The beetle rustled when a creature entered its chamber. It was cozying and nesting, preparing to attract its mate that would never come. However, the weird creature disturbed its sleep. The creature was bizarre, as if several other creatures were sewn into it. It has the legs and arms of a goblin, yet it has the mouth of a wolf.

The creature brandished its axe. It ran at a dizzying speed and slammed its axe towards the beetle. Only for the axe to be repelled like a basketball hitting a wall. The beetle suddenly had an unimaginable surge of hatred toward the creature when it saw him. It had registered the creature as an enemy that needed to be vanquished at all costs.

Stone beetle was the toughest creature in this dungeon floor. With its hard carapace, no weapons could harm it. It also had a fast charging speed. Some might think that such creatures should not be on the first floor where all beginners gather. However, it has two fatal weaknesses. When charging, it couldn’t turn, and when it was turned upside down, it was essentially helpless.

However, this dungeon has a flat floor. It was unlikely to be tipped over. James’ purpose was the key. He gave up attacking it with his axe when he saw that his axe didn’t even scratch its carapace. So, after he dodged its powerful charge, he ran to the wall and stole the key while the beetle struggled to get its head out of the wall.

The charge was so powerful that it broke the wooden door and cracked the wall before it. James felt as if a speeding car had gone past him when he dodged the creature. Then, the game of chase began. James was not the sharpest tool in the shed. The corridor was a straight line and was perfect for the beetle to run him over. James ran with all of its might when he heard a clicking sound the beetle made when it dug its leg into the floor. Luckily, even with his inferior limbs, he managed to reach the treasure chest room before the beetle made a kebab out of him with its horn.

The beetle went past him like a bull that sought out its matador. Now that he had the key, it was time to open the chest before him.

James was about to open the chest. But another epiphany came to him. He was one of the employees who liked to find loopholes in the rule. The beetle was strong. If James could kill it, He might get some useful parts out of it, like its carapace, legs, or horns. He wondered if he could use this unopened treasure chest as a weapon.

And so, James prepared his trap. He peeked outside the room only to find that the beetle was coming at him. The beetle was a monster, and their purpose was to kill survivors. It took over five minutes for the beetles to reach the room. James sat on the treasure chest, smirking as if taunting the bug to attack him.

Following its instinct, the creature lowered its horned head. Its chitinous shell gleamed against the flickering light of the torches. Its legs scratched the rough cobblestone. Its prized horn was aimed at the hateful creature before it. When it slammed its legs to the cobblestone, it began to charge.

Like a rhino, it stampedes toward James. It didn’t know that it was all according to plan. James ducked down behind the treasure chest. He was prepared to dodge in case the beetle destroyed the chest. It was an unnecessary worry. A flash of purple light enveloped the chest, and the beetle was blown away by the purple barrier. Similar to what happened with James’s axe, the beetle was blown away like a ping-pong ball.

James was fortunate. After the beetle hit the wall, it bounced back a few times before landing on its back. Its soft underbelly was in full view. James took the chance immediately. He laughed and raised his axe overhead.

Due to his new arm, the force diminished, but there was nothing more satisfying than cutting flesh with an axe. The blade dug into the thin carapace. Its mandible clicked in pain and frustration. However, there is nothing it can do. It knew that once it was flipped over, it was finished.

Soon, life diminished from its eye, and James got the system message he had been waiting for.

[Do you wish to modify your body? y/n]

[Available body part:

Beetle horn (extra slot)

]

James wondered whether he could coat himself with its carapace. However, that does not seem to be the case for the carapace was not on the list. James wanted that horn but wondered whether it would actually be useful.

“System, can I throw away body parts in extra slots?”

[Affirmative. You can discard any body parts with your Chimera skill. Not just your extra slot.]

“Alright! Let us try the beetle horn!” Motes of light disintegrated the beetle’s corpse, and a solid 30-centimeter horn arose on James’ forehead. The horn gleamed with black luster. If people saw how James looked like now, the words that could describe him would not be human but demons.

“How many coins did I have? What’s the next upgrade?” knowing the system will answer, James began to talk with it as a way to fight his loneliness. He was an introvert, so he didn’t talk much to begin with. But without his phone, loneliness began to creep in.

[You now have 90 coins. You can upgrade your Beginner Axe mastery level 4 to level 5 for 100 coins, or you can upgrade your War Axe into Lightning War Axe for 500 coins, or you can upgrade your Chimera skill for 1000 coins.]

The narrative has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

“I can upgrade my chimera skill? What does it give me?” James was stunned. He didn’t know the shop function could be so useful.

[Skill previews are not available. Please purchase the upgrade first.]

“You’ve got to be kidding me!” James was furious. He felt scammed. He never felt so baited. He was an avid gacha gamer. And he always previewed the character he was aiming for. However, the system was not so kind. He had to go through this trial blind.

[Would you like to see your stats? y/n]

“Not yet. I want to open the chest first.”

