A general, not just a beast, a commander of death.
The others froze. I tightened my grip on Dragonfang, fire stirring at its edge. My pulse slowed again, a razor's calm cutting through me.
When he moved, the chamber shook.
His sword came down like a falling building, the impact blasting stone and dust outward. I caught it, blade to blade, fire shrieking against metal. The shockwave ripped the ground beneath us, and for a heartbeat I thought my arms would snap under the weight.
I twisted, fire bursting from my blade, carving a deep slash across his chest plate. Sparks flew. Flesh tore. He roared, a sound like an avalanche collapsing through the mountain.
His fist followed. I barely braced. The impact shattered the air, sending me flying across the chamber. I landed hard, ribs flaring with pain, arm numb from shoulder to wrist. My sword skidded away, clattering across stone.
I staggered to my feet, blood running warm down my side.
Before I could move, Thorus turned on the others. One massive step, his blade raised.
"No!" the healer cried. She lifted her hands, light flashing. There is no chance they could wound him, but the light was just enough to cause his head to turn, eyes narrowing at the light flicker.
That heartbeat was mine.
"Sword!" I shouted.
The speedster darted, snatched it up, and hurled it with everything he had. The hilt smacked into my palm.
I surged forward, blade igniting once more. Dragonfang drove into his arm, tearing muscle, severing tendons. His sword slipped, crashing uselessly into the ground.
I moved fast, legs burning, lungs fire-hot. A cut across the thigh. Another across the calf. His footing faltered. He roared again, swinging wild, his horn smashing against my blade as I aimed for his face, sparks burst as my blade nearly severed the horn.
Blood poured freely now. The ground steamed where it touched flame.
I hacked through its ankle. The Black General dropped to one knee, chest heaving, steam jetting from his nostrils. For just a moment, our eyes locked, something almost human flickering in his gaze. Confusion. Rage. Defeat.
Dragonfang erupted, fire howling brighter than before. With a roar that strained my voice raw, I slashed through his throat. Flesh parted and blood erupted, hissing as it touched the flames.
Then I drove my boot upwards into his jaw, snapping his head back.
The cavern shook as his body toppled, a fortress crumbling stone by stone. Dust rained from the ceiling. Silence swallowed the chamber.
[SYSTEM: YOU HAVE DEFEATED A NAMED MONSTER – THORUS, THE BLACK MINOTAUR GENERAL]
The minotaur's body dissolved into fading particles, breaking apart with a low, resonant hum that rattled through the cavern. A system chime followed, sharp and final, echoing in my mind.
[EXP GAINED: 50,000+]
Every member of the party levelled up, their gasps of shock breaking the silence. Everyone except the tank, who stared at his screen with a scowl, just shy of the threshold.
I popped an health and mana potion, the familiar warmth spreading through my chest, knitting strained muscle and easing the ache of cracked ribs. The pain dulled, but the fight's weight lingered in my bones. I forced my breathing steady and didn't let it show.
At the far side of the chamber, the reward chest shimmered faintly in the torchless glow, promising something more than just numbers.
I opened it.
A cascade of glowing jewels spilled out, rounded and glassy, each one warm to the touch. They shimmered with their own colours, blue, green and crimson worth twelve gold apiece. I didn't hesitate. I sold the lot.
[+72 Gold.]
But beneath them sat something else. Different.
A crystalline shard, silver-edged, faceted like frozen light. It pulsed faintly, each pulse thrumming through my palm.
[Upgrade Jewel: Enhances equipment to Level 30.]
I turned it over once in my hand, the glow reflecting in the dark of the chamber. Useful. But not for me. My gear was already past this.
I didn't hesitate. I held it out to the healer.
Her eyes widened. "Wait… for me? Are you serious?"
I nodded. "Your healing's the reason we're still standing. That jewel's worth more in your hands than mine."
She froze, staring at me, then at the shard. Her hands shook slightly as she accepted it, like she was afraid it would vanish if she gripped too tight.
"I've never… been given anything like this before," she admitted, her voice raw with something between disbelief and gratitude. "Back home, I couldn't even keep my little brother patched up when he fell, I thought my skills were pretty much useless. Now I'm-I'm useful?" She broke off, blinking hard, the glow of the jewel lighting her face.
