The moment the crimson light filled the chamber, the atmosphere changed completely.
The ancient room that had once been silent and forgotten was suddenly illuminated by dozens of burning eye sockets.
Skeletons rose from the floor one after another.
Their ancient armor was blackened with age, yet flames burned through the gaps between their bones. Crimson fire crawled across rusted breastplates and broken shields, while their weapons ignited with the same unnatural heat.
The sound of bones scraping against stone echoed throughout the chamber.
Clack.
Clack.
Clack.
Fayzan tightened his grip around his sword.
His eyes moved across the room.
There were too many to count at a glance.
Some carried swords.
Others held spears.
A few wore ancient robes and carried charred staffs.
They were no longer corpses.
They were guardians.
And every single one of them was staring directly at the three intruders.
Ramos slowly stepped backward.
"...I suddenly regret coming here."
Ryota immediately moved in front of him.
"Stay behind me."
Ramos nodded rapidly.
"I wasn't planning on doing anything else."
A skeleton suddenly screamed.
The sound wasn't human.
It was a distorted shriek that sounded as though wind was being forced through a furnace.
Then—
all of them charged.
"Here they come!"
Fayzan stepped forward.
His sword immediately ignited.
The first skeleton swung its burning blade downward.
Fayzan blocked.
CLANG!
Sparks erupted between the two weapons.
The heat from the skeleton's sword spread across Fayzan's blade.
He gritted his teeth.
"...Hot."
The skeleton pushed harder.
Fayzan suddenly shifted his stance.
His sword slid beneath the enemy weapon.
Then—
he stepped forward.
"[Sword Skill: Searing Flare]!"
Flames exploded across his blade.
Fayzan thrust forward.
BOOOOOOM!
The sword struck the skeleton directly in the chest.
A concentrated wave of fire erupted from the point of impact.
The skeleton was launched backward like a projectile.
It crashed against the stone wall.
CRAAAAASH!
Its armor shattered.
Bones scattered across the floor.
The flames surrounding its body flickered once...
Then disappeared.
Fayzan immediately turned toward the next enemy.
"One down."
Another skeleton charged him.
Then another.
Fayzan didn't retreat.
He stepped into their attacks.
His sword flashed repeatedly.
Every strike was deliberate.
Every movement carried momentum.
One skeleton swung horizontally.
Fayzan ducked beneath the attack.
His sword swept upward.
SLASH!
The skeleton's arm was severed.
Before it could recover—
Fayzan spun.
His blade struck its ribs.
BOOM!
The skeleton flew backward.
It shattered against another undead warrior.
Both collapsed into piles of burning bones.
Across the room—
Ryota was fighting as well.
But unlike Fayzan...
his attention wasn't entirely on the enemies.
He constantly glanced toward Ramos.
The NPC remained behind him, gripping his equipment bag tightly.
One skeleton attempted to circle around Ryota.
Ryota noticed immediately.
He stepped sideways.
The skeleton's burning spear passed inches from his shoulder.
Ryota grabbed the weapon shaft.
Then twisted.
CRACK!
The spear snapped.
The skeleton stumbled forward.
Ryota's fist immediately followed.
[Unique Skill: Scalular Impact]
BAAAAAAM!
The punch struck the skeleton's chest.
The force sent it flying backward.
It crashed into the floor and rolled several meters before coming to a stop.
Ryota immediately turned.
Another skeleton was approaching Ramos.
"Ramos!"
The NPC froze.
The burning undead raised its sword.
Ryota sprinted.
He reached Ramos just before the blade descended.
CLANG!
Ryota intercepted the strike.
The impact shook his arms.
He pushed the skeleton away.
"Stay close!"
Ramos nodded desperately.
"I'M TRYING!"
Ryota kicked the skeleton backward.
Then immediately swung his sword.
SLASH!
The skeleton's head flew from its body.
The burning skull rolled across the floor.
Its flames flickered.
Then vanished.
Ramos stared.
"...You really are strong."
Ryota smiled faintly.
"Just stay behind me."
Another wave of skeletons charged.
Fayzan met them head-on.
