Character Sheets:
Leon
Level 43
HP: 284 MP: 241 STR: 202 DEX: 229 CON: 111 INT: 93 WIS: 158 DEF: 118
Experience: 1,521,855 / 1,910,212
Skills:
Absorption: Can absorb the skills and stats of a target upon death, with a 1% chance of success. Stats absorbed are capped at 10% of the highest stat. Swordsmanship: Proficiency 67/700, Level 7. Dagger Skills: Proficiency 67/600, Level 6. Fire Magic: Proficiency 25/600, Level 6. Lightning Magic: Proficiency 85/600, Level 6. Ice Magic: Proficiency 93/200, Level 2.
Though my level increases and my stats improve, I'm still waiting for a breakthrough with my Absorption skill. Perhaps I'll have better luck when I reach level 50, at which point I hope to unlock better items in the shop. The future holds potential.
Shay
Level 41
HP: 262 MP: 227 STR: 145 DEX: 143 CON: 103 INT: 64 WIS: 143 DEF: 103
Experience: 150 / 1,222,535
Skills:
Elemental Magic: The user's proficiency improves as they delve deeper into the elemental forces. Fire Magic (Level 7): Proficiency 23/700. Lightning Magic (Level 8): Proficiency 155/800. Wind Magic (Level 3): Proficiency 68/300. Earth Magic (Level 3): Proficiency 68/300. Ice Magic (Level 3): Proficiency 68/300.
Shay's growth is evident, especially in his Lightning Magic, which is now at level 8. At this level, it's comparable to the power of a level 70 monster. With the ability to paralyse creatures up to level 60, his lightning abilities are a potent tool in our arsenal.
Rachel
Level 40
HP: 215 MP: 298 STR: 79 DEX: 60 CON: 99 INT: 142 WIS: 139 DEF: 78
Experience: 200,212 / 975,028
Skills:
Healing Light (Level 6): Converts MP into HP for one or more targets, healing 5 HP per 1 MP. Proficiency: 387/600. Guardian's Strength (Level 6): Buffs all selected stats of the caster and target by 2%, increasing by 1% per level. Proficiency: 274/600.
Our team stood ready, stronger than before, but the road ahead was still fraught with challenges. The cavern's depths hid more dangers than we could guess, and every step reminded us we were far from safe.
Rachel had proven herself vital to our survival multiple times now. Her healing wasn't just steady, it was overwhelming. Her MP pool dwarfed mine and Shay's, and she could mend wounds that would've crippled most fighters. The true limit of her gift remained unknown. Could she restore a lost limb? No one knew. I hoped we'd never have to find out.
Her buffs were another weapon entirely. At full power, she boosted both our strength and dexterity by nearly 10%. A small number when at lower levels, but in the labyrinth at our levels, it had meant the difference between survival and defeat.
Even with that edge, I could feel how much harder progress was becoming. The EXP curve had spiked sharply. To put it in perspective, the experience I needed for a single level could push someone from level 1 all the way to 36. Growth was slowing.
And yet… my body was still changing. Every stat point seeped into muscle and bone, reshaping me. My frame had thickened, stronger. My vision stretched further in the dark. Reflexes sharpened. Even my posture carried better. The system wasn't just feeding us numbers. It was rewiring us to become what our stats said we were.
I glanced at Shay. He'd grown too, the light of fire throwing sharper edges across his frame. Neither of us had noticed it happening, but Rachel did. The way she watched was cautious, thoughtful, it made it clear she cared.
We followed the faint breeze, the only guide leading us deeper. The next chamber was massive, its ceiling vanishing into shadow. Then I saw them again.
Dozens of black shapes clung to the stone. Eyes glinted. Claws scraped. Another swarm around sixty this time.
Rachel's breath caught. Shay's expression hardened.
Lightning ripped from our hands in twin arcs, chains of white-blue fire cracking across the ceiling. Ten bats shrieked, convulsed, and plummeted. I cut through their necks before they hit the ground. More dropped, wings thrashing, but any that lingered too long were seared by Shay's fire.
Rachel's buff thrummed against my skin, keeping my movements sharp, clean, precise. Each swing felt faster. Each step lighter. And when one bat slipped past the onslaught and dove straight at me, her voice cut the air.
