Chapter 10: D Rank Gate "Dark Cave Labyrinth"
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As Riven stepped into the Gate, he saw the system notifications appear in silence. One of them listed three powerful roaming bosses, which he planned to hunt today.
"You’ve been here before, right?" Riven asked.
"I had... I just was, but we were only here for barely an hour before we left once a Blood Goblin dropped a Blood Sword..." she sighed. "Then Jesse just took it and we left... and then I got kicked..."
"So they took advantage of you and didn’t even pay you for the favor you gave them?" Riven sighed. "Daniela, your Talent is way more powerful than you imagine."
"Is it?" she asked, still confused.
"You know the place better than I do. Where can we find a lot of monsters?" he asked.
"If we follow this path straight down, we’ll find a large open area, some kind of underground spring... There’s lots of monsters there, and valuable spirit crystals, but not many people can carry them along," she answered.
"Hm, I see," Riven said. "Let’s go. Stay behind me."
Riven and Daniela stepped forward deeper into the dungeon. It did not take long for a few dark shadows to begin following them, small footsteps drawing steadily closer.
The atmosphere of these dark caves made them the perfect place for monsters to sneak up on others and kill unsuspecting hunters who failed to bring a large enough group or proper equipment.
Because Riven was entering with only his adjustable Hunter Tech suit and normal clothes on top, he looked incredibly defenseless.
The truth was that his skin itself served as his armor.
"GRYARRR!"
"R-Riven!!!"
A sharp claw rushed toward him from the left. Riven sensed it coming and deliberately allowed it to strike his shoulder so he could test his endurance.
The attack was unable to even scratch him. He quickly identified the source: a large wingless, blind bat.
[Dark Crawler – D Rank – Level 15]
It was not one but two.
Dark Crawlers moved in pairs. These pairs were usually mates, and they hunted together to feed their young. This particular pair seemed young. The female, who stood further back and hissed at Daniela, was likely aiming to eat them and gain enough weight to produce a few pups.
Like ordinary animals, monsters also had their own goals in life, and survival stood at the center of them.
Riven had been obsessed with monsters since his childhood. He had always kept several monster encyclopedias at home and even in his new house with Elisa. He had read about the biology, morphology, and life cycles of countless monsters. Although his memories were no longer as sharp as before, he could still recall that these creatures were blind, wingless bats with sharp claws and incredible senses.
Still, in the end they were just that.
"Daniela, don’t let it touch you. I’m coming."
He took a step forward. The bat hissed and leaped toward him with its arms and legs spread wide, sharp claws aimed at his stomach and head.
Riven swung his fist forward, channeling the power of Frost Emperor’s Touch.
CRASH!
"Gryaargh?!"
The Dark Crawler screamed in agony as his fist drove into its delicate frame. A layer of ice rapidly formed over its body and then shattered. The creature collapsed onto the ground with broken bones and torn, frozen skin.
It was still barely alive. Riven finished it off with a strong stomp to the head. He then activated Veil of Invisibility and appeared behind the female Dark Crawler before it could harm Daniela. Taking advantage of the triple damage guaranteed critical hit, he killed her with a single karate chop to the head.
CRACK!
The sound of the monster’s skull shattering echoed loudly through the cave as it collapsed. Blood poured from its mouth as it died on the spot.
"It’s done... Thank you for your sacrifice," Riven sighed while looking at the two beasts with a touch of pity.
As someone who truly loved animals and monsters, he felt a little bad about killing them. Unlike goblins, which could be malicious in the same way humans often were, these were simply wild creatures following their instincts.
Even so, he did not feel above slaying them for his own benefit. He needed to grow stronger, after all.
"That... was one hit?" Daniela gasped. "Wow...! Riven! You’re strong! And barehanded too?!"
"It’s nothing," Riven said while cleaning the blood from his hand. "For now, let’s store these."
"Eh?! You have a Storage Ring?!" she gasped.
"My Wedding Ring doubles as a medium-sized storage ring," Riven smiled, shocking her further.
"Y-You’re married...! Wow...!" she said. "At eighteen?!"
