Silent footsteps resonated through the ground as the water mage trod forward. Occasionally, small pebbles with sharp edges would pierce her soles, causing a sharp pain with every step she took. She could feel the deteriorating sole of her slipper, which had worn so thin that it felt like it had its own mouth. It was no surprise that she felt as if something was trying to stab her with small, blunt shards of gss.

  'I failed...'

  The water mage muttered to herself in disappointment, her eyes fixated on the ground below.

  She bit her lip and a bitter taste filled her mouth as blood trickled from the wound.

  'I failed again...'

  She grips her staff tightly as if trying to crush it with her bare hands.

  'Just what kind of monster is that demon, everyone... forgive me '

  Tears welled up in the corners of her eyes, but they refused to fall down her cheeks. The stagnation of her tears caused her physical pain, mirroring the emotional distress she was experiencing. She felt like she couldn't express the depth of her pain to anyone, and her emotions were kept bottled up inside her chest, threatening to explode.

  The past repyed vividly in her mind, the memory of an ordinary party set off on an adventure. The man held her hand as they ascended through the floors, battling a vicious monster on the way up, experiencing new things and embarking on an adventure they all loved.

  For the water mage, it was a warm feeling until everything turned cold when the demon appeared. The pain was like a bde of ice piercing through her gut, sharp, warm, and spilling blood.

  But the most painful thing was when the man who had held her hand betrayed her and left her to be devoured by the demons. The rest of the party chose him over her, leaving her alone in the chasm of darkness, begging for them to come back.

  'It's like what you've said, I am too powerless. I can't do anything without this staff...'

  She looked down at her thin, purplish-bck staff, and her face reflected in the blue, spherical gem on top of it. She let out a deep sigh as she studied her reflection.

  As she continued walking through the tunnel, she came across a path that led into complete darkness. The darkness was all-encompassing, and her eyes couldn't discern anything beyond the pure bckness

  "GWOOOORHHH"

  A sudden, loud growl echoed through the dark tunnel, causing the water mage to raise her guard and instinctively look towards the source of the sound. After a while, she concluded that the monster wouldn't approach her and continued to cautiously make her way through the darkness.

  "[Light Orb]"

  She cast a ball of pure light using helio magic from her staff, which was a total departure from her usual spells of cryo magic. The floating ball of light followed her lead as she walked, illuminating the tunnel and dispersing the shadows in its wake.

  "This pce seems to be cking any 'lumen', it's too dark"

  Looking around at the walls, she remarked. Lumen is a self-illuminating stone that uses mana from the environment.

  As she encountered a steep path upwards, she grunted with exertion as she climbed through the sharp stones, her fragile body struggling to make progress. Tons of sweat enveloped her face as she pushed herself to continue. Finally, she reached the edge of the cliff and colpsed onto the ground to rest.

  After a while, she stood up and began to investigate her surroundings

  "Wind?"

  The bst of cold wind against her sweaty face sent a shiver down her spine. She walked further, determined to reveal the mystery beyond the enveloping darkness. As she approached, the light of the orb reflected off the surface of a cloudy substance.

  "What is this? Fog?"

  She wondered aloud.

  Without even stepping inside it, the fog invaded her space. Her vision was obscured by thick clouds, and she couldn't see anything, not even the ground beneath her feet. She covered her nose, taking extra precautions to avoid inhaling any potential poison gas that may have been excreted by a monster.

  She noticed how thick the fog was, and her instincts told her that something was not right. She concluded that this fog was not a natural phenomenon or the result of natural-magical means.

  "NO, IT'S!"

  She looks at her back and sees nothing but the eternal fog.

  "It's just my imagination"

  Disappointedly, she concluded, but as she took another step, a hollow space caused her to not just trip, but to fall. Quickly, she thrust her staff into the wall, managing to stick it and stop her descent. She hung on tightly, trying her best not to fall any further.

  As she looked down, she saw a deep bck hole waiting for her.

  "What the! An abyss?"

