Chapter 19 — Untitled[1]
Bang!
Serena's pistol sang again—another note in its brutal melody.
An orc trying to flank Sam jerked violently as a round punched clean through its chest. The creature staggered once, then collapsed onto the cavern floor with a dull, lifeless thud.
Sam's eyes flicked to the fallen body, then traced the shot back to Serena.
He gave a quick nod and mouthed thanks, though hidden by his armor's headgear, before turning back just in time—
Clang!
The impact rattled through his arms as he barely managed to bring his blade up in an awkward block, catching a massive bone mace inches from his skull. The vibration traveled straight into his bones, dulled only by the protection of his arm piece.
He grit his teeth.
Using the recoil, Sam twisted aside and drove a brutal stump-kick into the orc's midsection.
Bam!
The creature stumbled with a furious bellow—
—but Sam was already moving.
He ducked under a wide swing from a second orc, feeling displaced force skim past his helmet, then surged forward, blade flashing.
Shrrk.
Steel and plasma met flesh.
Green blood sprayed across the stone as he carved a shallow line across its ribs and pivoted away before its counterattack could land.
Above and behind him—
Bang! Bang!
Serena fired twice more, her shots controlled—precise, sharp, deliberate.
One orc dropped instantly, its throat blown open.
Another reeled backward, howling as its leg was torn apart by a perfectly placed round.
But instead of thinning, the enemies multiplied.
What had started as six—four after Sam's opening blitz—had grown to eight fresh bodies pouring in from the tunnels.
Not counting the corpses already littering the cavern floor.
They spread out instinctively, forming a loose ring around him, each searching for an opening.
Sam felt pressure closing in from all sides.
Every muscle in his body burned.
The hours he'd spent in the gym—strength training, endurance drills—were finally paying off. His armor's assistive combat functions guided his movements, subtly correcting his balance, sharpening his reactions.
But more than that—
Serena.
Her shots came exactly when he needed them.
Each interruption bought him space.
Each kill cracked their formation.
With her armor's assist functions fully active, she fired freely now, weaving bullets between Sam's movements without hesitation.
A couple of orcs tried to break away and rush her—the creatures weren't stupid.
But without her earlier hesitation holding her back, Serena put them down with clean precision.
Pchkt.
A swift stab from Sam, and the number of living orcs reduced to three, with no new addition in sight.
Bang! Bang!
The final two fell almost together.
Silence rushed back into the cavern.
Sam stood there heaving, chest rising and falling hard.
Serena remained frozen for a second longer, her heart still pounding liquified adrenaline through her veins.
"…is it over?" she asked quietly, glancing around in the direction the additional orcs came from. "…are they all dead?"
Catching his breath, Sam glanced at his HUD. "…I think so," he replied. "That should be the last of them."
That answer seemed to drain the tension straight out of Serena's body.
Her legs gave way and she dropped onto the cavern floor with a soft thump, sitting there in stunned silence as her armor's headgear automatically retracted.
Sam turned toward her, concern rising when he heard the thump.
"Serena…?"
But the sight that greeted him stole the words from his mouth.
She was grinning. Wild and unrestrained.
"Wh—" he started but—
"Ohhh—did you see that?!"
"I went—pui-pui! And then bang-bang! And then—"
She acted it out in rapid bursts, mimicking her shooting stance and recoil, spinning halfway around as if replaying the fight in her head.
Sam just stood there, stunned.
Some stance even showed her slashing—with her guns?
'Like hell you did—'
For a brief moment, his thoughts drifted. He mentally noted the faint apparitions of hovering souls and the need to devour them quickly before they dissipated.
He snapped back just in time to hear—
"—what do you think? Aren't I cool?"
He opened his mouth to reply, but Serena wasn't having it.
"Wait—don't bother answering. I already know I am."
She grinned even harder.
Sam exhaled and shook his head.
'…this girl. '
'Sigh… let's just get on with business.'
'I wonder how max is doing.' He briefly glanced at Serena before adding, 'Cynthia too. I hope they are okay.'
He shook his head, then turned his attention back to the cavern.
Bodies littered the cavern floor—nearly fifteen in total.
Green blood pooled in shallow grooves between uneven stones, the metallic stench hanging heavy in the air.
Above the corpses, faint apparitions wavered.
Souls.
They flickered weakly, like dying embers, already beginning to fade.
Sam didn't hesitate.
He stepped forward.
A quiet pulse rippled outward from his body. It wasn't something he consciously activated—just something he felt, instinctively, that he could do ever since his talent got its upgrade.
He called it—devouring domain.
The souls shuddered.
Then they were pulled toward him in thin, pale streams of light, slipping through his armor and disappearing into his body one after another.
A familiar warmth spread through his veins. This time, he felt it more clearly.
Each soul passed through his body, his core and vanished somewhere deeper—someplace beyond his senses.
Barely a moment later, a unique energy arose from the depths of his core, quickly escaping its boundaries to nourish his cells when in the next moment——
Blue text bloomed in his vision.
Mana +1
Agility +1
Mana +2
Strength +1
Notifications stacked rapidly. One after another. A whole stream of them.
They continued for several seconds before finally stopping.
Mental +1
The system went silent. Sam stood frozen. For several long seconds, he didn't move.
When he finally did, it was followed by a chocked gasp and a shudder.
"This—" he began but paused.
He did not know what to say, something Inside him felt… fuller.
—more there.
It was subtle—like his muscles had been quietly reinforced from the inside. His breathing steadied. His heartbeat slowed. His thoughts felt cleaner around the edges.
He flexed his fingers.
Contained power answered the motion. The sensation sent a faint shiver through him. He'd felt this before—once, twice.
Still, he could not say he was getting any used to it.
"…nice," he muttered.
Behind him—
Serena, still grinning and quietly chuckling to herself, unhooked a familiar contraption from her waist.
The spider-like core extraction bot.
With a low mechanical whirr, it sprang to life.
It skittered across the stone floor, hopping from corpse to corpse with eerie efficiency. Thin appendages pierced flesh, glowing faintly as they pulled glowing cores from shattered chests. Each one passed into the bot's cleaning compartment before it spat it out and moved on to the next body.
Sam watched it work for a second. Efficient. Clinical.
He exhaled slowly.
Then muttered, "Status."
[1] Any suggestions?