His blade erupted with fire once more.
[Sword Skill: Searing Flare]
BOOOOOOM!
The burning slash tore through the first skeleton.
The impact launched it into the second.
The two undead crashed into the wall together.
Fayzan didn't stop.
He advanced.
One strike.
Two strikes.
Three.
Every blow shattered another piece of ancient armor.
Every impact sent another skeleton crashing into the dungeon walls.
The flames around his sword reflected across the chamber.
Ryota fought beside him.
The two moved surprisingly well together despite having never formally trained as a team.
Fayzan attacked aggressively.
Ryota protected the rear.
Whenever an enemy tried to bypass Fayzan—
Ryota intercepted it.
Whenever Ryota became surrounded—
Fayzan broke through the formation.
The skeletons began falling faster.
One after another.
Until eventually...
The final skeleton raised its burning sword.
Fayzan and Ryota both looked toward it.
The undead hesitated.
Then charged.
Fayzan stepped forward.
Ryota moved from the opposite side.
Both attacked simultaneously.
BOOOOOOOOOOM!
The skeleton shattered between them.
Burning bones scattered across the floor.
The crimson flames gradually disappeared.
Silence returned.
The chamber was once again filled with nothing but dust and the faint smell of ash.
Fayzan lowered his sword.
Ryota slowly exhaled.
"...That was more than I expected."
Fayzan wiped sweat from his forehead.
"Same."
Ryota immediately turned around.
"Ramos?"
The NPC stood frozen in place.
His eyes were still wide.
Ryota approached him.
"Are you okay?"
Ramos blinked several times.
Then nodded.
"Yes."
He looked down at himself.
"Nothing touched me."
Ryota smiled.
"Good."
Fayzan sheathed his sword.
"Then let's keep moving."
Ramos looked toward the darkness beyond the chamber.
"...You two really want to continue?"
Ryota nodded.
"We came here for a reason."
Fayzan grinned.
"And we've barely started."
Ramos sighed.
"...I knew you were going to say that."
The dungeon became increasingly complicated as they traveled deeper.
The straightforward corridors eventually transformed into a maze.
Some passages ended abruptly.
Others split into three or four separate routes.
Ancient symbols covered the walls.
Occasionally, faint magical lights flickered beneath the stone.
Ryota began paying closer attention to the ground.
"This place is full of traps."
Fayzan nodded.
"I noticed."
The first trap was simple.
A pressure plate.
Ryota noticed the slightly raised stone before anyone stepped on it.
He pointed.
"Don't step there."
Ramos immediately stopped.
"...Good catch."
Ryota carefully moved around it.
A few seconds later—
a stone dart fired from the wall.
FWOOOSH!
It slammed into the opposite wall.
Ramos stared.
"...That would've killed me."
"Probably."
"Please stop saying things like that."
Ryota laughed.
They continued.
The second trap was more dangerous.
The third...
Even worse.
Eventually they reached a narrow hallway.
Ramos walked between Ryota and Fayzan.
He was looking toward the ceiling when—
CLICK.
His foot pressed against something.
Ramos froze.
"..."
Ryota's eyes widened.
"Ramos."
"...Yes?"
"Don't move."
Ramos slowly looked down.
A tiny mechanism had activated beneath his foot.
His face immediately turned white.
"...Oh no."
THUNK!
A hidden compartment opened in the wall.
A massive arrow shot across the corridor.
FWOOOOOSH!
It passed directly beside Ramos's face.
The wind generated by the projectile violently moved his hair.
The arrow slammed into the opposite wall.
BOOM!
Ramos screamed.
"AAAAAAAAAH!"
He dropped to the floor.
Ryota immediately grabbed his shoulder.
"Are you okay?!"
Ramos stared at the enormous arrow embedded in the stone.
Then slowly looked at Ryota.
"...I almost died."
Fayzan tried not to laugh.
He failed.
Ramos glared at him.
"This isn't funny!"
"Sorry."
Fayzan turned away.
His shoulders were still shaking.
Ryota sighed.
"Come on."
"Let's keep moving."
