Child of Destiny

...…

Bang! Bang!

Arthur forced the Elite Komodo Lizard that he was facing back with his round shield, gaining himself enough space for a big move. He held his dragon spear tightly before thrusting it forward as a huge apparition of a dragon appeared behind him.

'Class Fighting Style: Golden Dragon soars through the Heaven'

Swoosh!

Bang!

This strike pinned the monster in place as it dug its claws into the cave floor and it endured the violent energy current that the golden dragon had as it passed through its body.

Arthur did not deal any damage to the monster due to the thick earthen armor that was covering its entire body and the sturdy scales underneath it. But the golden dragon that he just sent was more than enough to shred the earthen amor of the Komodo Lizard's body.

Immediately after, he twirled the dragon spear before throwing a series of stabs that produced multiple spear phantoms of golden color that bombarded the elite monster.n/ô/vel/b//in dot c//om

'Class Fighting Style: Dragon Nest'

Swoosh! Swoosh! Swoosh!

(-10,245), (-15,560), (-20,523), …

Each succeeding attack dealt more damage as the defenses of the Komodo Lizard continued to be shredded by the barrage of stabs, especially when the dragon spear was reinforced by Arthur's unique mana manipulation technique.

Despite having a huge Health Bar, the Komodo Lizard suffered serious damage due to the stabs that it had taken from Arthur.

Click!

At the same time, a subtle sound resounded beside the monster before a flash of lightning passed through its body, leaving a trail of black and white electric currents in the air.

Shing!

'Class Fighting Style: Quick Draw – (Lightning) Flash Cut'

(-2,523,524)

A huge chunk of Komodo Lizard's health disappeared as the lightning strike sliced through its neck.

Even if that damage was still far from putting the monster in a critical state due to its massive Health Pool, the bleeding that was left on its neck was rather serious, making the monster continuously lose health with every passing second.

Moreover, the paralyzing effects that the attack left behind did not just make the monster unable to move for quite a while but also weakened its regeneration abilities to a great degree.

Shin did not stay longer after dealing that much damage as he quickly disappeared and charged toward another direction – he was heading where Leonard was fighting this time.

Arthur, on the other hand, took advantage of the somewhat paralyzed Komodo Lizard and started throwing a series of attacks empowered by his advanced skills and techniques, dealing massive amounts of damage.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

On another side of the battlefield, Leonard was aggressively exchanging blows against the Elite Komodo Lizard in front of him. Aside from having extreme confidence due to Cloe's support from the distance, his class also favored this kind of frontal confrontation.

His Destroyer Class was a Transcendent Class that fell in the warrior-type category. It was more of an upgraded version of the Berserker Class, which was an expert of prolonged battle due to their Berserk Skill that made them stronger the longer they fought and the lower their Health Bar.

This meant that Leonard could still be stronger in either a healthy state due to Cloe's healing and buffs or a battered state filled with blood and injuries due to the innate trait of his class.

A sanguine flame enveloped his entire body as he continued to exchange blows with the monster before him.

Each strike he did with his war axes dealt massive damage despite them being only regular attacks and were not reinforced by any skill.

This unique mana manipulation technique of his was further strengthened after becoming more familiar with the innate attribute of his bloodline and the inheritance of the warrior tribe that he came from in the real world – the Asad Tribe.

He had even combined it with the inheritance of the Thunder Lord that he had received before, creating a very advanced mana manipulation technique.

His Sanguine Flame and Crimson Lightning were not losing to Arthur's Dragon Aura and Divine Lightning and Shin's Eclipse Wielding and Primordial Lighting.

Swoosh!

As he was fighting, Leonard suddenly sensed something. He then started smiling before aggressively charging forward.

Bang!

He stomped his feet on the ground, firmly planting them on the cave's floor, and ducked sideways to dodge the aggressive bite of the monster. He then twisted his waist and tightened his grip over his war axes before swinging them upwards while they were blazing with a sanguine flame.

'Class Fighting Style: Destructive Ascension'

Boom!

(-100,520)

A huge chunk of damage was dealt to the Komodo Lizard as the attack connected, which also sent it flying in the air.

Click!

Right at the same time as its body was suspended in the air, the familiar subtle sound rang in the cave once again before a series of lightning flashes intertwining with one another sliced through the body of the monster and dealt massive damage to it.

Shing!