James fit the key in the chest. The key fits the chest like a glove. A satisfying click was heard when James turned the medieval key. Before opening the chest, James took some unnatural position, took some distance and opened it with the tip of his axe. It has become a habit at this point. The first encounter with the snake haunted him every time he saw a chest now.

His worry was in vain, for nothing came out of the chest now. Inside was a helmet and a sheathed dagger. Like his leather armor, the helmet was made perfectly for him because there was a hole in the forehead. in fact, James wondered if it was a set. However, the dagger was another thing.

[Waterspout dagger:

A dagger that was crafted by an ancient water mage. It was made for adventurers to fulfill their greatest need when adventuring, water. When Mana is put into it, it will spout water suitable for drinking. Its use greatly declined when mage adventurers were in decline.]

[Leather helmet]

[Water pouch]

Thanks to the lesser mana core, James had Mana. This dagger was a godsend. He was thirsty. Drinking animal blood sustained him for now, but he realized he wouldn’t last long without actual water. When he directed his Mana into it, water started to trickle, and he drank it with gusto.

Like drinking from a straw, he sucked and licked from the tip of knives. However, a few minutes later, he felt exhausted and the water stopped. The system notified him of the cause not even a second later.

[Mana depleted.]

Although capable of using magic, James only had the mana capacity of a goblin. It had low capacity. However, he had a water pouch now. He could simply wait for his Mana to recover and store the water in his pouch.

“My status, please.”

[Name: James

Age: 35

Sex: male

Levels: 7

Coins: 90

Stats:

STR: 48

Dex: 39

Magic: 0

Mana: 0

Skills:

* Beginner Axe mastery level 4

Unique Skill:

* Chimera:

* Goblin stomach (Iron guts) (stomach slot)

* Lesser Mana core (Fire spell, Magic+10, Mana +50)(Extra slot 1)

* Lesser Wolf fang (Str+5)(mouth slot)

* Goblin legs (dexterity -30% (leg slot)

* Goblin hands (Str -30%) (Hand slot)

* Stone beetle’s horn (Str +5) (Extra slot) (new!)

Equipment:

* Leather armor (damaged)

* Leather helmet

* War axe

* Leather pouch

* Waterspout dagger

* Leather bag

]

He was miffed about the arms and legs. But he had no choice at the time. He continued on his march. The winding corridor ended up back in the hall, where James met the horde of goblins. James sighed at the absurdity of this dungeon design.

“Who would design a castle like this…” James chuckled. James forgot that dungeons are made by the system. They are made not for convenience or functionality of humans, but to test survivors. So, the shape and design will vary, and it will be full of surprises.

After carving an X on both doors that James had ventured, he now had 6 more doors. He crossed the path where the goblins had come before since he believed that place would only lead to the survivor’s other starting point.

James wondered which path he should continue. He could simply gamble and pick any doors at random. However, his gaze wandered at the door the woman ran off to, he wanted to follow the place where that woman went, but he hesitated. If she was alive, she would definitely attack him. His form now was that of a monster.

He decided to open the left door, subconsciously trying to get away from that door. James sighed. That woman did the right thing, but leaving James alone with a horde of goblins left a bitter taste in his mouth. Nevertheless, fate ran another course, for this path ended with another treasure chest guarded by two goblins.

“Dead end, huh?” James muttered. However, he got a treasure chest! And killing the two goblins netted him another 10 coins.

After posing lowly and getting a bit further, he opened the chest. Several coins appeared for a while, and they soon disintegrated into motes of light.

[ You have obtained 50 coins.]

“Alright. What’s my total coins?”

[You have 150 coins in total.]

“you said before I could upgrade my axe skills, right?”

[Would you like to upgrade your Beginner Axe mastery to level 5 for 100 coins?]

“yes.” James nodded. He lived in the present. Axe mastery made him more proficient with the axe. He could feel it. He wanted to upgrade his axe and chimera skill too, but since he didn’t know whether he would get another coins, he decided to spend it now.

[ Beginner Axe mastery upgraded to level 5. A new weapon skill is unlocked. Power strike]

“What’s a skill?” James tilted his head. He knew about skills from gaming, but he didn’t know how it would apply in the real world.

[ skills are gained when survivors have gained sufficient levels. For weapon skills, it will be gained when survivors have gained sufficient mastery in the said weapon.]

“how do I use these skills?”

[Simply imagine yourself using the skill. The system will help survivors with skill execution.]

James closed his eyes. When he imagined what a power strike shot would be, his axe blazed with blue light. James looked at his axe, astounded. The light soon vanished as if it wasn’t there. The skills will be canceled if James breaks his focus.

James took a stance while imagining his new skill. He could feel his skills activating. Power alien to him gathered on his hand. This time, he didn’t let go of his focus. Searching for a target, he aimed his skill at the wall.

His arm moved by itself, the light of the skill guided the way. With a booming sound, like a comet, his axe traced the wall. The wall cracked and gave in. A wide gash was left in its wake. James looked at the result of his skill stupefied.

“Epic!” James snickered. His gait widened when he left the room. He felt like that protagonist who just got a super deadly finisher move.

Little did he know that he would get humbled soon.