  Staring down into the seemingly endless abyss, the water mage felt a sense of dread wash over her. She stared at it, hypnotized, while the abyss stared back at her, causing a strange sensation in her stomach. She quickly averted her gaze and looked upwards, where the thick fog was slowly dissipating and revealing the seemingly never-ending hole above.

  With a determined look on her face, she strengthened her grip on her staff and pulled herself upwards, using all her strength to climb out of the hole. The muscles in her arms strained with the effort, but she refused to give up.

  "Hmph!"

  The effort and strain she exerted made her grunt loudly. As she got closer to the surface of the floor, a sudden sharp projectile grazed her cheek, causing blood to trickle down her face.

  "Yo, mage girl, it seems like we could settle the score this time"

  'Who the hell!?'

  Her arms grew weak and she found herself once again hanging from her staff. Her muscles ached, and she knew she couldn't rely on her physical strength alone. With a focused intention, she cast [Freezing Point] and a floor of thick ice formed beneath her feet, sticking to the wall.

  After some effort, she managed to pull her staff from the wall and leap across the chasm, using the frozen floor to support her.

  Suddenly, a projectile flew toward her. In a quick motion, she summoned walls of air with [Freezing Point] to block the attack.

  "[Snipe]"

  Several yered magic circles appeared in front of her left eye, and she aimed her freezing staff as if it were a sniper rifle. With precision, she cast another spell, [Freezing Point], and a barricade of ice formed, blocking the attacker's projectile.

  "Covering yourself Huh?"

  The attacker continued to shoot projectiles, but each one was blocked by the walls of ice.

  Undeterred, the girl focused all of her stored mana at the top of her staff. The blue spherical ball emanates a strong light and an auric fme of blue.

  "[Wind Bst]!"

  A sudden explosive gust of wind cleared the smoke and sent the attacker flying backwards from their position. Despite being thrown off bance, they quickly regained their footing, creating friction with the solid ground as small pebbles of rock were kicked up beneath their feet

  The mage girl squinted her eyes, using her [Snipe] skill to zoom in on the distant tunnel. She cast another spell, [Light Orb], and directed it toward the tunnel's interior. There, she spotted a green, ugly goblin carrying a wooden crossbow, a spider fang sword strapped to its back, and a quiver filled with sharpened sticks.

  The goblin attempted to swat the orb away, but its hands passed through it without effect, causing it to give up in frustration

  "You're the goblin from that time"

  "Good, you remembered. I should have killed you when I had the chance and defile your womanhood after what you've done"

  The goblin exposed his stomach which is sewn shut by spider threads. It is still fresh, bleeding with yellow pigment and bubbling pus. The mage only responds in silence as she looks at the goblin's appearance.

  "But, don't worry. I don't resent you, after all... I understand. You're an adventurer so your job is to kill monsters"

  Suddenly, the mage girl felt a sharp pain in her head, causing her to almost colpse. She forced her eyes to stay open, but the [Snipe] spell she had invoked glitched due to her ck of concentration.

  'What's going on?'

  Confused and disoriented, she compressed her head, trying to stop the world from spinning around her. Meanwhile, the goblin leered at her struggles to fight off sleep, a nefarious grin spreading across its face.

  "And I am a monster, my job is to kill humans"

  The goblin walks closer while pulling another stick with wet green liquid on its sharp edge.

  "You must be feeling it now, don't ya. The poison of a 'Sealbreath Shroom', don't worry it won't kill you. You will just lose consciousness."

  The water mage looked at the goblin in distress as her eyes and body began to succumb to a deep slumber. Despite her best efforts to stay awake, the mage felt herself slipping away.

  Meanwhile, the goblin's malicious grin widened as its eyes burned with madness and excitement, relishing in the mage's weakened state.

  "And I'll make sure to steal away your virginity before you wake up and become my meal. After all, dead meats are unfuckable"

  The goblin stated aloud, the threat rang in the mage's ear.

  "I always wondered what a virgin woman tastes like, it must be surprisingly tender, ahahaha!"

