Chapter 49 - 50: HellFlame Horse
They walked inside and were greeted by darkness, a completely dark hall. However, even inside of that darkness, there was a bright light which stood out. A light which they could see clearly. A light coming from the flames of the monster in the middle of the room.
As John was about to cast Lumine to light everything up. The flames around the hall began to light up.
They could clearly see the figure which stood in the middle of the room. A humanoid-shaped fire spirit, riding a horse. A horse that looks like it came straight from hell. With cracks on its skin leaking out flame, its mane, tails and hooves wreathed in flames.
John called it a spirit, but he didn\'t know what it was. Its body resembled magma or molten rocks with cracks on it similar to the horses. Even without his instincts telling him it\'s dangerous, John knew.
"H-Hellflame Horse... And Hellflame Rider..?" Muttered Serena as she slightly trembled.
\'Well, I got to give it to whoever named them. It sure sounds terrifying.\' John thought.
"Serena, what do you know about them?" John asked.
"Hellflame horse... They\'re rare to find. A creature which moves with supernatural speed, some call it death horse or a demon horse..." Replied Serena with a nervous look on her face
Ariel as well who heard this, seemed shaken
John looked over at Ariel, who seemed to recognise the horse.
"Have you seen it before?" John asked.
"No... But I\'ve read tales on it... But that\'s not the worst part..." Said Ariel.
"The being which sits on top of the horse... It\'s called a Hellflame Rider... It has high control over fire magic and can create weapons made of flame... A monster to fight against... It\'s Rank is A In both strength and skill." Said Serena.
\'So from the 15th floor, we\'re already meeting A-Rank monsters. Is the dungeon really 30 floors? If so, then I can\'t see us completing it anytime soon... Will our food even last until we can..?\' John pondered.
"What I don\'t get is why there are two High-ranked monsters working together... Hellflame horse is a B-Rank monster, but it\'s faster than an A-Rank. The reason its rank isn\'t higher is because it usually doesn\'t engage in fights and disappears... But if they were ordered to fight..." Said Serena.
John was the only one in the party who could use water, so he was the only one here who has the biggest advantage. Then...
John took a few leaps towards the two monsters who just sat there and watched. Midway there, he cast velox duplici and propelled himself straight at it.
"You idiot! Don\'t just charge in!" Shouted Serena from behind.
They also followed behind him, keeping a distance which was enough so that they wouldn\'t hinder him and provide support with their attacks.
Right before John reached the horse, he aimed the glacies he had formed around him right before he fought the hell hounds. John decided to keep it activated as it doesn\'t waste energy after you cast it, only when you cast it.
Ariel and Serena were curious about why John didn\'t remove it but didn\'t question it.
As he reached the Hell boss, John propelled 3 Glacieses at it at point-blank range as he simultaneously swung both daggers in a diagonal manner. Right before the glacies and John\'s daggers hit it, it disappeared.
No, it didn\'t disappear, it just moved faster than John could-
As he thought that John noticed a kick flying straight at him, from his left and he positioned his arms to block it.
"Scutum gla-"
Before John could cast it, the kick reached him, so he put more power into my arm and reinforced it more than before. The kick dragged him a few meters to the side, but it wasn\'t as strong as he had expected.
Before John could counter, the horse disappeared again and attacked him in his blind spot. Its attacks were strong, but what was worse was its speed. Before John realised it, he was hit by a series of kicks and had suffered burns around his hands and back.
As he continued getting hit by a barrage of attacks, John looked over at Serena and Ariel, who were filled with a worried expression. Ariel had completely charged up her wind spear, but the horse was too fast, it was going to dodge it.
Serena had managed to form around 5 wind arrows and was also trying to get a good aim on the horse. If only it could stop for one second.
The horse continued its barrage and John was starting to get accustomed to its speed.
As he dropped down to my knees, the horse took that opportunity to land a clean hit.
It disappeared once more and is going to appear... \'Behind!\'
John turned as he ducked and saw the horse\'s back legs stretched out above him. It had missed. Its two legs were in the air and its speed was pointless at this point. John used this opportunity and stabbed it under its belly with both of his daggers.
Before it could struggle around, John cast Glacio and made ice travel through the tip of his dagger. The horse let out a neigh as he struggled around, but it was pointless.
John\'s ice was constantly spreading on the inside of its body. Even if its fire melted it, it would simply turn into water and cool him down from the inside.
The Hellflame rider, which was mounted on top of the horse, formed a fire spear and thrust it at John. Its thrust was fast. If John pulled out his daggers and jumped back the moment it materialized that spear, he would have definitely been stabbed.
As John stood a few feet away from the two bosses he regretted not finishing off that horse.
"Well, it\'s fine, you can come for another barrage if you\'d like, you\'re easy to read." John said as he looked over at the hellflame rider.
As John said that, the horse\'s light grew fainter and fainter, and the cracks in its skin changed from a illuminating fire one to a while worn-out one.
It looked like the ice worked. The hellf,lame rider got off the horse, and the horse fell on the ground. The fire which was lighted up all over its body grew dimmer and dimmer until it eventually disappeared.
"I wish I could\'ve tamed it... It was so cool... Well then, hell uhh, Hellflame rider. Come at me.." John said as he motioned it with his hands.