[Chapter 301. On the Dune]

Searanox arrived on the second floor of the Labyrinth. His eyes immediately stung under the bright desert sun as he stepped out of the transition zone. The sudden shift from dim, cavernous tunnels to a blinding landscape made him squint instinctively. His boots sank slightly into the loose sand with his first few steps, the soft shifting beneath his feet a stark contrast to the solid stone he had traversed moments before.

Before he had taken more than three steps, Searanox brought forth a set of drones. Their metallic forms materialized around him in a familiar flash of blue light.

Closing his eyes, he perceived his surroundings once again through the memory feed provided by his recon drone. The machine hovered silently meters above him, granting Searanox a clear perspective of the vast desert expanse. He broke into a run, his feet pounding against the shifting sands, leaving transient impressions that the wind quickly erased. After several minutes of moving at an inhuman speed, he reached their general location. Along the way, his active drones dispatched every beast that foolishly dived from the sky or burrowed upward in an attempt to ambush him. Scattered carcasses of Dune Scorpions and Cinder Wings littered his path.

Guided by the recon drone, he soon found a massive crater in the sand. The girls were sitting near the high peak of one of the surrounding dunes, their figures casting long shadows against the golden slope. Carmen was methodically checking her gear, Lana stared blankly into the distance, and Vanessa appeared completely exhausted, her shoulders slumped and her head bowed as if she were struggling just to remain upright. Iris was nowhere to be seen, maintaining her distance as previously ordered.

He made his way toward them. Sarah was the first to spot his approach, her keen eyes catching the subtle distortion in the air created by his blistering pace.

"Searanox!?" she called out, scrambling to her feet. Sand cascaded down the dune's slope around her boots, and her voice carried an edge of disbelief mixed with relief.

The other three followed her gaze and hastily got up as well, their expressions ranging from Vanessa's weary confusion to Lana's wary curiosity.

"Are you four slacking off?" he asked, his tone casual but carrying an underlying seriousness that made the women exchange quick glances.

"No. We're taking a break. Vanessa is completely out of mana..." Sarah started, her excitement rapidly growing. "You should have seen it, it was insane! There was this huge spell that killed everything, the entire sky was covered by this massive spell circle—"

She retold the event with frantic enthusiasm, her hands gesturing wildly as she described Vanessa's Celestial Downfall. Her words tumbled over one another in her haste, her voice rising in pitch with every description of how the undead had simply dissolved into nothingness under the magical onslaught.

"Shhh~ calm down, dear. Take your time."

"What are you doing here? We've only been in here for a few hours," Carmen asked over Sarah's continued rambling.

"I thought about it and decided to take you all through the dungeons with me. It would benefit you all more if you got the second clear experience," Searanox explained. His gaze swept across the scorched basin where Vanessa had unleashed her devastating magic, his mind already calculating the strategic implications of such power.

"You aren't listening." Sarah lightly punched Searanox's shoulder. The armor absorbed the impact entirely, leaving only a faint vibration traveling through his frame.

"You don't have to be upset, Sarah. I was listening. A big spell that wiped out all the beasts with beams of light. But to my knowledge, she doesn't possess such a spell." His eyes shifted to Vanessa, who flinched slightly under his direct gaze. "Would you like to fill me in?"

"Just like Sarah said, I used my skill over and over. And after I reached a hundred Starfall Matrices, there was a System announcement. It changed the spell." Her voice was barely above a whisper, her hands still trembling slightly from the immense magical strain.

"So you have a new spell now?" Searanox pressed, his mind processing this System-induced evolution.

"No, there is no new spell. Just the ones I got when I accepted the class," she said, shaking her head. A strand of fiery red hair escaped her helmet to frame her face.

"Get comfortable and enjoy your break. You can tell me everything while you rest."

They sat back down on the blanket, and to their astonishment, Searanox sank down beside them, his heavy armored form creating a deep dip in the sand. Sarah leaned against him, her fingers tracing the intricate patterns etched into his metal plates.

