A Hundred Wings of Fire

Boran quickly drank two health potions in succession. As the potions flowed down his throat, a warm wave spread through his body. His wounds began healing instantly, and the burn marks started to disappear.

[100 health restored]

"Are you ready?" he asked Noemi, without taking his eyes off the dark crevice.

"No," Noemi said honestly, "but I'm coming with you."

They entered the crevice together. First there was a narrow tunnel, then it suddenly opened into a massive cave. Rays of light seeping from the ceiling illuminated an incredible sight: Hundreds of Venomwings. Some were perched on the walls, some were gliding in the air, while others were walking on the ground. Hisses and wing-flapping sounds filled the cave.

"God..." Noemi whispered. "There really are a hundred of them."

Boran nodded. "I'm going to the center. You get behind that outcropping over there." He gripped his shield tightly. "Wait for my signal."

As Noemi reluctantly moved behind the outcropping, Boran slowly advanced toward the center of the cave. With each step, several Venomwings turned toward him, making threatening hisses.

When he reached the exact center, he stopped. He took a deep breath and shouted with all his might: "HEY! ROTTING REPTILES! I'M HERE!"

The Taunt ability echoed throughout the cave. Suddenly, hundreds of pairs of glowing eyes turned to him. The hisses transformed into angry roars. Boran quickly ran toward the nearest wall, pressed his back against solid rock, and raised his shield.

The first wave came with tremendous speed. Dozens of Venomwings attacked simultaneously. Spikes cut through the air, claws struck his shield. Boran activated his IS:B ability, and the energy wave emanating from his shield began protecting him.

The second wave was even stronger. Now almost all Venomwings were focused on him. The cave was like a living wall, attacks coming from everywhere. Boran's shield was constantly taking hits, and his IS:B ability was starting to fade away.

"NOW!" Boran shouted, his voice barely audible in the chaos.

Noemi raised her staff. She focused all her power, all her concentration into a single point. As the Fireball spell took shape at the tip of her staff, the energy was so intense that crackling sounds could be heard in the air.

And then she released it.

The massive fireball blazed through the cave like lightning. As it passed through the Venomwings, it expanded, grew, almost filling the entire cave. Boran barely managed to angle his shield correctly.

The explosion... was incredible.

The cave walls shook. Rocks fell from the ceiling. Fire and smoke covered everything. The screams of the Venomwings overwhelmed everything for a moment, then suddenly stopped.

There was a long silence.

As the smoke slowly cleared, Noemi emerged from her hiding place on shaking legs. "Boran?" she called out worriedly. "BORAN!"

A coughing sound was heard. A silhouette appeared through the smoke. Boran's armor was almost completely burned, his shield was glowing red. His face was covered in soot, and he was limping slightly. But he was smiling.

"Good... good shot," he said, breathless.

Noemi ran and hugged him. "You idiot! Never... NEVER again are we doing something like this!"

Boran laughed, then coughed. "But... we won, didn't we?"

They looked around. The cave floor was covered with Venomwing remains. Not a single one had survived.

"Yes," said Noemi. "I guess we won," as she extinguished the small flame in Boran's hair.

Boran straightened himself up. "Let's go. We've got something to show Lord Varen."

As they left the cave, Boran looked back one last time. Today had been an important milestone on his journey to explore his limits. And he knew that as long as he had a friend like Noemi by his side, they would push many more boundaries.

When Boran and Noemi returned to the competition area, Lord Varen and Edmund were waiting with confident attitudes. Both were smiling as if they had already won. The other competitors were there too, some looking worried.

Loren's crystal sphere was still floating in the air. The sphere slowly descended and stopped in front of Loren. "Competition time has ended," she said in her monotone voice. "Announcing the results."

Lord Varen crossed his arms, wearing a contemptuous expression. Edmund stood beside him, quite confident. Neither had any doubt they had won.

