Chapter 71: The Swarm Dungeon Challenge

"Of course. Who else would I be signing up with?"

Ethan continued toward the registration area beside the ranking board.

Aria hurried after him.

"Wait, you’re actually serious?"

"You’re the one who wanted to come leveling with me."

"I know, but..." Aria glanced toward the dungeon entrance. "I agreed to enter Wasp Nest. I didn’t agree to enter every bug dungeon in the Academy."

Ethan stopped for a moment.

"We’re already entering one. What’s the difference?"

"One is one."

Aria pointed toward the ranking board.

"That challenge has Spider Nest, Ant Colony, Locust Swarm..."

Aria’s expression stiffened.

"So we’re really going through all of them?"

"If we’re participating, there’s no point in clearing only one."

Aria took a deep breath and rubbed her arms.

"Fine. I’ll do it."

She looked toward the dungeon entrance again.

"But I’m staying close to you the entire time."

Ethan continued toward the registration area.

"That’s probably for the best."

They soon reached the registration area. Unlike the dungeon entrance, there was no long line. Most parties had already registered, leaving several registration crystals available.

Ethan stepped in front of one of them and selected the Swarm Dungeon Challenge.

A transparent screen appeared above the crystal.

[Swarm Dungeon Challenge]

[Participating Dungeons]

[Spider Nest]

[Ant Colony]

[Locust Swarm]

[Wasp Nest]

[Bat Cave]

[Each dungeon must be cleared separately. The fastest clear time for each dungeon will be recorded and added to the party’s total time.]

[Note: The minimum difficulty for the Swarm Dungeon Challenge is Hard. Higher difficulties are allowed, and parties that choose them will receive a greater reduction to their recorded clear time.]

Ethan confirmed the challenge.

Another screen appeared.

[Please select party members.]

Ethan selected himself, then turned toward Aria.

"Your turn."

Aria hesitated before placing her hand on the crystal. Her eyes briefly moved toward the dungeon entrance before she finally touched it.

[Party Members: 2/7]

[Party members confirmed.]

[All members meet the participation requirements.]

Another prompt appeared.

[Please enter your party name.]

Ethan paused.

"We need a name."

Aria stared at the screen.

"Right now?"

"Apparently."

She thought for a moment before shrugging.

"You choose."

Ethan considered it briefly before entering a name.

[Party Name: Bug Cleanup Crew]

Aria stared at the screen.

"Bug Cleanup Crew?"

"What?"

"I thought you’d choose something more... formidable."

Ethan didn’t seem bothered.

"It’s only a party name for this challenge. We’re not forming a permanent party."

Aria looked at the name again.

"I guess that’s true."

Ethan confirmed the registration.

The crystal flashed once.

[Registration successful.]

[Your party is now eligible to participate in the Swarm Dungeon Challenge.]

Aria stared at the screen for a moment before letting out a small sigh.

"So it’s official now. We’re really entering the Creepy Crawly Trial."

Ethan turned toward the dungeon entrance.

"Let’s go."

They had only taken a few steps when a voice came from behind them.

A young man approached them, a dark blue staff held loosely in one hand. His gaze moved from Ethan to Aria before settling on the two-person party.

"I couldn’t help but notice... it’s only the two of you?"

Ethan nodded.

"Yeah."

The young man raised an eyebrow.

"Don’t you have an area-of-effect profession? Taking on a swarm dungeon with only two people seems rather inefficient."

"No." Ethan continued walking. "It’s just the two of us."

The young man chuckled.

"Then you’re in luck."

Aria turned toward him.

"What do you mean, we’re in luck?"

"My name is Cassian. I’m a B-Rank Lightning Mage."

Cassian lightly tapped the end of his dark blue staff against the ground.

"Lightning magic is particularly effective against large groups of monsters. That’s why I came here."

His gaze moved between Ethan and Aria.

"I’ve been looking for a few people to form a party with, but most of the groups are already full."

His eyes briefly swept over the two of them.

"You two, however, still have plenty of room."

Cassian smiled.

"So I’ll make this simple. Join my party and let me lead."

Aria raised an eyebrow.

Cassian continued before she could respond.

"With my Lightning Magic clearing the swarms, getting first place won’t be difficult. As long as the rest of you don’t slow me down, we should be able to take the top spot."

Ethan gave him a brief look.

"We’re not interested."

He turned away.

"Aria, let’s go."

Cassian froze.

"...What?"

Ethan didn’t stop.

"Did you not hear what I just said?"

Cassian stepped after them, his voice rising.

