"What is that thing, anyway?" Nova wondered.


    Finn kept his eyes on the enigmatic object on the pedestal, "I think it has something to do with the door–maybe a key to moving ahead."


    "Positive?" Jasper asked.


    "Assassin''s hunch," Finn answered, keeping track of the rotating, sharp lines of metal while cing his hand close.


    Charlotte worriedly watched, "Be careful, Finn."


    "I know–I''m just figuring out the rhythm to this thing," he said, not looking away for a moment.


    Like a cat watching its prey, he waited with his hand raised, cementing the pattern in his mind before–he swiped his hand through.


    "Got it–" He imed.


    As soon as he managed to grab the sphere, he released a breath as the others let out sighs of relief of their own.


    "Nice work, mate–" Jasper said.


    Just as the knight tried to ce his hand on the assassin''s shoulder, thepact room shook as the floor itself seemed to adjust beneath their feet. Like a jigsaw puzzle, the stone tiles lifted and lowered, moving left-to-right, swapping spaces.


    "Haah–?!" Charlotte reacted.


    Finn stumbled, bumping into the pedestal as he looked around, "Hey–!"


    There was no chance to get another word out before the colossal, bronze doors behind them mmed shut, trapping them in the shifting space.


    "It''s changing! The room—it''s changing!" Jasper called out.


    In the panic of the sudden change, Finn found the sealed doors on either side unmoving, though the floor seemed to continuously rumble and shift.


    "It''s an elevator," Finn quietly remarked upon realization.


    "What?" Charlotte asked.


    "It''s an elevator—I don''t understand how it''s operating, but we''re being transported down," Finn imed while bncing himself.


    Each piece of the sealed room reconfigured itself constantly while the grinding of stone hummed. He could feel it in his gut that the chamber was lowering.


    "It''s a trap, isn''t it?!" Nova asked.


    "Maybe—just be ready!" Finn told them.


    After enough humming along the sound of stone grinding and shifting around, the downward motion came to a stop. It was a jarring shift that rumbled the entirety of the primordial elevator, forcing them each to catch their bnce.


    "It stopped?" Charlotte questioned.


    There was no opportunity to catch one''s breath as the unopened door opened itself by retracting metal tes. It opened itself into a vast, dim chamber.


    Finn stepped out from the unorthodox elevator as the others followed, careful and cautious as to what the room may be.


    "So dark…Use that light thingy, Finn!" Nova begged.


    "Hold on—we don''t know what''s in here yet—" Finn responded.


    Just as they each stepped into the chamber far beneath the surface, light began to flicker into existence.


    From candles set atop the many pirs, silver mes awakened. The air was thin and brisk, like the peak of a mountaintop, yet the pr opposite.


    "Brrr…It''s chilly," Nova shuddered, anxiously rubbing her own arms.


    Finn shushed the bard, needing all five senses to work at their utmost in the unknown chamber.


    Knelt statues led up to what the lights brought into sight: a throne and the being who sat upon it.


    There wasn''t a word spoken as each eyeid anxiously on the figure that sat on the heightened seat of ckened stone.


    From the throne, the being moved; a towering figure of sable skin and unkempt, golden hair wearing a regal set of pale robes with the fur of a lion around his shoulders.


    ''He''s powerful—even without Sleuth, I can feel it in the air; this is an extraordinary being,'' Finn felt.


    Into his hand, the wordless figure of remarkable stature conjured a sh of cerulean light.


    It gave way toan exuberant staff of gold with a sapphire at its end, glistening with a mystical radiance. From the steps, the throne sitter began to descend with wordless intent; there was no doubt of the malice held by the figure.


    ["Sleuth Status"]


    [...Assessing information about [???]...]


    [BOSS Identified: "The Old King"] [Level: 50]


    "Here hees!" Jasper said, readying his sword and shield. "This is who we came here for! Ain''t no time to piss our pants now!"


    As soon as the final step was descended, the hollow husk of the giant ruler raised the golden instrument. A bright-blue glow was produced, like moonlight shimmering off the surface of the sea.


    Finn shouted to the others, "He''s using magic! We''ll have to close the distance!"


    He led with a sprint right towards the towering royal, deciding it was the best move with little information. As he approached swiftly, he watched the Old King weave the azure light into a volley of arrows.


