Turning into a much smaller, sleeker shape... Racer Jack. The Kamaitachi Speedster.
He was now shaped like a lean, humanoid weasel standing on two legs. With razor-sharp natural blades on his arms and tail. The kamaitachi form was built for quick traversal and sharp, slicing action.
Rune morphed along with Jack. She was now a winged fur-ball. Glowing even brighter blue as she led him on a straight path. To the south.
Both of them moved like lightning. Traveling in incredible speed along the edge of the amber-leafed forest. Toward a sheer rock face that rose from the plain.
They were fast. Soon, they saw Chloe and the shadow in front of them. Jack sped up to chase further. But, their target disappeared.
Jack stopped before what appeared to be a solid wall of rock. A cliff.
Rune was pulsing in a deep, warning magenta hue. Pointing to one place.
Jack looked at the rock wall she pointed at. It was covered with thorny vines and strange moss. All were red and black in colors. There seemed to be something behind the vines and the moss.
He shoved the vegetation aside. Revealing a narrow, dark opening into the cliffside. A hidden cave.
The air that wafted out was cold. And it smelled of damp stone and something else… something bitter and old.
He plunged inside. The light from the entrance disappeared quickly. Rune's glow became his only light. Casting long, dancing shadows on the rough-hewn walls. Fortunately, Jack could see through the darkness without any problem.
Jack kept moving. Following Rune's guidance. The tunnel descended sharply.
He hadn't gone more than a few minutes when the shadows ahead of Rune's light detached from the walls. They solidified into hunched, spindly forms. Dark creatures with glowing yellow eyes and wide, gnashing mouths.
They looked like goblins sketched in burnt charcoal and shifting nightmare. Their forms were unstable. Flickering at the edges. A term appeared in Jack's mind right away. Shadowlings.
They let out a chorus of chittering clicks and launched themselves at him.
Jack could have faced them in his kamaitachi form. With his super speed and phantasmal skills. But he was in a hurry at the moment. Chloe's situation was still unknown.
He rushed forward. Not even breaking his stride. He activated his [Incarnation Shift] mid-stride. Reaching for the familiar and terrifying existence of his brutal rakshasa form.
His kamaitachi form blurred. Just in a second, it expanded and twisted into a much bigger and tougher build.
His fur turned into skin that was darkened to the reddish black color. His mantle transformed into flaming armor. Hair grew on his head and became thick dark mane. His teeth shifted into sharp, jagged, tiny blades.
In the span of a single breath, the humanoid weasel was gone. Replaced by the Black Buto. Judge Jack. The hulking, armored black rakshasa.
The first shadow goblin reached him. Jack's arm swept out casually. Slapping. It was now double the thickness compared to the one in his human form. But, his palm passed through the creature's insubstantial form.
The shadowling shrieked. Not in pain. But in rage. I wasn't hurt. Yet, its form dissipated and then hastily re-coalesced. Physical attacks were less effective against these creatures. Troublesome.
Jack reached out and drew his weapon from his system inventory. The [Judgement Warhammer]. It was a brutishly simple weapon that mostly dealt physical damage. But it had a chance to deal true judgement critical damage. Bypassing the creatures' physical immunity.
By itself, it wasn't reliable enough to clash with these shadowy monsters. But, that wasn't his only trump card.
In this form, Jack was a Primordial Warrior. And recently, when learning the Trentree's martial art, the [Dance Principles], he had incidentally comprehended the main characteristic of the class.
"Primordial Aura..." Jack muttered.
An ancient spark of life seemed to ignite in Jack's blazing eyes. Red lightning sparks crackle all over his body. And his war hammer.
Sensing the threat, the shadowlings charged at the rakshasa. Their shadowy limbs turned into various sharp and blunt weapons.
Jack growled. The runes on the hammer's head flared with a pure, crimson light as he swung it in a low, horizontal arc.
BANG!
It didn't just hit the closest, charging shadowling. It demolished the creature. Completely. As the hammer head struck the monster, its form exploded and seemed to evaporate. Accompanied with a final, hair-raising scream.
The other shadowlings recoiled. Their vicious eyes were now wide with a new, primal fear.
Jack advanced. A huge fiend full of black muscles and unstoppable destruction. Each swing of the hammer was a thunderclap in the confined space. Each collision of hammer head against the shadowling resulted in complete annihilation for the monsters.
The shadowlings roared in rage and fear. They lunged at Jack. Their weapon-transformed limbs were swung to his body.
Jack ignored their attacks. Instead, he swung his [Judgement Warhammer] with right hand and unleashed his [Chains of Vengeance] with his other hand. Meeting their attacks with brutal counter-attacks.
He was an unstoppable force of nature. An engine of destruction carving a path through the darkness. He kept moving forward. He did not slow. He did not stop.
Somewhere down this tunnel was Chloe. One of his first friends. And he had given his words that he would take her back.
Jack kept moving. Each of his step was deliberate. Each swing of his hammer was a final sentence delivered to his enemy. He was getting more determined. And the shadowling was getting smaller in numbers.
Very soon, the last shadowling dissolved into nothing. Fallen under his final, crushing blow.
The tunnel fell silent. Save for the slightly ragged, steaming breath puffing from the rakshasa's nostrils.
Rune, now in her tiny dragon form, pulsed ahead. Her light was now repeatedly changing from a steady, determined blue and vigilant red. She pointing the way deeper into the earth.
Jack hefted the [Judgement Warhammer] onto his shoulder. He moved forward.
The cave deepened. Leading him down into the bowels of the strange realm.