Vortex

Tepo didn't know about the fight which had taken out the biggest danger. Although his core relaxed, the young man had no time to find out the reason why.

Doing his best not to panic, the warrior eyed his ship's energy reserves. After defending against two attacks, they ran dangerously low.

Tepo could only take a risk and go for his plan B.

Recalling they map, Tepo approximately guessed his position. Although the storms did their best to confuse him, Tepo had a path in mind.

Cursing his chasers inwardly, the young man controlled his ship and advanced towards a certain direction. If Quill knew his protégé's target, the veteran might rethink his decision.

In his own ship, the pirate captain furrowed his brows. Somehow, he felt as if the shadow of death looming over his head was gone. But he didn't dare to question the marquess. He continued to chase.

Although the pirates weren't able to close the distance towards Tepo, the captain wasn't anxious. Soon, their prey would be out of energy. Then it could just sit and obediently let itself be captured.

A vicious glint flashed through the pirate's eyes as he thought about the humiliation they suffered because of Quill. On that day, someone coincidentally observed as the pirates were reduced to sparring partners for a commoner.

Their entire reputation was in shambles! No one took the Black Claw Pirates seriously anymore! Even if they stopped some small merchants, they had to kill one or two guards before receiving their loot!

Narrowing his eyes the captain urged his men not to lose their prey as they chased through the storms.

Tepo's body was tense. For an hour he traversed the storms as his energy gradually ran out. But fortunately, his estimates were correct. He neared his target. Any minute now…

Suddenly Tepo's eyes lit up. A big cloud could vaguely be made out not far from him. Although the cloud hardly stood out in the darkness, the same couldn't be said for the mysterious vortex above it.

Shining in all kinds of colors, seemingly mixed and separated at the same time, was a big portal leading to an unknown dungeon.

Tepo took a deep breath. This dungeon was his only hope now. From the information coming with his map, the warrior knew that this dungeon was extremely dangerous.

It was activated by a strong independent group of warriors. They spent a lot of efforts so no one else would take the dungeon form them. Many bribes were paid, and promises were made. But in the end, it didn't matter as those warriors never came back.

One man's misfortune was another's joy. As the warriors went missing, others tried their luck. But even some kingdoms' elite teams never came back.

This was only a while ago and so far, no compromise had been reached, leaving the dungeon ownerless.

Tepo knew that the dungeon would be dangerous, but it was his best bet. He couldn't let others continue to chase him.

Steeling his mind the young man shot towards the portal, almost crash landing before it.

Entering a dungeon with a ship was a bad idea. After all, you never knew if you appeared in some tiny room and be immediately squished to death.

Therefore, Tepo had to land hurriedly, store his ship and touch the portal without hesitation.

Suddenly the young man found himself within the dungeon. This strange sensation was still hard to get used to, but now was not the time to care.

Knowing that someone was still hot on his heels, Tepo hurriedly ran forward.

Suddenly everything happened too quickly. Tepo arrived, taking a glance at his surroundings. He was delighted, finding himself in a forest filled with towering trees. What a great place to get rid of the pursuit.

Just as this thought came to his mind, Tepo felt the soft soil as he set his foot down. Suddenly rustling noises came from all directions. The whole forest seemed alive. All kinds of attacks rained down on Tepo.

Most of the attacks were made with long appendages. Tongues, vines, even tentacles shot towards the intruder.

The young man's chest tightened. He already saw his life flash before his eyes. But suddenly, his surroundings changed again the moment he finished his first step.

He was still within a forest, but the trees were obviously placed at different locations, as colorful flowers adorned the ground.

Still with the mindset of leaving his pursuers behind and carried by his momentum, Tepo took a few more steps before suddenly stopping.

The warrior eyed his surroundings suspiciously. Why would everything change every time he took a step. Or was it himself who changed?

While Tepo was trying to figure out the peculiarities of the dungeon, the Black Claw Pirates landed on the cloud.

They left their ships as everyone's eyes focused on the portal. A variety of emotions boiled in their hearts. Greed, anxiousness, fear, surprise…

Only the captain did his best to keep a cool head. He looked around, furrowing his brows.

Where has that arrogant guy gone? Did he not follow us here? Maybe he thought he did his job by firing two attacks and waits for us to deliver the prey?

Suddenly the captain's racing thoughts were interrupted by an excited shout:

"Dad! That little sh*t brought us to a dungeon! An unclaimed one! Hahaha, we're rich!"

The captain looked at his son, Louin's exhilarated face. The younger man almost couldn't control himself, entering the dungeon any second.

But the captain knew their situation. Why were his men this excited when finding a dungeon? Because their pirate crew was never strong enough to clear one themselves. They didn't even dare to think about holding their own permanent dungeon.

Now an ownerless dungeon suddenly appeared before their noses. This was a pie falling from the sky. But what if it was poisonous?

Studying his crew, the captain sighed. He knew that he couldn't convince them to stay outside. If he made such a suggestion, a mutiny was more than likely.

"Ok guys. Let's go."

Upon hearing the captain's words all the pirates grinned excitedly. The young captain's words had convinced even the last doubters. After all, what was best at convincing a pirate? Naturally it was wealth!

With greedy eyes the pirate closest to the dungeon didn't hesitate any longer. For him it was first come, first serve. He reached out his hand and vanished immediately.

Suddenly a chain reaction ensued. The rowdy pirates feared that someone would take their treasures away. They stormed towards the portal.

Even the captain was infected by the atmosphere. He shouted angrily as he pushed through the crowd and entered the portal.

Suddenly the experienced man's face turned pale. A forest appeared before his vision. Instead of his men clamoring for treasure the disgusting sound of bodies dragging on the ground reached his ears.

No living member of his crew was around the captain. Only corpses were dragged into the forest by all kinds of disgusting appendages.

Suddenly leaves rustled behind the captain. A long tongue shot out of the thick, colorful foliage. The captain's body trembled. He couldn't react. He felt death breathing down his neck.

But, before the unknown attacker could pierce the captain's heart, the portal swirled. Someone appeared in the dungeon. Since the captain hadn't moved, they appeared directly behind him, bumping into his back.

"Dad?"

This was the last word the captain heard as he took a step forward. And vanished.

Louin collided with his father. Tumbling, he also took a step backward. And vanished.

Another pirate appeared form the portal. He was just about to eagerly scan the dungeon for treasure when he felt something cold on his chest. He looked down, his brain not able to comprehend why something was sticking out of his chest.

The man could only swear not to be a pirate in his next life before his world turned dark.

Suddenly the dungeon grew lively. Beasts were glad about the sudden meal delivering themselves to their doorstep. Some lucky pirates scattered in all directions, still hoping to get their hands on the big treasure.

The captain was separated from his son. He wasn't greedy, only wanting to get out of the dungeon alive. Experienced, the man already realized that this dungeon was way too advanced for their crew.

His son Louin however had a different perspective on the matter. The young man was eager to solve the dungeon, imagining his fame spreading among the other warriors. He wasn't particularly concerned about his father. As soon as the dungeon was solved everyone within it would be released anyways.

Tepo meanwhile was already searching for a way back. For him it would be the best to leave the dungeon after all the pirates were lost in it.

As everyone was following their own goals, a voice was suddenly projected into their minds.

[Receive the Ahiluscendum!]