Each encounter grew more dangerous. Their numbers steadily increased, and their tactics became more organized. I could appreciate how a monster could fight like a small squad of soldiers. Some of the melee fighters served as tanks with defensive skill combinations, while others were attackers with stronger claws.

The spellcasters also made a difference. Some launched quick, not very powerful attacks, while others took their time preparing a more devastating strike—one I absolutely had to avoid. I didn't know if it could kill me, and I didn't want to find out.

"Are you okay, Maki?" Glia's mental voice pulled me from my thoughts, distracting me slightly as I tried to heal my amputated hand. A strong warrior had managed to cut it off in the last fight—though it would be more accurate to say I sacrificed my hand to kill them all quickly. I didn't want to waste mana dragging the fight out.

"Yeah, it's just a minor loss. I'll recover soon." Within seconds, my hand was back as if I'd never lost it. I don't enjoy losing parts of my body, but it's the best way to strengthen my healing ability. Due to its unique mana type, healing such wounds is complicated, and I've been searching for ways to overcome it.

I opened and closed my hand repeatedly to check that everything was working properly. Not noticing anything strange, I continued searching the forest for Denosis groups. Hours ago, it had been easy to run into several at once. Now it had become difficult enough that I had to walk for dozens of minutes to find the next one. I was heading toward the giant mountain that seemed to be the dungeon's origin point.

After some hours of walking, I found groups of nearly twenty monsters. They gave me a lot more trouble. They're becoming stronger as I approach that huge mountain—I must have defeated around 600 along the way. Thus ended "my first day," in heavy quotation marks, since all these hours have been night. I haven't seen the sun at any point.

The next day began with me fighting another group early in the morning. I tried to break their formation before they could group up. Two tanks rushed toward me to stop me. They had a strange ability with their Imra, where touching mine caused them to draw me in. If I didn't focus on them, they would become stronger and more resistant, so I had to attack as soon as I was touched.

My swords danced in rhythm with their claws. Small scratches began to accumulate on all the melee fighters. I didn't have time to land any critical blows; all these battles were turning into wars of attrition. They accumulated damage while my death-affinity mana dealt gradual harm thanks to their resistance.

The mages didn't stop harassing me, launching various spheres, spikes, and thorns my way. I had five spheres I tried to control at all times to counter their attacks. I dodged the rest at the last second with subtle movements so as not to lose balance or get caught by their claws. It didn't always work, and I got hurt.

Thanks to the constant practice of healing my wounds, it's become easier to recover during combat. I can counter their cursed pseudo Law with my yin-yang Law, striking with full force so my vital synthesis does its best work.

A pair of claws came for my head, another for my leg, and a kick for my stomach. With no chance to dodge or defend, I used a charge of my movement ability to reposition. Two of my five spheres were converted into swords and struck the tanks from behind. They didn't react in time and dropped like sacks of potatoes, lifeless.

With only three tanks left, all heavily bleeding, the battle became easy. I only had to surprise them from the front and slash their stomachs. While not fatal blows, it was enough to incapacitate them and watch them slowly bleed out. "This is over now." With only one half-health tank remaining, it became child's play—just a few minutes to finish them all.

"At least I'm gaining a good number of levels." My voice was a whisper in the dark forest. I'd managed to level up every skill at least once. These Denosis put up far more resistance than the ogres in Sus's dungeon.

Looking for the last group to end the day, I reached a part of the forest with no trees around. I followed my domain into the empty area and found a single monster in the middle, sitting as if meditating. My senses warned of imminent danger, and my instincts screamed about the Denosis before me.

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Was that the dungeon boss? According to Camux's wife, this dungeon had a core, and even if I defeated the boss, I wouldn't complete it. I'd only delay things—because the dungeon energy would start empowering another monster to become the new boss, like eliminating just 5% of the dungeon. "Seems I can finish this in two days." If I defeated the monster in front of me, I'd leave the dungeon at around 20% of its capacity.

