The Sixth Evolution (2)

Clearing the fourth floor might have been easier than the third floor. Undead were considered more difficult to fight than other monsters, given their nature and their curse of undeath. However, their physical abilities were much weaker than mine, who was developing through Predation. And their curse was ineffective in front of my growing resistance. Lee Chan-yu had been enduring through the undead as well, using his hellhounds to their fullest potential.

Of course, it had been a bit difficult to overcome the tens of thousands of undead that showed up the moment we reached the middle of the 4th floor, especially with the surprise attacks from the Curd Wights that hid amongst the other undead. They had considerably stronger bodies and deadlier curses than the other undead.

I had been considering it since the third floor, but perhaps this dungeon wouldn’t be much of a challenge for me anymore. Perhaps there would be more room for growth if I went to Jinma’s Tower instead, or the Garden of Nak. Or the Rookie’s Battlefield. Maybe if I went down to the depths of the dungeon, that would change. I was currently growing faster than the expectation of the quest I had, and I felt like I needed to rush to grow even stronger.

“Captain.” Lee Chan-yu called out to me before I could open the door to the boss room.

“What’s your level now?”

“119.”

“Is that from the battlefield you were telling me about?”

“Yeah, in part. It was full of strong monsters.” Lee Chan-yu thought for a moment before nodding at me.

“It would be better if you did this alone.”

“What?”

“I had originally thought we would break through this dungeon together, but you’re too far ahead of me. I’m already pretty weak compared to this boss, you know.” His words struck me like a physical blow.

“I was thinking about whether I would be able to hunt this boss alone but… I think the likely answer is that I would die. But you, would you be able to?”

“…”

“Right now, it’s not so bad. I’m confident I could be effective in assisting you in battle.”

“I have no doubt about that.”

“But the Black Palace is a long dungeon. The monsters will only become stronger and stronger, and the difference between us will only continue to widen. At this rate, it’ll eventually reach a point where it’s too wide for me to keep up.”

It was true that, compared to before, the difference between us had only grown. It wasn’t just because my growth rate was fast; the experience I had gained from the monsters in the Rookie’s Battlefield had given me a huge push forward. So far, he hadn’t been holding me back, but it had occurred to me that at this rate, it might happen in the future. That he would become more of a liability than my teammate. I had also been thinking of what could be done to stop that. Observant as he was, Lee Chan-yu had noticed me worrying about it.

“At first, I had been working hard to follow you, but now I think I will just get in the way of your growth.” He wasn’t wrong. If I pushed myself hard, he would be overwhelmed, and if I slowed down to meet his pace, my growth would slow.

“Not that it was all bad. You definitely helped me grow. Thanks to you I was able to evolve, which I had thought was impossible. So before I started negatively impacting you, I think it is best if we split up now.”

“It was only thanks to you that I was able to evolve as well…”

“I was able to push forward thanks to you, and that won’t change. I still have a clear goal ahead of me that I can keep running toward.” He handed me a small, translucent cube as he said this.

“Here. It’s a communication device so you can keep in touch with me. I grabbed it thinking I might need it soon.”

“Where did you find this?”

“In an underground battlefield that you can enter at level 100.” He let out a laugh, and I had to hold back some surprise. Just as I had been able to enter the Rookie’s Battlefield, he had an opportunity to cultivate his strength in a place other than this dungeon. He must have been hiding it from me in anticipation of this moment.“Go ahead of me, captain. I’m going to stay behind for a bit until I’m strong enough to take this boss on by myself. Use that device to contact me when it’s time to leave this dungeon.”

“Was this underground battlefield dangerous?”

“It is, but not as bad as this boss.”

“Alright.” I contemplated the cube in my hand for a moment before putting it away in my inventory, nodding at him.

“Don’t die.”

“Of course.”

“If strong humans invade this dungeon, don’t fight them and contact me.”

“I will.”

“Good. Then… I’ll go ahead first.” Lee Chan-yu led his three hellhounds away, his back straight and without a hint of regret as he walked always. I watched his back until I couldn’t see him anymore, turning away only once he was out of sight to face the black iron gate before me. I put the key into the door and turned it, the massive black iron doors slowly swinging open.

[Ahhh.]

I heard a man’s voice from within.

[Are you finally here? I thought my voice would give out first.]

A serious voice filled with gravitas wormed its way directly into my head, but I laughed as I heard it. Before me was the Dullahan, a headless undead knight: This was the boss awaiting me on the 4th floor of the Black Palace. In his one hand, it held a massive battle-axe that gleamed sharply; in the other, it held it’s head.

[I am ready when you are. Come and dance with me.]

“Sorry, I’m not much of a dancer.” I raised Blood Shadow; a black rose bloomed off it, giving off a pale light. I was standing in an exceptionally large room, the boss riding atop a sturdy-looking horse covered in black flames before me. In the previous boss rooms, there had been a weaker monster accompanying the boss, but I didn’t see one here.

[If you don’t strike first, I will.]