"It was an arranged marriage, I guess," he shrugged. "Still, I’ll try my best to make her happy."
"Oh..." Daniela smiled warmly as she watched Riven store the corpses. "What’s her name?"
"Elisa," Riven answered. "Alright, let’s move."
"Elisa...?" Daniela wondered, trying to recall someone famous with the same name. "Huh, I could swear I’ve heard of someone famous with that name..."
"Must be your imagination," Riven said. "Come on, hurry. Next time you’ll help me kill the monsters."
Daniela nodded. Following Riven’s instructions, she activated Clowny Charm, which surrounded her with a bright aura.
This created a strange attraction force that made other monsters want to tear her to pieces.
It did not take long for them to be ambushed again. This time the attackers were huge wolf-like monsters that ran on all fours but could also stand upright. They were completely blind.
[Blind Cave Werewolf – D Rank – Level 16]
Blind Cave Werewolves were wolf monsters that had specialized and evolved for life in areas with almost no light. They possessed massive mole-like claws used for digging, along with skinny yet strong and flexible bodies that allowed them to move quickly and squeeze through any crevice.
They focused entirely on Daniela and ignored Riven completely. If ordinary Tanks could possess an ability as effective as Clowny Charm, they would become even more reliable. Ironically, this Skill was available only to Pierrots, Mimes, or Jugglers.
Riven followed up by ambushing them. He swung his arm in a powerful horizontal karate chop technique imbued with his new cultivation method and smashed the heads of three werewolves at the same time.
A blade of ice formed around his hand. It sliced through their heads and froze their bodies instantly, causing them to collapse onto the ground.
The remaining three werewolves roared and leaped at him. Riven felt the ice around his hands becoming more moldable. He transformed it into a long hammer and swung it against them.
A vertical strike crashed down on one of them, shattering its skull in an instant.
The other two bit down on his arms but immediately shattered their own teeth against his incredibly high defense and vitality. Riven finished them off with another heavy smack to the head.
"It’s like playing whack-a-mole," he noted. "Hm? Daniela?"
"Hyeee...!" she cried out in fear. "Y-You can take on so many?! You’re amazing, Riven... I’m so scared..."
"Haaa..." he sighed. He could not really blame her. She was only fourteen. "I left these two barely alive. Finish them with your dagger."
"R-Really?" she asked.
"Just do it."
Daniela nodded and quickly stabbed the two remaining monsters in the head until they died. She gained some extra experience and leveled up.
Riven, however, did not.
"Um, Riven, you’re not leveling?" she wondered. "I’ve noticed this."
"I cannot level up by killing. I level by eating," he explained with a slight sneer. "It’s part of my Class, Predator."
"P-Predator? I’ve never heard of that Class before..." she said. "What’s your Authority?"
"I would rather not reveal more," he replied while looking down at the corpses. "Well, it looks like our lucky star has finally blessed us today."
"Eh? Ooohhh!"
Daniela screamed in pure happiness when she saw a dropped item finally appear.
But... was it not too bright?
The item was a pair of knuckles made from the fur and claws of the werewolves.
Both pieces formed a set, yet they counted as separate items. That meant Daniela’s presence had helped him obtain two items at once.
And with his x10,000 multiplier active...
[x10,000 Reward Multiplier Activated!]
[Dropped Item [Venomous Wolf Knuckles (D- Grade)] has been multiplied by x10,000!]
[You have obtained the item [Abyssal Wolf’s Venomous Claws (SS Grade)]]
[x10,000 Reward Multiplier Activated!]
[Dropped Item [Blind Wolf’s Knuckles (E+ Grade)] has been multiplied by x10,000!]
[You have obtained the item [Shadow Wolf’s Cursed Claws (SS- Grade)]]
"Are my eyes deceiving me, Riven?! A-Are those...! Are those S... S...! SS GRADE?!"
Daniela almost passed out on the spot.
That result was not her doing alone. It came from the combination of her power with the ability Riven had created.
It was an incredible ability that he had to keep completely secret.
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