Scarlet Asger

I take one look at the huntsman before turning around and leaving.

|Demon Huntsman – Subspecies: None – Level 15|

Good thing it already has a fixation.

“You’re lucky this time, but you might not be the next time around,” I hear the tanuki warn me. “Be more careful.”

Aww, is the little tanuki actually worried about little ol’ me?

Of course, he doesn’t respond to that.

Looks like the fae isn’t as bad as I’d thought. Still keeping my eye on you though.

And would very much appreciate some privacy in my own head too.

He stays silent to that as well.

Yeah, didn’t think so. But it was worth a try at least.

Anyways, my mind returns to that huntsman. The thing really did have a humanoid form, just with a pale gray skin tone, two odd stubs that look like the beginnings of wings, and a crossbow in its hands just aimed at the door. But despite it aiming at the door, it wasn’t moving an inch. Just sitting there.

I honestly had a small urge to go over and kill it while it was there despite its level, but I know the huntsman isn’t braindead. Even with its fixation, it would still attack me if I got close enough. And I can’t just throw it out the window or something, considering that the shield is a one way thing, blocking anyone from leaving the building during a Demonic Assault, but not blocking people from entering. So it’d just shatter the glass before being blocked by the shield.

Of course, I could try knocking its crossbow out of its hands, but that would be a risky plan. Especially considering that I don’t know if they’re able to fight without the crossbow or not. And if they are? Then that is a good way to end up dead.

If the shields protecting the outside of the building themselves were like the ones on the bunkers, then maybe. But a demon thirteen levels above me is too much of a risk.

Such a scary creature.

Whoever its fixation was is lucky I got to them before it did.

I continue walking through the floor until I get to the stairwell before going down the stairs and entering the twenty-eighth floor, which seems to have a lot more demons than the other two I’ve been to. It has around eight or nine wandering around the floor. And there doesn’t appear to be any people on this floor, unlike the last. Or at least, not any outside of a bunker. I hear some muffled sounds at one spot, along with the blaring of a shield, so I’m guessing the bunker on this floor is active and the people inside.

Meanwhile, of the demons on this floor, only four of them seem to be spawn. The other four or five sound like hounds. Which are the second weakest demons.

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Thankful that there aren’t any huntsmen on the floor, I walk into a simple office room, filled with dozens of cubicles before continuing on until I find the first demon spawn on the floor.

|Demon Spawn – Subspecies: Spider – Level 4|

It’s a higher level again. Of course it is.

“The demons will only continue to grow stronger as you get closer to the core of the Fractures. You should know this,” Tar says in a slightly exasperated tone of voice.

Yeah, yeah. I know.

Doesn’t change the fact that it’s making this harder than it needs to be.

“You could’ve gone upstairs instead of downstairs to find weaker demons instead, but you chose to go down,” he mentions, making me stiffen up slightly at the realization.

He’s… right.

Why did I go downstairs?

Because I barely heard any demons at all upstairs? Because the demons upstairs felt like they wouldn’t be a challenge?

No… it’s because they wouldn’t make good prey.

I blink in surprise at that thought.

Prey?

When did I start thinking of demons as prey?

“Ever since you awakened as a half blood lycan,” Tar responds as if it’s no big deal.

Shit. Changing species… wait… of course changing species, or awakening to a new one would alter my instincts a little.

Just the thought of going back upstairs to fight weaker demons and level up the easy way leaves me feeling appalled at myself. And I’m not sure how to feel about that.

But right now isn’t the time, as the demon spawn hiding in the cubicle is likely to notice me any second now, and I don’t have a moment to waste lest I lose my advantage of surprise. So I climb up the wall of the cubicle before jumping straight onto the spawn and latching on with my claws into its carapace, which feels a lot easier than I was expecting.

Probably the free point I put into physical along with the level up.

Thanks to that, my claws sink into the demon’s head just as easily as they would have sunk into a level 2 demon spawn’s head before the update to my stats, making me grin slightly as the demon tries to shake me off of its back. I don’t let it though, and its shaking ends up causing more damage to it thanks to my claws stuck in its head than to me. Until it begins trying to slam me into the walls of the cubicle, which doesn’t really work all that well either considering that it’s not an actual wall. So the cubicle simply collapses instead of me being knocked off.

I vaguely hear another of the demon spawn getting closer and nearing this room of cubicles, but I put it aside for the moment to focus on digging my claws deeper and deeper into the demon’s skull. Meanwhile the creature continues letting out loud screeches throughout the process while flailing a few of its limbs at me in a poor attempt to cut me apart. And I say poor because most of those limbs are getting stuck in or straight up slicing through some of the furniture and appliances scattered in the fallen cubicle.

Eventually, the creature’s struggle draws to a close and it falls silent, with the System giving me my message not too long after.

{Level 4 Demon Spawn defeated. Bonus EXP is awarded for killing a creature above your level.}

{One Skill Point is awarded for killing a demon.}

I let out a sigh before smiling.

That’s ten skill points.

Right as I’m about to open the Skill Store to purchase them, my mind returns to the other spawn as it enters the room from the opposite end of the cubicles. So I immediately duck down.

Shit.

|Demon Spawn – Subspecies: Spider – Level 5|

This one’s even stronger.

“I would suggest you purchase the skill. Now.”

I frown at the urgency in his request before opening the Skill Store and purchasing the Clean skill. Then I quickly use it, making three points of mana drain away as all of the ichor and blood covering me magically disappears.

“Now leave that body and hide in a cubicle if you still want your advantage of surprise,” he continues, making me understand what he’s doing.

The spawn might’ve been able to smell all of the ichor and blood covering me since I haven’t been able to wash it off of my hands at one of the bathrooms like I did before entering the floor. At least, it might be able to if it got close enough. And it’s heading to the body now.

I quickly do as the tanuki says and hide in the cubicle next to the destroyed one.

It’s a little surprising that Tar is helping me though.

I wonder why?