Chapter 256

The following day they come back to shore at first light, eager to try the authentic cuisine of the town, having only tried their collection of vegan puddings and fruits yesterday.

Breakfast at what looks like the only restaurant that’s open in the morning is both extravagant and familiar at the same time. Fruits, pancakes, that Elven version of French toast made with almond milk and bananas, oatmeal and finally herb roasted potatoes, a leafy salad, and what Cain was confident were eggs until he tried them and found it to be an apple cinnamon-flavored tofu.

As expected from the description of the local Elves lifestyle yesterday, it’s served as a buffet, and all the locals drop in and find someone to eat with unless they’re absorbed in another activity. 

Reading at the breakfast table seems to be a popular pastime, and Vala has gone to join what looks like a book club. The rest of the ladies, plus Sven, are planning on a swim in the ocean today, followed by a nap, food, and another visit to the hot springs. 

Cain had learned that there’s a level 200 dungeon here, so he’s planning to visit there at some point today. According to the locals, it’s filled with Dark Fae, and Cain can always use more forms to add to his collection of summons. Dark Fae are Nila’s faction for Summoning and improvement, and he’s gathered a lot of them already, even more than the types of Beastkin he’s found, but there’s still a long way to go until he can make her Legendary. 

Next to Vala’s new book club friends, a group of Elves is deep in a discussion about the evolution of Dragons, and that gives Cain an idea. They’re debating what exactly a Proto Dragon would have looked like, and not only does he already know, it could help him complete the dungeon more quickly. 

“If you would love to know for certain, I have a Golden Proto Dragon among my transformations. Give me a moment to head to the local dungeon first, and then I can show you for certain.” 

“Thank you so much. We can wait for you to finish your morning dungeon run; not a problem. Do you know where the surf beach is? It’s big enough for Dragons and away from the anchorage. Could we meet you there?”

Nemu turns to give the group an eager look. “Did you say surfing? Is there somewhere we can get boards? I want to go surfing.”

“There’s a board shop near the beach, next to the smoothie shop. You should try that too, the smoothies are way too good to not know about. It’s run by a transfer that uses Ice magic to make slushy drinks out of fruit juice. The good boards are a little expensive, but they’ve got some rentals if you get there early.”

The ladies discuss the options between themselves for a few seconds before Nemu announces they’ve come to a decision. “We will all go surfing, then relax on the beach. Misha wants to go with Cain, so you two can do the dungeon together and then meet us at the beach to show the Dragon researchers what a Proto Dragon looks like. I’ll bet the sun will feel perfect on the scales.”

The dungeon is on the way to the surf beach, so they all go that far together, assuring the Elves that the two of them can handle a level 200 dungeon together. Mythryll adjusts her plans and decides to go with them at the last minute, not wanting to miss out on the experience gains, exchanging her beachwear for armor, and following them in. 

[Laura, merge with the extra clones when they appear. I’m going to do this one in Dragon form.] Cain warns his companion, who gives him a sloppy salute in return. 

Once they’re inside, Cain calls a half dozen clones of Kone and transforms into the Golden Proto Dragon, activating Ancient Resistance to triple the copies of Su and their Drakes. 

The Dark Fae in this dungeon are geared up for war, heavily armed, and prepared to be attacked. Even with the sudden appearance of so many Dragons, they’re not deterred. Within seconds they’re sending a flurry of arrows towards the intruders, forcing Cain to shelter Misha and Mythryll under his wings. 

As the arrows fly, the troll heavy front lines charge, reaching the grounded Dragons only a second after the first volley lands.

The fighting style of the dark nymphs that follow the Trolls reminds Cain of the Dark Elven sword techniques that he learned. Their preference is dual blades in a very graceful, flowing attack pattern. Most of them were stopped at the first rank of Drakes, but a small group charged past, recognizing Cain as the most significant threat in sight and desperate to get to him before he takes to the air where he’ll be almost impossible to kill. 

Unlike other dungeons they’ve visited, these are hardened veterans of the Great War, and they’ve faced armies of other species before.

As the Dark Nymphs charge, they’re joined by a group of black barked Corrupted Treants which hurl their shields forward in front of them as they run, expertly intercepting the first wave of Cain’s fiery breath with no visible damage to themselves. Cain surges forward to meet them, claws ringing against branches and steel blades while his jaws snap at the nimble forms of boggarts and Dark Nymphs as the Fae work as a group to keep him from rampaging. 

