Bbbbbbbbbzzzzzzzzzz
His adventurer's crystal vibrated faintly, as if reacting to the Lector's overwhelming presence.
Venti: "A wound…"
Venti murmured to himself.
Venti: "He didn't say he had to be defeated."
The Lector inclined his head slightly, as if he had heard this thought.
Abyss Lector: "Exactly."
A distorted smile flickered through the flames.
Abyss Lector: "Just one cut."
"Just one crack."
"Show me that you deserve to survive."
Bram exchanged a glance with Kael.
Bram: "Even a scratch would be a miracle…"
Lyra took a deep breath, sparks of fire and lightning appearing around her hands.
Lyra: "If we have any chance at all, it will be by combining everything we have."
Eron nodded, already preparing his potions.
Eron: "Then we have no choice."
Venti slowly raised his hand.
Venti: "Wait."
Everyone turned to look at him.
Venti: "He set a rule."
He said calmly.
Venti: "And rules… especially in a dungeon… exist to be exploited."
Facing them, the Abyss Lector observed the scene without moving, certain of his superiority.
Yet, for the first time since entering the dungeon, a possibility had arisen:
Not to defeat the Abyss…
But to make it make a mistake.
Underestimate the adventurers of Rillmont.
A few moments later:
The five adventurers quickly gathered at the back of the room, their backs to a stone wall engraved with ancient motifs.
Abyss Lector: "........".
The Lector, true to his word, remained motionless at the far end, surrounded by contained abyssal flames, like a judge awaiting the start of a trial. An invisible pressure weighed on the group:
five minutes, not a second more.
The Abyss Lector: Fathomless Flames has given them five minutes to prepare.
Bram spoke naturally, his voice deep but controlled.
Bram: "Okay."
"We're not trying to defeat him."
"Just… wound him."
"Only once."
Kael nodded, already crouching, observing the room, the heights, the blind spots.
Kael: "He's too powerful for a head-on confrontation."
"If we charge in headfirst, we're dead. We need to create an opening, however small."
Eron took several vials from his satchel, lining them up methodically.
Eron: "I can provide temporary buffs":
- Fire resistance.
- Reaction speed.
- Mental clarity.
"But it won't last long. We'll only have one clean shot."
Lyra crossed her arms, her eyes gleaming with mischief.
Lyra: "The Lector is linked to abyssal fire."
"Fire alone won't be enough… but lightning could disrupt its core, especially if we create an Overload."
"The problem is, it will never let us get close enough."
They all turned to Venti.
Bram: ".......".
Kael: ".......".
Lyra: ".......".
Eron: ".......".
He remained silent for a moment, thinking, his eyes half-closed.
His crystal vibrated slightly at his belt, reacting to the dense energy of the dungeon.
Venti: "He trusts his defenses,"
He said finally.
Venti: "Too much trust. He expects a direct attack… or a classic combination."
He looked up at the ceiling of the room, then at the glyphs etched into the floor.
Venti: "The room itself channels abyssal energy."
"If we disrupt this flow, even briefly, his protection could weaken."
"Not enough to defeat him… but enough to affect him."
Bram frowned.
Bram "And how do we do that without being reduced to ashes?" "
Venti gave a faint smile.
Venti: "Respecting our formation."
"Bram, Kael, you'll stay on the front line, but not to attack."
"You'll need to draw his attention, provoke his most obvious attacks."
Kael understood immediately.
Kael: "A mobile diversion."
Venti: "Exactly."
Venti continued.
Venti: "Eron, you stay in the center."
"As soon as the fight starts, you reinforce Bram and Kael."
"Priority to speed and focus."
Eron nodded.
Eron: "I can also throw an elemental jamming vial."
"It won't hurt him, but it could desynchronize his flames for a fraction of a second."
Lyra took a deep breath.
Lyra: "And what about me?"
Venti looked her straight in the eyes.
Venti: "You will be the key."
"When the opening appears, even the tiniest one, you unleash a concentrated lightning attack."
"Not wide, precise."
"Just enough to crack her defense."
"Basically, an Overload."
Bram: "And you?"
Bram asked.
Venti paused briefly.
Venti: "Me… I'll take care of creating that opening."
No one asked any questions.
They had all seen what he was capable of, even without understanding how.
Silent teleportation, wind control, illusions… Venti was the unpredictable element in the equation.
Abyss Lector: "........"
In the distance, the flames around the Abyss Lector intensified slightly.
Abyss Lector: "You have one minute."
Everyone's hearts raced.
Eron quickly distributed the potions.
Eron: "Once it starts, there's no turning back."
Bram placed his hand on Kael's shoulder.
Bram: "We'll hold firm, no matter what."
Lyra closed her eyes, electricity crackling around her.
Lyra: "One chance… but it will be enough."
Venti: "....."
Venti inhaled slowly, feeling the invisible air currents of the dungeon respond to his presence.
Venti: "Remember."
He said calmly.
Venti: "We're not trying to be stronger than the Abyss."
"We're trying to be smarter."
