The Raid leader walked up to the group, carrying Robert over his shoulder. Without a word, he handed the wounded party member to one of the Medicus for healing.

  “We should go. It’s dangerous to linger at the entrance,” Garth said, breaking the tense silence.

  The entire group turned to stare at him.

  The silence stretched long enough for Garth to realize his error. He cocked his head, lowering his eyes.

  “Forgive my insolence,” he said.

  He had forgotten himself—Valets were not permitted to speak unless it was a dire situation.

  Frustration welled up inside him. Once, people had weighed their words before speaking to him. Now, he couldn’t even state the obvious without drawing ire.

  But to his surprise, the Raid leader nodded. “No, it’s okay. He’s right. We should get going.”

  With that, the group readied themselves and advanced down the only available path.

  They moved cautiously through the Void, killing demons as they went and collecting cores. Garth gathered each core handed to him, storing them without a word.

  But each time he touched one, a mild itch pricked at his skin. He felt the temptation to absorb them—but he resisted. Doing so would raise far too many questions.

  As they advanced, Garth kept his eyes open for a chance to break away from the group, to escape unnoticed. But that opportunity hadn’t presented itself.

  Not yet.

  Suddenly—arrows rained down from all directions.

  "Ahhhh!"

  Screams echoed through the cavern.

  “Defensive wall! Now!” the Raid leader shouted.

  The group instantly formed a circle, placing the healers and Garth in the center. The Medicus got to work tending to the wounded, while the rest prepared for the next wave.

  Garth stood still, his eyes scanning every shadow, every crevice. He remained alert, ready to bolt at a moment’s notice.

  “Any fatalities?” the Raid leader asked.

  “None, Raid leader,” came the response.

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  “Good.”

  “Look out!” another voice shouted as more arrows flew in.

  “Earth wall!” the Raid leader commanded.

  Several earth wielders raised a wall of rock in front of them.

  Garth didn’t lift a finger. He simply observed—watched carefully as the situation unfolded.

  And then he realized the leader had made a critical mistake.

  The last Raid leader Garth had worked under had failed due to unforeseen circumstances—a Void that was far beyond his capabilities. But he’d otherwise been competent, methodical, and well-trained.

  This one? He seemed kind-hearted, maybe even brave. But the fact that he had been a leader for any length of time baffled Garth.

  He didn’t plan. He reacted.

  The former leader had filled the cave with fire and lightning to illuminate their surroundings and assess potential threats.

  But this one? He ordered a wall to be raised, blocking everyone's line of sight. At this rate—

  BOOOM!

  The entire wall shattered as a Minotaur rammed through it with devastating force.

  The team was thrown in all directions.

  Some were crushed.

  Others were split in half.

  Many more were badly wounded.

  And worst of all—one of the two Medicus had died in the chaos.

  The air became thick with the scent of blood and churned earth.

  A sharp ringing stabbed through Garth’s ears.

  He gritted his teeth and forced himself to focus.

  The situation demanded it.

  A team of Sparrow-ranked Venators had just been decimated in a Void perfectly suited for their level—all because their leader had likely bought his position.

  “Damn it,” Garth muttered.

  This would have been the perfect time to leave.

  To vanish into the shadows.

  But as he looked around at the wounded and the dying, he couldn't bring himself to abandon them.

  He stood up and reached into his bag, pulling out three Seris Bombs. But they were too powerful on their own. So he also retrieved a bottle of Bubonic Acid.

  First, he dipped the bombs in a bag of salt to dissolve the Wrapping Jelly that encased them.

  Then he hurled the bottle of Bubonic Acid at the Minotaur’s head.

  SIZZLE!

  The acid devoured the creature’s flesh in seconds.

  “NO ONE TOUCH THE MINOTAUR!” Garth yelled. Then, without missing a beat, he turned to the walls of the cave.

  He unwrapped the three bombs and threw them in different directions.

  BOOM!

  The sound was deafening.

  Light erupted, flooding the cave in a blinding wave. Before Garth's barely opened eyes, he could see a multitude of Demons getting caught in the explosion, disintegrated.

  The explosion shook the earth beneath their feet.

  Fear gripped Garth’s chest, he had successfully purged the area of the immediate threat—but had he overdone it?

  Would the cave collapse?

  Then as the light dimmed and the tremors subsided, he allowed himself a breath of relief.

  All around him, the remaining Venators—those still conscious—stared at him in stunned silence.

  Even the Raid leader.

  Garth turned, feeling every pair of eyes locked on him.

  Their mouths hung open in shock.

  A flicker of anxiety passed through him.

  'Did I just blow my cover?' Garth pondered.

  But that didn’t matter now.

  The explosion would have drawn every demon in the surrounding areas. Time was running out.

  He walked straight to the remaining Medicus and dropped to one knee.

  “How bad are your wounds?” he asked.

  No response—just a blank stare.

  “Is your hearing okay?” he pressed.

  “How did you do that?” the Medicus asked, voice barely above a whisper.

  Garth looked away.

  “We don’t have time for that. This place is going to be swarming with demons. It’s up to you to keep the injured alive.”

  He met the Medicus’s gaze.

  “Right,” the Medicus said, snapping out of his daze.

  “Good. First things first. How bad is your injury?”

  “It’s nothing I can’t fix," the Medicus began healing his leg.

  “That’s good news.” Garth rose to his feet and turned to the rest of the group.

  “Everyone! I need your help, please!”

  Their attention snapped to him.

  “Anyone who isn’t injured, gather the wounded. We need to move quickly. Once everyone’s healed, we’re abandoning this Void.”

  A murmur of concern rippled through the group.

  “Wait—abandon the Void?” someone asked. “But we’re halfway through!”

  “And?” Garth shot back. “Can’t you see half the team is down? We can’t go on like this.”

  “We can still fight,” the same member argued. “We just need to coordinate better.”

  “And what about the boss? You think we’ll survive that with these numbers and these injuries?”

  Another member stepped forward.

  “I’m with the Earthwielder on this one. One more failed raid and my record’s shot. I won’t get to join another team.”

  That statement swayed the group.

  Reluctantly, the decision began to lean toward staying.

  SHUFFLE.

  A faint sound echoed from deep in the cave.

  Everyone froze.

  Weapons raised.

  They turned toward the source of the noise.

  “We’ll continue this discussion somewhere else,” Garth said firmly.