A Fluffy New Companion
After that, we kept pushing through the blizzard.
Dealing with the monsters that popped up now and then, I searched for a decent spot to rest.
Snowmen appeared fairly often, but surprisingly, Snow Rabbits showed up even more.
They were E-rank monsters—think of them as distant cousins of the Horn Rabbits I'd seen so often in the Forest Zone.
Their role in the labyrinth was exactly the same: bottom of the food chain, prey for everything else.
Maybe because it had been so long since I'd seen any rabbit-type monsters, but they felt oddly welcoming.
Feeling cheerful, I approached one lightly, just to say hi—and it flopped over dead on the spot.
I hadn't even done anything…
Sad.
But my moment of grief didn't last long. Fortunately, I soon found a suitable resting place.
A small cave nestled between narrow canyons.
Unfortunately, it had an occupant—a White Rock Bear that reminded me of a polar bear.
B-rank. It looked pretty ferocious, like it was a big shot around here.
Would it talk?
No such luck.
Telepathy seemed possible, but it had zero interest in being friendly.
Too bad. No choice, then.
Time to show it the labyrinth's cold cruelty.
At its level, it would resist Magic Eye to some degree, so I had to handle this personally.
To avoid the cave collapsing in the fight, we took it outside.
It put up a fierce struggle, but I dispatched it without issue.
A nice little workout—my body felt nicely warmed up.
I lit a small fire inside the cave and thawed out.
This place would be my base camp for now. Time to scout the surroundings.
Maybe the blizzard would die down by tomorrow?
Nope.
A full day later, it was still raging—even stronger than before.
Should I hunker down and watch for a while?
My Gluttony reserves were still full, so no need to hunt for food anytime soon.
With that, I slipped into hibernation mode, waiting patiently for the snow to stop.
Wrong again.
Four days in, and the blizzard hadn't let up.
Memories I didn't want to revisit kept surfacing—those godawful weather tantrums from the Plains Zone.
No way this place was the same, right?
Staring at the howling storm on day four, I couldn't help worrying.
Luckily, it finally calmed that evening.
The sky cleared like the blizzard had never happened, and after four long days, I finally emerged from the cave.
Even with the break, it could kick up again anytime.
I needed to scout fast.
After all the grief from the Plains Zone, the urgency came naturally.
With the blizzard gone, my tongue and mana detection worked smoothly again.
Even in the dead of night, it was no problem.
Magic Eye let me see like daylight anyway, but the tongue and mana sense felt more comfortable.
The 70th floor, now clear and starry, had a mystical vibe.
The night sky sparkling with stars over towering snow-capped peaks—it was like a painting.
Though the presences lurking everywhere were plenty ominous.
My tongue's mana detection had grown a lot through evolutions.
Now, it could cover an area like my old 18th floor home entirely.
Problem was, floors got bigger the deeper you went.
Even at 70, my enhanced range couldn't scan the whole thing.
Time to wander and check manually.
Stick to the plan: use the cave as base camp and scout slowly from here.
With clear weather, day one brought tons of monsters.
From G-rank weaklings to unnamed A-rankers.
All sorts that hadn't shown their faces before slithered out.
The ones I had to watch were those unnamed A-rankers.
Penguin-like, with crown-shaped horns on their heads.
Tiny compared to me, but their aura was no joke.
Definitely the floor lord or something close.
'Floor boss… probably not.'
Even in the Lava Zone, floor lords hit S-rank.
Zones change, but monster levels don't jump wildly—there's a baseline.
Previous zone's lords were S-rank, so these should be at least that.
'If this guy's not the boss, the real floor lord's minimum S-rank.'
If there was one, it'd make a fine opponent.
I wasn't S-rank yet, but I had the power to match.
Red Wyverns and other S-ranks? I'd handled them.
This would be fine too.
Still, no slacking.
Equivalent power or not, real S-ranks were a step above.
Putting possible lords aside, I focused on the one in front of me.
It started the fight, burning with fight-lust. No high hopes, but I tried talking anyway, out of courtesy.
Predictably, no dice.
Intelligent, but no chatty mood.
Disappointing, but also a relief.
First high-rank since arriving—perfect to gauge the zone's strength.
A-rank or not, no underestimating.
Same rank as me. Real power differed, but same tier meant hidden depths.
Plus, total unknown species—extra caution.
Battle on.
Started with Intimidation and Magic Eye.
