KAPPA 65 (Patreon)

Taking advantage of the chamber's 50m clearance, Kaia used Great Leap to evade the Ground Dragon's charge, ascending nearly thirty meters into the air.

Carried forward by its momentum, the Ground Dragon crashed into the entrance end of the chamber with the force of a runaway train, causing the entire room to shake. Its shield-like head disappeared into the wall it had crashed into, temporarily lodging it in place as Tarou, falling from his usual perch on Kaia's head, unleashed a powerful discharge of electricity that covered nearly a hundred meters in an instant, striking the Ground Dragon's tail.

"You need to use water or fire to smother it...!" shouted Zarah, standing off to the side with hammerstaff floating in front of her as she weaved together runes to form an increasingly complex sphere around herself.

Lending credibility to Zarah's claim, the Ground Dragon appeared to completely ignore Tarou's attack as it dislodged itself from the wall and began to turn, slowly at first and then with a whipping motion that caused its tail to impact the wall, sending a powerful, continuous tremor through the room.

"Fuck...!" growled Zarah, unable to maintain her cast and footing due to the Ground Dragon's Earthquake. It didn't help that pieces of the ceiling began to rain down in large chunks, threatening to crush them if they lost focus or weren't paying attention.

"Chiii...!"

As the smallest member of the party, Tarou was especially susceptible to being crushed. Fortunately, while it was presently Rank 3, Kaia's Aerial Superiority drastically amplified her senses while she was in the air. She could also kick the air with her hind legs, creating a temporary membrane of Mana to serve as a platform that allowed her to bound through the air without needing to land. It was a costly maneuver, but it allowed her to descend faster than Tarou fell naturally, permitting her to catch him out of the air and ferry him to safety.

Seemingly unaffected by its own Earthquake, the Ground Dragon opened its stony maw to unleash a powerful, debilitating roar. Ordinarily, it would have used a genuine Dragon's Roar or powerful Earth Magic to take them out while they could barely stand, but due to the Dungeon constraining its growth and capabilities, its roar was ultimately just a very loud sound.

'It's a shame my helmet doesn't include sound dampening...' thought Cairn, gritting his teeth as he wondered how he was supposed to help fend off such a massive creature. His 50 Strength was nothing against the Ground Dragon's 557, and the stone-like carapace covering its body was too thick to deal any meaningful damage, even if he exchanged one of his shields for the Shadow Queen's Stinger.

Leaving Cairn little time to think, the Ground Dragon set its sights on him. It didn't have any visible eyes, but Cairn got the impression it was staring directly at him as it slammed its tail against the ground several times and began charging forward, causing every nerve in his body to tense.

"Move, you damned fool...!" shouted Zarah, attempting to buy Cairn time by sending a cross-shaped rune formed of fiery green energy flying at the Ground Dragon's snout, growing larger as it traveled. Fortunately, while it only did 113 damage, the place the rune struck was the Ground Dragon's sensory organ, causing it to tilt its head and list to the side, crashing and scraping violently against the wall for much greater damage.

'That's it...!' thought Cairn, shouting, "It injures itself every time it crashes into the wall! We need to tire it out...!"

"No shit...!" screamed Zarah, staring at Cairn from across the room as if he were a complete idiot. After all, the Subterranean Spire wasn't exactly a recently discovered Dungeon. Its structure, ecosystem, and the ecology of every monster within were well-documented. So long as you did your research before entering, you would know the strengths and weaknesses of every monster you encountered, including the Guardian.

Taking advantage of the Ground Dragon's sluggish recovery, Kaia tossed one of her arrow-like javelins toward one of the four holes at the tip of its snout. Her aim was true, but as the interior of the cavities was as durable as the exterior, the tip of her javelin barely managed to pierce more than a few centimeters, dealing 79 damage.

Demonstrating just how little damage it had sustained, the Ground Dragon began to inhale stutteringly and sharply like someone preparing to release a powerful sneeze. When it finally did, a booming sound comparable to thunder or a powerful echoed through the chamber, causing Kaia to wince in pain as she flattened her ears against her head and covered them with her hands.

'Fuck it...!' Cairn exclaimed internally, activating the Leap Skill granted to him by his equipment. The Ground Dragon had 'derailed' pretty close to him, so he was able to leap nearly fifty meters vertically and fourteen horizontally, bringing him just above its snout as he materialized Elle's Mr. Boomy from his Inventory. He wasn't sure it would work, but since the Ground Dragon appeared to be comprised of earth and stone, there was a small chance of Dynamite Impact activating, causing an explosion.

As it could not sense Cairn soaring through the air, the Ground Dragon didn't react until he slammed the pickaxe directly into its snout, piercing it up to Mr. Boomy's handle. Dynamite Impact didn't activate, but the blow did a commendable 1,308 damage, causing the Ground Dragon to startle and begin thrashing its head as Cairn made the mistake of holding on for dear life.

"Oh sh—" Cairn attempted to shout, but his words were silenced as the Ground Dragon slammed its head against the wall, smashing him into it.

*Warning! You have sustained 8,216 damage and been inflicted with the Stun Status Effect!*

*Ding! You have acquired Shock Resistance Rank 3!*

*Ding! You have acquired Stun Resistance Rank 1!*

Witnessing the scene from afar, Kaia's and Zarah's pupils contracted, the former shouting, "Cairn...!" in a panic. She knew that he could be revived no matter how many times he was killed, but it was impossible for her to feel nothing as he was critically injured.

