Incubus Ascension

He approached the source of the rustling sound, heart still hammering from the chaos outside. There, framed in the doorway of a weathered little cabin, stood a girl no taller than a middle schooler. Her dark hair fell in loose waves around a deceptively delicate face, but something in her posture made the air feel heavier.

Liam blinked, bewildered. "Who, ?"

The skeletons burst from the treeline before he could finish. Bone claws scraped against the ground as they surged forward, empty eye sockets fixed on him and the girls.

In that instant, the small girl stepped forward. A shocking aura exploded outward from her, raw, crushing power that slammed into everything like an invisible tidal wave. Liam’s legs locked. His breath caught in his throat. For the first time in this nightmare world, his willpower felt paper-thin, easily shattered. ’No... not now...’ He grit his teeth so hard his jaw ached, forcing his head to turn toward the skeletons.

They were already crumbling, reduced to nothing but gray ash scattering in the breeze.

Liam’s gaze snapped back to the girl. "Shit," he muttered under his breath.

She tilted her head, voice calm and carrying an ancient weight. "I am Vila. I live in this humble cabin. So tell me... why have you come here and destroyed my peace?"

Her eyes drifted to Beatrix. A thoughtful gaze settled there, softening just a fraction. "You are Lyra’s daughter, aren’t you?"

Beatrix stiffened beside him. "You knew my mother?"

Vila gave a small nod. "Some time ago."

Before anyone could press further, a massive shadow swallowed the sky. The dragon’s wings blotted out the sun, its roar vibrating through the trees. Then it dove, slamming into the ground with a thunderous thud that shook the earth beneath their feet. Dust and leaves exploded upward.

Vila shot into the air like a comet. "How rude," she called out, voice ringing with irritation, "flying over my house like you own the sky."

Cassandra landed nearby, her usual smugness cracking into visible agitation. "I’m sorry, Witch of the End. I didn’t know you were here."

Vila hovered, arms crossed. "Those kids will come with me. Do you have any objection?"

Cassandra’s teeth ground together. She forced a nod, fingers twisting nervously behind her back. "Of course not."

The sky darkened without warning. A colossal hand ripped through a newly formed portal, reaching down like the fist of a god.

Vila met it head-on. She sliced upward in a blur, cleanly severing the massive limb. It plummeted, crashing into the forest with a boom that echoed for miles.

She turned back to Cassandra with a bored look. "Did you run out of games already?"

Cassandra’s face twisted with fury. She spun and fled into the trees without another word.

Vila descended, twisting her hand in a casual gesture. Suddenly Liam felt weightless. He and the girls shot forward through the cabin door before they could protest.

Liam’s eyes widened as they crossed the threshold. The inside was vastly larger than the humble exterior suggested, endless space unfolding like a hidden mansion. Vila floated ahead toward an even grander chamber dominated by a long wooden table. With another flick of her wrist, they dropped unceremoniously into chairs around it.

She smiled at Liam, eyes squinting with amusement. "Hmm... where is my payment for protecting you?"

Liam’s stomach dropped. ’She didn’t do this out of goodwill. If I don’t give her something...’ His mind raced through worst-case scenarios, ashes, oblivion, another fight they couldn’t win. He quickly pulled an item from his inventory and offered it.

Vila examined it for a moment, then nodded. "This will do. You may stay in my house for one day. Then I will kick you out."

Liam gulped, throat tight. ’Cassandra’s probably already circling back, waiting for us outside.’

A risky idea sparked in his mind. ’A tunnel... it’s crazy, but it might work.’

Vila waved her hand again. "You and the girls will stay in the basement. Do as you wish."

Before Liam could speak, his body froze, every muscle powerless. The same invisible force lifted them and carried the group downward. A heavy door slammed shut behind them.

In the dim basement, Liam steadied himself and turned to the others. "Listen. We dig a tunnel out of here. Quietly. We can’t stay trapped like this."