"Can you take off your armor? It's not comfortable like this," she murmured, her fingers lingering on his collar where the metal met his skin.

"This is neither the time nor the place," he replied, placing a hand on her thigh, the gauntleted fingers pressing firmly through her armor. "Vanessa, have you read the documents I gave you?"

Vanessa turned bright red, looking down at her hands as she nervously toyed with a snack wrapper. "Y-yes. I did."

Searanox lifted an eyebrow at her flushed face. "Well, what did they say?"

"Almost all of them... they... how do I say this? They were letters. Explicit ones. You know."

"Are you saying what I gave you was nothing more than spicy letters between lovers?"

Vanessa simply nodded, her cheeks burning with embarrassment as the others stared at her, their expressions a mix of shock and amusement.

"Well, look at that. That explains her reaction. Was there anything of interest among them?"

"The few that weren't private were mundane. The scrolls were mostly ledgers or orders. But none stood out to me as important."

"Nothing about an invasion or troop movements?"

"Nothing like that."

Sarah drew closer as his attention remained fully on Vanessa, her body pressing lightly against his armored side.

"You can hand them back to Kandora when you find the time; she's on the second floor of the tower," Searanox instructed. "Let's switch back to our previous topic. Can you show me that spell Sarah was talking about?"

"Yes, I can, once my mana is full. It takes a long time to cast and uses a lot of mana."

"Carmen, would you call Iris over?"

"I already did. She's on her way."

"Look at you, always acting two steps ahead. How is the new gear? Any thoughts?"

"It's good," Carmen reported. "Sarah is faster, Lana can hold her ground better against the beasts, and Vanessa's spells deal more damage than before."

"What about you, dear?" he asked after a few seconds of silence.

"I haven't done much today. Only healed superficial wounds and stood at the ready."

He reached out and caressed her cheek. "Don't look so gloomy. It's a good thing if they don't get hurt. How is the experience gain so far?"

"We reached level thirteen. The second floor gives us a lot more than the first," Carmen replied. A hint of satisfaction colored her voice as her fingers unconsciously traced the patterns on her newly acquired armor.

"Good job. How long would you say you need to reach level fifteen?" Searanox asked, his mind already running the numbers.

"A day. Maybe a bit more," Carmen replied, her gaze drifting toward the basin as she clinically assessed their combat efficiency.

"Just a day? That's quite fast. Are you sure?" His brow raised slightly.

"Vanessa can clear this area all by herself, with our help at the beginning. I counted about a hundred beasts an hour. We should reach level fourteen in about five hours. If the next level takes a bit more... then yes, about twelve hours of battle."

"That is something. Are you telling me that if I leave you all here for a few days, you would be level twenty?" The question hung in the air, Searanox's tone dangerously casual as he tested their limits with calculated indifference.

Vanessa jerked forward, her hands coming down hard on the blanket, bunching the fabric beneath her palms. "You can't expect us to fight all day long for days! Do you know how intense it is to fight down there?" Her green eyes flashed with defiance, exhaustion lending a sharp edge to her voice.

"I said if, Vanessa. I don't expect that. I don't want you to burn out, especially since you're doing most of it by yourself." His response was measured, the gauntlet on Sarah's thigh shifting slightly as he spoke.

"Good, because I don't want to do this all day long for days." Vanessa's shoulders slumped again, the brief surge of adrenaline fading, leaving her looking pale and worn under the harsh sun.

Moments later, Iris appeared on the horizon, her dark form a sleek silhouette against the glare of the desert. She moved with an otherworldly grace, her powerful legs eating up the distance between them. As she drew near, she slowed her approach, her piercing silver eyes fixed solely on Searanox, completely ignoring the others.

Without a word, she settled onto the blanket right next to him, her movements fluid and purposeful. Leaning against his free side, she nuzzled into his neck, the soft fur of her cheek brushing against the exposed skin above his collar. A low rumble vibrated in her chest—a sound of contentment that was at once animalistic and deeply affectionate. They watched in silence as Iris made herself at home.