"You're risking a lot being here, trying to keep the party alive," I said, cutting through her words before doubt could take root. "That's all that matters here."
The tank looked away, awkward, pretending to check his weapon. The speedster gave her a quiet nod, almost respectful.
She swallowed hard and in a whispered tone spoke, "Thank you."
For me, it was just another item. For her, it was something unlikely to gain again.
Moments like this reminded me how far the balance had shifted. Weeks ago, I would've fought tooth and nail for scraps like this, would've hoarded it out of desperation. Now, I stood strong enough to carve through a named general of the labyrinth and walk away. Strong enough to decide who lived or died, who grew stronger, with a single choice.
It was exhilarating and it was terrifying.
We moved onwards. The others still wore awe on their faces, eyes flicking between me and the jewel the healer clutched. Then we emerged onto the fifth floor.
A vast plain stretched before us, bleak and endless, scoured by wind and rain. No trees or greenery. Only jagged boulders jutting from shallow flood pools, and beyond them, icebergs that clawed into the horizon like the teeth of some giant beast.
Thunder rumbled overhead. Lightning ripped across the sky, carving the battlefield in pulses of blue and white. Each flash revealed a new cut of the world, shadows twisting, water shimmering, clouds morphing above.
The air smelled of frozen earth. Heavy. Charged. The kind of air that promises violence.
The others followed me out of the gate, slow and hesitant. Their heads turned side to side, every sound pulling at them. Their breaths came shallow, ragged. They knew what a single mistake here could mean.
I turned, keeping my voice calm, steady. "Stay back. Focus on healing. Use whatever potions you need. Nothing gets through me."
They nodded quickly creating a formation, but the healer hesitated. Her lips parted like she wanted to speak, but no words came. Fear, or trust, or both.
I stepped ahead alone.
My boots splashed softly in the shallow pools, ripples spreading outward in silence. Every step felt louder than it should, echoing against the vast emptiness. The ground shifted between slick stone and narrow ridges, uneven veins of dry land threading through the floodplain.
And then I felt it, the weight again. The reminder. This strength wasn't free. Every victory pulled me further away from the man I had been, carving me into something else. I couldn't decide yet if it was a gift… or the edge of a cliff I couldn't turn back from.
The thought broke as the plain itself attacked my body.
A crackling hum filled the air. The water surged with static, threads of purple light racing across the pools and flooding toward me in a blink. The moment they reached me, my body locked. Every muscle seized. My arms cramped tight against my sides. My legs froze solid.
Across the field, a figure took shape.
A humanoid form, built from storm. Its body flickered in arcs of purple lightning, its frame a silhouette of rolling thunderclouds. Its eyes were twin bolts of violet stones.
[LIGHTNING ELEMENTAL – LVL 42]
A grin tugged at my lips. "Finally… something interesting."
The static surged harder, jolting my muscles into place, but I forced my body to adapt. Each pulse burned less than the last. My breath steadied. My hands flexed against the current.
The elemental stepped forward, arcs snapping against stone and water, each footfall a thunderclap.
I moved to meet it.
Mana roared through me, flooding Dragonfang. Fire erupted along the blade, crackling and spitting sparks until lightning twined with the flame. The edge screamed in my grip, vibrating like a live wire.
I brought it down in a single, vicious arc.
The strike cut straight through the elemental's unstable chest, ripping open its storm-born core. The air howled. Sparks screamed outward in a violent wave, water hissing into steam where they landed.
"Oh yeah," I muttered through gritted teeth. "That's your weakness."
I pivoted, following through with my dagger. The blade slashed across its spine and passed straight through. Minimal resistance. No damage.
Only mana-infused weapons could touch it.
"Fine," I growled, shifting my stance. "We'll do it the hard way."
The elemental retaliated, arcs whipping across the plain in jagged bursts. Bolts slammed into the pools, sending geysers of boiling steam skyward. I ducked under one, rolled through another, closing the gap.
My blade flared brighter with each swing. Sparks collided with fire in bursts of raw elemental fury, the battlefield flashing like a forge at the end of the world.
Steel and lightning clashed again and again. Each blow detonated into miniature storms, shockwaves rippling through the water. The elemental's form flickered, distorted.
Seven strikes. Eight. By the ninth, its silhouette faltered. Its shape distorted like a dying flame. I pressed in and drove my sword through the centre of its core.
