Illusory Dungeon Raid

The air was warm, and the leaves on the trees were rustling due to the restless wind. The atmosphere was comforting, yet Aiena's mind was troubled,

"Ryu, I still think we should reconsider," Aiena spoke, worried that something terrible might happen in the dungeon,

"Aiena, nothing would happen", Ryu tried reassuring Aiena,

"Big brother, what kind of dungeon is this?" Jue asked curiously, wondering what kind of monsters he would get to fight.

"I don't know, we no longer have Faltar's map anymore remember" Ryu spoke as he checked his gear and daggers in the holder,

"Ahh… sad.." Jue felt disappointed because he knew not having Faltar's map meant there won't be any more dungeons regularly,

'Why are you looking so disappointed! We already have goals remember…' Ryu wanted to shout but held back as he patted Jue's head; as he spoke,

"Don't worry, Jue. We'll have a lot of dungeons along the way to the north."

"Yes, big brother!!" Jue clenched his fist,

"Rafa sister are you done?" Ryu asked Rafa who was giving instructions to horses somehow, she and the horse could communicate,

'Strange, she is as weird as that plant talker in this department but in her case, I no longer mind…' Ryu thought,

"I am done!" Rafa said as she came rushing to where others were standing, she moved her face to the dungeon, which looked like a steep opening in the ground more than a cave, but a signboard emphasized it was the dungeon,

"Let's go!!" Ryu said as they all nodded, aside from Aiena, who thought,

'Ryu had a bad habit of jumping into dangerous things…. I should teach him as a big sister.'

…..

"Big brother, this dungeon smells funny", Jue spoke as he felt a weirdly sweet smell entering his nose,

"It sure does", Ryu replied as he found the smell to be too much, like he was near a cake made out of sixty per cent sugar,

'If you gotta smell like the food at least be something spicy…' Ryu thought as he wasn't a fan of sweets aside from Fel custard,

"Should I sign the song of vitality?" Aiena asked due to caution's sake as she thought this smell might also affect health,

Ryu and Jue moved forward, followed by Rafa a few steps, after that both Ryu and Jue shook their arms a few times,

"Did you feel anything?"

"No, big brother did you?" Ryu moved his head in denial and then spoke to Aiena,

"I think there is no need for the song Aiena. The smell doesn't seem to affect vitality."

They began moving forward when suddenly Ryu's [Instantenous Detection] rang hard. He swiftly turned around,

'I can swear there was something…' Ryu thought, but there was nothing in sight,

"Ryu, did something happen?" Rafa asked,

"Nothing, Rafa big sister, I just felt something was behind us", Ryu replied,

'If that's how you are going to play…' Ryu thought, as he turned around and started moving again as he expected; in a few seconds, the [Instantenous Detection] rung hard again, but this time Ryu acted nonchalant and kept moving forward,

'Not right now…' he thought, as he took a few more steps [Instantenous Detection] rung hardest it ever had, and Ryu turned around quickly, with the dagger he just pulled out of his dagger holder cutting the cat-like creature's neck in one swipe,

"Everyone protect Aiena and watch your back!!" Ryu ordered, and Rafa began swinging her sword around, killing three more similar cats,

"Big brother, I don't see anything!?" Jue was confused as he had never fought anything invisible before, and as he turned to look towards Ryu, something clawed hard on his back,

"Ahh…" Jue yelped in pain, and Aiena began healing him instantly,

"[Small heal]!! [Heal wound]!!"

"Jue, don't try seeing them it won't work just look at if there is something out of place in emptiness", Ryu explained finally. Jue was able to make out their position as he began punching the random out-of-place stones and weirdly formed floor,

'Hiding in plain sight… if not for [Instantaneous Detection], this could've been fatal', Ryu thought as he felt grateful for having the skill and finally scanned the dead body of the monster,

(Name- Lukercat

Level- 25

Title- [The mirage kitty]

Skills- [Minor Illusion], [Vision Blurring], [Crazy claw], [Claw swipe])

"Ryu, are there more?" Rafa asked her sword and face bloody with Lukercats purple blood, and Jue was looking equally menacing with spots of purple blood here and there on his face; as he smiled,

"Big brother, did I do good?"

'Damn, he looks like a serial killer,' Ryu thought as he replied,

"I don't feel anymore here. Let's keep moving. Also, Jue be close to Aiena" Jue was feeling a bit pouty because Ryu didn't praise him but held back as he knew protecting Aiena was important,

"Aiena, big sister, you are best; my wound is all gone!!" Jue said to Aiena as he stayed close to her for her guard,

The party moved at an irregular pace as they encountered Lurkingcats multiple times,

'Another one!!' Ryu thought as he turned back with dagger swiftly, but what faced him was completely different,

'Wtf!!' Ryu thought as a cat as big as a panther jumped towards his face slashing his cheek. He felt he was about to receive a fatal wound when Rafa finally pushed her sword into the panther-like monster's head,

"Ryu!!" Aiena shouted as she cast [Small heal] and [Heal] on him instantly,

"Are you fine? Did he hit you somewhere else?" Aiena asked with a concerned filled voice, but Ryu just smirked as he stood up,

"I told you right, as long as Rafa big sister is here, we will be fine", Aiena said with a red face as she spoke,

"If Rafa was a second late!! You'll be hurt worse!!"

