Chapter 63 – Facing Monsters

The dim, phosphorescent glow of the cave fungi cast an eerie light over the group as they made their way deeper into the Placid Cave. 

Talia's footsteps echoed off the damp stone walls, mingling with the soft drip of water from unseen stalactites. 

Beside her walked Mira, the senior student's face set in a stony expression. 

Nami and Lilo trailed just behind, their eyes darting warily from shadow to shadow, ready for any sudden threats. 

The tension in the air was palpable, a stark contrast to the excited chatter that had filled the group when they first entered the cave.

Talia thought of the events of the past few hours. 

The interrogation of Lilinoe, the cryptic warnings about a Dark Water Well, and the unsettling implications about Professor Iakopo's involvement in the city's dark history. 

She had wanted to voice her concerns, to insist that they abandon this foolhardy expedition in light of the potential Cultist threat. 

But something had held her back, a nagging doubt that whispering her suspicions might do more harm than good.

"Remember," Mira's voice cut through Talia's thoughts, sharp and authoritative, "this isn't just a training exercise. By the time we reach the deeper parts of the cavern in a week, those who can't summon a Mana Board will have failed out of the academy. No exceptions."

The reminder sent a chill down Talia's spine. 

Her struggles with the Mana Board were well-known, and despite having leveled the Primary Mana Channel, she was still somehow locked out of the Hydromancy. 

Still, she took some comfort in the knowledge that her Primary Mana Channel was on the verge of reaching Level 2. 

It wasn't going to change much, but it still felt like progress.

As they rounded a bend in the tunnel, the passage widened into a larger chamber. 

The increased space brought with it a new threat - a group of Torpedo Snappers.

[Torpedo Snapper - Level 8]

Without hesitation, Talia jumped in. 

The extra Agility she had gained from absorbing the Slashing Crusters on the beach made her movements much more fluid and precise. 

I probably need to allocate more Attributes to Strength, though, she thought, feeling the glaive still heavy in her hands. 

She ducked under the first Snapper's lunge, her glaive flashing out in a deadly arc that caught the creature mid-leap.

The blade bit deep, and Talia felt the familiar rush of energy as she activated [Blood Siphon] immediately. 

The Torpedo Snapper's life force flowed into her, invigorating her rather spent muscles, still tired from the night before. 

The Torpedo Snapper clearly had less durability compared to the Slashing Crusters, even though it was faster and deadlier. 

That meant that [Blood Siphon] was actually able to finish the monster without Talia having to do much more.

[You have absorbed the Torpedo Snapper's Life Force.]

[+0.7 to your Primary Mana Channel (15.02/20 to Level Two)]

[+1 to your Agility (6.7/6 to 3 Agility)]

[You gave gained 1 Agility]

This was the fourth Agility Attribute that she had gained through [Blood Siphon]. 

Every time she looked at the Skill, she felt it was completely unfair.

Sure, it had some limitation on the amount of monsters she could absorb at once and the max level of the monster she could absorb—for example she hadn’t been able to absorb the Abyssal Scuttler Boss—but it had allowed her to grow her Attributes at a speed that even the Great Families would have found absolutely terrifying.

And while it still didn’t show that much because she was low-leveled, this was bound to slowly make her into an unstoppable force—beyond what even Yalena, her mother, had been. 

Talia allowed herself a small smile of satisfaction as she turned to face the next threat. 

Two more Snappers were converging on her position, their torpedo-shaped bodies cutting through the air with frightening speed.

She dropped into a low stance, her glaive held at the ready. 

As the first Snapper reached her, Talia pivoted, using the creature's momentum against it, slashing her palm and using [Hemomancy] to extend a much larger blade that caught the  soft underside of the monster’s jaw, killing on the spot.

She quickly activated [Blood Siphon] again, and another surge of energy coursed through her as [Blood Siphon] activated once more.

[You have absorbed the Torpedo Snapper's Life Force.]

[+0.7 to your Primary Mana Channel (15.72/20 to Level Two)]

[+1.1 to your Agility (1.8/9 to 3 Agility)]

She briefly wondered when she would get another Skill thanks to [Blood Siphon].

What she had taken as a rather common occurrence and a basic effect of the Skill after killing the Abyssal Cuda back on Solara had apparently been an extremely rare happenstance. 

However, her attention was swiftly brought back to the current moment as other students engaged monsters under Mira’s eye and the second Torpedo Snapper of the duo slowly slithered around her. 

Talia tried attacking first this time, but the monster anticipated her movement, twisting its body in mid-air to avoid her strike. 

Talia felt the rush of air as the creature's snapping jaws missed her face by inches. She stumbled back, regaining her balance just in time to parry another attack from the persistent monster.

Gritting her teeth, Talia fully focused on the enemy and, for good measure, activated [Eyes of the Abyss] to see if she could catch the movements of Mana inside the monster’s body. 

Time seemed to slow as she watched the creature coil for another strike. 

Is it going to work? She wondered. 

This time, when it launched itself forward, she saw a flare of Mana, a hazy trail that seemed to create a vacuum in the air where the monster would leap through moments after. 

And so, Talia was ready. 

She sidestepped right as the monster leapt through the hair, giving it no way of dodging and bringing her glaive down in a powerful overhead strike that split the Snapper from head to tail.

[Eyes of the Abyss has reached Level 8!]

As the creature fell, Talia took a moment to survey the chamber. 

Both Nami and Lilo were holding their own. 

But it was Lilo who caught Talia's attention.

