Rynyxes were archenemies of Bruce, maybe that's why he never summoned this exceptional beast, or maybe, he had other issues like PTSD, who knows...
Anywho, I summoned the Greater Rynyxs, two of them, and made them join the ranks of my familiars. Surprisingly or rather as expected of them, they weren't afraid of Fena and were quite rebellious when I summoned them These hexapedal reptiles resembled dinosaurs though a lot smaller in size, about 2.5 meters in height and 5 meters in length, tail included. At the end of their tail and inside of their mouth instead of the tongue, there were cilia-like attachments protected by inward sawtoothed mandibles. The most remarkable thing about these two Greater Rynyxes was that they walked on their long toes instead of whole paw supporting their motion to maintain stealth. And both the Greater Rynyxes were females again.
To form a contract with the summons, they were required to be beaten up until they were submissive to me(in case they weren't already), which was done by Rina. Well, she accidentally killed the first one in the process, and I had to summon another Greater Rynyx. It was amusing to see such a display of power. I was impressed!
About this floor...
It is vacant. Literally lifeless. We didn't encounter a single monster for the past ten days and we already reached the resting area in front of the boss room.
It was weird to find the boss room without any trouble and according to the patterns from the above floors, I sighed and assumed that again someone, not too earlier than we came, had conquered this floor.
"But what if... this was the last floor?"
Just thinking about that possibility gave me butterflies in my stomach. I always hoped on every floor that it was the last one. But this time, it seemed somewhat possible. This floor was unique in one other way, I spotted mosses and fungus on some of the walls.
The first form of life other than the dungeon monsters.
Also, this giant gate in front of us doesn't have that ever glowing in emerald the 'Ward Stone', embedded above it.
"So, are you ready, my love?" I slid my arms around Rina's waist from her behind. Her ears turned fiery red due to embarrassment, but she accepted my embrace and leaned her head onto my chest to look up and frown, knowing full well that I was doing this just to get a cute reaction out of her. I was successful!
To make her believe that I am interested in her, I engaged in light flirting with her. At first, it was occasional, but due to the absence of any danger or maybe because of my hormones, I did it whenever I get the chance. I enjoy her company, and hopefully, she does mine. Disregarding her yandere tendencies, she's a really pleasant girl. And now that she's being 'herself', she seemed more... what do I say it, mature? I guess, her 'previous' cheerful and bearably carefree nature annoyed me deep down. She is more likable now than before.
"Stupid!" Rina turned around and pecked on my lips. "Hey, can't you summon a few more?" She inquired as she looked behind me toward the army of Rynyxes, while still in my embrace.
Greater Rynyxes never hunted for themselves, they didn't need to. The clan of Rynyxes G.Rs ruled over, offered them their meals, and they in return, protected the clan from their nemesis, the dragons. Ordinary Rynyxes looked exactly like Greater Rynyxes except that they were half the size. Though the members in the clan of a Greater Rynyx were limited to a hundred, give or take. I had two Greater Rynyxes under my command, who combined commanded 288 Rynyxes.
"Even this was pushing their limits, I don't think Gryne and Ryan can control any more than this." I sighed. Gryne and Ryan are the names of the two Greater Rynyxes.
"Hmm..." She grumbled as she gently left my embrace.
"What is it, Rina?" I raised my brow.
"Emy and Yelo seem kind of useless now. Wouldn't it better if we just free their slot and summon another pair of greater Rynyxes, and hence double the number of ordinary Rynyxes?"
'She is telling me to kill them?'
"No. They are certainly not useless. They can beat 13-15 Rynyxes alone but most of all, they are leagues ahead of the Greater Rynyxes in terms of speed since they have leveled up along with us. I know the advantage in numbers you are talking about but if the enemy on the opposite side of the door can take this many Rynyxes as small fries, then more of the same kind wouldn't matter, we would need some players better than the rest as trumps." I explained.
"The plan is simple. The Rynyxes are going to storm the room, along with Fena, Gryne, and Ryan. The job of Rynyxes would be to distract the boss and deal as much quick damage as possible while Fena, you, and G.Rs try to give a head-on fight, and while you all keep it engaged... I will sneak around with the help of Yelo and Emy and get the boss monster in my range and then bissshhhh." I cocked my index finger as if a gun. "Just like that!" I smiled.
"The plan may sound like we are just going to win one-sidedly but know this that there is going to be at least one twist in the plan... Anyway, it's good that the Rynyxes are intelligent enough to retreat if they encounter something like the trap on the previous floor." I added, Rina nodded in understanding.
"Let's proceed, shall we?" She turned around to look at the Giant door without any emerald stone above the gate.
She used her psychokinesis to fill the orb that opens the door, the orb shone brightly, and once the brightness plateaued, with loud creaks resonating in the whole area the door opened.
The inside of the room was a bleak affair. I stared into the darkness of the room and swung my arms forward. Calming my thumping heart before saying the command I always wanted to say. The G.Rs stood behind me reverently waiting for my orders.
"Chaaaaaaaarge!!!!!!!!!!"
All the Rynyxes roared and charged simultaneously with loud thumps which shook the dungeon's ground. They passed through me as they began entering the gate. I also heard Fena's howl in between their march. Was she excited to see this too, my lips curled up.
'Well, I surely am..' I thought as my heart still pounded in my ears.
Yelo and Emy stopped by my side. I patted Emy, then hopped on Yelo. The Rynyxes were still entering the gate. Rina who was floating just above the gate entered it with us.