"On your right!"
I pivoted instantly, blade flashing, cleaving it in two.
By the time the last one fell, the cavern gave of an unpleasant smell. Rachel lowered her staff, sweat dripping, but her eyes steady. Shay exhaled, his fire dimming to embers.
Another room cleared. But the labyrinth wasn't slowing, so neither could we.
The bats are all level 51 and 52, and with the buff active, our EXP is divided among us. However, now that I'm at a higher level, the amount of EXP we gain is gradually decreasing. Despite this, we still earn an impressive 140,000 EXP per bat, totalling 1.4 million EXP each.
Rachel reaches level 41, now with 500,890/1,222,535 EXP. Shay reaches level 42, with 212,000/1,528,169 EXP. As for me, I'm sitting at 1,521,855/1,910,212 EXP, needing only 400,000 more EXP to level up to 44.
As the last of the bats crumbled into ash, a flicker of blue caught my eye.
A system window slid across my vision.
[ABSORPTION: Would you like to use Absorption?]
• INT +14
• Skill: Detection – This skill allows the detection of living creatures in the area. The initial detection radius is 10 meters at Level 1.
• Current level to absorb: Level 3
I didn't hesitate; I wouldn't pass up a chance to use my skill.
"Yes."
The world shifted, just slightly. My thoughts sharpened, vision expanding at the edges. I felt the subtle hum of something new threading into me, a sense of awareness stretching outward like invisible strings. Ten meters in every direction, every breath, every movement in range now lit up faintly in my mind.
Detection. Useful. But why had the bats had this skill at all? Why hadn't they rushed us instantly if they could sense us first?
I frowned. If Absorption only gives me ten percent of their proficiency, then… five thousand? That would put them far beyond what their levels suggested. Something about it didn't add up.
But there wasn't time to puzzle it out. More bats swarmed, and we kept carving through them, EXP flooding in with every kill.
By the time we cleared another eighty, I almost pitied them. Almost.
At my current strength, "Level 44" was just a number. In truth, I felt closer to sixty. Fire, lightning, ice, they all answered me now, honed sharper with every clash. The system couldn't keep up with my new reality.
Still, the numbers didn't lie. Another 4.6 million EXP poured in, pushing us all higher.
As I mulled over the strangeness, Shay broke the silence. He was scrolling his menu, face drawn in concentration.
"Hey… isn't this because we're ranked? Top three on the board, right? That boost must be stacking with the potion."
I paused, then nodded slowly.
That… made sense. A twenty-seven percent bonus from our positions, plus the ten percent potion effect. No wonder the labyrinth felt like it was bending toward us.
Rachel let out a breathless laugh, wiping sweat from her brow. "So, we're not just competing, we're snowballing ahead of everyone else?" Her voice held excitement for the first time during the last few labyrinth floors.
We finished the last five together. My sword cleaved, Shay's lightning surged, Rachel's buff pulsed steady. Then the familiar ping filled the air.
[Congratulations! First Player to Reach New Heights!]
Level 45. The system's gift: 250,000 EXP, instantly consumed.
But as soon as I claimed it, the next number loomed over me.
3.73 million EXP required. A wall.
Still, walls were made to be climbed.
Our updated levels:
• LEON: Level 46
• SHAY: Level 45
• RACHEL: Level 44
We'd made tremendous progress, but the grind was catching up to us. Muscles ached. Mana burned low. Even our steps had grown heavier.
We set up camp in a quiet corridor between chambers, a little pocket of silence in the endless dark. The air was cold, damp, but still. Safe enough for an hour. We ate quickly, protein bars, tea, whatever we could stomach, then leaned back against the stone to rest.
I stayed alert, keeping Detect humming in the background. The skill spread out like invisible ripples, brushing against every living thing within ten meters. I couldn't see them, but I felt them, the pulse of energy, faint and restless. It was like sonar for the soul. After a couple of hours of fine-tuning it, I could almost tell the difference between creatures and my teammates by their unique signatures.
When fatigue finally got the better of me, I let my eyes close. Shay's fire always made me trust the nights in here, and Rachel's healing was more than enough insurance if something went wrong.