The Dullahan was covered in heavy metal armor that appeared not to slow him at all as he charged forward, giant battle-axe raised in one hand. I didn’t try to jump out of the way but instead watched him as he approached, allowing my senses to reach out and preparing to jump with Ubiquitous. With my Martial Arts and Surprise skills, I didn’t need to duke it out with this boss in a drawn-out battle. I just had to wait and strike when the opportunity presented itself.

The monster was close now, close enough for me to feel the breath of the dark horse he rode on, the vibrations of it galloping toward me, shaking the ground below. Dark and viscous mana flowed through the axe as it cleaved through the air, heading right toward my neck. I picked a point in front of me, stepping forward with Ubiquitous just as the axe met my neck. The ax cleaved through the alter ego I had left before, just as the floor underneath the horse collapsed, my trap set with Lunatic Trickster going off.

The Dullahan, who was leaning forward, lost its center of gravity as the horse went down. Its head flew free of its hand, sailing off into the air. I jumped out into the air after it, safely grabbing the monster’s head before it could hit the ground. I peeled the helmet off the head, greeted by a brief expression of surprise as I tossed the helmet.

[You have no honor!]

“Thank you for the meal.” I ignored the monster’s comments and began to devour the head. It was hard to chew, but my Predation skill was enough to help me make some progress.

[How dare you defile this duel!]

The body of the Dullahan turned to face me, throwing the giant axe as it did. I jumped away using Ubiquitous again, continuing to chew at the head. It had no taste and felt like I was trying to eat a stale rice cake. The axe flying through the air past where I had been, began to glow purple. It split into two as it whirled through the air. The axes twisted unnaturally in the air, swooping around to head right toward me.

[Pelcadia’s Jewel!]I jumped through space once more, unsurprised to see the axes split again into four. The Dullahan now rushed at me with chains made of black mana as the axes closed in on me, on top of the horse that was now free from the trap.

[If you want to play like this, allow me to oblige you!]

The axes continued to split as they whirled past me in the air, the Dullahan whipping at my feet with the long chain of dark mana. I hurried my consumption of the head, ready to end this sooner rather than later.

[Ahhhh! You dare get my head dirty! You thief!]

Chewing the head was tough; this guy was resisting being eaten. I forced my way through it regardless, the body of the Dullahan beginning to slow as I finished off the last bite.

[He-ga-ga-ga-aaaaahhh!]

I could tell that this creature’s sense of reason was gone, but I wasn’t so fortunate that it was enough to finish him off. The axes kept accelerating and splitting, now sixteen of them whirling about the chamber. A sense of anxiety gripped me. It didn’t matter how large of a room this was; I wouldn’t be able to avoid them even with Ubiquitous.

[Hegaaaaaa!]

Chains struck out at me as eight of the axes closed in. A trap I had placed in mid-air exploded out, temporarily blocking the attacks. I jumped forward in that instant, landing atop of the horse that the Dullahan had been riding. My sword flashed out at the horse’s neck. It was hard, almost as much as the boss, but it wasn’t enough to stop my attack combining advanced Martial Arts and my top-tier Surprise.

[You have gained 120,948 experience.]

[You have received 80 silver.]

[You have obtained a Fortune Egg.]

As I sliced through the horse, the Dullahan was once more bucked off onto the ground. I bit into the horse’s neck without hesitation, the axes splitting through the air around me. I wasn’t worried about them anymore, however. This boss had lost his sense of reason and now his mobility. He could no longer pose a threat to me.

I waited until all sixteen axes were about to fall upon me to jump forward with Ubiquitous, instantly closing the distance between myself and the Dullahan. It was simple enough to slide past the chains he flailed with blindly, stabbing Blood Shadow deep into his chest. Black lighting and bloody fire poured out from the blade, causing the monster’s body to stumble back violently from the concentrated mana. The axes split once more, attempting to close the distance between them and myself. They were becoming a much more deadly enemy than this Dullahan.

“I don’t have time for this!” I couldn’t keep using Ubiquitous to dodge these axes, especially if they kept multiplying exponentially. I allowed the Dullahan to slam into me with the chains, using Lunatic Trickster to create traps in the air behind me to stop the axes’ approach. Sounds of explosions sounded out behind me as the axes collided with my traps, but I paid it no mind as I swung my sword with reckless abandon. I poured more mana into the Dullahan’s body, watching as the flame began to pour out from my blade. The fire exploded forth as I continued to power it with my magic, eventually consuming the Dullahan’s entire body.

[Ah…ah….ahhhhh!]

Only

The Dullahan’s fury echoed out as I expended all of my mana into the flame consuming him. I could feel the traps I had created dissipating, unable to maintain themselves without a supply of magic.

I weakly tried to bring up my sword to guard myself, reaching out to sense if the ax that would spell my end was on its way.

[You have gained 508,910 experience.]

[You have received 500 gold.]

[You have obtained the Jewel of Pelcadia.]

[You have obtained Yultana’s helmet.]

A notification window popped up, bringing a sigh to my lips. The axes around me stopped in mid-air, slowly falling to the ground and dissipating.

I felt like I was able to keep my word to Lee Chan-yu.