Since I could only insert five skills into [Fusion], I had to plan everything very carefully. [Anchor] and [Teleport] had already taken two slots, which meant I only had three left.
First of all, no need to overthink this! [Auto SP Recovery] was a skill I definitely couldn't skip. Although recovering SP with just one skill was a bit unreliable, I didn't have a better option. I just had to evolve it soon.
Next, I still had two slots left.
Let's see... What did Suzu say about the weakness of the anchor again...?
Ah, I remember now.
It's the anchor's durability! The anchor could be destroyed if it received external impact. While it wasn't fragile enough to shatter at a single touch, I still needed to be cautious.
That's why I included [Diamond Body]!
According to my calculations, with my current stats, it would take over fifteen minutes of continuous attacks to destroy a single anchor. Now with [Diamond Body]...
I didn't hesitate to test it right away.
I didn't use magic, just purely physical attacks—simple, brute-force, and relentless—because I had discovered that the anchor had incredibly high magic resistance. Not absolute, but nearly so.
...
I'm dead tired!
After more than an hour of smashing into the anchor using [Diamond Body], I finally managed to break it. I was fairly satisfied with the result, considering my stats were already among the highest in the first 20 floors of the labyrinth.
If I were to encounter beings from the outside world, like humans or other races, I would be a bit concerned. But even if they wanted to destroy my anchor, they'd still have to put in quite a lot of effort.
And anyone who's dead set on destroying my anchor—I'm not just going to sit back and let it happen! If the anchor gets destroyed instantly, that just means the opponent is ridiculously powerful.
And in that case, I'm out!
I'm not dumb enough to just stay there and die.
There was still one final skill slot left, and I was torn between [Heaven Eye] or an offensive skill like [Blade Leg].
The reason I wanted [Heaven Eye] was to scout the area before teleporting—just in case someone was lying in ambush, it could save my life. The offensive skill would be for fending off intruders trying to attack my anchor. Even if it didn't kill them, it would serve as a warning.
Hmm...
I wonder if the [Fusion] skill could increase the number of skills it could fuse?
The skill description didn't mention anything like that, so I decided to ask Suzu.
"When it reaches level five, you can fuse one more skill."
That's what Suzu said.
I was already at level four, so I figured I might as well push it to the next level. It wasn't a difficult task, so I got it done pretty quickly.
Well, "pretty quickly" meant almost ten whole days...
I was starting to feel like this was just a grind-heavy game now. It wasn't so bad in the beginning, but the higher I went, the more brutal the grinding became just to get the skills leveled up the way I wanted.
God damn it!
<
Nice.
Now I could throw in both of those remaining skills without any hesitation.
And that's done!
Next was the issue of where to place the anchors.
Since I could set up ten of them, I didn't need to worry too much about being overly selective, but I still wanted to think it through.
Hmm...
After some thought, I decided to place anchors on the special floors—namely floors 5, 10, 15, and 20. Then I'd use my monster army to lure prey to those locations. Every so often, I'd return to take care of them.
A perfect plan!
Starting with floor 20.
Even though I said I'd place one here, I still needed to find a somewhat hidden location to avoid detection. The central area was off the list right away.
That left five elemental zones. Since the anchors had high magic resistance, I didn't need to worry about them being destroyed by natural environmental effects.
Among the five zones, the most dangerous was the Lightning Spirit's area, but the terrain there was too flat and exposed, making it unsuitable for hiding an anchor.
The Earth and Water Spirit zones were okay, but something about them just didn't feel quite right... As for the Fire Spirit zone, the only viable place to hide an anchor was under the lava lakes. But I really didn't want to be burned alive every time I teleported there.
After weighing all my options, only the Ice Spirit zone remained. This one was different from the others—I could probably ask her to help guard the anchor. On top of that, when my army brought in the goods, she wouldn't attack them indiscriminately. The only downside was that it was extremely cold.
I rushed to the icy region, picked the largest frozen mountain, drilled a hole inside, carved out a small chamber in the middle of the mountain's core, and placed the first anchor there.
That's one down!
Without wasting time, I left floor 20 and headed toward the previous ones. After about two days of traveling, I reached floor 15. To my surprise, a new Guardian had already been born.
Woaaa.
The boss has respawned!
Should I kill it now...?
No!
On this floor, I didn't hesitate to set up the anchor right inside the Soul Lake, since I could freely enter and exit that place now. Besides, the presence of a Guardian like that would help protect the area from intruders. And since it wouldn't attack unless something approached the Soul Lake, I just had to tell my monster army to avoid the center zone.
