Chapter 444: Rank 3 Dungeon Raids were regular things in Fall of Ares, something every player became familiar with by the time they hit the Second Year at the Academy. Back then, you would be given a mission slate filled with available raids, their ranks, rewards, monster compositions, terrain hazards, and even recommended party members. It was one of the few parts of the game that felt genuinely tactical... not just brute force. Depending on which Heroine you took into a dungeon, the entire raid flow could change. A Heroine like Esme, for example, was not meant to stand on the frontline. Her abilities were about support, buffs, potion amplification, purification, and stability. But if you brought her into a dungeon in a support role, she could craft powerful elixirs on-site using materials found within the walls of the dungeon itself. Pair her with someone like Aysha the Berserker or Mira the Knight Commander, and your raid got twice as stable. It was always about team-building, synergy, and execution. "So... I don’t understand what we’re doing right now?" Azel asked, staring at the glowing rift in front of them... a huge white, circular gate shimmering just above the cracked soil. A chill crawled up his arm as he stepped closer. "This thing looks like it wants to swallow us." The Gate was glowing a bright, concentrated white. In dungeon terminology, that meant Rank 3... a threshold where monsters inside would typically be Rank 4 or Rank 5, but with a Rank 3 Boss at the end. "Colors don’t actually determine anything," Mynes said as she knelt at the edge of the gate, her fingers moving rapidly as she finished etching runes into the dirt. Pale blue mana flowed through each mark. "Different things can happen inside a dungeon, and those effects are classified as Color Changes. If a Color Change happens and we’re not prepared... we could die." ’She’s not lying,’ Azel thought, folding his arms. Pressing lightly against him from the side because she refused to float anymore was Gwendolyn, her ghostly body pressed up against him, including her ridiculous cow breasts. She had discovered she could physically lean on him if she concentrated, and she fully intended to exploit this new trick. "Of course," Gwendolyn said with a nostalgic sigh. "I’m surprised runes can now read the mana volume of a dungeon so well. They can even detect how close it is to undergoing a Color Change. The world has advanced quite a bit compared to when I was alive." She bumped him again and smirked. "Also, you know those girls haven’t stopped staring at you once... Hmph. Guess someone’s popular with the ladies." Azel turned his head slightly. Behind him were the Gun Commander and several Aegis soldiers. Beyond them stood the Academy students... mages and aura practitioners, all awaiting orders. And indeed... the moment Azel’s eyes landed on the mage girls, several of them jerked their heads away with flustered expressions and tiny humiliated hmph’s. ’I’m not that handsome,’ Azel thought, confused. Gwendolyn gave him a flat stare and scanned him up and down before sighing loudly. "You’re so stupid." 𝓯𝓻𝓮𝙚𝙬𝓮𝙗𝒏𝙤𝒗𝙚𝙡.𝒄𝒐𝓶 Before he could retort, Mynes stood up and dispelled the runes she had activated. She flashed them a confident thumbs-up. "All good to go," she reported. "The mana concentration is exactly right for a Rank 3 Gate. No fluctuations, no signs of a pending Color Change. We should be perfectly safe." Mira stepped forward with the Gun Commander at her side, her expression stoic. "Thank you," Mira said before looking back at the assembled group. "As for the rest of you... fall in." The soldiers straightened immediately, the adrenaline kicking in. The mages gathered their staffs, the aura practitioners tightened gloves, bracers, and weapon straps. One by one, they prepared to jump. Mira moved first, leaping straight into the glowing white rift, vanishing without a sound. The Gun Commander followed, then the soldiers, then the mages, each disappearing into the light. A pair of aura practitioners walked by Azel, giving him scowls... probably due to jealousy or irritation at his presence before jumping in after the others. That left three people standing outside. "I guess it’s just me and you then," Mynes said, standing beside him with a soft smile. "Let’s raid to the best of ou—" Azel pushed her straight into the gate. She yelped as she vanished. Azel looked around once more, exhaled, and summoned the Bone Sword into his hand. The white blade appeared on his palm. "They’re more than enough to handle a Rank 3 dungeon," he muttered. "Once we get inside, we’re digging out the hidden room." Gwendolyn narrowed her eyes. "...He knows how to get to a hidden room?" she whispered. Azel jumped into the gate. Then a sudden invisible pull dragged her straight into the portal against her will, making her flail in midair. "HEY—!" She vanished into white light. ... Mira’s eyes blinked open as reality snapped back into place. The spatial distortion around her cleared, and she found herself standing in a barren, rocky wasteland. Jagged shale hills surrounded them, broken spires of stone jutting up like crude fangs. The sky was dim and gray, a constant rolling mist hanging overhead. ’Teleportation sickness...’ she thought as she steadied herself. The mages were on their knees coughing. Several soldiers staggered as if drunk. Even Mynes was sprawled across the ground like a discarded cloth. There was a deep rumbling growl beneath the ground. A massive Centipede erupted out of the earth in front of them... a Rank 4 beast judging by the mana density rolling off its body. Its mandibles clicked violently as it screeched, preparing to lunge. The Gun Commander instantly snapped his rifle into position, and the mages began gathering spells but the monster’s body suddenly collapsed into dozens of sliced fragments. No one had seen a blade. Or light. Or even a movement. The monster had simply ceased to exist. As the shredded remains hit the ground, Mira’s eyes widened. Standing behind where the beast had been with his cloak whipping in the sudden wind was Azel. His expression was calm. "It’s just a Rank 3 dungeon," he said, adjusting the collar of his cloak. "Let’s split up and clear it quickly. We’ll meet in front of the Boss room." Mira nodded, the weight in her chest easing slightly. "Got it," she replied. "Be safe, Azel." He gave her the faintest nod. Then he crouched. In the next instant, he launched forward with so much force the ground beneath him erupted, leaving a crater where he had stood. He vanished into the rocky horizon. Mira exhaled and raised her sword. "Let’s advance!" she commanded sharply. "He’ll be alright!"