I wasn’t a frontline fighter, so I scrambled for cover. But, that left Ben as the only one with the capacity to weather aggro.

He fought valiantly, but the gap between monster and man was just too vast. Within the first exchange, he lost a third of his HP. A moment later, his health meter dipped into the red as the monster won a glancing hit with its chains.

Nicola chipped in at that moment, raising a tentacle around the monkey. The scout captain barked orders, and her three surviving companions enacted a well-practiced maneuver. They dashed around the stone spikes and the trees, shooting a plethora of arrows.

All of the normal arrows bounced off the monster’s hardened fur without the slightest effect on HP. The enhanced ones, however, sizzled with auras of magic. Loud booms erupted as the abilities collided with the beast, forcing it to stagger.

The Primal Dread Monkey's health dropped by about ten percent. But, with how large that health pool was, it barely even noticed.

The monster roared again, refreshing [Dismay]. It moved with lightning speed and grabbed a rock ball that had formed out of an arrow in midair. It launched the ball at a tree, obliterating a large stretch of the forest in a line.

An elf-woman scurried out of cover—the sole caster left among the Wood Elves. She activated her ability and sent stone spikes into the monster’s torso. It chased after her.

The scout captain appeared out of [Stealth] from behind them and swung her dual daggers into the monkey’s back. She did good damage by virtue of being the strongest ranker on our team. Though, good in this case didn’t mean much.

The monkey responded with a swipe of its tail, which left a sonic boom in its wake. The scout captain dodged by a hair’s breadth and fired an ice spear into its butt.

The monster shrieked and turned to face her, abandoning its pursuit of the earth user. Large hammer hands pummeled the ground around the scout. The great plumes of dust that followed obscured the duo, shrouding the outcome of the attack.

But, I hoped she escaped. Asshole or not, she was the lesser evil, and we needed all the help we could get against the monster.

The Primal Dread Monkey emerged from the dust, matted with dirt. This time, it settled on a new target: the fleeing Nicola.

Ben tossed an empty potion bottle aside and raised his sword over his head. He mumbled a technique beneath his breath.

Whatever he did sufficed to make the monkey abandon Nicola and race for him. He had drawn its aggro, somehow. A classic tank move. But, that was bad. Ben had used one health potion, which rendered him unable to drink another until six hours passed.

He avoided a head-on clash with the monkey, choosing instead to dodge and focus on staying alive. The Wood Elves supplied cover fire, but for all their efforts, the monkey's health meter remained at sixty percent.

Finally understanding my role in the fight, I imitated the scout captain and activated [Stealth]. Our eyes met as I did so, causing her to nod in approval.

We both crept to the thick of the fighting. The monkey had its back to us, bent as it was on tearing Ben to pieces.

This close to the beast, I could see the corded muscles ripple beneath its fur—feel the vibrations in the air left by the speed of its passing. Dust from its footfalls clogged my nose and throat, joining the sweat that threatened to blind my eyes.

The monkey moved so fast . . . I had trouble perceiving its actions. This was a fight I had no business partaking in; one that surpassed my pay grade and hazard allowance.

As if in accordance, the [System] offered another stack of Fear. But, with two stacks already wasted reversing the effects of the debuff, it didn’t do much to help.

Ben stumbled on the upturned earth, leaving him at the mercy of the monkey.

“Now, Dark Elf!” the scout captain hissed.

I was already moving.

We threw ourselves at the back of the Primal Dread Monkey, seeking purchase in the heels of its legs.

Even with The Blackreach Dagger’s unique ability, my attacks still felt no different from using a butter knife to cut through granite. The freaking ape also reacted much faster than anticipated. And, I’d earlier judged it to move at thrice my speed.

I weaved between its blows and tail swipes in a half daze, relying chiefly on instinct. Ben raised his sword again and activated the skill that forced the monkey to focus on him.

The scout captain and I took advantage of the respite. Our blades raked at the area beneath the monkey’s tail, leaving deep grooves in its HP. I didn’t do as much damage as she did, but goddamn it felt satisfying.

The monkey leaped five feet into the air at the triple pinpricks. It landed with an earth-shattering tremor that threw all three of us off our feet. Its powerful tail scythed the air, missing my head by inches, and slammed into the scout captain.

She became an imprint in a tree. Over half of her HP evaporated in that one hit. If the monkey had hit me instead . . .

I hesitated for a half moment, feet quaking in my boots.

“Damien, no!”

Ben tackled me out of the way of a large fist aimed at my head. It left us both at the mercy of the monkey, and I tensed up in anticipation of the strike. But then, a sturdy tentacle coiled around our limbs and threw us to safety.