  Theo licked his lips, his unsymmetrical eyes telling his evil intentions.

  The mage girl let out a sigh, exasperated by everything the goblin had just said.

  She tightened her grip on her staff and brought it to her forehead, touching the gem on its top.

  "[Poison Resistance]"

  The poison rushing through her veins was suddenly eliminated by a newfound immunity to toxins. The mage felt revitalized, more awake and alert than before. The goblin watched her, his face expressionless, as she stood up and moved as if nothing had happened.

  The mage girl smirked back at the goblin, feeling confident in her new strength

  "What did you say again? Steal my virginity? Sorry, its already lost a long time ago"

  She said while performing overhead stretches with her arms.

  Then a thought came to her mind and she cover her mouth with her palm.

  "Oh! Are you a... virgin goblin by any chance? Fu fu, sad to say but you're the most pathetic beta goblin I've ever met. Surely, the other goblins already experienced bliss one or two times before becoming a sack of meat"

  The mage's taunt struck a nerve in Theo as he was reminded of the betrayal he had suffered at the hands of his former friend and fiance. He had never id a finger on her out of respect for their betrothal and his own moral values, but in the end, she had chosen the hero over him.

  The thought of their betrayal and how they had killed him consumed Theo with frustration and hatred. He had thought they were his friends, but they had vioted his ego and sense of self. Now, he wanted to take his revenge on the water mage and anyone else who crossed his path.

  His hatred extends to the water mage, he wants to vent his will of violence and vengeance to every living thing he could see no matter who they are. He felt like, woman or child it doesn't matter... He just wants to extinguish their life out of them so badly.

  Theo loaded a poisoned stick onto his crossbow, crafted from wood and spider thread.

  "You're the sack of meat"

  The goblin raised his crossbow and took aim at the mage. He applied mana to the loose threads of spider silk, causing them to stiffen like metal and quickly return to their original compressed state, propelling the poisoned stick forward with great force.

  But the mage was prepared and the stick was deflected harmlessly away.

  "Fu fu, beta male just got offended. [Snipe], [Ice Crystal]"

  The water mage held her staff like a sniper rifle, its crystal of ice glowing with magical energy. She unched a barrage of ice projectiles at Theo, each one hitting with deadly precision. If even one struck him, it would pass through his body like a bullet through cheese.

  The goblin quickly sought cover behind some rocks, avoiding the attack.

  'That bitch could really do anything, huh. She might have long surpassed Niel in magic and mana capacity '

  Her vast knowledge of magic spells, seemingly unlimited mana, and effortless focus unsettles Theo. As far as he knows, it's not humanly possible to continuously cast spells without any dey or assistance. Even Niel, with his powerful magic, needs the help of other job types to maintain focus while casting. To Theo, the water mage is a true monster.

  'I can't defeat her, but I know someone who could'

  On the ground behind the rocks, he dug something out.

  'I don't want to resort to this, but my pns are id correctly. If I did this right, this will finish her off without me doing anything '

  It's an ambush. Theo had removed all sources of light in the area, plunging it into pitch darkness where he held the advantage. He had also created a thick fog, making it difficult for the mage to make use of any light source that would reveal his location. Despite his efforts, all of his pns had failed so far, and he was now resorting to using the red-coloured stones inside the bag as a st resort

  'Red stones... a seed that can be found on Trap Shrooms. Strong impact would trigger this to explode so stepping on one is bad luck for adventurers...'

  Theo often came across areas where there were numerous mushrooms, including deadly ones like trap shrooms, which thrive in the darkness. Whenever he encountered them, he collected them as potential weapons for future use.

  'And I have plenty of them!'

  He threw the bag toward the mage, before the bag even hits the ground, Theo ran as fast as he could toward the hole in the wall he prepared.

  "Goodbye, stupid wench!"

