Invisible Hunter
I am the Invisible Hunter. Let me sort out my current situation.
I can't use skills obtained through [Enlightenment] or [Training]. They skip the process and just hand over the result, so they're useless to me. I could use them in theory, but since I don't know how, they're nothing but dead weight. The hero's sword? Sure, it was given to me, but I can't swing it, so it's just a decoration. I even acquired skills related to the Maou, infused with constellation powers that defy common sense. But in the end, they just dump the skills on me without teaching me how to use them.
In this predicament, with 39 skills at my disposal, what should I do? Even filtering for usable [Attack] or [Support] skills, the number is pitifully small. I'm somehow making do in [Combat], but the truth is, I'm not really.
"Sorry... ugh..."
"Forget it. It was a trap aimed at us from the start."
Larirure soothed the sobbing Lemon Hyacinth. Wiping it with a wet wipe easily peeled off the golden goblin's plating.
That subtle sense of wrongness I'd felt just before it appeared—I remembered experiencing something similar somewhere. That's why I hadn't let my guard down at that moment. I'd felt the same unease when the portal appeared in the elevator. In the end, this trap was tailored for me from the beginning. Targeting a specific human would have been child's play for them.
No matter what, this teleportation trap was destined to hit us. It manifested as magic exploding from the monster's belly. Right after the teleport, my [Return Stone] lost its glow.
I rummaged through my bag and flicked on the [Flashlight] switch. As expected, it was dead too.
With a sinking feeling, I opened my memorized spellbook. The pages had completely drained of mana, their light faded.
A spell that sucks up all surrounding mana to activate. I might not even have mana, but heteroraces naturally circulate it through their bodies like internal energy. That's why Larirure's response was delayed—her mana got sucked away. The pain that hit when we landed was probably the backlash from that.
We'd been teleported to the 664th floor. According to the info I'd read in the archive...
From the 600th floor onward, slimes dominated. And the 664th? Home to Black Puddings.
No need to think twice. The teleport trap that dumped us here? Those monsters that overran the mine came from this floor, no doubt.
I signaled to the fully panicked Lemon Hyacinth and the uncharacteristically rattled Larirure.
"Let's assess. Faster to go down than up?"
"Obviously. We'll use the elevator on 666. It's a hero outpost—bound to have comms gear."
"..."
"Black Puddings on this floor, right?"
"Yeah."
Unlike higher floors, this one was pitch-black void, not a speck of light anywhere. Larirure broke into a cold sweat, muttering that from 600 on, it was slime hell. Her attacks wouldn't work on a single one of them.
"How do we find stairs down?"
"No map, so blind."
Vast. That was my impression scanning the floor. Up to 50, it was a maze with occasional wide spaces or pillars. But here? Nothing but support pillars as far as the eye could see—or rather, couldn't.
Think calmly. Those pillars regenerate even if destroyed. Smash every one on the floor, and it still wouldn't collapse. Nox had told me about idiots who'd tried.
'...'
What were they after, pulling a stunt like this? No solid guesses, but not entirely clueless either. Targeting humans? Or figuring out I'm a hero? Portals are demon-exclusive, and demons tie back to the Maou faction. That narrows it down.
So they thought dumping me here would finish it? Honestly, no confidence we'd descend without casualties.
Felt like grinding newbie dungeons, then suddenly getting yeeted to the final boss room. Or like a horror flick character they force-kill as the series drags on, death inevitable.
"No torches here. No lamps either. Light a fire, and monsters swarm."
"Flashlight's busted. Teleport spell drained all mana."
Larirure and I calmly brainstormed a way down. [Return]? No home—couldn't afford one. Gotta own it to use. Most expensive skill I had, money-wise.
"...Sis, bro. Smells like flowers. From that way."
Lemon Hyacinth, crushed by guilt and sniffling silently, finally spoke. He pinched his nose and pointed one way.
No flower-scented slimes existed, not even lower down.
"Don't stop, no matter what. Got it?"
