“Huh. Huh.”
————-<Succession>————-
[Strength 008 Permanently Increased]
[Agility 022 Permanently Increased]
[Intelligence 004 Permanently Increased]
[Charisma 000 Permanently Increased]
———————————–
The final Griima disappeared in a flame of blue fire.
With this, the construction of all monsters in the cave was complete.
A long 4-hour journey. It had been a terrible time. I can still feel the sensation of bugs crawling somewhere.
The ‘Succession’ stat obtained from monsters follows a different mechanism than usual; instead of the normal 1%, a bonus is added for bosses and a penalty is applied for regular mobs.
When I inquired with Laura about the different stat inheritance compared to villain hunts, she explained it was due to the system’s rules, which were unavoidable.
I moved to an area where there was no trace of Money Bug powder (?) and collapsed there. After enduring such a long time, sitting down doubled my sense of happiness.
“Status window.”
————<Status Window>————
◈ Name
n̶̡̡̛̟̠͈͎̟̍͜͝͡͠ṵ̢̭̲̋͒̓͊̀̒́͘͡l̴̳͙͓̞̻̝͇̥͆̋͂̉̕͡͠͠l̨̛̫̖̝͓̮̳͓͆̃̈̈́̈́͆̈̕
◈ Stats
[Strength 798 B]
[Agility 447 B] (+200)
[Intelligence 981 D]
[Charisma 147 F]
[Overall C]
◈ Skills
[Succession 724 A]
[Dragon Heart — A]
[Telekinesis 411 C]
[Magic Engraving — B]
———————————–
It’s been a while since I’ve last checked the status window.
My Agility rank went up from C to B.
Strength and Intelligence are close to a rank up as well.
The Telekinesis skill has returned to normal.
‘The strange name situation remains unchanged.’
“Lady Laura, why is the name still strange?”
[Oh, the name issue? It’s not that it can’t be fixed, but it’s quite the hassle. Explaining it further would be like reading the Bible to a cow, so I won’t bother. You’re practically a monkey who wouldn’t understand anything beyond three lines anyway.]
She still seemed irritated by something I had said when we first met.
“Ahem.”
Still, the stats have increased significantly, so it felt like the hard work paid off.
The odd part, however, was that the Orb of Growth didn’t drop from these Money Bugs. Since these were Agility-specialized monsters, the ‘Orb of Growth (Agility)’ should have dropped. But these creatures turned into ash and left nothing behind.
I can’t help but be curious.
“Laura! Why didn’t the Orb of Growth drop?”
[Because the ‘Succession’ skill already absorbed the resources, leaving nothing behind. In short, monsters killed by ‘Succession’ do not drop the Orb of Growth. And what is this ‘Lauraemon’ you speak of?]
“That’s a thing.”
I retrieved a chocolate bar from my bag, eating it while restoring my condition. Though the ‘crunch crunch’ sounds still haunted me from PTSD, I disregarded them.
Fully recovered, I moved forward. The cave had no branches, so I just had to keep walking.
Along the way, bits of human bones and clothing could be seen. Likely, the ones who had been in the vehicles that got sucked into the gate when it appeared originally. The vehicles were filtered out by the gate, and their bodies fell here, only to be devoured by the Money Bugs.
It’s unfortunate, but they were already doomed people. Even by the time the original protagonist entered, everyone was already dead.
And because of that, the protagonist cleared this dungeon and got criticized by the netizens.
It was due to some journalist’s speculation. According to the article, the protagonist’s rash actions had unnecessarily caused the deaths of citizens. It was as if he intentionally trolled, leading to the deaths of the citizens.
Now, I will bear the brunt of that criticism. Perhaps it’s the price I pay for obtaining a skill.
Before I knew it, I had reached the end.
A large steel door awaited me. I had to use all my strength to push it open.
I felt tense. The Money Bugs were dealt with by some workaround, but this dungeon’s boss is a different league altogether. Thinking of him as similar to C or D ranked villains would be a mistake.
“Have you arrived?”
A figure emerged from the shadows – a man in black robes. There was something clearly off about him; where his face should be, there was nothing but a smooth, egg-like surface. The voice that greeted me didn’t come from his mouth.
————<Curtain Call>————
[The Nameless One has appeared.
A boy who was taken by an assassin organization and trained as an unnamed assassin.
Born for martial arts, he was a child of unparalleled talent. Even though he learned the art of assassination, he grew to a level where he could take on first-rate masters head-on.