The elemental pulsed once, violently, then scattered into mist, a scream of steam and static ripped apart into the storm above.
Only the distant thunder remained, rolling heavy across the plains.
[EXP GAINED: 27,400]
[Party Members Gained: 2,700 EXP]
Behind me, the party stared. The healer clutched her jewel so tightly her knuckles had gone white. The tank muttered something low, a curse under his breath. The speedster only whispered, almost to himself, "That… wasn't human."
I didn't answer. I just returned my blade, flames dying down. The thrill of the fight still burned in my chest.
Finally. A challenge worth bleeding for from a regular monster.
I relayed what I'd learned, keeping my voice low, clipped.
"Magic attacks only. Physical attacks won't land. Don't waste your strength. I'll handle it."
They nodded, pale from the earlier display. Not one questioned me—not after seeing what had happened to the last elemental.
We pressed on.
Thunder still rolled above, but the ground beneath us shifted. Hotter. Drier. The shallow pools hissed as they evaporated, steam trailing up from blackened stone. The air thickened, tasting of ash and iron.
That's when they appeared.
Two figures stepped out from the heat shimmer, silhouettes of molten fire. Their forms flickered, unstable, as if their very existence teetered between flame and flesh. Each movement sent ripples of heat through the plain.
[FIRE ELEMENTAL – LVL 41]
[FIRE ELEMENTAL – LVL 41]
Double the effort and reward.
I rolled my shoulders, anticipation bleeding through tension.
"Stay back," I warned. "These aren't for you."
The first one lunged, fast, trailing fire like a comet's tail.
I met it head-on.
Flame collided, erupting in a blast of scorching wind. The air seared my lungs. Dragonfang's flame hissed blue against the elemental's crimson body, each strike forging storms that ripped through the field.
The second surged in, flanking.
Their movements were more tactical. They moved in tandem, controlled, like embers dancing to the same rhythm.
A molten claw swept wide, a lash of flame whipped toward my chest, I retaliated with a downward arc, flames surging from my blade, the heat biting even against my skin.
The battlefield was chaos. Every step blistered the earth. Every strike detonated into torrents of burning light. The healer shielded her eyes against the brightness, her hands already trembling with a healing spell in reserve. The tank cursed under his breath, sweat streaming down his face despite being twenty paces back.
I narrowed my eyes.
"They're too coordinated and controlled."
Time to break the rhythm.
I dropped my stance low, mana flooding through my body, and swung a wide, savage arc. Blue fire erupted outward, consuming half the plain. One elemental flared white-hot, its body destabilizing before exploding into cinders that hissed out on the wet rock.
"One down."
The second screeched, its flames pulsing brighter, hotter, like rage incarnate. The air warped around it, making the world ripple like glass.
I staggered under the heat, sweat pouring, lungs choking on smoke. My vision blurred at the edges. My body screamed for recovery. No. One more strike.
I surged forward, ignoring the boiling sting across my arms, and spun into a diagonal slash. Dragonfang ripped through its chest, fire shrieking against fire. The elemental burst apart in a howl of ash and fury, scattering into the storm winds above.
I staggered back, sucking in a breath, blinking through smoke. Then I uncorked a mana potion and drank, the cool rush sliding through me like a wave. My muscles steadied. My heartbeat slowed.
[EXP GAINED: 41,000]
[Current EXP: 121,500 / 400,600]
The others only stared. The healer finally released her held spell, the glow fading from her hands, shoulders trembling.
We pressed on.
Earth Elementals rose next, their bodies forged of stone, arms like hammers. I shattered the first with sheer force, Dragonfang carving cracks that erupted into rubble. Dust filled the cavernous plain. Another tried to flank me, but I met its stone fist with a burst of fire and split it clean in half.
Then Ice.
A level forty-three, massive, crystalline, its jagged body reflecting the lightning storm above. It moved slower, but its aura froze the very air. My breath crystallised in my throat.
"Stay back," I said again, though my party was already pressed against the rocks, shivering. Flame clashed against ice, blow after blow melted its defences, cracks webbing across its frozen core. It howled like breaking glaciers before collapsing into shards, steam rising from its remains.
[EXP GAINED: 33,200]
[Total EXP: 180,000 / 400,600]
The others levelled rapidly, their faces pale but lit with something else now, exhilaration. They were climbing faster than they'd ever dreamed, riding in my shadow.