It resisted as expected, but a brief opening was enough.
As it hesitated, I vanished into Shadow Stealth.
Confused by my sudden disappearance, it dumbly cried, “Kwek—?”
No time for it to recover—I lunged.
Ambush and Fierce Charge.
Skill names evolved, but this combo was my classic opener.
Layered Intimidation and Magic Eye on approach.
“Kwek—!!!”
Golden pattern that crushes most—but it dodged like a true A-rank.
'As expected from that small size—nimble.'
Best move blocked, but no panic. I'd seen this plenty.
Chaining the next attack—then it was its turn.
Short legs paddling furiously, it charged.
Ridiculous waddle, but insanely fast.
It flapped its penguin wings—mana gathered.
Wings hardened like steel.
“Kwek—!”
Swept them wide—threatening with its agility.
I dodged.
Scales stung briefly.
'Not just hard—sharp too. And…'
Glanced at the stinging scales.
Super Regeneration had healed it already.
'Dodged clean, but still scratched. Tough Scales kept it shallow.'
Range longer than it looked.
'Close quarters won't be easy.'
Shii───
Judgment quick, action quicker.
Thought Acceleration wrapped thoughts; I moved.
Hwaruk—
Small fireballs spawned around me.
Basic fire magic.
Basketball-sized. Could make bigger, but misses waste mana.
Against speed, quantity over quality.
Hwaruk—
More spawned—not one this time.
Dozens in seconds.
Fired them all at it.
“Kwek—” It howled, dodging wildly.
'A-rank mana resistance, sure. But this buys time.'
Fireballs weren't the goal.
“Kwek—!!”
Few hits, minimal damage thanks to resistance.
Just trashed the surroundings.
Last fireball dodged, it burst from the flames, majestic.
“Kwuek───!!!”
Roaring skyward. I hissed softly, ‘Shii───.’
Quaak—
Prepared spell flew.
Fast, but it could dodge.
As it scoffed and twisted—thick ice pillars erupted around it.
Prepped magic too.
“Kku, kkuek──?!”
Trapped, it thrashed—too late.
Spell hit.
Splash—its body turned violet in a blink.
Poisoned.
Ice Wall water spell, plus Violet Carban poison magic.
Ice Wall as named; Violet Carban shoots deadly toxin—turns target purple, melts organs slow, then necrotic skin. Brutal, fitting the name.
Mixed with my venom? No same-rank poison resist would save it.
Probably begging for quick death from pain.
“────!!!”
Thud—it writhed.
Vocal cords gone; silent screams.
Short spasms, then still. I approached slowly.
No alerts despite the kill.
'Mid-tiers don't grow me anymore.'
Red Wyvern sparred growth and stagnation.
My limits neared.
Corpse fully purple, mummified, horn snapped in struggle.
Undignified end for A-rank.
Necrosis starting, I gulped it down no hesitation.
Poison inside? No issue.
'My venom won't faze me.'
Like nothing happened, I resumed scouting.
70th floor vast—unseen areas outnumbered seen.
Diligent exploration yielded more A-rankers like it.
All middling—no standouts.
No floor lord, looks like.
Disappointing.
No lord meant free rein—I rampaged freely.
Monsters started avoiding me one by one.
Lava Zone flashbacks.
No gains, pondering descent and gate hunt—spotted wolf pack.
First wolves since Forest Zone.
Not Silent Wolves.
Snow Ice Wolves, C-rank—distant kin to Forest wolves.
Familiar faces after Snow Rabbits.
Approached.
They bolted, legs pounding snow, no glance back.
A bit sad.
Wolf spot had something: snow-white furball.
Snow Rabbit?
Excitement surged—I rushed over.
Please no heart attack this time.
Silent approach—then perky ears popped up.
Not Snow Rabbit.
Ears long but pointed, not floppy.
Bummer, no bunny.
Who, then?
Fox kit. Plump, round—not sleek adult.
Face and body slim, but fluffy fur made it ball-like.
Far off, it'd pass for snowball.
It saw me, cried “Cong—.”
…Not dying?
F-rank-ish, but unlike E-rank Snow Rabbit, no instant death.
And more: it approached, rubbing its fluffy body against me.
What the—?
“Cong cong—.”
I stared blankly as it nuzzled furiously.
Eat it? Nah?
Up close… kinda cute…?
Sudden impulse—I decided to keep it.
And just like that, I gained a companion… no, a pet.