Chapter 9

 

 

I ducked under a blow from the Kobold leader and slashed open his back severing his spine before grabbing the landform weapon he dropped and throwing it at the dungeon lizard trying to ambush me from the ceiling.

The stone mace smashed into the creature's head causing it to lose its footing falling belly up in the floor where I could slash its neck open.

After three days of dungeon delving, I had gotten pretty good at spotting the things to the point they no longer provided any danger.

Looking towards the ceiling I thought about what awaited me up there in Orario and sighed, since meeting Loki three days ago I had managed to avoid encountering anyone from her familia again.

Loki hadn't really given me a time or a place to receive training and I wasn't about to march willing into the Twilight Manor if I could help it but I swear the little imp had been keeping an eye on me, I could even feel her stare from time to time while walking through the streets.

I knew she'd eventually track me down again but I was really not looking forward to it.

A chitering noise came from the hallway leading deeper into the fifth floor and made me focus back on the dungeon.

Rushing straight at me was what I could only assume was a killer ant, the insect was the size of a large dog with a reddish carapace and wicked sharp mandibles.

I smiled, facing a new monster would be interesting.

Making sure I was ready to receive its charge I considered just how I was going to kill the thing, aiming for an eye didn't seem like it would kill the thing and its exoskeleton looked tough enough to be armor.

Also, weren't ants able to lift 50 times their own weight or something? The creature rushing me seemed to be at least 20 kilos.

The Ant attacked, its sword like mandibles snapping closed on thin air as I dodged out of the way and struck at its head.

My sword hit its armor and actually bounced back, my hands becoming numb from the impact and almost making me drop the weapon.

Taking a few steps back I saw the ant stumble in confusion from the blow, a small dent in its head but otherwise perfectly okay.

Passing my sword from one hand to the other I shook my arms to stop the numbness and saw a large dent on my sword's edge which made me grimace.

Sharpening my weapon had turned out to be a pain and I never quite managed to make it as good as it had been on the first day, a dent like that would take me hours to fix.

The ant fully recovered and attacked again, my eyes were still unable to predict its movements and it was fast enough I barely managed to dodge its lunge.

Stepping to its side I stomped on one of the creature's legs and it snapped like twig but didn't affect its movements all that much, damn insect.

I'd probably have to break at least four of its limbs to fully disable the thing.

On the next attack I wasn't fast enough and the ant clamped its jaws around my ankle almost breaking my bones, with a twist of its head the monster pulled me off my feet and I couldn't resist as it dragged me through the floor and sent me flying.

I managed to keep my hold on the sword and, as the ant tried to bit down on my neck, twisted aside and shoved the tip at its neck digging deep on the gap between its head and chest.

Putting one foot at the creature's side I twisted the sword with all my strength using it as a lever to cut off its head sending it sprawling to the floor.

The insects body continued to move without a head, flailing about and stumbling as if drunk while its head continued to open and close its huge jaws.

Getting to my feet I relaxed for a few seconds, then remembered those creatures actually called out for help if they weren't properly finished off.

Stomping on its head did nothing so I grabbed my sword in a reverse grip and delivered a murder stroke with all of my strength, the edge cut deeply into my hand but my pommel broke through the creature's armor and pulped its brain.

"Fuck!" I screamed as my hands bleed all over the sword.

Pulling out a health potion I drank it and watched the cuts close, then I heard the chittering, seems I had taken too long to kill the damn thing.

From two different hallways I saw five ants rushing me, their mandibles snapping hungrily in the air.

Looking around in desperation I saw the Landform weapon from the Kobold I just killed had yet to dissolve so I hushed towards it, my eyes already spinning into the mangekyou in order to better see their movements.

Focusing on the hallway with three ants I kept them all in my vision and cast my illusion.

My first instinct was to try and make them see each other as humans but it did nothing to the monsters, it seems they could sense each other in some way and the difference was enough to immediately break my minor illusions.

I didn't dare use my pain illusion least they start calling for help again so I tried something new, taking over their sense of touch and vision I imagined pillars of stone rising from the floor like spikes and piercing right through their bellies, lifting them and making them stop

In a second the ants stopped and their limbs started flailing in the air as if they were trying to grip at something but finding no purchase.

Turning towards the two remaining monsters I lifted the stone mace and smashed it on top of the first ant with both hands causing it to explode like a watermelon, then I twisted aside and broke every leg on the second's right side, it still tried to crawl towards me but with only one side working I just squashed it.

From behind me two of the ants broke my illusion, they looked around for a brief moment of confusion and them rushed me.

With a snort I met one of their eyes and used a greater Illusion to activate a new ability I had been working on. I turned off the monster's perception of its own body.

For the time my illusion was in effect I tricked the monster's mind into thinking it had already sent its orders, I tricked the monster into thinking it was already moving.

The result was the ant flopping to the ground as if a puppet with its strings cut as it saw itself moving.

Used against a human I'd have to be good enough to predict his moves well enough he wouldn't be suspicious but, against a mindless ant, I could leave it there for an hour and it wouldn't regain its movements.

I quickly smashed all three remaining ants killing them before they could call for help and sighed.

Yep, the sharingan kind of made it all boring again.

Without the illusions I'd probably have been overwhelmed by the insects and forced to run but, with the sharingan, they weren't even a challenge.

Ugh, I hate that I'm almost hoping I find something like a Vouivre again, who knew killing monsters would get so... repetitive.

Harvesting the creatures, I watched their bodies dissolve into dust and decided to call it a day, I had already used three health potions and it should be getting dark anyway.

By the time I finished climbing the floors the sun had already set so I made my way back to my room and spent half an hour separating whatever loot I had.

The item drops all went into my backpack so I could sell them to the tower tomorrow morning while the magic crystals were separated by type of monster and put into pouches, I'd have to find a way to sell those too before long, I had already gathered so many I was almost running out of room for it.

Another hour was spent trying to get rid of my swords' damage, I had been using it a little too carelessly and it had started to accumulate, another week and I'd probably have to get a new one from one of the blacksmith familias.

Hephaestus was the biggest and most well-known but I had seen their prices and, even now, I could barely afford them.

Using the Inn's bathroom, I took a quicky bath and called it a day.

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"How very rude of you"

I woke up with a startle, there was someone in my room!

Grabbing my dagger from bellow my pillow I wiped my arm towards the voice on instinct and only them realized I just threw away my only weapon!

My heart hammering in my chest I rolled in the bed and threw myself towards my sword in a vain hope that I could get to it before whoever invaded my bedroom had time to kill me.

I made it! Unsheathing my weapon, I twisted around, my mangekyou already active and ready fight.

Loki sat backyards on a chair inside my room, her arms crossed on top of its back and an amused smile on her face, by her side Tiona held my dagger between her fingers.

"You know I was kind of mad you were avoiding me but now I think it was worth the wait" Slowly, the god started clapping "And your eyes can even change shape, is that some kind of skill?"

Adrenaline leaving my body I collapsed against the wall, Go... no, no calling on gods anymore, just damn it!

As I scratched at my eyes in frustration, I couldn't help but see the smirk on her face growing even wider.