"{Ice Barrage}!" Anun shouted as he raised his staff.

Long, thin, spikes made of ice formed around him and shot toward the goblins rushing them. Some goblins were incapacitated by the spell, while others were directly shot through the head and killed.

"{Battle Aura}!" Kai also shouted, not losing out to Anun, as a red layer of light shimmered over his entire body.

He readied his blade, stomped on the ground, and rushed toward the goblins. Harry watched in awe as he watched Kai slaughtering through the goblins like a whirlwind. He covered his wounded arm with his hand and chanted softly, "{Minor Heal}."

However, he was too preoccupied to notice another goblin sneaking up behind him with a sword, grinning madly.

"({Piercing Shot}!)" Suddenly, a voice rang out with an arrow whizzing past Harry, through the skull of the goblin, and shattering upon impacting the tree behind.

Harry, flustered, turned around and glanced at the dead goblin before looking back at the person who he was calling a Skin Grabber earlier who now had a shortbow in his hands. The guy grinned and then gave Harry a thumbs up, before taking aim at another goblin that was sprinting at him.

At this time, the leader of the goblins gave another shout and the goblins that were running madly at the four people before, retreated as the Goblin Archers who didn't charge in raised their bows and took aim.

"Shit!" Kai cursed as he ran back toward Anun and Harry. "Anun!"

"Already on it," Anun responded as he raised his staff again. "{Ice Aegis}!"

A shimmering, transparent barrier formed, covering the four people.

"Come here!" Anun shouted at Zero who was further from him than the other two as he furiously beckoned with his hand for him to come closer. "My mana is draining too rapidly because the spell size is so large!"

As Zero ran to the trio, the arrows released by the Goblin Archers began to fall.

THUNK! THUNK! THUNK!

The arrows hit the shield and shattered apart upon impact giving the four some time to breathe as the Goblin Archers reloaded their bows. But then, the Goblin General again gave a shout.

"Look at their arrows!" They're all glowing green!" Kai shouted. "They're planning on breaking the spell by hitting the shield all at once!"

"Shit!" Anun cursed. "I don't think the spell can handle so much damage at once! You'll have to try to find an opening, Kai!"

Then, Anun noticed Zero reaching out and touching the spell with his hands before he suddenly chuckled and said, "(I didn't know this could work too.)"

"({Ice Aegis}!)" Zero suddenly shouted as another shimmering barrier formed around them.

"What?" Anun said in shock. "This shouldn't be possible! I researched and developed that spell on my own! No other person should be able to cast that!"

But Anun was then interrupted by the glowing arrows flying at the four as they all hit the first {Ice Aegis}. It shook violently as it withstood most of the arrows before shattering apart with a shattering noise. The rest of the arrows hit the second {Ice Aegis} cast by Zero, and it trembled before stabilizing again.

Then Zero looked at the shocked trio and held up a hand and started lowering his fingers one by one. When he lowered his index finger, everyone heard a voice sound out.

"Room failed. Not all monsters were defeated. No rewards are available. Forcibly removing all survivors."

Then, all four of their visions went black.

When Zero awoke in the corridor outside of the Room, he saw that he was returned back to where he started.

WHOOM!

Zero glanced up when he heard a loud noise and saw that the rift had disappeared and that the two massive stone slabs were closing.

"System, why were those people not returned with me?"

[They were simply returned to where they entered from, host. You entered the Room from the exit while they entered from the entrance.]

"I see. Also, is there a feature I can turn on or something so I can properly talk to them? Playing charades with them isn't really an efficient way of communicating."

[That feature is locked until you are at the necessary level, host.]

"...of course."

Zero sat on the ground as he said, "Guess I'll have to wait an hour for the Room to reopen, right? I sure hope those three will be there next time I go in."

Zero then closed his eyes and prepared to take a well-deserved nap.

"I didn't expect us to be surrounded by goblins right after we entered," Anun remarked as he sat with his back to the corridor wall. "By the way, who was that guy? He was able to use my magic..."

Harry shook his head as he said, "I don't know, he wasn't with us, that's for sure."

Kai then looked at Harry as he said, "By the way, you haven't properly responded to my question. Where's your party?"

"I don't know. They're probably in another Room right now..."

"Or dead." Kai finished.

"..."

A grim atmosphere suddenly permeated the air.

"Ah, right!" Anun suddenly said, breaking the tense atmosphere. "What are you wearing there, uh, what was your name again?"

"It's Harry. And I bought these clothes from one of the stalls at the market. Don't you think they look befitting for a healer?" Harry replied.

"So, they're not enchanted or anything? You're wearing them because you think that's what healers should wear?" Kai suddenly said aloud.

"I-Is it not?"

Kai just sighed, sat down, closed his eyes, and said, "Rest up. We'll be going back in after an hour."

Meekly, Harry raised a hand and asked, "Can I not go? Can you guys take me out of this dungeon?"

Kai immediately opened his eyes and looked at him saying, "No. That would take up a lot of our energy and time, which we need to complete our mission. If we do not complete this mission within three days, we automatically forfeit the mission as well as our reward. If you truly want to leave, I won't stop you. However, the monsters in some of the Rooms have respawned."

Kai then paused to take a breath.

"And I doubt you would be able to make it past the first Room, let alone the second and third Rooms."

Kai then closed his eyes again and said, "Now stop bothering me."

"Okay..." Harry dejectedly said as he also sat down, leaned against the corridor wall, and closed his eyes as he drifted off to sleep.