17 Sea of the Undead
Félix did not possess a combat class, but he had his own way of fighting and keeping himself safe if necessary. Two platinum spheres emerged from his inventory, floating in the air before transforming into two platinum robots.
"Your Majesty, meet Platinum 1 and Platinum 2. I built them myself."
Félix picked up a PS controller and proudly showed off his robots to Alex.
The orcs attacked furiously, consumed by rage. Arnaldo's body was enveloped in a golden aura.
"These orcs are just stragglers. You don't need to get involved. I'll take care of all of them in a few moments so we can move forward quickly."
Arnaldo drew his weapon from his inventory: a golden sword engraved with a dragon. It radiated a bright glow despite the darkness of the surrounding dungeon. Strangely, the sword pulsed as if it were alive.
His body emitted a tremendous golden aura, accompanied by an intense wave of heat that distorted the air and caused the orcs to hesitate briefly, but only for a second.
The monsters roared in unison, baring their yellowed fangs. Their bulging muscles, green skin marked with black stripes, and red eyes revealed their furious state. They charged like a frenzied pack, raising their spears and axes.
As mentioned, Arnaldo attacked alone. The ground cracked beneath his movements. In the blink of an eye, he vanished from the sight of those watching. Then, a golden flash appeared, decapitating an orc warrior. His second move caused three more warriors to fall lifelessly, unable to understand what had happened.
The monsters fell upon their dead comrades, while the golden aura repelled every attack the warriors attempted, generating metallic crackles that echoed across the battlefield. He swung his sword in a wide arc, releasing a wave of energy that pushed back the enemy line and felled ten warriors at once.
It was no longer a battle. It was a one-sided massacre at Arnaldo's hands. With every swing of his blade, bodies were decapitated in midair and shattered into bloody messes.
After a short time, the last warrior fell to the ground, bringing a silence that engulfed the entire place. The ground was covered with the corpses of monsters, with blood scattered everywhere. Yet the golden aura protected him, and not a single bloodstain marred his body.
"Bravo. With the Sword Saint here, I can conserve my boys' energy," Félix said, applauding his team leader's feat.
"Don't celebrate victory before the war," Joana said, placing her hands on the ground. With her brow furrowed, she continued speaking.
"Leader, I'm sensing a strong necromantic aura coming from the west of the dungeon. It seems to be the same aura we felt at Galax Aiz."
To corroborate Joana's discovery, Félix activated a holographic screen and shared his analysis.
"Even though it's a dungeon breach, the energy is very chaotic. It looks like all the energy is concentrating at a specific point in this region."
Félix pointed to a location on the map displayed on his holographic screen, and everyone shared their opinions.
"Isn't it strange that there are so few monsters, even after walking a kilometer?"
After walking for a while, Alex asked, noticing the dark atmosphere that had begun to envelop them. They continued moving but found no monster nests, which left Alex quite puzzled. Being a novice, he could only voice his concern after giving it some thought.
"It is really strange," Joana said, analyzing the environment.
"Félix, conduct a reconnaissance of the area with the highest energy concentration."
Following Arnaldo's guidance, Félix ordered Platinum 1, which glowed with a metallic sheen before transforming into a drone. To provide additional support and extend their range, Platinum 2 followed as well.
"I've found a barrier at the entrance of a dark cave."
"Let's take a look," Arnaldo said, leading the way.
"Leader, if we cross this barrier, we will be noticed by whoever installed it."
The atmosphere thickened as a dense fog filled the air, carrying a petrifying stench that reached everyone's nostrils.
As Alex, Arnaldo, Joana, and Félix crossed the magical barrier, the natural light vanished, replaced by a grim twilight. The air became heavy, as if every breath were impregnated with dust.
The ground was covered with countless small craters, with cracks extending in every direction. A black liquid dripped from the ceiling, vanishing before reaching the cracked floor. Everyone felt suffocated, as if the dungeon itself were rotting them from within.
System Notice: You are in a death environment. You will lose 1 HP per minute.
"Leader, I can't stay here. My class only has 200 HP."
Everyone received a similar system notification, but only Félix trembled in fear at the HP loss. His class was not a combat type, so leveling up provided very little HP.
"Let's finish this dungeon as quickly as possible, and if anyone falls below 30% of their HP, we will abandon the mission and try again later with proper preparation."
Félix felt more at ease upon hearing Arnaldo's words, and Joana and Alex also seemed calmer.
As they walked, Alex felt a shiver run through him. An invisible pressure built around them, altering the weight of the very air. His gravitational authority enveloped his body, activating his gravitational defense.
They moved through a narrow corridor where the stone walls were covered in veins that pulsed like a living organism. With each step, the atmosphere grew darker, and the stench of decomposing flesh intensified, causing nausea.
A crawling sound echoed through the drones. Irregular, heavy footsteps lurked in the shadows. Alex expected common monsters, but what emerged made his stomach churn.
Men and women wearing hunter armor and typical outfits, but with lifeless eyes and gray, rotting skin, advanced toward them while wielding weapons coated in dried blood. Their movements were clumsy, yet they possessed a strength that was completely unnatural.
"Reanimated corpses… damn necromancers," Joana said, taking a step back.
Félix's platinum drones illuminated the dark corridor, revealing more than forty undead approaching from multiple directions.
"We're surrounded. Leader, what do we do, damn it?"
Alex tried to use his gravitational authority to repel a reanimated hunter, but he felt resistance, as if something heavier than their physical bodies were holding them in place.