Heat…that was the best word to describe the feeling…heat.
The strike-team had been assembled as planed with Jongsoo Park serving as the Captain of the strike-team. The team was skeptical when they first arrived at the gate…it seemed like an ordinary C-rank gate. However, their opinion quickly changed as they entered the gate.
Immediately after passing through, the gate turned into a massive red-gate.
On the other side was a jungle…a hot jungle. Heat clung to the air like a thick and heavy waffle syrup. The air carried the scent of crushed leaves, moss, and wet earth. Visibility was greatly impaired because of the thick concentration of trees…interlocking and winding around each other in every direction.
Climbing up the trees to get a better look was also not helpful…the trees were massively tall. One hunter succeeded in climbing to the top, but quickly descended back down with nothing to report. Even on top of the trees, the visibility was poor…and there were other even bigger trees blocking the view.
"Thalia…what do you see? I don't want any surprises." Jongsoo said.
"We are clear here…there are Ape-like creatures north of here, roughly one kilometer away…" Thalia said, her voice growing lower as she spoke.
She continued, "wait…there is a large collection of beasts about 5 kilometer away…also north…they seem to be…they seem to be excavating."
"Excavating…Hunter Miho Baek, why would beasts be excavating?" Jongsoo asked the beast expert herself.
"Primary excavators do so for feeding and housing…however, it's not normal for large groups of creatures to excavate together." Miho answered.
"Let's go north…Thalia you will be our scout…team proceed with caution." Jongsoo ordered.
The team observed from a safe distance a large mob of creatures excavating in unison. There must have been more than 100 creatures gathered together…there were an array of creatures digging into the ground. Some looked like moles/badgers, others looked like ants, worms, pigs, horses, and apes.
"They seem to be organized in three groups," Miho said quietly. "One group seems to be digging, a second group seems to be hauling, and the third group seems to be guarding."
"Yeah…I see they even have wagons over there." Jongsoo said as he pointed with his finger at a transportation gathering site not far away…a caravan of loaded wagons was clearly seen.
"They are not from the same universe," Thalia said, "there mana signatures indicate that each species is from a different universe."
"Strange…very strange…why would creatures from different universes come together and work like this? There must be someone or something controlling them." Jongsoo whispered to the team.
After some quick planning, the strike-team attacked.
The battle was intense, the digging and hauling creatures were A-rank while the ape-like creatures were S-rank. Jongsoo Park and Kihoon Son were at the forefront taunting and tanking, Miho and the 3 American attackers stuck close to the tanks dealing massive damage, while the mages attacked from the distance.
!ALERT!
[MAIDEN'S DOMAIN Activated]
[CORONA skill used]
Immediately, the strike-team felt the effect of the Corona buff. Their attack, defense, resistance, durability, speed, and even reflexes increased drastically.
Thalia's Corona buff had significantly improved with her daily training with Ammut…she now had the ability to turn mana into stat points at will. She could adjust (increase or decrease) the intensity of her buffs depending on the situation while also considering mana-conservation.
!ALERT!
[YOU LEVELED UP]
[YOU LEVELED UP]
[YOU LEVELED UP]
Thalia smiled as she observed the steady stream of System notifications. From prior experience fighting alongside Miho, she learned that leveling was possible within a party because experience points were shared.
THOOOM…THOOOM…THOOOM
The air resonated heavy with the constant barrage of light-based attacks erupting from Thalia. It was like a gatling gun firing off an endless waves of light-beams followed by the screech and cries from dying creatures.
THOOOM…THOOOM…THOOOM
"I think I'm losing my hearing…its like being inside a thunder-storm!" Complained one party member…that comment was followed by laughter from the rest.
THOOOM…THOOOM…THOOOM
Thalia single-handedly defeated 60% of the mobs with her Astra light-beam barrage. One ape-like guard managed to get past the tanks and frontline attackers…he roared loudly and rushed at the mages in a frantic rampage.
Gin and Bora panicked at the sight of a large ape creature charging at them. Thalia smiled…unfazed by the charging ape, she quickly summoned her cutlass from her inventory (after gaining the RESTORATION skill, she was able to restore her cutlass to normal condition).
She poured out her massive mana instantly molding it to form bright-white armor that surrounded her. In addition, she imbued her cutlass with dense mana…to the point it glowed white-hot. This gave Thalia the appearance of angel…a glowing white angel.
The ape's attack bounced off of Thalia's mana armor…like a pebble hitting a stone wall. The ape fell back, recoiling from the power of his own attack. In one quick motion, the ape was cleaved in two.
!ALERT!
[YOU LEVELED UP]
Jongsoo and Kihoon looked in astonishment…for a mage, Thalia fought like a berserker. A few minutes later, the last of the magic beasts was defeated. The minor injuries were quickly healed by Semi Han the team's healer.
"I see people!" Thalia shouted.
"What? Where?" Jongsoo shouted back.
"There!" Thalia shouted as she sprinted toward the caravan of mana crystal wagons.