Bear, lobster, hand.
Aside from the last one being a little bizarre, the other two didn't look particularly threatening. The bear doodle even looked a little cute.
"This shouldn't be too hard."
Leon tilted his head upward. From the heavens, three blue beams of light descended, each striking a different location on the map.
After everyone had touched the statue, they could see the beams clearly. The guess was obvious—those were the places where the three so-called Wise Beasts resided.
"Let's head to the nearest one first."
Still, Leon couldn't shake the suspicion gnawing at him. The beams all seemed far too conveniently close to the Sealed Prison, as if deliberately placed to make the puzzle easy for explorers.
When they arrived at the first beam's location, the light vanished, leaving only a clearing bathed in its former glow.
Apparently, the precise location of the Wise Beast still had to be discovered.
But which one was it? The bear? The lobster? The hand?
"Boss, there's a light over there." Maru pointed to a white glow at the very center of the clearing.
The glow pulsed faintly, encircled by a dozen spikes jutting from the ground like bamboo shoots.
"Hold on."
Leon scanned the sky warily, but saw no ambush, no monsters.
"Nothing in the forest either," Terl confirmed after a quick sweep.
Strange. A glowing lure without monsters? That was completely out of character for Sein Dungeon.
Something about it itched at Leon's instincts.
"I'll be quick—just grab it and come right back," Maru said, already moving toward the glow.
Leon frowned, eyes locked on the spikes. Something about them… off.
He glanced at his own hands by chance. His nails—long, sharp. His eyes widened.
"Maru, don't move!"
Too late. She'd already stepped into the ring of spikes. At his shout, Maru instinctively tried to retreat—
Swish!
The "spikes" snapped shut like a trap, forming a colossal fist. Maru barely yanked herself backward, but not fast enough—the thing caught her leg.
At last, its true form was revealed—
A massive hand, with more than a dozen writhing fingers, each glittering with jeweled rings!
One of the Three Wise Beasts.
"Waaah!"
Maru screamed, slashing with her dagger. The blade bit deep, just enough to free her leg.
The giant hand bellowed, a guttural roar shaking the clearing as its fingers twisted in grotesque, skin-crawling motions.
Compared to this thing, even undead seemed tame.
And with its rage, smaller hand monsters began to crawl out of the earth—fingers twitching, bodies wriggling. The sight alone was enough to drive a person mad.
"Disgusting thing…"
The raiding group charged as one, steel and spells flashing against the abominations. The clearing became a mess of gore and shrieking flesh.
Finally, Leon drove his longsword through the monstrous hand, pinning it into the ground and ending its thrashing once and for all.
Terl wasn't so lucky. A strange spell froze him mid-battle, leaving him wide open to a swarm of little hands. They slapped his face over and over like children tormenting prey.
That was the worst of the damage. The monsters weren't truly strong—the horror came from their revolting forms, not their bite.
"How exactly is this thing supposed to be 'wise'?" Maru spat in disgust. "It's just gross!"
"Because it ambushes?" Drew offered weakly.
"My cat can ambush. Does that make her wise too?"
Drew shrugged. "Who knows. Can't be they're just here to disgust us, right?"
He might have been more right than he realized.
They pressed on toward the second beam. The closer they came, the thicker the fog grew. Moisture hung heavy in the air, choking their lungs, blurring their vision.
"Why the sudden fog?"
Terl swiped at the mist, as though he could push it aside. Naturally, it didn't budge.
"Stop," Leon ordered quietly.
Crackle… crackle…
Rooaar!
A guttural growl rolled through the mist. They squinted, barely making out a hulking shadow ahead.
A giant bear.
The Rune Bear clawed furiously at a tree, oblivious to their presence.
Leon's gaze shifted between its terrifying bulk and the innocent doodle of a bear from before. No sane person would connect the two.
"I'll take this one," Terl said eagerly, cracking his knuckles. Nothing thrilled him more than trading blows with beasts. This Rune Bear was perfect prey.
"Better safe than sorry," Drew muttered, layering support spells over him. Power surged into Terl's frame, muscles swelling as his blood roared. With a triumphant shout, he charged.
Leon's face darkened. Did he really have to be so loud?
The Rune Bear paused mid-scratch. "Rrr?"
Too late. Terl slammed into it, smashing it to the ground and splitting the earth beneath.
"Haha! I've got the strength advantage!" Terl laughed, straddling the beast.
"Watch for its magic, you idiot!" Leon barked.
Magic?
Terl looked up, meeting the bear's glowing eyes. Its stare all but said: That all you've got, kid?
Impossible. That strike had been seventy percent of his strength—
The Rune Bear opened its maw. Rooaaar!
The sound crashed over them like a tidal wave. For a split second, everyone froze in place, bodies locked by sheer force of will.
A roar with a stun effect.
Should've brought better earplugs.
The beast shook violently, hurling Terl aside like a ragdoll. Then, with frightening speed, it lunged.
Drew hurled a fireball—only for it to fizzle against the bear's thick hide. The monster's toughness was unreal.
Boom!
It slammed Terl with bone-crushing force, sending him flying.
"Terl!" Maru cried, rushing forward, but Leon grabbed her shoulder.
"Don't forget his bloodline. He won't go down that easily."
And true enough—
Waggggh!
From beneath the Rune Bear came a guttural, primal roar. Terl rose, glowing with an eerie green aura. With a roar of his own, he heaved the massive beast overhead.
Wagggghhh!!!
And threw it.
The Rune Bear crashed into the dirt, bellowing in fury as it scrambled back up.
Undeterred, Terl spread his arms wide and charged again. Man and beast collided, locked in raw, savage combat.
The ground quaked. Trees toppled. The sheer chaos of the clash was absurd.
"Maybe I should help," Maru muttered, watching the madness. "Otherwise, he'll drag this out all day."
"Go on," Leon waved her forward.
Maru crouched low, her body coiling like a spring. In a blink, she shot forward, dagger flashing as she lunged for the bear's exposed flank.
But then—
Splash!
A pressurized jet of water blasted across the battlefield, catching Maru mid-stride and hurling her back like a ragdoll.
"Ah!?"
Everyone froze.
A water cannon? But there were no other monsters nearby—
"No, over there!"
Drew invoked Eagle Eye, his vision sharpening.
Far, far in the distance, near the third blue beam, across a swampy stretch of land—
A colossal lobster was bracing itself, massive claws raised, charging another water jet.
From over eight hundred meters away, it had landed a perfect shot on the tiny Maru.
That wasn't just accuracy. That was Aimbot.