I Want to Devour the Master of My Master

"Hnnngh..." My head felt like it was splitting open. My nose was stinging, too—a sharp, burning sensation, as if someone had poured boiling oil right into my nostrils. I felt dizzy. There was the metallic tang of blood in my mouth. It was too difficult to get up, so I decided to lie there a while longer and collect my thoughts. I could sense someone nearby, but the silence suggested it was safe enough to rest.

As I lay there, steadying my breathing, the fog in my brain began to clear. When that unidentified parasite had been burrowed inside my head, I hadn't even realized how suffocated I felt; it was only after it was gone that I understood the weight of it. What the hell was that thing? A doppelganger? A mimic? There was no way to know. It was already dead, and none of my companions seemed to know what it was, either.

"Damn it..." How was that thing able to copy my skills? It raised so many questions. Most of my skills were borrowed powers from Evil Gods like Indikron or Kashnakas. Was it even possible to copy things like that? Maybe it could only mimic them because the power was degraded... Once I got out of here, I’d have to ask Indikron or Botamilli. Kashnakas was always so prickly and dismissive when I spoke to her alone, as if she were embarrassed, so it was better to ask the others. No, wait—Botamilli was a toss-up. As the goddess of void and oblivion, she either wouldn't answer or would claim she’d forgotten and didn't know herself. I’d have to stick with Indikron. In my experience, she was the most talkative of the lot. Kashnakas claimed she was the oldest, which might explain why she sometimes seemed desperate to impart knowledge. Of course, my own mental limits meant I couldn't listen for long.

Still, a fussy, talkative, nagging old goddess who wanted to look after me... wasn't that more like a grandmother than a "maman"? Ugh, stop with the useless thoughts. Maybe it was the break, but my head was filling with all sorts of nonsense. Since I was starting to have such weird thoughts, it was probably time to get up. I rubbed my bleary eyes and managed to sit up, then scanned the room.

"Zzz... zzz..." Aram was there, nodding off, and Eila was sitting with her eyes closed, muttering something—likely maintaining a barrier. The atmosphere was so quiet and solemn that I found myself keeping my voice down, too. Where did Kekere, Kesia, and Cheshire go? Don't tell me... we got separated again?

We were still inside the mirror maze. Not seeing three of them made me anxious. I was ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠certain I’d heard the screams of the mirror ghosts before I collapsed... They couldn't have been scattered while I was dropping them, could they? If that were the case, we were in real trouble. Only Aram and I had the necklaces, so there was no way to track Cheshire, Kesia, or Kekere. We couldn't spend ten days here searching for them. If we really were separated, this raid was effectively a failure. We’d have no choice but to drink the honey mead and escape.

As I massaged my throbbing head, Eila, who had been meditating, opened her eyes and spoke to me.

"You're awake."

"Yeah. Just now."

"That's a relief. I was prepared to take drastic measures if you didn't wake up."

"D-drastic measures...?"

"It's nothing to worry about. You're awake now, so there's no need."

She clearly had no intention of telling me what those measures were. What could it have been? A chill ran down my spine. "What about the others? I don't see Cheshire, Kesia, or Kekere..."

Eila rubbed her eyes, looking exhausted. Her reaction wasn't good. Had we really been separated?

"Cheshire and Kesia went to relieve themselves. They'll be back soon. We found the entrance to the 3rd floor and were just waiting for you to wake up."

"Ah, you already found the entrance to the 3rd floor."

Thank god, we weren't separated. They’d just stepped away for a moment. But while I understood where Cheshire and Kesia were, where was Kekere? And why was it so peaceful when I had ten stigmas branded on me? Was Eila's barrier keeping the mirror ghosts away?

"But where's Kekere? And where did the mirror ghosts go?"

Eila sighed deeply and explained everything one by one.

"Kekere is dead."

"What? That toad with the weird way of speaking... is dead?"

The toad who kept saying "hawawa"... her way of talking had been quite entertaining. It seemed she’d died while running from the mirror ghosts. Honestly, I’d doubted she’d survive long enough to even get out of the Black Market's basement.

"So, Kekere is gone."

"Yes. The Slaughter Beast went berserk and devoured her."

"Ugh..."

"I transferred the stigmas on your back to Kekere in a hurry... but it seems you had more than nine. As soon as the stigmas transferred, she went berserk and was eaten by the Slaughter Beast. The rampaging beast... is probably still fighting the mirror ghosts."

"So the master-servant relationship was reversed... and she really got eaten."

