Chapter 189: Not Every Seed Grows
Everyone froze. Panic didn't.
"Who's John? Ooh, I can talk again!"
Ignoring Panic as he pulled in an exaggerated breath, Seo-jin scanned the group, eyes moving across faces and bodies, then stilled as he realized the ugly bald one was missing. He wasn't even sure the human had made it into the dungeon.
"Has anyone seen him since we got in?"
Everyone looked to each other, shifting on the damp stone, but all shook their heads.
Everyone expected Seo-jin to stop, maybe turn back toward the Vent Cathedral, but instead he shrugged his shoulders and moved on.
"If he's still alive, then he'll have to fend for himself. Now while I head deeper, I want all of you to stay here. You all should be more than capable of handling whatever shows up."
Looking around the room, then back to Seo-jin, Min felt her patience thin, her jaw tightening as she stepped forward.
"That's a stupid plan. Just bring us along if you're worried about speed. We can still fight."
Tapping his staff against the stone with a dull knock, Snare shot her an annoyed look.
"The Broodfather said we will stay, so that is what we'll do. It is obvious there is more going on here than you realize."
Min turned on him, her aura starting to leak, but Seo-jin stepped in before it could build.
"I can't risk carrying you humans anymore."
"Nonsense, you just did—!"
Her words cut off as his eyes locked onto hers, something in them hardening, and she felt a cold line run down her back that made her stop.
Seeing her settle, shoulders easing a fraction, he continued.
"My corruption has evolved with me. Before, if you stayed around me or inside the growths for too long, you would develop Madness. Now, if it's your first time around me, you will gain Madness immediately, and if you remain inside the growths, you will develop something called a seed."
This time it was Lynn who stepped forward, the want in her eyes obvious.
"I do not fear your seed."
If Min had a drink, she would have spit it out. Instead, her laugh burst out, loud and rolling.
"Gross, ya slut!"
Blushing, Lynn shot the larger woman a look that could kill, her shoulders tensing as she drew breath to snap back, but Seo-jin placed a hand on her shoulder. She stilled immediately.
"It's not that type of seed, Lynn. This seed would alter your DNA. You can only gain it by staying in the growths, but if you do, you will change into a demon."
He said it plainly, like it was nothing, but the shift around them was immediate. Faces tightened. Breathing changed. Besides Lynn, the rest of the humans took a step back without thinking.
Seeing their reaction, and feeling the air pull tight, Seo-jin's patience started to wear.
"None of you need to worry. Just drink the ale like normal and you'll be fine."
Walking toward the tunnel, Seo-jin glanced at Panic, then slowed. There wasn't much visible change, but he could feel it. Panic had grown. A lot.
"Keep them safe while I'm gone. Otherwise I'll hold you responsible for any deaths."
Panic's grin stayed, but his posture tightened, shoulders locking for a moment.
Bloodlight began to bleed from Seo-jin's shoulders, faint heat rolling off him as he looked back at Min.
"It shouldn't take long. Don't give me a reason to punish any of you while I'm gone."
Min bristled, jaw tightening.
"Punish?! The fuck you gonna—?!"
But before she could finish, he was already gone, the ground cracking under the force of his launch as he tore out of the area.
"He did that on purpose."
Still staring after him, Lynn stepped up beside Min, then cleared her throat.
"You're a slut."
----
As the stone walls blurred past, wind dragging at his clothes and stinging his eyes, Seo-jin took the chance to check on Panic's growth. He was thoroughly impressed.
'Flesh Artisan. It's got a ring to it.'
[Totally fits the little psycho.]
Reading through the new class profile as he moved, feet barely touching the ground between strides, a small grin pulled at his face.
