As the Dungeon's Juggernaut, its purpose was simple—to kill every intruder that appeared before it.
And now, it had locked onto the intruder it needed to eliminate most.
"GAAAAAAH!"
It let out a hoarse roar, one filled with menace.
Its two powerful hind legs coiled with strength, and that massive body—nearly rivaling a Valgang Dragon—moved with terrifying speed. It vanished in an instant, at a pace too fast for even most Lv.5 adventurers to follow.
While rushing forward, Juggernaut raised its claws to deliver a killing blow.
But the supposedly unstoppable strike failed.
"Clang!"
Its high-speed charge was abruptly halted, its sharp claws meeting resistance. A blade had stopped them cold.
Feeling the shock reverberate through the weapon, Bell immediately gauged Juggernaut's strength.
'Its speed is at the peak of Lv.6, but its power doesn't quite match—it doesn't exceed Lv.6 by much.'
His body lowered slightly as he tightened his grip on the sword. Sparks flew as steel ground against the monster's claws, forcing them aside.
'Those claws have immense cutting power, on par with any top-grade weapon. Its body is incredibly hard too—ordinary weapons wouldn't even leave a scratch.'
'It has no magical ability, yet its outer shell can reflect all forms of magic. That alone makes it the bane of all mages. Combined with its absurd speed, no spellcaster would ever have the chance to finish an incantation.'
Even this brief exchange was enough to summarize how despair-inducing it was.
A creature with overwhelming speed, destructive power, and near-impenetrable defense—capable of reflecting magic. Any Familia that encountered such a monster would be at a total loss.
'No wonder the Astraea Familia was wiped out. Against something like this, even the Freya Familia or the Loki Familia would suffer heavy losses.'
'Especially when they had no information about Juggernaut at all.'
But Bell felt nothing but excitement.
If this Juggernaut truly was Lv.6, then killing it alone might provide all the Excelia he needed for advancement.
'Too bad... I already know its weakness.'
Offensive magic was out of the question—using it against Juggernaut was nothing short of suicide.
However, non-offensive spells weren't reflected.
In short, magic could still be used, as long as it was combined with physical attacks. When magic and physical force worked together, the reflection wouldn't trigger.
"Clang!"
After blocking another swipe of its claws, Bell moved.
Relying on his speed, he closed the distance in a single step. Before Juggernaut could retract its front leg, his blade came down.
"GAAAAAHHH!"
Juggernaut howled in pain, pulling its foreleg back and staggering a step away.
Bell's sharp eyes caught a small cut on the forearm where his sword had landed.
'Its defense really is incredible.'
That strike hadn't been especially strong, but the blade had been enhanced with Rune magic to boost its sharpness.
Even so, despite the twofold increase in cutting power, it hadn't been enough to sever Juggernaut's limb—only a shallow gash. Bell couldn't help but acknowledge its durability.
'Truly worthy of being the Dungeon's Juggernaut—its stats and performance far exceed the limits of a Level 6 monster.'
'But now I know where your ceiling lies.'
As long as he could inflict enough damage, the real battle could begin.
Bell gathered strength beneath his feet and advanced toward Juggernaut.
At that moment, Juggernaut sensed a terrifying, oppressive threat radiating from him. Unease surged through the creature, and it let out a guttural howl.
"GAAAAAAH!"
It sounded almost like the roar of a coward trying to muster courage.
Right after the cry, Juggernaut lunged forward at full speed.
This time, it didn't use its forelimbs, but instead swung the hardest part of its body—its tail.
Juggernaut's tail resembled a massive bone spike, its segmented structure giving it a sharp, serrated edge. Even a glancing blow would cause grievous harm.
Bell watched as Juggernaut spun, its tail sweeping toward him in a deadly arc.
He didn't try to block it head-on. Instead, he twisted his body aside and slashed upward with his sword, striking beneath the tail.
"Clang!"
The impact sent a numbing shock through Bell's hands, and the recoil visibly jolted Juggernaut.
But Bell noticed something—the tail hadn't been damaged at all. Unlike the forearm earlier, it bore no mark.
'The tail really is solid.'
...
With that, he had fully grasped Juggernaut's traits.
As the Dungeon's cleaner, it had no ability to use magic, but could reflect it instead. Its purpose was simple: to annihilate all troublesome intruders. It possessed overwhelming speed and destructive power, but its durability was relatively low. Once its targets were all dead, Juggernaut would self-destruct.
Now that Bell clearly understood both its strengths and weaknesses, there was no reason to waste any more time. Taking advantage of the brief stiffness following the tail sweep, he closed the distance instantly.
In that moment, the world lost all color.
Bell showed no mercy toward his prey.
He had already gathered all the information he needed and confirmed Juggernaut's strength. Now, there was only one thing left to do—
Kill it.
Give it no chance to fight back.
Targeting the foreleg where he had previously left a small cut, Bell delivered three swift, precise slashes in the exact same spot.
The world regained its color, and then—
"Crack!"
"GAAAAAAAHHHH!"
A piercing, agonized scream tore from Juggernaut's throat.
Its front leg shattered at the forearm.
With that single strike, all of Juggernaut's previous advantage vanished completely.