Chapter 154: Monster

[Translator - Prøks][Proofreader - Prøks]

Chapter 154: Monster

Rumble rumble rumble—

The ceiling shook violently as if it was about to collapse.

"What the...?"

Suppressing my surprise, I instinctively launched a kick at the solar plexus of the guy in front of me.

Thwack—!

With a series of thud thud thud— sounds in the narrow passage, the guys collapsed like dominoes. They scrambled back up in confusion and started running back towards the entrance.

I also ran out, striking the back of the head of the guy in front of me.

Thwack—! Thwack—!

"Move it, faster!"

I couldn't get crushed to death here.

As I ran, hitting the back of the head of those in front of me, I soon arrived back at the entrance.

Fortunately, the tremors in the ceiling gradually subsided and then stopped.

I took a deep breath and replayed the events in my mind.

First, I had launched a fireball high into the sky to show off my skills.

Then, I activated the incantation for Wind Expansion to spread the fires.

Up to this point, everything had gone according to plan.

The problem was...

The ceiling suddenly started shaking as if it was about to collapse, something I hadn't anticipated.

'What happened?'

Even the cleaners looked dumbfounded and disoriented.

No one knew what was going on.

Some of them even seemed to think I was responsible for this.

Observing their reactions, I quickly changed my approach and glared at them.

"See? You should have paid up when you had the chance. I'll give you 10 seconds. If you don't bring the money, I'll bring the whole ceiling down."

I'm the type of person who can turn even unexpected situations to my advantage.

As expected, starting with the Kalma Group leader who had been running away while getting hit by me, everyone quickly ran back and offered three gold coins each. My threat had worked perfectly.

Meanwhile, I looked at the two guys standing blankly on the other side and said,

"Do you want to be crushed to death?"

The two Sahwa Party members stared at me intently.

"You did this?"

They were a suspicious bunch.

"Yes, I did. I'll give you just 5 more seconds. 5, 4, 3..."

One of the Sahwa Party members shouted towards the Kalma Group,

"You believe this guy? You pathetic fools are truly low-level."

"2, 1..."

The Kalma Group leader hurriedly looked at me.

"Stop! If you collapse the ceiling, we'll all die! We haven't paid!"

I nodded and replied,

"You have a point."

The two Sahwa Party members looked at me in disbelief.

"Do you think the Sahwa Party is a joke?"

"Of course not. I respect the Sahwa Party. That's why you need to bring six gold coins."

"What?"

"And the 5 seconds are up."

I propelled myself forward with a burst of wind pressure, gliding like a phantom with my enhanced movement technique.

At the same time, I manifested a Fire Spear in each hand and hurled them at the two.

"...A mage? You dare!"

The moment I sensed Mana fluctuations from their bodies and the Fire Spears dissipated, I flew at them like lightning and shot my slingshot at the left guy's temple.

Thwack—! Thud—!

The guy on the left collapsed.

As the remaining one abruptly turned his head to look at his fallen comrade, I gathered wind pressure in my fist and slammed it into his jaw.

Crack—! Thud—!

"You guys lack basic skills."

I started rummaging through the pockets of the two unconscious men.

By the time I had emptied their pockets of gold coins and stashed them in my own, I felt eyes on me.

I looked around for a moment and said,

"You guys stay here."

The Kalma Group leader nodded and gathered his subordinates, settling them in a corner of the cavity.

"We won't move an inch. We promise."

"I believe you. Stay right there."

Even though I was speaking informally, no one objected. They truly believed I could bring this place down.

"See you later then. I'm going ahead."

I entered the passage and slowly made my way forward.

The deeper I went, the darker it became, and after a few minutes, I was enveloped in pitch-black darkness.

I couldn't see an inch in front of me.

Normally, I would have manifested a fireball to illuminate my surroundings, but not this time.

Sometimes, you have to adapt to situations like this.

Peace of mind.

I walked slowly through the darkness, cultivating my senses as I searched for traces of demonic energy.

I never intended to clear the Level 3 Demon Realm quickly.

I had already experienced the thrill of automated hunting. When hunting manually, you have to seek a different kind of enjoyment.

It was then.

Brrr—

I felt a faint vibration from up ahead.

The moment I heard a strange sound, I ducked like lightning.

"What the...?"

Whoosh—

Something brushed past my head, and I immediately sensed a murderous intent nearby.

It was fast.

"Kyaaaaaak!"

I still couldn't see a thing.

Whiiiing—

I instantly opened all the circles of my heart.

In this state, I relied solely on my senses to detect the approaching presence.

As soon as I sensed the sharp metal, I twisted my body and grabbed the attacker.

Crack—

"Kyaaaaaaaak!"

The texture was strange. It wasn't human.

It felt rough and hard.

"Leather?"

Whoosh—

As I manifested fires in my left hand, the identity of what I was holding was finally revealed.

Slightly larger than a lynx.

It thrashed around, baring two sharp, metal-like front teeth.

"Oh, you're a monster?"

I was delighted to see one in person for the first time.

A mustelid monster.

I didn't know its exact name or rank.

However, judging from its shape and appearance, which resembled the disaster-class Northern Garriot, it was undoubtedly a mustelid monster.

"Kyahahaha!"

"There, there, good boy."

I stroked its head and instantly broke its two sharp front teeth.

Snap— Snap—

The monster convulsed violently and then died.

'Kant was right.'

The weakness of mustelid monsters was their two front teeth.

If those two teeth were broken, the nerves connected to their brain were immediately severed.

I cremated the monster and leisurely continued on my way.

