'Being on four legs isn't that bad really...' Mark noted, in the midst of devouring an unmoving Gray Wolf.
Three hours had passed since Mark's fight with the Orc.
The time period was spent exploring the right and left pathways from Dungeon's crossroad(♀).
And Mark was, now, back at the crossroad, ready to go towards the circular area.
'Other than a few holes in the walls, this Floor is mostly just a bunch of corridors. Still a very large place though...'
Mark had mostly found [F] and [G] Rank Monsters, which were defeated with ease.
'What's my rank?'
[You are currently an [E-] Rank Monster.]
[Your Body Modifications and Skills made you surpass the [F] Rank.]
'Nice. That's good news. In that circular area, the Monsters will be tougher right?'
[Correct.]
[It is also true that the majority of the Monsters on the 10th Floor are there.]
A strong feeling arose inside Mark.
'Majority... I'm not a weak Skeleton anymore. So...' He started running towards the circular area.
Some of Mark's Skills had become stronger while he was wandering after defeating the Orc.
His Passive Skill "Silent Steps[G]" had evolved into "Assassin's Footsteps[F]".
And his Passive Skill "Curious Ears[G]" had evolved into "Acute Hearing[F]".
Mark had also developed the Passive Skill "Tail Flick[F]", which increased by 10% the damage inflicted by tail attacks.
He had also reached Level 4, and amassed about 300 Evolution Points.
'Mmm...'
As Mark got closer to the circular area, he encountered more and more Monsters.
Weak ones. Such as Muscular Goblins or Gray wolves.
Yes, Gray Wolves had become weak Monsters for Mark.
After all, that's what it means, to "Evolve".
All were defeated and devoured in mere seconds.
Mark continued running forward.
He had truly become a force to be reckoned with.
...
Halfway between the crossroad and the circular area(♀), loud growls and a variety of other sounds could be heard.
'Huh...'
Mark found a group of Monsters about to fight.
He slowed down and approached stealthily.
'2...6...13.'
Three groups of Monsters were fighting.
They stood in a triangle.
Each group was watching the others, while making threatening noises.
'Hah. Well isn't that perfect...?'
Had Mark a heart, it would, probably, have been beating fast out of excitement.
On one side, 2 Orcs growled loudly and repeatedly.
On the other, 6 Hobgoblins were thumping their chests with their fists.
And finally, 5 snarling Black Wolves at the rest.
'Orcs are [E-] Rank Monsters. But they're outnumbered...'
Mark would have let out a smirk if he could.
'Let's put some fire on this juicy situation...'
He opened his mouth wide.
The next second, three balls of purple venom were formed, and they flew with great speed towards the target.
The attack had been shot at one of the Orcs.
The balls of venom hit the Orc's head exploded, splashing its body.
Momentary confusion.
The substance entered the various grazes and cuts on that covered the Orc's body.
Seconds later, it started throwing up blood.
The Hobgoblins and the Black Wolves did not miss the opportunity to get rid of the Orcs.
After all the Orc Species was a HIgher Ranked Monster Species, and therefore, much stronger.
The two Orcs struggled, but still fought back.
They managed to take down two Hobgoblins and three Black Wolves, before being defeated.
Four Hobgoblins and two Black Wolves were left.
The Black Wolves jumped back.
They took a defensive posture.
The Hobgoblins, convinced that they would emerge as victors, followed.
However, spheres of venom rained down on the group of Hobgoblins.
Three of them were immediately paralyzed and threw up large quantities of blood.
Those three fell to the ground seconds later, unable to breathe.
[You have defeated one Hobgoblin. 50Gold Coins and 100Experience Points earned.]
[You have defeated one Hobgoblin. 50Gold Coins and 100Experience Points earned.]
[You have defeated one Hobgoblin. 50Gold Coins and 100Experience Points earned.]
[You have leveled up!]
'Perfect.'
The Black Wolves, seeing that the situation had been reversed, attacked the remaining Hobgoblin.
The Hobgoblin punched one of the Black Wolves with all its strength, but that was not nearly enough to fend them off.
Eventually, the Black Wolves brought it to the ground, and attacked with their claws.
At that moment, a Modified Black Wolf Skeleton's fangs pierced a Black Wolf's back.
The fangs were so sharp that a portion of that back was separated from the rest.
'With the Pierce Skill, their skin is no problem for these fangs...'
Mark hit the remaining Black Wolf with the big rock at the tip of his tail and launched it away.
The Hobgoblin was growling in pain.
Bleeding, and half-dead.
Mark cut its suffering short, and did the same for the two other Monsters.
'Alright. Level 5. Even though I didn't really fight. The most important thing is Evolution Points anyway...'
Mark took pleasure in swallowing the 13 Monsters.
