Shun POV:
[You have slain the Boss Monster.]
[Due to the Imminence Reaver’s summon, the clear conditions have changed.]
[You have cleared the dungeon.]
I ignored the Dungeon System messages and threw the Boss’s thin blade into my inventory. The dark purple cloak followed, along with any other accessories left behind.
A small part of the tunnel wall crumbled, revealing a hidden door underneath. My HP had less than 1/4 remaining, but I wasn’t satisfied yet.
‘...’
I wiped the blood from my nose and mouth. The pain, soreness, and haziness didn’t interrupt the focus needed for the next step of the plan.
15 minutes.
That was how long I had before this Dungeon Clear turned into a Dungeon End: a process that implodes the dungeon, destroying everything within it.
I kicked the double doors open and welcomed the hundreds of Reavers waiting for me on the other side. Yemral stood at the front when my eyes swivelled toward a sword pressed against my neck.
“Shun... You’re not that smart.”
I ripped the blade out of Averis’s hand and dashed it to the side. Hanzo’s Blade V4 replaced the weapon she once held after I removed my ownership from the Ki Artifact.
“I’ll take it off your dead body when I come back.”
“Yo—“
Averis looked down at the black katana before bowing her head.
“...Thanks. And Yemral... it is okay. I... will not leave you, m-my love...”
The tension in Yemral’s arm diminished at the words of his lover coming back to her senses. His glowing violet eyes gazed at her with a hidden affection that made Averis turn her body to the side.
‘Good.’
A smile spread across my lips.
‘Very good.’
Why use one Reaver when I can use eight?
They were much better than those Tunnelmen in every way. With Yemral’s hidden strength and Averis’s Ki Stage surpassing what I can sense, killing them would make me stronger.
I chucked the Power Gauntlet V4 to Yemral. He caught it and examined the black Ki Artifact in silence.
[Ki Artifact: Charging Armour V8 (Super Rare)
Ownership: Mumu
Durability: 270/300
Description: The 8th iteration from the Charging Armour Series. It boasts deadly offensive and defensive capabilities.
• When utilised with attack combinations, all damage is doubled within a 10-metre radius.
• When struck, the Armour is charged. Once there are 8 charges, the owner can release a Charging Strike! (Cooldown: 5 minutes)
• When struck, defence significantly increases for 1 minute. (Cooldown: 2 minutes)]
[Ki Artifact: Rapier of Silence (Unique)
Ownership: Ginzulo
Durability: 77/80
Description: It was made in complete silence and can only be wielded in the same manner.
• When used in the darkness, all damage is doubled.
• Consecutive silent techniques create a Silence Barrier that destabilises the target’s mind and will temporarily increase all physical attributes of the owner. (Cooldown: 3 minutes)]
[Ki Artifact: Pini’s Rapier V36 (Legend)
Ownership: Zemula
Durability: 90/120
Description: It is the 36th iteration of Pini’s Rapier Series and was made with tender care and dedication. It boasts tremendous power and speed.
• When not thrown around by an amateur, accuracy and speed are significantly increased.
• When utilised with the Wind Ki Nature, all damage and speed is doubled.
• When utilised with the Earth Ki Nature, all damage and defence is doubled.
• Doubles the power of chain strikes within a 3-second window. (Cooldown: 30 seconds)
• A ‘Care Slash’ can be used after 5 precise strikes land on the target every 4 minutes. ‘Tender Care Slash’ becomes available once the maximum of 5 Care Slashes are stored.
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• When protecting someone, speed is enhanced further.]
....
Several other Ki Artifacts flew towards the Floor Bosses. They were useless to me now.
“All 8 of you resign from being Floor Bosses.”
The corners of my mouth rose even further at the Reavers, still in shock from the Ki Artifacts in their hands.
“We have 10 minutes, so learn well.”
‘Yemral, show me what you’re hiding!’
My instep shot toward Yemral’s neck when he dropped the blade. His body spun till the heel of his foot arrived in front of its target: my chin.
Four afterimages blocked the escape routes within that split-second window. It was an enclosure that ensured Yemral’s strike would land. This damn monster wasn’t just suppressing himself; he was working on rectifying several flaws the Imminence Reaver had.
In other words, he was planning on becoming the next Boss Monster.
“Human… This will hurt.”
“You can do better.”
“!”
The hidden currents of air underneath my Troll Clothes sped up my movements before his strike could land. Blasts of air formed gusts of wind that pushed away the afterimages. Yemral flew back into the crowd of Reavers but chose not to close the gap.
“Ki Sense. The more you focus on stabilising the mental imagery you’ve formed, the less likely you are to notice the movements of the target.”
In my initial fight with Yemral, emotions had clouded his judgement. Brute strength wasn’t the reason why the other Reavers were wary of him. He was a tactician.
“Averis would have dodged that attack, Yemral. What you lack is the utility of your Wind Ki Nature.”
He got back to his feet and let out a deep breath.
“…What should I do?”
It was as I expected.
Yemral’s entire existence revolved around keeping Averis safe. Even though I told him the truth, the statement hinted at incompetence; his incompetence to protect his lover. So he would lower himself again and ask for help. This cemented my superior position in the eyes of the Reavers watching, so the Floor Bosses would follow Yemral's example.
10 minutes later, I observed each of their tremendous growth.
