The monster slowly approached the back of the room. Stephen’s eyes could see through it. It was like he could dissect it in real time — as if the data was being transcribed on top of reality. Through the creature’s skin, he could see its muscle and skeletal system at work. Every minute detail was sent to Stephen’s brain.  

The swelling amount of information was already painful.  

Oblivious to Stephen, the creature continued to creep towards Alex. Stephen opened up the vial that contained the explosive powder and formed a small bead in his hand. 

It felt like it was mocking them. It was sure of its victory and was savoring every moment of it. 

Stephen clenched his teeth. He could hear his own heartbeat, but he held his ground and waited for the right moment. 

The seconds arrived slowly. The voice that Stephen had been hearing was silent. Still, he waited. 

Tick. Tick. Tick. 

Without sparing a glance, the boss monster passed Stephen. It only stopped when it was in front of Alex’s unmoving body, whereupon it finally opened its mouth. As it was closing it around Alex, Stephen flung the bead into the thing’s maw. It was small enough to go unnoticed as it slid down its throat.

Stephen snapped his fingers and activated the explosion. Because Stephen limited the amount, the damage was localized to the point of contact. If he wanted to blow the thing up in one go then the blast wouldn’t be contained and the surroundings — the tunnel, the other party members, and himself — would be damaged.

However, while the damage was non-lethal, the impact and heat would sear and rupture the creature’s throat. Stephen succeeded in gaining aggro while simultaneously rendering its ability to roar and its ability to call for reinforcements obsolete. 

‘What is everyone else doing? Are they okay?’

He didn’t look. Instead, he shouted at the creature.

“Stupid bitch! Your mother is…” 

‘Wait, I shouldn’t insult your mother. I’m sorry.’ 

He ran to the open passageway, where the door used to stand. As he was running, with the corner of his eyes he saw three people lying on the ground. It was blurry so he couldn’t see if they were injured. Were they unconscious, knocked out, or dead? He didn’t know. 

They were probably alive though. He stopped hearing them make noise when the childlike laughter had appeared earlier. 

The enraged creature barreled after Stephen. Luckily, there were no other monsters. Presumably, the boss had wanted the kill for itself and kept the other creatures back. If it wanted help after the fact, then it was too late given the state of its throat. 

Whatever the case, once the two made it into the hallway, Stephen tightened his grip he held on his knife and turned around. In his other hand was the vial of explosive powder. 

The mid level boss stopped its dash in response. Its eyes were filled with caution and confusion. How did this insignificant insect cause it damage? Why did it stop running all of a sudden? 

The room turned slightly red and seemed to shake slightly. Even now dozens of notifications labeled with the word error filled Stephen’s sight. He ignored them. 

It was like he was viewing everything from a third person perspective. He took another deep breath and everything seemed to become slower.

He lowered his center of gravity and poured some of the powder onto his blade. 

The mid level boss sniffed the air, recognizing the scent of the substance that had harmed it. The black veins on its wounded head flared up. A lot of things didn’t make sense to it, but it just had to finish off its prey. 

Its whole body lurched forward. Small tremors surged through the surfaces of the tunnel from the movement. Stephen ignored it. He was already aware that one mistake meant death. 

He just kept his eyes on it, absorbing every minute detail. When it shifted its posture as it brought its claws forward, it didn’t escape his notice.

Stephen rolled, although it was more like diving, forward. A pair of claws swept the air he had just been occupying. 

It was faster than Stephen. However, its trajectory and momentum were simple. He just had to be quicker and more agile for a singular moment — and then repeat that process over and over.

Stephen landed on his feet, spun around, and wiped his blade along the creature’s exposed back. The blade could not pierce the thick wall of flesh, let alone do anything to the armor of bone that covered the majority of its body. Instead, he spread the powder onto its skin. 

Without adjusting its posture, the brute kicked back with its hind legs. At the same time, Stephen poured more powder onto his blade and then smeared it on the leg that passed by him.

The air pressure made his arms twitch, yet he applied the explosive powder without error. The technique Stephen used was a form of rudimentary alchemy. The powder would bind to his knife and then he would transfer that bond to the monster’s skin. No matter how much it shook and moved its body, the material was practically fused with its flesh and wouldn’t come off. 

It didn’t require any energy on Stephen’s part but instead used the inherent power of the substance.

A series of fast and unrelenting attacks came at Stephen like a storm. His vision came even more red as he dodged everything. He dived forward when it lunged. He swerved to the left when one claw came at him and then dodged to the right when its other claw came. He pivoted under its body when it tried to bite him. 

