Chapter 137: Dune Maw Ambush
Kaiden and his Valkyries snapped their heads toward the source of the cries and swiftly rushed to the scene.
What they saw was grim.
A massive, worm-like creature had emerged from beneath the dunes. Currently, it was busy feasting on its prey. The woman—Rebecca, if her teammates’ cries were any indication—lay in the sand, with her entire lower body gone, devoured. She was rapidly bleeding out onto the golden grains beneath her. Her breaths were shallow, her eyes wide with terror as if she struggled to accept that what had just happened to her was reality and not a horrible nightmare.
Her teammates were doing their best to save her; they struck at the monster’s hide repeatedly, but their attacks barely left a scratch. The creature’s exterior was resisting everything they threw at it.
<Dune Maw - Level 13>
Kaiden gritted his teeth at the sight. "Damn it. Is this that phenomenon you mentioned, Nyx?"
Yes..." the Space Valkyrie nodded her head with a grim expression, observing the poor woman whose fate was all but sealed.
Elara spoke up with a trembling tone, explaining what the pair was talking about. Based on her ashen face and trembling voice, she did more so to herself out of pure shock than to inform her teammates. "The rank of a dungeon is indicative of its clear difficulty. Monsters tend to get stronger the farther away they are from the dungeon’s entrance, but it’s not a law, just a mere observation. Monsters don’t seem to be restricted by any such rules. Stronger ones can enter areas meant for weaker beings, and this phenomenon occurs more often the higher the dungeon’s rank is."
Five ashen expressions watched the ongoings, momentarily frozen with the realization that it could’ve been one of them in Rebecca’s place. But then... "We have to help!" Aria cried with alarm.
Luna felt the same, evidenced by the materialization of her [Stormblade].
However, before anyone could rush in recklessly, Kaiden spoke up, halting them in their tracks. "Wait. What do we know about this creature?"
Elara wasn’t informative this time around. She grimaced, "I don’t know what kind of a worm it is... The scout reports only included the three entry-level monsters—the desert mummies, khopesh jackals, and doomstingers... I’ve never seen this one, not even in my extensive study preparation.