2. Jade Legged Blood Hand
Conquest wasn't mandatory. Hunter Stock Company covered food, clothing, and shelter, so plenty of people were content with the status quo.
I'd been much the same in my previous life. No matter how much I trained, my stats wouldn't budge—what could anyone do?
But now I had information. The Jade Legged Blood Hand's inner core! In my past life, Safety Planning Department Head Madric Blood had claimed it. This time, it would be mine.
There was a way.
Madric Blood spoke up.
"Conquering the floors is safety itself. Understood?"
"Yes!"
Her words were the Safety Planning Department's motto. Fail to clear a floor for too long, and restructuring—layoffs—hit. She wasn't wrong.
Martial artists from the Murim world. An elf from a magic realm. Me and Choi Heejeong from modern Earth. And all sorts besides, following in Madric Blood's wake.
We entrusted ourselves to the teleport facility heading to Underground Floor 10.
Whirr!
My vision blacked out from the teleport, then cleared.
Or not—it was still pitch dark.
Underground Floor 10 was a damp cave of some sort.
"Brr, it's creepy," Choi Heejeong said, rubbing her arms as she turned to me.
"Baby spiders come out here. Their bites are poisonous."
"Eek! Y-you're joking, right?"
"No. Dead serious."
At this point, Safety Planning Department was the first to tackle Underground Floor 10. No one had any intel.
Only I knew about this cave and its boss, the Jade Legged Blood Hand.
Then—
"Incoming!" Madric Blood shouted.
Skitter skitter skitter!
Dozens, hundreds of spiders crawling our way.
"Hup!"
Shing!
Martial artists drew weapons; robe-wearers prepped spells.
"Jeongha-ssi, what do we do?" Choi Heejeong trembled.
She clearly hated spiders.
"No need to panic here. Follow me this way."
I beckoned her over.
"Huh? Where?"
"Hurry."
I led her into a crack in the wall.
"Safe in here."
In my past life, I'd survived by hiding here. Back when I was a clueless rookie, I'd stumbled in while fleeing and got lucky.
Stay put, and our colleagues would handle the rest.
"R-really? We can just watch from here?"
"They'll be too busy to notice."
I met her eyes and continued.
"More than that, I want you to survive, Heejeong-ssi."
Because you'll need to help me in the boss room.
"...Ahem. Hm!"
Choi Heejeong turned away, coughing awkwardly. Hard to see in the dark, but her face flushed.
Truth was, with my F-rank stats, I couldn't handle even baby spiders. Not without arrow fodder like in the Behemoth fight.
Best I could hope was not to get in the way.
"Madric didn't bring interns like us to shine anyway."
"Then why?"
"If we get wiped out here, someone needs to escape and report on Underground Floor 10."
"Ah..."
Pure truth, not a hint of lie. As a fellow intern, she got it.
"Time to play it safe and preserve ourselves."
"What if the department head dies?"
"Won't happen."
I nodded toward the boss.
"Hah!"
She bellowed, blood-red sword aura flying from her nails, massacring spiders in droves.
They respawned just as fast, but she showed no sign of tiring.
"Yeah, you're right."
Soon the baby spider wave ended. Madric Blood called out.
"Casualties?"
"Robert, Gwak Do-cheol. Two dead."
I emerged from the crack with Choi Heejeong.
Our eyes met Madric Blood's, but she said nothing. Like she didn't care.
I shrugged at Choi Heejeong.
Madric Blood clicked her tongue at the corpses.
"Tch. Pathetic weaklings."
Cold words, but I caught the flicker in her eyes.
Even I felt something watching colleagues die. Without my Mental Strength Gift, past-life me might've cracked early.
But not anymore.
I wanted to help Safety Planning Department.
Martial Emperor. Wizard Supreme. And the Bloody Witch Madric Blood ahead.
I wanted to be like them!
That burning ambition always simmered in my chest.
Yet I'd never escaped intern status.
That's why I needed it. The Jade Legged Blood Hand's inner core.
Rumble.
The cave shook suddenly.
"Halt."
Everyone stopped. Sign of the boss.
Underground Floor 10's layout was simple. Baby spiders first, then deeper in, a massive cavern. That was the boss stage.
Rumble!
A huge quake, and the mother spider appeared.
"..."
Colleagues gulped.
"A... a human-faced spider...?"
A face like a person's. Eight legs the size of a man's torso, each tipped with blood orbs.
Those orbs were the source of the Jade Legged Blood Hand's power.
It exhaled faint steam from its body.
Madric Blood, guessing its nature, glanced at me, Choi Heejeong, and the other interns.
"You lot, fall back."
"Yes."
I obeyed without fuss. That steam was periodic poison spray. No way I could withstand it—one breath and I'd drop.
But I couldn't just watch. This raid would fail.
First time here, lacking the right strategy, they'd failed to kill it and lost over half the team.
"Heejeong-ssi."
"Yes?"
"This way."
"Where now?"
"Come on."
She followed my urging. Our destination: the Jade Legged Blood Hand's lair.
Its eggs lined the walls and floor.
"Ah, we smash these?"
"No. That's suicide."
Break the eggs, and it'd drop everything to slaughter the culprit.
"Then?"
"See that small tunnel?"
"Yes."
She peeked in and yanked her head back, horrified.
"Urk! Wh-what is that?!"
"Its excrement."
"Wh-why show me that?!"
"Didn't tell you to look. Just asked if you saw."
"Same difference!"
Then—
Rumble rumble!
"Argh!"
Another quake, screams from the hunters.