Ramos reluctantly stood.
"...I hate adventuring."
Eventually, after another long series of corridors, the dungeon suddenly became quiet.
Too quiet.
The three slowed their pace.
The corridor ahead widened.
Ancient pillars emerged from the darkness.
At the end of the chamber stood something completely different from everything they had encountered so far.
A massive door.
It was constructed from a dark stone unlike the surrounding walls.
Its surface was perfectly preserved.
Not a single crack.
Not a single piece of erosion.
At the center—
was a massive red crest.
The symbol resembled a sun.
A crimson circle surrounded by long rays.
The symbol seemed almost alive beneath the faint dungeon light.
Ramos slowly approached.
"...What is that?"
Fayzan stared at it.
"I don't know."
Ryota remained silent.
Something about the door felt different.
The skeletons had been guardians.
The traps had been defenses.
But this...
This felt like a boundary.
As if everything they had encountered so far existed only to prevent them from reaching this exact place.
Ryota slowly stepped forward.
The red crest seemed to glow faintly.
He stopped several feet away.
"...This has to be important."
Fayzan nodded.
Ramos swallowed nervously.
"Do you think we should open it?"
Ryota looked at the enormous crimson symbol.
Then slowly reached toward it.
"We came all this way."
His hand stopped just short of the surface.
"...We're going to find out what's behind it."
The ancient chamber fell silent.
And somewhere beyond that crimson door...
something waited.
The ancient door stood before them.
Its surface was impossibly smooth compared to the weathered stone surrounding it, as though the passage of centuries had simply refused to touch it.
At the center of the door was the crimson crest.
A sun.
Or at least, something resembling one.
Its circular center was surrounded by twelve long rays, each carved with microscopic symbols that seemed to shift whenever the faint dungeon light passed over them.
Ryota stood directly in front of it.
Fayzan remained beside him.
Ramos stayed several steps behind.
Neither of the two players spoke for several seconds.
There was something about the door that made the entire chamber feel heavier.
Not dangerous.
Not yet.
But important.
Very important.
Fayzan slowly reached toward the red crest.
His fingers stopped just before touching it.
"Should I?"
Ryota nodded.
"Let's see what happens."
Fayzan placed his palm against the crimson symbol.
For a moment—
nothing happened.
Then—
THUM.
A deep vibration traveled through the stone.
The red sun suddenly illuminated.
Crimson light spread outward from the crest, flowing across the entire door in branching patterns.
Ancient mechanisms hidden somewhere behind the walls began turning.
GRRRRRRRRRR...
Dust fell from the ceiling.
Ramos immediately stepped backward.
"Again with the shaking..."
Fayzan removed his hand.
The door had already begun opening.
Slowly.
Painfully slowly.
The enormous stone slab separated from the surrounding wall with a deafening grinding sound.
KRRRRRRRRRRR...
A wave of hot air poured out.
Ryota immediately frowned.
"...That's strange."
Fayzan looked at him.
"What?"
"The air."
Ryota held his hand near the entrance.
"It's warm."
Ramos swallowed.
"We just walked through a dungeon filled with burning skeletons."
"Maybe this is the boss room."
Fayzan smiled.
"Then let's meet the boss."
The three stepped forward.
The moment they crossed the threshold—
the door behind them slammed shut.
BOOOOOOM!
Ramos jumped.
"WHY DOES THIS ALWAYS HAPPEN?!"
Ryota turned around.
The door was completely sealed.
There was no handle.
No switch.
Nothing.
Fayzan sighed.
"...I was hoping it wouldn't."
Ryota slowly drew his sword.
"Stay close."
Ramos nodded.
They continued forward.
Only a few steps.
That was all it took.
The chamber opened dramatically before them.
And the three men stopped.
Their expressions changed simultaneously.
"...What is that?"
Ramos' voice came out as barely a whisper.
Standing in the center of the enormous chamber—
was a woman.
At least—
it resembled a woman.
Her entire body was made of fire.
Not ordinary fire.
Her flames burned with brilliant shades of gold, orange, crimson, and white, shifting continuously across her towering form.