The news of Kekere's death put me in a foul mood. It wasn't pity—it was simply because the journey ahead had just become much harder. She would have been needed on the 4th floor. To die this early... Kekere might have looked like a mess, but in terms of utility, she was a far more valuable asset than the cute-looking Kesia. Her dispelling abilities would have been perfect for dealing with the curses of ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠the warehouse keepers on the 4th floor. Her detoxification skills also seemed crucial for the pipe section on the 3rd floor.

"It's a shame."

"Yes. But it couldn't be helped."

I nodded at Eila's words. It really couldn't be helped. Kekere had sacrificed herself for us. I offered a silent prayer for her soul and waited quietly for Cheshire and Kesia to return. Aram must have been exhausted, as she hadn't stirred once while Eila and I were talking. Eila went back to meditating, keeping the stealth barrier active to avoid detection by the mirror ghosts. As the surroundings fell silent, my thoughts drifted.

They said the difficulty was high... Cheshire was right. The Black Market's basement was brutal. Honestly, if it weren't for NPCs like Eila and Cheshire, the rest of us would have died on the 1st floor. We’d only made it this far because Eila supported the team with her gem magic and Cheshire wiped everything out with her futuristic weaponry. The 1st floor had been a chaotic mess of basement guards and demonic guestbooks, and the 2nd floor had been a headache of infinitely multiplying ghosts and disorienting mirrors. If the 1st and 2nd floors were this hard...

What is the 3rd floor like? I was already afraid. I’d been on edge the whole time, wondering when we’d die, and the 3rd floor would surely be even worse.

"Oh, Jojun's awake."

"Cheshire! And... Kesia?"

"Haha... M-Master. Haha. I, I'm... I can't hold it back anymore... Hehehe."

Cheshire and Kesia returned. Kesia was scratching her arms frantically, unable to suppress her impulses. She wasn't scratching because of an itch—she was tearing her own flesh apart.

"Ghhhuuuu!!!!"

"Shh. Don't open your mouth. Be quiet. That's it. Don't make a sound. Shh..."

Since she might do something erratic if the impulse grew, I gagged Kesia and drove a ritual dagger into her shoulder. I dug the blade in, widening the wound. Blood gushed out, and before she could lose too much of it, I healed the wound with regenerating flesh. Kesia finally wore a satisfied expression.

"Phew. Damn it."

I sighed, wrinkling my nose at the smell of blood, and Cheshire patted my head.

"Cheshire..."

"Hehe... That toad... is gone."

"Yeah... I heard."

"The Slaughter Beast was expensive, what a waste. And that... talent amplifier, too."

"Tell me about it. I never dreamed I'd lose them before even breaking even."

Cheshire was right. It was a massive loss. The 68,000-coin Kekere I’d bought at double the price, the 90,000-coin Slaughter Beast, and the frozen edible human I’d bought as a cannibalism suppressant to go with a glass of Endless Impulse. I didn't even know how much I’d lost with Kekere's death. In terms of pure financial loss, I was practically bankrupt.

There aren't many zombies left near the base, and the field bosses don't spawn anymore, so point acquisition is already getting tough... If I couldn't save Cheshire after taking such a massive hit, I might just foam at the mouth and collapse. My anxiety over Kekere's death was quickly being eclipsed by pure rage.

"Shall we head down, then?"

"Aram, wake up. Time to move."

"Mm...? *Slurp.* Mm."

Even Aram, who was faithfully fulfilling her role as ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠an air purifier, woke up. We prepared to head down and moved a little further. We soon found a room where the floor was completely blown out, the mirrors shattered to pieces.

"Phew. See you at the bottom."

Cheshire entered the 3rd floor first. Aram and Kesia jumped in almost simultaneously, and Eila and I followed suit. Fortunately, nothing black or strange followed us in this time. All we heard was a faint sound, like something screaming in Kekere's voice.

"I feel so dizzy... haa..."

The Slaughter Beast, fused with Kekere, picked up one of the dying mirror ghosts and twisted it like a rag. -Squelch.

"Kieeeee...!!!"

The mirror ghost's final cry. The Slaughter Beast drank the flowing ectoplasm. It felt like its thirst was being quenched, if only slightly.

"Phew. Is it over now? Are there no more ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠coming? Answer me properly, you wretch."

The Slaughter Beast asked the shattered mirror. Silence. There was no answer. All the stigmas that had been branded onto the Slaughter Beast's body were gone. It was a body that curses could no longer touch, for it was already wrapped in every curse imaginable.

"Then... I shall be on my way to find the prey that escaped."

The Slaughter Beast trampled over the corpses, following the scent of its target. It had devoured the toad that had made it a servant, but that toad had a master of its own. It couldn't sleep without devouring the master of its master. The Slaughter Beast stroked its hungry belly and began to track Jojun, soothing its starvation by force.