"Full sprint. Stop and you're dead."
"Gulp."
I plastered myself to Larirure's back. Her fingers kneaded my butt a bit too eagerly, but I wrapped my arm around her neck and held tight.
"Uh, maybe carry me backward? Gotta watch our six."
"Larirure."
"Sorry."
Don't show that lust even here. With Lemon's go-signal, we bolted at full speed. Larirure gripped me tight as I nearly bounced off.
True Word · Mantra
───I received the thought: [It eats].
Then a creature's voice boomed in my head. I hurled a dripping-wet knife that way.
Deadly Queen's primary blast accelerated it. Ethanol on the blade ignited in a flash, lighting up the area.
Lemon clamped his mouth at the sight of dozens of Black Puddings clinging to the ceiling. Secondary explosion—boom. Flames spread everywhere, sending the puddings into frenzy. They severed burning parts but tangled into chaos.
I clutched a kerosene bottle. "Fireball!"
As I incanted, a lighter-like spark flared inside the bottle and vanished. That sufficed—the kerosene blazed fiercely. No hesitation: I chucked it backward. It shattered on impact, spewing fire all around.
Create Water had layered water inside the kerosene. Unmixable, they turned the floor into an oil-slick inferno.
Thoughts assaulted from sides and front. Puddings crawling ceilings, dropping on us. One barreling ahead like a truck.
Bag empty save the last spirits bottle. Should've packed more kerosene. No way I'd stocked Larirure's life water.
I'd warned them pre-start: never stop running.
Trusting Larirure's grip, I arched my upper body up. Picking Needle in Desert snagged a dropped knife into my hand.
One from ceiling. One charging front. Two from sides. Kerosene gone, one spirits bottle left.
I smashed the bottle with the knife, lit it. Roaring flames made falling and charging puddings twist away.
That's their gimmick: no forward vision, hypersensitive to fire. Sudden blaze = attack, so they dodged nimbly.
Larirure bulled through like a rugby player with ball in hand. Lemon gritted teeth, nearly stumbling but chasing.
I squeezed wet wipes spawning in my palm, sloshing ethanol into my sword's hilt hole.
"Stairs in sight!"
Downward stairs welcomed us—as puddings swarmed from all sides at insane speed. Their acceleration was untrackable, like before.
"Left!"
At my call, she veered left without pause. A Black Pudding landed silently beside us.
Spirit sword hilt gripped in both hands. Ethanol sprayed, revealing the pale blade.
Click—lighter flame, peacock-tail fan of fire erupted.
'Not as planned!'
Blade soaked in ethanol, meant to swing ablaze—failed. But I was honestly relieved these damn slimes were cowards. One inches away vanished into dark at fire's sight.
Thud crash—we dove into the stairs. Lemon caught my flying body, tumbling down hugging me.
Puddings tangled, slamming bodies, quivering plop plop on stairs.
"...Can't come down. Structure blocks 'em."
They rubbed against invisible walls, obsessed but stuck. We sprawled exhausted on stairs, gasping.
"Thought we were goners," Larirure mumbled, burying her face in my chest.
One alone was hell. Surviving dozens? Tear-jerking growth—or delusion?
Lemon admitted his pants were soaked. Larirure, spooked too, pawed his crotch to "check."
"Larirure..."
"Just checking..."
Her face beet-red, eyes spinning—what was she checking? Relief let us banter, or maybe laughing off dread.
665th floor. Hero Park Chun-sik wasn't the strongest—non-combat, needed preps. But prepped? Unbeatable save Daegomgei, who no one beats anyway.
Supplies spent. From here, pure luck.
Larirure and Lemon gulped water from my palm-spawned Create Water. Hydrated and rested, we steeled for 665.
Identical to 664—lighting it'd reveal nothing. Yell? Nothing comes. That's this floor.
"No smell, sound, presence, even shadows. Invisible Stalker—that's the monster here."
This floor had unseen trackers. Beyond our detection.