  Theo shouted as the bag exploded, creating a deafening roar and heat that reverberated throughout the cave. The shockwave caused a small earthquake, but the water mage quickly erected walls of ice to shield herself from harm. However, the real danger was yet to come. A deafening growl echoed through the cave, getting louder and closer by the second

  "Oh... fuck"

  The goblin peered silently through the hole, unable to see the girl's reaction but certain that she was panicked and frightened.

  'Infected giant monsters are surely a pain in the ass'

  He thought to himself.

  'Those monsters are cold-blooded and attracted to fire. Plus if you add the sounds of the explosion, it is like you are calling the monsters to come over '

  The rapid noise of the monster kept getting louder telling their approach. The vibration of the ground kept getting stronger in seconds.

  'This is perfect. If I am lucky, that monster will eat the mage, and then it will fall into the abyss. It's killing two birds with one stone '

  The monster Theo had been waiting for appeared in a sudden dash, its long body composed of human arms moving through his field of vision like a train on rails. As it passed through, Theo felt a shiver run down his spine.

  The water mage saw the creature, a giant centipede with the head of an old man and legs made of human arms. It muttered "Human, human, human..." in a childlike voice. The mage didn't despair, however. Instead, she ran towards the abyss and jumped, with the centipede following suit, opening its mouth in an attempt to devour her mid-air.

  "[Wind Bst]!"

  As she screamed, the mage's staff created a powerful explosion of wind that hurled her upwards to the other side of the wall. The impact was so intense that she smashed into the wall and broke some of her teeth, but managed to thrust her staff into the stone and hang on.

  Meanwhile, the centipede continued to try and reach her, but its heavy body was forced to fall due to gravity, plummeting into the abyss.

  As the mage hung upside down with her legs coiled around the staff, she stretched out her right arm and opened her palm, activating her [Snipe] skill. She waited for the long body of the centipede to completely fall out of the tunnel.

  Once the centipede had fallen completely, the mage saw the goblin pointing his crossbow towards her.

  "[Ice Crystal]"

  She fired a crystal of ice at the goblin while Theo unched his projectile, which had a red stone attached to it. When the ice crystal hit the stone, it exploded, blocking Theo's line of sight. However, the mage quickly rotated and rode her staff between her legs, using another [Wind Bst] to hurl herself toward the goblin. This time, she wrapped herself in a spherical ice shield to cushion the impact.

  Theo, taken aback by the sudden attack, jumped away to avoid the impact of the ice ball. It crashed onto the ground, creating a symmetrical crater. Although Theo wasn't hit directly, he was still hurled away, causing his crossbow to shatter into pieces.

  As the ice shards scattered, a woman holding a staff emerged from the debris, pieces of broken ice falling from her clothes.

  'What the hell...? This woman...'

  The orb of light following her illuminates her face, and what Theo saw causes him to smile madly.

  'This woman is the true monster between us '

  The mage shows a wide crescent smile that extends from ear to ear while her head spill blood flowing on her formerly innocent face.

  "Fuck it all"

  Theo said, then attempted to reach for the sword on his back.

  "[Gcial Storm]"

  The water mage muttered as she tapped the ground with the sole of her staff. After that, a strong bst of cold wind emanated from the staff, freezing everything in its path. The rocks, humid air, and even the goblin who was attempting to reach the sword on his back were frozen stiff like living statues. Though the goblin was still breathing, his body couldn't move.

  "You are the first goblin who pushed me this far to use my Gcial Storm skill."

  The mage said, still retaining the creepy smile on her face. She walked past the goblin as she whispers the words, "It's been fun", into his ears.

  She didn't kill him as payment for sparing her life the st time they met.

  As she continued on her way, she heard the sound of melting ice and turned to see the goblin slowly reaching for the hilt of his sword. The ice that had once frozen him was now melting, and his limbs slowly becoming free.

  As the st of the ice evaporated or melted away, the goblin was freed from his frozen state. He had used a pure pyro spell, which invoked only its heat to his own body to melt the ice that had held him captive.

