When we reach 100 Power Stones, there will be a bonus chapter!
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I am not afraid of death. Yet, that doesn't mean I can perish here. I had far too much left to accomplish in this world.
Among all those things, my greatest goal was Apotheosis, and I'd make no progress unless I could plumb the dungeon's deepest floors. And if I failed, I'd never see my sister again. Or Isis.
Those two reasons alone were sufficient to anchor me to life. Yeah. It was enough to free me from my fear of death.
Before me, facing the monster's onslaught, I felt the air constrict. The ant moved with blinding speed, but I wasn't so sluggish that I couldn't anticipate its attack. While I couldn't evade it entirely, with a sharp lateral movement, I managed to avoid a critical damage. The claw grazed my visage, just beneath my eye. A searing pain radiated from my cheek to my neck.
[-150 HP]
My face remained one of my most vulnerable areas. Had the claw struck my eye, it would have been the end. My HP would have drained away like water from a broken bucket. But I stayed upright, reeling from the impact.
―Kriiiik!
It let out an unpleasant screech, akin to a razor-sharp blade scraping across glass. It sounded as if the ant was broadcasting a distress call to its friends. I longed to shut its mouth, but there was no use. The body was the one emitting the pheromones, and I couldn't defeat it in a second to stop it.
I regained my balance, clenching my teeth and channeling every fiber of my being on what I had to do. The chain sword glowed in the mossy light in my hand.
―Kriiiik!
I can't kill it with a single strike, but I can certainly make it suffer. My enemy advanced as its murderous intent surged simultaneously. I could felt it in the aire. It became heavier and more oppressive.
This chamber would soon be teeming with ants.
"Curse it all."
My chain sword moved in a dizzying blur. The links rattled and hissed through the air as I whirled it and hurled it at the ant. One twist. Two. Three. The blade crashed against its hard shell again and again, sometimes ricocheting, sometimes tearing at the most vulnerable junctures. With my life at stake, I had no time for niceties.
I ran toward the ant, slipping beneath its mandibles as they snapped at me, and coiled the chain around it. The first loop of the chain cinched around one of its legs. I heaved with every ounce of my strength. The limb buckled, forced by the pull, and the monster toppled heavily to one side.
I increased the speed of my blows. In a heartbeat, the tip of the blade skewered one of its antennae, cutting it cleanly. The monster convulsed, but it was already too entangled in my chain to break free.
―Kiriiiik!
"Shut up, you bug!"
With its antenna missing, the ant descended into panic. These ants relied far too heavily on their radar.
I leaped onto its back, using all the momentum of my weight to drive the blade into the junction between its neck and carapace. A jet of dark liquid shot toward my face. I felt the bug shudder beneath my feet, struggling desperately to dislodge me.
"Hold still!"
After a frenzied struggle atop the monster's back, it finally died.
Only after I vanquished this group of enemies did two consecutive screens appear. Then another one appeared:
―Enemy defeated: Killer Ant
―Experience gained: +20 Exp
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[Experience Progress]
―Current level: 6
―Exp: 700 / 700
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―Congratulations, you have reached level 7!―
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[Level Bonus]
― HP: +100
― MP: +50
― Stats Increase: +5 to all Stats
― Stat Points gained: +5
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[Progress to next level]
―Exp: 10 / 800
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Leveling up restored all the MP used and HP lost. My health bar immediately went up and turned from orange to green. For a brief second, it was like bathing in a rejuvenating hot spring. I felt utterly refreshed.
I wiped off the blood that splattered my cheek and crouched down beside my target. I plunged the sword into its belly and pulled out the magic stone.
These purple crystals were really just small shards. According to Rose, the stronger a monster was, the bigger the Magic Stones inside it would be. Consequently, the value the Guild placed on it also depend on that. I mourned for the stone that was broken.
When I claimed my reward and the monster's body crumbled, I stood up. But then the ground shook. At first it was a slight tremor, but within seconds the shaking became violent. Dust fell from the walls, the ceiling creaked, and the floor under my boots seemed to want to open up and devour me.
"Huh...? What's happening now...?"
Shaking in the dungeon was never good news. It usually only happened once every few years. But it shouldn't affect me. They used to affect the deeper floors, making the monsters more violent.
And how can I put this? The dungeon decided to answer my question. Well, the thing is, I didn't like the answer one bit.
The stone walls were crumbling. And worst of all, it wasn't the ceiling that fell, it was what came out of the cracks. More killer ants. Many more. I couldn't count them all. They came out in droves, as if the dungeon had decided to spit its microbes on me. Every one of them fixed its gaze on me instantly.
As they slowly approached, murderous intent poured from their bodies, radiating pure hostility.
"Hey, you've got to be kidding, since when do monsters get born that much?" I snorted and took a few steps back.
The monster parade existed. It happened rarely, but when it did, adventurers who were unlucky enough to be in the area usually died. If they managed to escape, they did so with injuries that left them near death. Normally, there would be about ten monsters in a monster parade.
But what was in front of me now? Over fifty killer ants!
Is this a fucking joke, this doesn't even qualify as a monster parade!
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