The light flashed forward, and the monsters that had been following them flinched. Azaroth saw their eyes shine in the fire of the light he cast.

His team also reacted fast; they swung their lights and saw that the tunnel behind them was filled with stalking monsters. They stared at each other.

"Well, shit," Alex said.

Then everything exploded as the monsters in the lead launched their surprise attack and lurched themselves forward. Azaroth directed his light up and with a full-body forge – that directed his essence to all parts of his body – he went forward to meet the monsters.

His sword flashed forward in a thrust as he used the monster’s weight against it. He jerked his sword down sharply and cut down another monster on its head.

It was true what Alex said. The monsters are in their rank, but all their powers are mostly in their claws. Keep that from yourself and you’re safe.

He danced among them, his sword rising and falling in death strokes that left blood and monster bodies on the floor. He tried to keep the claws from him, but the monsters were wise enough to stop coming at him alone.

They decided to work together. Two monsters targeted his face, and while he was trying to get their claws from his face, another jumped behind him.

Azaroth didn’t react in time, and he shifted so the claws would meet his back instead of his neck. But the monster didn’t reach him. Chains clicked like a whip and slammed the monster on the head with its heavy ball.

Azaroth saw Catena smile. The tall boy could not freely use his weapon in this confined place with the walls and his team so close, so he opted for using it as a straight throw.

Stallus didn’t wait. She threw herself into the pack of monsters, and her saber was a thin thing that pierced chests faster than the monsters could blink.

Alex also rushed forward and swept his sword left in a great arc that cut three monsters at once.

The monsters saw that they could not hold up, not when their surprise attack had been foiled. The rest left their wounded behind and ran.

Azaroth cleaned his sword. He still could not hear their sounds as they ran. Those monsters are like assassins, perfectly designed to sneak up and slit your throat.

"Those beasts had been following us! And they made no sounds too!" Alex fumed.

"Your continuous talking won’t let us hear anything," Stallus pointed out. "If Azaroth had not detected them, then we’d probably be saying anything."

Alex grumbled, but he stayed silent as they began walking again. But soon, Azaroth stopped to harvest the essence of the monsters they just killed.

The others saw him and did the same, drawing in the essence. Azaroth didn’t mind them and did it for the time that he needed to, then he stood up and began walking again.

The others caught up to him, and they began walking again. The tunnel was surprisingly long, and they must have been walking for around three hours that Azaroth didn’t even say anything when Alex started complaining about the long tunnel.

Not knowing where they are going and when the tunnel would end makes it even worse. Then just when anxiousness filled the silence they let among them, the tunnel just ended abruptly.

No warning. One moment, the light was slowly parting the darkness in front of him, and the next it was gone, and the light showed a room.

"Now, what is this?" Alex demanded.

For once, Azaroth didn’t have anything to say to his loud voice because he was asking himself the same question. The floor in front of them was covered in black and white smooth stones. The floor was also big, and they could see the tunnel beginning in front of them as if the room was just a small distraction.

"Are we going to walk to the other side of the room, only to continue walking in the tunnel again?" Alex demanded.

Azaroth studied the stones. White and black and set beside each other as if it meant something. As if it should mean something. Each stone was big enough to fit his feet.

Stallus sighed. They were tired and hungry. They need food, and they had even forgotten to ask Kael Hound about what to eat in the training crypt.

"Might as well get it over with," she said.

Alex agreed and took the first step into the room. His first step was on the black stone. Azaroth was watching, and immediately he stepped on there was a loud click as if something was finally sliding into place.

Alex froze because the stone he was stepping on was now lost beneath him. Something hummed above him, and they all looked up. A golden spear hung there, and then it descended on Alex.

The boy shouted and quickly removed his leg, but still, the weapon grazed his cheek as it came down and slammed into the stone with a loud thwack.

Alex was breathing hard as he pressed against Stallus. "I’m starting to hate this place." He wiped blood from his cheek and grimaced.

"What just happened?" Stallus asked him.

"A spear came down as he stepped into the room," Catena said. He was frowning at the golden spear that was slowly disappearing.

Stallus looked at the pale Alex and then at the room, and a smile touched her lips. The spear had finished disappearing by now as if it was never here in the first place.

"So, Alex, you are now afraid of a room? I thought you are so brave," Stallus snickered.

"Why don’t you try it then since you are feeling good about yourself?" Alex asked her.

One thing Stallus was proud of herself for was her quickness on her feet. She covered her legs in water and turned to Alex. "Alright then."

Then like a leaf on water, she slid into the room.