I started it.
First, I'd bash the room completely. Ruin it with just a few punches, just in case.
Then, I stood inside the room, roughly 7 meters away from the doorway. That was where I'd opened my inventory, and walked backwards as I gradually dropped one [Granite Slab (7x7x7m)]. As I reached outside the room, the granite slab covered the entire room, leaving no room to enter. As if someone came with a concrete truck and poured everything into it, sealing it entirely.
I did it so rabidly, I didn't even check the rooms for loot.
I just wanted to kill that thing. A worthwhile item wouldn't break anyway, so I could always enter the rooms again after dealing with that goblin.
One time, I actually found it sleeping. I was right. It woke up from the sound of my armor, killed me, and moved elsewhere to sleep.
And after what felt like a few more days... I'd crossed every single door on my map; filling every single one with the granite slab.
And I could tell that it was stressed and confused.
Instead of killing me 50 - 60 times each cycle, it continued to kill me up to a 100.
It knew.
It knew I closed in on him.
And as I walked through the ninth circle to seal up the rooms, I saw scratches against the granite slabs. The bastard was trying to force its way in. I was right. It was just fast and dexterous.
Now, at the final door that I ended up ripping open (so that he wouldn't hear me open the door to kill him)... he killed me 150 times, 3 times more than he normally does. He was really losing his mind. Losing his sleep... and he was about to lose his life.
And as I walked in the Ninth Circle for the 151st time, I was not attacked again. It gave up, and probably fell asleep in the one room I didn't ruin.
From here, I could keep interfering with his sleep until it died, like the mutt.
But I didn't want to do that anymore.
I wanted to kill it with my own hands.
That's why I returned to the Final Circle, and did something I never imagined I'd do in my life...
I removed my armor. Completely, and stored it in my inventory. I wanted to not wake it up as I kill it.
I was left with my school outfit. I'd forgotten I was wearing it the whole time beneath the armor. It was in pristine condition. It didn't even smell bad. I guess it's because of the times I died and disintegrated, and respawned. Because my body didn't get enough hours to dirty it...
... Although, there was one striking difference.
'I'm bulging...' I thought, looking down at my body. I then wished I had a mirror to see it. How my abs bulge against my shirt. How my biceps almost rip off my shirt every time I flex it. My broader neck; and shoes I've long since outgrown, but repaired themselves around my now-bigger foot.
My vision. I'd also forgotten what it's like to see clearly without my visor hindering my field of view... in some way, I felt freer.
But there's a good chance the rustling of my clothes will alert him, too.
So I removed and stored them too. Leaving only my underwear on.
Barely an inconvenience. I didn't feel cold at all, most likely due to my Resistance or Vigor; and my legs shattered any sharp rock they stood on.
And as I walked through the corridors of the dungeon, tiptoeing effortlessly in a casual walk...
... this felt like a victory lap. And I'm walking to claim my rightful trophy. I've purposely waited 3 hours. Counting every single second... 10,800 seconds to give it a false sense of security.
That maybe I gave up.
That maybe I walked away.
That maybe it could sleep.
And it will sleep.
Forever.
I could see the final door I hadn't touched yet. Even from afar, even in complete darkness I could see it. I could see him. Curling beneath a table inside that room.
I didn't care about the loot within the room anymore.
I didn't care about anything.
There he was. Green. Fit. Pointy ears and nose; wearing nothing but a loincloth to hide his groin. And as small as a child. Arms and wrists I could restrain with just one palm of mine.
My body moved on its own.
'It's still sleeping. But it's fast. I need to first restrict his movements.' I hurriedly leaped onto him soundlessly, pinning both his arms. It woke up.
I soon pressed my leg against both his legs to restrict them moving too. A dexterous creature like him could surprise me with everything. I will not give him any chance to do that.
"KRYAAAAAAAAAA!!!!!!!!! KRYAAAAAAAAA!!!!!!!" It screamed and screeched, looking into my eyes and then away, violently shaking its head. But it was like I was holding a small pigeon in my arms. Its wriggling meant nothing.
I pressed my leg so hard, I could hear his femur bones at the top of both his legs crackling and splintering beneath my weight. That's when it shrieked louder.
"KRYAAAAAA KRYAAAAAAA!!!!!!!!!!!" It begged. I could tell.
I wanted it to keep screaming.
But as I felt his legs go limp beneath mine, most likely going numb due to how I broke them, I decided to end it fast. Who knows what trick a creature like that has up its sleeve.
So I took my other free arm, and just like I imagined in my head, I pinned my head close... so, so close to his eyes as I grasped its neck; holding his head in place; forcing it to look at me.
"Kry...a...." It squealed, until I clenched even tighter.
The more I pressed the more its eyes seemed to roll back, foam and drool leaving its mouth—
%&!)(&^THE SAME DROOL I HAD WHEN THAT MUTT KILLED ME IN AGONY(!!((^&%
The thought interrupted. At that moment, I pressed as hard as I could, instantly snapping its neck.
Killing it.
The way I wished the mutt had killed me.
'This...' I thought, collapsing next to the corpse. 'Was not as fun as I imagined.'
That's when I saw the message.
[You HAVE SLAIN The Guardian of The Ninth Circle
[YOU HAVE LEVELED UP!]
[YOU HAVE LEVELED UP!]
[YOU HAVE LEVELED UP!]
'So noisy...' I sighed, lazily looking up.
[YOU HAVE LEVELED UP x 50!]
[Monster drops automatically moved into your inventory!]
[You have obtained...]
'I ignored it. I will check it later... Right now, I wanted to see where I stood.'
'Status window.'
Name: Makoto Tanaka
Level: 205
Gender: Male
Race: Human
Age: 17.6
Class: Grunt (F Rank)
[STAT POINTS AVAILABLE: 415 >> 665]
[Stats]
500 >> 600 STR.
320 >> 420 INT.
500 >> 600 DEX.
320 >> 420 VIGOR.
320 >> 420 RES.
'Neat, I suppose...' I sighed.
'Hmm? There's... something else...'
[You have passed level 200! You are now eligible for [Job Advancement (F) ]!]