《Mage's Rebirth》22. Culling
Advertisement
The Silver Bees decided to take a back seat in this fight, which didn't surprise me.
Judging by their style, they would be culling members rather than keeping the entire crew together. It wasn't a common occurrence certainly, but the Silver bees seemed like the kind of team who would do such things.
I would assume they were going to make the culling after this fight. If any of the members couldn't pull their weight against the beast. They certainly weren't worth having in even more dangerous situations, for instance, against the Shaman and even more so against the Chief himself.
They were right to be cautious with the team. Once again, the archers proved less than useless. If they had better accuracy and managed to hit some of the Brute's weak points, then they would be extremely useful additions to the squad.
However, as they were, they were nothing more than dead weight that did more harm than good. Their arrows flew in all manner of directions hurt our side more than the Brute. Hampering the frontlines movements as they had no idea where the arrows would be flying.
It was quite amusing, actually. The Brutes appearance also brought out the one member of the named that might even be worth a damn in the future.
Yiren had been quiet since the attempt into the dungeon started in earnest. He hadn't done anything more than he had to against the Elites and had otherwise been a substantial enough role player up until this point.
Now seeing that the Silver Bees had fallen back and weren't going to be intruding on the battle, he decided it was up to him to lead the squad to victory against the beast. In doing so, he revealed that he had some skill in leading and considerable skill in combat.
It wasn't too surprising considering his lineage that he would have had some skills. It took some considerable power to reach the seventeenth level. One would have to be a competent body refiner to be able to handle themselves.
The man's blade tore through the Brutes hide with ease. It seemed the simple looking blade was a bit more than he was trying to let on. His experience shown through even more when he began to order the other members of the squad around. Orientating the other frontline members to stop the Brute from moving away and avoiding the attacks, getting the archers to actually contribute to the fight.
Advertisement
Surprisingly enough, he didn't ask anything of me. Despite his chattiness and friendliness earlier in the day, it was clear he could easily separate and be very professional when needed.
I was on this run for one reason only. Until that point, they weren't going to needlessly waste my mana. Even the worst warrior had that drilled into their head, even more so for the people who had no abilities other than to get hit. Which composed nearly half of the people in the group, the archers very much included.
The Brute was soon whittled down thanks to Yerin and his strikes. It seemed Scout was leading patrols away from the group. Otherwise, it wouldn't make any sense why we hadn't been met with another patrol during the fight. It had taken far too long before Yerin had finally taken control.
"Excellent, all of you besides Yerin and Mage are free to go. Thank you for your assistance to this level. Here are your rewards."
Leader chose that moment to make an announcement that was met with significant disagreement. With any other team, they would be let down to the fifth floor consistently. No matter how they performed, it was always useful for those teams to have an extra few bodies to face the Chief's abilities. Obviously, the Silver bees had no such issues.
She sent out several purses, obviously used to it. A simple glare from her killed off most of the arguments.
Striker decided to step in and be the friendly face of the party.
"We are sorry, but we are planning to go a little deeper than the fifth floor, and we were just gauging who would be able to tag along. You are all free to complain about us to the guild.
I was honestly surprised by how blatant they were.
"That's news to me. You could have been more forthright on your plans to descend further than the fifth floor."
I decided to step in. I figured being a little antagonistic wouldn't hurt, mostly since I had never thought of going below the fifth floor within the next few days. I had done only basic research on the enemies we would face there.
The silver Bees would be a great team to have around for future dives, so I wasn't going to say no, but It wouldn't hurt to get a little higher percentage out of the ordeal.
Advertisement
"Yes, we have decided that with the team we have now that we can face the boss on the eighth floor. It will still be putting our lives at risk, so you are free to leave. we are willing to alter the share of the rewards past the fifth floor if you prove worthy of a greater share."
I was impressed that she could turn it back to me so quickly. They really had been trained very well. A simple nod was all my response.
I was a bit surprised they wanted to take on the eighth floor. It would put us up against a powerful boss for minimal rewards.
The rest decided that it wasn't worth the risk of offending what was sure to become a powerful delvers group if given enough time and luck. Some of them even thinking they might even be able to build some goodwill towards them when they came back stronger.
I had doubts that any of them would actually be able to reach that level within any reasonable length of time.
They certainly wouldn't be able to keep pace with the group's improvements if my past life was anything to go by. Yerin, meanwhile, might have a chance to be with the group long term. I had been careful not to change anything too much.
It wouldn't replace someone who would eventually be the cause of finding the secret zone. That would be the opposite of what I would want.
Yerin, it seemed, had already been fated to meet them. He had been part of the group before they arrived. If he didn't join the group for good after the run, he would certainly be handy to know. Sammy would need to make his dungeon team at some point if he wanted enough resources to truly become an influential figure in the outer ring.
I had also made sure that they picked up the same number of people they were planning before I showed up, not taking away their chance for fate because of something stupid I did. I had even thought of avoiding them for that reason. The lure of what they found on the twenty-seventh floor was far too much to bear. I didn't want to let a chance like that go.
The new group continued through the floor. With the Silver Bees now actually being active in the fight, we swept through any opposition with ease. The two sisters ripped through the Brutes' shoulders with ease, taking away all movement of those limbs from them.