That's two done!
Things were going pretty smoothly. But the moment I stepped onto floor 10, I could clearly feel a heavy atmosphere, totally different from the previous floors. This was the territory of the Orcs and Goblins—two races constantly at war with each other, vying for control of the vast land here. I knew there was a high risk of trouble, but I still chose to push forward. After all, floor 10 was a key location for my anchor network.
That arena was still as lively as ever.
Even from down here, I could hear the clashing of weapons echoing from above. I also spotted the two strongest beings on this floor—the Orc King and the Goblin King!
They were probably the bosses of this floor, but I hadn't had a run-in with them until now. Although I wasn't afraid with my current power, I didn't want to waste too much time either.
However, just as I moved in a bit to look for a place to set the anchor, I got spotted. A swarm of Goblins and Orcs leapt down from above and surrounded me. Growls and mocking laughter echoed all around, as if I'd accidentally walked into their turf uninvited.
Oh, great... Trouble's here.
They looked fierce, but these guys were weaklings—not worth worrying about.
"A spider?" a massive Orc wielding a giant hammer roared, his voice full of menace. "You think you can walk out of here alive?"
A nimble Goblin holding a curved dagger burst into laughter beside him. "Must be some dumbass who got lost. Let's just catch her and hand her over to the king!"
I took a deep breath and steadied myself.
I didn't want a fight. If that happened, setting an anchor here would be pointless. I figured the only way to get them to accept my presence was... through fear!
I immediately activated [Intimidation] across the entire area. With my level far surpassing theirs and the skill being at a high rank, every single Goblin and Orc nearby was suppressed—yes, even the biggest ones.
That should do it...
These guys liked to solve things with brute strength. When they saw someone stronger, they'd instinctively back off.
At least, that's the logic I came up with.
But reality...
"This spider is strong!" a goblin growled as it slowly stood up under my pressure.
Looks like a fight is unavoidable. Well, stretching my limbs a bit might not be bad either. I've been training for a month straight, and it's gotten boring.
I let out a long sigh—no helping it now. I activated [Diamond Body] and lunged forward before the goblin could react. A full-force charge from me sent it flying dozens of meters, smashing through the wall behind it. The goblin was knocked unconscious.
The space around us fell silent again—no one else dared to say a word.
Heh heh...
This is exactly the effect I wanted.
"Coward! If you've got guts, release your control. If you're a warrior, fight us fair and square!" an orc shouted.
What the…?
They're talking like righteous knights or something… This is more troublesome than I thought. I could easily defeat them all, but doing so would only cause more problems.
Haizzz...
Looks like there's no getting through to them anymore—only one option left: fight.
I quickly activated [Diamond Body], minimizing the damage from the powerful attacks of the orcs and goblins. [Heaven Eye] allowed me to see that this group was just the vanguard—many more were waiting behind.
Using [Teleport], I escaped their encirclement and launched a flurry of offensive skills. Sharp blades flew out—each one bringing down an orc or goblin. I didn't kill them, though, to avoid making the situation irreparable.
I kept wreaking havoc in the middle—every orc or goblin that charged at me was knocked away and couldn't get back up. It didn't take long to take them all down.
Too easy!
Suddenly, a massive goblin and orc jumped down from above. Their builds were completely different from the others. One glance and I knew—they were bosses.
All the better. That saves me time dealing with their minions.
"Warrior, you've survived and returned," said the Orc King.
Huh??
Did I hear that right?
Was it talking to me?
It seems to recognize me as the one who passed through that gate… If that's the case, maybe I can resolve this without fighting.
"That's right!" I replied through [Telepathy].
"What is your purpose here?" asked the Goblin King.
"I want to place something here, and if possible… ask you to protect it for me."
I hesitated a bit on the second part, but my greedy nature had already pushed the words out.
"According to the old rules, if you can win one hundred battles, you may make one request," the Orc King said.
Still that rule, huh... but I really don't have that much time.
"I don't have the time."
"If you wish to make a request, you must prove yourself worthy. One battle—you against the both of us. That should save time," the Goblin King said.
"Fine," I replied, my eyes showing no fear.
I'd already checked their stats—nothing to worry about.
We moved to the arena, where thousands of orcs and goblins had gathered to watch the battle. Cheers rang out nonstop—but obviously, none of them were for me.
Whatever. Let's fight!
