Trial

A deep, guttural growl echoed from the tunnels.

The system spoke one last time.

{Prepare for battle. You have been given 600 seconds to prepare}

{599...}

{598...}

As the system's timer went down on their screens, they decided to draft a plan.

"Well, let's see what we have to work with." Julius muttered, glancing at all their classes once more.

Fraero crossed his arms, his armor clinking slightly. "We don't have time to overthink. We need a plan that plays to our strengths."

Garrick huffed. "That's easy. I used to be a boxer. I probably have the best endurance out of all of us, how about we just let them hit me and you guys take them from behind."

Yara shot him a glare. "That's how you die first."

Kiera tapped her bow against her leg. "She's right. We're facing 'Impossible' difficulty. We need strategy. No brute force method, we don't want to trade evenly with the enemies, we need to outsmart them in some way."

Fraero nodded. "Agreed. I'll be at the front. I trust myself to fight without getting myself in dangerous scenarios. My Knight class gives me armor and durability, so I'll take point. Garrick, you'll be on the front lines with me, since you're a tank, I trust you can take a hit for me if I get caught off guard."

Garrick cracked his knuckles. "Yeah, yeah. I'll try not to get killed. This class of mine seems pretty powerful though, so we'll see how things turn out."

Julius took a deep breath. "Yara, you should be mid-range. Stay close enough to support us with magic, but don't get caught up in the fight. Because we don't have a healer or a priest to save you."

Yara gave a slight smirk. "Works for me. I'll focus on fire magic—it's the most efficient option I think. I should be able to set one on fire, and let's hope they're all flammable."

Kiera raised an eyebrow. "And what about me?"

"You stay at the back and take shots whenever you can. If things get overwhelming, you can move up and provide cover fire," Julius said. "You should aim for enemies who aren't too bulky. Try to aim away from us, so for example if the enemies have a mage at the back, that's your target."

Kiera nodded. "I can work with that. You seem like you know about this stuff..."

"I've played these games before... Just online" Julius coughed, he had played games. An unhealthy amount in his life-time before his parents left.

Fraero turned to Julius. "And you?"

Julius hesitated for only a second before replying. "I'll be a floater. Rogues aren't built for direct combat, but I can strike when enemies are distracted, disarm them, or pick off stragglers. If things go bad, I'll be able to burst in and provide cover angles. For example if you get disarmed I can charge in and burst an enemy. Worst comes to worst, I could stealth and try to assasinate high profile enemies."

Fraero met his gaze and nodded. "Good, just don't get any other ideas with that stealth. Now let's go over just our positioning."

He took a small rock and started drawing on the cavern floor. "I'll stand here, holding the front line with Garrick." He drew two marks in the front. "Yara stays here, behind us, so she can cast without getting hit and be the closest to our protection." A mark behind them. "Kiera, you're farther back, making sure nothing sneaks up on us." A mark in the rear. "And Julius…" Fraero looked up. "You stay mobile. Move where you're needed."

Julius gave a sharp nod. "Yeah, I'm assuming none of us will be that proficient with our weapons so we need to assume errors will be made."

"Of course." Yara spoke, twirling her staff around. "Fireball!" A tiny flame wisp emerged.

"FIREBALL!" A sizeable lumb of fire then blasted into the ceiling, casting rocks and dust down.

"Agh Fuck." Garrick swore. "That hit me on the head."

"Sorry, just testing." Yara began practicing smaller spells. From water sphere, to fire balls to wind pushes.

The timer continued ticking down.

They talked more, but it was mostly just repeating what had already been said.

{300 seconds remaining.}

Yara clenched her fists. "We don't know what we're up against, so we should assume the worst. Julius, check your stealth skill. If you can scout ahead, that might give us a head start."

Julius checked his interface.

[Stealth (Lv.0)] – Reduce visibility for a short duration. Effect is broken if making sudden movement or attacking.

He activated it. A faint shimmer spread across his body, blurring his outline. It wasn't perfect invisibility, but it was better than nothing.

"Huh? I can still see you." Yara squitned her eyes. "But you're like a little blurry for some reason."

"It's not total stealth, but it'll work. I'll try to take a quick look," Julius whispered. "Stay ready."

Moving carefully, he crept toward one of the tunnels. His heartbeat pounded in his ears, but he kept his breathing steady. The cavern twisted into darkness, and as he moved forward, he finally saw something.

Eyes.

Dozens of glowing red eyes.

Julius swallowed hard and stepped back as quietly as he could.

{250 seconds remaining.}

He hurried back to the group and deactivated Stealth. "We've got company," he said. "A lot of them. The tunnel was pretty small, so that means the creatures must be small too. Maybe goblins?"

Fraero's expression hardened. "How many?"

Julius exhaled. "I couldn't count. But more than enough to overwhelm us."

Kiera clicked her tongue. "Figures. I need focus to shoot this bow, if any of them go on me I need someone to peel them off for me."

Yara flexed her fingers. "Or we just have to hit hard and fast, so they all die before they can reach you and me."

{100 seconds remaining.}

Garrick rolled his shoulders. "No point in giving up now, it looks like we're gonna have to give it all if we want to use this second chance well. Are you guys here with me?"

"Of course."

"Yes."

"I trust you all."

"Let's do this."

The group's confidence had risen from the start, they clutched their new weapons and reorganised their strategy one last time.

{50 seconds remaining.}

The cavern trembled again. This time, the sound of claws scraping against stone echoed toward them.

{10 seconds remaining.}

They gripped their weapons. Kiera drew back her bow.

{5...}

Julius clenched his daggers.

{4...}

Fraero raised his sword.

{3...}

Yara's hands glowed with fire as she clutched the staff bravely.

{2...}

Garrick cracked his knuckles, his muscles hardening as the human tank prepared.

{1...}

A roar erupted from the tunnel.

{Begin.}