The next few floors passed easily enough, though there was a noticeable spike in difficulty compared to the first two. Still, nothing had proved truly challenging for this party yet. They were making good time as well.

  Today was the second day of their dive, and they had just entered the next floor. They had completed three floors yesterday before resting at a recess floor, which had taken the form of a tavern, much like the previous ones. Kaiden hadn’t bothered using Arcane Vision to sniff out any secrets—there was no point since he wouldn’t be able to keep anything anyway.

  Today had been more of the same. Three more floors cleared, and now they found themselves stepping into yet another tavern.

  Greaves stretched her arms above her head. “Alright, quick bathroom break, then we head straight to the boss.”

  “Can’t we just do it tomorrow? Please?” Joren pleaded.

  Kaiden could tell the guy was exhausted. It had been a long day, and Joren wasn’t hiding it.

  “I agree,” Lena added. “It’d be better to start fresh tomorrow.”

  She looks pretty worn out too, Kaiden noted.

  Greaves crossed her arms, her expression unimpressed. “I can’t believe the two of you. We are literally minutes away from being back in town, and you want to wait until tomorrow?” She shook her head. “The next floor is the boss room. We take him down—which won’t be too hard—and we’ll all be sleeping in our own beds tonight.”

  Joren leaned against the bar, unbothered. “I happen to like the beds here. I get a room to myself, and they’re quite comfortable.”

  “Agreed,” Lena said, though her tone lacked the conviction Joren’s had.

  Greaves let out a loud laugh. “Oh, don’t give me that! You really want to ruin the speed run?”

  Kaiden stood back and watched, keeping his mouth shut. He had no strong opinion either way and really hoped he wouldn’t have to choose a side.

  “Yes, I do,” Joren shot back. “There’s no reason for a speed run in the first place. We don’t have anywhere to be, and it’s dangerous.”

  Lena nodded. “And it’s not like we’re setting a record or anything. Sixteen hours is the record—we’re not even close to that.”

  Greaves exhaled in frustration. “It’s a record for me. For us.” She shifted her gaze to Joren, softening slightly. “And yeah, it is dangerous.”

  For a second, it seemed like she was conceding.

  Then she pointed directly at Kaiden.

  “But as long as we have him…”

  So much for staying out of it, Kaiden thought.

  “…it’s really not that dangerous for us,” Greaves finished.

  Joren turned to Kaiden with a sour expression. “There you go again ruining things, new guy.”

  Kaiden had no idea how to respond to that, so he did the only thing he could think of—he forced the most self-deprecating smile he could manage and said, “Sorry?” as if it were a question.

  Greaves sighed, then nodded. “Fine. We’re not in a time crunch, and there’s no reason to prioritize time over safety—”

  “Thank Oros!” Joren interrupted, not even waiting for Greaves to finish talking.

  Greaves chuckled at his enthusiasm before continuing, “—even if I have absolute confidence in our team that we can do it.”

  Lena grinned. “Full night’s rest then, right?”

  Greaves nodded. “At this point, we might as well take our time and make sure we’re fully rested.”

  Joren and Lena looked absolutely pleased when Greaves said those magical words.

  After a restful evening, everyone was raring to go in the morning.

  “Okay, looks like we’re all ready,” Greaves said as she turned to face the portal. “Let’s go.”

  Everyone stepped through.

  They emerged on the other side into forest plains, an open field surrounded by thick woods. The air was damp, and the faint scent of moss and earth filled the space. Towering trees loomed in every direction, their branches swaying slightly in the morning breeze. More giant mushrooms of course.

  And in the center of the clearing stood the boss.

  A massive hobgoblin, easily twice the size of the first one they had fought. But unlike before, this one’s skin was a sickly shade of purple.

  “Oh no no no,” Joren was the first to react, his voice laced with immediate regret.

  “Is that uh…” Lena started hesitantly.

  Greaves sighed. “Yup. Tainted hobgoblin.”

  “Poison again,” Joren muttered, cursing under his breath.

  Lena grimaced. “I really don’t wanna get near that thing.”

  Greaves scanned the area and nodded to herself. “Prepare for ads. If this space is this large, I’d expect a lot of them coming out of the trees.”

  “Just great,” Joren muttered, rubbing his temples.

  Poison had been the recurring threat in this dungeon, yet Greaves had pushed the party forward at a relentless pace. Where other teams might have taken a cautious approach, carefully clearing each floor to mitigate exposure and avoid unnecessary risks, she had opted for speed over caution. Her strategy relied heavily on Kaiden’s ability to heal and cure poison almost instantly, to the point where her approach teetered on recklessness as they tore through the dungeon.

