A loud clanging echoed in his ears.

His body finally ground to a halt.

Colin felt as if he’d just been beaten by a mob. A series of impacts jolted his body, followed immediately by a burning pain.

Opening his eyes, he pushed himself up with a bleeding hand.

Something immediately pounced down on him, and Colin could feel it savagely biting his shoulder.

His dependable Chain Armor Shirt didn’t give the creature a purchase, but under the combined weight of his own Armor and the enemy pinning him down, he couldn’t get up at all.

Colin hurriedly grabbed his Hand Half Sword to try and drive away the enemy still mauling him.

But the long blade was hard to put any force behind with the enemy pressed against him. He hacked at it a few times, but the Jackal Wolfman was unmoved, and there was no way to find an angle for a thrust.

’I really should have bought a Dagger!’

Perhaps realizing its bites were having no effect, the Jackal Wolfman soon let go.

’It’s definitely going for my neck!’ The instant that thought surfaced, Colin shoved his right hand straight into the creature’s canine mouth.

The Jackal Wolfman’s teeth grated against his Chain Armor Wrist Guard.

Colin could feel the creature’s throat muscles contracting, trying to force his fist out. He fought back his nausea and desperately shoved his fist forward. To pull back now would be suicide.

Just then, he faintly saw a spot of light appear on his opponent’s back.

Colin quickly discovered who was coming to his aid.

In the distance, Orelia was standing on a raised platform, the Scepter in her hand giving off a faint golden glow.

The moment her prayer ended, two hyenas pounced on the Tiefling from behind, knocking her down.

The next moment, a sacred light poured down onto the Jackal Wolfman’s back.

The stench of something scorching filled the air. After taking the hit, the Jackal Wolfman whimpered as all the strength left its body.

Seizing the opportunity, Colin released his weapon with his other hand and punched that hairless dog-like face, knocking the Jackal Wolfman to the ground. He then turned back, picked up his Hand Half Sword, and sliced off the creature’s head in one motion.

’I’ll be damned if it gets up from that!’

’Right, I need to go save the Tiefling.’

Leaving the Jackal Wolfman behind, Colin scrambled onto the upward-leading passage. He rushed to Orelia’s side and cut down one hyena, then kicked the other over before slaying it with another swing of his sword.

Blood sprayed from the hyena’s veins, splashing all over his face.

Colin wiped the blood from around his eyes and glanced around.

The Tiefling had already smashed the skulls of the other remaining hyenas; the two he just killed were the last of them.

It wasn’t so bad while he was moving, but the moment he stopped, Colin felt his entire body cry out in protest. He was suddenly gasping for air.

Kase let out a great roar in the distance.

He seized an opening, swatting one opponent away with his Shield before thrusting his Short Spear into the stomach of another Jackal Wolfman.

At the same time, however, the last Jackal Wolfman leaped onto his back and began savagely biting the Half-Orc’s neck, while the one he had knocked away rallied and charged again.

’I have to help Kase...’

Colin used his Hand Half Sword to support himself and painstakingly began to chant a Spell.

The exhausted Orelia also rolled over and pointed her Nail Head Hammer in Kase’s direction.

The prayer and the Spell concluded in unison once more.

A divine light descended from above, and scorching Flames burst forth.

The two spells struck their respective targets, hitting the remaining Jackal Wolfmen almost simultaneously. The top of one’s head was scorched brown; the other’s shoulder was pierced by a fireball. Both fell to the ground.

Their fall marked the end of the battle.

For a time, the only sound in the cave was the ragged breathing of the group.

After letting out a huge sigh of relief, Colin checked on his party’s condition.

He had taken a nasty fall and gotten a cut on his hand. Orelia had been bitten several times by the hyenas, leaving a few bloody puncture wounds on her arm. Kase was the most seriously injured; several parts of his body were torn open, and his calf was a bloody mess.

Their injuries weren’t too severe, but they weren’t minor either.

To be honest, these Cultists and hyenas weren’t actually that hard to deal with. In a straight-up fight, Colin felt they were even weaker than the Winter Wolves and the Wolf Pack he’d encountered before.

The main problem was there were just too many of them, and they were utterly fearless.

Trading blows like that was exhausting.

"Let’s get this straight. Use the healing spells on yourselves. I’m a lot tougher than you two." Kase moved a bit, his muscles rippling, and the bleeding from his wounds mostly stopped.

He continued, "Besides, scars are just my tattoos. The more the better."

"Heal yourself," Colin said to Orelia before heading towards the bottom of the pit.

He rummaged through the pile of mangled flesh at the bottom of the pit.

Underneath, Colin found a bright red, Magic Array-like object. He took his Hand Half Sword and forcefully slashed at the earth where the red lines were drawn, severing them.

The surrounding Magic Net trembled, and the foul stench in the cave immediately lessened a great deal. 𝑓𝑟ℯ𝘦𝓌𝘦𝘣𝑛𝑜𝓋𝑒𝓁.𝑐ℴ𝓂

"Does this mean the Array is broken?" Colin shouted upwards.

Orelia poked her head over the edge. Her arm was no longer bleeding; she had probably healed it already.

She shouted from a distance, "That’s right, Colin! Now we just need to burn the corrupted bodies."

Only then did Colin finally feel completely at ease.

He looked up and surveyed his surroundings.

There was nothing of value in the cave at all, not even tables or chairs.

’There isn’t even a "mysterious diary detailing the cultists’ unspeakable goals" or anything,’ Colin griped internally. He then climbed back out and rummaged through his pack for his medical kit.

"Let me. I’ve cared for the wounded at the Monastery before," Orelia said timidly, standing to one side.

Colin nodded and found a protruding rock to sit on.

The Tiefling took his hand, first applying an ointment and then gently wrapping it with a bandage. Judging by her practiced movements, she was indeed very experienced.

A cool sensation seeped into the wound, and the delayed ache that had been setting in slowly faded away.

’Speaking of which, I hope this Otherworld doesn’t have things like rabies...’

Colin couldn’t help but let his mind wander.

After finishing the bandaging, Orelia carried the ointment and bandages over to Kase, who was standing with his arms crossed. "You’re next, Kase."

"Are you looking down on me? I’ll do it myself."

With that, Kase took the bandages and ointment from her, sat down next to Colin, and started dressing his own wounds.

After a moment, he spoke again. "I’m sorry, Tiefling."

"Uh, sorry, what for?" Orelia responded from the side. Perhaps feeling a bit intimidated by the Half-Orc, her tone was still somewhat timid.

"When I met you yesterday, I didn’t trust you. And I spoke ill of you," Kase said. "This is an apology for yesterday. After all, your performance just now has proven your worth."

"Uh... okay."

Orelia’s tail coiled around her ankle again.

Clearly, the young woman didn’t know what to say for a moment.

’The people who shun her because of her appearance would never apologize, after all,’ Colin thought, looking at Kase. ’Also, isn’t her name Orelia? If you’re going to apologize, you could at least remember her name.’