Before the skeleton could answer, a familiar notification rang out in his mind.

[Ding!]

[Congratulations, Host, for finding a C-Rank Space Particle.]

[Would you like to store it inside the System Space?]

Aron's eyes lit up instantly. He commanded the system in his mind,

"Store it."

The tiny particle instantly disappeared from his fingers. Then he turned toward the skeleton and grinned foolishly...

"Hehe, Did you forget? My original skill is the Real Eye."

The little skeleton immediately puffed up in annoyance.

"Stop it, Master!"

It pointed a bony finger at him.

"Just admit that you don't want to reveal your secrets."

The skeleton crossed its arms and snorted.

"Even a small child knows the 'Real Eye' skill is trash. Let alone detecting a C-rank Space Particle, it can't even sense the slightest fluctuation in space."

Its eye flames narrowed suspiciously...

"Do you really think I'd believe that excuse?"

Aron didn't say anything else. He simply let his little assistant think whatever it wanted and focused on the System instead. In his mind, he asked,

"System, what is a Space Particle?"

Although he was a regressor, his knowledge about such things was practically nonexistent. Space related abilities were extremely rare, and in his previous life, he had never met anyone who possessed a skill related to space.

[Ding!]

[Host, you asked the right person. As the strongest System in all of heaven and earth... let me enlighten you.]

[A Space Particle is a pocket space created by a Space Skill user. The SIRE who died here opened this Space Particle using his ability before his death.]

[No one except the original owner should be able to access it again.]

Aron frowned almost immediately, "So I can't open it either?"

[Ding!]

[Host, you are truly dumb.]

[I'm apologizing for insulting you before. How pitiful...(@~@)]

[You were born dumb...!]

Aron almost vomited blood after hearing the System's so called apology... "You! What do you mean by that?" he gritted his teeth and asked.

[Ding!]

[You damn mongrel of a host! If I couldn't open that thing, why would I ask whether you wanted to store it inside the System Space?]

Aron was left speechless. The System was right. He immediately grinned and said in his mind,

"Dear System, don't take offense. You know I'm dumb. I admit it."

"Now please open that thing. I want to know what's inside."

The system immediately became pleased and then...

[Ding!]

[The C-Rank Space Particle has been opened.]

[Contents inside:
1. Carcasses of 32 C-Rank monsters. (Ranges from Initial to Peak.)
2. Corpses of 3 Peak B-Rank monsters.
3. 150,000 Erdalon Coins.
4. 13 Vortex Stones.
5. Various types of food, water, and daily necessities. (Enough supplies for 24 days.)]

Aron's eyes widened in disbelief.

So their supplies, their savings, their entire income...Everything was inside this Space Particle. His expression immediately turned grim.

On the other hand, the little skeleton sitting on his shoulder was staring at its master. One moment, Aron was grinning. The next moment, he was frowning.

The skeleton couldn't understand what was happening at all...

'Has he gone mad?'

'Or was he crazy all along?'

It wondered silently.

Aron suddenly snapped out of his thoughts and turned toward the skeleton, "Tell me where they are."

His voice became serious.

"They're in far more danger than I thought."

The skeleton sighed, shaking his head and pointed toward a direction without saying anything more...

Aron also ran towards the direction his assistant pointed at. And in a second he disappeared in the desert...

***

A few kilometers ahead,

In the direction pointed out by the skeleton, Gorgon and his team continued walking toward the core area of the vortex.

After several hours of travel, Cedric suddenly spoke up.

"Hey, where are all the monsters?"

He frowned as he looked around.

"We've been walking for hours, but we haven't encountered a single monster on the way."

Sarah and Myra, who were walking together, had somewhat recovered from Mika's death. At the very least, their exhaustion had temporarily pushed their grief to the back of their minds.

Lisa, however, never lowered her guard.

Her eyes constantly scanned the surroundings. The slightest movement in a bush would make her reach for her sword immediately.

At the back of the group, Rob was equally vigilant. Flames swirled around his hands and body, ready to be unleashed at any moment.

Meanwhile, Gorgon stayed near the center of the formation, protecting everyone.

Cedric's abilities were more suited for scouting and traps. His skill was related to a thief type class, but it was only C-rank. As a result, he required Gorgon's protection just as much as Sarah and Myra did.

Suddenly, something dark leaped toward the group from a nearby bush.

Lisa reacted instantly and slashed toward it, while Rob created a circle of flames around the group.