Loren touched the crystal sphere and it emitted a bright light. "First team: Lord Varen and Edmund. Total Venomwings killed: 28."

Varen nodded his head proudly. He was sure this number would be enough. He didn't think any team could kill this many Venomwings.

"Second team: Boran and Noemi." Loren paused, as if she couldn't believe the number she was seeing. "Total Venomwings killed: 117."

Everyone suddenly fell into deep silence. The confident expression on Lord Varen's face gave way to shock. Edmund's mouth hung open.

"This... this is impossible!" Varen burst out. "How could they kill so many...?"

But the spectators had already started applauding. The images recorded by the crystal sphere appeared in the air - Boran drawing all the Venomwings to a single point, Noemi launching her massive fireball, the incredible explosion... Everyone watched with bated breath.

"Amazing..." murmured one of the spectators.

"I've never seen anything like it..." said another.

The applause grew louder. Now everyone was roaring with applause and cheers. People had risen to their feet, applauding Boran and Noemi. The funeral atmosphere had completely dissipated, replaced by jubilant celebration.

Lord Varen's face had turned red with anger. "This... this must be cheating! No one can kill this many Venomwings in ten minutes!"

Loren said calmly, "All records are here, Lord Varen. No cheating occurred. We just witnessed an unusual strategy and magnificent teamwork."

Edmund remained frozen in place, his jaw hanging slack and his eyes wide with shock. He kept staring at the display, shaking his head back and forth in complete disbelief at the unprecedented number of Venomwings eliminated. The reality of what had just transpired seemed beyond his ability to process.

A young man from among the spectators rushed forward excitedly, his eyes shining with admiration. "This... this was absolutely incredible! He drew all the Venomwings to himself alone and achieved something that seemed impossible - staying alive!" he said and turned to the long-haired woman beside him, his voice still trembling with excitement. "Just think, he took damage from hundreds of Venomwing claws and poisonous spikes, and survived three massive Fireball spells, but he's still standing tall! Such endurance is unheard of! I wonder what class he is..."

"Not alone," said Boran, looking at Noemi. "She's the real hero. I just gathered them together. Noemi made the real strike."

Noemi blushed but looked proud. The onlookers were looking at her with admiration too. Destroying hundreds of creatures with a single spell was an unprecedented achievement. While it might be a normal sight for high-level adventurers, it was extraordinary if you weren't level two hundred.

"Winning team: Boran and Noemi!" Loren announced in an official voice. The entire valley once again erupted in applause.

Lord Varen angrily turned his back and quickly walked away, with Edmund following behind. But no one was paying attention to them anymore. All eyes were on Boran and Noemi.

People began gathering around them. Everyone wanted to talk to them.

"This was the bravest thing I've ever seen," said an old warrior, squeezing Boran's shoulder. "Charging into the midst of hundreds of Venomwings... It was either success or death. You've earned our respect completely. We could talk to a few people and get you into the Crownveil guild if you'd like?"

"Thank you for the offer, but I'm already a member of a guild."

"I'm curious about which guild you belong to. Must be quite prestigious!"

"No, it's not... It just opened yesterday, called New Dawn, a guild for adventurers who want to learn all the Dungeons."

The man's face showed that Boran's words seemed 'common' to him, but maintaining his composure he said, "If you ever want to leave, I'm sure there will be a place for you among us."

The celebrations continued for a long time. People were congratulating them, asking questions, wanting to hear their story.

As the sun was setting, Boran and Noemi finally managed to slip away from the crowd. They were both tired but happy. They hadn't just won the competition, they had surpassed themselves.

"You know," said Noemi as they walked, "maybe you were right. This wasn't just a competition. It was about discovering ourselves."

Boran nodded. "And we're just at the beginning of the road," he said with a smile. "We have so much more to discover."

They both knew that what they experienced today was just a beginning. Ahead of them lay many more adventures, many more moments where they would push their limits. And most importantly, they weren't alone on this journey. They had a newly formed friendship they could trust in.