The Poison Swamp and the Tyrant's Core

I step forward.

Seeing is believing. I stepped forward without a shred of hesitation to conquer the next floor. The moment my vision cleared with a flash of light, a toxic stench so foul it felt as if it would rot my nose off pierced deep into my lungs.

...Fuck, what is this godawful stench?

A muddy, pitch-black marshland swallowed my feet up to my ankles. Acidic bubbles boiled and popped all around. True to its name, the Corrupted Sea was a graveyard where all life went to rot.

Grrrrrrrrrr—!

And right in the middle of that swamp, a pack of house-sized monstrosities turned their heads toward me in unison. I hadn't played the game extensively, but were trolls always the size of small mountains? The sheer majesty of their presence was on a completely different level—undoubtedly a byproduct of the Extreme difficulty.

"Graaaaaaaah—!"

As if recognizing me as an intruder, they let out mighty roars and raised their massive, crude axes.

If I get hit by one of those, there won't even be bones left to bury.

But I had absolutely no intention of dodging. The moment I turned back, I was dead anyway. Besides, they were the perfect meat targets to test my newly acquired masterwork sword.

Wroooooooom.

A suffocating silence fell. The beasts didn't rush in blindly either, seemingly sizing me up. I firmly hooked my thumb over the gear-shaped latch at the mouth of the Special Sheath given to me by the hulking Rhinoceros Blacksmith.

Click.

Boom—!!

As if declaring that the standoff was over, the rotten mud of the swamp erupted like a geyser. A house-sized steel-skinned troll charged at me with a terrifying roar.

It possessed an overwhelming mass, like a mountain collapsing toward me. The massive steel axe it raised came crashing down like lightning, aiming to split my skull. The absurd wind pressure whipped my hair wildly, but I didn't even blink. Instead, a faint, confident smirk played on my lips.

Yeah, this is exactly what I wanted.

The latch of the Special Sheath, flicked open by my thumb, had already unleashed the tension compressed to its absolute limit inside.

Bang—!

As the gears inside the sheath unlocked, the pent-up, immense elasticity launched the heavy blade of the Reverse-Blade Hungry Ghost outward like an explosion.

Swish—!!

Tearing through the air of the rotten swamp, a blood-red flash erupted from the pitch-black sheath. It might still be unrefined, but it was undeniably a quick-draw strike. The moment the blood-red sword energy clashed with the giant troll's descending axe, a deafening roar rent the air. I felt the muscle fibers in my right arm scream in agony as they snapped one by one.

"Urgh...!"

"Grrr!"

The troll let out a grotesque chuckle, believing it had won the clash of strength. But I swallowed the searing pain, my eyes flashing with resolve. The compressed tension unleashed from the Special Sheath was the real deal. The fact that I could deflect an axe of such overwhelming mass in a single strike was proof that my absurd combo was working.

If it's only this much, I can endure it.

My innate skill, Consecutive Slashes, was engraved into my very bones and muscles. Every time my muscles tore, silvery mana stitched the wounds in real-time, tempering the severed areas into tougher, harder steel muscles. The stronger the enemy I clashed with, and the greater the recoil that bounced back, the more explosively powerful I became.

I didn't try to force down the horrific recoil threatening to blow me backward after the impact. Instead, I seized that insane kinetic energy and twisted it into the momentum for my next strike.

The true value of the Consecutive Slashes passive shone after the draw. I activated the skill. The moment the first horizontal slash that deflected the steel axe ended, a second strike exploded, fueled by the rotational force of my hips.

Boom—!!

A brutal vertical slash crashed down.

"K-Kuh?!"

The steel-skinned troll's grotesque eyes widened in sheer shock. The heavy, blood-red slash—which had absorbed the recoil and erupted with twice the acceleration—had shattered its thick steel axe like a pane of glass.

But my combo didn't end there. The third trajectory absorbed the flying shards and the sheer impact of the shattered axe. Through the gap of the broken metal fragments, a vicious thrust imbued with demonic energy shot forward.

Pshhhhh—! Crack!!

"Kee... Kuh...!?"

With its defenses gone, the Reverse-Blade Hungry Ghost pierced straight through its solid chest, erupting violently from the troll's back in a shower of dark blood.

"Graaaaaaaah!!"

Howling in agony, ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠the troll finally collapsed onto the rotten swamp like a felled tree.

Yes, if I can keep this feeling up, I can easily...

I kept slashing. The rest of the troll pack came into view. Startled by the overwhelming destructive power, they flinched and took a step back, but my feet didn't stop. I ripped the sword from the dead troll's chest, channeling the momentum of the pull directly into the trajectory of my next strike.

