One Finger is Enough
Ian returned to the spot with the portal.
"Ugh..."
In front of the portal lay the mage, sprawled out after being stabbed by Ian's dagger. It was the one Arcia had given him. There was no way something from her would be ordinary.
"Sh... Shit...!"
The mage could only twitch weakly, her body refusing to obey her. The dagger had a function that released paralyzing poison whenever it struck an enemy.
Thud.
"Agh!"
Ian roughly grabbed the mage's head and yanked it up.
"How's it feel getting fucked by the guy you were about to eat?"
"Kuh..."
The mage ground her teeth in frustration, but there was nothing she could do. Ian smirked and tossed her back to the ground.
Thump.
"Nothing useful, huh."
Ian began rummaging roughly through her robes. Deep down, he wanted nothing more than to dive through the portal right now and find Arcia. But if he did and the looters were already waiting on the other side, it'd be suicide. On the other hand, he couldn't just sit around like an idiot waiting here either.
Ian's hand paused inside her robes.
"Oh."
The corner of his mouth twitched upward.
"This might actually be handy."
From the mage's robes came a dagger. Ian twirled it lightly in his hand. He already had the one from Arcia, but its paralyzing poison could only be used... once more, carefully.
Stab!
"Gaaah!"
Ian jammed the dagger straight into her forearm.
"Blade's decent too."
"Hah... hah..."
The mage exhaled heavily, trying to endure the pain. In the meantime, Ian searched her bag and found a few potions and some silver coins.
"You... you're gonna die soon..."
Ian's hand stopped as he was digging through the bag. His gaze slowly turned to her.
The mage's lips twisted.
"The boss... she's coming for you..."
A brief silence.
Ian chuckled.
"Yeah?"
Crunch.
He pushed the dagger in deeper.
"Then she'd better hurry."
"Gaaaaah!"
The mage screamed. Ian's dark eyes were slightly bloodshot.
"I'm gonna kill you before those ugly bitches get here."
Ian pulled the dagger from her arm and slowly brought it toward her throat.
"Sp... spare me... anything... I'll do anything..."
Seeing the look in Ian's eyes, the mage began begging desperately for her life.
"Not interested."
But Ian ignored her and moved to finish the job.
"You... that... that red-haired psycho bitch... aren't you... curious where she is?"
At that moment—
Ian grinned.
"Tell me."
Everything was going exactly as Ian wanted.
"Hah... hah... We used a 2nd-floor random teleport scroll on her..."
But it was information he already knew.
"I know."
"...You know?"
The mage's eyes widened in shock.
"How..."
"Whatever."
Ian's voice dropped low.
"So where'd it send her."
"Th-that's..."
The mage's voice trailed off weakly.
"Spit it out! No time!"
When it seemed like she was stalling, he pressed the dagger closer and urged her on.
"I... I don't know! It's random—how the hell would I know!"
"Ah..."
He'd hoped a mage might know something, but she didn't either.
"Useless then."
Ian raised the dagger high.
"N-no... sp... spare me..."
Stab.
"Aaaaaagh!"
A scream erupted. But the dagger hadn't hit her throat. It was embedded in the back of her hand.
Ian's eyes narrowed.
"This... a communication ring?"
On the mage's finger was a ring embedded with a large gem. He'd seen it a few times in the game.
"Hah... hah..."
The mage panted, lost in agony.
Ian silently removed the ring and slipped it onto his own finger. But there was no reaction.
"Hey."
Slap!
Ian's hand struck her cheek hard. Only then did a flicker of life return to her eyes.
"Mana... put mana into it..."
The mage said urgently.
"Hm..."
There was one problem. Ian couldn't use magic without Arcia.
"Ah."
Ian's eyes flashed as a solution hit him. His hand plunged into the wound on her arm.
"Aaaah!"
The mage shuddered in pain. The moment Ian's hand touched her skin, he felt his boon activate. A sensation like something mixed into the air. Mana.
"Got it."
Even in her state, she was still recognized as stronger than him, it seemed. But it wasn't as vivid as with Arcia.
Hum.
Ian gathered the mana and activated the ring.
—Hardi! Respond!
A woman's voice emerged from the ring, belonging to someone in black armor.
—Boss... Hardi isn't responding...
Another woman's voice followed. This mage's name must be Hardi.
The brief exchange was all Ian needed. They didn't know what had happened here yet. Which meant they hadn't returned through the portal.
He had to get to the 2nd floor before they did.
"Yeah."
Ian spoke into the ring.
"Hardi's fucked."
—What?
—Who the hell is this?
Panicked voices overlapped from the other end.
Ian chuckled.
"Just wait there, you bitches."
He ignored them and dispersed the mana he'd infused.
Hum—
The ring went silent.
"N... now you'll let me live, right?"
The mage said in a trembling voice.
"Yeah. I will."
Ian smiled slowly.
