"Candidate confirmed...."
"Logging in to the dungeon system...."
___________________________________________
Name : Leomord
Age : 15
Race : Human
MP : 100/100
HP : 100/100
Element : Water
Skills :
Swordsmanship (Level 2)
Water Splash (Level 3)
????
Buff : None
Nerf : Illusion type (Level 2)
________________________________
"Hmmm....?"
The hell?
I spent 15 years in this damned life of hell, believing that there is no system, or extraordinary ability gifted to me by the God or Goddess, only to witness such crap after 15 years.
Well, whatever the reason maybe, I should be haste in order to get out of this unorthodox dungeon, as soon as possible.
I have been fighting in dungeons for 3 years as an adventurer, and more than 10 years in total, so naturally, I have picked up some knowledge an experience along the way.
First of all, to fight an unknown monster, we have to measure it's attack patterns, and spectrum of strength.
Second thing is if the monster in front of me is stronger than me, then make use of the terrain to escape.
Yup.
There would be millions of chances of getting stronger in future, so I am not going to throw my life away in this cold damped place.
As I was gauging the monster, another window popped up in front of me.
Monster Race : Human
Aberration : Mutation
MP : 1000
HP : 1000
Skills :
Poison Spit (Level 2)
Hmmm....
Mutated human, huh?
Her skills level is also low.
And if spitting poison is all she can do, then all I have to do is dodge.
It would have been better if I caught her alive, to perform some interesting experiments on her, but never mind.
Here it comes!
A green stream of liquid shot out from her mouth.
It moved faster than I expected.
My body reacted before my thoughts could finish forming. I shifted my weight and stepped to the side, letting the stream pass inches from my shoulder before it struck the stone wall behind me. The moment it touched the surface, the stone began to hiss and melt slightly.
Poison.
And not a weak one.
If that had hit my chest directly, the fight would have ended in seconds.
The creature's neck twisted again, its inverted face staring directly at me. The lips where its eyes should have been stretched into something that resembled a smile, while the eyes beneath twitched unnaturally.
Another stream followed.
This one came faster.
I moved again, but this time the liquid grazed my arm.
Just a drop.
That was enough.
A burning sensation spread immediately through the cut on my forearm. The pain was sharp at first, but it quickly turned into heat that began creeping deeper into my flesh.
So it had entered the bloodstream.
Unfortunate.
But not unexpected.
I stepped back slowly, creating distance while observing her movements carefully.
The status window had already given me enough information.
Her attack power was far higher than mine.
Her MP and HP were ten times my own.
But there was something missing.
Defense.
The creature's body was thin, fragile even. The muscles looked stretched and unstable, as though they had grown too quickly without proper structure. The long neck that allowed her to strike from afar also meant that a precise attack could end the fight instantly.
If I managed to land it.
Another stream of poison came flying toward me.
I dodged again, but the movement made my chest tighten.
The poison was spreading.
Every movement pumped the toxin further through my veins. My body temperature was rising. My breathing was becoming slightly uneven.
If I continued dodging like this, the poison would reach my brain sooner.
Which meant this fight had a time limit.
I had to finish it quickly.
But not recklessly.
The creature tilted its head as if studying me. Perhaps it had sensed the poison working. Perhaps it was simply enjoying the hunt.
It opened its mouth again.
Good.
That meant a pattern.
Every attack required the neck to extend first.
I steadied my breathing and lowered my stance slightly.
My vision began to blur around the edges, but the center remained clear enough.
She spat again.
This time I did not move far.
Instead, I leaned just enough for the stream to pass beside my face. The fluid brushed against my cheek, burning slightly before splattering on the floor.
My body screamed at me to move more.
I ignored it.
Movement was my enemy now.
The creature lunged forward immediately after the spit attack, trying to close the distance while I was off balance.
That was the moment I had been waiting for.
Her neck extended fully.
Her body leaned forward.
And for the first time since the fight began, her head entered my range.
The weakness had been obvious from the beginning.
No matter how mutated the body becomes, the brain remains the center of control.
Which means the head is still the most fragile part.
I pushed forward.
Not a large movement.
Just one step.
My sword moved in a straight line.
No swing.
No flourish.
Just a precise thrust aimed directly at the center of her skull.
For a brief moment, the world slowed.
Her inverted face twisted again, as if realizing the danger too late.
Then the blade pierced through.
Steel entered flesh, bone, and brain in one motion.
The creature's body jerked violently.
The long neck spasmed like a severed snake, but the strength left it almost instantly. The limbs collapsed, and the body fell heavily onto the cold dungeon floor.
Silence returned.
My sword slipped from my hand as my fingers lost their strength.
The poison had spread far deeper than I had expected.
My legs trembled.
Then they gave out.
I fell to my knees.
My vision blurred completely now, the torchlight around the chamber stretching into strange shapes. My breathing felt distant, as though someone else was doing it for me.
A status window appeared in front of my eyes.
But the letters swam across my vision.
I could not read them.
My mind felt heavy, like it was sinking into deep water.
So this was how it felt.
Dying inside a dungeon.
My body slowly leaned forward until I collapsed onto the stone floor.
The cold surface pressed against my cheek.
My eyelids were becoming too heavy to hold open.
The toxins have reached my brain I suppose, and it's effect is manifesting.
I usually carry the antidote to posion type spells.
But, unfortunately, I don't have the energy to reach for my pocket to take out the bottle.
Is this the end of it?
The end of everything I had to go through?
Unexplained hate for being the bastard son of a noble house, being thrown out of the house for crimes I didn't commit, being hated for the same reaosn everywhere I went.
Thinking back upon it, the only thing that propelled me to go further, was this fascination.
To learn about magic.
It always intrigued me since I was in my real world.
Reading webnovels, manga, watching anime, made me wonder about such things, like how every teenager does.
Yet here I am, on the verge of death again.
Would I reincarnate in another world after I die?
Or there is something else?
Whatever it may be, the one thing I will always regret is never being able to understand this concept of magic.
As I was closing my eyes, a face or rather a girl appeared.
Her face was blurry, but I could recognise her. She is the same girl I saw in that illusion scenery.
And thus, I closed my eyes, my conciousness fading into nothingness...
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