Chapter 29: New party and challenge


    Alice had found a party thatcked two dps and one long-range yer.


    Of course, Max and the girls were flexible, meaning they could either be closebat yers or just mages.


    But their preferences and tastes yed a significant role in their battle styles.


    Zamira was a cooldy despite her element, preferring to stay behind while evoking mes. She would rather move slowly while her fire speed walked.


    Alice was the opposite.


    And Max looked forward to being the all-rounder. He already had a powerful long-distance mana lightning bolt, he could imbue mana into objects, and now he also practiced closebat style following the dragon''s battle form.


    But for their new persona, everyone changed their styles significantly. Max would remain solely closebat withmon techniques revolving around his fists and legs…


    Alice would only use her strength, which was also limited considerably.


    And Zamira would use the mostmon fire skill, [Fireball], as her main weapon.


    "Our party consists of one tank, one dps, and a healer. It''s good to have you guys since we need more damage and a mage! There''s a small route in the cave where only long-distance attacks can help or do something," A man in his early twenties with a bright smile exined his party situation.


    He was the leader of this party; his nickname was Reros.


    Reros was dps yer whose primary weapon was a sword. His friend, Tamczu, was the tank despite seeming skinner than Reros, whose build was pretty well-developed.


    The healer was ady one year younger than them. She was in herte teens, and her name was Lasine.


    They looked like a group of three childhood friends.


    Max nodded, "You can count on my fire girl''s skill. She won''t miss anything going our way, and should she fail to hit the challenge''s mechanism, she will at least notify us.


    Since I am also confident in my water girl''s skill and our teamwork, I am sure we will be able to defend ourselves with my fire girl''s guidance."


    There was a reason Max called the twins in such a way.


    [Water is the only way Lv. 15]


    [Fire is the only way Lv. 15]


    These two created new nicknames for themselves, and they were so long and bothersome to pronounce that Max simply called them his girls. He just added their element to distinguish them.


    On the other hand, he was just Max. There were many people with the same name, so Max would continue with this nickname for more persona should he create more for some bigger scheme.


    Adding one number or additional letter wouldn''t be so strange, at least he thought so.


    "I won''t miss," Zamira whispered with a in face, sounding proud like a dragon. Even this soft girl could turn prideful, which was inevitable for their species.


    Alice folded her hands beneath her chest, her lips curved up by the same emotion, her confidence in her sister clear.


    The party shared more information about each other, for they needed it to ovee the challenge. Reros shared all he knew about the challenge, then gave his new party members some tips.


    And with all this done, the new party headed straight to the dark cave.


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    [The Dark Cave Challenge.]


    [In the deepest parts of the dark cave, a bandit of various skills had hidden his treasures before his death. But as he was unfathomable for his whole career, dying without anyone knowing about his demise for years, the bandit''s cave has be known as the impassablebyrinth!]


    [First Challenge #1 - Fill the cave red.]


    [Kill cave monsters and use their blood as guidance to not get lost in thebyrinth.]


    "Don''t you already know the way?" Alice asked as she put her hands on her waist, her eyes seemingly stern while looking at Reros.


    The man shook his head, "Thebyrinth within the cave reacts to every challenge, forming a new path for every challenger and his party.


    Some peopleughed that there are a limited amount of paths, so as long as we never give up, we will finish the challenge," Reros chuckled.


    Although only losers thought like that, he couldn''t help but smile as he had heard such theories many times, even in previous games.


    Max alsoughed because that was prettymon indeed.


    Only Zamira and Alice couldn''t read the mood.


    The blue dragon shook her head with disappointment, not believing those guys wouldugh at such ame and weak theory that was surely reserved for losers.


    She puffed her chest, "We will ovee it in one go! Let''s go!"


    "Let the tank guide us," Max rolled his eyes, holding her back.


    The rest of the party smiled at them warmly before waiting for their tank to start the challenge. In the blink of an eye, their environment turned dark, blocking their vision with its pitch darkness.


    Only their system stood bright in their eyes, announcing the challenge''s start.


    Tomczu grasped his shield tightly, whispering to everyone, "Be careful." He mainly spoke to Max and the twins, for he knew about his friends'' strong points.


    But while it seemed like Max and the twins were cautiously following Tomczu and Reros, the reality was that they were utterly at ease. Max had already started reading his environment through [Mana Read].


    And without anyone noticing it, Max had found a path that would bring him to the second challenge.


    ''They have reached the third challenge as three team party, so they must be good… If I temper with their skills and guide them on my own, I will be able to bring this whole party to Albert…'' Max inferred, slowly starting his n.


    His mana silently extended toward Reros and his friends.


    He hacked into their systems, getting into their information without any obstacle. He saw their stats, inventory, and money. Everything became avable before his eyes, including his skills.


    Max poured a little of his mana into Reros'' swordsmanship.


    He didn''t do it without any thought, however.


    BANG!


    After Reros killed the monster, Max immediately followed his n.


    "Hah?" Reros blinked, gazing at the system while trembling as the excitement started building in his body. When he finished reading the information about his skill''s evolution, Reros lifted his sword, happily eximing, "I have be stronger!"


    "Howe?" Tomczu asked with jealousy. He looked furtively at Lasine, hoping to see the same reaction.


    But as he saw her happily cheering with Reros, his heart sank.


    Max and Zamira stared at them without revealing their feelings. And while Zamira had no problems not showing anything on her face, Max found issues holding himself back…


    "Wow! How strong have you be?" Alice asked genuinely.


    Her question nearly made Max burst outughing. However, he believed she was just interested in how much Max''s mana could influence the fake skill…


    He really believed so….