With his exceptional skills, he eliminated countless masters, instilling fear in everyone. Eventually, he was abandoned by the organization, and no one remained on his side.
Having become a public enemy, the assassin fled to a cave, wounded. Sustaining himself on insects while nursing his festering wounds, he survived for a year.
Despite his desperate efforts, Lady Luck did not smile upon him.
His untreated wounds worsened, consuming his body, and he finally met a lonely demise.
He had one wish: to leave his name in the annals of history. That regret kept his soul tethered to this realm.
‘If only I had been born into a prestigious family and trained without worry, I would have quickly attained the level of the Immortal Plane, receiving praise. Alas, my lowly birth condemned me to rejection!’]
————————————–
“Young lady, your constitution is too frail. You cannot learn my martial arts. Return.”
This Nameless One talks as though he’s some kind of hermit master.
He’s C-rated but deemed weak? Both Laura and this guy are very condescending towards others.
“Shut up.”
The nameless assassin stepped into a fighting stance.
To be honest, I was afraid. As a B-level boss of a C-level dungeon, the Nameless One undoubtedly had stats that far exceeded mine.
I quietly spoke.
“Lady Laura, please stand by and Dispel on my signal.”
Laura’s worried voice replied,
“He is not in your league. Are you sure about this?”
“Yes, Lady Laura, it’ll be fine with you by my side.”
I had the Leather of the Sage, with an inner layer of anti-sword armor. It wouldn’t completely block the superior’s attacks, but it could mitigate some of the damage.
I held the mace in a defensive posture, knowing I had to be particularly cautious of my neck and face. He’s an assassin, so there’s a high chance he’ll target those areas.
The assassin lowered his body, then his figure vanished from my sight instantly.
This pattern…
“I know.”
I twisted my body and swung the mace.
“Aaargh!”
The Nameless One reappeared behind me, struck by the mace and rolled on the ground.
I hadn’t entered this dungeon blindly. I had a plan for dealing with the Money Bugs beforehand, and I didn’t come here without confidence in defeating the boss. I know the attack patterns of the Nameless One like the back of my hand.
I’ve fought him dozens of times in the game.
He drops low and reappears behind me for a fatal strike.
I simply predicted where he’d end up based on his stance and struck preemptively.
The assassin lowered his body again, fading from view. He seemed to think being countered was a fluke.
“Don’t underestimate me.”
Once more, I swung the mace behind me, and again the assassin was thrown back by the heavy metal.
“How, how did you…”
The low voice muttering under his breath. I mocked him.
“Assassins are nothing once they reveal themselves.”
Suddenly, a black aura burst out from the Nameless One. It reminded me of the Super Saiyan transformation from Dragon Ball. He was clearly furious.
The most hated words for this prideful assassin? They go along the lines of ‘You only succeeded because of the ambush. If we fought head-on, I’d win.’
After dodging a few attacks, taunting him this way starts the final phase. In the final phase, his speed doubles…
“Shit.”
A dagger zipped toward me and pierced my thigh. And again,
“Ah!”
It struck my shoulder.
I guess dodging isn’t exactly my strong suit.
The assassin now came at me head-on, his daggers moving at a speed too fast to follow. My temples, stomach, thighs… every time the wind was cut, new wounds appeared.
I tried blocking with the mace, but I simply couldn’t keep up with the speed. At least I concentrated my defense on my face and neck to avoid instant death.
‘Damn. Should’ve brought a shield.’
Carrying only the mace was perhaps a bit complacent.
The dagger moved like a snake hunting its prey, targeting my neck this time.
‘This is serious!’
This wasn’t a probing stab; I could feel his strong will to finish this fight. If I recklessly tried to block, I might meet my end right there.
I rolled on the ground in a panic. And at that moment, three daggers came in rapid succession.
Since I had just thrown myself on the ground, I couldn’t avoid them.
The dagger sank into my right leg.
“Aaaah!”
I rose up, dragging my incapacitated leg.
The Nameless One, holding a short sword, approached with ease.
I decided to make my final move.
“Hey, wait. Stop. If you’re gonna kill me, why don’t you do it with your best skill? If I’m going to meet you in the afterlife, I need to know who I died to, right? Being killed by some no-name assassin would be embarrassing.”
The reason he became a wraith was due to his ‘desire for recognition’. He wasn’t just an assassin – he wanted to be recognized as a powerful warrior. I was confident he wouldn’t refuse.
“Very well, I shall grant you your last moments with my ultimate technique.”
The moment I had planned for when entering the boss room had arrived – this one chance.
I could defeat him.
