99 The Inverted Tower 2 (1/2)

We had no choice but to descend the staircase and travel into the first floor of the tower. Everyone's nerves were high as we entered, not knowing what to expect.

Bailey led the way, with Leisha acting as her guardian. Bailey was using her perception to the max, but thankfully it seemed as if the stairs were a safe zone, that we would only truly encounter enemies when we reached the next floor. The torches and spiral staircase made it feel as if we were descending into a dungeon, the entire atmosphere giving me an ominous feeling.

I do not know what I was expecting to see when we arrived at the bottom of the staircase, but it definitely was not this. We appeared on a rather large fishing boat in the middle of the ocean. The boat was completely uninhabited and had seen recent signs of a viscous battle.

Though there were signs of a battle, there were no corpses, not even a single blood stain could be seen. But I could sense the faint presence of magical energy in the air. As if the battle had not occurred long ago, a few hours at most.

Even could not locate a single enemy, when though she strained herself to do so. It was almost as if whatever had happened here had just completely vanished from existence.

Despite the complete lack of enemies, I could not shake the feeling that we were being watched. I could even almost swear that I could occasionally see something from the corner of my eye. Only for it to be completely gone when I turned to look.

After conversing with the party, I found that I was not the only one who was experiencing this. The hair on the back of my neck began to rise as I thought about it. There was only one type of enemy that fit the current situation, and I knew the battle would be one that pushed us far beyond our limits.

Only one of us was equipped to handle this kind of opponent. Only one of us could be relied upon to pull the entire party to survival. We would have to pin all our hope on Hylia and hope that it would be enough.

The beasts we would be facing here were none other a species of astral creature that was native to a small island in the ocean. A type of astral creature that had thought to have went extinct.

[Soul Devouring Locusts]

A species of Locusts that lives on a secluded island in the middle of the ocean. These flying insects are known for their unquenchable hunger. They devour their prey until not even their souls remain. Over the millennia they have adapted to become an astral creature. They can travel easily between the astral plane and the mortal plane, making physical attacks useless against them. They have a high resistance to most types of magic, with their one weakness being Holy energy.