The Moana heir and Chosen fought with a fury that seemed out of place, her strikes carrying more force than necessary. 

I think she’s still upset after meeting Lilinoe, Talia thought.

Each Torpedo Snapper that fell to her blade did so with a sickening crunch, the creature's body nearly cleaved in two by the force of Lilo's attacks.

Talia watched as Lilo engaged three Snappers simultaneously. 

The first fell quickly, Lilo's blade finding its mark with brutal efficiency. 

The second almost managed to graze Lilo's arm with its teeth, but the Tempest Water aura seemed to repel it. 

The attack seemed to enrage Lilo further. 

She let out a shout, her next attack so powerful it not only killed the second Snapper but continued through to strike the third, felling both creatures in a single devastating blow.

"Lilo!" Nami's voice carried across the chamber, a note of concern evident even over the sounds of battle. "Calm down!”

Lilo didn't respond, her focus entirely on the next Snapper that dared approach. 

Mira, having dispatched her own opponents with clinical precision, turned to observe the scene with a frown.

"What's the deal with her?" 

Mira asked, her tone a mixture of annoyance and curiosity.

Lilo's head snapped up at the question, her eyes blazing with an intensity that made even Mira take a step back. 

"Mind your own business," Lilo snapped, her voice dripping with venom.

Mira's eyes widened in shock, then narrowed in anger. 

But before she could respond, Nami stepped between them, her hands raised in a placating gesture. 

"Now's not the time," she said firmly, her gaze shifting between Lilo and Mira.

Lilo held Mira's gaze for a moment longer before turning away with a huff, moving to take up a position at the back of the group. 

Mira watched her go, her jaw clenched in barely contained rage.

That had been an interesting conflict.

In theory, the Moana Family was lower in the hierarchy of Great Families compared to the Kane Family. 

However, the Kane Family had been going through many hardships in the past years, not being able to produce a worthy heir to carry on their name.

Not after Professor Iakopo, at least, Talia thought to herself. 

As they prepared to move on, Talia caught a glimpse of Mira's face. 

The senior student's expression was a mask of fury, her thoughts practically visible behind her eyes. 

I wonder if she blames Professor Iakopo, Talia wondered, imagining that Mira would be thinking something like:  

I can’t let my Family down like this, allowing a puny girl from the East Deep to speak to me in such a manner.

Talia filed away this observation, adding it to the growing list of tensions and secrets that seemed to permeate every aspect of their stay in Placid City.

As they pressed deeper into the cave, the encounters with Torpedo Snappers became more frequent. 

Talia fell into a rhythm. 

But then, a bigger group of Torpedo Snappers emerged from a side passage. 

This new group was larger than the previous ones, at least a dozen Torpedo Snappers slithering and leaping towards them. 

Talia readied herself, her glaive humming with energy as she prepared to engage.

The first wave hit them hard. 

She found herself surrounded by three Snappers, their attacks coming from all directions. 

She spun and dodged, her blade flashing in the dim light as she fought to keep the creatures at bay. 

One Snapper's teeth grazed her leg, tearing through her pants and drawing blood. 

Nearby, Nami and Lilo fought back-to-back, their movements perfectly synchronized. 

Nami's daggers flashed, keeping the Snappers at bay, while Lilo's powerful strikes finished them off. 

Mira, for her part, fought with cold efficiency. 

Her spear moved in precise arcs, each thrust finding its mark with deadly accuracy whenever a student was in mortal danger. 

Three Snappers fell to her in quick succession, their bodies twitching on the cave floor as she looked with spite at the weaker student.s 

As Talia prepared to engage another Snapper, Talia activated both [Eyes of the Abyss] and [Crimson Wisdom], her senses expanding to encompass the area around them. 

That's when she saw it - a presence so bright and powerful that it nearly blinded her enhanced vision.

Something was approaching, something far stronger than the Torpedo Snappers they had been facing. 

Its energy signature was a dazzling mass, pulsing with a power that made Talia's heart race with fear.

"Mira!" Talia called out, her voice tight with urgency. "There's something coming. Something big."

Mira turned, her eyebrows raised in skepticism. "What are you talking about? I don't sense anything unusual."

"I'm telling you, there's a powerful monster heading our way," Talia insisted, her patience wearing thin. "We need to back off, now!"

Mira's expression hardened. "Are you trying to cause panic like that other girl did? There's nothing-"

"Oh, shut up, you moron!" Talia snapped, her fear turning to anger. "Everyone, back away now! There's a strong monster coming, and I'm not going to let your pride get us all killed!"

The harshness in Talia's voice seemed to startle the others into action. 

They began to retreat, moving back the way they had come.

But as they did, something strange happened. 

The overwhelming presence Talia had sensed seemed to fade, replaced by the familiar energy signature of a regular Torpedo Snapper.

As the weaker monster emerged from the shadows, Mira rounded on Talia, her face flushed with anger. 

"What is wrong with you?" she shouted, her voice echoing off the cave walls. "Do you have any idea how much trouble you could be in for this? False alarms like this could get someone killed!"

But Talia wasn't listening. 

Her brain was trying to compute what had just happened. 

The powerful presence hadn't disappeared - it had been replaced, as if something or someone had deliberately switched it out for a weaker monster.

I was right, Talia thought, her heart pounding. I know what I saw. 

This isn't just a training exercise.

There's something else going on here, something dangerous.

As Mira continued her tirade, Talia made a decision. 

"I need to send a message immediately," she muttered, ignoring the senior student's angry words.