Unleashing blades from his wrists, Jake launched himself into the midst of the ratmen. His first swing split one of the ratman’s hands, which held a crude mace, at the wrist. His second swing caved in another creature’s skull, making a mess of its oily fur, covering it in the thing’s own stale blood as it died.
Jerking his sword free with a fierce tug, Jake moved to the next ratman. The sword thunked between the thing’s eyes with a spray of dark blood. He worked the blade loose and instantly plunged it into another ratman’s eye. The sword’s blade dug deep, up into the creature’s skull.
The other ratmen swung their weapons at him, but he easily dodged their attacks. While the creatures were fast and agile, they were no match for his own speed. Frustrated by their inability to hit him, they launched a coordinated assault, thinking he would struggle to avoid their combined strikes.
That was when he unleashed long spikes from all over his body, piercing the unfortunate ratmen who got too close. Though injured, the wounds they received were not life-threatening. Both the wounded and the unscathed ratmen leaped away from him. For a moment, they simply glared at him with their red, malevolent eyes, too intimidated to advance now that he resembled a nightmarish version of a porcupine.
With a thought, Jake unleashed the spikes from his body. They shot through the air in every direction, injuring some ratmen while fatally striking others. The creatures hissed and squealed in terror, scattering in all directions. Taking advantage of their panicked state, Jake propelled himself after the fleeing creatures.
Sprouting three bladed tentacles from his back, he struck like a snake at one of the ratmen, hitting the creature’s head and splattering the nearest wall with its blood. He jerked the blade free and lashed out at another creature. It staggered from the impact as Jake swung his third tentacle, cutting open and caving in another ratman’s forehead.
The ranks of the ratman minions had been significantly diminished by then. The surviving creatures scattered in panic, scaling the brick walls with surprising speed and agility. They dug their curved claws into small crevices and flicked their tails for balance, darting into various openings that were far too narrow for Jake to fit into.
Suddenly, the Vermin King swung its gigantic sword at him. He quickly darted aside, and the blade slammed with a solid thud into the floor where he had just been standing. The ratman leader swung its two-handed sword again, but Jake effortlessly dodged it, feeling the blade slice the air above him with a sharp whoosh. While the Vermin King was undoubtedly stronger than its minions, it was too slow to land a hit on Jake.
The Vermin King opened its jaws, and in an instant, a cloud of green gas surged forth from its throat. Jake darted aside before the poisonous cloud could envelop him. Giving it a wide berth, he approached the ratman leader from behind. Just as the creature turned to face him, Jake launched an attack, swinging one of his swords with all the strength he could muster. It thunked into the side of the creature’s throat, opening it in an explosion of blood.
Just as the dying Vermin King collapsed to the ground, Jake scanned the area for more creatures to kill. While most of the ratmen lay dead or had fled, a few remained. One of his blades entered one creature’s body. It cut through its flesh, the tip of his sword emerging from the front of its back.
His other sword arm slashed out to take away the top of a second ratman’s skull in a single swipe. He pulled his first sword free and immediately attacked other ratmen. His blade cleaved the hands of another creature at the wrists. He thrust his blade into another ratman’s back, which tried to flee, the tip of his sword bursting forth from the center of its chest. He dodged an attack and rammed his blade up through the underside of the attacker’s chin into its brain. The ratman’s dead weight slumped onto him as he caught the falling corpse and shoved it aside.
Jake sliced through skulls and sent heads flying to bounce, rolling across the floor of the room. He continued to fight the remaining ratmen until there were none left.
Multiple enemies killed. +12,250 XP
You have gained enough XP to level up. Your level went up from 81 to 82. You have gained 5 SP.
Jake made the choice to invest all five of his skill points into the Magick attribute, aiming to boost the maximum amount of mana his body could contain and to improve its proficiency in manipulating mana.
With that done, he scanned the room for any treasures. In one of the room’s farthest corners, he discovered a chest that he had missed during his initial examination from the entrance, as it had not been visible from that vantage point. With a thought, he summoned the container’s description.
Quality chest (Uncommon)
It was a nice find. The loot in uncommon chests was typically of higher quality than that in common ones. From experience, Jake also knew that quality chests were often booby-trapped. Before approaching the chest, he carefully inspected it, almost immediately noticing a thin thread extending from one corner down to the floor, disappearing into a small hole at the base.
Rather than disabling the trap, Jake opted to trigger it instead. Keeping a safe distance, he unleashed a bladed tentacle from his back, extending it fully toward the chest. He wedged the blade’s tip between the chest and its lid and began to lift. The thread tightened before snapping cleanly in two.
Immediately, a small circular section of the wall behind the chest slid open, and a stream of liquid fire erupted from it, scorching the ground before the chest for several seconds. Once the flames subsided, Jake stepped closer and peered inside. At the bottom of the chest lay three items: a shortsword, a mana crystal, and an object resembling a star-shaped medallion.
He first extracted the magical energy from the mana crystal and then checked the weapon.
Name: Fine Shortsword
Description: Forged from a unique alloy, this expertly crafted sword is designed to deal additional damage to various beasts and beastmen.
Primary effects: Increases damage dealt to beasts and beastmen by 25%.
Temporary effects: None
Shortly after arriving on the second floor of the dungeon, Jake stored the ethereal battleaxe, the protective medallion, and the three rune stones from the first floor in one of the regular chests he had found, convinced he would no longer need them. As for the fine shortsword he had just found, he also doubted he needed it. His natural weapons dealt a lot of damage to ratmen, so he decided to leave the sword in the chest.
He then retrieved the last item from the chest—the star-shaped medallion. When he attempted to appraise it with a thought, nothing happened. The item resembled a key, likely designed to unlock something. It probably served as part of a puzzle, so Jake concluded it was wise to keep it. After placing the potential key in his mouth, he took one final glance inside the chest.
Nothing else lay inside, but Jake’s keen eyes noticed something strange. A small, convex oval shape, almost undetectable, caught his attention. It resembled a button, leading Jake to wonder if it might be a trap. However, he quickly dismissed the idea. The bulge was nearly imperceptible, clearly intended to go unnoticed by anyone who opened the chest. A wave of excitement washed over him—he had definitely just stumbled upon a secret.
Just to be on the safe side, he stepped a safe distance from the chest. Sprouting a long, flexible tendril from his back, he guided it into the chest. He maneuvered the tendril across one of the inner walls of the chest, searching for the oval bulge. Once he found it, he applied pressure. Just as he expected, it turned out to be a button, easily yielding to his touch. The moment it did, Jake prepared to leap away from the chest at the first hint of danger.