(Riven POV – Dungeon, 7F)
A violent plume of Purple Powder erupts from my palm, dispersing like violet flame into the haze already choking the corridor. Within seconds, the air thickens—poisonous to monsters and adventurers alike.
'It's inconvenient if I can't use my hands.' I frown. 'Great Sage, emit it from my skin instead.'
[Notice: Dispersion method of Purple Powder altered to full-body emission.]
The shift is immediate. Violet trails swirl from my arms and chest, forming a deadly aura around me. But my hands—my weapons—are free once more.
'That's better.'
At the same time, Blue Powder shimmers to life around my open wounds. It glitters softly before melting into my cuts and bruises, knitting flesh together, and repairing any damage I've sustained.
'Can you apply the same healing internally? Mainly to heal any damage to my muscles and ligaments caused by my movements.'
[Notice: Blue Powder will be generated internally to repair damaged tissues.]
The aches all over my body fades away as Great Sage gets to work. I can push my body past its limits, and it'll function as long as I have Mind.
'Good. Then I'll leave it all to you. Prioritize survival. Consume any magic stones in Stomach to replenish my Mind when it gets too low.'
[Acknowledged. Magic management delegated to Unique Skill: Great Sage. Magic Stones and harmful substances in Stomach will be consumed to restore Mind.]
The world's speeds up again as I deactivate Thought Acceleration, letting time flow at its normal speed... and with it, chaos returns.
The monsters surge through the cloud of Purple Powder I'm continuously releasing.
War Shadows, Killer Ants, and Needle Rabbits screech, scuttle, and leap forward in a wave of bodies.
I grin. 'I don't have to be cautious anymore...'
Let's have some fun. Why else would I deactivate Thought Acceleration?
With my rabbit horn gripped like a dagger, I dive straight into the wave.
A War Shadow's claws blur toward my head, and I duck under the strike, and hammer a fist directly into its crystal face. It shatters like a mirror, I absorb it before its corpse even hits the floor.
Behind me, something skitters. I pivot, slam my heel down—hard—on a Killer Ant that tried to flank me. Its shell bursts beneath my foot like a melon. Its twitching body is quickly absorbed.
I then leap forward, stepping on another ant and using it as a springboard to soar above the monsters.
Three Needle Rabbits dash and jump toward me in mid-air, horns poised to puncture me.
One dives for my throat. Another aims its horn at my chest. The third slices towards my thigh.
I don't flinch.
The first gets impaled mid-air as I drive its companion's horn through its face. The second gets a spinning elbow to the snout, knocking it off course.
But I fail to completely dodge the third.
Blood bursts from my thigh as its horn carves a deep gouge into the muscle. I ignore it, Blue Powder already flooding the wound, stitching it shut from the inside out.
I twist in the air, grab the first rabbit's corpse by the ankle, and slam it into the third like a club.
They squeak cutely, as they're slammed together, and their bones crack, and blood splatters through the air.
Then gravity reclaims me.
I drop like a comet, using another Killer Ant's back as a stepping stone, and launch myself again, with such force, the ant smashes into the ground hard.
But this time, I jump towards the greatest threat here... the Blue Papilio.
'Always get rid of the Healer first. I only let it live because I wanted to analyse its magic.'
It keeps healing the monsters, and has finally outlived it's usefulness.
The creature tries to flutter back, but it's too slow.
I latch onto it mid-air, grab its head with my hand, and stab the horn into its thorax, avoiding the wings with surgical care, since they're quite valuable.
Predator activates, and the butterfly dissolves into a swirl of mist and smoke, its magic stone and wings safely consumed into Stomach.
I drop to the ground—hard—and crush two ants beneath my feet.
Around me, the horde hesitates, just for a moment. The air is thick with poisonous dust, and the only thing keeping them alive, their healer, is gone.
I raise my blood-soaked horn weapon and smile.
"No more second chances." I joke.
They screech and charge towards me.
I dodge a flurry of claws, grab a Killer Ant by the mandibles, and start spinning. Its armored body becomes a wrecking ball, slamming into anything that gets close.
Crunch. Crack. Splatter.
But the ant isn't built for blunt force. After the third collision, its thorax rips apart, intestines and blood flying loose, before turning into smoke and assimilating into me.