She stood approximately twenty-one feet tall.
Her body was slender but powerful, resembling an ancient warrior sculpted from living flame.
Long burning hair floated around her head despite there being no wind.
Her face was almost human.
Beautiful.
Calm.
Emotionless.
Two brilliant white eyes stared directly at them.
And in her hands—
was a gigantic bow.
The weapon was nearly as tall as Ryota himself.
Its frame looked as though it had been forged from sunlight and blackened metal.
The string was a thin line of concentrated fire.
An arrow was already resting against it.
The arrowhead glowed white.
Fayzan's expression hardened.
"...She's aiming at us."
Ryota's instincts screamed.
"Ramos!"
Ramos looked at him.
"RUN!"
The string released.
FWOOOOOOOOOSH!
The arrow crossed the chamber so quickly that Ryota barely saw it.
He grabbed Ramos by the shoulder and pulled him sideways.
Fayzan threw himself in the opposite direction.
The arrow passed between them.
Then—
BOOOOOOOOOOM!
The impact detonated against the stone floor.
A violent explosion tore through the chamber.
Fragments of stone erupted into the air.
Dust swallowed everything.
Ramos screamed as debris flew past his face.
"AAAAAAAH!"
He threw himself behind a large chunk of broken stone.
The impact crater spread several meters across the floor.
Ryota rolled across the ground and quickly pushed himself upright.
His ears were ringing.
His vision blurred momentarily.
"...That was an arrow?"
Fayzan emerged from the dust several meters away.
His clothes were covered in stone fragments.
"That wasn't an arrow."
He stared toward the flaming woman.
"That was a missile."
The boss calmly reached toward her back.
Another flaming arrow materialized between her fingers.
She drew the bowstring again.
The temperature inside the room increased.
Ryota's expression became serious.
"She's not giving us time to breathe."
The bowstring pulled backward.
The fire surrounding the arrow intensified.
Then—
the boss released it.
FWOOOOOOOSH!
This time Ryota saw the trajectory.
He waited.
One second.
Half a second.
Then moved.
The arrow passed directly beside his head.
The heat burned his cheek.
Ryota immediately countered.
His feet slammed against the stone floor.
He accelerated forward.
The sword in his hand began shining.
[Sword Skill: Radiance Cascade]
The sword flashed.
Then—
a barrage of radiant projectiles erupted from the blade.
SHIIIIING!
One.
Five.
Ten.
Twenty.
Dozens of concentrated beams of light tore across the chamber.
They flew toward the enormous flaming woman from multiple directions.
The boss raised one arm.
A wall of fire appeared before her.
The radiant attacks collided with it.
BOOM!
BOOM!
BOOM!
One after another, explosions erupted throughout the chamber.
Fayzan immediately took advantage of the opening.
He lowered his stance.
His grip tightened around his sword.
Then—
he dashed forward.
The distance between him and the flaming boss disappeared rapidly.
His boots struck the stone floor with enough force to leave small cracks behind.
His sword remained at his side.
He wasn't swinging yet.
He was waiting.
Waiting until he was close enough.
Close enough to strike.
The flaming woman slowly lowered her arm.
The barrier disappeared.
Her eyes immediately locked onto Fayzan.
The bow vanished.
In its place—
a gigantic burning spear formed within her hand.
Fayzan's expression changed.
"...She can switch weapons?"
The flaming warrior raised the spear.
Fayzan didn't slow down.
Instead—
he accelerated.
"Come on!"
His sword ignited.
The chamber erupted with heat and light as the two warriors finally closed the distance.
And somewhere above them—
the dungeon system finally revealed the name of the monster standing before them.
━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━
BOSS QUEST TRIGGER
Apollonius, The First Ray
Rank: ???
━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━
Ryota's eyes widened.
Fayzan saw the notification at the same time.
Ramos peeked out from behind the rubble.
His expression went pale.
The name alone felt like a warning.
Apollonius slowly raised her burning spear.
Fayzan raised his sword.
And the first battle of the Sandy Oasis Hidden Dungeon—
finally began.