And a Second Phase?

—

“The angle is perfect.”
“The view is wide open.”
“Even if it attacks, there’s room to dodge.”

Will strategized a “safe” way to end the fight, to minimize any surprises. As an “adventurer” who had lived here for eighteen years, who had learned to clear dungeons and fight monsters since birth, and as Leah’s—the witch specializing in fire magic—first and only student—

He knew.

The best way was to vaporize it instantly.

To burn this four-to-five-meter tall, ten-plus-meter long worm until nothing remained but ash on the desolate sand.

To push his magic circuits to their absolute limit, unleash maximum firepower, and bid farewell to all unknown, uncertain, unpredictable monsters!

—Speaking of which, that sounds exactly like something Leah would say.

With that thought, Will injected a vial of Bloodmint Essence into his arm.

“Ugh… Even with mental preparation, direct injection is… a bit intense.”

His body, already mixed with witch’s blood, surged with chaotic magic circuits the moment the Bloodmint Essence entered. He could feel his temples pounding.

“But it’s not enough…”

Seizing the moment, he injected a second vial into his arm, less than five minutes after the first. He gasped, feeling the fiery, stimulating rush of blood, his heart pounding faster and faster, the sound of the wind and sand drowned out by the thumping in his veins.

“Need… just… one more!”

Then, he injected a third vial into his arm. Compared to the first vial (from zero to something) and the second (which amplified the effect), the third felt less jarring. But Will still felt the surging rush from the third vial of Bloodmint Essence. The blood in his veins became a raging flood, churning the riverbed, exhausting everything within his vessels.

And what he felt…

It was a power like Leah’s passionate kiss.

He slowly straightened, raising his staff. He aimed it at the giant worm’s body. A never-before-seen brilliance gathered on his staff.

He noticed: the Death-Eater Worm seemed to sense something was wrong. It didn’t attack him; it recoiled. It was scared, terrified, shrinking back. Like an insect’s innate foresight for “power,” it curled its fat, corpse-filled body.

“Heh. Never thought I’d see my enemy do something like that.”

Will chuckled. He felt the staff’s charge hit its peak. A swirling vortex of sand rose into the air.

“Thank you, Teacher Leah.”
“Because of you, I finally felt… not just your love, but how passionate it is.”

He looked at the staff’s light. In the center of the black-and-white staff, a light shone so brightly that, even in the pre-dawn desert, it was like sunlight.

“And because of you, I have this chance to truly shine!”

“Blazing Inferno, 1000% Power Output!”

He hadn’t acquired much “ancient magic” related to fire. But this Blazing Inferno was far from its original version. It was the culmination of years of “research,” years of study with Teacher Leah, and the extreme boost from three vials of Bloodmint Essence!

BOOOOOOOM!

In the deafening explosion, though it was still early morning and the rising sun hadn’t yet appeared, this Blazing Inferno illuminated half the blue sky at the edge of the desert.

“Hah… Witch’s blood is… truly incredible. The old me would have fainted by now.”

Will merely gasped for breath, his posture perfectly straight. He looked towards the explosion. The curled-up worm had vanished from the desert, leaving only slowly dissipating “dust” in the sky. Even its body had been completely obliterated, leaving no burning remains.

“But I can’t be careless. Something felt off…”

If the Death-Eater Worm wasn’t just an “elite” of a single floor, but a BOSS meant for a dedicated BOSS room… then it undoubtedly had a “second phase.”

“That’s why I wanted to be careful. If… it blew up into dust, could its second form still appear?”

From a “game mechanics” perspective, it was like two separate health bars! But in “reality,” if it vanished completely, it shouldn’t reappear, unless…

“Its final action was suspicious. Worm… pupa… butterfly… Wait!”

Will’s left hand swiped over his left eye. In that instant, his vision burst into vibrant colors, as if his sight had been supercharged. At the same time, he saw something unmistakable emerge from the smoke—a deep crimson hue.

This color represented “killing intent” and “alert”—Will had learned that much.

“Just as I thought. If it were just this worm, it wouldn’t be a counter to me. Unless its second phase…”

As the last of the smoke dissipated, the “early morning” of the desert finally ended. At the desert’s edge, the sun slowly began to rise, casting a soft light. And in that light, Will saw a solitary “pupa” standing in the sand, painted golden by the sun.

Its pointed end was deeply embedded in the ground, its exterior scorched black. All around it lay the ashes of completely incinerated bones. The “threads” wrapped around it, though charred, were still discernibly made of…

“Corpse fragments” and “bones,” mixed with solidified black blood. This human-sized pupa, grotesque and disturbing, clearly encased something. It was consistent. From its very birth, this Death-Eater Worm had been intimately linked with death, corpses, and scabs.

Someone lacking adventure experience might think, “Dustbone Corridor has ‘bones,’ so corpses are normal.” But Will wasn’t naive… The more it revealed itself, the more Will was certain this thing had come from “another dungeon.” Because its damp, cold, half-dead appearance resembled “disgusting death” more than “dust-covered ancient remains.”

—It moved.

As he thought, stepping forward, it trembled, quivering with “life” like any pupa about to “hatch.”

