1. The Desert Nightmare

In front of them stood a massive arched door with an engraved snake beast which seemed magnificent at first sight. However, they realized it might be a hint for the boss. The mature man in front of them smiled, excited about what the creature inside had to offer.

He turned back to check out his team members, their startled faces making him chuckle. "What are you scared about? This is a boss of the first floor!"

No one replied until a man with brown hair stuttered and spoke, "But I heard this Carastes has taken down a lot of teams before us!"

"Should we wait and head back to call another team?" asked a man dressed as a wizard, still unsure about their capabilities.

"No!" said the leader — the silver-haired man —looking at each of them. "We can't return now, not after all the reward we have collected."

"Besides, we are alone here," he said and then looked back at the sealed room ahead. "They all had different rooms as well. No one is coming to land a hand to us all."

The atmosphere started to change as fear had infected a lad who couldn't even move. Not only because of the boss inside but also the other things he kept silent about. He wished he had been honest about his abilities and had refused the team invitation. He still didn't know what his skill was used for, what his role was, or what he would do in his unit. Therefore, it could be a mess later on.

He studied the girl standing beside him, who appeared as frightened as the rest of them; with her delicate shape and attractive face, she was captivating to behold. Above her short, shoulder-length black hair, her ID name read Mei Li. She wore a silver Archer badge – indicating her talent with the bow.

Their leader had the same icon color attached to his name but a sword and shield, Ha Suan seemed to have a lot of experience. Aside from the Warrior class inherent in his attributes, his charisma undoubtedly made his teammates follow him willingly. It was clear by all his instructions that his team could infiltrate the dungeon that far.

Howard, the man in the robe, is different from the other two. He has no badge or title on his name. He looks like a magic-destruction user at first glance, but he is a Healer support. Thanks to him, this expedition seems conceivable to achieve.

His "brother," Arknar, who is not a real brother but another wizard-like, serves as the attacker. He deals damage alongside Mei Li but focuses more on destructive attacks rather than continuous ones. His role is to apply a burn debuff that will hurt the enemies over time and increase the melee attack damage to twice when the burn is still active. However, he needs to manage his mana carefully as a Wizard spell consumed faster than the Healer.

Last but not least is Liu Han, a Martial Artist class who fulfills the roles of both a damage dealer and support, unlike the Warrior class, which specializes in defense and support. Regardless, this class has never been seen since the game was released, and almost no one except Liu Han has managed to obtain it. Despite this, martial arts classes do not seem to be convenient for him.

"I believe we can do it." Ha Suan swallowed hard and tried to face his dread. "Remember to focus all the time and listen to what I have said."

Everyone set watchful as their leader was about to enter the chamber, but a screaming voice had them stunned for a second. "W–Wait!"

Almost all the members stare at Liu Han who froze with his face terrified. "It's better that I'm out from this team."

"What? What are you talking about?" Arknar is bewildered and demands an explanation. "You are needed for our team role."

"That's true, Liu Han," said Howard without hesitation. "We need your toxin skill, aren't you the Assassin class?"

That is the issue. Before the teams were settled, no one knew other users' classes without the badges. Some of them chose to hide all their stats and information.

However, when it came to team events like dungeons or bosses, the search automatically picked a random user that fit the remaining roles. In this case, Liu Han was one of those users.

"I... I am not." Liu Han shocked the whole soul in there and made their eyes wide open.

"Are you serious!" Arknar started to rise his voice tone. "Why didn't you tell us before we enter the dungeon?"

Liu Han silenced for a moment, unable to think. "Sorry, I can't continue from now on."

"And let us fail to enter this room too?" Ha Suan responded, recalling the requirement to face the boss. "If one leaves, everyone leaves."

"Without a complete team role, we can't even enter the dungeon, remember?" The face of that mature man comes across as a little bit disappointed and mad. "It's too late now. We must move forward."

That is bad, Liu Han was lost in his chaotic mind. He has to make the decision as soon as possible. He wants to leave and not burden his team, at the same time, it would be a drawback for them. If they forced him to continue with the task, Liu Han was afraid that he wouldn't be able to contribute much.

When he looks at Mei Li, her beautiful face locks on him. She did not talk and choose to shut her mouth in this conversation. Yet, a slight contemplation reflected in her reddish irises. She turned her head away as the two of them stared at each other.

"You can leave when we solve this last ride." He began to open that massive entrance. "Don't waste time!"

The door creaked with a deafening sound, scattering dust as it unfurled. The darkness remained, enveloping them with uneasiness. Liu Han had no choice apparently but to approach through the entrance, carried away by the waves. Suddenly, the door closed and vanished into thin air, leaving all of them inside.

"Prepare yourselves!" Ha Suan sheathed his silver sword, and they all followed suit with their weapons.

Mei Li held her bow firmly, while the two wizards grasped their staffs and spell book. Each class was given their main and second weapon in their inventory, except Liu Han. He drew an iron blade from its torn case which he had crafted from the lowest-tier weapon he could do. He is completely empty-handed from the start.

Simultaneously, the ground beneath their feet felt soft, gradually becoming heavier and less solid. In an instant, the tiled ground vanished, replaced by a thick layer of sand. The space became visible as if a light switch had been flicked. They now found themselves in the middle of a desert, surrounded by towering dunes.

"What is going on?" Howard was baffled, his voice sounded restless as he noticed something in the distance. "What is that?"

All eyes turned in the same direction to where Howard pointed. There, a strange phenomenon unfolded before them. The sea of sand appeared to have been swept away, resembling a rushing train heading straight toward them. Ha Suan squinted his eyes, observing intently until he finally concluded.

"Watch out!" He shouted just in time, prompting all the members to react swiftly. They rolled, evading the oncoming threat as a creature emerged from the sand. It was a massive snake that lunged with incredible speed and ferocity through the ground, causing the sand to scatter.

Everything was covered in dust. Liu Han was seen lying face down, attempting to get up. He couldn't see anything, unable to discern the monster's movements. Solely relying on his ears, Liu Han heard the sound of sand being dragged and the hiss of snakes.

Out of nowhere, a faintly glowing sphere appeared, hovering in the air. As its light exploded, the scene was brightly cleared once more. This mystical illumination was the result of an influential spell cast by the Healer, requiring a huge amount of mana.

When they could see each other once again, they immediately reunited and noticed an enigmatic existence enfolded around them. An altar, black in color, seemed to have materialized around the team. Four of them shared a similar kind, while one in the center stood larger than the rest and had a different form.

"What now?" Arknar's tension intensified as he indicated to that structures.

The creature arose from the dune and began to slither towards the central altar. Its skin was white, adorned with lines resembling basil leaves in color. It ascended upon the statue as if claiming a throne.

The serpent stared down at them, its terrifying green eyes poised for attack. The sheer size of the creature alone was enough to instill horror, even more for Liu Han, who had never encountered such a formidable nightmare before.

"So this is Carastes?"