Rise Of The Hoarder

Beads of sweat streamed down Terry’s face as he obsessively observed the five empty slots before him.

“W-what’s this…? Where are my…?!”

His throat was suddenly dry, and his body was shaken. So far, he had only been able to give his all thanks to his confidence in the potions he carried. But now…

“Terry, what’s going on?!”

“Hurry up!”

“We need to hit it quickly, what’s with the delay?!”

Terry didn’t know what to say. No, how could he utter something even he couldn’t believe?

When Tia had spoken about her predicament some moments ago, he dismissed it as nonsense. Terry even went as far as suspecting her for keeping the Return Stone for herself. Had it not been for the current situation at hand, he would have confronted her in a very aggressive manner.

Yet, here he was with the same problem._.

“I-I can’t find any of my potions! Nothing is in my INVENTORY!”

Terry’s words hit everyone like a sledgehammer! How could someone whom everyone relied on say such absurd things? Still, the Part Members knew what kind of person he was. He was too much of a coward to joke in times like this. It had to be true!

“What about you guys? Does anyone have a spare Potion?”

Upon hearing his words, the other Gifteds frantically opened their INVENTORY to compensate for their partner’s lost goods. Usually, they would be reluctant to share, but… this was a matter of life or death. The only two who hadn’t done so already simultaneously checked their Storage and all at once… were met with despair!

“N-nothing is here either!

“S-shit!”

With this, their formation became nonexistent and panic crept through the hearts of everyone present. With nothing in their INVENTORIES… how much of a chance was there against this colossal beast?!

“Grikkkk!!!”

Upon hearing the soft growl of the beast, everyone knew what was coming!

“H-hold on, has it been five minutes already?!”

Tia could only use her Gift on a target for five minutes at a stretch. After that, there was an interval of a few seconds for her to regain her focus and try again. But, the Gifteds around knew that a few seconds was enough to turn the tables on them.

“Grab its attention, don’t let it look at Tia!” Darwin let out, projecting more Fireballs at his enemy. Unlike the others around him, he didn’t have a Gift for attack purposes.

Only his Skills and Stats could really help in this battle!

“<Earth Hold>. <Fireball>. <Flame Spear>” Darwin shouted, unleashing spell after spell, in order to tie down the monster.

The moment it looked in Tia’s direction, it was over.

Terry was already beat, so he couldn’t use his stronger Spells. That meant responsibility fell on Darwin to buy as much time… for the last member of their team.

‘It should be nearly time! While Tia resumes freezing him… Sara will use ‘that’!” With that in mind, Darwin recklessly poured out his mana resources.

Unfortunately, they did next to nothing in the face of such almighty terror.

The Grade 2 Demon sharply turned back and sprayed its acidic breath all around his area. Thanks to his heightened agility, the few seconds Tia needed to resume her [Immobilize] Gift couldn’t be fulfilled.

The moment the Thief saw the thick, green smoke appearing from the monster’s mouth, she took the hint and dashed as fast away as she could.

“Gahhhh!!!”

The <Acidic Breath> barely grazed her, yet the girl shrieked in pain. Such was the power of even the slightest lick. Fortunately, Tia managed to escape the whole thing, but that in itself posed another problem.

‘I’m too far away. Tch!’

Range!

Her Gift’s effect had a rage, and now that the monster was outside it and a green acidic fog separated the two of them, Tia’s abilities could no longer come into play!

“Shit!”

As the team watched the monster bathe in its delight, a ray of hope appeared, causing their tensed faces to show a little sign of relief.

>SHIIIIINNNNNGGGG!!!!<

A bright golden light appeared from Sara’s direction, and from that light came forth a terrifying creature in its own right. It was a SinEater, and a mature one at that!

It was a Grade 1 Demon belonging to the highest of cadres among them. Even this group would have some difficulties battling it. It was the most powerful Demon Sarah had contracted with, and this trump card would be used now!

“Sorry I took so long, everyone!” The girl cried.

The team retreated and maintained a far distance from the enemy. When it came to power, there was no better one to face the Glutonous Giant except this particular creature.

For one, it had great agility, and was somewhat faster than the fatso. Second was due to its nature. Since I had a Skill that covered its body in miasma, the SinEeater was resistant to lots of toxins. Then it also had a tall gait, about eight feet.

While it wasn’t as tall as the Giant, it still had advantages. It had long claws and wide jaws. It was thin and nimble, and could at least hold the monster off while they retreated. Sara would have to sacrifice her Trump card as a Tamer, but considering the circumstances, there was no other choice.

“Griikkkkkk!!!”

“Gruuuuu!!!”

Both monsters exchanged intimidating growls and glared at each other. The stronger one was the Gluttonous Giant, but speed was on their side.

“I’ll go get Tia!” Terry said to the rest of his team members who nodded as he spoke.

>WHUUSHH!<

Instantly, blue light sparked and Terry vanished like a gust of wind.

The young mage’s Gift was [Teleport], but he could only use it to traverse short distances. Times like this made Terry wish he could at least exit the Dungeon by vanishing to the starting point, but he had no such luck.

>VWUUSHH!<

He appeared by Tia’s side and touched her, teleporting once again and appearing among the other members of the team. If not for his abilities, the Thief would gave remained separated from the group thanks to the fog that blocked her path.

Now that they were all together and the Tamed Demon was holding their enemy at bay, it was time to make their exit!