The two squads led by Daphne and Liliruca pressed steadily forward.
"Ahhh!"
In the front line, the Dwarves charged ahead with shields raised. Veins bulged along their arms, showing they were using every ounce of strength.
Yet on the other side of the shields, the relentless bam, bam, bam of impacts kept echoing.
It wasn't just a few hits—it was a continuous barrage, an unending series of blows.
Peering through the gaps in the shields, one could see an overwhelming swarm of Blue Crabs on the other side.
Their sharp pincers lashed out wildly, stabbing at the shields held by the frontliners.
"Heavenly light, once rejected. Merciful arms that save my shallow self. Rescue my miserable companions in place of my words that cannot reach them. Oh sunlight, may you beat back ruin...
Soullight!"
A bluish-green radiance enveloped the Dwarves, restoring the strength drained by their clash with the Blue Crabs and extending the time they could hold the front line.
Refreshed, the Dwarves took deep breaths and shoved the crabs back with renewed force.
"Raaah!"
With shouts to pump themselves up, the front row of Dwarves held formation and pressed on.
Fortunately, they were on a narrow path, and the high point of the Great Fall was to the side—there were no flanking routes for the Blue Crabs. If they had been attacked from the sides as well, charging forward with just a few shield-bearers would've been a fool's dream.
Even so, the situation up front was grim.
They had stumbled into an "abnormal situation"—the last thing any adventurer wanted to face in the Dungeon: a Monster Feast.
It was the Dungeon's way of delivering a killing blow in moments of crisis and desperation.
If the party lacked strength or numbers, this wave of monsters would swallow them whole.
Standing on someone's shoulders to get a better view of the rear, Limi called out:
"Captain! The water from the Water Rune Stone has started flowing! Do we begin?"
From her vantage point, Limi had spotted even more Blue Crabs closing in. The front line was already at its limit.
If they didn't act fast, this training session would end right here.
"Limi! Fire the Ice Rune Stone arrow!"
After confirming the situation, Liliruca gave the order without hesitation. Then she added:
"Aim for the center of the enemy swarm—relieve the pressure on the front!"
"Got it!"
Limi nocked the arrow and loosed it.
The target: the middle of the Blue Crab horde—right where water had pooled on the ground.
Szzzzz!
The Rune Stone arrow streaked through the mass of Blue Crabs and struck the puddle dead-on.
In an instant, a wave of biting cold spread outward at an alarming speed.
The pooled water on the ground became the primary target of the freezing attack. In just a moment, the water—and the legs of the surrounding Blue Crabs—were frozen solid.
In the Great Fall, moisture was never in short supply. The sudden burst of cold rapidly spread through the air, carried by the heavy mist, and formed a thick layer of ice right in the middle of the crab swarm.
This instantly eased the pressure on the Dwarves holding the front line.
"Middle guard, prepare to sharpen your weapons!"
Liliruca wanted to boldly call for "wind attribute enchantment," but her resources were far too limited—this wasn't a battle she could afford to fight extravagantly.
Even just sharpening weapons wasn't cheap. Each enhancement cost 500,000, and with five in use, that was 2.5 million gone in a flash.
Was this even a battle anymore? It felt more like burning money.
But when faced with an abnormal event like a Monster Feast, resource conservation wasn't an option. The priority was surviving.
The middle guards enchanted their weapons. The tips of spears and blades now gleamed with a biting cold light.
"Charge!!!"
"Yeah!!!"
The five middle guards readied their weapons. Seeing them prepared, the Dwarves in the front gave the signal to those behind and on the flanks.
With a coordinated push, the frontliners slammed their shields forward, knocking the Blue Crabs off balance, then immediately stepped aside.
The middle guards seized the opening and rushed in, blades slashing.
This time, their enchanted weapons didn't bounce off the Blue Crabs' rock-hard shells. One clean strike split a crab clean in two.
So strong!
Seeing the crabs cleaved in half, the middle guards were on the verge of shouting with excitement—but instead, they channeled that energy into cutting down the next.
They knew the enchantments wouldn't last.
Five minutes. That was their window to clear the current wave before the next swarm piled in.
Fueled by adrenaline, they moved with precision and power, wiping out every Blue Crab in their path.
The Dwarves in the vanguard quickly raised their shields and surged forward again. They ignored the frozen crabs littering the ground and braced themselves just behind the icy barricade, ready to block whatever came next.
"Hmph..."
Seeing the tide turn, Liliruca finally let out a breath of relief. Sweat clung to her back, soaking her clothes. Even with the chill still lingering in the air, she couldn't feel cold.
'This is bad...'
Though the situation had stabilized, a quick tally of remaining supplies left Liliruca bitter.
This battle had turned into a war of attrition. Between the hive in the Great Tree Labyrinth and this Monster Feast, she had burned through nearly all her resources.
With what she had left, continuing the advance on this floor was no longer feasible.
Slap!
Liliruca patted her cheeks, shaking off her frustration. They were still in combat—this wasn't the time to dwell on what came next.
"Limi, are the Blue Crabs still swarming in?"
Only an archer's keen eyes could properly assess the field.
Perched above, Limi scanned the area behind them. The wave of Blue Crabs had thinned significantly, no longer charging in as fiercely as before.
That shift brought a bit of ease to her tone.
"There are still a few, but the numbers are too small to be a threat."
'We made it through...'
Finally, Liliruca could let her guard down.
This Monster Feast had been even fiercer than expected. The Dungeon truly was a terrifying place—that thought came to her unbidden.
"Vanguard, keep advancing. Watch out for the frozen ground beneath you."
"Middle guard, stay alert in the rear. Take out the last of the Blue Crabs when the timing's right."