Round Two- The Ever-Changing Maze

Sirius, Luna, and Ron stood at the entrance of the enormous labyrinth, their gazes fixed on the towering stone walls shifting and grinding together in a dizzying display of stone wedges and moving passages. The second round of the tournament was aptly named the Labyrinth of Fire Orbs and came with a daunting set of challenges: ever-shifting walls, roaming beasts, and hidden Fire Orbs scattered throughout.

"This is insane," Ron said, taking in the maze's constant movement. "And they call this the 'maze challenge'? It's more like a giant monster-infested blender."

Sirius grinned. "Just adds to the fun. If we can master this, we'll prove we're more than ready for anything this tournament throws at us."

Luna nodded, her expression focused. "We've got an advantage, though. With your Orion's Eye and Raven, we can map the maze and track down the Fire Orbs faster than the other teams."

Sirius activated Sphere of Total Perception, a skill derived from Orion's Eye that provided a mental map of everything within a 150-meter radius around him. As the spherical view formed in his mind, details flooded in—walls moving, creatures lurking, and Fire Orbs glowing faintly like fireflies hidden in the shadows.

He also summoned Raven, his massive, dark-feathered bird companion. "Time to work your magic, Raven," Sirius murmured.

At his command, Raven let out a shrill cry before splitting into hundreds of smaller crows, each one streaking out in different directions to comb the labyrinth for the Fire Orbs.

"All right, team," Sirius said, sharing his vision with Luna and Ron through Vision Sharing. "We've got a layout of the maze within 150 meters. Follow me, and we'll start making our way through the paths where I sense the highest concentrations of energy."

With Abyssal Devil Tiger and Fenrir at the vanguard, they ventured into the maze, fully aware that danger awaited at every turn.

The first stretch of the maze was crowded with goblins and kobolds, relatively weak but annoyingly persistent. Abyssal Devil Tiger prowled ahead, its massive paws silently moving across the stone as it lunged at a group of goblins, ripping through them with ease. Fenrir darted to the side, his teeth flashing as he tore into a pack of kobolds that had attempted an ambush.

Luna provided support from a distance, her arrows finding targets before the goblins even had a chance to react. Her ice-tipped arrows froze them in place, allowing Fenrir to finish them off with brutal efficiency. Ron's Geokinesis allowed him to manipulate the stone beneath the kobolds, trapping them in place while Sirius directed Raven's smaller crow forms to search the surrounding areas for Fire Orbs.

Through Vision Sharing, Luna and Ron could see everything Sirius did, letting them move as a single, efficient unit through the labyrinth. After twenty minutes of intense fighting and navigating, one of the crows returned, holding a small, glowing Fire Orb in its beak.

"First orb down!" Ron cheered.

But their victory was short-lived as a new threat emerged from around the corner: a Fire Tortoise, a large, armored creature with a shell of molten stone. It roared, spewing fire toward the team, forcing them to take cover.

Sirius smirked. "I'll take it down. Cover me."

He dashed forward, his Aurora Starblade glowing with a faint blue light. The Fire Tortoise turned to face him, breathing out another wave of flames, but Sirius activated Explosive Flames, sending a burst of fire back toward the beast. The flames clashed, creating a fiery explosion that filled the corridor.

Through the smoke, Sirius lunged, driving his blade into the tortoise's shell. A burst of fiery energy surged around him as he acquired Fiery Explosion Seal (D), a talent absorbed from the Fire Tortoise that allowed him to leave seals that would unleash fiery explosions on the trigger. The tortoise let out a final bellow before collapsing, leaving a small orb and a faint glow on Sirius's skill list.

"Another Fire Orb down, and a new skill gained," Sirius said, showing them the orb he'd retrieved from the creature's shell.

With two Fire Orbs in their possession, the team pressed on, moving through the twisting corridors as Sirius used his Sphere of Total Perception to anticipate moving walls and locate hidden enemies.

Around the next corner, they encountered a horde of skeleton warriors. Their hollow eye sockets glowed an eerie blue, and each one held a crude weapon forged from bone. Luna immediately took aim with her bow, launching a rapid succession of ice arrows that shattered the first few skeletons into pieces.

"Stay back and let Fenrir and the Abyssal Devil Tiger handle them," Sirius instructed, summoning his two vanguard beasts forward.

Fenrir bounded forward, tearing through the skeletal ranks with brutal efficiency. The Abyssal Devil Tiger pounced, crushing several skeletons under its massive paws and using its claws to rend the others into shattered fragments.

Sirius focused on a particularly large skeleton wielding a bone sword, Sirius used his skill thunderbolt and sent a spear of lightning at the Skeleton. The Skeleton was vaorised into ash and dust with an electrified explosion on impact.

He acquired Bone Weapon (D) talent, which allowed him to materialize weapons made of dense, reinforced bone.

As they finished off the last of the skeletons, Sirius retrieved two more Fire Orbs, bringing their total to four.

Deeper in the maze, Raven's crows led them to another section, where the hallways grew narrow and mist clung to the air. Phantom Crows, ghostly birds with hollow eyes and talons that seemed to phase through walls, flew above them in a chaotic storm. Their screeches were unnervingly high-pitched, echoing throughout the passageways.

"Phantom Crows are tricky," Luna warned, observing the ghostly birds as they began to circle.

"We'll have to take them down quickly," Sirius agreed, tightening his grip on the Aurora Starblade.

Sirius sent a volley of Fireball toward the crows with Explosive Flame Talent. Violent explosion shook the entire maze as dead phantom crows fell from the sky. Sirius has acquired another talent- Phantom Movement (C).

One of the birds screeched and dove at him, its talons aimed directly at his face. But Sirius was faster, vanishing and reappearing behind it with a silent step. He drove his blade through the bird's spectral form, dispelling it into a cloud of mist.

