"Hold on! Something's strange, I sense some presences up ahead, but there's only five of them!" Called out the Detector.
We were a few minutes into the forty-first floor, having made somewhat slow but steady progress over the last ten to fifteen floors.
And the pattern I'd anticipated had persisted, the number of Monsters we encountered on each floor didn't exceed expectations.
So, this is definitely odd.
Ariella held up her arm, signaling the ground to come to a stop, a concerned look of her face as she mulled it over.
"I don't have a good feeling about this...I've been feeling uneasy throughout this entire raid, but I thought maybe I was being paranoid since nothing out of the ordinary was happening," She remarked with a grimace.
"Yeah, I've been feeling it too. And something's telling me that the five Monsters up ahead are something stronger than Hellhounds, it wouldn't make sense for there to be a smaller group of the same Monsters this high up in a Dungeon," I pointed out.
There are a few different standard patterns that most Dungeons adhere to, but every now and then, you come across Dungeons that deviate from those standard patterns, like with the Hypersonic Bat from my first raid.
But even with cases of deviation from the standard patterns, one rule always persists...no matter what, a Dungeon will keep getting more difficult the further you ascend, there's never been a case of a Dungeon getting easier in the upper floors.
"Right, they're most likely Lycanthropes, either that or a completely different species," She nodded in response.
Lycanthropes are the evolved versions of Hellhounds, and they're High Level Monsters, meaning they're assessed at the same Threat Level as the Hypersonic Bat I fought in my first raid.
And Lycanthropes can further evolve into a Critical Level form called Cereberuses.
Ordinarily, a Mid Level Dungeon full of Hellhounds is most likely to have only a single Lycanthrope, which would be the Dungeon Boss.
But if the Monsters up ahead are Lycanthropes, then it's possible that the Dungeon Boss is going to be a Cereberus. And I really doubt we can handle that.
I've gotten a lot stronger since my first raid, sure, but a Critical Level Monster is definitely a step too high for me right now. I doubt even Ariella is strong enough to handle one yet.
"So, what should we do? If the next three floors are occupied by Lycanthropes, then whatever's in the Boss Room is probably something we can't deal with," I stated bluntly.
"Yeah, clearing this Dungeon might not be possible for us if that's the case. Okay, then, let's take it one step at a time. First, we need to find out what the Monsters on this floor are. Five Lycanthropes will be tough, but manageable. We'll reassess after that," She decided hesitantly.
When Dungeons stray significantly from the usual patterns, standard practice is to venture in as far as possible in order to try and determine the extent of the deviation.
For some reason, Monsters never chase fleeing Hunters beyond the floor they're on, so retreating from a Dungeon has a pretty high success rate.
Usually, with deviations from the standard patterns, the most significant deviation happens in the Boss Room.
So, with such Dungeons, parties usually try to get a look at the Monster in the Boss Room, and then retreat if it's something they can't handle.
Just like the other Monsters with the floors they're on, the Dungeon Boss never leaves the Boss Room unless or until a Stampede occurs, a Dungeon Boss has never chased Hunters beyond the tunnel that serves as the entrance to the Boss Room.
So, Ariella's decision is perfectly standard practice...even so, I can't help but feel uneasy.
The two supervising Hunters look a lot more alert now, but they don't look particularly alarmed either. I suppose I have no choice but to go along with it, for now.
As we continued heading further into the floor, the Monsters that the Detector had sensed soon came into sight, and sure enough, they were Lycanthropes.
They were humanoid dog-like creatures, each standing at around six and a half to seven feet in height, they look kinda like what I'd imagine Werewolves to look like.
They had similar jet-black fur and red eyes as the Hellhounds, and they're supposed to be able to breathe fire too.
The Lycanthropes spread out as they noticed us, the Protector quickly putting up a barrier in front of us as the Monsters snapped open their jaws and unleashed roaring fireballs towards us, with a lot more speed and intensity than the Hellhounds could generate.
"[Water Arrow Scattershot]!"
"[Ice Needle Scattershot]!"
"[Wind Ball Scattershot]!"
The Attack Mages launched a volley of projectiles over the barrier towards the Monsters as the flames blazed forward and slammed against the barrier, the air ahead of us shimmering violently as the temperature spiked, right as two of the Lycanthropes shot forward and leapt over the barrier, while the other three fanned out and raced across, going around the barrier, having avoided the barrage from the Attack Mages.
I swung my blade across as one of the Lycanthropes shot towards me and slashed at my throat with its claws, a sharp clang ringing out as I struck its claws and deflected them away, before tilting my head across as it drove its other arm towards my face, its claws grazing my right cheek and drawing out a trickle of blood.
I swiftly got low before thrusting my left arm forward, driving my fingertips towards it and pressing them against the middle of its body, before chanting as it began to swing its claws at the back of my neck.
"
An agonized yelp rang out as I unleashed my attack at full power, the Monster's body spasming alarmingly as blood burst out of its eyes, ears and nostrils, a few streaks of blood spraying out around its body as its skin ruptured.
It collapsed onto the ground and coughed out blood, before I swiftly stabbed it through the spine to paralyze it and shot towards the Lancer, who was being overwhelmed by one of the other Lycanthropes.
He let out a sharp cry as it clamped its claws around his right shoulder, before gritting his teeth and driving his spear forward as the Monster turned its attention to me with a growl.
It roared in pain as the spear plunged into the middle of its chest, only about half the blade piercing through, far from fatal...but more than enough to serve as a distraction.
I leapt straight towards the Monster as it snarled at the Lancer, streaks of flames spewing out the corners of its mouth as its rage blinded it, before it stiffened as I reached out and grabbed the right side of its head.
With the adrenaline pumping, the next moment felt like it played out in slow motion, the Lycanthrope's right eye darting across, meeting my gaze right as I chanted...
"