"Kraaaah!"

Enraged by their comrade's death, they swung their heavy axes from all directions. However, before my Consecutive Slashes, which had already reached peak velocity through the initial draw and the three-hit combo, they were nothing more than giant targets of meat. Every time my muscles tore and underwent rapid regeneration, the trajectory of the cursed sword grew exponentially stronger.

Horizontal, vertical, thrust. And then a diagonal slash. The blood-red slashes, multiplying at a speed that soon became impossible to follow with the naked eye, began to hack their sturdy limbs to pieces.

Swish— Clang!! Splaaash!!

The moment I shredded one troll, two others attempted a pincer attack. Two massive shadows loomed over me. A crude combined strike rushed in from both left and right. Two steel axes crossed in an 'X' in midair, aiming to sever my windpipe.

Any ordinary swordsman would have retreated to regroup. But the inertia of Consecutive Slashes ruling my body refused to permit even a single step backward.

If I stop here, all the acceleration I've built up will die.

Instead of dodging, I kicked up the rotten mud and ducked, diving straight into their embrace.

Boom—!!

The two steel axes narrowly missed my head, colliding with each other instead.

Clang—!

In that split second of vulnerability, as red sparks flew with a deafening screech of metal, I used the elasticity of my crouched posture to unleash a merciless horizontal slash.

Slash!

"K-Gyahhhhh!"

The right troll's thick knee joint was cleanly severed by a single strike. Stepping on the head of the collapsing beast, I leaped violently into the air, gathering all the recoil and rotational force to twist my body violently.

Whoosh—!

Imbued with mana, the Reverse-Blade Hungry Ghost in my hand drew a massive crescent arc. It was a full-spin slash that combined centrifugal force, acceleration, and the overwhelming physical strength stitched together by mana. I didn't know the first thing about formal swordsmanship, but there was no way this instinctive movement engraved in my bones would fail.

Slaaaash—!!

"..."

The thick neck of the left troll flew into the air, spraying a fountain of fresh blood.

Thud!

The headless giant collapsed into the swamp. Seizing the opening, I mercilessly drove my blade straight into the crown of the right troll, which was still writhing in pain on the ground.

Squelch!

"Kieeeeeeeeeh!!!"

Finally, all three gatekeepers were reduced to gruesome chunks of meat. My entire body was drenched in sweat from the heat of my wildly pulsing muscles, and a seductive, sweet scent began to waft intensely alongside my ragged breaths. Standing in the middle of the swamp, I wiped the sweat from my forehead.

It's over.

Naturally, I expected the system's clear chime to ring. However, what struck my ears was not a cheerful chime, but an ominous, low vibration.

Rumbleeeee...

The muddy black swamp beneath my feet began to churn. The entire Corrupted Sea rippled as if hit by an earthquake, and the corpses of the three fallen trolls were rapidly sucked into the muddy depths, devoured by the swamp. At the same time, the text on the crimson system panel floating in the air began to distort grotesquely.

Kaboom—!!!

With an explosive blast, the center of the swamp erupted like a volcano. Through the rain of pitch-black toxic mud splashing in all directions, a monstrosity easily twice the size of the ones I had just fought revealed itself.

Fuck, it's just one thing after another...

A vicious carapace, formed from the hardened acidic poison of the swamp, grew over its grotesque skin. In its hands, instead of a broken axe, it held a massive, pitch-black anchor wrapped in heavy iron chains.

Whoosh-whoosh-whoosh—!

With a single swing of the iron chains, the surrounding swamp churned violently as if a tidal wave were rising. The toxic miasma enveloping the area expanded, and the nose-stinging stench grew heavier.

"Graaaaaaaaah!!!"

The tyrant's roar shook the entire 3rd floor of the Magic Tower. Its murderous intent was undeniably real—the cold shiver running down my spine brought a fleeting moment of dread. This was an out-of-spec boss monster that, by my standards, shouldn't have appeared until at least the 50th floor. Soon, a deadly toxic fog that felt as if it would melt my lungs with a single breath began to billow out from the beast.

It's do or die now.

My body hadn't cooled down yet. If I didn't clear this now, I was dead either way. Whether I suffocated in the poison or got torn apart by the anchor, there was nowhere to run.

I'll end this in a single breath.

My muscles were preheated to their absolute limit from the battle just now. Adrenaline pounded wildly against my heart through my veins. This taut sensation filled me with a reckless confidence. Unlike when I first entered and struggled to withstand a single axe swing, I was now completely enveloped in the explosive inertia of Consecutive Slashes.