The goblin signaled, and the battle began!
The Orc King charged like a storm, his mace slamming into the ground with terrifying force, sending shockwaves through the arena. I dodged using [Teleport] and activated [Diamond Body] to block the unavoidable strikes.
Meanwhile, the Goblin King kept pestering me with long-range attacks and magical traps. He was incredibly annoying, always picking the perfect moment to strike when I let my guard down.
This one seemed weaker, but was ridiculously agile. By the time he sensed my presence, it was already too late—[Heaven's Net] activated. Spider silk encircled him from all directions, tightly wrapping his small frame in an instant.
"Graaaa!!"
The Orc King roared in warning, charging in with his massive hammer to free his comrade. [Diamond Body] instantly reactivated as I blocked his powerful blow. Sparks flew from the impact, but my body barely budged.
Taking advantage of the moment he was knocked back, I activated [Dark God Gaze] to inflict negative status effects and slow him down—his heavy footsteps now felt frozen in place.
The Goblin King wasn't entirely immobilized. He struggled within the webs, eyes flashing cunningly as he began casting support magic. I quickly released [Poison Mist] into the air, forcing him to inhale a large dose of toxic gas.
This time, he was fully paralyzed—collapsing within the silk threads.
Only the Orc King remained. Roaring furiously, he swung his hammer wildly. But with my agile movements, I easily dodged his sloppy strikes.
Waiting for an opening, I activated [Blade Leg], my razor-sharp spider leg slashing deep into his thigh, injecting a toxin to weaken his mobility.
The Orc King let out one final roar, but his massive body finally collapsed after enduring too many blows.
Both the Orc and Goblin Kings, despite the pain, nodded in acknowledgment of my victory.
The others around us still looked stunned, unable to react—but that wasn't my problem. I left the arena and created a small cave for myself, then set up the [Anchor] inside.
"Warrior, what is this thing?"
The two kings approached from behind and asked. I briefly explained what it was and what it did.
"Warrior, when you reach the 50th floor, please bring us along."
Huh??
We just finished fighting and now they want a favor??
"Why?" I asked.
The Orc King sighed. The Goblin King remained silent.
From their faces, I could tell something deeper was going on. Honestly, I didn't really want to help—I hated getting caught up in too many hassles. But since I didn't know anything about the 50th floor yet, I figured I could squeeze some intel out of them.
"Let's hear it," I said.
"The 50th floor is originally the kingdom of the goblins and orcs. The population there numbers in the tens of thousands. And we… are the sons of the previous ruler."
Oh, so they're royalty…
But using the word "prince" to describe them feels… off.
"Go on."
"We left to prove ourselves, but not long ago, we received word that something had happened to our kingdom. We want to return and investigate, but the distance is too great. If we leave, there'll be no one left to protect this floor."
Hmm, I see.
Their situation is kinda like Meradis's. I'm guessing they want to use my teleportation point to reach the 50th floor.
Hmph… Should I help or not?
Wait, whether I help or not depends on the benefits they offer.
"Benefits?" I asked briefly—but my meaning was clear enough.
"When we return, we'll let you choose one of our treasures freely," said the Orc King.
A treasure…?
I don't know what it is, but it sounds promising.
"Deal."
I accepted immediately. After all, I'm stronger than they are, so I could always demand more later if needed.
"Thank you." Both the Orc and Goblin Kings bowed their heads to me.
"Then protect this for me," I said, pointing to the [Anchor].
"No problem."
And with that, my business on the 10th floor was done. I didn't stay long and headed straight for the 5th floor to place the final anchor. I'd already chosen a suitable spot: the basement of Mr. Loyral's house.
That place had a protective barrier—unless someone was extremely meticulous, they wouldn't even notice it.
It had been a while since I last came here, so I decided to take a little walk around.
The ruined village was still there. Not much had changed in the scenery, except that a new batch of spirits had been born. They looked a lot more normal than the previous bunch.
With my task complete, it was time to return to the 20th floor and prepare for my next evolution!
Evolution issues!
I'm only two levels away from evolving, but the problem is that the experience needed for those two levels is absurdly high.
Even though I've been hunting a lot, I still haven't leveled up.
These past few days, I've gone back to the old strategy—creating a squad, sending them out to hunt prey near teleport points, and my job is just to show up and finish them off.
There's been a huge number of kills, but not a single level-up notification.
What the heck is going on…
I sighed, lying down while munching on something.
And before I knew it… I had fallen asleep.