With about 65% mana, I decided to take the risk. Life's about risks, and it was time to take one. There shouldn't be monsters nearby, so I could escape quickly once the fight ended. I took a few steps forward, and he sensed my presence. His claws had turned into two black swords emitting a horrifying smoke.

He vanished from my sight, and a shadow appeared behind me. Fortunately, all my abilities were active, ready for battle. I reacted just in time to block a vertical slash from below aimed at my chest. The force of the blow lifted me a few meters into the air. Before hitting the ground, I had to block another horizontal strike that sent me flying sideways.

I got up quickly to dodge a kick aimed at my head. I repositioned using my movement skill, but he followed with that damn shadow-type ability. This time I reacted just in time, dispersing the force of his strike with a subtle motion. My free right sword aimed at his neck but was stopped by his other arm, which felt like a wall of iron.

My sword barely cracked his mana—a small win. I hadn't pierced his defenses. This damn monster had better attack, defense, and speed than I did. My only hope was to outmatch him by combining ranged and physical attacks. I'd save my healing factor for the final moments.

My left sword went for his leg, while my other hand aimed a stab at his heart. Both were stopped, and I again cracked his defense. The mana construction around his arms repaired itself in the milliseconds it took me to strike again. My dual sword skill was making up for the power difference; neither of us was giving in.

I conjured three ice swords at their strongest version. I could only control this many during short exchanges. I wouldn't push my mind further than needed. A bad repositioning nearly got me a deep slash to the stomach. I redirected one sword toward his back, and he halted his own attack to block it.

In that second of distraction, I created another empowered sword. The previous one had been destroyed, but this time I pierced through his Imra and mana. I could hear signs of distress from him. He was becoming more cautious—time to go on the offensive.

I charged at full speed, using both physical swords and magical constructs. I forced him into full defense mode. He did everything to avoid being cut. I started decreasing my attack intensity to make it seem like I was tiring.

The Denosis fell for the bait and seized a small opening. His sword-arm stabbed my right forearm, and I used the speed of the electricity in my unused sword to stab his right shoulder. He screamed in pain and tried to pull his arm out of mine. Just as he did, my other sword—meant for his head—missed as he dodged.

He repositioned using his shadow ability to about 25 meters away. We were both tending to our wounds. I removed the corruption from mine with my Life Law but didn't heal it—planning to use it as a surprise.

I lunged with only one sword in my left arm and two remaining constructs. His strikes were slower and weaker. I took advantage and pressed as hard as I could. The monster jumped back, and I tried to pierce his chest with an ice sword. It was destroyed by black Imra erupting from his body—his last resort. I could tell his mana tank was nearly empty from the look on his face.

I used my charged steps to appear at his side. He hadn't fully recovered and was trying to use his injured right arm. I danced my ice sword around his body, attacking constantly so he couldn't destroy it.

Seeing his defeat near, the monster used another mana burst. It destroyed my ice sword, and both of us were stunned for a few seconds. I healed my injured arm while he tried to cut my good arm. As his sword-arm moved to sever it, an ice sword construction appeared in my hand at full power. I even used mana-woven tissue to boost it.

My arm flew off, and I saw his expression of triumph—only for it to vanish as my completely healed right arm drove a massive ice sword into his chest. I pumped it with as much death mana as possible to wreak havoc inside him.

As my arm hit the ground with a dull thud, he also fell backward, eyes nearly blank. He couldn't move. Now he was just a simple monster at death's door.

"You're the strongest monster I've ever defeated. You fought well—I lost both arms, ended up badly hurt, and used almost all my mana reserves. You deserve a painless death." I spoke as if he could understand and drove the ice sword into his head.

I regenerated my left arm slowly while searching for his core deep in his stomach. This monster was by far the strongest—he had to be at the top of grade 3. "Time to go back." With a voice nearly drained from exhaustion, I prepared to return with less than 10% mana remaining.

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