"No time. We need to spread that excrement now."
"...Huh?!"
"Gross, I know. But if we don't, we're all dead."
I hadn't always risked my neck. When it seemed hopeless, I'd run.
I was human; I wanted to live.
I knew how to survive here.
But I erased it from my mind.
Asked myself: Hide and watch colleagues die again? Forever?
If so, better die here. Repeating my past life's pathetic end at the Demon King's hands—what was the point?
That was my answer.
Choi Heejeong stared, incredulous.
"Spreading its poop is really the strategy?"
"Yes. My Gift lets me figure out conquest methods."
"Your... Gift?"
"Yeah."
"Ah, so the wall crack earlier?"
"Exactly."
If she bought it, great for me.
"Got it. But how? No buckets."
I stripped off my upper clothes.
"Sticky enough to bundle in cloth. Better than hands."
"Clothes?"
"Company'll issue new suits. Worth more than clothes over life?"
"True enough."
And so we entered the tunnel... er, the Jade Legged Blood Hand's toilet(?).
United, we bundled excrement in our clothes and hauled it to the battlefield.
"You two! What the hell are you doing?!"
The department head yelled mid-fight, but we ignored her.
"Stop that now!"
Even Madric Blood couldn't intervene with the boss right there.
"Ignore her, Heejeong-ssi."
"O-okay. But this is right, yeah?"
"Trust me."
"Got it."
Choi Heejeong was the trusting type. Even in this chaos, that thought crossed my mind.
Maybe that's why she'd died young in my past life.
Anyway, after ten-plus trips hauling excrement, Madric Blood stopped protesting.
And for good reason.
Splat!
The Jade Legged Blood Hand, spitting web at Madric Blood from its maw, slipped on the muck.
Big opening.
Madric Blood wouldn't miss it.
Blood Impact Delta
Bloody Net
Myriad blood threads wove a net like spider silk, engulfing the Jade Legged Blood Hand.
Sizzle!
Its body bubbled on contact, like strong acid.
-Screeeee!
Its human face screamed.
Madric Blood landed and shouted.
"Everyone, assist with those two!"
"Yes!"
"Got it!"
I grinned at Choi Heejeong.
"Told you."
Felt good getting the boss's nod.
"It actually worked."
The low-IQ Jade Legged Blood Hand had its toilet tunnel for a reason.
Splat! Splash!
Sounds of me and the team spreading the excrement.
More hands made it efficient: relay line from the toilet. Scoop, pass back; receive, pass back. And so on.
Perfect strategy!
-Screeeee!
Not totally brainless, it realized our trick and lunged to break the chain.
Blood Impact Epsilon
Bloody Spear
Madric Blood's twelve blood spears pierced like lightning.
Stab! Stab! Thrust!
-Screeeee...!
Stab! Stab! Stab!
-Kyaa... Kk, ka... kaka...
The blood orbs on its legs dimmed.
Sign it was dying!
I grabbed Choi Heejeong's arm.
"Heejeong-ssi, can you use your Gift?"
"My Gift?"
I whispered in her ear.
"Yes. When I signal, use it. The Gift is..."
She gasped.
"Wait, how'd you know my Gift?"
"I have one that reveals others' Gifts."
Multiple Gifts weren't rare. Even talentless me had two.
"But mine needs a trigger condition."
"Know it. Saw you brush the department head's back."
Just before the babies spawned.
She slumped, sighing softly.
"Haa. Fine. I'll do it. Feels like I owe you my life now."
I turned back to Madric Blood.
She was clawing through the corpse, instinct telling her something vital lay inside.
Her eyes flashed; arm plunged deep.
"Heejeong-ssi! Now!"
"Got it!"
Choi Heejeong's Gift: Transfer. Swap positions of touched objects or people.
Why she died in my past life? Swapped with the bossed-up department head. Noble sacrifice.
Made sense for her—if Madric lost, she'd die anyway.
Now, I was using that power for pure greed.
Fwoosh!
Madric Blood and I swapped.
Ready, I shoved my hand into the Jade Legged Blood Hand's guts.
Pierced the squelch, swirled—and gripped a hot orb.
"This is it!"
Department Head Madric Blood. You're strong enough to solo this boss even now. You got one last life too. I got no other shot. So shamelessly, this inner core's mine this time!
I shoved the blood orb in my mouth, yelling inwardly.
Bloodshot-eyed Madric Blood stormed over.
"You...!"
Her hand reached for my mouth.
Not giving it up easy.
Crunch!
Realizing what I'd done, she grabbed my nape in horror.
"You have no idea what happens if an intern like you swallows a spirit beast's raw inner core?!"
I knew. Refine it, neutralize poison, absorb essence slowly with meditation. Like savoring candy.
Chew raw like me? Near-certain death.
Lifetime gamble.
Fail to endure? Another chance wasted. Better die than drag out a pathetic life like before.
That was my call.
Madric Blood's face neared.
Chomp!
Her lips sealed mine.
Something moist and soft invaded my mouth.
Probing my tongue base, palate, cheeks—desperate to steal every crumb of inner core.
"Mmph...!"
Thump!
Heart pounded wildly, reacting to the core's energy.
Hot surge racing veins, awakening senses.
"Pah...!"
Backlash blood spewed as raw core overwhelmed.
"Ptoo. Damn."
Then her fangs sank into my nape.
Ah. Sucking blood already infused with core energy.
Eyelids grew heavy.
My second death...
Tasted like the department head's lips. Fishy iron. And sweet.
You have died.
Gift activation condition met.
Reincarnator Gift activates.