Chapter 68 Control The Battlefield

More than 20 Monsters from the Dungeon's Final Floor were approaching Mark and his Underlings.

He felt relaxed, despite the enemy numbers.

Mark had already cleared 9 of the Dungeon's Floors.

Fighting when outnumbered wasn't anything new.

Also, the fact that this was the Dungeon's Last Floor obviously didn't escape him.

Mark's fighting spirit was burning. And the ferocious Aura that emanated from his body made it obvious.

"There is quite a number of them, my Lord." Levi commented.

Since the Monsters were different from any others Levi had previously faced, he was on his guard.

'You guys take care of those coming from the sides'

Mark, on the other hand, felt no fear.

'Let's get rid of the fodder quickly.'

The Master immediately leaped towards the approaching enemies.

'So? What are they?' Mark asked.

His feet hit the ground at smaller and smaller intervals.

Messages appeared in front of Mark right away.

[Tempest Saber-toothed Tigers: [B+] Ranked Monsters.]

Two Monsters resembling regular tigers, except much larger.

Their fur was white, with a taint of blue.

[Storm Eagles: [B+] Rank Monsters.]

Twice as big as normal eagles, the Monsters' wings were long and strong.

The power each flap of their wings produced made that strength obvious.

Those two Monster Species were the fastest.

Behind them lagged others, such as "Typhoon Wolves[B+]" and "Winged Kobold Generals[B]".

'Mmmm... I expected [A] Ranked Monsters. Actually no, I didn't. That Lower Demonic Giant was [A-], right? I couldn't handle it alone. The stronger Monsters are deep inside the forest, or in the other territory.'

Mark chuckled slightly.

The Tempest Saber-toothed Tigers opened their jaws in unison.

'I guess there won't be Demons to fight on this Floor. I expected them since they have wings, but... That's no reason, I guess-'

At the same time, the Storm Eagles flapped their wings with such force that their bodies were launched backward.

The attack was a hard one to notice, but Mark swiftly leaped to his right.

The next instant, the spot he had been standing on was decimated.

A crater appeared on the ground.

'It's different from the attack they used earlier... But at the same time...' Mark made his way to the closest enemy. 'It's very similar.'

He felt a sudden breeze.

The Tempest Saber-toothed Tiger leaped towards Mark, convinced that its claws would tear the enemy apart.

Mark's eyes widened.

'Oh...?'

He bent his body and barely dodged the attack.

And as the Monster was, in mid-air, above him, Mark quickly used his claws to pierce the enemy's unprotected stomach.

At least, he tried to.

The Tempest Saber-toothed Tiger landed on the ground.

Behind Mark, and unharmed.

'Interesting...'

Mark's claws couldn't pierce its fur.

No.

More precisely, Mark couldn't reach its fur.

But he had no time to worry about that.

He was once again targeted by the Storm Eagles.

'This Wind Magic...' Mark thought, as he spread his wings and kicked the ground.

One motion was enough to close the distance between the nearest Storm Eagle and himself.

'It's troublesome.'

The Monster, about to use a Wind-Type Magic Skill, was interrupted.

Its body twitched for a bit.

It wasn't completely paralyzed, as the Magic Skill's Rank was only [E+].

But it was enough to buy time for Mark's claws to pierce the Storm Eagle's body.

He pulled his arm back, and the bleeding Monster started falling.

'This "Staggering Thunder" wasn't effective against the Monsters of the previous Floor, but... It's pretty good.'

Mark let his body fall towards the bleeding Storm Eagle.

'These Monsters are tough. I'll need to finish this quickly to assist Levi and the others...'

Since he had shot random locations of the Territory, Monsters had approached from different directions.

Mark grabbed the falling body before landing on the ground.

[You have used your Magic Skill "Purgatory's Undead Troup[A+]".]

[The dead is coming back to life as your Underling.]

Mark quickly dodged to the right and threw the Storm Eagle's body into the air.

​ BOOM-

'Shockwaves, huh? Is that another form of Wind Magic? Or some other kind of Magic Skill?'

