Garna moved first, stepping in front with her greatsword lifted to her shoulder, legs wide and set like stone. Auri broke left, sprinting up the ridge, her boots skidding on scorched gravel before she climbed. Mik slipped back into the shadows—no words, no sound—vanishing past the Queen's edge.
Frank stepped to Garna's right, blade low. He dropped into a stance, his forward knee bent, breath slow. The Queen's claws twitched once—barely—and then she opened her mouth.
A stream of fire arced across the chamber.
It came wide and low, sweeping with a hiss of ignited gas. Frank pushed left, his boots scraping hard against the floor as the heat rolled over them. Garna stood her ground, raising her sword at an angle. The flame struck and split, curling around her armor. Steam hissed from the metal plates as her side began to smoke.
Frank dropped to one knee behind her cover, watching the flames pass over and flare behind them.
Then he moved.
『Skill Activated – Twin Fang Draw』
First step—left foot forward, hips tight, slash across.
Second cut—rebound right, the same line in reverse.
He closed the distance quickly, pushed low, and drove forward with the third strike, blade leveled to hit beneath the Queen's front leg.
Metal kissed molten shell. The cut made contact—
—but barely.
The edge dug in, but the surface resisted like a shield hardened from within. The blade scraped, hissed, and skipped out, leaving only a thin gash behind.
『Resistant Target – Damage Reduced by 60%』
Frank slid back, resetting his grip. His shoulder burned slightly from the heat trail, but his balance stayed locked.
Auri fired two arrows from above. Both struck the Queen's upper back and shattered on impact, splinters sparking as they broke apart like they had hit stone. The Queen didn't react.
Mik reappeared just under the thorax. Twin daggers flashed—left blade in, right blade across.
They barely marked the armor.
Frank's eyes tracked Tace's motion on the opposite side, signaling a rotation to draw the Queen's attention away from Garna. She moved to flank.
The Queen turned faster than expected.
Her abdomen shifted, and flame sacs pulsed.
She lunged at Tace.
Her claw struck low and quick—one arc away from cutting through him. He dropped under it with half a step and a twist, his spear coming up to deflect the second strike. Sparks burst as claw met metal, the shaft groaning under pressure.
Frank reached into his side pouch without looking and tossed two potions wide.
One hit the ground near Auri, the other bounced once near Garna's boots.
Both grabbed them without a word. Garna's fingers curled tightly around the vial as she ducked another flaming sweep. Auri's hand moved quickly, pulling the cork with her teeth before downing the potion and returning to the ridge.
The Queen hissed.
Frank stepped back into position, blade tilted at an angle, watching the next shift of her weight. She wasn't moving like something ranked E.
Her steps were too fast. Her strikes had rhythm. She didn't flail—she hunted.
This wasn't right.
He adjusted his stance again, mouth dry, eyes fixed on the pulsing sacs at her core.
"This isn't an E-Rank," Frank muttered. "This is something worse."
『Dungeon Rank Fluctuation Detected – Estimated Rank: C』
She moved like fire given shape—fast, brutal, and without warning. Her front limb came down in a wide arc, smashing into Garna's chest with a sickening crack. The sound hit harder than the impact. Garna staggered, her back foot skidding, armor splitting across the middle as if it had been peeled open.
Frank threw a vial toward her belt. It bounced once, glass rattling against her leg before she caught it.
Another screech tore through the air.
Not loud. High.
Sharp enough to cut through thought. Auri flinched mid-draw. Her arrow glanced off the stone beside the Queen's leg and snapped in half. She reached for another, her quiver nearly empty—four left, maybe five. She didn't say it. Just moved again, teeth gritted.
Mik circled wide, too close to the edge.
The heat radiating from the Queen's body pulsed like a field. He darted in with both blades, slipped under a claw, and cut across her abdomen. Steam burst forth, but the wound barely held.
Then he reeled.
His coat caught fire at the shoulder. He dropped low, slapped it out with a wince, and kept moving. Skin blistered beneath the edge of his collar.
Frank tossed a second potion, aiming just ahead of Mik's dodge. It hit the ground and rolled once. Mik snatched it on the pass.
The Queen turned, taking one step forward. The floor cracked under her weight. Tace moved in, fast and direct, spear leveled at the Queen's face. He drove it straight forward, the edge glowing faintly from the heat.
The strike landed.
And bent.
The spear warped mid-thrust, the metal softening on contact. Tace barely pulled back before the shaft bent clean in half. His grip shifted to recover balance, but the Queen twisted and slammed her head forward.
Frank moved to throw another potion—then hesitated.
Her tail whipped around.
It came fast, low, and wide.
He turned just in time to see it coming. Too close.
The impact lifted him off the ground. His back slammed against the far wall, stone crushing into his shoulder, the air knocked clean from his chest.
He hit the ground and rolled once.
Then he stopped.
Every sound dulled. Heat blurred the edges of his vision.
A single prompt flickered across his system.
His hand found a potion instinctively. Cork off, glass tilted, the liquid sliding down his throat.
It didn't burn; it cooled, like pouring light into his bones. The pressure in his ribs eased first, then the sharp ringing in his head faded. His fingers stopped shaking.
Another flicker followed:
『Vital Surge Consumed – Minor Restoration: +30% Health』
『Bleeding Stopped – Mobility Restored』
He forced himself to stand, dragging his foot once against the scorched floor before steadying himself.
Stats pulsed quietly in his mind:
HP: 15% → 45%
Status: Recovered / Minor Bruising / No Fracture
Movement: Stable
No time to breathe.
The Queen surged again. Flame leaked from her abdomen vents in thin streams, vapor hissing against the ground. Garna had rejoined the fight—barely—shielding Tace's exposed left. Auri stayed high, aiming one of her last arrows.
Frank stepped forward again, sword back in hand, boots dragging ash with every step.
He didn't look for cover.
He looked for a pattern