Farewell to the 18th Floor
It felt like I'd lost my immediate goal, but in truth, I hadn't lost my real objective at all.
There was still something I had to do.
Revenge.
Shin Jae-jun. Lee Ha-na. Kim Jun-su.
My thirst for vengeance against those three hadn't faded one bit.
If anything, now that the target right in front of me was gone, my desire for payback burned even fiercer.
And that's when I realized it.
The source of this hollow emptiness I was feeling.
Revenge against those three was still a distant dream for me.
I had no idea when it might come to pass.
That unreachable, far-off goal had left me drained of energy.
Once I thought it through, strength surged back through my body.
Now I could push forward again.
I had to get stronger.
Day 125 of survival.
A few days after taking down the Gray Killer Wolf. My routine hadn't changed much.
I occasionally hunted down the remnants of those wolf packs, honing myself to grow stronger.
Among them, my main focus lately had been mana.
It lagged far behind my other stats, and personally, I had a huge interest in it.
My natural teacher in this was, of course, Wise Scale.
I'd wanted to train safely in my nest at first.
But his fierce opposition forced me to hold lessons in the lizardman village instead.
Staying here long-term wouldn't make it feel like hell, though.
Wise Scale was more of a scaredy-cat than he looked.
True to his name, he was remarkably wise for a monster, but his choppy, fragmented speech and phrasing made his explanations hard to follow.
That's why our lessons were mostly hands-on. I'd squeeze out mana to my limit until I passed out—that was a typical day.
From blacking out and waking two days later, I'd cut it down to half a day recently.
My mana capacity had grown substantially, and my recovery speed had improved dramatically.
The most meaningful gain in this period was learning a new way to use mana.
Thought Speech.
Simpler than the skill Wise Scale had used before—more like a basic incantation. It was how he and I could communicate.
Using this let you talk even with those who couldn't otherwise understand you, but the difficulty varied wildly by the target's intelligence.
That explained Wise Scale's clipped speech.
Right after mastering it, I tested it on the other lizardmen.
Those four survivors from before.
Their speech wasn't much different from his.
No—maybe even choppier? Wise Scale seemed a bit more fluent.
Whatever their speech patterns, being able to communicate with these comrades-in-arms was hugely meaningful.
I took the chance to properly express the gratitude I'd held back before.
No need to act so humble about it.
I'm the grateful one.
After some calm conversation, we opened up more.
A faint awkwardness lingered, but now I'd finally made some friends.
My first monster friends.
I'm happy.
Day 125 ends.
Day 130 of survival.
These past few days, I'd gone back and forth between the forest and the lizardman village, taking down a good number of wolf remnants.
My stats hadn't grown much, of course, but in terms of completing my revenge, it felt profoundly meaningful.
Absolutely not because I was bored.
The lizardman village sat in the heart of the 18th floor.
Not the exact center, but as the strongest monsters' turf, plenty of hunters poked around nearby.
That was why Wise Scale and the other lizardman warriors hadn't helped much during the wolf fight.
Leaving the village undefended risked a hunter raid—a total disaster.
Back then, I didn't care what happened to the lizardmen.
But after their repeated favors and growing fondness, I didn't want them taking hits either.
So lately, I'd been helping them deal with hunters.
Facing hunters brought no guilt.
After killing so many already, that ship had sailed.
I'd gone too far down this path.
They were hunters raiding the labyrinth, slaying monsters. I was a monster.
No other justification needed for killing each other.
Hunters dying in the labyrinth was par for the course.
They knew the risks better than anyone.
“Guh… guhkk…”
“Shaa—.”
The woman's body convulsed violently in my coils.
A foul stench hit my tongue.
A glance down: her pants were soaked.
She'd pissed herself.
Feeling grossed out, I loosened my grip.
Her lifeless body slumped.
Shaa—.
I slithered up.
Around me, lizardmen were cleaning up the hunter corpses they'd felled.
Eight hunters this time.
The central area lived up to its name—big raid party.
“Zzu—zzaaa—.”
How? Human. Corpse.
“Shaa—.”
Leave 'em. Other monsters'll eat 'em.
“Zzu—aa.”
Understood.
As the lizardmen started cleanup one by one, I turned to the cooling hunter bodies.
