Chapter 19 - The Real Hunt Begins
Kiaaaah!
[Boss Monster 'Specter Lord Master of Chaos' roars.]
Millie's body flinched instinctively.
An overwhelming sense of fear that could not be resisted!
The roar of a D-rank boss monster alone made her feel as if her heart were being ripped apart.
It had only risen by a single rank.
But the difference in power was on an entirely different level.
'...I have to run.'
The situation had changed.
If the creature had become D-rank, then the plan had to change too. Now it wasn't about hunting it down — it was about figuring out how to escape safely from it.
Millie hurriedly urged Caleb and the unknown man who had appeared late.
"Let's go. We can still get out of this dungeon if we move now."
"Huh? What about the boss monster?"
"It's over. It's no longer in our hands."
Master of Chaos had not yet fully adapted to its evolved form. Therefore, if they moved before it fully regained its senses, they might still be able to escape the dungeon.
However, the unknown man didn't even listen to Millie's words.
"What are you doing? Are you out of your mind? Don't you realize the gravity of what you've done?"
"What?"
"It's impossible to kill that thing now. Our only option is to somehow run away and survive."
What made Millie even more anxious was the fact that no more arrows were flying at her.
The mysterious group that had attacked her and the others...
It meant they had finished what they came to do and had already left the area, shaking off their hands as if their job was done.
Their likely position was obvious.
The dungeon's entrance.
'They'll try to block our escape.'
Conquering a D-rank dungeon was an impossible task from the start. If their true goal was her death, then it would be far easier to block her from escaping than to kill her directly.
'But I can break through that much.'
Even though she had used some stamina with Burned Blood, she wasn't at death's door yet. Even if dozens of them swarmed her, it was still better than facing a D-rank boss.
At that moment, the man said,
"You wouldn't have been able to kill it with your 'Burned Blood' anyway."
"...What?"
"Because it had already evolved into a Specter Lord before you fired."
Then, without hesitation, the man began walking toward Master of Chaos.
Millie, stunned by his bold attitude, hurriedly grabbed his collar.
"Where are you going? Are you insane?"
Millie paid closer attention to his appearance.
The weapon he held was a 'Crude Greatsword' issued during the tutorial, and he wore nothing more than ordinary, everyday clothes.
At best, it was beginner-level equipment.
Because of that, Millie tried to stop him.
No matter how ignorant he might have been in interfering with her attacks earlier, she couldn't just leave him to walk into a death trap.
The man turned to look at her — his face full of confusion.
Why are you stopping me? — his expression seemed to say.
He seemed to come to an understanding on his own and then spoke.
"You're right. With this weapon, it might take some time. Detective Caleb? Could I borrow your weapon?"
"...Weapon?"
"Yes. I'll use it gently and return it."
Almost forcibly taking Caleb's blue spear, the man once again turned toward Master of Chaos.
"Wait a minute… What are you doing right now?"
It was right when Millie said that—
Suddenly, a blue ripple began to flow from the man's hand.
It was a shocking sight.
Millie was left speechless, staring blankly at the scene.
The blue ripple soon wrapped around the blue spear. It made her recall the true name of that item.
'Wavecatcher's Spear.'
An item for level 80.
Originally, it was a magic spear that used mana to stir waves, enhancing the weapon's attack power.
Thus, if the user's level wasn't suitable for the weapon, it would remain sealed, unable to display its true power.
Just like how Millie's beloved gun, the 'Revolver of Magic Bullets', couldn't even exhibit one-tenth of its original performance.
In other words, this was impossible.
'If that man's level isn't over 80, this should be impossible.'
She took a fresh look at the man.
If her guess was correct, it meant he was a player with a level higher than hers.
Even seeing it with her own eyes, it was hard to believe.
'Ah, come to think of it—'
This man had effortlessly dragged Millie, even while she was in Burned Blood mode, out of the battlefield — when her whole body was essentially a weapon from physical reinforcement.
Was that even possible?
Now, she was certain.
'A high-level player...'
At that moment, the man turned his head back toward her.
"Shall we start the hunt?"
That figure felt strangely familiar.
Jhin narrowed his eyes.
The D-rank boss monster, "Specter Lord Master of Chaos," definitely felt far more menacing than before.
But he didn't feel like he would lose.
Because from the start, he wasn't alone.
"Drink this and recover your stamina first."
Jhin pulled an HP potion from his inventory and tossed it to Millie. She caught the flying potion and, looking slightly suspicious, asked,
"Can you really kill it?"
"Yes."
An answer without hesitation.
Meeting Jhin's steady gaze, Millie stopped asking further questions. She just uncorked the potion and drank it in one go.
Jhin no longer spared her a glance.
Now, there was only one thing he needed to pay attention to.
'Specter Lord Master of Chaos!'
He did not waste time.
Time was money, and missed opportunities were shit.
Rather than wait for Millie to fully recover, it was better to chip away at Master of Chaos's stamina even a little.
Kiaaaah!
As he approached Master of Chaos's blind spot, the monster reacted. Its greatsword swung rapidly, but Jhin dodged it with the bare minimum movement.
"Hup!"
His eyes glowed golden.
'The weak point is still the same.'
But perhaps aware of that too, Master of Chaos did not easily allow any openings. A precarious exchange of attacks and dodges broke out in a flash.
Jhin gripped the blue spear tightly.
Waves surged from all sides, disturbing Master of Chaos's vision. The relentless exchange continued, and Master of Chaos, like a drifting buoy, was pushed back, showing signs of confusion.
Jhin was convinced.
'It's still not a complete evolution.'
In Exodia, whenever something underwent a major change, there was always a sort of "stabilization" period.
Just like how Molly, who was attempting a dungeon transformation, had ended up a cold corpse at the hands of a rookie player like Jhin.
Master of Chaos was the same.
Although it had become a D-rank boss monster, it hadn't yet grown strong enough to match its rank.
In other words, it was the weakest of the D-rank bosses.
'If it's now, I can take it down.'