VIP Chapter 340: The Shining Star That Cannot Be Put Back Together (3k)
Walking through the scorching desert of the Dust Bone Corridor, the three of them remained silent.
Even Iaar, who had proposed revenge for the Dust Bone Corridor, no longer spoke as she walked at the front of the group, just like before.
They should have realized this when they met again in Nov.
The entire Shining Star team could only maintain its overall state when Will was by their side.
The current Shining Star, lacking its “captain’s” soul, wasn’t even a scattered mess; at best, it was merely a shell that retained its name.
Yet, they continued to advance, walking step by step towards the deepest part of this deserted dungeon.
The sunset, synchronized with the world outside the dungeon, hung at the edge of the desert, casting long shadows of the three people on the sand. Their footsteps were buried by a gust of wind.
——Why did we enter the dungeon?
Liya slightly raised her hat and asked herself, watching the setting sun on the side.
——Why did we want to clear it ourselves?
Treya looked down at her hand gripping the sword hilt and asked herself.
——Why do we keep moving forward here?
Iaar looked at the “door” standing at the end of the desert, leading to the next level, and asked herself.
They seemed to still hold a sliver of hope…
Even if he was gone, perhaps… the “Shining Star,” carrying memories of him, could still fight as it did before, retaining…
Hope?
…
Fifth Floor.
A sand castle monster, three stories high, revealed its claws and ferociously raised its sand-formed palm at the three people below.
“Flame Bullet – Third Firepower Form.”
Liya extended her hand, raising the Staff of Ancient Flames. A flame bullet shot from the center of the staff, hitting the sand castle’s front. This attack specifically targeted its core “eye,” causing it to instantly disintegrate into loose sand.
This was easy for her.
She held her staff, feeling the sound of the falling sand on her Great Witch hat.
She recalled some words Will had once said to her.
“Teacher Liya, of course, I believe your firepower is the strongest. However, the strongest firepower should also be used in the most appropriate place.”
“Simply put, if in the future, our team encounters a monster that needs you to defeat its core, we’ll have to rely on you.”
“Boom! Bang! Use your magic to make their cores disappear directly!”
She smiled.
Habitually, she looked to her side, to the position where Will should have been standing.
See, it was simple, easy. For a Witch like her, this was nothing.
So, praise me, acknowledge me, look at me!
She was now a mage who could stand on her own, a reliable damage dealer for the team.
The sandstorm slowly blew past her, and she turned her head…
There was no one in that spot.
Iaar and Treya were both the attacking types in the team. The Shining Star had always relied on her and Will as the ranged damage dealers at the rear.
Now, she was alone in this position.
If she thought about it carefully, the Shining Star, as an Adventurer team, hadn’t experienced many battles, but… why had she already gotten used to this?
An unanswerable question. Clearly… clearly as “human,” he was only a small part of her long lifespan. Those three years passed in a flash…
Her thumb caressed her left ring finger, where she wore Will’s ring and her own together, feeling the metallic texture of the two rings leaning against each other.
But now, those memories kept flooding back.
…
Fifteenth Floor.
A red scorpion suddenly emerged from the sand, its segmented tail sweeping across the ground, kicking up a cloud of dust.
Treya moved incredibly fast on the sand, easily dodging all of the scorpion’s attacks. She drew her sword from her waist, leaped, and moved from its front to its back.
“Slash.”
Under her slash, the giant scorpion was cut in half from the middle, and the gushing blood splashed out, leaving a long streak on the ground.
She also slid a long distance on the uneven, soft sand, leaving a blood-stained trail on the ground with her sword.
She glanced back. The suddenly appearing, highly threatening red scorpion was now dead.
“Because your agility and flexibility are the highest, if you encounter sudden monsters, you’ll have to be the first to react and deal with them.”
“You don’t need to overthink or wait for my orders; rely entirely on your own intuition to take it down in one move.”
“Don’t worry, I have great confidence in your combat perception.”
Treya twirled her sword in her hand and then sheathed it.
She looked up, towards that position—where the team’s Priest would stand. Every time she defeated a monster, she would receive affirming glances and approving nods from there.
But, all of that was gone.
That spot was empty. No one would nod and smile at her anymore.
Treya paused, reached out, and touched the white earring on the other side, calming down slightly.
She, uncharacteristically…
Felt “emptiness.” She hadn’t felt such an emotion since the first time she met Will, not for a very, very long time.
