At this moment, Cipher wished he had been more careful—because not more than four inches from his face was a large Nightmare Beast, its breath thick with rot. The creature's bright yellow eyes glowed like embers, swirling with an unnatural hunger. Thick horns curled from its skull, twisted like a ram's but covered in a moss-like mold that dripped a viscous, greenish liquid. Its skin was leathery, cracked, and pulsating as if something crawled beneath the surface.
Cipher barely had time to react before the stench hit him—a revolting mix of decay, damp fungus, and something indescribably foul, as if the beast itself was rotting from the inside out.
Lesser Mold Fiend.
The words appeared in Cipher's vision as his Appraiser Skill activated instinctively. His stomach twisted when he saw the rank—C-Class. It wasn't the strongest Nightmare he had faced, but it wasn't weak either. And that was just one.
Cipher jumped back, drawing his Twin Stars in a fluid motion, but he barely moved three feet before his back hit something—soft yet firm, almost like pressing against a mass of thick, pulsing meat.
His breath hitched.
Slowly, Cipher turned his head, already dreading what he would see.
Another Lesser Mold Fiend.
Its breath rasped through a jagged, uneven mouth, dripping with black saliva that sizzled as it hit the ground. One of its arms twitched, long claws extending unnaturally as if it was preparing to skewer him.
Cipher exhaled sharply, gripping his blades tighter. This was the first time he had been surrounded by multiple Nightmares. Fighting one was manageable, even two—but three? He had trained with Yuri and Axel for this kind of situation, but training and reality were two very different things.
Before he could reposition himself, something sharp slammed into his back.
The impact knocked the wind out of him, sending him tumbling forward. He rolled against the damp, mold-infested ground, his senses reeling. His ribs ached where the blow had landed, and a foul slime now coated his back, burning slightly against his skin.
There's a third one!?
He barely had time to rise before another clawed limb struck him, this time launching him sideways—straight into the thick, fleshy torso of the fiend behind him.
Cipher gritted his teeth as the monster let out a low, guttural growl, more like a deep vibration than a sound. His mind raced—he was being tossed around like a toy, and if he didn't take control of the fight soon, he wouldn't last much longer.
He needed a plan.
With a quick roll, Cipher managed to create a few feet of distance. His breathing was ragged, but his focus was sharp. His gaze flickered around the pit—there was only one way out, but it required cutting through at least fifteen of these creatures.
Cipher cursed under his breath.
Fifteen!?
He hadn't noticed them before because they had been lying dormant, their bodies blending into the decayed terrain like natural growths. Now, they were waking up.
The nightmare pit was alive.
The Mold Fiends lurched forward, their sluggish movements deceptively fast when they attacked. Their skin seemed to shift, sprouting new growths of mold with every step, their jagged mouths expanding wider than any normal creature should have been capable of.
One lunged.
Cipher barely twisted out of the way, its claws slicing through the empty space where his head had been a second earlier. The Twin Stars flashed in response, cutting through the Nightmare's extended limb.
The creature howled.
Blackened mold and viscous ichor sprayed from the wound, but before Cipher could press the attack, another fiend came from behind, slashing toward his legs.
Cipher jumped, flipping midair before kicking off the creature's hunched back, using it as a platform to launch himself higher. He landed a few feet away, heart pounding.
He needed an edge.
His mind raced—light. The fiends' eyes had followed the glow of his flashlight earlier. Maybe he could use that.
Cipher reached into his dimensional storage and pulled out the magical flashlight.
[DEM, can I overload this thing?] Cipher asked, his thoughts quick and precise.
{Yes, but you'll need to flood it with magic. Too much, and it could explode.} DEM replied.
Perfect.
Cipher poured as much magic as he could into the device, feeling the energy surge within it. The metal casing heated in his palm, the glow intensifying into something blinding.
He threw it upward.
The fiends followed it with their glowing eyes, entranced by the sudden burst of light. Cipher turned away just as the flashlight detonated, flooding the pit with a brilliant, searing radiance.
The creatures shrieked.
Cipher didn't waste a second.
With a burst of speed, he dashed forward, Twin Stars slicing through the first fiend in his path. The blade cut clean through its rotting flesh, severing its head in a single stroke. The body collapsed, mold spores bursting into the air like smoke.
Another fiend lunged blindly.
Cipher ducked, rolling beneath its swipe before driving both blades into its torso. He twisted the hilts, the Twin Stars igniting with a soft white glow as they cut through the Nightmare's core.
It let out a shrill, distorted wail before crumbling into a pile of decayed flesh.
Two down.
Cipher spun, using the momentum to slice through the arms of a third fiend before delivering a precise stab to its throat. It choked, collapsing onto its knees before disintegrating.
Three down.
But the others were recovering.
Cipher's advantage was fading.
The fiends no longer recoiled from the light—they were adapting. Their bodies shifted, sprouting new layers of thick mold that darkened their forms, making them blend even better into the shadows.
Cipher clenched his jaw.
The explosion had given him an opening, but he wasn't out of danger yet. The creatures were getting smarter.
I need to move—fast.
Cipher pushed forward, dodging an incoming attack before slicing through another fiend's leg, severing it at the knee. The creature toppled with a distorted screech, but another took its place almost instantly.
He was being overwhelmed.
Cipher's breath came fast and heavy, his muscles burning from exertion. He needed a way out—now.
Scanning the area, Cipher's eyes locked onto a path through the fiends, a narrow gap between two larger creatures. It was risky, but it was his best shot.
He grit his teeth.
[DEM, mark the safest path out!]
{Marked. But you'll need to move now.}
Cipher didn't hesitate.
He surged forward, weaving between attacks, his blades flashing as he cut down anything in his way. Every step was calculated, every movement precise.
He was almost there.
Then—darkness.
A thick fog suddenly engulfed him, a suffocating mass of spores clouding his vision.
Cipher skidded to a stop, coughing as the mold entered his lungs. His vision blurred, his body growing sluggish.
He had made one fatal mistake.
The Nightmare Pit wasn't just filled with monsters.
It was alive.
And it wasn't letting him go.