Chapter 15- A Plunderer's Second Life Pt.2

I realized that there was something off with this room after the green humanoid enemy fell. A golden explosion occurred about a minute after I retrieved my war hammer from its place in the stone wall.

It seeped into everything. The walls and floors, even the dead monster's body were quickly consumed. I truly felt fear watching the corpse be turned to literally nothingness, it seemed holy or even divine based on the feeling it gave me.

Assuming I was next and the golden fire itself was a trap I ran with all of my might into the opening the archer came from. Paying special attention to securing the oddly thunderbolt-shaped bolt quiver and my other equipment. I nearly pissed myself when I felt warmth on my back but I wouldn't turn around. I just barely managed to roll into the doorway before the golden fire truly enveloped me. 

The way it enveloped the monster's body and turned it to ash in a mere moment was something I knew I wouldn't survive. Death by fire was a peasant's way to die, not a warrior's 'And I'd rather be banished to the Frozen Hell before I die a worthless death again!'

"It stopped?" I said in between ragged breaths as I watched the golden fire halt at the doorway. I watched it with zeal before it eventually retreated towards its pit.

"Well, that is something…... Assuming the ninety-ninth floor is the one I'm on…." I wasn't what you would call a scholar but I understood basic math in terms of addition and subtraction. What surprised me more was that the engravings on the tablet matched my language perfectly.

But it also brought up a more damning problem, I spent three months in that maze. 'Would I have to go through that or something worse ninety-eight more times…'

I was never one to show exhaustion or sadness but after realizing my real situation my shoulders slumped.

'At least I can't die of starvation or thirst in here. So I'll eventually get out…. Or die. Would love a cup of mead though' I sighed even harder as I sat on the stairwell, imagining a large steak smothered in butter and a barrel of mead sitting next to me. It was a wonderful daydream but reality is often a shit hole.

"But at least I keep gaining power that would only appear in children story books or legends and myths" I would be lying if I said that something primal in me didn't rejoice at fighting endlessly and taking powerful weapons from my dead enemies. I was thankful I managed to notice the green glow of the lightning bolt-shaped quiver.

After a few lightning-fast shots towards the wall, I learned a few things. 

The bow itself only enhances the speed of the arrows. While the quiver charged and made the thunder arrows. It seemed no matter what there would always be ten charged arrows in the quiver no matter how fast I could shoot.

I was a decent shot but that was only because I never considered myself a ranger combatant. If given the choice I would always be at the front with my shield brothers, pushing forward and trampling over the enemies' corpses.

Now not only did I possess an ice-infused steel war hammer but also a powerful bow and quiver that take after Thor himself. What would I gain from going further down? At least now I'm excited and my blood is boiling.

So I got up and continued down the stairs, thirsty for more combat or further powerful items. This place was truly addicting, similar to the card table at the local tavern. One drunken night and you now owe half your house and land. But the thrill is like nothing else.

There were only a few steps before the world fluctuated. One moment I was in a stairwell and the next I was in a mist-covered swamp.

"What the fu.." Before I could finish my confused slur a reverberated sound appeared around me. But it was muted like it was covered by something.

I looked down and peered into the water under me as a few beads of sweat fell from my forehead. 

The first one I saw caused me to reel in mild disgust.

"Odin's beard! What in Helheim are you? A human dad and a toad mother?" It was my only guess and I hoped it was false. If not, somebody needs to purge these creatures from this land and hang their progenitors.

It seemed the bipedal toad took offense to my disgust and rightly so. It let out a loud croak that caused me a mild headache, but it was manageable. I quickly drew my bow and in the next blink of an eye, an arrow pierced the creature between its bulbous eyes. With a crackle of thunder, it pierced through and continued further downstream.

But it seemed I let my guard down. 

"An infestation" I murmured to myself as I watched multiple pairs of bulging eyes begin rising from the water. I counted ten before I realized how screwed I was, the toad wasn't attacking at all. It was calling for reinforcements and now I was surrounded.

I was confident that with my new bow, I could handle this many but I knew this couldn't be all of them. Surely a few were still observing under the water waiting for a chance to attack me while my guard was down. Like rodents, if you've seen ten there are probably another twenty you haven't seen. 

I knocked three arrows in a moment and shot towards my right. It seemed that even though they possessed human-like bodies their reactions weren't as fast as you would expect from a warrior. In a second their right flank was gone and I ran like a horde of rabid wolves were behind me.

Their wailing mind-numbing croaks sounded off a moment later and I staggered. I realized soon that if I was in the same place I just was then I would be incapacitated. I could never let those things surround me again, their attacks were something I would have never expected.

'Sound attack? Like a bat's screech?" I thanked my instincts that told me to run. Without them, I would've died after only minutes on this floor.

Comparing these monsters to the giant rats was like night and day. Where the rats were quick and agile these toads were extremely dangerous.

My first thought would be to rupture my hearing but I was weary to do so. A warrior needs all of their senses to fight at their maximum. 

Still, it was a change that added a new danger to fighting that I'd never experienced before. If I ever found myself surrounded by more than ten, I was resolved to remove my hearing. A strength is only a strength until it turns into a weakness.