But it doesn't matter that it broke.
I just grab another... and break it too after smashing 4 more monsters.
Then another... and repeat the process with manic glee.
Blood, shells, and innards fly like confetti. Limbs detach. Screeches rise and fall in quick succession.
My arms are lacerated from hits I stopped caring to avoid, my body bathed in blood, and lungs filled with poisonous powder.
But I don't stop.
I don't feel pain.
And my wounds are regenerating faster than I get injured.
'I'll keep going until all life here ceases.'
A Needle Rabbit stabs its horn deep into my side. I respond by grabbing it, pulling it out and impaling it, horn and head, into the eye a Frog Shooter.
My vision is splattered with crimson blood.
'How many are left?'
[Answer: 84 monsters detected.]
'I've got a few more to go.' I let out a breath. Despite the thought, I can't be happier.
'Are my odds still as bad?' I muse, pivoting as another Rabbit lunges towards me, and I shoulder it into the wall, cracking its spine, and drive its horn through a War Shadow behind me.
[Answer: Chance of victory has increased from 48% to 96%. Likelihood of death has decreased from 4.1% to 0.3%.]
My heartbeat echoes in my ears like a war drum calling for violence.
The battlefield is a symphony of chaos, and I'm the conductor.
And in this madness—this battlefield of blood, poison, and death—I find something strange.
Peace.
It's neither calm, nor serene...
But I feel clarity.
There's no need to hesitate. No need to hold back, or worry about anything except killing and potentially dying.
The air is now thick with poison.
My lungs pulled in the toxic haze without consequence, partly thanks to Great Sage and Predator isolating it, and partly due to most of it being my own magic, so I'm unaffected.
But everything else isn't so lucky.
The first sign of collapse came barely a minute after I killed the Blue Papilio.
A Needle Rabbit lunged at me, horn aimed high, and I twisted around, ready to meet it head-on. But halfway through its leap, its legs seized midair, and it hit the ground like a ragdoll, twitching once before going still.
Then another stumbled mid-charge. Its momentum carried it forward, but its body gave up halfway through its leap. It flopped onto its side, spasmed for a bit while foaming at the mouth, before dying.
By the two-minute mark, I was still carving through the horde when I saw the Purple Moths drop, one by one.
Their wings barely fluttered, before they fell from the air. They smashed onto the blood soaked floor, their wings getting soaked like wet parchment.
A War Shadow tried to take advantage of my momentary distraction.
Its claws lashed out, seeking to tear my throat open, but I reacted instantly.
I ducked under its arm, grabbed its wrist, twisted, and used its own momentum to flip it over my shoulder. Its body smashed against the stone floor with a dull crunch.
Without hesitation, I raised my foot and stomped its crystal face in. It cracked like glass under pressure, then it burst into mist as I absorbed it, leaving nothing behind.
Around me, the battle slowed—not because I was tired, but because the enemy was.
The Killer Ants, once relentless, started wavering. Their movements became sluggish, as the front row collapsed first, further slowing them down and breaking their momentum.
The ones on the floor just collapsed, unable to support their own weights any longer. And those crawling on the walls, fell down, smashing into their companions below as some unfortunate ants died from the weight.
By minute four, the remaining Frog Shooters croaked. Their tongues hung loose, as singular dead eyes stared vacantly at nothing.
The swarm continued to thin with every moment that passed, and eventually, the battle draws to an end.
Eventually, only one monster remains—a War Shadow, its crystal already cracked. It tried to raise its claws one last time.
I met its gaze—if it could be called that—and smiled.
With a swift kick, I shattered its knees, then drove its own arm through its face. And absorbed any trace of its existence.
And just like that, the once lively dungeon descends into silence.
I stood alone.
Around me are piles of corpses that died of poisoning before I could get to them. The narrow hallway was bathed in a chaotic mural of red ichor, green fluids, and crushed carapaces.
I take a long breath.
'Maybe... I shouldn't have used the poison.' I mused idly. 'The fight would've lasted longer.'
Watching them die by themselves isn't as fun as actually killing them.
[Notice: Purple Powder production has ceased. All present monsters have perished.]
"What a shame."
Still, my work isn't done.
"Time to loot." I smiled, cracking my neck.
