Chapter 51: Red gate ~1!
The whole thing about this gate felt weird and fishy. I have felt the mana of different kinds of gates but this was something new. The mana wasn't stable even a bit. It was going up and down like a roller coaster. There was only one answer left for this uneven situation and unsurprisingly my hunch shot the mark.
"We are doomed".
" I wish I had called mom before coming here. We are so fucked now".
"Relax guys. We have an S rank with us. We will be safe." The loud banter started as soon we entered the dungeon.
Fubuki was the one who confirmed that this was a red gate instead of a regular dungeon. Since the most senior and experienced hunter said it, no one tried to deny it and the scene in front also supported her conclusion.
This kind of site before me was something I haven't seen before in my life. We were currently on a barren island. The surface beneath was burnt black and the surrounding deep blue ocean was visible as far as my perception could reach. The most eye-catching thing was the center of this piece of land.
"Do you think it will erupt soon?" Fubuki whispered while maintaining a calm face but I knew she was a little shaken by this unexpectedness. It's been a while for her to enter a dungeon and more to it, her welcome was held by a red gate.
I saw the black fuming gas over the volcano cap. Smelt the toxic and rustiness in the air and felt the little quakes underneath my feet before responding.
"Within a week at most". I concluded.
" We have less than seven days to kill the boss". She whispered under her breath before walking toward the group of hunters who were still crying and whimpering about the situation.
"Listen". Fubuki's voice pulled everyone's attention as they turned toward her.
Fubuki glanced at me before she started to speak.
" We have utmost 7 days to kill the boss monster or there won't be a place to run. Crying over the situation won't help us to survive, so gear up and be ready to face whatever comes. Understood?" The voice that a leader should have was heard by everyone. I haven't seen this side of her and I was liking it.
"Yes, ma'am". The cheer came back completely rebelling the previous wimpiness. I took an accurate measure of each of them and found that they were a quite good balanced out team.
2 healers probably A rank as their mana was on the same level as the others. And as I heard from Fubuki, only A rankers were assigned for this dungeon. So I took a mental note about the average mana pool of A ranks to improve my judging abilities.
Other than healers, there were 2 tanks, 5 mages and 4 front fighters, and assassin-type hunters. The old man fighter with the blade had a calm look before he heard about the red gate and even after hearing it.
'I guess it will be fun watching him.'
" The most massive mana signature is coming from inside of it, so we will move and finish it as soon as possible".
"Haaai". Everyone raised their fist in excitement. I didnt want to end their enthusiasm but I thought it will be better to shatter their belief sooner than later.
" It will be better if you don't bother the creature residing inside the flames". I said in a loud enough tone to reach them.
"Eh?" Fubuki and the other turned toward me with confusion and snicker on their faces.
"You can feel the fluctuating magical energy in the air right? The volcano isn't normal, if it erupts then there will be nothing left on this land or to say this land will perish along with it " I found the continuation of the confusion on everyone as well as Fubuki.
"The thing inside the hole is maintaining the balance of overflow of mana by sucking it and getting stronger. It's a kind of symbiotic relationship. If we provoke the monster now then destruction would be inevitable and if we leave it to get stronger so by end of the third day I guess, it will emerge from it, far stronger than it's now."
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The dread look on the face of hunters was clearly visible. Everyone understood what Subaru was saying. Even they didnt know his rank and merits, they believed that being the special individual sent by association, he must be at least A rank or maybe the next S rank hunter. So, no one tried to rebuke him and only stood still.
If they leave the boss monster then it will come at them after getting a power boost, however, it will give them time for the eruption. On the other hand, if they go for the boss right now, then maybe in the middle of the fight, there won't be a surface to fight on.
"So what should we do?" A mage from the group shouted toward Subaru with fear-filled in her voice.
The red gate was already bad news even they had an experienced S rank with them, and now the things they got to know from Subaru made them feel death nearing their throat.
"Ask you leader. I am just a newbie, came to gain field experience". Subaru raised his hands in the air as he said in an innocent tone.
Fubuki glanced at him and saw his devilish smirk hidden behind his innocence. With a chuckle, she shrugged off and again faced the hunters.
" We don't have a choice but to wait. Many of you can't fight in mid-air, so waiting for that thing is our only option. But we have to deal with them first". Fubuki turned toward the mountain as well as the others except for Subaru.
There were hundreds of greyish things descending the volcano from the inside of it. The magical energy was faint so only Fubuki and Subaru were able to detect them. The other hunters saw countless little black dots climbing down swiftly.
The island was vast, so it would take time for them to reach the hunters, at least 10 minutes.
"Okay, guys. We have to prepare. The more we conserve our energy and supplies, the more we could fight efficiently against the big one. So try not to get seriously injured and don't leave the pattern".
" Hooh". With a fierce howl, everyone agreed with their leader.
As everyone started to unload their weapons and gears in haste, Fubuki walked beside Subaru and locked her hand with his.
"Can I ask something?" She asked while facing forward. Subaru looked toward her face for a second with a warm smile on his face, unlike earlier, before responding.
"Anything you want". Subaru intervened their fingers and gripped her hand.
" Truthfully, how much time will you need to clear the whole island including the boss and other mobs?" Fubuki asked expecting that he would ponder on it before answering, but surprisingly Subaru answered within a second without hesitation.
"20 minutes maximum. If you ask me the same thing on the third day then add extra 5 minutes for the big boss". Subaru answered what he calculated some moments ago before Fubuki arrived by his side.
Fubuki has her eyes wide with complete disbelief on her face. Subaru looked at her and smirked.
" Seriously? I mean every single one?"
"Want to see how I do it?" As he said a blue flame started covering their intervened hand.
Fubuki didn't even glance at her hand and only gawked at Subaru's eyes. She realized that he wasn't joking at all and his confidence started making her believe in his words too.
"No. Let's handle it until we can. If you think someone's life is in danger then, please interfere." She didn't ask but requested as the team leader. As the raid captain, she carries the responsibility of every hunter who came here and if possible taking them back alive.
"Sure. " Subaru nodded as he also wanted to see what a team was capable of and especially wanted to witness his woman in action.
The distance between them and the volcano was about 8 kilometers. On reaching about a km away from them, the monsters slowly started being clearly visible to every hunter.
Crawling at a furious pace, the four-legged lizard-like creature with the size of one meter was approaching them in a terrifying quantity. Their scales were grey with their skin a darker shade of it. The tail of the lizards was almost half the size of their body, with a slick tongue whipping now and then, as they moved forward.
The tanks were positioned at the front ready to cast a protective barrier with their massive shield in hand. The assassin and fighters were backing them with their weapons in hand. The healers were standing at the backmost position with their wands ready to buff the tanks. Fubuki with the other mages was standing between the fighters and the healers, to support offense as well as defense.
Subaru was standing aloofly, out of the group while gawking at the incoming attack and the fired-up hunters who had a tint of fear formed in their stance.
"This is going to be fun".
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Sasha: Baby didnt took me with him.*pout*.
Author; You got enough screen time. At least spare others some development too.
A/N: You know how it will go. Anyway, I hope you like the chapter and even if you don't, drop a comment.
The next chapter will be the true revelation of Subaru's power in the hunters' world. See ya~
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