"My Lightning Magic is one of the best abilities for this challenge. I’m offering to lead your party, and you’re turning me down?"

Aria turned around.

"Yeah. We’re not interested."

Cassian’s expression tightened.

"You should be happy I even bothered to approach you!"

"Why? You’re the one who came over here bragging about how amazing you are."

Aria glanced toward the dungeon entrance.

"I already have to spend the whole day dealing with bugs. I don’t need you making it worse."

"So thanks, but no thanks."

Cassian’s expression darkened.

"Do you really think the two of you can clear these dungeons alone?"

His voice carried across the entrance area, drawing the attention of several nearby students.

A few students turned toward them.

"Isn’t that Cassian?"

"I heard a strong party invited him to join earlier."

"He turned them down. Apparently, he didn’t think the rewards were worth splitting with that many people."

"Then what is he arguing about now?"

Someone else looked toward Ethan and Aria.

"Those two are entering with only two people?"

A short laugh came from nearby.

"They don’t look like they can handle a swarm dungeon."

"And he’s even bringing that silver-haired girl?"

The comments quickly faded into the background as more people returned their attention to the registration area.

Cassian’s face reddened slightly.

"Don’t come running back to me when you realize you can’t handle it on your own."

He turned away and rejoined the two people waiting nearby. One was a Fire Mage, while the other was a Wind Mage.

All three had chosen professions with powerful area-of-effect abilities, making their combination particularly suited for swarm dungeons.

After registering for the challenge, they headed straight into the Wasp Nest.

"With our combination, clearing these dungeons shouldn’t be a problem," the Wind Mage said confidently.

"Then let’s make sure nobody takes first place from us," Cassian replied.

The Fire Mage grinned. "Let’s go."

The three entered the Wasp Nest.

Meanwhile, Ethan and Aria had just stepped through the dungeon entrance.

The moment they crossed the threshold, the scenery around them changed.

A huge cavern stretched out before them. The ceiling was so high that they could barely see it, while the walls were covered in countless holes and large, dark honeycomb-like nests. Several wide openings led deeper into the dungeon.

A constant buzzing filled the cavern, loud enough to almost drown out every other sound.

A system notification appeared before them.

[You have entered Hell Difficulty: Wasp Nest]

[Swarm Dungeon Challenge detected.]

[Challenge rules are in effect.]

Aria’s expression stiffened.

"Already hate this place."

"Stay behind me," Ethan said.

Aria immediately stepped closer.

"You don’t have to tell me twice."

Ethan raised a hand.

A summoning portal appeared beneath him, and dozens of Shadow Wraiths emerged from it.

"Spread out. Hide in every shadow you can find. Rocks, holes, the walls, even my shadow. Don’t let anything get close without me knowing."

In a swarm dungeon, anything could come from any direction. With so many places for them to hide, Ethan didn’t want anything getting close without him knowing.

The Wraiths quickly disappeared into the surrounding shadows.

Only then did Ethan summon his second legion.

The same portal glowed again, this time with a bright orange-gold light. Hundreds of newly evolved Solar Elementals came out of it.

They were taller and bigger than before, with dark stone bodies covered in brighter glowing cracks.

"Looks like the evolution went well."

Ethan opened his status panel and went straight to the Legion section. He wanted to see what had changed after the evolution.

[Second Legion: Solar Elemental Legion]

[Growth Path: Solar Elemental Evolution]

[Enhanced Solar Body]

[Description: The body is formed from solar energy and can withstand even greater levels of heat and physical damage. Solar Elementals remain immune to fire and heat.]

[Charged Solar Ray]

[Description: Releases a powerful beam of solar energy. The Solar Elemental can either fire it normally or charge it for five seconds. A fully charged Solar Ray deals twice the normal damage.]

[Solar Flare]

[Description: Releases a sudden burst of intense solar light that temporarily blinds and disorients nearby enemies.]

[Divine Skill: Divine Flame]

[Mana Cost: 1,000]

[Description: Creates a divine flame that burns everything it touches. The flame cannot be extinguished by ordinary means and will continue burning until its target is destroyed or it is dismissed.]

Ethan finished reading through the changes and then closed the panel.

Aria looked at the strange creatures surrounding them.

"What are these?"

Before Ethan could answer, a different nearby buzzing reached their ears.

It was much louder than the constant buzzing filling the dungeon.

A large wasp suddenly appeared nearby. The moment it noticed them, it released a sharp buzzing sound.

Ethan’s expression changed.

"It sent a signal."

The buzzing grew louder.

Unlike the constant buzzing filling the dungeon, this sound was getting closer, heading straight toward them.