NOVEL NEXT Chapter 85: Running from the Bosses
"Again!" Lucas said. "Everyone with magic quickly pour it into the ore! Make it as bright and loud as possible!"
Understanding dawned on the others' faces.
They'd been trying to be stealthy, to avoid attracting attention. But now they needed they needed to do the opposite. They needed every predator in the forest to know exactly where they were.
Everyone began pouring magic into the ores. Each spell made the crystals glow brighter, their magical signature expanding like a beacon.
The Alpha shrieked in rage and dove again, but this time Damion was ready.
"[Flame Pillar]!" Fire erupted from the ground, forcing the wyvern to pull up sharply to avoid the heat.
"West!" Lucas was already running. "Everyone move west! Keep the ore visible!"
They ran, and behind them, the Razorwing Alpha pursued with single-minded focus.
But now there were other sounds in the forest: the thunder of hooves rushing towards them and the crashing of undergrowth to show that it was approaching.....fast.
The Matriarch had noticed the magical flare.
Lucas risked a glance back and saw the massive boar burst into the valley from the western tree line, her pack of lesser Iron Tusk Boars flanking her.
She saw the glowing ore immediately, her small eyes fixed on the magical prize.
Then she saw the Alpha.
The two apex predators locked eyes, and Lucas felt the temperature in the forest drop as their territorial instincts overrode everything else.
The Matriarch charged, her tusks lowered, thorns bristling. The Alpha answered with another spray of scale fragments, but the boar's bone plating deflected most of the attack.
"Don't stop running!" Damion called out. "They're both still aware of us!"
He was right. Even as the two monsters engaged each other, the Alpha's eyes kept tracking the glowing ore. It wanted that magical energy.
"We need to drop the ore!" Garrett said. "Give them what they want!"
"Not yet!" Lucas could see the eastern tree line now. Just a little further. "Keep running!"
A shriek from above. It was not the Alpha, but something else. Something with too many legs.
The Widow's Crown dropped from the canopy like a nightmare made flesh, her massive body blocking their path.
Eight eyes glinted with alien intelligence as she assessed the situation: prey carrying magical ore, and two other apex predators fighting over territory.
"Oh gods," Garrett said. "All three. All three boss monsters."
The spider's mandibles clicked in what might have been laughter. Then she lunged.
"NOW!" Lucas hurled his chunks of ore—not at the Widow's Crown, but past her, deeper into her territory. "Everyone throw it! Scatter the ore!"
They obeyed instantly, chunks of glowing Starlight Ore flying in different directions.
The Widow's Crown's eyes tracked the trajectory, her attention split between the fleeing students and the valuable magical resources landing in her domain.
Behind them, the Matriarch and the Alpha were fully engaged now, the boar's tusks scraping against the wyvern's scales while razor-sharp fragments tore at her hide. The valley had become a war zone.
The Widow's Crown made her decision. She turned away from the students and scuttled toward the nearest ore chunk, her territorial instincts overriding her predatory ones.
But the Alpha saw the movement.
With a powerful beat of its wings, the wyvern disengaged from the Matriarch and dove toward the spider, unwilling to let another predator claim the magical prize.
The Matriarch, enraged by the Alpha's disrespect, charged after them both.
"RUN!" Lucas didn't need to say it twice.
They fled south, away from all three monsters, as the forest behind them erupted into absolute chaos.
The sounds of the three apex predators fighting was like thunder. The sounds of shrieks, roars and the crash of massive bodies colliding echoed as the group dashed away.
They ran until their lungs burned, until their legs felt like they would give out. Thankfully, the sounds of battle had faded to distant echoes.
Finally, Damion called for a halt. They collapsed in a small clearing, gasping for breath, checking each other for injuries.
"Everyone... okay?" Damion said between breaths.
A chorus of affirmations, though Garrett looked distinctly green.
"That was insane," Zacard said. "That was completely insane. We almost died. Multiple times."
"But we didn't," Lucas pointed out. "And we learned something valuable."
"What, that we should never, ever go after Starlight Ore?" Garrett said.
"That the three apex predators hate each other more than they hate us," Lucas clarified. "And that they're all obsessed with high-concentrations of magical energy."
"Fat lot of good that does us now," Garrett muttered. "We lost all the ore."
"Did we?" Celeste held up her hand. A single chunk of Starlight Ore, smaller than the others but still intact, rested in her palm. "I kept one. Just in case."
Lucas stared at her. "When did you..."
"When you told everyone to throw the ore," she said simply. "I threw most of mine, but palmed this piece. I figured we'd need something to show for nearly getting killed by three boss monsters."
"That's... actually brilliant," Zacard said.
"That's one hundred points right there," Damion calculated, a grin spreading across his face despite their near-death experience. "Combined with everything else we've collected, we're definitely in the top tier now."
Lucas checked his navigation crystal. "We need to get back to the cave, collect our other resources, and then head toward the exit point. We've got about six hours until the exam ends."
They made their way back carefully, taking a circuitous route to avoid the area where the three apex predators were hopefully still fighting each other. By the time they reached the cave, the sun was beginning to set.
Their hidden cache of resources was untouched. They quickly organized everything, distributing the weight evenly among the group.
"Last stretch," Damion said. "Let's get out of this forest in one piece."
"Yes, I really want to get back to civilization. I'm tired of the god-damned mosquitoes in my ears." Lydia said.
Damion laughed. "Well then, let's get going."