The inside was more spacious than it appeared from the outside.

Looking at the traces along the way, I noticed the footprints were clustered together.

It seemed those who entered before me were moving together in a group.

After walking for a while, I heard voices and saw flickering lights ahead.

"This Demon Realm has some rather troublesome monsters."

"They're cautious. It probably won't be easy to find the one with the core."

"Damn it, if we're late, it'll disrupt our plans to enter Section 1 next week."

"Don't worry."

"The one with the core must be at least mid-level, right?"

"Probably. We won't be at a loss."

I turned back.

I had no intention of joining them.

As I walked for a long time, I gradually adapted to the darkness. With my vision limited, my other senses seemed to heighten.

I encountered more mustelid monsters along the way and learned their habits.

Right before they attacked, there was a faint vibration.

Brrr—

Just like now.

This vibration felt a bit stronger, so it was probably a bigger one.

"Kyaaaaaa!"

Crack—

As expected, it was a larger one.

I broke its two front teeth and continued on my way, when suddenly a memory flashed through my mind.

"Huh?"

Wait a minute.

...This wasn't a coincidence.

Come to think of it, there was no way it could have been a coincidence in the first place.

After organizing my thoughts for a moment, I started to retrace my steps.

Whoosh—

This time, I lit a fire and followed the footprints, moving as quickly as possible.

When I reached the narrow passage at the entrance, I paused to examine the walls on either side and frowned.

A strong smell of blood wafted from within.

"...They're dead."

The corpses of what appeared to be the Kalma Group were strewn across the floor.

Traces of a fierce battle.

Torn fragments of flesh and two holes pierced through the heart area.

Bite marks.

Each hole was the size of a woman's wrist.

This meant the creature was at least three times larger than the monsters I had encountered so far.

Something felt off.

Weren't they all relaxed when they entered?

Meanwhile, the bodies of the Sahwa Party members were nowhere to be seen.

"Expanding wind, Wind Expansion."

I chanted the full incantation, manifesting a burst of wind pressure upwards.

I didn't sense any presence.

If that moment when the ceiling shook violently, if that was the vibration caused by the mustelid monster...

I turned back.

As I ignited a fire and scattered it widely, I saw footprints with only the front part of the sole imprinted.

Evidence of a full sprint.

It was highly likely these were the footprints of the Sahwa Party members.

I immediately followed the trail.

Strangely, as I followed the footprints, I was gradually moving towards the group that had gone ahead.

This wasn't a coincidence either.

The Sahwa Party members must have intentionally led them in that direction.

"Shit, fuck!"

From somewhere, I faintly heard curses and death throes. S~eaʀᴄh the ηovelFire.ηet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.

"Gah!"

A moment later, I saw a group of people running frantically towards me, accompanied by the sound of pounding footsteps.

Tatatatatatata—

Two guys were running at the front.

They were the Sahwa Party members I had knocked unconscious earlier.

They hurled curses at me as they passed by, running towards the other side.

A short distance behind them, the group I had seen earlier came running.

Their faces were pale with fear.

The man at the front, running with a broken blade, shouted at me as he saw me standing in the passage.

"Don't just stand there, run!"

I looked behind the group.

Rumble rumble rumble—

The ceiling shook violently, and a deafening roar echoed.

"Kyaaaaaaaaaa!"

Not three times larger.

This one was at least five times larger than the monsters I had seen before, with two front teeth as sharp as a saber-toothed tiger's.

Blades were embedded in its hide, and blood was flowing out, but its ferocity only seemed to intensify.

Behind it, dozens of smaller monsters followed.

Rumble rumble rumble—

The intensity of the tremors was unusual, suggesting they had been clustered together.

I stepped forward.

As I watched the ferocious monster charging towards me, I couldn't help but laugh.

"Are you crazy? That's a red variant! Run!"

The man with the broken blade grabbed me a few times and shouted,

"Damn it, I said run! I'm not responsible for you anymore!"

The entire group quickly passed me.

Even then, I stood alone, facing the monster and laughing.

How could I not laugh?

"Kyaaaaaaaaaa!"

When I felt the chilling breath of countless monsters up close.

Whiiiing—

I opened four circles of my heart.

"Melting Purification Water."

4th Circle, Fire Hand.

With fires blazing around both hands, I looked into the eyes of the approaching monster.

"Found you."

Its sharp front teeth flew towards my neck.

Crack—

I instantly grabbed its front teeth with my flaming hands.

Sizzle—

I felt its breath and its gaze right in front of me.

"You, you're the one, aren't you?"

"Kyaaaaaaaaaa!"

Thick smoke billowed from its black eyes.

"Nice to meet you, monster."

Multiple magic manifestations.

4th Circle Wind Attribute Magic, Wide Barrier.

4th Circle Wind Attribute Magic, Wind Press.

The monster faltered.

A vast, wide barrier formed in the air, circular in shape.

It was large enough to cover the entire visible ceiling.

As soon as I touched the flaming hand to the barrier, the fires instantly spread.

Whoosh—

The entire ceiling was engulfed in fires.

Then, the air in the upper level compressed, becoming suffocating.

Fwooosh—

With a roaring sound, the blazing barrier in the air compressed and crashed down to the ground.

"Kyaaaaaaaaaa!"

"Kyaaaaa!"

The entire horde of monsters, crushed beneath the burning barrier, was engulfed in fires and burned.

The tremendous light generated by the aftermath caused the fleeing men to stop and look back.

"...!"

[Translator - Prøks]

[Proofreader - Prøks]