  That was probably why she had ultimately decided to be cautious in the end, allowing the party to rest instead of pushing forward. She had been expecting a poisonous boss fight.

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  The moment Greaves stepped forward, the tainted hobgoblin let out a deep, guttural roar that reverberated through the clearing. The trees surrounding the battlefield trembled slightly, and then the woods came alive.

  From the dense tree line, dozens of goblins burst into view, shrieking and charging forward. Most were green-skinned, the usual kind they had fought before, but among them were several purple-skinned goblins, their sickly hue standing out starkly in the swarm.

  “Tainted goblins,” Kaiden muttered. They were easy to spot, and if the hobgoblin’s condition was anything to go by, these were going to be a problem.

  “Here they come!” Greaves barked, shifting her grip on her battleaxe.

  Joren wasted no time, launching a volley of rock projectiles into the oncoming horde. The first wave of green goblins fell immediately, bodies crumpling under the blunt force, but the tainted ones kept moving, even after taking direct hits. He then immediately began creating the golem.

  Lena was already a blur, darting through the chaos, her daggers flashing as she tore through goblin after goblin. She moved around the swarm, cutting down as many of the regular goblins as she could while avoiding the purple ones.

  Greaves, as expected, held the line, cleaving through enemies like they were nothing. Any goblin that got too close was either split in half or sent flying by the sheer force of her swings. She didn’t shy away from the purple ones either, taking stacking hits of poison each time. She knew Kaiden would soon be there to cure her.

  Kaiden spent half his time staying back, making sure he could reach anyone at a moment’s notice, and the other half darting toward Greaves to cast Cure Poison and Healing Touch as needed. Once the golem joined the fight as the secondary tank, he didn’t have to heal Greaves as often, which gave him more breathing room. He itched to use his artifacts, curious to see what they could do in a battle like this, but thought better of it. Still, he wasn’t entirely passive—he took down the occasional goblin that got too close, cutting them down swiftly before retreating back into position.

  The battle raged for several minutes, the party tearing through the swarm, until there were only a handful of goblins left.

  Then, something shifted.

  The tainted hobgoblin, which had remained still up until now, raised its weapon high, letting out another deep, guttural roar.

  Kaiden saw it a split second before it happened—the giant mushrooms scattered across the edge of the woods suddenly trembled, and then, all at once, they released a thick cloud of golden-green spores into the air.

  The mist spread instantly, washing over the battlefield.

  Kaiden felt it hit him, the strange, foreign sensation creeping into his lungs, trying to take root in his mind. But then, Mindforge activated.

  The effect was burned away before it could take hold. His mind remained clear.

  The same couldn’t be said for the others.

  Greaves seemed to snap out of it moments later as well with a violent head shake. She was in the middle of the clearing where the spores barely reached

  Lena, being on the left flank wasn’t so lucky. She staggered at first, shook her head rapidly as if trying to shake off the daze like Greaves had just did. Her twin daggers lowered slightly, Then, in an instant, she turned on Greaves, lunging at her with full force.

  Greaves barely managed to deflect the sudden flurry of dagger strikes. “Lena?! What the hell?”

  But she wasn’t the only one affected.

  At the same time, Joren near the opposite edge of the clearing, took a face full of the swirling spores. The caster stumbled back, clutching his head as his golem—still standing at the ready—suddenly lurched forward.

  And it wasn’t aiming at the boss.

  It was charging directly at Greaves.

  Greaves was already fending off Lena’s crazed attacks, her movements still precise but clearly holding back. She didn’t want to hurt Lena, but she had no choice but to defend herself. Then, to make things worse, the tainted hobgoblin seized the opportunity and rushed Greaves as well, its jagged, rusted blade cleaving downward in an attempt to split her in two.

  Greaves twisted out of the way, blocking a dagger strike from Lena, parrying the hobgoblin’s sword with her axe, and then barely dodging as Joren’s golem came barreling in like a rampaging beast.

  Kaiden had never seen her forced onto the defensive like this.

  “Kaiden!” Greaves shouted between dodging attacks. “Are you affected?!”

  Kaiden steadied his breathing, feeling the calm clarity of his mind. “No, I’m good.”

  For a brief second, Greaves just grinned wildly. Then, she laughed—a deep, almost unhinged battle laugh as she swung her axe in a wide arc, forcing back both Lena and the hobgoblin.