The next thing I knew, I was waking to a strange warmth crawling across my skin. A buff. My muscles felt lighter, sharper, like they'd been drawn taut with invisible strings.
Blinking groggily, I pushed myself upright.
"What's with the buff?"
Rachel glanced over, her hair sticking damp to her temple. She looked exhausted, but there was a glimmer of pride in her eyes.
"I've been working on proficiency," she admitted. "Shay and I handled another thirty bats while you were out. I kept him healed and buffed you both… I just hit Level 7. Cost me about a hundred gold in potions, but it was worth it."
I raised a brow. "A hundred?"
She shrugged, smiling faintly. "With the gold we've been getting from selling straight to the shop, I can afford it. Besides…" She lifted her staff, still trembling faintly from overuse. "The stronger I get, the safer we all are, since I'm the strongest, I need to keep it up." I could feel the sarcasm.
I understood. She wasn't wrong. Between the three of us, we had over a thousand gold pooled, and her mana pool had grown so huge that standard potions barely made a dent. She was drinking the high-grade ones now, the kind that restored 500 MP each. With her gear factored in, she was sitting at 463 MP, more than me or Shay.
It wasn't just stats. She was growing and fast.
After ninety minutes of real rest we gathered our things and moved on, every flask and pouch checked twice. Our MP topped off, blades sharp, spells ready.
The portal loomed at the end of the cavern, darker than usual. Almost oily, its surface pulsing faintly with black light.
Shay exhaled, his eyes scanning the gate in front of us. "That's different."
"Darker gate means boosted stats, can you not remember the tutorial stage?" I said quietly. "We'll play it smart."
Rachel adjusted her grip on her staff. "We've got this. Right?" hesitation hovered over her voice.
I let the silence stretch for a beat, then nodded. "Yeah. We're ready."
We stepped toward the portal together.
As we stepped into the boss room, the chamber swallowed us whole. It stretched vast and hollow, an underground cathedral carved by time, the walls breathing shadow. At first, nothing stirred.
I activated Detect, but the sense came up empty. Whatever was in here was too far beyond my range. The room stretched close to sixty meters across, and the ceiling loomed at least a hundred meters high, far above the edge of sight.
We moved cautiously, steps echoing against the stone. Ten meters in, the air shifted. Darkness pressed in, swallowing the edges of Shay's flame until even the glow seemed muted. Then came the whistle of air, sharp and cutting.
A shape dropped from above. The impact cracked the floor, sending dust and shards spraying outward. We staggered back, checking on each other, but when I looked forward, there was still nothing, just the lingering shadow.
Something was wrong.
A scrape of movement whispered from the side, just outside my range, as if it knew exactly how far I could sense. I pushed Detect harder, straining, but the skill hit its cap.
"Let's fall back," I muttered, raising a hand.
Mana surged. I unleashed a burst of fire, the blaze tearing open the dark for a split second.
And there it was.
A dark humanoid shape crouched low, deformed wings folded tight against its sides, webbing stretched beneath its arms like a predator built for silence. It stood close to two meters tall, muscles taut beneath shadowed skin, claws glinting.
The creature closes in on us with shocking speed. I release a surge of lightning in every direction, but it stops, clearly aware of my attack. It manoeuvres around me and dashes for Shay and Rachel. As it passes, I get a better look, it's a humanoid bat with large webbed underarms, sharp claws, and vicious fangs.
A name which burnt across my vision.
Eatheric, the Vampire's Guard — Level 55.
My gut clenched. A mutant boss. Most likely on par with a named monster at level sixty.
Shay didn't panic. He dropped to one knee, palms slamming against stone. Lightning cracked outward in a spiderweb of fury while jagged earth lances erupted from the floor, spearing into the creature's path.
The monster hissed, forced back. For a split second, it stalled. That was all I needed.
Forward, Dragonfang ready in my grip. My dexterity had never been sharper, but even then, it was almost too slow. I slashed across its chest, the blade whistling through the dark. But it evaded.
