The Gamer's System

Chapter 160: Checkmate

The further the group went, the more monsters they encountered. Indeed, it seemed as if there was no end to the number of enemies they fought. Over and over again, they faced a batch of creatures which looked completely different from the ones they already defeated. This inevitably prolonged their mission because, they couldn't just blast their enemies. They needed to be careful of their moves for fear that the cave would get destroyed. And because they were taking too long, Sylph finally contacted them.

"Hey." She began, getting the group's attention.

"Wait ma'am I'll just get us to a safe spot first." Quinn answered, commanding his teammates to stay at a corner with Mordred serving as the guard.

"How's the mission going so far?" She asked, curious about the state of the team.

"We've got no idea. The monsters just keep coming up and the cave gets wider the deeper we get. Plus, we encountered monsters and, the further we reach, the stronger they become." Quinn said in reply.

"That's a real problem. Maybe you should head back for now." Sylph said, wanting to get a full status report of the group first. Nobody knew how deep the cave actually was after all and so, it would be safer to continue after some proper rest.

"How about we take another hour, then we'll head back." Quinn bartered, thinking that they may be close to the end of the cave.

"Okay, but nothing exceeding that got it Quinn?" Sylph ordered, with the leader giving a positive response as they ended the [Voice Chat].

"Come on man, we could've rested already. Nobody's rushing this thing." Curio said, actually wanting to get some nice and peaceful nap.

"We will, soon. But for now, let's finish what we can. This cave may still have a long way to go and, adding another hour's worth of expedition may save us some time later on." Quinn said in reply, with Curio finally agreeing.

They finally reached a part of the cave which looked like a proper inhabiting place. There were pillars of rocks all around and, some gems were even glowing all over. They didn't pick these up however as they weren't as knowledgeable about these things as Zeke was and, they weren't that curios to try and take some.

"Is it an hour yet?" Curio asked, complaining once again.

"Not yet, we still have half an hour remaining." Quinn said in reply, looking at the surroundings carefully. 

Since the area they've just entered was larger than the previous ones, it was easy to get lost. There was no sign of any walls nearby and, a strange and ominous air covered the group. They all sensed danger closing in but, decided to proceed further because whatever it may be, they could just teleport out of the cave if things got complicated. Then, after a few more minutes of exploring the dark, they finally reached a wall.

"It's a dead end, right? We can go now right?" Curio asked, thinking that Quinn would be satisfied with the results and not try finding any hidden area.

"Wait. Use your spare crystals and throw them at a different direction from everybody else. At this rate we'll be lost seeing how large this area is." Quinn said.

"Won't that raise the alarm of some monsters nearby?" Mordred asked.

"I think being a source of light in such a dark place would be enough to raise alarm Mordred." Julia said in reply, agreeing with Quinn.

"Hey, I'm just asking." 

"Mordred, create a barrier around us first. I'm sure you guys are also feeling some strange danger to it so, we might as well be prepared. I'll double the barrier and once all of that is set up, create one enclosing this whole space."

"You make it sound so easy." She said to Quinn.

Nevertheless, they did as was commanded. If they looked at their timers, they'd see that only fifteen minutes remained before their extension end. Through the method thought up by Quinn, they might be able to get the layout of the whole area before going back which, would serve as Quinn told earlier. That is, it would save them a lot of time.

"Okay. Let's begin."

They did as they were told all throwing their spare crystals at different areas. Instantly, the parts of the map got lighted up and, soon enough, their eyes widened in horror. 

"Hey isn't that" Curio began, seeing multiple dots on all areas lit by the crystals.

"Uhm Quinn?"

Soon, loud battle cries were made by the monsters that charged in towards the group. As Quinn mentioned, the light served as both their guide and a means for the monsters to find them. Without them knowing, the leader of the monster actually sent batch after batch of cave monsters, preventing the group from moving quickly. 

As this went on, the commanding monster prepared a stealth spell, hiding their presence until the humans were at the center of the area. He also prepared a spell which made the place darker than it actually was, preventing Quinn and the other members to see them. Then, he placed [Magic Circles] all around the area, with a spell that he cooked up based on the fight performance of the humans. Hence, it was already too late when the alites fought back.

The sound of spells being fired caught their attention. Multiple fireballs found their way and made contact with their barriers. This immediately shattered the outer layer of the barrier which surprised the elites.

"Incoming!" Eerie shouted, seeing more of the fireballs flying towards them. 

However, because Eerie already noticed them, she was able to make a counterattack. She continuously fired using water element bullets, dissolving the fireballs into a steam which got them even worried. Their vision got clouded again because of the steam and the sound of monsters laughing was echoing all around them,

"Quinn?" Curio repeated as if their leader didn't hear it earlier on.

