The wet crunch of bone echoed as Cedric yanked his sword free from the skull of a wolf-like beast. Its glowing red eyes dimmed to dull gray, and the flames burning in its throat flickered out with a hiss. The corpse slumped to the floor, smoke curling from its jaws. He turned, boots skidding across the cracked stone floor, and rushed toward the group of monsters still charging at them. One of the bipedal beasts lunged first, its body thin and stretched, with jagged arms that gleamed like swords. The impact rang through Cedric’s arms as steel met steel. The monster’s blade-arm pressed against his longsword, sparks spitting where they ground together. He shifted his grip, tilting his weapon just enough to catch the creature’s weight. The monster’s strike slid harmlessly down the length of his blade. Cedric stepped in before it could recover. His body moved on instinct, shoulder lowering, wrist twisting, and he cut clean through its torso. The creature split apart with a wet rip, collapsing in two twitching halves. Another shadow loomed behind him. He caught the faint whistle of air as a sharp arm thrust for the back of his head. He tilted his head. The tip slashed through strands of his hair. Before Cedric could counter, a bolt of fire streaked past his shoulder. It exploded against the monster’s face in a burst of flames. The creature shrieked, reeling back. Cedric spun on his heel, sword flashing in a silver arc. His blade cut straight through the monster’s neck. Its head toppled, rolling across the floor as firelight flickered across its slack features. He glanced over his shoulder. The student he’d saved earlier stood there, trembling but steady enough to cast again. Cedric gave a short nod before turning back to the fight. The others weren’t doing badly either. Where before they’d stumbled in fear, now they fought with clenched jaws and fire in their eyes. Weapons clashed against claws, spells exploded in bursts of color, and their screams of effort drowned out the monsters’ snarls. They weren’t unshaken, but they were no longer breaking. Cedric met the next beast head-on. His blade rang against its arm, the two locked in a furious push. He could feel the thing’s strength pressing into him. ’Tch. Its it just me or they’re getting faster and stronger.’ He kicked it in the gut, breaking the deadlock. The creature staggered back with a growl. Cedric raised his free hand, golden light gathering at his palm. Dozens of white-gold bolts glowed into the air around him, humming with light mana. His eyes flicked across the battlefield, locking onto targets with sharp precision. He lowered his finger. The arrows rained down in perfect arcs. Each one found a skull, bursting through bone in showers of black ichor. Monsters crumpled where they stood, lifeless before they even hit the ground. Cedric exhaled, feeling the drain of mana tug at his body. He hadn’t wanted to burn through spells this early. But dragging things out would cost them more. They are currently on the second floor. "One more floor," he muttered under his breath. Just one more. The ground trembled beneath his boots. At first it was subtle, barely a shiver. Then it grew, the floor groaning, dust raining from the cracked ceiling above. The students faltered mid-fight, clutching their weapons and staring around wide-eyed. "Is this... an earthquake?!" One shouted, panic lacing his voice. Cedric’s ear twitched. His instincts screamed otherwise. His eyes narrowed, chest tightening as the vibration deepened. ’No... that’s not an earthquake.’ BOOOOM! Follow current novᴇls on nοvelfire.net The left wall exploded in a thunderous blast. Stone shattered, chunks flying like cannon fire as a wave of smoke and dust filled the corridor. The shockwave hurled several students off their feet. Cedric shielded his face, boots skidding as rubble crashed around him. Through the haze, a massive silhouette loomed. As the smoke thinned, it emerged... An enormous beast forcing its way into the corridor. Its head nearly scraped the high ceiling, the bulk of its body towering over them at nearly eight meters tall. White and black fur matted its frame, broken by thick steel plates fused to its hide. Twin trunks swung down, shining metal. Its tusks curved like blades, each long enough to skewer a man whole. The chamber seemed to shrink around it. Each step it took shook the ground. "...You’ve got to be kidding me" Cedric muttered in disbelief. ’...How could a fucking mammoth be on the first floor.’ The mammoth trumpeted, a deafening roar that rattled bones. The students clutched their ears, faces pale. The floor thundered as it barreled forward, trunks smashing aside stone debris like twigs. The group scattered as the beast’s trunk slammed down where they’d stood. Stone shattered, a crater left in its wake. Cedric ran along its flank, sword flashing. He struck at the steel hide, sparks flared, but his blade barely cut an inch deep. The mammoth swung its head, tusk whipping toward him. Cedric dove into a roll, the wind of the strike brushing past his cheek. He rose and slashed again, this time at its leg. The blade bit into softer flesh beneath the fur, a little black blood spraying out. The creature roared, swinging its trunk at him. Cedric twisted, raising his sword just in time. The trunk slammed into the blade, the sheer force blasting him back across the floor. His shoulder jolted with pain as he crashed into the wall, dust raining down. ’ Its too strong... even the hide’s reinforced.’ The students launched spells in unison. Fireballs burst against its side, lightning crackled across its thick fur, wind blades sliced at its fur. The beast shrieked, but instead of weakening, it only grew angrier. It stomped, shockwaves blasting outward. A wave of rubble scattered like shrapnel. One boy was flung across the chamber, slamming into a pillar with a scream. Cedric forced himself back on his feet. He raised his hand again, light gathering in his palm. Glowing spears of pure light rained down, striking its head and fur. A few pierced the softer flesh, making the mammoth thrash and rear back in rage. Cedric’s voice cut through the chaos like a whip. The students reacted instantly, their fear turning into desperation. Fireballs streaked through the chamber, washing over the beast’s thick fur. Lightning cracked down its trunk, snapping the air with sharp bursts of light. Shards of ice speared its legs, driving into flesh and stone alike. The cavern erupted into a storm of color and sound. The giant mammoth roared again. It swung wildly, enraged. One massive trunk lashed out, shattering a pillar. The ceiling groaned and split, stone crashing down in heavy slabs. Dust exploded into the air, choking vision, while panicked screams clashed with the beast’s roar. His sword shimmered faintly with light mana, glowing like a single flame in a storm. He darted forward, rolling under a tusk the size of a tree trunk, then ran along the length of the trunk. His blade arced toward the monster’s eye. Cedric’s eyes widened. A pressure filled in the area. The trumpeting cry was louder this time, sharper, cutting through the air like a blade. And then the air itself twisted. Wind mana surged from the beast, swirling into a violent vortex. A tornado tore through the corridor, catching everything in its grasp. Cedric was thrown back like a ragdoll, his body slamming against the stone wall with bone-jarring force. Blood sprayed from his lips. His vision blurred, head ringing, chest screaming in pain. All around him, the others were hurled against the walls. Students cried out as bodies hit stone with sickening cracks. Some dropped their weapons, some didn’t rise at all. Even the lesser monsters that had been running away were swept away, screeching as the wind flung them into the walls. The lucky ones had fled earlier, the moment they’d seen the mammoth descend. Cedric forced himself up, coughing blood. His hand shook as he wiped his mouth. The wounds they’d managed to carve into the mammoth, slashes from ice, burns from fire, cuts from blades, were closing. Right before his eyes, torn flesh knitted back together, blood vanishing into its skin as if rewound by time itself. For once, Cedric had no words. His jaw hung open. The creature was massive, its defense already beyond reason, and now not only it wielded wind magic. But regeneration too? ’What are we even fighting?’ The mammoth raised its colossal front legs, wind gathering thick around them, spiraling tighter and tighter. Cedric’s breath caught in his throat. His face paled as realization. He knew what was about to happen. "Move!" he tried to shout, but the word died in his throat. The mammoth brought its legs down. The impact shook the chamber as if the world itself cracked open. The ground split apart in a spiderweb of fractures, racing across the stone floor. In the blink of an eye, the second floor gave way, collapsing beneath their feet. Students screamed as the entire passage crumbled.