Inside the gate... there was no one. But I could feel it. A presence of a strong opponent. Extremely strong.
The Rynyxes stopped and stared at a particularly spheroidal boulder at the center of the room from a distance. They were wary of it and some of them just circled as they stared at the boulder, while some even growled at it.
It wasn't a boulder!
Upon a focused stare, I saw some kind of viscous and translucent liquid creeping out from below the boulder and covering the boulder. The liquid behaved as if it had life. No, it wasn't that the liquid which was living, it was the boulder! The boulder was the boss monster!
The liquid covered the whole boulder, the liquid squirmed, mixed, and bulged as it took the shape of a humanoid monster,
An oval and bald head, skinny stick-like limbs, and even the face, and eyes were so detailed that even in so dim lightening I could fascinate at the intriguing creature as the vibrant lights from the mana stones on the walls and ceiling refracted from its body. Since the substance from which this monster was made was translucent, I could spot the soul stone embedded on a side of the boulder which was performing Brownian motion inside the human-shaped liquid.
We gawked as all this happened in mere moments.
I could do nothing but grit my teeth.
"Sighhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh" The humanoid liquid sighed. Its sigh resonated and echoed in the whole space. Its voice was firm but seemingly somewhat tired. The crowd of Rynyxes which were growling and snarling at the boulder a few moments ago, shut their mouth up and maintained the silence in instinct.
Even though the distance between me and the monster was far enough, I could sense that it was looking at me.
"Hmm, I appraised your skills." Spoke the humanoid liquid as it moved its jaws, mimicking human speech. "I can take the form of any beast I once see and hence use their powers be them metaphysical or physical. I have already analyzed each and every possible simulation of our battle... I lost... each and every time... it was my defeat..." It sighed again. "I could never imagine from among all sorts of beings he could send here, it would be flimsy human. Don't misunderstand, I never doubt my supreme lord's wisdom. But your appearances disappoint me wholly."
The translucent humanoid sighed for the third time. "Among you both, the male possesses the appropriate skill for it..." It paused. "So you finally came, huh" The boss monster widened its lips in a crescent smile. "The one whom my creator delegated the task of destroying the planet.... along with every living existence on it?"
I smirked. Recalling the memories that I just a few days ago unlocked. ".....Yeah," I said.
Rina jerked her head towards me in surprise. Her eyes were wide in shock and doubt. I glanced at her and then looked back at the slimy creature.
"It seems like you already remember and consequently no need of force from my side is required to make you recollect about it." Condescedence was present in each word that left its hollow mouth. "Just how much do you need your revenge on those who snatched your life that day!" The Humanoid creature laughed as it held its stomach as if he found it the most hilarious and amusing thing in the world.
'Amusing', I smirked. 'This creature seems haughty...'
"I didn't know All-Father already put a creature like you here just for my sake, more so, in the depths of a dungeon." I said as I emphasized 'my sake' knowing the slight haughty nature will retort back with a reason and give me at least a grain of info.
All-Father, when I saw him, he seemed like a vague and powerful celestial entity, his power level - unknown, but without a grain of doubt enough to shatter worlds in a blink. His true appearance - Unknown. As he himself told me that he came in a form that wouldn't destroy my soul when he interacted with me. His origins - Unknown. All I know is that he was the one who sent me into this world with the promise to return me back to my previous world upon the completion of the task he gave to me. My task was not exactly as the monster stated. Instead, what the monster stated could be said to be the much easier alternative to the nigh impossible task that All-Father gave to me. But since he knows this much about the tasks that no one other than me knew, he can be trusted.
'Contrast to what I thought my whole life, I really did meet a god before getting reincarnated, huh.'
"Oh, I wasn't here for you specifically. I was here since the beginning of this grand campaign. I was just given an additional task of assisting your growth that's all." The Humanoid oddity retorted.
'My growth it says? Did it mean level ups?'
"Are you sure? You're really willing to get killed by me?" I asked.
"Are you perhaps doubting my bottomless loyalty to him?" The humanoid-shaped liquid hissed. " I was always ready to give my life on his beck and call! You have no inkling of how reverent I, one of the Primordial Beasts, am to him!"
"Yeah, of course, you are! Only you are worthy enough to serve under him! " I coaxed the creature so as to not offend it. 'Wait did it say Primordial Beasts?'
"There are others like you?" I asked.
"Indeed, but only five of us exist on this world, they guard the last floor of each dungeon to protect the unawakened sham of a Devil and his four feeble Branches." He shrugged. "Ah, that reminds me. With the new power, you get from slaying me. Proceed there." He pointed diagonally upward, toward the ceiling. "You'll know what to do as I say." He stepped forward after sighing once again.
I wonder what power he was talking about. This creature clearly knew more than he told me...
Rina instinctively came in front of me, she swung her arms invoking her psychokinesis on the creature in front of us, stopping its movement. The humanoid liquid trembled as it began to deform under Rina's force. A moment later it gave up the resistance and looked at me, cleary annoyed by Rina. I tapped on Rina's shoulder, she turned her face to me and her frown disappeared. Instead, she looked sad for some reason.
"Why did you hide all this from me, Ren?" A teardrop rolled on her left cheek. "You do know that I would have loved you even if you are a Humanity's Traitor!"
"Rina... I am not a Humanity's Traitor!"
Thanks for reading!