Just as another Storm Eagle was about to use its Magic Skill "Wind Blast[B]", it lost one of its wings.

The Monster had been attacked by, what it considered seconds earlier, its fallen comrade.

'Good. As long as I can slowly turn these guys into my Underlings then...'

An approaching Tempest Saber-toothed Tiger leaped forward.

'I'll make this Floor mine.'

Its open jaw was met with a flick of Mark's tail.

The Monster's body was thrown aside, left stunned by the hit's incredible force.

'My "Sonic Tail Flick" really is amazing. The higher my physical strength is, the more useful it becomes. If it wasn't for the Skill that these guys have, one tail flick might be enough to finish them.'

Mark had realized from the earlier exchanges that the Tempest Saber-toothed Tiger Monster Species possessed a certain Skill.

'They suddenly accelerate when attacking. Plus, the resistance I felt when I tried to attack its stomach... Some kind of protective wind?' Mark wondered, as he raised his palm towards the stunned Monster.

"Repelling Tempest": [B+] Ranked Skill.

A Magic Skill that takes control of the wind around the user's body.

The wind is, then, made to flow violently.

A small tempest is created around the user.

That tempest has two effects.

The first is obvious.

The violent winds add a layer of protection around the user.

The second effect could be qualified as a "Buff".

The wind that makes up the small tempest flows in a way that facilitates the user's movements, by making that user's body lighter.

Its Rank was well-deserved.

After all, Mark's high strength and sharp claws hadn't been enough to pierce through the layer of protective wind.

Mark didn't know the Skill's name, but he was more or less aware of its existence.

Flame Of Chaos, Great Fire Ball[A].

[You have defeated a Tempest Saber-toothed Tiger. 23'000 Gold Coins and 46'000 Experience Points earned.]

'Whatever...' Mark thought as he turned towards the rest of the enemies.

One Tempest Saber-toothed Tigers and six Storm Eagles were left.

The rest of the Monsters had stopped approaching, opting to, instead, observe how the fight would turn out instead.

Mark used his Tail "Lengthening[D+]" Skill before running toward an approaching enemy.

[You have used your Magic Skill "Purgatory's Undead Troup[A+]".]

[The dead is coming back to life as your Underling.]

What had started as a one-versus-nine at best, had been turned into a three-versus-seven.

'Levi isn't that much stronger than me. Actually, I've become a bit stronger than him now, I think. But this ability, this Skill that allows me to control the battlefield...'

Mark showed his fangs in what looked like a smile.

'It definitely puts me in a category above.'

...

It only took an additional five minutes for the rest of the Monsters to meet their end.

Only a couple of scratches were on Mark's body.

'That "Wind Blast" Magic Skill is one both of these Monster Species have... It's not bad, but weaker than the Magic Skill that shattered by Impenetrable Barrier earlier...' Mark thought as he stared at the Tempest Saber-toothed Tigers and Storm Eagles he had turned into his Underlings.

'The eagles are useful. For the rest...'

Mark transformed the newly acquired "Tempest Saber-toothed Tiger" Underlings into energy using his "Consume[A]" Skill.

'I definitely need to obtain Wind Magic Skills. Not only are they hard to notice, but-'

[You have gained 60.000 Evolution Points.]

'No new Skill, huh? Just Evolution Points...'

Mark turned back towards the center of the Last Floor, where he and his Underlings had first appeared.

'Levi, Light, and Krista seem to be doing well. Fiery is assisting them from behind. Good. You all, go assist them too.'

The newly acquired "Strom Eagle" Underlings immediately flew towards Mark's other Underlings.

'The other Monsters seem to have run back into the forest. Mmmm... 60.000 Evolution Points... How many Evolution Points do I even have now?'

[You currently possess 1'386'820 Evolution Points.]

'I won't even ask about the Gold Coins.' Mark thought, annoyed by the ridiculously high number.

He raised his gaze towards the bright sky made of Mana.

'I wonder when I'll get to evolve...'

At the thought, his heart started beating faster.

I wonder what I'll evolve into next...'

Excitement overtook Mark, as he leaped towards the spot where his Underlings were fighting.