Misha and Mythryll are shocked at this turn of events; in the past, their enemies have mostly been feral and incompetent. But these Fae aren’t driven mad by the dungeon; they’re still a cohesive army. Or perhaps they were expecting Dragons, and Cain’s tactic caused a moment of clarity? 

There weren’t enough Dark Fae near the entrance to hold the Drakes for long, and Cain’s army had started to spread out, the healing Auras of Kone and Su slowly mending wounds and repairing crushed scales of the survivors while reinforcements are Summoned to replace the fallen. 

Mythryll’s Vines grab the fighters attacking Cain, pinning them in place as enormous claws and Misha’s Holy flames end their lives. Bark, scales, and fur fly and burn as the Dark Fae make one last desperate attempt to fell the mighty Proto Dragon, but it’s ultimately in vain. For the moment, the area is clear, and Cain calls back the two out of six Kone clones that the first wave managed to take out. 

“Well, that was unexpected. Calling Dragons just pulled everything in sight. They’re good too; the Elves probably use stealth to grab a small group at a time.” Mythryll mumbles, looking around at the carnage. 

Misha glances over at the ongoing battle, where the snarls, growls, and roars draw more opponents over to where the fighting is most intense. Every few minutes, Cain calls another supporter to reinforce the lines as one after another falls. 

Like this, they’re able to clear the Beastkin army slowly. It looked like a small number initially, but most were hidden in the forest or in underground bunkers, and the numbers never seemed to dwindle until the very end. 

They’re just beginning to clean the stragglers from the tunnels and bunkers with Dragon Fire when a bright light appears in the distance, and a System message comes in. 

[Class Quest: Spread the Gospel] Eliminate target to prove the might of the Dark Gods. 

[Quest Reward: Random] 

“Spread the Gospel? That’s got to be a quest for you, right, Misha?” Mythryll asks, looking at the notification. 

“Yeah, it’s me. But where is this enemy?” She’s still speaking when Cain’s claw suddenly streaks past her face, intercepting the blade of a green skinned Dryad with a crown on her head. 

“Right here, human.” The Dark Fae Queen laughs, rapidly launching attacks, trying to get through Cain’s defenses to kill the Healer.

Mythryll tried to bind her, but the Vines were dismissed with a flick of the Queen’s fingers. The Holy Flames Misha sends her way do a better job, but she can’t keep them up long before needing to stick to healing Cain, who has the Dark Dryad on his back, attacking his wings and his head, where he has trouble reaching her. 

Fortunately, Cain is very durable, and her efforts haven’t gotten his health below two-thirds, but even that much damage is incredible by any reasonable standards. 

The blood has made Cain’s back slippery, and the Queen stumbles as she dodges a swipe of his tail, sliding down Cain’s side to be pinned by his claws and repeatedly brutally scorched by the combination of his breath and Misha’s Holy Fire.

[Quest Compete] 

[Level Up] 

[Level Up] 

Mythryll pokes Misha, who looks distracted by whatever notification she got from the quest completion. “Well, what was the Random Reward?”

It’s another ten seconds before the Dark Apostle answers. “It was a giant spinning wheel. I’ve never seen anything like it. But I got a new Skill [Apostolic Form] that I think is like your Demonic Transformation, Mythryll. 

[Apostolic Form] the Dark Apostle has pleased one or more Dark Gods. Enables a physical transformation to represent the Dark Gods Favor better. Available forms: Magic, Obsession. Unavailable Forms: Wrath, Plague, Destruction. 

“Obsession? Is that the system’s official name for Lust demons like Succubus?” 

Cain and Misha both shrug at Mythryll’s question before Cain answers. “Going by the options, I think it is. But we won’t know for sure until we see the transformation.”

Misha sighs and activates the Skill, choosing Magic. She gains blue and pink feathered wings, a bird-like head, and long claws with dark blue feathers extending up her elbows.

The Cleric robes she transforms into are dark blue, form-fitting, and sleeveless, showing her figure is essentially unchanged from its normal curvaceous state, and where it’s not feathered, her skin tone is the same olive as usual. 

[Aura Effect: Spell Power +50%]