53-54

Chapter 53: 3F Breakthrough (1)

Demon King

3F Breakthrough (1)

The third floor of Black Palace District 7 was different from the first and second floors in many ways.

Scale? Of course, it is larger. The quest was to catch 100,000 monsters, so it made sense that the third floor had a space that was not comparable to the second floor. On the second floor, I had a map of it drawn in my head and could go around it with ease, but it was impossible to do that on the third floor.

It's not just that. The number of rooms and passages also increased. At the end of such rooms were treasure chests.

But annoyingly, most of them are Mimics.

"Apart from knowing that they are Mimics, at first sight, you can also skewer them from top to bottom in one blow. You're amazing, Captain."

"It's because you're weak."

"Sheesh."

I was teasing him. Lee Chan-yu was strong. After recovering his health and strength, he fought without hesitation against intermediate monsters on the third floor using his outstanding energy and recovery power.

He wants to achieve evolution.

"As far as I know, no one has ever succeeded in evolution. However, if it is possible for a monster, it will be possible for a Fallen. I will surely be the first."

"I am the first."

"Damn!"

Our fighting styles matched quite well. He uses speed and resilience as an infighter who rushes without fear into the crowd, while I pick off a group of monsters one by one using Fairy Tale and Surprise, until there's no more left.

He charges and grabs attention while I finish them off.

However, there were two problems.

First. My abilities, especially the Surprise skill, was far higher than that of the intermediate monsters on the third floor and Lee Chan-yu. After killing a monster with a Surprise Attack, I could immediately disappear again for another strike. Thus, Lee Chan-yu didn't really need to draw the monsters' attention for me. I could annihilate everything alone.

Second. On Earth, with the concept of guilds and parties, experience and gold are shared when a monster is killed as a group.

However, there was a skill necessary to form a party.

Leadership.

Since I cannot place Lee Chan-yu under my Leadership skill, the 'colleague' dynamic, we have does not work effectively. No matter how much someone contributed to killing a monster, the one who dealt the final blow gets all the experience and gold.

Temporarily, I suggested to Lee Chan-yu to place me under his Leadership, but he opposed it and said it was impossible. It was impossible for a person with an Advanced level of Leadership skill to be under someone with a Lower Leadership.

If he and I could be linked through Leadership, we both would have grown more, but it was simply impossible right now.

In the end, what we could do is get him to hunt alone within my range of Detection.

Lee Chan-yu had the ability to survive on the third floor, except when the number of monsters is too large, where his recovery could not sustain the damage he's taking.

Therefore, I only support him during dangerous moments, and we hunt separately most of the time.

With that, we explored the spacious 3F. I thought that would be enough, and in the first few days, it certainly seemed so.

But it was not enough.

[Level Up!]

"Lee Chan-yu, you told me you could become strong with me."

"I'm getting stronger, too. But you're getting stronger too fast!"

I was getting impatient as Lee Chan-yu's level struggled to keep up.

Of course, there was a difference in our experiences. He must have lived a desperate existence as I did, but when it comes to hunting in dungeons, I am ahead of him.

There wasn't much difference between his level and mine when we first met, but when I reached Level 75, he was only around Level 65.

Of course, the annihilation of the Phoenix Hunters is a big factor in my level increase, but the gap shouldn't have been this great.

I thought hard about it and decided there was one main difference in our hunting.

Sleep.

I have Predation and a high level of resistance to abnormalities. Since I opened my eyes as a goblin, I have never slept. I kept going around all the time to hunt monsters. It was natural that I would level up faster than Lee Chan-yu.

But think about it. Was it only Predation and Resistance that could wipe out fatigue instantly?

No. There was something else.

Reaching a level up.

I could not ask him not to sleep because he doesn't have Predation, but wouldn't reaching Level Up alleviate all fatigue and injuries he sustained?

When I explained it to him, he was stunned.

"Is that possible?"

"At least, you can expect all physical fatigue to be gone."

"But… it must be hard not to sleep. It's not that simple."

"It is simple."

Lee Chan-yu looked at me with a blank face; then his expression distorted as if he realized something.

It reminded me of L's reaction the other day.

The only thing that differed was that it was a beautiful woman the other day, and now I am facing a werewolf.

"Does that mean that… Captain, you haven't slept all this time?"

"Don't pity me. Because from now on, you won't be sleeping, too."

"Is it really possible?"

"Sure."

Of course, it was a simple matter for me because I had Predation. I could overcome physical fatigue simply by eating the monsters.