“Good.”
I spun around and walked off. Everything that needed to be done had been taken care of.
“Shun... What is your goal?”
I glanced back at Yemral’s unreadable Ki wrapped around his concealed frame. His glowing violet eyes stared into mine, seeking a different answer for the training he had received.
“To kill a Ravendawn, not some weak Reavers.”
I stepped through the gate without looking back and cleared the dungeon.
...
..
.
[You have gained a new title: ‘Dungeon Maniac.’]
***
“You’re about to break through to Shin.”
Phoebe’s cheeks rose the moment I entered Yeongyeol.
“Yeah.”
I placed a pouch of gold on the counter to cover the rent for a month and walked off.
“When you do, join my party. Okay??”
Phoebe’s words fell on deaf ears; my mind was only focused on the ability Shin would allow me to create. The versatility of Ki in this world meant that not even the sky was the limit.
I reached my room and locked the door behind me. My Troll clothes flew to the side, leaving me in my black vest. I sat down in the lotus position and closed my eyes.
I was ready.
The word ‘Uso’ meant ‘lie’ in Japanese. ‘Shin’ meant ‘death.’ No matter how hard I thought about it, I failed to reach a satisfactory conclusion on what the link between the two Ki Stages could be.
Why would a ‘lie’ come before ‘death?’
I continued to meditate on this question. A likely answer that I had dismissed was the calm before the storm, but those that had reached Shin didn’t seem any different mentally.
Could it be a physical death?
This was another world. It wouldn’t be too far-fetched; however, I didn’t like that hypothesis, so I lowered its ranking to ‘least likely.’
Every breakthrough to the next Ki Stage strengthened the body, refined Ki Channels, and increased Ki Reserves. The specific amount differed for every individual.
This wasn’t a damn game where attributes could be represented by numbers.
I pushed those thoughts aside, prioritising further designs on the ability I would create. My consciousness sank deeper with time until I saw my own two feet.
“?”
I looked around, but the only thing that looked back was darkness. A white bar dropped into view; it stretched, growing in size in a vertical direction.
“What the...?”
I could see myself in the white window. It formed a clear picture: two hands pushed Amelia out of the way of an incoming truck.
“UGH!!!”
Once it smashed into me, death washed over my body. It stripped away the strength I had built up. I gripped my head in denial. That... truck didn’t kill me, yet in that moment, I died.
Another screen sprouted from the depths of the abyss. It showed the same truck crushing my body into a pile of mushy flesh in the hospital room.
This time, I screamed.
Pain recreated with a stunning accuracy that replicated the neurons, transmitting it to my brain. It made my eyes widen. It made my fingers dig into the sides of my head.
“What the h-hell... is... this...”
I looked away, not wanting to see that memory replay again. Blood trickled out of my nose when something even worse greeted me.
Chloe’s bright fuchsia eyes peered down at my body, beaten till the last breath left it. They curved upwards, making my arms quake while she stared through my soul.
“I... I... STAY BACK!!!”
I stumbled away. I squeezed my hands against my head in an attempt to hold it together—to stop this feeling of being split apart.
“Keuk!!”
No matter where I looked, the white windows multiplied. They showed me death in different forms: dungeon runs, Chloe, dungeon runs, Chloe, Chloe, Chloe, Chloe.
I flopped to the ground and closed my eyes to stop the assault, but it made no difference in the end.
The truck crushed me to death again.
The soldiers beat me to death again.
I succeeded in suffocating myself.
I succeeded in drowning myself in my own blood.
I failed to survive the excruciating pain of the poison I had made.
Chloe slapped me to death again. She resuscitated my body via mouth to mouth and then... and then...
My mind fragmented.
I...
Who?...
Me.
I... thought I conquered the fear she had etched into my body. The trauma that she had drilled into my mind.
But.
My own screams popped my eardrums. Blood splashed everywhere. Bloodshot eyes locked onto an arm... my arm.
I ripped the flesh off with my own fingers.
“Kill. Kill. Kill. Kill.”
Saliva dripped down the sides of my mouth as I mumbled the only words I could to stay sane.
“I’LL KILL YOU!!!”
The memories didn’t stop. They continued to destabilise me further, breaking down what little remained of self.
They almost succeeded.
But they...
Underestimated my desire for revenge. I crawled through the darkness. I dragged myself forward despite there being nothing ahead.
“Kill. Kill. Kill.”
All of my focus was concentrated on that one word. That was how I survived what felt like weeks of torment and torture.
A white light formed in the far distance. I didn’t know if it was a mirage, but it didn’t matter.
“Kill. Kill. Kill.”
I crawled toward it. My fingers were dyed dark red from a trail left behind along the black ground. A scarlet filter changed the colour of the light, but its intensity still grew whenever I slid forward.
The curtains turned black.
Both my hearing and sight had been taken away from me. The nerves around my mouth soon refused to send signals to my brain. Numbness made the body feel like a corpse.
I lost the sense of touch.
All that remained was the metallic smell of blood. The movement that had brought me this far had already become a habit; I knew I was inching closer to the light.
‘Kill. Kill. Kill.’
Minutes crawled by, or maybe it was hours. The smell of blood drew further away, replaced with a sensation of weightlessness. Light ripped the curtains aside, blinding me as I fell through it.
This was Shin.