Abyss Lector: ".........."
"It's time."
As the final beat of the fifth minute echoed through the chamber, the Lector's flames leapt sharply upwards.
The battle was about to begin.
Bram: "......."
Kael: "......."
Lyra: "......."
Eron: ".......".
Venti: "......".
Abyss Lector: "......".
A heavy silence suddenly fell over the room.
As the five adventurers took their positions, ready to launch their plan, the voice of the Abyss Lector: Fathomless Flames resonated again, calmer, almost mocking.
The flames around him contracted, as if breathing.
Abyss Lector: "Oh, by the way… I forgot to mention one detail."
The group froze.
Abyss Lector: "You will go… one by one."
"Not together."
The space seemed to close in around them.
Bram: "What did he just say?"
Bram was the first to react.
He took a step forward, his two-handed sword scraping the ground with a furious screech.
The veins in his neck bulged, his jaws clenched so tightly his teeth seemed to grind.
Bram: "What…?!"
He growled.
Bram: "Are you kidding us?!"
"Why did you give us five minutes to strategize, then?!"
Abyss Lector: "HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA!"
A deep, distorted laugh erupted from the Lector, as if several voices were laughing at once, some low, some high, all devoid of any humanity.
Abyss Lector: "So you could think, of course."
"Consider one essential thing."
Abyssal flames rose behind him, casting his immense shadow against the walls of the room.
Abyss Lector: "Decide which of you will sacrifice yourselves first… in order to weaken me."
A shiver ran through the group.*
Kael: "Gggggggggrrrrrrrr."
Kael instinctively gripped his daggers, his eyes narrowed, already analyzing distances, exits, possible angles, even though he knew perfectly well there were none.
Lyra felt her breath catch for a moment.
She wanted to reply, to protest, but no words came out.
Eron paled slightly, his fingers trembling around his vials.
This was no longer a mission.
It was a cruel and calculated test.
The Lector slowly inclined his head.
Abyss Lector: "One after the other."
"He who enters fights alone."
"The others watch."
He gestured with his hand, and a dark red glow appeared on the ground, tracing a runic circle before him.
Abyss Lector: "When the first one falls… the next one can enter."
Bram spat furiously on the ground.
Bram: "You monster…"
Venti: "Well, he is a monster."
The Lector turned his head slightly toward him.
Abyss Lector: "I'm not forcing you to do anything."
"You can always refuse… and all die here."
Silence fell again, even heavier.
That's when Venti took a step forward.
Not abruptly.
Not angrily.
Just calmly.
Venti: "You lied."
He said simply.
The Lector's flames flickered.
Abyss Lector: "Really?"
Venti looked up at him, his gaze surprisingly serene for someone facing a level fifty entity.
Venti: "You said that if one of us managed to hurt you, you would spare our lives."
"You never specified that he had to do it alone… or that he had to survive afterward."
A brief silence followed.
For the first time since they had entered the room, the Lector didn't respond immediately.
Bram turned his head toward Venti, surprised.
Kael frowned, slowly realizing what he was getting at.
Eron felt his heart race.
Lyra, meanwhile, stared at Venti with concern.
Lyra: "…Venti."
She murmured.
Lyra: "Don't tell me you matter."
The Lector finally laughed again, a lower, more dangerous laugh.
Abyss Lector: "You are truly fascinating, you wretched bard."
"Very well."
The flames parted slightly, leaving the runic circle to pulse.
Abyss Lector: "Who will be the first to enter?"
Another silence.
Even heavier than the last.
Tap tap tap tap
Then, without any apparent hesitation, Venti took another step forward… and placed a foot at the edge of the 10-meter-radius (20-meter diameter) circle of fire.
Venti: "Let me start."
He said softly.
Bram turned around immediately.
Bram: "Absolutely not!"
"You're level 11!"
Venti simply smiled.
Venti: "Exactly."
"He'll underestimate me."
Bbbbbbbbbzzzzzzzzzz
His adventurer's crystal vibrated faintly, as if responding to his resolve.
Venti: "And then…"
He added, turning one last time to the group.
Venti: "Remember, he didn't say we couldn't prepare something while one of us is fighting."
Kael's eyes lit up slightly.
Lyra understood.
Eron held his breath.
The Lector, for his part, inclined his head.
Abyss Lector: "Enter then."
FFFFFFFFFFFSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS
The flames closed around the circle.
Venti inhaled deeply… and crossed the threshold.
The first sacrifice had just entered the arena.
FFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS
The runic circle blazed with light as soon as Venti crossed its boundary.
An invisible barrier, tinged with purple and red, closed around him with a low rumble, completely isolating the combat space. The blackened ground seemed to absorb the light, while incandescent fissures pulsed slowly, like a failing heart.
The circle was nearly twenty meters in diameter, large enough to maneuver in… but far too narrow to escape.
Fffffffffsssssssssss
Venti stood straight, his materialized bow in his hand, his gaze calm despite the crushing pressure bearing down on him.