As the creature retreats, I rush into a strike. My dexterity is higher than ever, but it's still a challenge to match the speed of this mutant boss. I manage to get close enough to swing my sword, but the boss avoids and counters with a lethal claw to my midsection. I barely manage to block with my dagger, taking a small slash to my arm. Rachel quickly swings in to action, healing me as I retaliate with a powerful slash, but the monster evades again.
We clashed again, steel against claw, every strike pushing me closer to the edge. Its movements were savage, relentless, claws flashing in twos and threes, faster than my dagger could fully deflect. Shallow cuts riddled my arms, blood slicking my grip. If not for my high defence, each swipe would've gutted me outright.
The monster pressed harder, faster, more relentless than before. Each swipe of its talons rattled my guard like hammer blows. I staggered back, ribs screaming as claws ripped across my side. Flesh tore. Heat spilled down my skin. My shirt hung in ribbons, sticky with blood.
Rachel's light flared against me, knitting flesh just enough to keep me upright, but I could feel the truth in every clash: my body was breaking. Every block jarred bone to the marrow. Every dodge came half a heartbeat too slow.
Eatheric smelled it.
It surged in, savage and precise, a whirlwind of claws and fangs. I could barely keep the dagger between us, sparks screaming as steel scraped against talon. My lungs burned. Vision narrowed.
Then Shay's lightning tore across the field, searing into its flank. The creature hissed, twisting away, its skin blistering under the strike. For the barest second, it faltered. A heartbeat. My heartbeat.
I drove forward, Dragonfang howling in my grip, fire and lightning spilling from the blade. I slashed across its arm, steel biting deep.
But not deep enough.
The edge wedged into bone, stuck fast. The monster's head snapped toward me, its eyes alight with cruel hunger.
"Damn it!"
Before I could tear the blade free, its claws swept across my ribs, hot pain detonating through my chest. I reeled, teeth bared, blood choking my breath. My dagger came up on instinct alone, just in time to catch the killing strike aimed at my throat. The impact rattled down my arm, nearly splitting the bone.
The creature pulled back, circling now. Slow. Deliberate. Its feral maw stretched into something close to a grin. We were both bleeding. Both staggering.
But I knew who was closer to breaking.
Not me.
I drew a ragged breath, forcing mana into my veins until my whole body burned. My muscles screamed, my skin split under the strain, but I didn't care.
The claws came again, tearing into my side. This time, I didn't flinch. I grinned through the agony, teeth red with blood. My hand snapped around its wrist, veins bulging, and I wrenched with every shred of strength I had left.
Dragonfang screamed in my grip as I brought it down in a brutal arc. Steel cleaved through bone, severing the limb in a spray of black ichor. The monster shrieked, its howl rattling the cavern like thunder.
Ichor spilling from its severed arm, but its eyes never wavered. They locked onto mine, burning with hate, with hunger, with defiance. Both of us were beaten, both staggering, and yet neither of us gave ground.
It lunged.
Claws ripped into my body, tearing flesh like wet paper. I felt them tunnel deeper, scraping bone, pressing into my lung. The air left my chest in a ragged gasp as pain detonated through my ribs. I could feel the muscle spasm around the claws, contracting desperately, as if my body itself was trying to trap it, to stop the beast from tearing free.
Black spots swam in my vision, but I didn't retreat. I chose the pain.
My hands shot up, clamping around its skull. Bone met my palms, slick with sweat and grime. My thumbs dug into its temples, the pressure building until the skin split. Flesh tore open under my nails, hot and slick. I forced deeper, carving in until I felt the edge of its skull. Its dark ichor gushed over my hands, running down my forearms in thick streams, squirting with each pulse of its thrashing heart.
The monster hissed, claws twisting inside me. My chest burned as blood filled my lung, each breath bubbling wet and shallow. But I didn't let go.
I pulled it closer. Then I drove my forehead into its face with all the force I had left.
Bone cracked like splitting wood. Its jaw snapped crooked. The world flashed white. The mutant reeled, stunned, ichor spraying from its shattered nose.
"Now!" I roared through clenched teeth, blood dripping from my lips as I pushed away.
Shay was already moving. His blade screamed with fire and lightning as it tore across the creature's chest, searing flesh to cinders. The stench of burning ichor filled the chamber, choking and heavy. The mutant convulsed, limbs jerking in pain.
