The stairs seemed endless. Even the faint glow at the tip of DePty's wand struggled to light more than a few steps beneath their feet.
DePty led the way, with Professor Fig close behind. Their footsteps echoed through the narrow passage—his quick, Fig's steady—like a drumbeat gone awry.
The stairs ended at a towering stone door.
Carved into it were symbols DePty knew all too well.
With a low rumble, the stone door slowly opened.
Beyond lay a damp, dim Underground Cavern that smelled of earth.
Rumble, rumble, rumble— A deafening noise rose as DePty saw a massive Goblin Drill burst out in the distance, tearing the place apart.
DePty tightened his grip on his wand. What he held was an artifact assembled from the magical implements he had obtained during the trials, not a simple wand.
As they went deeper, they found that Ranrok's Men were already there in force.
Ranrok had been lucky. He had cast a wide net, sending his goblins out to search and dig wherever they could. This was one of the places they had found.
Goblins lined both sides of the passage. Some were digging; others held spears and daggers.
DePty's arrival naturally caught their attention.
"A wizard? Attack! Attack!"
They moved fast. These were Ranrok's Elite Forces.
But DePty was no longer the transfer student who had arrived a few months ago. His wand traced arcs through the air—Stunning Spells, Disarming Charms, Impediment Jinxes. Every spell struck its target, with not a movement wasted.
Professor Fig covered him, blocking attacks from the side with Shield Charms and clearing away goblins trying to flank them from behind with Exploding Charms.
But more goblins closed in, along with the kind of Armored Troll DePty had seen before. Ranrok seemed to have sent every elite fighter