Luna and Ron handled the rest of the Phantom Crows, with Ron summoning stone barriers to trap the ghostly creatures, and Luna freezing them mid-flight. When the last crow vanished, Sirius noticed the faint outline of yet another Fire Orb hidden among the shadows.

"That makes five," he said with satisfaction.

Just as they pocketed the orb, a Gale Rabbit darted around a corner, its fur rippling as if caught in a constant wind. It moved so fast that its image blurred, almost like a mirage. Luna took aim, but the rabbit zigzagged unpredictably, its agility making it nearly impossible to track.

"I'll take it," Sirius said, and summoned his own bow. The Silvercrest Bow glowed as a Arrow made of mana appeared on it. Sirius activated his Lightning Strike Talent, and the mana arrow started crackling with electrifying energy. He released the arrow and it zapped in the air piercing straight through the rabbit killing it instantly.

When the rabbit fell, it left behind a sixth Fire Orb. Sirius also acquired a skill- Gale Foot from it.

With six orbs in hand, Sirius's team continued deeper into the labyrinth. However, it wasn't long before they encountered another group of Hunters—the first team they'd run into since entering the maze. Sirius's Sphere of Total Perception had already alerted him to their presence, allowing them to prepare an ambush.

As the team moved into view, Sirius recognized them as skilled fighters who had also collected several Fire Orbs. Wasting no time, he signaled to his team, and they sprang into action.

Fenrir and Abyssal Devil Tiger charged forward, catching the other team off guard. The Hunters scrambled to defend themselves, but the sheer power of Sirius's summons overwhelmed them. Fenrir tore through their defenses, his fangs flashing as he forced the opposing Hunters to retreat.

Sirius engaged the team's leader, a Hunter with a talent for wind manipulation. The Hunter attempted to push Sirius back with a powerful gust, but Sirius activated Gale Foot, moving with the wind rather than against it, closing the gap effortlessly. With a swift strike of his bone saber, he disarmed the leader, retrieving two more Fire Orbs from their defeated opponents.

"Eight Fire Orbs now," Luna counted, giving a nod of approval. "We're ahead of most teams."

As they moved forward, Sirius sensed the presence of another powerful team in his Sphere of Total Perception: Leon Blackwood and his team. Sirius felt a surge of adrenaline. He knew they would need every ounce of skill and teamwork to take on Leon, especially with his Beast Suppression talent.

After maneuvering through the maze for hours, Sirius's team emerged in front of a massive iron door that bore intricate carvings of ancient beasts and warriors. Alongside them, several other teams gathered, including Leon's team and another formidable group led by two siblings: a brother wielding a sword and a sister with a bow. Both were C-rank Hunters with impressive talent and skill.

"Looks like we all made it to the end," Leon said, his eyes locking onto Sirius with a challenge in his gaze.

"Don't get too comfortable," Sirius replied, his tone calm but intense. "The real challenge starts now."

The iron door rumbled, and slowly creaked open, revealing a dark chamber lit by the faint glow of firelight. As the teams stepped inside, a monstrous creature descended from the ceiling—a Spider Queen, her massive, chitinous body covered in bristling hairs and her many eyes gleaming with malevolent intelligence.

"Arachna, the Spider Queen," whispered one of the Hunters, taking an involuntary step back.

Arachna let out a screech that reverberated through the chamber, her legs twitching as she prepared to attack. Sirius quickly assessed the situation. "Spread out! She'll target groups!"

The Spider Queen wasted no time, lunging toward one of the smaller teams, her massive fangs dripping with venom. Her movements were surprisingly quick for her size, and within moments, she had immobilized one of the Hunters in a cocoon of silk.

Luna summoned Aurora and her spirits. Frostine and Luna's Ice Empress Spirit, launched a volley of icy projectiles at the Spider Queen, freezing sections of her legs to the ground. Ron, meanwhile, used his Geokinesis to create rock walls, shielding weaker teams from the creature's venomous attacks.

Sirius directed Abyssal Devil Tiger and Fenrir to attack from the flanks. The tiger roared, leaping onto one of Arachna's legs, sinking its claws deep into her armored shell, while Fenrir darted around her, snapping at any exposed weak points.

However, Arachna retaliated fiercely, swiping at the summons with her powerful limbs, forcing them to dodge. As she unleashed a swarm of smaller spiderlings, Sirius activated Explosive Flames, incinerating the creatures as they poured out from the walls.

"Leon, you take the left flank!" Sirius called out. He and Leon shared a nod of acknowledgment, momentarily setting aside their rivalry to face the common threat.

Leon unleashed a torrent of fire at Arachna's underbelly while his teammates attacked her from above. The combined assault forced her to retreat, shrieking in pain. But just as they thought they were gaining the upper hand, Arachna lunged forward, spewing a venomous mist that poisoned several Hunters.

"Luna, finish it!" Sirius shouted, spotting an opening.

Luna drew her bow, summoning the full power of her Ice Empress Spirit and her newly unlocked Reincarnation of Artemis. Her arrow glowed with the combined elements of wind and ice, creating a frosty cyclone around its tip.

With a deep breath, she released the arrow. It flew through the air with a deadly whistle, piercing Arachna's armored hide and embedding deep into her body. A second later, the arrow exploded in a burst of icy wind, freezing Arachna from the inside out. The Spider Queen let out one final, anguished screech before collapsing, her massive body shattering into frozen fragments.

The chamber fell silent as the victorious Hunters caught their breath. The Spider Queen left behind a shimmering set of enchanted armor, and since Luna had dealt the final blow, the armor was awarded to her.

As the challenge ended, the remaining eighteen teams, including Sirius's, were declared the winners of the round, advancing to the next stage with Sirius's team now leading the leaderboard.