With Lee Chan-yu, even without Predation, he could probably level up once every three days. Three days were short enough to endure without sleeping, especially for an intermediate monster like a werewolf.

"The only reason you're still sleeping is because your habits remain human. We are not human. Monsters don't sleep for at least three or four days. So, you should be fine."

"… I must be determined."

We were not only fighting monsters, but we are also fighting time. The fear of not knowing when a strong human will enter the dungeon and the obsession to become stronger before that happened consumed us.

With that, Lee Chan-yu proved that he could withstand without sleeping. From then on, his level up rate also increased.

"My body is not sleepy, but my mind wants to sleep… Damn it."

"You'll get used to it in a month or so. Just focus on leveling up."

"I absolutely don't want to become like you. It's unbelievable that you were once human."

I laughed thinly at his words. Incidentally, I was thinking the same thing these days.

3F is big. Moreover, there are a lot of requirements to complete the quest. I couldn't finish it or make great progress in a day or two, like on 1F or 2F.

I had to catch 100,000 normal monsters and 20,000 top species. It would take around 83 days, even if I hunt one monster per minute.

Of course, I can kill a monster in a minute, but including the time it took to search for monsters, it was too much.

At first, I numb mindedly complied with the task. But as my level increased and I become more familiar with the intermediate monsters that appear on 3F, my thoughts changed.

We're wasting time.

That thought echoed louder as I watched Lee Chan-yu, who began to get stronger quickly after giving up sleep. There is a significant difference in abilities between him and me, but due to the limit of the number of monsters that could fit in one space, we always end up killing the same number of monsters per day.

With my abilities, it was possible to kill a monster at a rate of not only one per minute, but even one per five seconds. Why should I stay on the third floor for three months?

I could not allow it to happen. Such wasted time may prove to be nooses on our necks in the future.

But what could we do?

I only came to one conclusion.

A mass appearance.

I consulted it with Lee Chan-yu. He has achieved Level 70 and has become quite confident in his own strength, but he suddenly showed weakness after listening to me.

"I haven't heard of anything that could artificially cause mass appearance… and bear in mind that these are all intermediate monsters!"

"But we can't keep doing this. We have to get stronger faster. Lee Chan-yu, didn't you say you are determined?"

"Damn in… Let's do it!"

There is only one way to cause a mass appearance – killing many monsters in a short time.

And Lee Chan-yu had a skill that was most suitable for this.

War Cry.

A skill possessed by wolf monsters, especially werewolves, that arouses hostility from enemies.

However, it was a skill that was absolutely prohibited in dungeons. The effect of invoking the enemies is too dangerous.

Even at a Beginner level, War Cry could summon all monsters within a few hundred meters. The Werewolf Fallen even call this skill 'suicide'.

It wasn't a skill I could be envious of.

Lee Chan-yu's War Cry is already at an Intermediate level.

The cry spreads farther, and more monsters would flock to it.

When all those summoned monsters are killed, the mass appearance will occur, and more monsters will come.

After hearing the disturbance, more monsters will flock around the area where the mass appearance occurred, and if a lot of them are killed, another mass appearance will occur.

It would continue until the third floor runs out of monsters.

Everything can be dealt with in one place.

This makes it possible to catch tens of thousands of monsters at once.

"That's perfect."

"Then, it's perfect. Shall we pick our coffins in advance?"

When we met, Lee Chan-yu had a very serious demeanor, but now, he knows how to joke around.

He must have been a humorous and warm man.

I like it this way rather than getting someone who was dull and boring like me.

I laughed and tapped on his shoulder.

Then he snarled with his sharp teeth.

He let out a long, loud howl.

An Intermediate War Cry Lv7 howl that rang far and wide inside 3F.

The monsters around us have already been killed, so there was no immediate response.

I prepared myself and maximized my Detection.

Soon, I felt the ground vibrating weakly.

Thump. Thump. Du Du Du Du Du Du Du Du Du Du Du Du Du Du Du Du Du Du Du Du Du Du Du Du Du Du Du Du Du Du Du Du Du Du Du Du Du Du Du Du Du Du Du

The dungeon's vibrations are getting more intense. The Ebon Heart matched its pace.

They are coming.

"Damn, this is amazing. Captain, if I die…"

"Lee Chan-yu, don't assume death."

If we don't kill them all, we die.

But we don't have to think about death. We should not think of death.

"We are going to kill them all. We will survive and be stronger. No one can ignore us. No one will attempt to hunt us."

"Ha, damn it. That sounds impossible. But I'm starting to get excited."