Shay slammed his hands into the ground, summoning earthen lances that erupted upward. They punched through its thighs, its abdomen, its ribcage, pinning it in place. Its ichor poured, pooling at its feet. The creature thrashed, gurgling rage, but it couldn't move.
Rachel's light flared around me, knitting tissue just enough to keep me standing. It wasn't healing. It was a bandage to stop me from collapsing.
I clenched my fist. Drew the last of my mana, every shred of will I had left, and leapt.
The world narrowed to a single heartbeat. My fist came down with all my weight, all my fury.
The impact split its skull wide open. Bone fragments exploded outward, jagged and wet. Its brains and fluids sprayed across the pillars shay summoned, steaming against the cold stone. My hand sank into the ruined cavity, punching straight through to the stone behind. The creature convulsed violently once, a twitching puppet, before collapsing under its own weight.
Eatheric, the Vampire's Guard, shuddered. Then its body gave out, collapsing into ash and mist, leaving only the stench of rot and the blood soaking my clothes.
Silence.
I dropped to one knee, my side torn open, blood gushing through my fingers as I clutched the wound. My lungs rattled with every breath, each one a struggle. Shay's shoulders sagged, sparks guttering from his hands. Rachel's staff trembled in her grip, her glow flickering like a candle.
Notification received:
YOU HAVE DEFEATED THE SEVENTH FLOOR BOSS: EATHERIC, THE VAMPIRE'S GUARD.
FIRST CLEAR BONUS AWARDED.
EXP RECEIVED: 662,750.
I spat blood and wiped my mouth, I forced myself to my feet. Every part of me ached. My thoughts spun in fragments… Really? Fuck, this is how I'm going to die…?
Then my body hit the floor with a heavy thud, and the world went black.
Rachel was already at my side… I think, I possibly heard it, but it seemed like a hazy dream.
Her healing light poured into me, but it felt distant, muffled. The void pressed down, until a thin glow pierced through. My eyes cracked open to see her above me, shouting.
"Get up! You can't die this easy!" Her voice trembled. Her hands vibrated as she forced her magic into me.
Everything hurt.
My vision swam. My arms trembled. Sitting upright took a lot out of me. The battle was over, but my body hadn't caught on. Pain pulsed in waves, duller with each one, as if my mind was too tired to keep up.
Even with Rachel's Level Eight healing pouring into me, numbness clung like a second skin. Breaths came shallow, each inhale scraping like broken glass through my chest. Blood spilled down my chin as I coughed.
Then, warmth.
The magic caught. My lungs expanded. Cracked ribs snapped back into place with sharp, aching pops. Skin knitted shut in jagged lines, still stinging but whole.
I staggered upright, swaying. Rachel's hand clutched my arm, grounding me, her brow furrowed, lips pressed tight like she'd been holding her breath the whole fight.
Shay stood a few steps back, shoulders sagging, energy still fading from his hands. His face wasn't triumph. It was shock.
Behind me, the monster's body dissolved, unravelling into ash and mist as if reality itself was reclaiming it. Eatheric's suffocating presence, so overwhelming just moments ago, was gone. In its place lingered a silence so heavy it made my ears ring. And then we saw them.
Two items shimmered where the body had fallen, lingering like remnants of a nightmare refusing to vanish completely.
The first was a jagged fang, nearly the length of my forearm, glistening as if still wet with venom. It pulsed faintly, an echo of the monster's power. The system labelled it:VAMPIRE GUARD'S FANG
Can be reforged into a weapon. Grants +100 Strength if forged correctly.
Tempting. A weapon like that could tilt the balance on the higher floors. But right now, stability mattered more than raw power. Rachel retrieved the fang without a word, selling it to the system for 102 gold, enough to restock mana potions and keep us supplied for the next push.
Then I saw the second item.
It wasn't sharp or ominous. It was small. Ordinary, almost. A glass vial filled with dark crimson elixir, suspended from a braided cord. But the moment I touched it, a new system window appeared:
ITEM: ELIXIR OF VITALITY – BLOOD OF THE VAMPIRE (LEGENDARY)
Permanently increases HP and MP by 10%.