    "Iing!" Jasper yelled, raising his shield in front of the bard.


    Finn didn''t stop his approach, jumping onto the shoulder of one of the knelt statues as the magic-formed projectiles tracked him. He looked down on the regal foe from above, finding himself making eye contact with the hooded king as those silver irises met his own in that split-second.


    The dagger in his hand was nearly thrown as he intended to warp, though stopped that n as the way the towering figure moved his staff made him reconsider.


    As a burst of azure light rose from the king''s tool once more, it took a refined shape into that of an ethereal sword of light that stretched many meters in length.


    ''It created a de made of mana–?'' Finn analyzed.


    He jumped back just as the colossal de of magic was swung with the staff as its handle, watching the incorporeal de sliced right through the scalp of the statue he stood on.


    Charlotte sprinted through the main walkway between the statues, quickly intercepted by another swipe of the magic-formed de. She ducked down as her hair waved, narrowly missing the sword as it passed over, cutting through the kneeling monuments like a hot knife through butter.


    Just as the spellde began to pick herself up, the sight of the Old King ahead, raising the ethereal de high filled her with a sense of dread. In a single swipe, the colossal extension was brought down–


    ["de Warp"] [Mana: -100] [2000/3000]


    "Hyup!--" Finn let out, having to tackle her as soon as he warped beside her.


    "Ah?--" Charlotte reacted.


    As hended with the woman, crashing to the side of the tiles of mossy stone, the pathway to the throne was left cleaved through by the azure light.


    "Gotcha," Finn said, breathing out as he stood up, lending a hand down to the spellde.


    Charlotte nodded, epting the hand as she was quickly helped to her feet, "Thanks."


    "Just stay on your toes. This guy is probably full of tricks–when ites to magic users, there''s really no way to tell the depths of their arsenal," Finn imed.


    In the near distance, the pir-sword of light dispersed back into the golden staff as the unspoken king stood in the same spot. The way that the figure stood there irked the assassin, as though those silver eyes said "That was my greeting."


    Before another weaving of magic could be conjured, he set his sights on the robed king as the staff glistened again.


    ["Blink sh"] [2:59]


    He crossed a hundred meters in an instant, cing himself face-to-face with the Old King, who was easily twice his height. In the same moment, he dragged his de across the side of the sable-skinned being''s neck, though the collision felt like he shed at solid steel.


    ''Seriously?--'' He thought.


    As he slipped by, the assassin spun himself around as he found the cloth of the Old King''s robe cut where the strikended, though only a light scrape was left. It didn''t make sense to him how a caster could be that tough, having to correct his logic that followed games a bit too much.


    The staff was mmed down with a wave of cerulean light, bringing the assassin to quickly toss his de back towards his allies.


    ["de Warp"] [Mana: -100] [1900/3000]


    —He caught his de a safe distance away as his boots slid across the stones. The impact of the Old King''s staff against the ground conjured a field of ivory spikes around the mage''s position.


    ''…Good timing. I would''ve been skewered,'' Finn thought.


    For the moment, he stayed his distance, regrouping with the others.


    One of the knelt statues of cracked marble was used for cover, granting at least a brief respite. He looked at the others, seeing that they were rattled by what the Old King had shown thus far.


    "How do we even get close to that guy? Magic like that is just cheating, mate," Jasper remarked.


    "Even if we do…It looked like it wasn''t easy to hurt him," Charlotte said, looking at the assassin.


    Finn exhaled, tightening his gloves as he nodded, "He''s tough, yeah. It''s going to be hard to get a good hit in."


    "Didn''t that book say giants were adverse to magic? What''s the deal with this guy, anyway?" Jasper asked.


    "I''m not sure, but it doesn''t change that we''re here right now—that''s the reality of it," Finn answered.


    As they spoke, the colossal statue quaked as an array of projectiles sted into it from the other side.


    "I''ll try and keep his attention on me. Just give him hell for me, yeah?" Jasper offered.


    "In that case…I''ll support you with my singing, then. I can make sure you don''t tire out," Nova added, looking at the knight.


    Finn liked the proposal, though finding the time to discuss their ns being reduced quickly as the monument shook, "Alright. Charlotte, you''re with me then."


    "Mhm, I''m ready," Charlotte nodded.