Hundreds and thousands of monsters are getting closer, flocking from everywhere.

I quietly grabbed Blood Shadow with my left hand.

Lee Chan-yu adjusted his armor, then snarled and pulled out his claws.

The battle is coming.

The battle that will make us stronger.

Chapter 54: 3F Breakthrough (2)

Demon King

3F Breakthrough (2)

There were flying monsters on the third floor. Giant vampire bats, floating wriggling ones with large eyes, and even giant moths.

The first ones to arrive after the War Cry was these flying monsters. Since most of them have the ability to attack from a distance, it was annoying to deal with them along with the monsters on the ground.

Therefore, as soon as they appeared in my field of vision, I fired several daggers at them and caught them in traps. The traps consumed by-products from the monsters that were overflowing on the third floor.

"Kii!"

"The main herd is coming, Captain. Move fast!"

"I know!"

As I swung my Blood Shadow using one hand, another hand held a long, black lightning bolt that made a crackling sound in the air.

It was a new ability that emerged when Black Lightning reached the Intermediate level. Not only could I shoot black bolts, but I could wield it in the form of a whip.

I hit the floor and ran, swinging the hip. It caught the monsters that fell to the floor and dragged them to the direction I was running to.

Then, I charged Black Lightning on them and slashed at them with Blood Shadow.

"Kii Eik!"

Blood Flame and Power Attack, plus the new speed gained from annihilating the Phoenix hunters!

To use both skills at the same time, the consumption of stamina and mana was extreme, but it was not that bad for me.

"Kick!"

I swung a long sword horizontally. The flaming blood flying in the air was an energy that even intermediate monsters would find difficult to touch.

The Blood Shadow possessed terrible power. Combined with Black Lightning and the strength of a bugbear, all the monsters within the horizontal orbit the sword made lost their lives.

[You gained 23,600 experience.]

[You acquired 25 silver.]

As more monsters surrounded me, I activated Surprise and Fairy Tale. All their attacks missed their aim. Projectiles that come too close get slashed down by Blood Shadow.

I picked out a monster that looked moderately delicious and bit off its head, before quickly hiding again.

Only the screaming of my victims gave a clue to where I was.

Each moment, one of them dies again.

I have no intention to rest.

"Kiyii"

"Kiik, Kikik!"

Attack, predate, hide. The secret to constantly accumulating death counts without getting attacked is that simple.

One more thing. I have Detection. All my senses are improved, easily searching for gaps in the monsters around me.

I could grasp and respond to their movements, their attacks, their evasion – everything.

Traps continue to pop up and immobilize enemies within my sight's reach.

There is no need to imbue lethal power on the traps. Tie their feet, and in the next moment, cut their throats!

"Quaah quaah!"

"Captain! Armored Bear!"

"To your left!"

The ground monsters who made the dungeon floor vibrate has come. They were covered with hardened pelts, which attacks could not break through. In fact, it even hurts to hit them.

Of course, they have weaknesses. The back, head, and their necks are hard, but there are spots around their belly button which were not hardened. You could shove a sword into it and burst the creature's heart.

The moment they appeared, I hit the floor with Beast Charge. They broke through the wall and were running directly at Lee Chan-yu.

Lee Chan-yu was running to the left, as I instructed. His feet were glowing with silver light as if he had activated skills to increase his speed.

If I didn't help him, he would be crushed soon. I quickly brought up the inventory.

There were ten consumable items called Devil's Hooks. They are items I received upon evolving into a bugbear, and its description was extremely simple.

Creates a sharp hook on the floor and grabs a monster's ankles.

I used monster by-products and two demon hooks and created a trap in the path of the armored bear group while killing monsters that flocked around me.

The group of the armored bears and Lee Chan-yu collided.

With his tackle, some of the bears got thrown in the air, like cartoon characters.

The rest of the group got caught in the trap I set up, causing them to stumble upon each other.

Now, it's time for me to finish them off.

However, the number of monsters surrounding me was by no means small. While I sprinkled traps to support Lee Chan-yu, I got fully surrounded.

If I focused on these monsters around me, Lee Chan-yu would suffer serious damage from the bears.

But I know what to do.

"Hoo!"

Using Lower level Fantasy Magic, I created an illusion of my image standing at my spot, and with Fairy Tale, I hid, melting into the illusion I created.

Then, when all the monsters charged at the illusion, I escaped using the full Leap and Beast Rush.

[Lower Fantasy Magic has become Lv9.]

"Kia ahhh!"

By the time they have realized that they have been tricked, I was already at the armored bear group.