Five more elementals fell to us. Fire, earth, ice, each obliterated in turn.
[+141,000 EXP]
The party needed real combat experience now, but this wasn't the floor for trial and error.
As we moved forward, I kept an eye on them — watching their posture, the way they stretched or rolled their shoulders, getting a feel for movement, testing their limits.
Spirits were surprisingly high, considering the danger.
But then the shift came.
The lightning deepened — louder, closer. The sky dimmed until the very plains seemed to tremble.
Then the ground split open beneath a surge of raw power.
Arcs of electricity burst across the field, crawling over stone, flooding everything in searing violet light. A figure emerged. Not like the first lightning elemental, this one was more alive.
Its body flickered violently, arcs of raw power spilling into the air uncontrolled. The storm above twisted, funnelling into it, every bolt feeding its form. Its very presence made the earthquake.
LIGHTNING ELEMENTAL – LVL 44
This was the strongest one yet. I had to be careful.
I wove between bolts as they hammered the plain, each blast scorching stone and flashing steam from shallow pools. When my sword met its body, sparks erupted on impact, the charge making the blade hum. Every strike kicked back a lash of electricity, burning through already torn sleeves, singeing cloth and skin.
My HP ticked down under the constant charge in the air.
Its proficiency had to be at least level 5, maybe 6 or 7.
I needed a plan and fast.
Fire magic, overload it.
I pulled deep and drove mana hard, heat warped the air as flame coiled, then surged, pushing against the elemental's field. The elemental convulsed, its core stuttering as energy spiralled out of control.
I struck once, then again, each blow throwing violent ripples of heat and current across the field.
With a final, committed cut, the elemental buckled and collapsed. Its form scattered into sparks, the energy bleeding back into the storm that birthed it.
Then the pulse hit me.
SYSTEM NOTIFICATION:
ABSORPTION: LIGHTNING MAGIC DETECTED.
Would you like to absorb this skill?
YES / NO
I selected YES.
A bolt of living energy slammed into my chest, ripping the breath from me. White and violet arcs wrapped around my body, coiling like a storm serpent, cracking the air. It was not just heat, it was alive.
The current raced over my skin and into my veins. Every nerve lit like a fuse. Sparks leapt from my fingertips. My heart pounded against my ribs.
This was not strength. Not steel or speed or timing.
It was beyond that, my first time feeling true magic.
The hum deepened, vibrating in my chest like a drumbeat from somewhere else. It rattled bone, matched my pulse, then moved past it.
It was inside me.
The energy did not stop at the surface. It tunnelled into my mana channels and saturated my core. I gasped, half awe and half pain, as the force merged with who I was. For a breathless second, I could feel the air itself, a map of charge and motion.
It was no longer something I fought. It had become a part of me. My muscles felt lighter. Mana spun hotter and faster. My senses buzzed with new electricity.
I clenched my fist, and it answered.
A thin thread of lightning licked across my knuckles, controlled, mine.
So, this is what Skill Absorption can do. Not just an edge, or a tool.
A doorway.
A glimpse of power that could one day bend the rules themselves. The storm calmed. The energy settled. I was still humming inside. I turned to the others, residual sparks still flickering in my eyes.
"All good," I said, a faint grin tugging at the corner of my mouth. "Just some small wounds. Let's move."
They didn't speak — just followed.
We halted before the boss gate, its surface swirling with cold light like a frozen vortex. I stood at its edge, staring into the final hurdle of this floor. Doubt tried to claw its way in — was I strong enough to take this on?
Without a word, the healer stepped up beside me. Liane.
She laid a glowing hand on my arm, her healing aura washing over my injuries.
When I looked at her, she met my gaze with calm certainty
Behind her, the others nodded silently, their expressions steady. Tense, but ready.
I exhaled and turned back to the gate.
"All right," I said. "Eyes sharp. Keep your distance. I'll draw its attention — you stay alive. That's the deal."
Another round of nods.
Then I stepped through.
The chamber opened like a cathedral carved from frost and bone.
Ice crawled along jagged stone walls, glittering like fractured glass.
The cold bit through our gear, through Qi, through breath itself — sharp and unforgiving.
And then it shimmered.
Glephnir.