“Just as expected. If it’s an ‘insect larva,’ this is bound to happen…”

He was still figuring out how to destroy the pupa when, as if answering his question, a crack appeared on the side facing Will. It gave him no time to prepare. Just as Will was about to retreat to a safe distance…

It burst from its cocoon.

First, he saw its wings—fashioned from “bloody skeletons.” As if adapting to new life, it spread its wings wide, like the outstretched hands of Death.

And its body—

Before Will could analyze further, it leaped, stirring up sand.

“Five meters, ten meters, twenty meters—!”

Will’s monocle activated, sensing the magic traces on its body as it flew higher and higher.

“Damn it, it knows I can’t fly!”

It was much smaller than the previous giant worm, now only human-height. If Will hadn’t been mistaken, its hand held a sword… a sword made from a human “spinal cord.” A fiery, uniquely designed weapon.

“It’s a… flying… melee fighter?”

Flying creatures had a natural advantage in the desert. Will looked up. In the dazzling sunlight, his eyes could only track its dizzying circles in the air. First, the blinding sky made it hard to see. Second—

It dive-bombed, its sword aimed at Will. The moment it landed, it braked, kicking up a storm of sand. The sand it stirred up during its descent also obscured his vision!

CLANG!

Will had already drawn his sword and blocked the first strike. He heard the crisp sound of metal clashing against bone. It was then that Will got a frontal view of the gigantic butterfly’s body. It was incredibly ugly—its body was a patchwork of slightly decayed limbs, stitched together from various “different people.” If he weren’t in combat, Will might have vomited on the spot.

It flew away again.

“Can’t let this continue.”

Will held his sword. It wasn’t a “custom” weapon, just a slightly expensive sword fit for a “rich young master.” And due to his physical condition, he had never considered “melee combat” before.

One clash was all it took for Will to know: this sword’s durability wouldn’t last against the opponent’s spine-sword. The next collision would probably shatter it. That would leave Will vulnerable in close combat. Unfortunately, he realized this, but there was no time to order a custom-made sword. Too bad his staff wasn’t made of iron, or he might have had a chance to put up more resistance.

“If I hadn’t had to go all-out in the first phase, I might have been able to shoot it down.”

After one full-power explosion, he didn’t want to waste his remaining mana on a flying target with an unpredictable trajectory, knowing he might need a decisive strike later. So…

He was forced into melee combat with this Death Butterfly.

And it was a “ground-to-air” melee.

“Hah…”

He took a deep breath, closing his left eye. Melee combat meant relying on “demon” power. This contract wasn’t “complete,” which was why Treya couldn’t track him. But this incomplete demonic pact still granted him extraordinary power.

The power to “lend” his body to a demon for a while.

If it means surviving, if it means seeing you again, if it means saving you, then giving my life to a demon right now is fine.

—That’s probably something Treya, always burdened by the harsh fate of the royal family, would say.

“Open Eye!”

The moment he opened his eye, Will saw the entire world “slow down,” shifting into a strange, filtered black-and-white. He felt the “demon” power Treya had bestowed upon him—not only did it directly alter his physical functions, but it brought with it the power of “illusions.”

It allowed him to recall that long dream, that bizarre yet unfinished wedding, the purest and sole desire of the “Demon Castle Zero Empress.”

When his vision fixated on a single target, his mind became incredibly focused, and the target’s speed seemed to decrease. The Death Butterfly’s wing beats slowed, allowing him to see its trail. If he could just destroy its wings, this flying creature would fall to the ground, and he could finish it off!

At this moment, he was no longer the weak, youngest child of the Hysterm family, someone who had never succeeded by relying on his own physical strength or swordsmanship. As someone who had witnessed all the conflicts of the Entark royal family, who had seen the birth of Entark Swordsmanship, as the fiancé of Empress Treya—the one who had proudly risen from naive girl to ruler, stepping over all others—

He believed that this sword, imbued with Treya’s marriage vows, would surely sever the enemy’s wings at the last moment.

Zzzzzzt—

The Death Butterfly gave Will no reprieve, its bone-like wings beating as it dive-bombed again! Will, anticipating its every move, thrust his sword forward. The Death Butterfly, confident of victory, didn’t slow down, swinging its spine-sword down!

But…

Will took a step back. In his briefly opened demonic vision, the Death Butterfly’s speed and trajectory were “slow,” slow enough for him to predict it would fall into his trap. He didn’t even extend his sword. The Death Butterfly saw only an “illusion,” a false shadow—it lunged at empty air, falling into Will’s trap.

This was Will’s first time using “demon” abilities on an enemy. He hadn’t expected it to work on dungeon monsters, assuming they had no consciousness and thus no illusions. But it worked. Will stepped back, and one of its wings was exposed to his sword.

“Thank you, Treya.”
“Because of you, I understood that your love holds power beyond my comprehension.”

At this range, his sword slashed down. With the sound of the sword shattering, half of the bone-constructed wing turned to dust.

“And because of you, I can manipulate this boundary between dream and reality.”

The Death Butterfly made no cry of pain, which disappointed Will. Using the momentum from its remaining wing—though it could no longer fly—it leaped half a step away.

“Now… the final stage.”

Will took a deep breath. Without a sword for melee, he touched the collar around his neck, feeling the stored Rimefrost Phalanx magic Eir had left within.

—