"D-Don't panic...!" shouted Zarah, her voice and body trembling as she added, "You need to lure it in this direction! I've placed down several Explosive Runes! If we can topple it, we should be able to find a weak spot on its belly...!"

As Kaia nodded her head and prepared to draw the Ground Dragon's attention, the beast in question slowly removed its head from the wall, revealing Cairn's intact figure embedded in its surface. He couldn't move due to the Stun Status Effect, but he didn't appear to have sustained any serious injuries since his equipment was still intact.

'This fucker...' thought Cairn, staring at the Ground Dragon backing up with unfettered hatred. He knew it was his mistake that caused him to be embedded in the wall, feeling like every bone in his body was broken, but as the Ground Dragon was the one that caused his pain, he felt an almost overwhelming desire to tear it apart.

"Over here, you hammer-headed lizard...!" shouted Kaia, but the Ground Dragon completely ignored her. It could sense Cairn's fury, provoking its instincts. Thus, even when Kaia and Tarou peppered its backside with fire and a mana-infused javelin, it completely ignored them and backed away, preparing one final charge to finish Cairn off.

Feeling the effects of Stun wear off, Cairn unequipped his weapons and armor, a habit he had developed to preserve their Durability in the face of imminent death. However, instead of simply resolving himself to die, he leaped forward, shouting, "Eat this...!" as he stirred the Mana in his body, his blood bursting into shadowy, orange-tinged flames.

Seemingly interpreting Cairn's words literally, the Earth Dragon opened its massive, stone-crashing maw and devoured him whole. Intense pressure gripped every part of Cairn's body, but before the darkness claimed him, he unleashed every ounce of Mana he had, burning his blood to generate an explosion.

*Ding! You have acquired the Skill [Self Immolation]!*

Though Cairn imagined the Ground Dragon's throat exploding, causing its head to detach from its body, what Kaia, Zarah, and Tarou witnessed was a slight expansion of the creature's throat, followed by black smoke rising from its nostrils like smoke from a train's chimney. The self-detonation did about 13,000 damage, but with more than 120,000 remaining, the Ground Dragon was far from defeated...

'You've got to be fucking kidding me...' groaned Cairn, emerging from the Ground Dragon's body as a phantom. His Insight still functioned when he was dead, so he could see the Ground Dragon's status and remaining HP. Then, as if to mock him, the Ground Dragon opened his mouth, spewing forth a veritable deluge of fiery black smoke, forcing Kaia to take evasive action.

Shaking his head, Cairn flew to the opposite end of the chamber, hoping it was far enough away for him to resurrect. Unfortunately, while 300-400m was more than enough distance, the magic that prevented outsiders from intruding on a fight with the Guardian prevented him from reviving while a battle was ongoing.

With limited time to act, Cairn looked to the still-sealed entrance to the Dungeon Core, his eyes widening and pupils contracting as he found a familiar black-and-white-haired woman staring at him with crossed arms, completely naked. More notably, her body was transparent, much like his own.

Regaining his senses, Cairn asked, "What are you doing here? I mean, I know you follow me around, but why are you a ghost? Better yet, why are you naked...?"

"Asks the person who is also naked," mused Vira, maintaining her usual smile as she floated over to Cairn and wrapped her arms around him, her phantom form allowing her to interact with his without issue.

Though he exhaled through his nose, Cairn reciprocated Vira's embrace, ignoring that he could apparently get a boner as a ghost to state, "I don't have much time. Tell me why you've appeared."

"I left a present for you in the Dungeon Core's chamber," revealed Vira. "But if you attempt to face them alone, you'll lose. For now, you should return to the Guardian Chamber's entrance. It may take her a while, but it's only a matter of time before that burgeoning Runemaster subdues the Ground Dragon. She is young, but she has a good head on her shoulders."

Without waiting for Cairn's response, Vira teleported him to the exterior of the Guardian's Chamber, prompting him to blink in surprise and ask, "You can use spells as a phantom...?"

"You silly boy..." mused Vira, licking her lips as she nestled closer to him and whispered, "There is very little I can't do..."

*Ding! Due to the use of the Divine-Grade Skill [Phantasmagoria], your phantom form has stabilized! The countdown to forced transference has ceased!*

"What the fu—"

Before Cairn could ask how the fuck Vira was able to use Divine-Grade Skills, the carnivorous Elder Dwarf sealed his lips with her own. He tried to resist at first, but several other notifications sounded in his mind as he found himself pushed down and practically 'assailed' by the abyss-eyed woman...

*Ding! Due to the effects of the Divine-Grade Talent [Sex Goddess], you cannot resist the Status Effect: Greater Charm!*

*Ding! You have acquired Charm Resistance Rank 1!*

*Ding! Your Corruption Resistance has increased to Rank 8!*

*Ding! Your Corruption Resistance has increased to Rank 9!*

*Ding! Your Charm Resistance has increased to Rank 2!*

*Ding! Your Charm Resistance has increased to Rank 3!*

*Ding! Your Bedroom Arts has increased to Rank 24!*

*Ding! You have...*

...

..

.

(A/N: That's one way to grind resistances, I suppose...)