A trap that used Lunatic Trickster was also installed in the place where my illusion stood, so they were immobilized for a while.

The various skills I used are gradually increasing in level as I use them.

"Arghh, they keep coming! Let's finish this quickly!"

I swung Blood Shadow. There can be no failure with my attack.

Advanced Detection and Martial Arts are making my movements sharper and deadlier!

Since these monsters seem to be never-ending, my movements had to be quick and accurate.

[You gained 27,810 experience.]

[You acquired 31 silver.]

[You gained 29,708 experience.]

[You acquired 34 silver.]

"Fuck it! Yes, everyone, come one!"

Lee Chan-yu's eyes burned fiercely. His nails and legs were covered with a more intense glow.

His desire to win was as strong as his abilities. As I continued to reduce the number of monsters without much difficulty, he seemed to have the idea that he was doing it all on his own.

"Kohohohohohoh!"

He was different from the first time I met him when he was passive towards the idea of hunting intermediate monsters.

He thought it was impossible, but he changed. That's why I liked him.

"Go take a mana potion, I'll drive them away!"

"I trust you, Captain!"

The werewolf roared fiercely. It was so fierce that even the armored bears could not help but tremble!

I smiled and lifted Blood Shadow. While I finished them off, I detected a group of other intermediate monsters approaching.

One by one, they were no match for me.

Against hundreds or thousands, a little moment of carelessness will end up with fangs on my neck.

In the past, I have cursed myself for creating such a situation. But now, I knew better.

It's not just this dungeon that I have to fight.

Even at this moment, there are unknown enemies outside the dungeon who wanted to bite my neck.

As soon as I'm satisfied with my power, as soon as I rested, I'll fall into a pit and never get up again.

In order to survive, I have to keep risking my life to get stronger.

It's really a paradox, but that is my life now as a monster.

This tension and fear make me stronger and faster.

I dashed. Every movement was infused with Leap and Beast Charge.

It would be more exciting if other monsters had skills that assist them in movements, too.

I smiled bitterly at the thought.

After this mass appearance is over, I could definitely get another skill or two that I can use.

With that in mind, I kept swinging Blood Shadow.

And time passed.

[Predation after hunting regular monsters in Black Palace 3F 100,000/100,00]

[Predation after hunting high-level species in Black Palace 3F 20,000/20,000]

I can't help but feel proud as the two notification windows announced my accomplishment.

In fact, the chain of mass appearances didn't even end long after I reached the quest requirement, so it was a bit of a disadvantage that I had to continue moving instead of devouring the enemies.

But finally, the third floor was quiet.

Now, I have finished predating the last horde of monsters. It was a pleasant coincidence that I achieved two of the quests at the same time.

"Captain, did you eat them all?"

"Didn't you see it?"

"But… there were hundreds, thousands…"

"You kept moving and didn't see it. I even ate about 70,000 in one seating."

"That's impossible! I only ate seven, and my stomach is bursting!"

Lee Chan-yu is also a monster who didn't hesitate to eat monster meat.

However, without Predation, he could only get a feeling of fullness and nutrition.

He could even get poisoned unless his Resistance could make up for it.

"Hoo. Imagine. I survived."

Lee Chan-yu mumbled to himself in disbelief.

Then, his eyes began to droop.

"I don't know how long we've been fighting without sleeping."

"The hour hand rotated a little over thirteen laps."

"So, you mean, for over six days now, I have been swinging my claws through intestines and screaming my War Cry?"

"Something like that, yes."

I swung Blood Shadow, soaking up the river of blood flowing in all directions.

This battle was nothing compared to what I experienced on the first floor of Jinma Tower.

We were greatly outnumbered, but I was fully in control. All I had to do was keep swinging my sword.

"Lee Chan-yu, are you ready now?"

"I just need to rest a little…"

"Then, let's go."

"I need a little rest!"

Lee Chan-yu complained loudly, but he stood up, nevertheless.

"There must be a reason why you wanted to move again so quickly. What is it?"

"Simple."

[Predation after hunting rare species in Black Palace 3F 0/500]

"We've cleared the 3F, but we still haven't encountered a single rare species. Obviously, they must be in an area that we haven't figured out yet. In order to find it, we must move now while the dungeon is empty."

"Rare higher-level species…"

Lee Chan-yu seemed to be mumbling to himself, agonizing.

Then, he nodded and clenched his fists.

"Oh, it doesn't matter. I can catch them."

We ran down the third floor.

It didn't take long for a monster to get caught in my Advanced Detection.