Opposite him, the Abyss Lector: Fathomless Flames floated slightly above the ground, surrounded by abyssal flames that undulated like living serpents.
Abyss Lector: "........".
Outside the circle, Bram, Kael, Eron, and Lyra watched the scene in silence.
Bram: "He's mad…"
Bram muttered through gritted teeth.
Bram: "He's going to be reduced to ashes."
Kael: "..."
Kael, for his part, said nothing.
His eyes followed the Lector's every movement, every variation of his flames.
Kael: "No…"
He finally breathed.
Kael: "He's too calm for someone who's about to die."
Inside the circle, the Lector tilted his head slightly, his flames concentrating around his torso.
Abyss Lector: "So you're alone now, little bard."
His voice echoed off the walls of the room, distorted, multiple.
Abyss Lector: "Tell me… are you aware of the gap between us?"
Venti shrugged slightly.
Venti: "More or less."
"You're level fifty. I'm… way behind."
A deep laugh rose.
Abyss Lector: "And yet, you went in."
Abyss Lector: "Courage?"
"Madness?"
"Or simple ignorance?"
Venti looked up at him, a faint smile playing on his lips.
Venti: "A mixture of all three, perhaps."
Then, more seriously:
Venti: "But above all… curiosity."
The Lector's flames flickered.
Abyss Lector: "Curiosity… in the face of the Abyss?"
Venti: "Yes."
Venti replied calmly.
Venti: "I have the feeling the Abyss has been watching me for a while now."
"So I thought… why not look back?"
Abyss Lector: "......."
Venti: "........"
A brief silence fell. The flames stopped moving for a moment, as if the Lector were considering his words.
Abyss Lector: "You speak as if you're not human."
Venti inclined his head slightly.
Venti: "Perhaps I'm not as human as you think."
Outside the circle, Lyra shivered.
Lyra: "…Did you hear that?"
Eron swallowed.
Eron: "That's not normal."
"Even under pressure, no one speaks to a Lector like that."
The Lector approached slowly, each movement leaving a trail of flames in the air.
Abyss Lector: "You're hiding something."
"An aura... different."
"The wind around you is not ordinary."
Venti tightened his bow slightly.
Venti: "The wind goes where it wills."
"And it often carries secrets with it."
Abyss Lector: "This boy uses a lot of puns with 'wind'."
A sneer rang out.
Abyss Lector: "Very well."
"Speak, then."
"Why accept a fight you can't win?"
Venti inhaled softly.
Venti: "Because winning isn't my goal."
"I just want to... hurt you."
"Only once."
Abyss Lector: "GGGGggggggggrrrrrrrr."
At these words, the Lector's flames suddenly erupted outward, shaking the circle's barrier.
Abyss Lector: "What arrogance."
"You're not even worthy of being quickly reduced to ashes."
Venti closed his eyes briefly.
Venti: "Perhaps."
Then he reopened them, gleaming with determination.
FFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFfffffffffffffffffffff
Venti: "But as long as I'm still standing… the wind will blow."
The Lector slowly raised a hand, abyssal symbols forming around him.
Abyss Lector: "Then show me."
"Show me what your wind is really worth."
Outside the circle, Bram gripped the hilt of his sword.
Bram: "Hang on, kid…"
The fight hadn't even begun.
FFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS
But the air itself already seemed thick with storm.
Abyss Lector: ".......".
The Abyss Lector casually raised his hand, as if it were a meaningless gesture.
FFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS
Around his palm, a small sphere of abyssal flames formed, dense, unstable, pulsing with suffocating heat. Nothing like the previous attack; not a spell meant to kill, but to humiliate.
Abyss Lector: "Disappear."
He hurled the fireball straight at Venti.
Venti: "Time to use it."
Boom
The impact was instantaneous.
A dry explosion ripped through the air, sending a searing shockwave through the entire circle.
Eron: "VENTI!"
The ground cracked under the blast, shards of molten stone were torn away, and a column of flame rose, completely obscuring the view.
Kael: "WHERE IS HE?!"
Even outside the circle, the four adventurers had to take a step back, protected by the barrier.
Lyra: "That was… too direct."
Lyra murmured, her eyes narrowed in the heat.
Eron: "He didn't even try to dodge…"
Eron added, his voice strained.
FFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS
For a few seconds, there was nothing but the crackling of the fire and the smell of burning stone.
The dust and ashes slowly settled.
Then, the flames died down.
And
Venti was still there.
Standing. Motionless.
Exactly in the same spot.
His coat wasn't burned.
His skin was untouched.
Not even a trace of soot on his face.
The only difference was the verdant glow that now surrounded him, a translucent, almost living halo that rippled gently around his body like a visible breeze.
FFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFffffffffffffffffffffffffffffff
The wind.
A pure, calm, but incredibly dense wind.
Abyss Lector: "......".
"What?"
The Lector froze.
His flames, usually restless, hesitated for a moment, as if recoiling from something they didn't understand.
Abyss Lector: "…Impossible".
Chapter 32: Swordsman, Mage, Alchemist, Scout, and... Bard
The End