  "So, my guess is right... You can really use magic. I am not just imagining it. You are a goblin mage"

  Theo turned his back to look at the mage readying her magic staff for an attack. He smirked in excitement and told her that,

  "Surely not, believe it or not, I am once a competent swordsman."

  Theo finally pulled his sword from his back with his right arm.

  The goblin holds the sword with both of his hands and invokes his spell.

  "[Weapon Enchancement: Bzing Sword]"

  Theo's sword was engulfed in burning fmes, with cracks of bzing fire glowing on its surface. The air around him distorted with malevolent heat. Theo's hand glowed with the fire, adapting to the heat of the hilt, but he was not burning. Though he could feel the pain of the fmes, his hands remained unscathed, not turning into ashes.

  'Theo, breathe, you could control your mana. Just focus!'

  With one wrong misdirection of mana flow, his hands will actually burn into nothingness, or maybe his veins explode rendering his hands useless. No matter what, he needs to concentrate or else his own magic will kill him.

  "Heh... To be honest, I don't like how you name your spells. It's too long"

  The water mage mocks him, but Theo didn't react.

  Theo shuts his inner thoughts down and focuses only on the fmes on his hand as well as on killing the woman in front of him. He walks slowly attempting to close the distance with the water mage.

  "Heh... you're actually quite decent"

  The mage said in a sarcastic tone while her index finger touched her chin.

  "But not enough!"

  She points her staff toward the goblin and several materialized magic circles emerge in front of it. But before she could even invoke anything, an immediate ssh trailed by fmes hits her stomach burning a rge portion of her clothes away into white ashes.

  It was too fast for her to react, that was Theo while using the full potential of his mana.

  Theo turn to look at his back after he sshed and saw the mage wilt like a dying pnt. The pathetic sight and shocked appearance of the mage brought ughter into his mouth.

  "HAHAHAHA, HOW'S THA-"

  But while he was enjoying his supposed victory, a popping sound stopped his voice from speaking and he felt extreme pain in one of the most important parts of his body. His burning weapon died down into a regur sword made from a spider fang.

  "Pop?"

  The water mage asked, her attention now focused on the strange sound that had caught her ear.

  As she turned to look at the goblin, she saw that he had gone limp, dying from the pain he was trying to suppress. As he touched his groin area, his hand came away covered in a rge volume of yellow pus. And a horrific conclusion surfaced in his thoughts.

  'Shit... Mana overload! My dick exploded!'

  As a mage, one needs full mental control and discipline. Concentrating mana on the wrong spot could have dire consequences.

  Theo stabbed his sword into the ground and leaned on it to support his weakened body. He realized the reason for the sudden explosion of his body part, and it was clearly because of the naked girl in front of him.

  "You shitty thot! Don't you have some dignity wearing that exposing cloth?"

  "You're the one who did this! Don't put the bme on me!"

  Because Theo burned a huge portion of the water mage's clothes, she is almost naked and everything is exposed. Her small petite body is too scivious that it triggers the natural response of a horny creature called a goblin, his mana is redirected to the wrong spot and causes an overload.

  But meanwhile, while they are arguing with each other, the centipede crawled back up to the tunnel.

  "Human, human, human, human, goblin, human, goblin... hehe"

  In shock, the water mage instinctively shouted.

  "It's back!"

  When she turned her head to look at the goblin, he threw the sword to her head before running away, and the mage parry it with her staff.

  "AGHHH!"

  But it was too te for her, the head of the centipede crushed to her body and she screamed shortly with the pain. She is getting eaten by the monster. The goblin look at the centipede as it hurled the helpless body of the mage then ughed.

  "HAHA."

  He starts running faster regardless of the pain in his crotch.

  "HAHAHAHAHA!"

  Then he entered through the hole in the wall where the centipede won't find him.

  "I WON! VICTORY MOTHETFUCKER!"

  He decred joyfully while his eyes slowly shut close and turn hazy.

  "that's... what you... get... for..."

  His eyes shut close and he passed out.

  [Location: Unknown]

  [Sanity: 35]