The world collapsed in on Bell.
Floors crumbled from above while the ground beneath his feet vanished, his surroundings shuddering violently as if in the throes of a massive earthquake.
Massive slabs of the ceiling plummeted, crushing scurrying monsters beneath tons of rubble and debris.
Creatures surrounding Bell ignored him entirely, scattering in a frantic bid to save their own lives.
Before he could blink, the wreckage swallowed him whole, his world going white.
....
..
.
The Dungeon shuddered in response. Its walls writhed like living snakes.
A high-pitched wail echoed throughout the deep floors. Inside the broken walls of 19th floor, a horrifying monster appeared. It looked like a spider stripped down to its architecture—nothing but black bone, joints, and the hollow spaces between them.
It jerked and twisted, prying itself free from within the wall where it was born. Once loose, it plunged down into the cavity below.
...
Bell dragged himself up onto a partially intact section of 21st floor. Cuts crisscrossed his body—some shallow, others deep enough to see the white of bone beneath, and blood streamed from multiple wounds on his head.
He had barely caught his breath when something split the air above him. His eyes constricted when he looked overhead.
A Juggernaut was plummeting straight towards him.
Fuck!
Bell couldn't help but curse inwardly, his legs tensing in preparation.
Flames blazed beneath his heels as he launched himself upward, colliding with the monster in an instant.
BANG!
Four of its limbs curved mid-impact to pierce into Bell, intending to skewer him and arrest the collision's recoil simultaneously.
Golden strings rotated to life across his awareness at once. His spine bent backward into an impossible U-shape. Two limbs sliced harmlessly through the air where his legs had been a moment ago, while another two carved through the space where his skull had rested earlier.
Bell flew back from the recoil, while Juggernaut swung its tail, anchoring it to the floor nearby to prevent itself from plunging even further down.
His feet landed on the ground a moment later, heels sliding back. Meanwhile, Juggernaut leveraged its anchored tail to swing itself onto the surface.
.
They came face to face.
Bell and Juggernaut locked eyes.
Ruby irises clashed against crimson pupils.
He took a step toward the monster...
...and Achrome overwhelmed the world.
[Ittou Rasestu] surfaced with a ferocious howl. Sight became redundant. Sound became secondary. Scent became dispensable. Touch became superfluous. Taste became unnecessary.
His second step landed just ahead of Juggernaut. Its six limbs were already whirring toward him with tremendous speed, even inside the monochromatic world.
Blood spurted from his orifices as he pushed [Ittou Rasestu] to its maximum output.
Clunk.
Time slowed to a crawl as the wheel above him turned.
His heart slammed against his ribs hard enough to crack them.
Heat flooded his veins, something raw and explosive racing through every fiber.
His vision sharpened until he could see the individual grooves carved into Juggernaut's shell.
BOOOOM!
Time snapped back to its original flow, followed by the deafening sound of a tremendous impact.
His punch had been blocked—Juggernaut had crisscrossed its limbs before the point of impact, dissipating his full-force strike without a scratch.
A moment later, its limbs disentangled in a tangle of bone and rushed him from every angle, striking from blind spots and impossible positions.
Bell moved through the barrage without hesitation. He weaved before its limbs could even touch him, his footwork certain and precise.
His evasion speed climbed higher as Juggernaut increased the ferocity of its assault. Limbs filled his vision from every direction, a mere blur of motion.
Everything else dissolved from his awareness. Countless illusionary versions of himself materialized within his mind.
One dodged behind—pierced from the side.
Another jumped—killed mid-air by other limbs.
Countless versions of him died in his mind's eye. Yet amidst the slaughter, a small number survived with minor injuries.
Only a single version emerged unscathed.
He followed that single path, slipping through the storm of limbs unharmed. Golden strings of victory revolved around him with every step, countless futures materializing and dissipating in seconds.
.
He kicked the ground forcefully, launching himself backward and out of its range, dodging the barrage altogether.
In fact, it would have been easier if he could use [Gusgam], but Juggernaut possessed a magic absorption and reflection barrier overlaid over its form. Any magic used against it would be absorbed, amplified, and reflected back at him.
It was the absolute worst matchup for him; without his magic, his firepower was effectively halved.
Bell's lips peeled back, teeth bared and bloodstained, eyes flat and empty of anything resembling mercy.
A flaming sword materialized in his grip, but he didn't aim it at the monster.
Instead, he plunged it into the ground beneath him, pouring his mana into the blade with reckless abandon.
The sword expanded exponentially, melting stones beneath him from inside out.
The Juggernaut let out a piercing screech at his actions. Bell looked up at it, a wild, shit-eating grin spreading across his face as he mouthed two words.
Get fucked.
He continued to pour mana into his weapon like a madman. The blade became unstable, vibrating violently until—
BOOOOM!
The floor beneath them was torn apart. Bell and Juggernaut plunged into the abyss below.
"Hahahahahaha!"
Bell's maniacal laughter overpowered even the collapsing dungeon.
...
..
.
ROOOOOAR!
A draconic roar thundered from the depths as they plummeted through darkness, falling past floor after floor.
Bell looked down. The ground was rushing up to meet him—and it wasn't alone. A massive creature was surfacing in the waters below, looking up at them as intruders.
Boss of the 28th Floor.
Amphisbaena.
.
Juggernaut screeched from the sky.
Amphisbaena roared across the ground.
"Hahahahahaha."
Bell's laughter grew louder, more unhinged, drowning out the sound of both beasts.
"You monsters want to jump me!?" he screamed into the rushing wind, air tearing at his face.
He thrust both hands forward at a slight upward angle, his fists clenched tight.
"Come on then. All of you. At once!"
Juggernaut above.
Amphisbaena below.
"With this treasure, I summon..."
...
..
.
***
[300 Power Stones = 1 Bonus Chapter]
[8 chapters ahead on P@tr3on = [email protected]/Not_Aaryan]
...
[Author's Thoughts]
2V2... Amphisbaena and Juggernaut vs Bell and Paparaga.
Who do you think wins?
It would definitely be a close fight. Yet... the longer this fight stretches, the higher chance Bell and Mahoraga will have to win.
Come on everyone... Hedge your bets about who would win.
...
Note: This Juggernaut was a irregular one with extra limbs.
...
[Gusgam]: The second lowest grade of fire magic that ranks above [Grega] from Misfit of Demon King Academy.
...
How was this chapter? Reviews would be appreciated as always.
One of you even told me that information about the abilities used in each chapter makes the overall chapters better, so I'll implement it from now on.