303 Amphiptere's Maze 3

As the smoke cleared from the explosion, I braced myself for the dragon's inevitable retaliation. With a guttural roar of defiance, the Amphiptere gathered its remaining strength, its eyes gleaming with determination.

Without warning, the dragon unleashed a barrage of crystal shards from the ground and nearby structures. The sharp projectiles flew towards me with incredible speed, forcing me to dive and roll to avoid being impaled. As I scrambled for cover, I could feel the ground beneath me tremble from the force of the attack.

Gritting my teeth, I summoned a protective barrier of fire to shield myself from the onslaught of crystal shards. The barrier crackled and sputtered as the shards collided with it, but it held firm, deflecting the projectiles away from me.

But the dragon was relentless. With a deafening roar, it unleashed a Sonic Scream, sending powerful shockwaves rippling through the air. The force of the scream knocked me off balance, sending me tumbling to the ground. My ears rang with the intensity of the sound, making it difficult to focus and concentrate on casting spells.

Struggling to regain my footing, I felt a sudden disorientation wash over me as the dragon locked its gaze upon me. Void Gaze, I realized with a sinking feeling. The distortion of reality made it harder for me to cast spells accurately, and I could feel my magical energy draining faster than usual.

Desperate to regain the upper hand, I summoned a surge of lightning to coil around the dragon's serpentine body. But the creature seemed unfazed by the electrical charge, its scales providing ample insulation against the shock.

As the dragon closed in, I knew I needed to act fast. Drawing upon my reserves of mana, I unleashed a torrent of fire towards the creature, hoping to weaken its defenses and create an opening for a more decisive attack.

But the dragon was one step ahead. With a flick of its tail, it sent a wave of dark tendrils towards me, ensnaring me in a Shadow Bind. I struggled against the dark magic, feeling my movements grow sluggish and my thoughts clouded with confusion.

And then- I felt a cold slash of water in me and then it just went-poof- vaporized.

I looked to side, seeing Vexa putting large amount of water in between me and dragons breath.

"Now you should ask for help," I looked to a side, Aron stood wa to close but I didn't notice because of my focus on the dragon.

He had a sphere of wind in his hand, larger than his body- strong too.

"Vexa pull down the barrier!" I shouted knowing what he was trying to do.

Vexa pulled down the barrier of the water and fire came for us but Aron let go of the wind sphere- with that size it couldn't be called that I guess anymore.

And then- I felt a cold slash of water hit me, instantly vaporizing upon contact.

I glanced to the side, seeing Vexa creating a barrier of water between me and the dragon's breath.

"Now you should ask for help," Vexa said, her voice cutting through the chaos.

I turned to see Aron standing nearby, a sphere of wind swirling in his hand, larger and stronger than I had ever seen before.

"Vexa, pull down the barrier!" I shouted, realizing Aron's plan.

Vexa quickly complied, lowering the barrier of water just as Aron released the sphere of wind. It surged forward with incredible speed, colliding with the dragon's fire breath.

The two forces clashed in a spectacular display of power, creating a violent explosion that sent shockwaves rippling through the air.

As the dust settled, I could see the dragon recoiling from the impact, its flames flickering weakly as it struggled to regain its footing. It was weakened, but not defeated.

I immediately thought it was a good moment to reach the door, so I dashed towards it. I felt a subtle shift for a second but ignored it; the Amphiptere would take a second or so to recover.

But then, something flicked in front of me, causing me to stop in my tracks. I stared ahead, feeling annoyed.

"Why is that thing here?" I pointed, frustration evident in my voice.

In front of me stood Shadow Hound, its sleek, ebony fur rippling like liquid night, and its glowing red eyes burning with insatiable hunger. Its razor-sharp claws clicked against the stone floor as it stalked closer, jaws dripping with anticipation.

Another roar echoed, and I looked to my side, seeing Adele—

mother Adele, to be precise. She looked out of it.

And yet another gut-wrenching roar made it clear that by now, the Amphiptere was up again. Why does this never stop, truly?

My eyes scanned for the silhouettes that kept their distance from the spot—John, the masked guy, and the leader of the Luminaries stood with his team, panting as if they had been running all along. They might've brought Adele here.

"And... where's she?" I sighed as I saw Nari with her sword, her teammates not in sight.

She must've brought the Shadow Hound.

None of them are stupid; they purposely pulled these guys here to make it harder for any other teams to reach the last circle.

"Don't just stand there, help us!" shouted Aron. I turned around to see him protecting himself from the Amphiptere's attack.

I formed a fist cladded with mana and fire and stood my ground. The Shadow Hound growled and pounced towards me.

I let it come closer, lowering myself to land a jab under its lower jaw. But the hound immediately jumped into the sky and twisted, landing right behind me and attacking, clawing at my back. I stepped forward, avoiding the claw, and immediately formed a fire bolt, throwing it on the ground where the hound was standing. Another bolt was thrown towards where John was standing. I made sure to make it fast rather than strong so it just went past the throat of the guy.

I could always say I misfired the spell—not like I am the only one playing dirty here.

For some reason, Adele didn't attack me. Instead, she went back towards the Luminaries, startling them. Don't tell me they killed the kids but not the mother.