  “Then this battle is won!” Greaves declared. “Bring those two back to their senses!”

  “On it!” Kaiden called back.

  Joren was his first target—because rock magic was currently flying at his face.

  Kaiden ducked left as a sharp-edged stone whizzed past his ear, then raised his shield to deflect another. The impact rattled up his arm, but he powered through, closing the distance between him and Joren, weaving through the barrage.

  Joren stood frozen in place, eyes bloodshot, pupils wide as he muttered something incoherent. His arms moved mechanically, launching projectiles in a sloppy, uncoordinated rhythm. Meanwhile, his golem continued its assault. Luckily, its slow speed gave Greaves enough room to twist between its attacks, all while still fending off Lena and the hobgoblin, keeping them from cutting her down.

  Kaiden surged forward, using the opening between spells to slam his shield against Joren’s shoulder, knocking him slightly off balance. Then, before he could react, Kaiden grabbed his wrist and cast Cure Poison.

  Joren’s movements halted abruptly. His eyes refocused. He let out a sharp breath, blinking rapidly as if coming out of a trance.

  “The hell just—” He barely had time to finish the thought before Kaiden clapped him on the shoulder.

  “No time,” Kaiden said quickly. “Your golem!”

  Joren snapped to attention, taking in the battlefield before immediately raising a hand. With a flick of his fingers, the golem froze mid-motion, its massive arms poised to crush Greaves. A second later, it shifted its focus to the hobgoblin, forcing the creature to back away from Greaves.

  Now for Lena.

  Kaiden rushed toward her as Greaves remained on the defensive. Lena was too fixated on her attacks to notice Kaiden closing in from the side. He grabbed her wrist just as she prepared to stab Greaves in the ribs. She tried to jerk away, but his grip held firm. Then, suddenly, her arm went slack.

  Kaiden had cast Cure Poison.

  The moment the magic washed over her, Lena’s body jerked as if waking from a nightmare. Her breath hitched, and she stumbled back, eyes darting around wildly.

  “Oh, shit.” She exhaled, realization dawning as she looked at her dagger, then at Greaves, who merely raised an amused brow.

  “I, uh…” Lena rubbed the back of her head. “Might have just tried to kill you.”

  “Eh,” Greaves said with a shrug. “Barely a scratch.”

  The tainted hobgoblin, realizing its advantage was slipping away, let out a furious roar and charged, its jagged sword swinging in a wide arc toward Greaves.

  Kaiden stayed at the back, keeping his focus on support, ready to step in with healing or a cleanse if needed.

  Greaves met the hobgoblin’s charge head-on, swinging her axe to intercept its attack and keeping its attention locked on her. She held the boss’s aggro, dodging and deflecting its heavy strikes, forcing it to stay engaged with her while the rest of the team closed in.

  Lena darted in from the left flank, her movements quick and finding purchase with each hit. She struck fast, slicing at exposed skin before retreating out of reach, her twin daggers flashing as she danced around the boss’s wild counters.

  Joren, positioned on the right, fired off a steady barrage of rock projectiles. The stones slammed into the hobgoblin’s arms and legs, keeping it off balance and preventing it from fully committing to any one direction.

  Meanwhile, the golem had circled behind the hobgoblin. Because of the boss’s massive size, the construct actually had an easier time landing its slow but powerful attacks. Each heavy fist that crashed into the hobgoblin’s back or legs forced it to stumble forward, making it harder for the creature to reposition. More than anything, the golem acted as a barrier and final piece in boxing in the boss and limiting its movement.

  Pinned between Greaves’ relentless assault, Lena’s quick strikes, Joren’s ranged bombardment, and the golem pressing from behind, the hobgoblin had nowhere to go.

  It roared in frustration, swinging wildly, trying to break free. Greaves absorbed the brunt of the attacks, parrying the worst of them and using her hardened body to soak up the rest. Kaiden kept an eye on her, making sure to send healing whenever she took too many consecutive hits.

  Lena saw the opening she was waiting for.

  The hobgoblin, forced to focus entirely on Greaves, momentarily exposed itself.

  Lena blurred forward, ducking under its raised sword, and leapt onto its back. She drove both daggers into the soft flesh of its temples.

  The hobgoblin tensed, its entire body locking up for a brief moment—then it collapsed, its massive form crashing to the ground in a heap.

  Silence. Then mist.

  They had won.

  Joren exhaled, shaking off the last effects of the spores. “I… hate poison dungeons.”