Devouring an Orc brought 100 Evolution Points, a Hobgoblin 70 and a Black Wolf 60.
With one meal, he had amassed 920 Evolution Points.
'How many Evolution Points do I have?'
[You currently possess 1220 Evolution Points.]
'Ummm, any new Skill or Body Modification?'
[None.]
'Too bad.'
Mark looked in the direction of the circular area.
'I like this form. Hope I'll be able to evolve and stay this strong... This versatile...'
He ran towards that area.
After a bit, Mark arrived.
And the area was nothing more than a circular corridor.
'Now. I can either go for it from the right or the left. Since I'm doing a full lap, I'll be back here anyways...'
[Take the left passage.]
'Why?'
[It would be best.]
Mark didn't have a reason not to do as the System suggested, so he did.
'What are these??'
After only a couple of seconds, Monsters Mark hadn't seen before stood before him.
Some of those Monsters were about four meters tall and made of stones. There were three of them.
Other Monsters were flying above those, remaining out of their reach.
[Small Golems: [E-] Rank Monsters.]
[Winged Kobolds: [E-] Rank Monsters.]
Four Orcs were punching the Small Golems with all their strength. The difference in size was obvious.
'And that's a small one? Can I even devour that?'
[Your Title "Devourer" gives you the ability to devour any dead Monster.]
Mark started out by shooting Venomous Bombs towards one of the Small Golems.
'Wonder if that's going to show any effect...?'
Five spheres of venom hit the Monster.
Mark was pleased to notice that the stones that made up the Small Golem's body had started to soak in the liquid.
The Monster's movements were halted.
About a minute later, it fell to the ground.
[You have defeated one Small Golem. 90Gold Coins and 180Experience Points earned.]
[You have leveled up!]
'That easily...?'
One of the remaining Small Golems tried kicking an Orc.
The latter easily dodged the attack.
'They're slow. Very slow...'
Mark decided to change targets. Getting rid of the Winged Kobolds became his priority.
They were small Monsters, the size of Goblins, with heads resembling those of dogs or wolves.
Mark shot multiple Venomous Bombs. And, one by one, the Winged Kobolds fell to the ground.
Four of them were defeated right away.
They had a very low Vigor Stat, and therefore low Health Points.
[You have defeated one Winged Kobold. 60Gold Coins and 120Experience Points earned.]
[You have defeated one Winged Kobold. 60Gold Coins and 120Experience Points earned.]
[You have defeated one Winged Kobold. 60Gold Coins and 120Experience Points earned.]
[You have defeated one Winged Kobold. 60Gold Coins and 120Experience Points earned.]
[You have leveled up!]
The Orcs quickly became aware of Mark's presence and rushed toward him.
'I already used my Venomous Bomb Skill 9 times. I have twelve shots left then...'
Mark shot a sphere of venom at each of the four incoming Orcs, before shooting the closest ones once more.
Every Venomous Bomb was perfectly aimed, and splashed each of the Monsters' heads.
The Orcs, poisoned, partially paralyzed, and blinded by the purple liquid, found it extremely hard to fight back as the agile Mark moved nimbly to quickly bite with his sharp fangs or to slam them with his heavy tail.
Mark managed to get rid of every Orc perfectly except the last one.
He had just dealt with the third Orc, when the fourth raised both its arms up from his blindspot, and slammed them down his rib cage.
The bones immediately cracked.
Mark quickly moved away before slamming his tail into the Orc's stomach with everything he had. The hit was strong enough to force the Orc to curl its body up. Sharp fangs finished the job.
[You have defeated one Orc. 70Gold Coins and 140Experience Points earned.]
'Shit. I took a lot of damage. It doesn't hurt, since I'm a Skeleton. Mm. Not being able to feel pain is great, but it can also become a problem...'
The only Monsters remaining were the Small Golems. They were taking extremely slow and heavy steps towards Mark.
'I'll buy a Healing Potion. How do I use it though?'
A red potion contained in a small glass bottle appeared in front of Mark.
It was floating in the air.
He stared at it for a bit, somewhat in disbelief.
The next second, it started falling to the ground.
'Shit..'
Mark managed to grab it with his mouth at the last moment.
He closed his mouth, and the glass container broke, allowing Mark to drink the potion.
The cracked bones quickly started healing.
'Can I be alerted every time I lose Health Points?'
[A change has been recorded by the System.]
[From now on, you shall be alerted every time you lose Health Points.]
'Perfect.'
Mark looked at the incoming Small Golems.
He hurriedly moved behind one of them and hit it as hard as he could with his tail.
Mark had inflicted a bit of damage. But,
[You have lost 10 Health Points.]
'It's that hard, huh? How are my Mana Points?'
[You have 90 Mana Points.]
Mark proceeded to shoot four Venomous Bombs at the Small Golem he had just attacked and five others at the remaining one.