The Primal Dread Monkey hissed in dissatisfaction and tugged a large stone spike free from the ground. I made myself scarce with [Stealth], leaving Ben to scamper away on his own.

An unfortunate elf peeked out of cover to take a shot, and the beast bifurcated her with the spike, tossing it as one would toss a javelin.

Ben screamed a challenge. The flames around his sword grew hotter and hotter until they threatened to consume him. Steam hissed from his skin, and he charged at the monster with all caution thrown to the wind. The monkey pivoted to engage him, and the scout captain surged out of the bushes, throwing an empty potion bottle behind her.

All three clashed with a series of dizzying blows that resounded across the forest. And, for the first time since the fight began, the Sophonts were winning. Ben and the elf fought in tandem, working with such sync that they seemed to have been married for years. Ben’s sword shrieked with righteous fury, spewing great gouts of flame each time it intercepted the monkey. The Wood Elf darted around them, winning critical strikes with her daggers.

Nicola and the surviving duo of snipers chipped in. I could only watch in stunned silence as they whittled away at the monster’s health. The giant health bar over the Primal Dread Monkey dipped to thirty percent.

If we could continue like this . . . If we could just win this game of attrition . . .

Ben stepped forward for a swing, but rather than a plume of flame, his sword released a weak sputter. He blinked out of his wrath-filled daze, only just realizing that he had run out of MP.

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The monster capitalized on the brief window. It raised its gigantic hands over its head and brought its palms together.

My ears exploded.

You have been struck with [Deafness]!

All sustained skills and abilities have been deactivated.

You are afflicted with [Dismay]!

Since this is already active, the duration has now been extended.

The Primal Dread Monkey continued forward, though I could barely hear it over the ringing in my ears. It punched Ben with a heavy fist, then swept the scout captain aside when she tried to intervene. The mild sweep blew another chunk out of her health. But, she vanished into the bushes, [Stealth] covering her movements.

The Primal Dread Monkey placed a heavy foot on Ben’s chest and wrenched the sword free from his grasp. It came away with his gauntlet and the entirety of his sleeve. Ben shrieked in agony from a dislocation to the shoulder; a wound made possible by the emptying of his health meter.

One more stomp was all it would take to finish him.

One more—

“Get your filthy hands off him!” Nicola screamed, recovering from the thunderclap faster than anyone else.

The tentacle that followed did little to bother the monkey. But, it provided a valuable window for the snipers to renew their attacks. A dark expression fell over the monkey’s face, and it rushed through the onslaught of missiles and rocks for the Wood Elves.

I dove out of its path and lashed out in passing with my dagger. However, it ignored me in favor of chasing after the elves.

The earth Mage managed to duck behind a timely wall of stone, but a ferocious punch sent it cascading around her. Her partner wasn’t so lucky. A single slap sent her head sailing into the trees.

The scout captain reappeared with an ice spear in her grasp. Tears and bloody murder painted her face. She targeted once more the region beneath the tail and sent the monkey springing with a yelp. She dodged the retaliatory strikes that followed, diverting attention away from her trapped teammate.

“Just you and me now, bastard,” the scout captain taunted, hacking out the words. Dirt sullied her face, lending her a maddened image when combined with her bulging eyes.

The primal ape pounded its chest. One long roar followed, then another, and then it darted forward in acceptance of the challenge.

If the scout captain fell now, there would be no one left to lead the assault. I had to assist her and provide damage support in the way she had done for Ben.

But, I was weak. Way too weak.

The Pyramid of Rebirth flashed in my mind’s eye, alongside the old man homunculus who had decided not to fight.

There are times to lay down your arms, Damien. And, there are times to fight.

This is one of them.

I put a single foot down in front of me—

Hey, it seems you are afraid!

+1 has been added to all stats.

The buff triggered a second notification:

[DEX] has now risen from Common to Greater.

You deal 4x base damage using [DEX]-based weapons.

You have gained the [Dual-wielding] perk.

Speed has risen by 2x!

Now, we’re talking!

I took a second step forward. And, a third. And then, I dashed toward the fight, calling shadows out of The Blackreach Dagger.

Rogues weren’t built for frontal assaults, a fact I knew from my experience with the class. The scout captain held her own despite that, using her incredible agility to compensate for her lack of durability. Nevertheless, the monster matched her movements: just as fast and three times as strong.

It swung its chain weapons, raising dust and leaving massive craters in the ground. It was only a matter of time before the scout captain made a mistake.

But, I intended to extend that window.

I ran up behind the monkey and scored a blow on its Achilles’ heel. It retaliated with a back kick. I danced out of reach.