[Class Profile // Flesh Artisan]
[Role // Chaotic Executioner / Battlefield Sculptor]
[Rank // C]
[Critical Stat // AGI (Primary scaling for all class abilities)]
[Secondary Scaling // STR (burst damage) / INT (DoT amplification)]
[Core Class Mechanic // Living Canvas]
[Every successful hit applies 1 Mark of Flesh (max 5 per target)]
[Marks are invisible to all but the user; applied through instinct, not conscious tracking]
[At 3+ Marks, targets begin Bleeding (stacking DoT)]
[At 5 Marks, abilities interacting with the target trigger a Rupture effect]
[Rupture Effect]
[Consumes all Marks // Deals burst damage + spreads 50% of total bleed damage to all enemies within 5m]
[Note]
[Panic does not consciously place Marks. His body "knows" where they belong.]
[Passive Trait // Unstable Genius]
[Movement speed increases by +10% during combat]
[Dodging or repositioning within 1 second of an attack grants +15% damage on next hit]
[Missed attacks do not break momentum; instead grant +5% AGI for 2 seconds]
[Class Skills]
[Name // Frenzied Carve]
[Type // Active]
[Rank // C]
[Effect]
[Rapid multi-hit strike (3 hits, 60% weapon damage each)]
[Each hit applies 1 Mark of Flesh]
[Final hit prioritizes previously marked areas, increasing crit chance by +10%]
[Cast Time // Instant]
[Cooldown // 6s]
[Name // Scatter Rend]
[Type // Active / AOE]
[Rank // C]
[Effect]
[Spin and lash out in a 5m radius, dealing 90% weapon damage to all targets]
[Applies 2 Marks of Flesh to each enemy hit]
[Enemies already at 3+ Marks immediately begin Bleeding at increased tick rate (+50% for 4s)]
[Cast Time // Instant]
[Cooldown // 12s]
[Name // Open the Work]
[Type // Active / Single Target]
[Rank // C]
[Effect]
[Drive weapon into a marked target, consuming all Marks]
[Triggers Rupture]
[If target survives, applies Hemorrhage (20% of total bleed damage over 6s)]
[Cast Time // 0.5s]
[Cooldown // 18s]
[Name // Red Flow State]
[Type // Passive]
[Rank // C]
[Effect]
[While 2 or more enemies are bleeding nearby AGI increases by +10% / All attacks extend active bleed durations by +1s / Killing a bleeding target causes a Minor Rupture at death location]
[Name // Masterpiece Unfinished]
[Type // Active / Burst State]
[Rank // C]
[Effect]
[Enter a 6-second frenzy state:]
[Attack speed +25% / All hits apply 2 Marks of Flesh / Rupture no longer consumes Marks during this state]
[End Effect]
[All Marks on all targets detonate simultaneously, triggering chained Ruptures]
[Cost // High stamina drain]
[Cast Time // Instant]
[Cooldown // 60s]
["When inspiration hits, the battlefield breaks."]
It sat right with him. Even moving at his current speed, Seo-jin could already picture the chaos Panic would carve through a fight. He had always known his second born leaned towards the arts, the way he enjoyed his work made that clear, but now that his class matched it, Panic was going to turn any battlefield into something ugly and beautiful all at once.
As the tunnel twisted, the ground rising under his feet, Seo-jin kept moving at speed. The air thinned with each step, the weight of moisture easing, and the smell shifted from the bitter salt of the lower floor to something sweeter, thicker, and unfamiliar.
Swiping his panel away, he spotted a faint glow ahead as he closed the distance.
[What do you think happened to John? I remember seeing him as the dungeon was dropping.]
'No idea. But if he's in here, I doubt he's in trouble. That human's survival skills are impressive. And if he's dead, it's not much of a loss.'
[Would be kinda sad if he died now, don't you think? Bet he'd be the first to volunteer to take your seed.]
Seo-jin winced, his stride hitching for half a step.
'You said it like that on purpose.'
[I did.]
"Fucking gross."
Slowing, he raised a hand to shield his eyes from the light spilling in ahead.
"If he does survive, guess I have the perfect reward for him."
[Just be gentle.]
"Fuck—come on! Ew!"
Stepping out of the tunnel as his eyes adjusted, the tension in his face eased, the disgust dropping away as he took in what lay beyond.
He'd never seen anything like it.