[You have defeated one Small Golem. 90Gold Coins and 180Experience Points earned.]
[You have leveled up!]
[You have defeated one Small Golem. 90Gold Coins and 180Experience Points earned.]
'I leveled up a ton... Can I see my Stats?'
[ Stats:
Strength: 15
Agility: 22
Sense: 17
Vigor: 15
Endurance: 27
Mana: 22
]
'Nice. Leveling up sure is worth it, but...'
His gaze fell on the various unmoving Monsters that covered the ground.
'Gotta eat!'
Mark devoured the Monsters.
For some reason, the Small Golem's hard body wasn't as hard when it was being eaten.
After he swallowed the first Small Golem, a piece of pleasant information was shared with him.
[Evolution is available.]
'Alright, good. It'll have to wait a bit though!'
Mark devoured three Small Golems, four Winged Kobolds, and four Orcs.
He currently had 2420 Evolution Points.
Realizing that, Mark's excitement quickly surged.
After all, his previous Evolution had only cost him a bit more than 200 Evolution Points.
What could he evolve into now? What Skills could he develop or obtain from the Store? What Body Modifications could he get?
He decided to wait a bit more before finding out about all those things.
'The more Evolution Points I have, the better my Evolution will be. Therefore...!'
Mark continued walking deeper into the circular corridor.
After walking for a bit, he found three Orcs, one Small Golem, and three Hobgoblins. All dead.
But Mark wouldn't let that stop him.
He started stuffing his face.
After Mark was done with the meal presented on a silver plate, he continued walking.
Once again, more dead Monsters were found.
Three Black Wolves, one Small Golem, and a big Monster he had never seen before, were all lying on the ground.
The mysterious Monster was about three meters tall and resembled an Orc.
Although its face was much more hideous than that of an Orc, which was a rather difficult feat to achieve.
[Ogre: [E] Rank Monster.]
'What? [E] Rank? That's the first [E] Rank Monster I see... Jackpot!' Mark thought as he started devouring it.
The more he walked, the more dead Monsters he found.
Mark kept devouring them one by one.
But, quietly and silently, a feeling of slight anxiousness started rising.
'Did these die while fighting each other...? Or was one Monster... the cause of this carnage?'
Mark kept walking and devouring.
Walking, and amassing more and more Evolution Points.
Walking, and exposing himself more and more to danger.
He was slowly exposing himself to the danger of finding the creature that had killed all of the Monsters he had devoured.
Still, Mark walked forward.
And as carefully as he could.
[Your Passive Skill "Assassin's Footsteps[F]" has evolved into the Passive Skill "Assassin's Movements[E]".]
...
After some time, Mark checked the map.
He was more than halfway done with the loop.
'Should I go back? Or will I find the Monster on the other side?'
Mark did not know what to do.
Therefore, he kept walking and devouring the Monsters found. It seemed like the simpler course of action.
Suddenly, one of his Skills evolved.
[Your Passive Skill "Acute Hearing[F]" has evolved into the Passive Skill "Acute Senses[E]".]
Right away, all his senses became much better at picking up sounds. Not only that, but he also developed the ability to smell.
'Something is burning...'
Mark heard sounds coming from a short distance away.
He continued walking stealthily, while focusing on his surroundings.
Until, the creature was found.
Mark had finally found the Monster. The one that caused such carnage.
'Maybe I should run away... It hasn't noticed me yet...'
A humanoid-winged Monster.
Its legs, resembled those of a goat.
'What the hell...'
It was hovering in the air.
Its red skin looked incredibly tough.
The Monster's wings were dark. And resembled those of a bat.
'Is that?'
[An Inferior Demon: [E+] Rank Monster.]
'A Demon...??'
Two black horns were going out of its skull.
'I should run away...' Mark told himself.
But he didn't.
'It'll kill me... I'm not strong enough... I can't... Not alone...'
Yet, he remained standing there.
The Monster shot Fire Balls from its palms at the various Monsters below.
And Mark was afraid.
But for some reason, his fear proved weaker than his excitement.
Not only was his excitement soaring high, but so was the hunger within him.
The Inferior Demon was fighting three Small Golems, two Winged Kobolds, two Ogres, and three Orcs.
All at once.
The Fire Balls hit an Ogre's leg.
That leg was immediately scorched.
But seconds later, it started regenerating.
'What...? All these are Monsters! One can shoot fireballs from above, and the other one can heal its burnt limbs like it's nothing??'
The weaker Monsters team up against the stronger ones.
Once the stronger ones are defeated, only then, will the weaker ones fight each other.
That's how Monsters operate inside Dungeons.
'Let's take down that flying bastard. And after that...'
And Mark was not about to break that implicit rule.
'It's a free for all!'