Storming the Low Floors – Straight to 9F

I didn't think I was OP or anything, but I charged right into the 3rd floor.

It was a rat the size of a cat.

"What the... not even a goblin?"

Squeak! With a cry like that, the thing leaped at me. I stomped lightly and swung my scythe in a wide arc.

Slash!

Squeak squeak!! The rat tumbled across the floor.

Blood sprayed, but it evaporated in an instant.

"Too easy..."

It was ridiculously straightforward. Almost comically so, making all my earlier worries seem laughable.

"Oh. More gold?"

It was 100G more than from the slime. Seemed like it increased by 100G per floor. At this rate, it'd snowball into insane amounts later.

Stats still going to Strength, Agility, Senses.

"If it's this easy, maybe 4F too..." With that thought, I stepped straight onto the stairs to the 4th floor.

4th floor.

This time, a bat.

Definitely trickier than a big rat, flying around and all.

"It really gets a bit stronger each floor..."

Flap flap! The bat swooped from the ceiling in erratic patterns.

Whoosh! Swoosh! Slash! Swinging my scythe like a flyswatter, I landed a hit soon enough.

"Gotcha!"

Sizzle!

The slashed bat dropped with a thud.

Again, Strength, Agility, Senses.

"Oh. Kinda feels like..."

It was subtle, but my body felt lighter.

"Alright, let's go!"

No need to check the gallery again. Stamina wasn't an issue, and no one had info below 100F anyway.

5th floor.

A grotesquely bloated toad was gearing up to ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠spew something.

"Eugh!"

I jumped back. First ranged attack I'd seen. But its wind-up was way too slow.

Splat!

I smashed it with my scythe before it could puff up. The toad split in half from the head down and melted away.

Not even out of breath. 574F was right – these were pushovers you could just auto-attack through.

That was enough for now. I pulled up the hologram panel in mid-air.

Hit refresh, and comments flooded in immediately.

People were starting to buy into 574F's theory.

But there were still worried voices.

Then, a familiar nick dropped in.

"Ugh..."

Instant Death. The name alone was insanely appealing.

Oh ho. So Instant Death wasn't some ultimate skill – learnable from the start.

20% or whatever, no regrets.

I'll start pumping Intelligence from now on anyway.

Couldn't keep poking at the Reaper's pride. Lots to learn ahead.

This was... building rapport, basically.

I shut off the hologram and plopped my butt on the 5F floor.

"Let's see what it's like first."

Obviously no plans to meditate a full week. Hero could show up from below any time.

Just a quick test run. Legs crossed, eyes closed.

Focus on the dantian... fish out the circle...

Deep breath in, out. Silence settled.

1 minute. 2. 3.

"Fuck..." Eyes snapped open. Driving me nuts. No progress, just itching unbearably.

"Okay! Giving up! Meditation after Int stats."

Sprung to my feet.

Time to farm stats.

First, spend remaining stat points.

"Oh... vision feels..."

Stats gave instant feedback every time. If +1 each feels this good, how monster-strong would I get later?

Promotion battle request.

Light steps up the stairs to 6F.

A massive bug with shiny hard shell.

Clang! Leaped and slammed my scythe down, shredding the shell.

One-shot.

"Hm. Maybe no need to spend stats from now on?"

If mobs stayed this weak, no point investing more in Str/Agi/Sen.

Int ahead, but no need to pre-invest.

For safety nets.

Emergencies might demand all-in on HP or Strength. Or gallery might suggest a better path next time.

Not that I don't trust Reaper-sensei, but...

Upward ho.

7th floor.

Hiss!!!

Another bug. Wait, spiders are arachnids.

Spider spewed white threads from its mouth.

Hacked through the webs.

"Definitely overpowered."

Kieeeek!!!

Hold stats.

8th floor.

Bursting from the ground gimmick. At level 1 I'd have panicked, but +4 Senses was huge.

Str/Agi/Sen efficiency is nuts.

Vertical scythe plunge into the emerging head.

Still one-shots. No hesitation.

Promotion battle request.

9th floor.

A bit fiercer-looking.

Charged straight at me, baring teeth. But just puppy speed.

Crunch!

Breathing a tad heavier after 9F.

Wanna pump Str/Agi/Sen.

Tempted for a sec. Up to 5F, I'd felt the scythe lighten, body quicken.

But now? No growth sensation. Full Str would've made me a recoil-free scythe monster by now.

Instead, just hunkering down.

Finally... didn't open ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠the 10F door. Opened the gallery instead.

10 felt risky. All one-shots so far, but decimal system rules meant mid-boss potential.

Maybe stronger than 11F. Fired up the gallery. New post.

Comments exploded the second I hit post.

Teacher burst in first, furious.

Then a sweat-wiping comment.

No sudden 10-floor spikes apparently.

Then a wall of text.

"50%..."

If I'm talented, maybe 3.5 days. "...doable?"

Far from 9F, hero anxiety faded. After fighting, craving skills kicked in.

I vowed to keep that promise and prep for meditation.

But then.

A nick sliced the flow.

Boom. Bombshell dropped.