Chapter 91: You Will Be Always With Me
Kill Clause and NukEncore found the entrance to the Buried Mine without any trouble.
The Buried Mine had long since stopped living up to its name.
On the way there, they leveled up on Wooden Bears and Wooden Wolves and easily reached level five. Their stats did not increase by much, but it still felt rewarding to watch the level bar rise along with their attributes.
As they entered the dark corridor leading to the boss, NukEncore cast a fireball to light the path ahead.
Orange light rolled over damp stone, old support beams, and rusted rails half-buried in dust. Beyond that small circle of light, the mine stayed black and silent, as if the darkness were waiting just a few steps ahead.
Of course, it was unnecessary.
Kill Clause glanced at the floating fireball and then at the map window. "We know the path. It’s on the map."
NukEncore kept the spell close to her shoulder anyway. "It’s still better to see ahead. Uhum! The boss is unleashed, so maybe he sent forces or something. You never know!"
Kill Clause turned her head and looked at her properly this time. "You’re scared of the dark, aren’t you?"
NukEncore lifted her chin at once. "What exactly gave me away?"
Even as she said it, she edged half a step closer and kept the fireball just a little too near to herself.
Kill Clause noticed. A faint smile touched her mouth before she looked ahead again. "Then those flames are necessary."
NukEncore blinked.
The words were simple, but Kill Clause’s tone had softened. There was even something quietly caring in it. Maybe Kill Clause really was looking after her now that it was just the two of them and NukEncore’s phobia was harder to hide.
Mhm... having an older sister like Cassandra doesn’t sound so bad. She really can take care of people. I’d still rather have Martin with me right now!
It was strange. In real life, someone like Cassandra would have stayed polite, elegant, and far away, the kind of person you met across schedules, meetings, and industry smiles. Down here, in the middle of a game dungeon, she felt more real than that.
"I like being spoiled, so I’ll let you be the older sister today." NukEncore grinned and tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. "Do you have siblings? I’m an only child."
Cassandra was quiet for a few long seconds. "I do have younger siblings. But you won’t find them online. I changed my surname for work."
NukEncore’s expression softened. "That’s actually thoughtful. You kept them out of all this." Then her grin returned just as quickly. "Mhm, I’m in the best hands, then. You’ll stop the cart on the first try, Cassie."
Cassandra gave her a flat look. "Keep real-life nicknames to yourself. Didn’t you already leak Alexandra’s name?"
NukEncore winced and scrunched her nose.
She remembered that moment very well. In the heat of it, she really had let Chaosgraphy’s real name slip in front of Martin. He had asked for NukEncore’s real name too, but she had kept that to herself. Later, when she thought back on it, she realized just how badly she had slipped.
She had told Chaos and Kill Clause about it afterward.
She preferred not to dig up the memory of the argument between those two.
But that makes me look like the troublemaker of the party. Mhm... Martin said he likes my flaws, so I won’t worry about it. I’ll just be myself!
Maybe she just did not want to waste energy blaming herself over something that was not even a real problem. With her mood lifting again, NukEncore followed the rails down toward the cart.
Her smile did not even waver when she climbed aboard behind Kill Clause.
For a few seconds, the ride felt almost smooth.
Then the wheels began to scream against the rails.
The cart rattled harder. Wind whipped NukEncore’s hair back. That cold blue light rushed at them from ahead, and the whole slope seemed to drop out beneath her.
Then the speed climbed to dangerous levels, and that blue light slammed into her eyes.
"Nuh-uh! Nuh-uh! I want Martin! I need Martin! I’m the princess, and he’s the bodyguard!" NukEncore screamed at the top of her lungs, clutching the edge of the cart with both hands. Somehow, she still sounded as sexy as ever.
Kill Clause did not spare her a glance.
She narrowed her eyes and tracked the rails ahead, the bend, the angle, the narrowing stretch where the cart had to meet the ground just right. Her posture stayed steady despite the violent shaking beneath them. Calm and exact, she waited until the opening she wanted finally appeared.
Then she cast her trap.
A moment later, the cart hit it.