Before the slash could land, the creature twisted its body and evaded the attack with terrifying precision, and landed on the ground again. Only then did everyone get a clear look at it.

A Desert Hyena, another B-rank monster.

However, the most terrifying thing about Desert Hyenas was that they never lived alone. They always hunted in groups known as 'clans.'

Everyone's expressions changed. Their fears were confirmed in the very next second.

From the surrounding bushes, one hyena after another emerged.

Twenty...

Thirty...

Perhaps even more...

Every single one of them was a B-rank monster. The group's hearts sank immediately...

There were only three Peak B-rank Sires among them. As for Cedric, Sarah, and Myra, all three were merely C-rank. How were they supposed to fight against so many B-rank monsters?

The hyenas stared coldly at the group. They were starving from hunger.

Food was scarce in the desert, and these humans looked like the perfect meal. Drool dripped from their mouths as they slowly surrounded the team.

Gorgon immediately gritted his teeth.

"Everyone, get into position!"

His voice echoed across the dunes.

"Sarah, stay behind us! Don't get hurt!"

Everyone quickly moved into formation.

Although Cedric's skill wasn't suited for direct combat, his agility was exceptionally high due to his thief related ability.

If he used weapons properly, he could still injure these monsters. He pulled out two small C-rank daggers and took his position alongside the others.

The battle was about to begin...

Another hyena leaped toward Myra. Rob immediately created a wall of fire in front of her. The hyena's fur burned as it passed through the flames.

Unable to fully evade while in midair, it crashed back onto the sand and growled furiously at Rob.

Rob chuckled bitterly, they all knew they were going to die in this battle. "Cedric! You're as bad mouthed as ever!" he shouted.

"You were complaining about not seeing any monsters. Now we have to deal with more than thirty of them!"

Cedric slashed at another hyena and nearly got bitten in return. He barely dodged the attack before yelling back, "What the hell?! I never asked for thirty of them to show up together!"

Gorgon placed his shield in front of Sarah before charging at the monsters.

BANG!

A hyena slammed into the shield.

CRACK!

Another crack appeared on its surface. Gorgon gritted his teeth and shoved several hyenas away with all his strength.

Lisa swung her sword repeatedly. Slash after slash cut through the air. However, no matter how skilled she was, these were still B-rank monsters.

They easily evaded most of her attacks. Out of every twenty slashes, perhaps only two managed to land.

Myra continuously cast her Ice Vines to restrain the monsters. Unfortunately, her C-rank skill was almost useless against so many B-rank enemies.

The hyenas tore through the ice with their powerful jaws as if it were paper.

Behind them, Sarah continued healing the team. Their injuries closed slightly under her healing magic. But as time passed, everyone became more exhausted.

Sarah's face had turned completely pale. Blood had already started trickling from her nose.

Lisa noticed immediately and shouted at her,

"Sarah, stop!"

"If you keep using your skill, you'll seriously injure yourself!"

Everyone gritted their teeth and continued fighting. The more they fought, the more desperate the situation became. Their mana reserves couldn't recover fast enough.

Tears filled Sarah's eyes again, "You guys are fighting with everything you have..."

Her voice trembled as she said, "If I don't support you, things will become even more hopeless..."

"Pfft!"

A mouthful of blood spilled from her lips. Yet she still refused to stop. She continued using her healing skill.

Seeing this, Rob, Gorgon, Cedric, Myra, and Lisa all clenched their teeth and pushed themselves even harder.

Sword slashes, dagger strikes, ice shackles and flames. A barrage of attacks rained down on the group of hyenas. Gorgon continued standing at the front, protecting everyone.

Then suddenly...

BANG!

A massive hyena slammed into his shield.

CRACK!

The shield shattered completely. Gorgon's expression changed. At the same time, Lisa's mana finally reached zero. Her sword also lowered.

Rob's flames vanished as his mana was exhausted as well. Cedric and Myra weren't any better either. Every member of the team was injured. Everyone was exhausted.

They all knew the truth. They were going to die. Behind them, Sarah still tried to heal everyone through sheer willpower.

But her skill eventually faded as well. She no longer had enough mana.

Then, all at once...

Nine... ten... eleven hyenas leaped toward them together.

The group could do nothing. Their bodies refused to move. All they could do was wait for death...

Yet even then... they still couldn't accept it.

"Why? Why do we have to die like this inside a B-rank vortex?"