They set to work without argument, but the dark forest soil proved brutally hard. Shovels, improvised from whatever they could find, bit into it with agonizing slowness. Sweat poured down Liam’s face. His arms burned. He wiped his forehead with a dirty sleeve and opened his system interface, purchasing a skill that would speed things along. With the new ability, the tunnel finally took shape.

As they pressed deeper, Liam’s tool struck something solid. "What the...?" He examined the surface. ’This is too well-made to be natural.’ Curiosity and caution warred inside him. He smashed through.

Beyond lay a dimly lit hallway stretching in both directions. Ancient knight armors stood sentinel in the corners, motionless but imposing.

Liam hesitated, then stepped back. "Not worth the risk right now. Let’s finish our tunnel first."

Hours later, as the tunnel connected, Vila’s voice echoed from above. "The day is up."

Liam nodded to the girls. They slipped through into the hallway. He quickly collapsed the entrance behind them, sealing it with debris. They exchanged tense glances.

"Let’s go right," Liam said quietly.

They moved cautiously. As they neared one of the knight armors, the axe it held suddenly toppled, whistling straight toward his head.

Liam’s reflexes saved him. He snatched the falling axe mid-air, muscles straining, and shoved it aside with a grunt. "Too close."

He followed up with his strongest punch. The armor didn’t even shift. ’Physical attacks... useless.’

Gritting his teeth, he channeled a skill into the next strike. This time, cracks spiderwebbed across the metal. Beatrix and the others joined in, their combined efforts finally bringing the knight down in a clatter of armor plates.

Then came the sound, metal clacking, growing louder. An entire army of knights was marching their way.

Liam glanced up. "Ceiling. Now."

They clung to the roof just as the first wave rounded the corner. Thinking fast, Liam began digging upward. "Second level, let’s go."

They broke through into a darker chamber above, lit only by flickering torchlight filtering up from the pit they’d left behind. From their vantage, Liam watched the knights below moving almost leisurely.

Something felt wrong. Suddenly his body locked again, webs, thick and sticky, pinning him in place. "Damn it!" he cursed. "Girls, run!"

Beatrix surged forward, flames roaring from her hands to burn through the webs holding him. But more spiders skittered into view alongside the knights. They were cornered.

Liam looked at the exhausted girls. They hadn’t eaten properly. The digging had drained them. The fight with the knights had pushed them further. Guilt twisted in his chest like a knife. ’This is on me. I brought them here.’

His eyes narrowed on the webs. ’Wait... maybe I can use this.’

He bought a sturdy wooden plank from the system shop and dropped it into the lower level, creating a ramp. The knights began climbing it, marching onto the second stage.

The spiders reacted instantly, spraying webs at the new intruders. The knights slowed, movements sluggish and heavy.

"Now!" Liam shouted. He and the girls struck hard, fire melting armor, blades finding gaps. Knights crumpled and fell back into the pit one after another. They repeated the strategy, thinning the ranks with desperate efficiency.

Just as the pressure eased and a flicker of hope rose in Liam’s chest, the ground trembled violently. A figure shot up from below, Cassandra, hovering before them with an evil, chilling smile.

"Did you miss me?"

Above them, the air felt heavier, charged with lingering mana and dust drifting through broken stone. Liam tightened his grip on his weapon, scanning every shadow for movement. The others stayed close, breaths uneven, listening for any sign of another ambush. Somewhere far below, the clash between spiders and knights echoed faintly, a reminder that the dungeon was still far from calm. Every second stretched, each one pressing on their nerves like a slow weight. Liam forced himself to think ahead, planning exits, alternatives, anything that might keep them alive if Cassandra pressed the attack again. The silence between moments felt almost unnatural, as if the dungeon itself was watching and waiting for their next mistake. Behind them, Cassandra’s presence lingered like a blade half-drawn, unseen but certain, tightening the pressure on every breath they took. None of them spoke, only prepared for what came next. Silently, warily. Together always.