Then both Scout and Yerin struck simultaneously, Scout cutting the back of the Brutes legs sending it to its knees, then Yerin finished it off with a strike to the neck. It was a very clean way to dispatch the enemies extremely quickly. Yerin seemed to fit into the group dynamic perfectly.
After we went through a few of the patrols, it became second nature to dispatch the enemies extremely quickly. Yerin seemed to fit into the group dynamic perfectly. All four of them made up an extremely deadly team for the lower levels. They would have no issues with anything till the fifth floor apart from the Shaman itself. Even with the Chief, they would be able to deal with it as long as they had some planning and powerful gear with them.
They weren't Body refiners yet, which did surprise me. But their gear would be able to bridge any gap on the lower floor.
Now came the moment of truth for them, how useful would I be for them?
Mages willing to delve were rare and usually went down into the dungeon for the first time with a group of fellow mages once they were in the second year of their magic studies. After that, they were liable to go around with a little more arrogance. They rarely deigned to join any team that didn't already have a mage in it.
I was an enigma to the Silver Bees, now was the time for me to shine. The battle with the Shaman was fast approaching. Now I could see how I dealt with working with a team.
Advertisement
- In Serial51 Chapters
A Poor Day For Digging Graves
A graveyard is no place to raise a child, yet raised there Caj Donovan was. Despite his noble birth, despite his parents’ innocence of any crime, he was orphaned not long after birth by order of the King. The King's Executioner has been dirtying his hands with politics that he has no business in. The King's Executioner is gambling for power. When his game takes everything from Caj a second time, the young undertaker realizes that if he wants to stop the madman, he will have to beat him at his own game.
8 161 - In Serial26 Chapters
Crucis
Three factions oversaw the continent of Jumana. They were the Palace of Anima, Church of Arbor, and Seditio. The Palace of Anima worshipped Fate. A divine principle by which the order of events has been inevitably predetermined. The proxies of the Palace were the Moirais as they were blessed with precognition, great mana talent, and high affinity with Fate. The Church of Arbor revere Conscience. A moral principle that inhibits or influences the thoughts or actions of a person. Their advocates were the Fae, children born from the Tree of Truths. An ancient, sentient tree who bore the Fruit of Good and Evil. The third, Seditio, a clandestine society that was established by the Enlightened One. A peculiar individual who ate the Fruit of Good and Evil and lived to tell the tale. Seditio believed that comradeship was thicker than Fate and that Man should seize their own destines without the help of the Moira. Athos Dimitte Ferre, heir to the throne of the Palace of Anima. Was blessed with the gift of foresight and talent for mana. On one fateful night, however, he was cast away by a tragedy, and all was slowly taken away from him. "Why did the Seditio attack us? Why couldn't I see this, did my foresight fail me? Or perhaps, the Church of Arbor interfered?" A man who fell from grace learns to bare his fangs. ~~~~~ Updates every MWF 5PM EST ~~~~~
8 184 - In Serial8 Chapters
When We Get To It
Rick’s niece, Elsie, was born with more magic than anyone is comfortable with. Count Seymour says he can help, but his research is driven by more selfish motives. Her parents just want her to come home. Rick returns home for the first time in years and finds the house emptier than he expected. When his brother disappears, Rick is entrusted with his young niece's safety. He knows nothing about magic, but history says the elves would be the ones to ask about Elsie's powers. Too bad no one has seen an elf in centuries. [Participant in the June 2022 Royal Road Community Magazine Contest. Good luck, everyone!]
8 211 - In Serial8 Chapters
From beyond The Veil
Witnesses say that the angels blaze appeared back in the eighties. A dazzling light ripped through the sky all across the world. People say they saw a rainbow of colors bathing the sky. It was gone in a instant. Some legends say that it was an angel falling from the sky. But most scholars agree that it was a rare comet. They all were wrong. The light was a breaking of the veil, the veil to my world. Now creatures from my side of the veil are breaking through and it's my job to keep them back and protect all the humans. But I tend to like to watch the chaos.
8 180 - In Serial9 Chapters
The Na'vi Je'daii (Star Wars FF)
This is not a rebirth story. This is not an isekai story. This is simply the story of an AU Stars Wars universe. One where one particular planet is there that wasn't present before. One where one particular Jedi is there that wasn't there before. Kavuk Anurai shall take the galaxy by storm.
8 122 - In Serial48 Chapters
A world that divides us mha/bnha
✨completed as of 12/12/21✨⭐️97k+ words⭐️🌞 finished editing as of 1/2/22🌞🧀you can see my writing get better throughout this book lol🧀When Izuku come face to face with death can his quirk finally finally reveals itself? What happens when things take a sharp left turn? Is this the quirk he's longed for, or is he victim to another mans quirk? Ah yes your prays have been heard, There is dadzawa in this.And something like todobakudeku someone suggested it so I thought I'd give it a shot. Warnings as I won't be putting them above chapter:Death /Main character deathInjuries &Gore Physical Abuse & Mental manipulation Experimentation / medical processes Mental health issuesCreepy old men/ non con medical procedures ^^Descriptive detail of all above^^Cover art by @oksopi12 on Twitter! Story overview on chapter ⓪Started: 25 JanuaryFinished: 12 December
8 195