One by one, I moved through the aftermath, stepping over dismembered bodies and pools of fluid, placing a foot on each monster's remains and activating Predator. Their corpses dissolved into mist, magic stones sinking into Stomach, item drops separated and stored with clinical efficiency.
'By the way, how many monsters did I kill?'
[Answer: 317 monsters killed. Breakdown: 207 Killer Ants, 51 Needle Rabbits, 32 War Shadows, 19 Frog Shooters, 7 Purple Moths, 1 Blue Papilio.]
'And how many magic stones did I consume when using the magic?'
[Answer: 7 Killer Ant magic stones.]
I blinked.
"...That's it?"
[Answer: Purple and Blue Powder are low-tier, low-cost magic. As you are still level 1, level 1 magic stones can replenish your Mind efficiently.]
'So, they don't use too much magic, and a single magic stone can replenish my reserves... seems that Predator is quite efficient at converting magic stones to Mind. '
I absorb the last body, and the hallway is free of bodies now.. But the blood doesn't disappear, and decorates the walls and floor.
And in the middle of it all stood me, breathing heavily, covered in gore, and grinning like a madman.
My pounding heart slowly calms down.
"...Hah." The laugh escaped my throat before I could stop it.
That was fun.
It's the kind of thrill you can only get by walking at the edge of death, knowing a single mistake would be your only mistake.
Every second had demanded focus. Every decision, precision. I'd been torn, slashed, poisoned, surrounded and... I enjoyed it.
"...It's over already?" I sigh, feeling calm once again. I'd even go so far as to say empty.
I wasn't tired. My stamina was fine, and my injuries are already healed. Even my magic power is full.
But there's nothing left to kill.
Nothing trying to kill me.
"It's gotten boring again. Should I go deeper into the dungeon?" I wonder aloud.
I confirm the time, and it's only 2:30 PM.
Plenty of daylight left. But Hestia's going to scold me no matter when I get back for doing something so dangerous in the first place.
'If she'll be mad regardless, does it matter if she gets angrier?' I muse.
Still, I've earned more than enough for today. I'm not in that big of a rush to get stronger.
'Besides, if my guess is right, I've got enough Exelia to reach the limit in all stats. Going deeper isn't worth the effort.'
I could focus on gathering materials for now. I'd already found herbs for a few potions. I could stockpile for when I get hold of an Elixir, and mass produce them.
I also need to collect ores, so I can make weapons.
"Using monsters as improvised tools is fun... but I'll need something more reliable, especially if I go deeper."
Monsters like orcs and infant dragons would be impossible to improvise against.
I take a glance back down the now-empty corridor, recalling the thrilling battlefield.
I licked the blood from my lip absentmindedly, smiling to myself.
"Hopefully the peace doesn't last too long."
************
A/N: Hello Everyone. Hope you're all having a great day. If you enjoyed the chapter and the book thus far, please consider leaving me some comments, reviews, or powerstones.
So yeah, this is the chapter. Ngl, Riven ain't entirely right in the head. For anyone wondering, it's because IronHeart causes to be numb most of the time, so the only times he feels something are when he's teasing people, like Hestia or Misha, and when he's fighting or nearly dying (what's the difference? He doesn't know!).
So yeah, he's gonna hit the limits of his stats, 999 after this, and I'm thinking of altering how he himself gains exelia. I'd say it's a 100 times more difficult to gain stay points after 999, which would take him way too long to level up (like regular adventurers). He's still be level 1 by the time Bell shows up.
So... A compromise is that he uses high ranking Exelia to fill the stats. My logic is that high ranking Exelia he'd get from that challange, added to the 10 times he gets from absorbing the monster, would be sufficient for him to level up if he performs the feat numerous times. In this case, hunting infant dragons.
He's got a healing skill, and I'm thinking of him being able to use Exelia to acquire a secondary developnent ability as he levels up. Is that too much? Maybe. Let me know.
Finally, something that's been bothering me, are his clothes. He needs to get some other clothes. So... It'd be a date with someone. Too bad Misha ain't a love interest, otherwise they could do armour, and all that together at the same time, like Bell did with Eina. So, likely Hestia, since she's the only other girl. I'm open to ideas and suggestions for other things they could do on the date, y'know, make it cute?
That's all from me. Hope you all have a great day.