Chapter 71: The Scorched Citadel – Part Four: Hound and Knights Behind them, a three-headed, twelve-meter-tall hell hound stared aggressively, saliva drooling from its massive jaws. The saliva instantly burned through the cracked pavement on the floor. "Oh. Note yourself. Don't get bit," Peter joked. with a slight chuckle . No one laughed. This wasn't really a good time for jokes. " Tough crowd." in reality, this situation was like a walk in a park for peter, but he had to keep his A rank charade . In front of them stood two giant stone knights, almost three times as tall as the average human. Their weapons gleamed with a dull, ancient light. "We're cornered," Sophia said, her eyes scanning the enemies. "We need a plan." Anthony looked at his men, at the raiders. His expression was calm, focused. "Okay. We approach with caution. There's three enemies. One hell hound, two stone knights." He pointed. "Jaxen, Sophia, you each take a lead against a stone knight. I'll fo

Meanwhile, Anthony, Peter, and their side of the raiders were still dealing with the hell hound. The raiders had it surrounded. Archers bombarded it with countless arrows from above, but the arrows simply bounced off its tough skin. Its fur seemed to be razor sharp, deflecting anything that came near. The hound's sole focus was on Anthony. It ran straight toward him, attempting to crush him with its massive paw. Anthony ducked, sliding behind it. An opening. But he was met with another surprise. Its tails were three in count. One like a serpent, the other like that of a scorpion, and a third—a regular-looking tail with razor blade spikes covering its surface. The hound spun, its tail striking toward Anthony. The attack was blocked by a force field Peter conjured at the last second. The hound's attention shifted to Peter. It sprinted at him with full speed, pouncing on him. Peter formed a shield, protecting himself from the assault. While its focus was on breaking Peter

Three A-rank lava knights, one A-rank Mage Weaver, and an A+ rank hell hound. This was what the raiders were expected to conquer before going to the next room. Anthony stared at the assembled forces before him, his jaw tight. "We haven't even gotten to the boss yet, and things are already looking this serious?" He shook his head slowly. "I've seen many A-rank dungeons. Survived many dangerous situations. But this? This is beyond anything I've ever faced." The raiders stood in formation, their weapons raised, their expressions grim. The heat was oppressive. The enemies were overwhelming. But no one retreated. --- Meanwhile, back in New City, Bill was arguing with the mayor in the mayor's office. "You accidentally sold me an S-rank dungeon!" Bill's face was red, his fist slamming on the mayor's desk. The wood cracked beneath the impact. "How do you accidentally sell someone an S-r

Peter gathered the mages around him. They were twelve in total. Each looked exhausted, their faces pale from the heat and the constant fighting. But they were still standing. Still ready to finish the fight. Peter walked to the center of the mages. "Okay, listen up. Here's the plan. I have a freeze spell that can take out the hell hound. It worked before, and I'm sure it will work again. Only this time permanently." One of the mages stepped forward, confusion etched on his face. "If so, why aren't you doing it already? Why were you struggling?" Peter met his gaze. "Because I need your help. I don't have enough mana reserves for a spell of that magnitude. I need you to lend me your mana. Just enough to kill that thing." The mages exchanged glances. One of them stepped forward. "What do you need us to do?" Peter smiled. "Okay. This is how it will work." He got to his knees and drew some figures on the ground to explain. "I'll need to connect to all of you at once to form a singl

Valdamond Black stood from his broken stone-forged chair. His armor was rusted, and so was his blade. He dragged his two-meter-tall sword across the floor, leaving a trail of cracks and craters in his wake. He carried his sword and placed it high, resting it on his left shoulder. Valdamond Black scanned the raiders, his gaze shifting left to right, then back from right to left again. The raiders didn't dare say a word. Neither did Peter make any jokes as he usually did. "Twenty-three souls," Valdamond said, his voice like grinding stone. "Twenty-three offerings to the First Child." He raised his sword high, pointing at the cracked ceiling above them. "I will make this quick. But I will make it painful. For pain is death's own delight." The raiders' standard blue systems warned them—they stood before an S-rank threat. Jaxen's own golden system flickered with multiple warnings, but unlike with Dante, it never told him to run. Jaxen took this as the system identifying that there w