NOVEL NEXT Chapter 87: The Centaur Conundrum
"You're not ready for dragons," Daena said, her smirk widening.
Liria groaned, gripping her sword tighter. "No offense, Daena, but I'm starting to think you're just inventing ways to make my life miserable. What's next? Centaur chefs who challenge us to an iron cook-off?"
Enara snorted, though she quickly masked it with her usual haughty glare. "If you're scared, you can always stay behind. I'm perfectly capable of handling this without you."
"Scared?" Liria scoffed, rolling her eyes. "Please. I've fought oversized spiders, banshees, and my own existential dread. What's a centaur or two?"
Daena interrupted their banter with a raised hand, her expression suddenly serious. "Quiet. They're close."
The faint sound of hooves pounding the forest floor grew louder. Liria tensed, her heart pounding as the ground beneath them began to tremble. From the shadows, a group of centaurs emerged. Their human torsos gleamed with muscle, and their lower halves, sleek and horse-like, moved with practiced grace. They carried wickedly curved blades and spears tipped with glowing green metal.
[Centaur Warrior: Level 18. Health: 3000/3000.]
[Centaur Archer: Level 17. Health: 2500/2500.]
[Centaur Shaman: Level 20. Health: 4000/4000.]
Liria's jaw dropped as the stats appeared before her eyes. "Oh, come on! These guys have more health than a boss fight!"
"Focus," Enara snapped, her darkfire already flickering to life. "Or would you prefer to sit this one out?"
"Not a chance," Liria shot back, planting her feet firmly on the ground. "Let's do this."
The centaur warriors charged first, their hooves tearing into the earth as they barreled toward the group. Liria dodged to the side, narrowly avoiding a spear thrust aimed at her chest. Enjoy new tales from empire
"Alright, big guy," she muttered, summoning her Earth Wall ability. A solid barrier of stone erupted from the ground, cutting off one of the centaurs and forcing it to circle around.
Enara dashed forward, her agility on full display as she weaved between the centaur warriors. Her Shadow Step allowed her to phase out of sight momentarily, reappearing behind an archer and unleashing a burst of darkfire.
The archer screamed, its health bar dropping slightly.
[Centaur Archer: 2200/2500.]
"Could you hit harder?" Liria called out, her voice dripping with sarcasm as she parried a centaur warrior's blade.
"Maybe if you weren't so slow, we'd be done already," Enara shot back.
"Love this teamwork," Liria muttered. She activated Inferno Burst, slashing her sword in a wide arc. Black flames erupted from the blade, engulfing two centaurs in front of her.
[Centaur Warrior: 2200/3000.]
[Centaur Warrior: 1900/3000.]
The shaman in the back raised its staff, chanting in a guttural language. A green aura surrounded the wounded warriors, their health bars ticking upward.
[Centaur Warrior: 2500/3000.]
"You've got to be kidding me!" Liria shouted. "They have a healer?!"
"Take out the shaman!" Daena barked from the sidelines, her wings folded as she watched the fight.
"Sure, let me just walk through this death gauntlet," Liria grumbled, sidestepping another attack. She summoned Stone Shot, pelting the nearest warrior with jagged rocks.
[Centaur Warrior: 2000/3000.]
Enara, meanwhile, had set her sights on the shaman. She leapt onto a low branch, using it as a springboard to launch herself into the air. Darkfire spiraled around her, and she hurled it straight at the shaman.
The attack struck, interrupting its chant and knocking it backward.
[Centaur Shaman: 3500/4000.]
"Nice shot, Princess!" Liria called, a grin spreading across her face.
"Shut up and focus!" Enara snapped, though there was a faint smile tugging at her lips.
As the warriors regrouped, Liria felt her magic reserves depleting. She needed a strategy fast. She activated Earth Sense, closing her eyes briefly to feel the vibrations of the battlefield. The centaur archers were repositioning, the warriors were flanking, and the shaman was preparing another spell.