----
Before the dungeon dropped, while Seo-jin and the group stood under the cube waiting for it to land, John stood off by himself, sweat running down his back and soaking his shirt.
His gut churned, loud and wet, like something fighting inside him.
"Please, please, please—"
Thinking back to what he'd done, he clenched his teeth and looked away from the others, hating himself in that moment.
After the elves had been defeated, he had watched Seo-jin devour the elf king with Lynn and gotten an idea he now regretted. He had tried eating demon meat, one of the wild imps.
The power he'd hoped for never came, only the sweating and the twisting pain in his gut.
A sour burp crawled up his throat, thick and foul, and the taste made him gag hard.
The gag hit his stomach like a trigger, his muscles seizing, and the control he'd been clinging to slipped. Maybe a minute, maybe less before the dungeon dropped, and he was about to shit himself.
"Oh god—"
He looked around fast, chest tight, and when he saw no one paying attention, he bolted for a patch of bushes. He barely got his pants down before his body gave out.
It felt like hell tearing through him.
"Hate—my life..."
It came out hard and fast, his whole body locking with it, and the smell hit a second later, thick enough to make his eyes water as he fought not to throw up.
"You—stupid—moronic—jackass—"
The burn kicked in.
Through the wet sounds behind him, plops and splats echoing in the brush, Seo-jin's voice cut through, close enough to make him flinch.
"Remember the chain of command. Reconvening with me takes priority over fighting."
Quickly followed by Min.
"Let's fucking do this!"
He scrambled, hands slipping on his waistband.
"Shit!"
Still leaking, he grimaced as he yanked his pants up, ignoring the heat and the mess, then stumbled back toward the group. His gut clenched again, forcing him into a stiff, straight-legged walk as he tried not to lose control.
As the purple cube started to drop, it didn't look like he was going to make it. Panic hit, and he threw caution out, breaking into a full sprint, his stomach lurching with every step as he ran.
But he made it. Too bad he ended up alone after the dungeon settled.
Now, hours later, as Seo-jin broke into the second floor, John sat alone in the Vent Cathedral, back pressed against damp stone, regretting that he'd made it at all.
His only consolation was he'd at least gotten a bath.
Feeling a nudge at his leg, he rolled his eyes and kicked back, his heel brushing against something soft.
'I'm all out, quit it.'
A small vent bug kept nudging at his leg.
When he'd first arrived, he'd found himself completely separated from everyone else, his pants bloated. He'd pushed off fast once the breathing buff kicked in, lungs filling easy, and swam until he found somewhere to hide.
He'd wedged himself inside a dead vent and settled in, back against the curved wall. When he started pulling off his pants to clean himself, he realized he wasn't alone. A small vent bug was eating his feces, its antenna twitching in quick bursts as it fed.
After a few minutes of panicking, breath coming fast and uneven, John realized the thing wasn't aggressive. Only when he tried to swat it did it react, snapping once, but the moment he pulled back and froze, it settled again, returning to its meal.
So he stayed there as the cathedral shook around him, low tremors running through the walls while distant horn blasts rolled through the water. He kept still, breath quiet, hands clenched, until at some point he realized he was holding the bug, thumb brushing along its neck as it twitched under his touch.
Eventually, everything went quiet. The shaking stopped, and the horn blasts faded, leaving only the low hum of the space. The little bug stilled in his hands, no longer agitated.
Looking down at it, John shifted, a restless itch building in his chest.
'Should we maybe explore a little? If I use my skill, we should be able to stay safe. You'll warn me if anything gets close, right?'
It answered with a series of clicks and small chittering sounds he didn't understand, its antenna tapping against his wrist. Somehow, that was enough.
He'd tested his skill earlier, worried the water would ruin it, but the fog held just fine. Pulling it over himself now, he eased forward, sliding out of the broken vent, keeping low.
Only to find the entire area around him packed.
Hundreds of vent bugs waited just outside, bodies layered over one another, their legs shifting against the stone. The second he peeked out, every eye snapped toward him.
John shit himself again.