His main objective was always to get to the boss’s flank. The main saving grace of the fight was the structure of the tunnel. Every time Stephen managed to get past the creature, it would have to take the time to rotate its massive body, which wasn’t that much smaller than the passageway itself.

Nonetheless, Stephen felt the heaviness of his own body. His breath stuck in his throat. Yet, he kept pushing his body up against the monster to further hinder its ability to attack. Unfortunately, unlike Stephen, the thing didn’t seem to grow tired and the barrage of attacks were endless. 

When Stephen turned around after dodging another attack, a pair of claws entered his sight. He could even see a hideous smirk appear on the thing’s face. It was the first time the movements of the creature had lied. Somehow, during combat, it had learned how to feint.

It was about to pierce Stephen’s eyes. Undoubtedly the blow would then continue and bisect his skull. A snap sounded out and then there was a boom. 

Several localized and precise explosions happened across its body. The blasts happened at key joints and shifted the thing’s posture and thus altered the final destination of its claws. 

Dust filled the passageway. Stephen, who was sent backwards from the explosion, clenched his teeth and put strength in his body to keep it upright. His face was partially seared. He had noticed what was happening too late. The trajectory of the claws wasn’t altered enough and he was forced to make the powder covering the creature’s wrist explode. 

While the blow missed, Stephen’s face was caught in the blast. Rather than groan, he just clenched his teeth harder and stretched his body. 

He took a deep breath and lowered his posture. On his scorched face, Stephen’s blood filled eyes met the mid boss’s eyes. 

‘This is what we call phase two.’ 

If it was learning and didn’t grow tired then Stephen had to retaliate or else he would lose the battle of attrition. 

 

Cold. Everything was cold. It was a familiar, intoxicating feeling. At this point, Stephen didn’t even need to think. The future was preordained. 

Stephen emotionlessly dashed forward. Snaps and explosions filled the passageway as Stephen took the initiative. 

At the expense of his crying muscles, Stephen danced around the brute. The material that was fused into the boss’s skin continued to explode. Meanwhile, Stephen used the monster’s own flesh to block out the various blasts. 

The detonations were methodical. He targeted areas that disturbed the creature’s motions. Building an unrelenting cadence, Stephen would press the boss. As he used up the powder, he would apply more.

Blackish blood continued to pour out from countless wounds on the thing’s body. Bit by bit, holes appeared. Chunks of flesh were missing or shriveled and charred. Pieces of its bone armor were broken off. 

Even though it felt like his own body was dying on him, Stephen took his time. He slowly whittled down the boss. 

Stephen pivoted under the creature’s claws and then slashed out its exposed thigh. It was the area where the most damage had accumulated. He jumped back and snapped his fingers. 

Boom. Boom. Boom.

The series of the explosions caused it to fall forward. Its left leg was practically severed. The right left wasn’t much better off. Even if they weren't fully separated from its body, it was clear it wouldn’t be able to move much. 

The mid level boss groaned and stared at Stephen with vehement hatred. Stephen snapped and any residue powder activated, causing the creature to collapse. 

Their eyes met. Finish it. That is what the creature seemed to be telling Stephen. He complied and walked towards its face that was planted on the ground. He wasn’t worried about the beast retaliating. 

If it tried to drag Stephen down with it, then he would see it before it happened. Such an event was unlikely though. While he could feel the hatred, there was also the semblance of something akin to pride dwelling inside the boss. It refused to stoop that low even if it meant killing the annoying insect.

It was also possible that Stephen was overthinking things after having done battle and almost dying to it several times. Still, he couldn’t brush off the thought that the undead creatures were more complicated than they first appeared.

Whatever the case, Stephen quickly drove his knife through the boss’s head. He had to repeat the process over and over. He wasn’t aware of how many times he had to stab, but after a decent amount of time, the blood and guts that were splattered about everywhere turned into speckles of light. It signaled that the fight was finally over. 

+1500 XP

Well, that would have been the case, if the throng of feet couldn’t be heard. Stephen looked towards the darkness at the other end of the tunnel. The lights were already flashing. It seemed some of the zombies had actually been waiting to claim the prize of the battle.

‘Fuckers…’ 

The tunnel was damaged in various parts, but it was intact. Even if he hoped it would collapse and stop the incoming threat, that wasn’t going to happen. 

The Bad End was inevitable.