"Gotcha," Liria muttered, opening her eyes. She sprinted toward the shaman, dodging attacks with her enhanced agility. An archer's arrow grazed her shoulder, drawing blood, but she didn't stop.
"Hey, ugly!" she shouted, grabbing the shaman's attention.
It turned its glowing eyes on her, raising its staff. Before it could cast, Liria activated Spectral Binding. Chains of dark energy erupted from the ground, wrapping around the shaman and pinning it in place.
"Not so tough now, huh?" Liria said, raising her sword.
With a roar, she unleashed Hellstorm, summoning a torrent of black flames that rained down on the shaman.
[Centaur Shaman: 0/4000.]
The shaman dissolved into ash, and a notification appeared in Liria's mind.
[Victory Achieved!]
Experience Gained: 2000 XP.
Level Progress: 3900/4000.
The remaining centaurs faltered, their movements growing erratic. Enara took advantage of the distraction, dispatching an archer with a well-placed strike.
Liria turned to the last warrior, raising her blade. "Your turn, big guy."
The centaur hesitated before charging, its eyes blazing with desperation. Liria met its attack head-on, channeling her remaining magic into her sword. Their blades clashed, sparks flying as they struggled for dominance.
With a final burst of strength, Liria drove her sword into the centaur's chest.
[Centaur Warrior: 0/3000.]
[Victory Achieved!]
Experience Gained: 1000 XP.
Level Up! You are now Level 15.]
Breathing heavily, Liria stepped back as the centaur collapsed. The forest grew silent, the only sound her ragged breathing.
"Not bad," Enara said, brushing soot off her sleeve.
"Not bad?" Liria repeated, glaring at her. "I just took down a freaking centaur shaman while you played tag with the archers!"
Enara smirked. "Maybe you're not as useless as I thought."
"Gee, thanks," Liria muttered, collapsing onto the ground. "Next time, I'm letting the spiders eat you."
Ananara waddled over, his leafy top swaying. "Well, congratulations on not dying. Shall we celebrate with a nice cup of tea or maybe a hospital visit?"
"Shut up, Ananara," Liria said, though she couldn't help but laugh.
Daena approached, her expression unreadable. "You both did well. But don't get cocky. The hunt isn't over yet."
The group trudged deeper into the forest, the canopy overhead thickening until only slivers of sunlight pierced through. The air grew colder, carrying an unnatural stillness that set Liria's nerves on edge.
"Anyone else getting the feeling we're walking into something worse?" Liria muttered, her black flames flickering faintly at her fingertips.
"You're just paranoid," Enara replied, though her grip on her dagger had tightened.
Daena, who walked ahead of them, suddenly stopped. Her massive wings shifted, and her glowing violet eyes narrowed. "Quiet," she hissed. "Something's watching us."
Liria's heart thudded in her chest. She activated Earth Sense, but the vibrations beneath the ground were faint almost nonexistent. Whatever was out there, it wasn't moving like the centaurs or spiders.
Ananara's voice broke the silence. "Lovely. Just what we need a forest stalker. Can't wait to see what fresh nightmare this is."
Liria opened her mouth to reply, but a low, guttural growl cut her off. From the shadows ahead, two glowing crimson eyes appeared, hovering at least ten feet off the ground.
[???]
The system interface that usually displayed monster stats flickered erratically, unable to load any information.
"What the hell?" Liria whispered, her grip tightening on her sword.
Before anyone could react, the creature lunged. It moved impossibly fast, slamming into Daena and sending her flying into a nearby tree with a deafening crash.
"Daena!" Liria shouted, black flames roaring to life around her.
The beast stepped into the faint light, revealing its massive, wolf-like form covered in dark, jagged fur that seemed to writhe like shadows. Its fangs gleamed, dripping with some unknown substance.
"Well, this isn't good," Ananara quipped.
The monster let out a bone-chilling roar, and everything descended into chaos.