…
Twenty-fifth Floor.
A giant cactus blocked the middle of the road. Its thorns were densely packed, making it impossible to count their number. It kept expanding and expanding until all the thorns shot out.
Iaar took a deep breath, planted her shield on the ground, and erected a high wall from the bottom of the shield.
“Ice Array – Sky.”
The thorns falling from the sky were all blocked by the ice wall she had erected in mid-air.
She looked up, watching Liya’s light beams and Treya’s sword energy, and completely destroyed the cactus before them.
“That’s right. While it sounds heavy to say…”
“But when we fight, our lives are in your hands. Although you can’t deal direct damage, we absolutely can’t do without your support.”
“Especially a fragile Priest like me, I’d be done for without you.”
Iaar smiled with relief, turned around, her maid dress billowing as she spun in a circle, her tail wagging happily.
“Young Master, this way you won’t have to be afraid…”
Then, behind her—where Will should have been standing, she saw nothing.
Something she had gotten used to had failed her in that instant.
Iaar lowered her head, extended her left hand, and caressed the collar on her right wrist—she now wore the collar Will had taken off there.
Where should she go from here?
The “mission” she had been on since birth, to stay by his side, seemed to have been suddenly taken away.
She had entered here for revenge, so she should have accepted this outcome, but now she only felt so sad.
…
Thirtieth Floor.
“Hmm… If I remember correctly, other Adventurers should be prohibited from entering here. You guys…”
When they arrived, the Radiant Knights, who had entered a little earlier, had just arrived and were preparing for a fight with the Empress of the Dust Bone Corridor—the Sand Beauty. But they had interrupted them.
“Sorry, excuse us. Leave this to us.”
Iaar blocked each of their paths with her shield.
“Just watch from the side.”
Liya directly raised her staff and looked at the monster before them.
“Anyway, do you recognize this? This place has been requisitioned by the Royal Family.”
Treya took out the classic Royal Family crest and walked past them.
And then…
The three of them calmly, even coolly, began a “crusade” against the Sand Beauty, who rode a pyramid-shaped carriage.
In the dark desert where the sun had already set, the Sand Beauty shed her “human” form. Starting from her feet, she turned into gravel and finally merged with all the sand on the ground.
After she finished her “BOSS” intro, in an instant, Iaar, Liya, and Treya began their new “attack.”
Iaar precisely used her ice wall to seal off the Sand Beauty’s escape route. This ice wall even extended tens of meters downward from the ground, sealing off the passage she used to move with the sand!
“If we encounter a BOSS, and it’s very agile, we’ll have to rely on you to control its path.”
Liya’s light beams were already aimed at the Sand Beauty’s heart. The flames that instantly burst forth blasted her heart, which controlled the gravel, into a hollow.
“Teacher Liya, after Iaar controls the enemy, it creates time for you to unleash your firepower. This is the key to our victory.”
Treya quickly moved from the rear to the front lines and, with the fastest sword technique, severed her head.
“Treya, Teacher Liya will definitely create an opening. It’s up to you to hold off the BOSS during this time and deliver the final blow.”
…
It didn’t feel like a “crusade against a BOSS.” Anyone who witnessed their battle would think so. It felt more like an “act of venting.”
An “act of venting” that arose for reasons unknown.
Complete control with no room for escape, the strongest firepower bombardment, and slashing attacks that cut into pieces.
The further into the battle, the fewer the restrictions, as if they just wanted to use all their skills to express their anger.
But…
It was evident that something was missing from their battle.
Whether it was a Shield Saint without anyone to protect.
Or a Mage without any buff enhancements.
Or a Swordsman whose injuries had not recovered.
The three of them fought as if “someone” still existed.
Finally…
On the desert illuminated by the moonlight, they stood, looking down at the loot that had fallen to the ground.
With the sound of the dungeon being “cleared,” their vengeful venting finally ended.
Then, in the wilderness, they finally realized…
Will was dead.
And the “Shining Star” was truly a team formed with him at its core.
Without him here, all their battles had an unfillable void.
Even if they cleared this place, they couldn’t go back to the past; they had to face a future without him.
No matter how much “revenge” or “venting” they did, it wouldn’t put back together the “Shining Star,” which was now only a name.
“This is where we stop.”
Iaar spoke first.
“…You all felt it too, didn’t you?”
Liya laughed self-deprecatingly.
“Yes. We… part ways here.”
Treya nodded.