"But Aiena would've healed me", Ryu replied, and Aiena shook her arms as she didn't know how to respond,

'Ryu believe me… but' she was happy Ryu believed in her but wanted to scold him about entering the dangerous dungeon,

'This is the chance!!' Ryu thought as he ordered,

"Let's get going before more of those jump up!!" Jue and Rafa nodded, and all of them began moving as Aiena thought,

'But… I wasn't finished, yet she pouted a bit in her head as she didn't want to pout like a kid in front of Jue and Ryu; Ryu smirked as his distraction was successful as he scanned the fallen panther-like monster,

(Name- Shadowcat

Level- 30

Title- [The Illusory cat], [Surprise striker]

Skills- [Minor Illusion], [Vision Blurring], [Crazy claw], [Claw swipe], [Size adjustment])

'Maybe this is why many died here, first, they get us used to small cats and then attack with one panther sized hidden among them… if I sold this to Adventurer's guild how much will they pay hehe…' Ryu smirked, as they continued on their way,

Many battles happened; they even went down a staircase at a point, the monsters mainly were Lurkingcat and Shadowcat, but occasionally gargoyle-like statues were jumping out from the solid wall,

"Big brother, how are those monsters jumping out of the wall!?" Jue asked as he punched one into the dirt. Jue was feeling challenged and curious as to how such monsters could phase through stuff like walls, and Ryu finally thought something,

"Since we stepped in did any of us touch the wall?" Ryu asked as he cut down another panther-sized cat with thick tails and sharp fangs,

"Walls look too gross to touch…." Aiena said with a weird face as she imagined touching those walls, and she wasn't wrong. The walls appeared to be too muddy, almost as if they were laced with cow dung,

"I didn't touch," Jue said, and Rafa also moved her head in denial as she cut another monster,

As soon as Ryu heard their replies, he moved towards the wall, Aiena wanted to stop him as the walls looked too dirty, but Ryu was already too close, and then something strange happened,

"Ryu!?" Aiena shouted, and Rafa moved towards the wall, also disappearing the same way Ryu did,

"Aiena, we are fine! Come inside," Ryu's voice came from the wall, and Aiena, along with Jue, made their way to the wall Aiena although still reluctant, pushed through her disgust because Ryu was more important to her, and finally, she realized it too,

"It is an illusion?" she spoke in a confused voice,

"Big brother, awesome how did you figure it out!?" Jue asked with his eyes shining, and Ryu explained,

"You remember what we smelled when we entered the dungeon? It might have messed up with our perception and made us hallucinate the outer walls, see we can clearly see outwards from here" Ryu pointed outside, and finally, they figured out how gargoyles were spawning. the dungeon was wider than they thought,

"Big brother, it is amazing!!" Jue always knew Ryu was smart, but he felt happy whenever Ryu proved it as he was proud of such a big brother, whenever he does it thought Ryu felt uneasy as he thought,

'Did someone replace him when we weren't noticing… where is the brat who rushed in hiding at me with a sword' Ryu reminiscent of Jue's bratty past self; the dungeon raid became way easier with the hiding spot of Gargoyal discovered, and for quite some while they didn't even encounter another group of cats and panther sized cat inside the wall illusion path,

'Are they banned from coming here?' Ryu thought, suddenly as if waiting for him to think that the cats and panther monster, along with some tanuki with wide jaws this time,

"I thought too early," Ryu said as they began fighting, rushing towards monsters, some of them disappeared along the way,

'Sneaking won't work on us!!' Ryu thought, and the Fusion Souls began making short work of the monsters and Jue got another scratch cause, unlike Rafa, on whom scratch barely had any effect at all, and Ryu, who used [Instantenous Detection], Jue was only guessing or feeling the monster's position,

"[Heal wound], Jue, be careful!!" Aiena spoke, and Jue thanked as he began punching the heck out of monsters,

After the battle was over, they were regrouping with Rafa as the middle point, but then Ryu's [Instantenous Detection] rung again; although quite low, Ryu looked around to make sure,

"Jue, go kick that rock," Ryu said to Jue, pointing to a small pebble at the side of the path. Jue felt awkward about the request but obediently went to the rock,

'It is too small to be a monster, though', Jue thought and kicked the rock, shocked as it turned into a smaller white-colored cat,

"A Unique variant!!" Ryu smiled as he rushed to kill it, but something strange happened that had never happened in any dungeon before,

'Why in the heck it's running back!! You won't go far though' thought Ryu as he shouted,

"Everyone follow it!! Don't let it escape!!"

-To be continued