"How we get so strong? We just keep killin' em fuckin' aliens man, I dunno!"

- Hunter Jack 'Crazy Jack' Thatch

Finding a clean enough bathroom to use wasn't all that hard. The last room remaining seemed to have been empty when the scorn swarmed, the inhabitants probably managed to run away to the undercity and got killed, or hid elsewhere, and got eaten instead. Shaking those thoughts from my mind, I looked at myself in the mirror.

My eyes were irritated. My skin was pale. I looked thin, as usual. My clothes were as bloody as I expected, and that stump on my right looked...oddly clean. Like smooth clean. It creeped me out, but I decided to focus my eyes back on the gash in my face. Crow did say that the method she used was rather unique, so I decided to leave those questions for later.

I put the combat knife aside and closed the door of the bathroom, I wasn't about to take any risks now. Looking down, I opened the water facet and washed my hand clean, as best as I could manage, before starting to clean the gash across my face. The sting was momentary, and I could see a bit of flesh underneath the open surface, but I was far more used to these kinds of wounds and scars. I had seen, and gotten, many of them after all.

"So, what do you know of the Scorn?" I asked Crow, trying to get my attention elsewhere as I pulled the backpack to my side and started to dive in to grab the necessary items to patch myself up.

'Very well. As far as I am able to tell you at the moment, the Scorn are a race of inter-dimensional hive-mind that opens "Gates" through dimensions to hunt down organic matter, consume it and keep producing more of itself. The types you have seen until now are Scouts, the lower ranks in their swarm. They do as their name indicates, charge ahead, scout the surrounding areas, clean the fodder and make way for the rest to start making their way in.'

While Crow talked, I opened the disinfectant bottle and gently tipped it on its side to drip the liquid on my fingers. Making small movements, I reached my hand up to my face and took a deep breath before clenching my teeth. I spread the disinfectant across the gash and let out a small, contained but still painful, screech.

It burnt. Not as bad as my arm did before, but it burnt.

"So a pack of low-ranks wiped out the entire population of the slums?" I asked, if it was true, then I was really fucked. And so were Bill and Roach.

'Not quite. You passed out before they made their way down, but Soldiers also charged in. They are bigger, if the Scouts look like dogs, then the Soldiers would look like a small bear, although as deformed as you may guess.'

"That sounds great.....Did the scouts below heard me just now?" I asked, closing the disinfectant bottle and taking out some band-aids from the bandage pack I grabbed before. Probably meant for smaller injuries, like the one I had.

'Let me check.....Doesn't look like it. I cannot access the video feed since the cameras are off, but if you can get them working I could keep a much better watch of the complex, that should be useful in the long run.'

"Wait...Long run? How much time do you expect me to spend in here?"

'Don't worry, time fluctuates in a different axis inside Dungeons like the slums here. The time depends on the Hunter, but since you are just starting and there are no other registered Hunters in the zone, then I reckon you will need to remain inside the Dungeon for...'

"For?"

'The next three days. Or a week. No, wait...Considering you already suffered a dismemberment....And your lack of technical knowledge....Two weeks, at most.'

"....Damn." I couldn't even muster strength to throw an insult outside my throat.

Two weeks trapped inside the dungeon....Certainly didn't sound like a nice vacation. Letting out a sigh, I simply focused on the present. I applied the band-aid over the gash, noticed it wasn't long enough and put another on top to cover the entire length. At least it shouldn't infect, and if it did, then I would be straight up fucked.

'One step at a time, Raven. For now, let's clear the building, barricade the entrances and get some food. Let's follow the plan and everything will be alright.'

"....Thanks, Crow." I said, before throwing the medical stuff back into the backpack and picking up the combat knife.

With a weapon in hand and my emergency supplies on my back, I opened the door and made my way down the stairs again. Slowly, carefully, I laid low to the ground and skulked, ready to deal with the next floor.

[ (Stealth Lv 2) Is now in use. ]

Sneaking around in almost complete silence, I took care of the two separated scouts. They were easy targets since they were laying down in different rooms. Knowing these things were just the cannon fodder put the fear of God in my chest, but knowing that they could die just as easily as I could made me feel a bit better. Plus, the EXP gain did make me unknowingly smile a little.

[ EXP Gained, new total: 12/10 ]

[ Level Up! ]

[ You have gained access to Skill/Ability Points and Skill/Ability Learning. ]

I felt as if I had just taken a nice recovery nap. My eyes felt less irritated, my body stopped aching and I felt a bit lighter on my feet. It was an exhilarating feeling, but the last window did have me a little confused. "What's that?" I asked Crow.

'That would be one of the most useful features of this system. Here, let me show you.'

Another window opened, revealing itself before my eyes in a very similar aspect as my "Status Window" had done the first time.

'The skills available for you to purchase with your points are recommended based on the knowledge and performance records I keep track of, they should adapt quite easily into your style. Upgrades are much more straightforward. Also, you gain 5 points with each level up, and each EXP above the necessary to level up will count towards your skill points gained when you kill a scorn. That should summarize everything very easily.'

"I see...Then let's see what these do..." I said, gesturing with my hand to display the description for a few of the options in front of me.

[ (Agility Lv 1) - Ability ]

[ This ability allows the Hunter to exponentially improve their reflexes and movement speed, alongside their body coordination. ]

[ (Light-Footed Lv 1) - Ability ]

[ Replaces: (Stealth) ]

[ This ability allows the Hunter to reduce the sound of their footsteps and their movement at all times, at Lv 1, it is equal to (Stealth Lv 3) in performance. Notes: The ability is always active, unless manually deactivated through the menu. ]

"Alright, made my choice." I tapped the two options that interested me the most and my points were spent.

[ (Light-Footed Lv 1) Has replaced (Stealth Lv 2) ]

[ (Agility Lv 1) Has been added to your Ability List. ]

'That should do it then? There's a few more to deal with on the ground level, but I believe you should be fine. I'll remain on rear guard just in case though.'

"Roger." I said as I grabbed the knife tightly again, it was starting to lose its edge, even if only a little.

Making a mental note on learning how to take care of knife blades, I skulked my way downstairs. Light-Footed and Agility activated the instant I started moving, and I could feel their effects already. I felt as if I was starting to slowly glide over the ground, not making any noise, at least none perceivable by me that is.

As I reached the ground level, I could immediately identify two scouts. One resting by the side of the stairs, and another pacing around the hallway to the right. It was s short hallway that lead into the landlord's room, so it was likely already cleared out. That would leave the left side as the one most likely to have the other scorn.

The left side of the hallway was maybe thirty-feet long. It was by no means an incredibly long hallway, but it was long enough to be considered one. Lifting my blade, I sunk it into the back of the resting one's head, gliding over to the other one as it turned around, stabbing it underneath the jaw, then to the side of the head. A crack, a thud, and both were gone just like that.

Turning to my side, I saw one scorn looking outside. Most likely keeping watch for the others. There were two doors in the way, one was busted open and headed to a small warehouse, and the other one was a guest room meant for temporary residents. The door was still closed, but scratch marks were clear all over it.

I glided forward. Leaned into the broken warehouse and saw nothing. I continued on.

Reaching the guard scout, I took it out with another stab of my knife and released a calm breath. Only to hear a much bigger foe appear from behind me.

Bursting the closed door open, a Soldier scorn barged into the hallway. It reached nearly seven-feet in height, so it was bigger than me by a long shot. I turned around, and had barely any time to react as it charge me at full speed.

'Dodge!' Crow shouted an order in my head, and I did so.

Crouching beneath the paw swipe, the metallic arm instead hit the wall at my side. The concrete cracked.

I was screwed.