'Class Fighting Style: Quick Draw – (Lightning) Flash Requiem'

Swoosh! Swoosh! Swoosh!

(-50,923), (-23,569), (-30,023), …, (-150,300)

Different numbers appeared above the head of the monster, signifying the damage that these lightning flashes had dealt with the final strike being the highest.

Shin quickly left once again after striking the Komodo Lizard once as it was already enough for him.

Instead, he ran across the battlefield while cutting everything in his path.

Swoosh! Swoosh! Swoosh! Stay connected via empire

At the same time, a series of explosions erupted around him as the mages from the backline were bombarding the common-rank Komodo Lizards with the AOE spells while Alucard and Lorraine were doing the same with some of their skills that had in their arsenal.

Regardless, Shin ran through everything while reaping the lives of those common-rank monsters that were barely holding on with their sliver of health.

He lived up to the name of his class, which also became one of the nicknames given to him by the players, the Grim Reaper.

Swoosh! Swoosh! Swoosh!

Alongside him, another figure was running through this chaotic battlefield, dealing huge damage to every monster it came across and killing those on the verge of death.

This phantom-like figure was like a personification of death that danced within the shadows while ripping the lives of anyone in its path.

Dancer of the Shadows commonly known as the Shadow Dancer – a Transcendent Class, which boasted its pinnacle speed and unpredictable attacking patterns.

Diablo ran swept through the battle just like Shin after he assisted Owen briefly in dealing with the Komodo Lizard that the latter was pinning down.

Shin and Diablo kept on switching between helping those three pinning down the three elite-rank monsters and eliminating the common-rank monsters to lessen the burden that the others were enduring.

This battle lasted for quite a while before the Empyrean Talons finally cleared every Komodo lizard.

In the process, the group was also able to get some earthen cores from this batch of Komodo Lizards, albeit inferior to the one that they had gotten from the Special Elite Komodo Lizard that they had first encountered.

While resting, Arthur and Cloe walked to Shin as he stood at the center of this section of the cave while facing the multiple channels that would be leading them to different sections of the dungeon.

"Which channel are we going to choose for our next destination?" asked Arthur as he approached.

Shin did not immediately answer, as he had asked instead. "What do you think?"

Arthur understood what Shin was thinking and pursed his lips. "I did not get any notification from the system that told me about the update of my quest."

"So, this is still not the main point that we are looking for," he added after a brief pause.

"How about using that 'intuition' of yours when doing your quests?" asked Cloe.

She was familiar with Arthur, especially his in-game identity since she played with him in a couple of games that he had played previously. With her experience, she knew how he usually played and solved problems he encountered within the game.

This so-called intuition was what he was using whenever he was stuck in the middle of a predicament where he had to decide between difficult choices.

"It is something that I feel every time," Arthur smiled bitterly as he heard her.

"How about using your Dragon Sense? This is a dungeon filled with Draconic Species, so the monsters here must be carrying a hint of scent that is unique to your race," said Shin.

Hearing that, the corner of Arthur's mouth suddenly twitched before complaining. "I know what you mean by saying that, but why does it sound like you are saying that I am a dog when it comes out of your mouth?"

He then paused for a moment as he concentrated on using his 'Dragon Sense' before turning back to Shin. "Strange-…"

"Stop the suspense and spit it out," said Shin as he knew this guy was trying to mystify things like he usually did.

"Tsk! Boring~!" Arthur complained before continuing. "All the small channels were filled with draconic scent, but there is no powerful aura among them, which indicates that there are only common-rank up to elite-rank monsters in them."

"The three big ones, on the other hand, are where the strange things lie," he paused for a moment to point to the huge channels on the left and the right before continuing. "I can't feel any monsters from these two, which is quite confusing. But there is a strange aura coming from their deepest parts."

He then turned at the cave channel before them as he said. "Meanwhile, this one is overflowing with draconic scent, which means that all other monsters are gathered here. I can even feel an overwhelming presence waiting for us there."

"So-… what's your choice?" asked Arthur.

Shin suddenly smirked as he said to the two. "Let's do how usual gamers deal with these kinds of situations."

"Eh!?" Cloe was confused for a moment as she stared at Shin with confusion.

Arthur, on the other hand, grinned as he fully understood what Shin meant before chuckling. "Doing all the side quests first before proceeding to the main quest."

...