The scout captain formed two duplicates to occupy the monkey's attention. They moved with daggers and minds of their own, tripling the damage she had been dealing.

Their deadly battle turned even more chaotic as all four fighters spun around, ripping into each other. I followed them regardless and slashed the monster’s heels from out of [Stealth] each time I saw an opportunity.

The monkey released a frustrated howl and stomped the ground. Vibrations rippled outward, jamming into my skull. All four of us lost our footing, and one clone stumbled into the monkey's path. She disappeared in a cloud of smoke the next second as a large fist separated her head from her shoulders.

The two scout captains tried to retreat, but the monkey whipped about like a top. Huge chains swept through the air, severing trees and tearing huge grooves into the ground. They sliced the clone into nothingness who pushed her creator aside to take the hit.

The scout captain rebounded with an ice lance, still maddened with rage. But, a backhand from the monkey sent her flying into the bushes.

She didn’t get up, assuming she still lived. But, considering the empty health meter, it was safe to assume that her role in the fight had ended.

I had to run. With everyone else beaten, Nicola and I were as good as dead.

But, I didn’t escape. Not even as the monkey roared into the sky and turned red eyes on me.

I matched its glare with a red-eyed stare of my own, making my last stand here in the forest. My arms betrayed my conviction, trembling so hard I almost dropped the dagger.

Hey! It seems you are afraid.

+1 has been added to all stats.

I chuckled at the message. With the fifth stack of [Fear], my Strength finally entered the Common tier. I could now hit for two times base damage thanks to that, in addition to the four times I got from Greater Dexterity.

I’d come a long way from the old Damien who only lived for his next meal. Even if I fell here, I’d experienced more in the past week than I had in twenty-five years of life.

The monster pounced.

I rolled aside with seconds to spare, but its arm still managed to clip me. The glancing blow propelled me into an earth spike and then onto the ground.

Blinding pain followed the sinking of my health meter. I fumbled around for a potion in my inventory. Thunderous footsteps indicated the monkey’s pursuit.

My fingers closed around the stopper of a health potion, but I'd run out of a chance to drink it. Fuck. I didn’t want to die. I didn't want to die, after all. But, the monkey loomed just behind me.

Nicola emerged from hiding, mage staff brimming with energy. A sigil expanded on the ground, right in the monkey’s path. The primal ape tried to halt its momentum, but the spell had already activated.

“Eat shit, asshole!” Nicola said.

Tentacles bloomed from the ground, as tall as houses and wriggling like worms. They battered the ape with the force of their rising and sent it tripping over itself. The tentacles closed around its limbs, tugging it to the ground. Might contested against might.

Nicola swooned, drained from the exertion of her mega spell. But, even her most powerful ability withered in the face of sheer brute force.

The primal ape struggled against its bonds, crushing the tentacles into motes of purple light. Its health meter emptied with a zing that echoed throughout the battlefield.

I dashed across the clearing.

The last ice spear formed by the scout captain lay where it had been abandoned. Frost radiated in a circle around it. I grabbed it in both hands and shivered as an unnatural chill bit into my skin.

If the elf could use this, then I could. We were both rogues, after all.

[Identify].

Spear of Indifference [Common].

A pure mana construct created from Apathy. Deals ice-based damage upon attack.

Note: This is a hybrid weapon.

Requirement: Common Strength or Dexterity.

I passed either requirement. And, judging from the text, it also benefited from [DEX]-based damage.

The Primal Dread Monkey turned as I approached. It destroyed the last of the tentacles in a terrific display of strength. Chain weapons swung for my head, but I had Greater Dexterity, baby. I could do this!

I somersaulted over a wild sweep and shoved the weapon deep up its pelvis.

The monster doubled over with a whimper. Warm blood showered my hand, clashing with the chill of the spear. I held its pained gaze, even as a hot breath gusted from its nostrils over my face.

“Look at me,” I said in a steady voice, ignoring the sweat falling over my eyelids. “That skill you use; the one that inflicts [Dismay]? I can do that and more. You will learn real fear.”

The monster tried to rise. I threw my weight against the spear, twisting it violently. It cried out in pain.

[Fear Aura].

Had this been invoked earlier in the battle, the ability wouldn’t have worked due to the sheer difference in levels. But I’d learned from a week’s worth of experiences that dying monsters were very susceptible to the aura I exuded.

The monster’s eyes widened as red orbs stared into red. It resisted the first instance of [Dismay]. However, the combination of pain, fear, and death put a brief halt to its actions.

The icicle shattered in my grasp. I drew The Blackreach Dagger out of my Inventory and went for the throat.