"Yeah, I'm thinking what we can do right now." He said in reply, with the shadows of the monsters looming from the steam.

"Rapid successive activation." 

"Rock pillars." He chanted, creating blockages on the path of the enemies, making it more difficult for them to reach the group. He then casted a gust of wind which blew ta every direction, clearing both the mist and the steam.

"Flash Freeze." He continued, stopping most of the low-class monsters on a range where Eerie could easily hit and kill them. 

"Shadow Wolves." Were used in order to attack the enemies that were already nearby. These also served as both the eyes of the group who still had no idea where all of the enemies were and, a diversion as they prepared to make a counter play.

Quinn then drank one of the [Large Mana Potions] which he had, completely restoring his mana to full. All of these spells took only a minute to be casted, amazing the members who was with him as they never witnessed Quinn making use of this before.

"The barrier isn't complete yet. Be careful with the moves that you use, make sure that it won't place the whole terrain in danger of collapsing on us." He continued, not leaving any time for the other elites to make comments on what he just performed. They simply nodded, with their eagerness to fight being roused back.

The fight wasn't going in their favor however. There were just too many monsters and, because they couldn't make us of a lot of [AoE] spells, clearing was even more difficult to do. Even with the pillars in place, the monsters appeared at every direction, making movements limited for the elites. However, it also served as a means for them to hide, enabling them to make surprise attacks as well as avoid getting ganged up.

While the fight went on, Quinn was actively searching for the monster leading the group. He was sure that an intelligent monster was leading them because, if the other boss class monsters already had intellect, then they would only submit to one which was both stronger and wiser than them. 

"Found you." He said, finally catching a large red dot which was positioned at the furthest back. But as soon as he recognized it, the ground glowed a violet color. Chains came shooting from the ground binding down the whole group.

"What the hell are these?" Julia exclaimed as it slowly pulled her towards the boss monster.

Every member tried to get the chains off but, for some reason they couldn't. Its bind was too strong and, apart from this, they felt their energy slowly being drained from their bodies. The monsters took the hint and went for the kill immediately. Quinn then casted another set of [Rock Pillars] which, prevented the monsters from advancing quickly as he made his move.

"It's a good thing I got one of these." Quinn said to himself, bringing out a short sword. 

He didn't waste any time, thinking of the possible skills he had in his arsenal. He went and decided to use the strongest one from the start; knowing that it would be the least time-consuming choice.

"Synchronous Casting. Primal Heavenly Slash!"

A slash came breaking the chains of both him and his allies. Unfortunately, Julia was too far to reach so Quinn just decided to come close and rescue her. But another set of [Binding Chain] came and, Quinn was forced to use the second hidden blade he had, giving him nothing else but his main weapon left.

"Move!" He shouted, seeing the ground glow again. His other teammates immediately leapt up but, another set of chains came shooting up from where they were.

"Sorry guys. Air blast!" Mordred, Eerie, and Curio got sent flying away from the monsters. This move, although saving his teammates, put Quinn in harm's way as the chains finally bound him again. 

"Quinn we gotta go!" 

"Not yet." Quinn exclaimed, wanting to continue the fight even though he wasn't sure how to do so exactly. It was like he was perpetually stuck on defense on a game of chess with the opponent pinning him with 'check' each and every time.

"QUINN THEY'RE GOING TO GET JULIA! WE GOTTA GO!" It was a shameful sight. Quinn never experienced backing away from a challenge his whole life. Yet there he was, with no card left but to turn tail and run.

Nobody was sure how strong the boss of the monsters actually was. In fact, they haven't even seen it yet. They also promised Sylph an extension of only an hour. The leader of the elites bit his lip, knowing that no other choice was available for them. Even in the face of danger, they trusted his commands. Quinn knew this and didn't want to gamble with his teammates' life for the sake of his pride.

"I'm going to make another slash. After that, we teleport immediately." He said, thinking that the chains may have teleportation cancelling properties. 

"Roger." Was all that they replied as Quinn made his last attack combination.

He turned his weapon into a double dagger, enabling him to cast the same skill twice. His arm already throbbed and he felt it seemingly getting torn off. Yet he still went on, breaking the and proceeding to clear the wave of monsters surrounding Julia with the other blade. Then, surely enough, the chains came again, binding them down and, Quinn wasted no moment. He infused the remaining dagger with the same skill as he casted:

"Primal Heavenly Slash!" Once again, his weapon broke and, immediately, everyone used their [Teleportation Portals]. Transporting them back above the [Rift].

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