"But first, I wanna run a little test."
Crunch.
"Agh!"
Ian swung the dagger again. One finger fell to the floor.
Ian picked it up.
"Works fine."
Even severed, the moment his skin touched it, the boon activated.
Ian grinned wickedly.
"One finger's enough."
Clutching the finger, Ian threw himself toward the 2nd-floor portal. Of course, he didn't forget to stab the downed mage's ankles a few more times to ensure she couldn't move.
He wanted to kill her right then. But if she died, the boon might stop working.
Hum.
The 2nd-floor portal rippled as Ian emerged outside.
Thud thud thud.
Footsteps were approaching from a nearby passage. The looters were rushing back because of his provocation.
Ian slipped into a different passage where no footsteps echoed.
"Can't beat them now."
In his current state, he couldn't take even one of them. Somehow, he had to link up with Arcia.
Ian pressed deeper into the labyrinth.
How far had he gone?
Grrr.
A growl rumbled from the darkness ahead. Ian approached cautiously.
Grrk.
The thing slowly turned its head, sensing his presence. Rotten eyes. A nose already fallen off. Teeth missing in clumps. A zombie, the undead monster that appeared on the 2nd floor.
Sniff sniff.
The zombie flared its nostrils, searching for Ian. Normally trickier than goblins, but Ian knew its weaknesses all too well.
Whoosh.
Ian picked up a stone from the floor and tossed it. Zombies relied more on hearing than sight.
Clack.
Grrk!
The zombie whipped its head toward the sound. But that wasn't enough.
Whoosh!
This time, he pulled an empty potion bottle from the mage's bag and threw it.
Crash!
The shattering echoed loudly through the labyrinth.
Kyaaak!
The zombie let out a bizarre screech and charged that way.
Thud!
It slammed headfirst into the wall. Unable to stop its momentum, its body toppled backward.
Ian didn't miss the chance.
Crunch!
He stomped the downed zombie's head, shattering it. The sensation of the skull crumbling under his sole traveled up his leg. Not a pleasant feeling, but he didn't have time to care.
The zombie went limp. But Ian didn't stop there.
Stab.
The dagger sliced open its gut.
Squelch... slop.
Dark red entrails spilled out with the rotten flesh. A scene straight out of a movie.
Ian thrust his hand in without hesitation.
Splash... splatter...
He yanked out the guts and smeared them over his body. Rotten blood and viscera slathered his armor and clothes stickily. A way to fool zombies that reacted to smells and sounds.
"Urgh..."
The foul stench assaulted his nose. Nausea churned in his gut, but Ian gritted his teeth and kept at it.
"Damn it..."
He had no idea if it'd actually work. But it was the only option he had right now.
The passage Ian had passed through.
Thud thud thud.
Two looters appeared: the warrior who'd used the teleport scroll with Arcia, and the archer who'd chased after her.
"There. Looks like he went this way."
The archer leading the way pointed at the floor. It was the zombie corpse Ian had messed up.
"This... blood?"
Bloodstains trailed deep into the cave.
"Got hurt fighting a zombie?"
The warrior following behind snorted.
"If he's bleeding, he can't have gone far."
But the archer didn't move easily. She stared at the floor, eyes narrowing.
"...Something's off."
She rubbed the bloodstain with her finger.
A short silence.
The warrior said irritably,
"What? Why're you stopping."
The archer slowly stood.
"...Nah, just a feeling."
The warrior kept griping.
"Doesn't matter. Move."
The archer glanced deeper into the passage, then finally stepped forward.
How far had they gone?
Grr rumble—
A low zombie groan leaked from ahead.
"I'll handle it."
The warrior stepped forward.
"Wait. It's not just one or two."
The archer hurriedly stopped her.
Deeper in the passage—
Grrk.
Grr rumble.
Grr rumble.
Dozens of rotten eyes flickered faintly in the darkness. Zombies packed the labyrinth passage, rotten flesh sagging as they shoved each other forward.
The archer muttered low.
"...That's a lot."
But the warrior scoffed.
"Zombies, big deal!"
She shoved past the archer and strode toward them.
"Hya!"
She drew the greatsword from her back and swung it wide.
Slash— slash— slash—
The sharp arc cleaved through the passage. Three zombie heads flew into the air in an instant. Their bodies staggered a beat later before collapsing with wet thuds.
The warrior shook the blood from her blade casually.
"See? No big—"
At that moment.
Grr rumble rumble—
From the opposite end of the passage—the direction the archer and warrior had come—zombie noises started up too.
The warrior scowled.
"What? How'd they get back there?"
More zombies emerged from the darkness, one by one.
From the front—
From behind—
Grrk.
Grr rumble.
Zombies began filling the passage from both sides.
The archer's face hardened.
"...We're surrounded."
Amid the horde of zombies, one pair of bloodshot black eyes gleamed quietly.
"Grrk."