Chapter 51：The Dark Queen

Evading Erin's group was a difficult feat, and the group used the cover of the night to rush toward the pub. They decided to spend the night here before heading to the underground tunnels tomorrow, preparing a little farewell celebration.

They had the alcohol, seasoned meat, and good company and that was all they needed to throw a small farewell party. They roasted the meat as they talked and laughed.

They moved a table outside the pub and filled it with good food and alcohol, and they started to dig in as they shared stories. They all had a silent agreement about not sharing anything about where they lived and their real names, as it would make everyone comfortable this way.

Being able to use mana made them able to get a little dizzy, not too drunk to act out, and no leftover hangover. The night reached its darkest and the group slept outside next to each other, sleeping soundly until the morning came.

They ate their breakfast before heading toward the underground dungeon. They rode over Kira's back, evading Erin's camp on the way. After an hour of traveling, they were finally standing in front of the tunnel.

"Kira, you should stay here. We'll meet again when we get out of here." Arthur said, hoping to find Kira on the outside world. He would go to the cave they first met, hoping to find him there since that was the most likely place Kira got transported from.

They descended the tunnel, going into the layer where the mid-tier monsters lived. Arthur used the chance to kill a low-mid-tier monster by himself, although it was a long battle he was still capable of the feat. As this was the first mid-tier monster Arthur killed, he leveled up again to Level 14. He leveled up to 13 when they were hunting on the glacier, and he invested his points into mana. Unexpectedly, he also gained a new rune.

[New rune has been learned. Restore-I: Can restore mana fully. Disables the use of mana for one day afterward.]

Finally, he gained a trump card. This rune would allow him to change tides mid-battle, but he would be extremely vulnerable. Although he didn't think he would need it in the upcoming fight, it was still great to have.

He picked the core and absorbed it after pocketing it. His mana increased again, a bit less than usual since he was getting stronger and stronger. It was, however, a significant increase as his mana finally reached 60.

"These creatures are not that common," Jin said, as he watched the lightning spiders die. Arthur nodded his head and the group kept advancing. After hunting the low-mid-tier monsters, they descended another layer and found middle-mid-tier monsters. They were giant centipedes that released poison. The group had to work together, but the monsters were dealt with by Annabel, the Witch of Icy Islands.

Having the witch by their side was a huge help, as her freezing spells worked extremely well against the poison the centipedes released. The group would take care of the restrained monsters then, continuing on their way. Unlike earlier, they found a door this time that led to a brick chamber. After going inside, they found a single figure in the chamber. It was a shadow monster, a semi-ethereal creature that was the bane of many warriors.

The monster screeched, dashing toward them. It had a humanoid figure, with its body stretching and dissolving at will. It manifested its limbs into different weapons that it used to attack Arthur and the rest. This was a high-mid-tier monster due to the difficulty of injuring it, but Arthur had no worries.

He took out the golden dagger that flickered with holy light and began to attack the creature. The dagger proved extremely effective as the parts slashed by it couldn't regenerate. The monster began to screech and convulse because of the dagger's holiness, and it was only a matter of time before they were able to kill it together. Its body dissolved and disappeared, only leaving a mana core and skill.

"I think you should have the skill; you were the one who did the most work," Hazel said, to which Miko nodded. Arthur looked at Jin who gestured him to go ahead, and he made no further delays in picking it up.

[Shadow Swap (E): Use the shadows to teleport in a 5-meter radius.]

It was also an E-rank skill, but it was far more practical in an actual fight. It was similar to Miko's ability, but it had more restrains and would probably cost a lot of mana. Nonetheless, he would still use it in times of need.

The group advanced through the room, and another shadow monster appeared. This time it was shaped like a quadruped monster. Again, the group defeated it using the dagger Arthur got from Solomon, and advanced again.

The last monster was a shadow knight, a peak-mid-tier monster that was famed for its strength and unparalleled skill. It was at this time that Arthur and his group started facing difficulty in beating it.

Hazel summoned the Witch of Annabel to help them in the fight, Miko teleported and sent a penetrating strike at the monster, Jin used his summoned monsters to distract it allowing it no time to rest, and Arthur was the main attacker with his well rounded physical body, protection runes, force boots, and dagger. He was over-geared unlike the rest of them.

With a scream, the shadow knight fell to the ground scattering away, leaving only the panting group in his place. Even though they were tired, no one was injured. This was a good sign that they could kill the Dark Queen if they advanced at this rate.

They remained in the chamber for a while to rest, eat, and strategize. After that, they went ahead and opened the giant door.

They were inside a giant hall, lined with many black engravings. The hall had windows that revealed nothing but dirt behind them, suggesting the hall to be built elsewhere before being moved here. The group walked in and noticed a chandelier hanging from the ceiling, with a figure hanging from it upside down.

It was a beautiful woman, who had her eyes closed, hanging from the ceiling. Her long dark hair swayed under the force of gravity, revealing her neck and her face.

There were two horns on her forehead, and she had the lower body of a bird, and wings for arms. Her feathers were matt black, taking in all the light in the room without reflecting it.

As soon as they entered the hall, the Dark Queen, a species of dark harpies, opened her eyes that had no white in them, only infinite darkness.

Being stared at silently by the Dark Queen made the group feel chills travel down their spines. The black-feathered harpy studied them with curiosity, but her expression soon morphed into that of extreme pain. She howled in agony as a wound festered in her chest, oozing blackish substance.

After a short moment, the Dark Queen calmed down and started heaving heavily, her body recovering slowly on its own. Arthur looked at her and remembered what the old man he met before told him.

'Please, I beg you, don't let the person I love suffer any longer.'

Solomon's words rang in Arthur's ears as he watched the Dark Queen suffer in agony. He realized that this creature was previously a human, someone Solomon loved and has turned into this somehow. Solomon talked about defying the heavens, but Arthur never thought about such religious thoughts before.

"Arthur, is this the one you talked about?" Jin asked with worry in his voice, the monster looked a lot stronger than they anticipated.

"Yes, but it's wounded. Look at its chest," Arthur pointed with his chin, and Jin looked at the harpy's chest where a huge hole was still bleeding dark liquid.

"If that's the case, then we might manage." Jin nodded his head and the team began spreading out.

'I'm sorry,' Arthur voiced in his heart as he looked at the agonized monster. 'I'll free you of your curse,' He took out the golden dagger.