Wood cracked. The whole cart lurched so hard that NukEncore’s teeth clicked together.
But it did not stop.
NukEncore’s heart went cold.
Then the cart plunged down the steep slope, scraped violently across the rails, and finally caught at the same ugly angle Martin used to force on purpose.
NukEncore clung to the cart so hard her fingers hurt and stared at the familiar scene.
For one awful second, all she could think was that Martin should have been here.
Then the cart held.
Her breath caught. Relief hit so fast it nearly made her laugh.
Kill Clause, meanwhile, was thrown from the cart and hit the hard ground shoulder-first before rolling onto one knee. Her HP dropped by nearly half in a blink.
Dust clung to her hair. Dirt streaked one cheek. For a moment, her hand pressed more firmly against the ground than she probably wanted anyone to notice.
Then she rose as if the landing had barely bothered her.
"Older Sister, you did it!" NukEncore beamed.
She hopped down from the cart and hurried over with her hand out. Even covered in dust, Cassandra somehow still looked composed. She looked cool in a way that was honestly a little annoying.
Kill Clause shook the dirt from one sleeve and wiped her face clean with the back of her hand. "I stopped it. Martin did it better, but this is enough."
Her eyes shifted briefly toward the wrecked stop.
"That tether of his was annoying to rely on," she said. "It was also better than this."
NukEncore caught her wrist and pulled her fully upright. "A win is a win. And I’m generously deciding to count that as our win."
The corner of Kill Clause’s mouth twitched. "Then act like it."
The moment Kill Clause was steady again, NukEncore was already the first to rush down the route.
"Okay, okay, if we’re doing this ugly, then we’re doing it fast!"
She darted ahead and deliberately picked up aggro from the nearest goblins before they could spread out. The moment they turned toward her, she hurled a quick volley of fireballs deeper into the route, stirring even more of them into motion.
Goblin shouts rose ahead. Feet pounded over wood and stone.
Kill Clause watched the pull form and immediately understood what NukEncore was doing. She moved after her at once, light on her feet despite the damage she had just taken.
NukEncore flashed a grin over one shoulder. "If the stop is messy, then I’ll make the grind worth it!"
Kill Clause’s eyes sharpened with approval. "Keep doing that, and stay just ahead of them. If you pull them cleanly, we can make this work."
NukEncore’s grin widened. She lifted one hand without looking back and waved as if she had just received a royal blessing.
—
At the shore of the lake, Martin and Angel faced the dark water where the Baby Kraken waited.
The lake surface shifted in slow ripples beneath the dim dungeon light. Every so often, something moved deeper below, disturbing the reflection just enough to remind Martin that the fight would begin the moment they entered.
Angel was already leaning forward, her little claws shifting against the ground, clearly ready to jump back in and continue the fight. She had a new skill to test, and she wanted to show the Baby Kraken exactly what she was made of.
Martin caught her gently by the shell before she could launch herself.
Keeping her there for a moment, he rested his hand on her shell and spoke in a quieter voice than usual. "Our party members are great, but they’re busy too. They won’t always be with us, but you’ll always be with me."
Angel went still and looked up at him.
Martin smiled, and the grip on his trident relaxed a little. "So I’m going to learn how to fight alongside you properly. If this dungeon wants to reward teamwork, then we’ll give it teamwork. Come on. Let’s go teach that Baby Kraken another lesson."
At once, Angel puffed up with pride.
She hurried to the edge, hopped into the water, and burst forward at high speed, splashing Martin as she went.
He laughed under his breath, stripped down to his briefs, and stepped to the edge with his shield strapped to his left forearm and his Baby Trident in his right hand. Cool air touched his skin. The lake looked still from above, but he knew the moment he entered, everything would feel heavier, slower, and more dangerous.
Angel was not the only one testing something new. Martin wanted to feel how the Baby Trident handled in an underwater fight, how the weapon moved through resistance, how close he would have to get, and how much Angel could cover for him once the real struggle started.
He jumped in after her.
Cold water closed around him at once. The trident felt different immediately, its balance changing the moment the lake swallowed half his body. Ahead of him, Angel cut forward through the water without hesitation.