The dungeon trembled like it was alive.
Stone cracked.
Dust rained down from above.
The air—
Heavy.
Suffocating.
Arka stood still.
Beside him—
Lyra tightened her grip on her dagger.
"…That's not a normal boss."
Another tremor.
Stronger.
Closer.
BOOOOOM!!
The ground in front of them exploded.
A massive figure crawled out from the darkness below.
Tall.
Twisted.
Its body was a fusion of flesh and stone.
Veins pulsed unnaturally across its surface.
Its face—
Half goblin.
Half… something else.
And its eyes—
Glitched.
Flickering between red and blue.
[ERROR…][Monster Data Corrupted]
Name: ???Level: ???Type: Unknown
"…You seeing this?" Lyra whispered.
"…Yeah."
Arka's gaze hardened.
"No level… just like me."
The creature let out a distorted roar.
"GRAAĄ̴̢—!!!"
The sound itself felt wrong.
Broken.
Layered.
Like multiple voices screaming at once.
[WARNING]Irregular Entity DetectedThreat Level: Undefined
Lyra clicked her tongue.
"…Great. We hit the jackpot."
The creature moved.
Fast.
Too fast for its size.
WOOOSH!!
Its arm swung down—
"MOVE!"
Arka grabbed Lyra—
Pulled her back—
BOOOOM!!
The ground shattered.
A massive crater formed instantly.
"…That would've erased us," Lyra muttered.
The monster turned.
Its glitched eyes locked onto Arka.
Not Lyra.
Not the others.
Him.
"…It's targeting me."
[ERROR… ERROR…]Target Lock: Arka
Arka's jaw tightened.
"…Of course it is."
The creature charged again.
"Split!" Lyra shouted.
They moved in opposite directions.
The monster hesitated—
Then—
It followed Arka.
"…Confirmed."
Lyra's eyes sharpened.
"…Then I'll create the opening."
She vanished.
WUSH!!
Appearing behind the creature—
SLASH!!
Her dagger struck its back—
CLANG!!
"…What?!"
No damage.
Not even a scratch.
"…Its defense is insane!"
Arka narrowed his eyes.
"Then we don't break the defense…"
He dodged another attack—
Barely.
"We find the flaw."
The creature roared again.
Its arm twisted—
Unnaturally—
Then—
BOOM!!
A shockwave burst outward.
"GH—!"
Both of them were thrown back.
Arka hit the ground hard.
Pain surged through his body.
But—
He smiled.
"…I see it now."
Lyra pushed herself up.
"…What?"
Arka stood slowly.
Blood dripping from his forehead.
"…Its movements."
"They glitch."
The monster charged again.
Fast.
Brutal.
But this time—
Arka didn't panic.
He watched.
Every twitch.
Every distortion.
Every delay.
"…There."
The moment it attacked—
Arka stepped forward.
Not back.
Into the attack.
"…Now!"
For a split second—
The monster froze.
A glitch.
A break in its movement.
Lyra's eyes widened.
"…You're insane!"
Arka lunged.
STAB!!
His dagger pierced—
Not its body—
But its eye.
The flickering one.
"GRAAAAAA̴—!!!"
The monster screamed.
This time—
In pain.
"It works!"
Lyra didn't hesitate.
She followed up—
SLASH!! SLASH!!
Striking the same spot.
The creature thrashed wildly.
Destroying everything around it.
But now—
It was vulnerable.
[Blood Predator – Overdrive]
Arka's aura exploded.
Stronger than ever.
"Finish it!"
He jumped.
High.
Higher than before.
"DIE!!"
CRACK—!!!
The dagger drove deep.
Straight through the corrupted eye.
The monster froze.
Then—
Collapsed.
BOOOOOOM!!!
The dungeon shook violently.
Then—
Silence.
Arka landed.
Breathing heavily.
Lyra stood beside him.
"…We actually did it."
Then—
[SYSTEM ERROR][Unauthorized Kill Detected]
"…What?"
Arka's eyes widened.
[Reward Calculation… Failed][Rewriting…]
The screen flickered.
Glitched.
Then—
[Unique Reward Granted]
A new panel appeared.
Different from before.
Dark.
Unstable.
[Skill Obtained]Devour (Unique)
Description: Consume defeated entities to permanently gain a portion of their power.
Silence.
Lyra stared.
"…That's not normal."
Arka smiled.
Slowly.
Dangerously.
"…Good."
He looked at the corpse.
Then—
Stepped forward.
"…Let's test it."
🔥 END OF CHAPTER 8