With that woman as my finale, I'd taken down three hunters this fight.
All E-rank. Before, even with ambush, it'd have been unthinkable.
Partly because of the lizardmen backup, but mostly my growth.
At my level now, E-rank hunters held no fear.
That night, I met Wise Scale privately.
“Shaa—.”
Thinking of leaving.
“Zzu—zzaaa?”
Why? Sudden. Where to?
“Shaaai—.”
Can't grow more here.
“Zzu—zzuaa—.”
Done. Decided. Offspring. Already. Depart. When?
“Shaa—.”
As soon as possible.
Wise Scale nodded slowly in agreement.
This decision seemed sudden, but it wasn't rash.
I'd pondered it alone for days, with solid reasons.
No more worthy opponents on the 18th floor.
Outskirts remained, but Wise Scale said lizardmen and wolves held the biggest power here.
Wolves were shattered by me, and no reason to fight lizardmen.
Especially after all their debts to me.
Hunters were left, but they were poor matchup.
Fighting them sped growth but ramped risk too high.
If hunters kept dropping, the association wouldn't sit idle.
Stick around hunting them, and high-rankers would come soon enough.
Time to go.
Not just from the 18th floor—to lower levels.
Deeper down.
Late night. I steadied my mind and body before departing.
Day 130 ends.
Day 131 of survival.
The day I left for the lower floors.
Without a word from me, the whole village turned out to see me off.
Wise Scale must've told them.
They didn't have to go that far…
I said goodbyes to those first four friends too.
As monsters, who knew what awaited me below.
This might be the last time.
We parted at length.
Finally, Wise Scale.
As I left, he handed me something.
A round, purple orb. A mana stone, commonly called.
Energy resource from monster bodies—like the one inside me.
I'd seen tons as a porter, but this one from Wise Scale was special.
He said it was a tribal heirloom from some ancient monster hunt.
Obviously precious to the lizardmen.
Why give it to me…?
He offered no explanation.
Just insisted I take it. Couldn't refuse that earnestness.
Decided to accept, but a problem arose.
I'm a snake.
No hands, no feet.
Couldn't hold or store it.
As I puzzled over this absurdity, Wise Scale spoke.
Just swallow it.
So I did.
No change.
I stared blankly at him. He grinned.
Then thumbs-up.
Where'd you learn that…?
Anyway, felt like I kept owing the lizardmen.
I'll repay this someday.
Definitely.
Thus, I parted from the lizardmen I'd grown attached to.
Before lower floors, I visited my nest.
Home for nearly five months.
Shed skins everywhere.
Like leaving a beloved house—got a bit melancholic.
Not sure if I'd return, but hoped it stayed as-is.
Didn't linger long.
Feared I'd never leave.
Turned away coldly.
18th floor has multiple downward gates.
Officially eight confirmed.
Including unofficial ones known to some hunters, over a dozen.
Mine was south-central, remote.
Fewer users thanks to location.
Drawing on porter memories, arrived as sun set.
A few hunters at the gate.
Checking before descent? Gear out, resting.
Four total.
From auras, no elites.
One E-rank, two F-rank. One civilian vibe.
Porter, obviously.
Sentimental old memories surfaced, but I shook them off.
Thought to wait them out, but no movement—decided to strike.
First target: E-rank hunter. F-ranks ignorable.
Porter irrelevant.
E-rank went down helpless.
No need for long squeeze.
Crushed neck in one bite with strengthened jaws.
Screams from others.
F-ranks easy pickings.
Tried fleeing after E-rank fell, but one Intimidation froze them solid.
Only porter left.
Rarely, a woman.
Young-looking too.
Seemed underage at a glance.
Minors could enter if awakened hunters.
So adult despite looks?
Nah—wearing school gym clothes.
Her trembling under my gaze was pitiful.
For a flash, I saw my old self.
Even a hazy image of my sister flickered.
Shii—.
I turned quietly.
Gate nearby—low usage of Stealth, but she might survive with luck.
Hope this scares her from the dangerous labyrinth.
“Kill—” The labyrinth's will whispered again, but ignored.
Crossed the gate; voice faded.
Thus, I reached the 19th floor.
Day 131 ends.