Yeah, since I've already broken a sweat, let's push this to the absolute limit.

Flicking the foul blood off my cursed sword, I readily adjusted my stance toward the tyrant.

Slide.

Once more, I slid the sword back into the Special Sheath and hooked the latch. My goal was to complete the consecutive slash combo starting from the quick-draw. I would charge explosively, deflect the anchor with a draw, follow up with a horizontal slash, a vertical slash, and finish it by piercing its heart with a thrust.

If this failed... No, failure was not an option. I would break through, no matter what.

Gathering every last drop of my strength, I focused on my right hand gripping the hilt. Then, I dashed forward into the poison-laden swamp.

Whoosh—!

Holding my breath, I broke through the thick toxic fog, only for the massive chained anchor to fall, blotting out my vision in pitch black. There was nowhere to dodge. Nor did I intend to. Instead, I kicked off the rotten swamp mud explosively, lunging straight into the beast's chest.

I applied pressure to my thumb hooked on the latch.

Click.

The overwhelming tension of the compressed gears was unleashed all at once.

Kaboom—!!

An overwhelming draw that seemed to split the swamp of the Corrupted Sea in half.

Slaaaaaash!!!

Rising from bottom to top, the Reverse-Blade Hungry Ghost clashed head-on with the massive descending anchor.

Clang!

Kuuuh...!!

A horrific pain, as if my bones were being ground to dust, flared up. The strength of the gatekeeper trolls I had just slain was child's play compared to this. But I had no luxury to whine. Though the muscle fibers in my right arm screamed as if they would burst from expanding past their limits, the passive of Consecutive Slashes relentlessly pushed me to the brink, brutally stitching my torn wounds. It pumped an increasingly beastly, explosive power into my blood.

Ultimately, my quick-draw succeeded in deflecting the beast's absurd anchor into the air, forcing its massive frame off-balance.

Now.

With the anchor deflected, the giant's chest lay wide open and defenseless. Without suppressing the horrific recoil from the draw, I converted it entirely into the rotational force of my waist.

Boom—!!

A heavy horizontal slash crushed the beast's ribs. Its thick acidic carapace shattered, spraying crimson blood over the swamp like a fountain.

"K-Gyahhhhh!"

As the tyrant writhed in pain and lost its balance, I leaped violently toward it. I channeled all gravity and acceleration into the tip of my sword.

Whoosh—!

A vertical slash crashed down like lightning. The beast's thick collarbone was sliced through like tofu, causing its massive upper body to tilt heavily.

This is the end.

The moment I landed, I kicked off the swamp mud and unleashed a thrust concentrated with all my sword energy.

Pshhhhh—! Crack!!

The thrust launched from my hand pierced straight through the mutant tyrant's solid chest, perfectly skewering its heart core. Pitch-black ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠toxic blood drenched my face and shirt.

Thud.

The Tyrant of the Corrupted Sea collapsed with a massive tremor.

"Haa, haa..."

It was perfect. The slash was exactly as I had envisioned in my mind.

Thud. Splash.

"I did it..."

The strength left my legs, and I slumped down into the muddy swamp. The filth was disgusting, but I just had to be relieved that I survived this crazy living hell. Along with a welcome system notification chime, a translucent reward window appeared before my eyes.

Fuck, choices or whatever, I'm about to suffocate to death here...

My body felt like a raging furnace. My muscles were in tatters from breaking past their limits, and my body temperature boiled like lava. I slowly reached ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠out with a trembling hand to weigh the rewards. This time too, the most valuable option was probably number three, right? It wouldn't be a bad choice to earn as many Credits as possible while I could.

The Tyrant's Regeneration Core. The moment I selected option three, intending to put it up on the auction house just like last time—

"...Ugh?!"

The instant the core entered my inventory, my heart hammered as if it would explode. The powerful wave carrying the troll monarch's insane regenerative power forced its way through my veins. The muscles in my right arm and the ligaments throughout my body, which had been torn to shreds by the quick-draw and Consecutive Slashes, began to reassemble ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠in an instant, radiating intense heat. In the process, my body temperature boiled out of control. As the troll's life force sleeping in my bag fused with my body's rapid regeneration magic, fierce steam billowed out from my skin.

...? Sub-effects increased? Did this mean that simply by acquiring the loot, the waves emitted by the core had strengthened my unique skill? At any rate, I got the item and my torn body was healed, so it was killing two birds with one stone. Panting heavily, I threw myself into the blue light of the teleportation gate.