[The ant's fangs contains a deteriorating poison corrosive acid. It can easily melt down it's target cellular membrane with a bite, making it easier for it to consume it's prey.]
"Tsk, I never really expected to run into the boss this early. Still in terms of rankings this dungeon should be a E-rank dungeon in the least."
He twirled the sword with practiced ease, his right leg sliding forward in a poised lunge as a slow, confident grin curved across his lips.
"That means no matter the tricks it has up it's legs, I should still be able to take it."
With a fierce shout, he charged at the ant. In a flash, the ant spat a stream of venom, spraying poison straight toward him.
"Sorry, but that's not gonna work on me!" He shouted, realizing that the ant's large body made it hard for the creature to aim its venom at a fast-moving target, it gave him the upper hand, momentarily at least.
He dodged the stream of venom with ease, The ant hissed, then reared back and slammed two of its legs down toward Kazuki, aiming to crush him beneath it's foot.
"Too slow!" He executed a forward roll, coming up steady on his feet—positioned directly beneath the towering ant's legs.
"Now!"
Drawing on every ounce of strength he had left, he drove his blade upward in a swift, precise arc, aiming straight for the soft stomach of the ant.
As his blade struck the ant's abdomen, a sharp crack echoed through the chamber, but it wasn't it's skin, it was Kazuki's sword. The weapon shattered on impact, splintering into jagged shards and leaving only half a blade in his grasp.
Kazuki staggered back, eyes wide with disbelief, the weight of the moment crashing down as he stared at the broken sword.
"Huh..?"
Seizing it's chance, the spider swung it's leg, hitting Kazuki directly in his stomach.
"Gh-Bleh!" He coughed violently, a torrent of blood spilling from his mouth as he was violently hurled into the jagged walls of the cave.
He hit the cold ground hard, clutching his midsection as a sharp, searing pain radiated through his stomach. There was no mistaking it, he had barely escaped without serious injuries, and complications were almost certainly inevitable.
"W..hat?" He groaned softly, his hands and legs trembling violently from the force of the impact. He had assumed that his strength could pierce through the ant's armor, but he had been wrong, and the cost was now painfully clear.
Sensing its prey was weakened, the mutated ant slowly advanced, its eyes gleaming with hunger. Saliva dripped from its fangs as it caught the scent of ant's fresh blood,
He sat up slowly, every movement a struggle as he dragged his body backward. The ant took it's time stalking him, its many eyes fixed on its weakened prey. Kazuki's mind raced, his sword was shattered, and his skills were limited.
'Damn it... D-did I take this dungeon too lightly?" He coughed out blood as he laid his back against the walls of the cave
The ant arrived in front of him, raising it's leg as it attempted to deliver the final blow.
'Is..this it for me?' He murmured to himself, his thoughts drifting to fleeting images of his life in summary, from his father's and mother's death, up until his own, then finally, the dark figure. But before he could fully grab onto the memory, the ant's leg came crashing down toward his head with a terrifying speed.
"Tch." A soft grin stretched across his face and at the last minute, Kazuki vanished from the ant's sight before it's large legs could crush his head.
"I refuse!" With a forceful grunt, Kazuki sprang to his feet, his body fueled by a surge of fiery determination, his eyes burned with resolve as he dashed forward.
Memories of his past life came rushing in, from the death of his loved ones, to his own death, then to his time with the goddess of fate and finally to the figures in the shadows.
But there was one thing that stood out amongst those memories, anytime he slumped into the darkness, anytime he encountered the abyss, he found something not even he thought he'd be able to.
It was difficult to admit, but he couldn't lie to himself anymore longer.
"No more, I refuse this fate! Even after being granted power by the system I'm still weak, but that ends here! If I can't find the strength I'm looking for in the light, then I'll embrace the abyss, I'll embrace the darkness till I become a force to be reckoned with!"
With agility far greater than the ant's, Kazuki slashed at its body again and again, his half-broken sword striking it's tough exoskeleton with each desperate swing. But each blow bounced off harmlessly, unable to pierce the creature's tough exoskeleton.
"Damn it, there's has to be a weakness, I'll find it and I'll crush it!"
Unable to match Kazuki's swift movements, the massive spider let out a loud shriek, its fury reaching a boiling point.
With a violent hiss, it raised three of its legs high into the air before bringing them down with crushing force. The ground trembled as a shockwave surged outward, knocking everything in its path off balance.
Anticipating this, Kazuki ran up the side of the walls and sprang into the air, his body rising gracefully above the shockwave. He hung there for a moment with eyes locked onto the massive ant below.
"That's it!"
From a bird's eye view, he discovered that the only places that he could actually strike, were the parts of his body that didn't have any exoskeleton covering it, it's eyes and joints.
"I've got you now!" He spun the broken blade in his hand and with a powerful thrust, he launched the blade at the one place the ant would struggle to avoid.
WHIZ!
With his enhanced strength, the blade sliced through the air and penetrated the eyes of the ant.
RAWWWW!
Shrieking in agony, the ant lashed out, its sharp, spiked legs extending toward Kazuki in a desperate attempt to impale him as he descended swiftly.
"Not yet!" He maneuvered his body through the giant legs of the ant and dropped towards it's eyes in an instant.
Now in fear, the ant shot out a stream of venom from its mouth directly at Kazuki.
"No you don't!" With a sharp grunt, a surge of purple energy enveloped his right hand, swirling with power before expanding in size.
In an instant, the dark ball of energy tore through the venom, dissolving it on contact. The ant kept spitting more in desperation, but the energy ball pushed forward, unhindered, closing in on its eyes.
However it was to no avail, the ball of energy completely disintegrated the venom, turning it to steam as Kazuki finally arrived at the ant's eyes.
"Take this!"
Using gravity to his advantage, Kazuki pressed both legs firmly against the top of the sword's hilt driving the broken blade further into the ant's head.
The mutated ant shrieked uncontrollably, feeling the broken sword sharp edges slicing through it's skull.
As Kazuki crashed to the ground, the spider's movement stopped completely, and it's body fell to the ground completely.
[You have defeated the dungeon boss —Mutated Ant Muramasa!]
[Level Up!]
[You have gained ×10 Essen-Core!]
[Level Up!]
[Level Up!]
[You have received three rewards!]
[You have obtained two items!]
[Muramasa's Fangs (Level 1) -
• Shaped like daggers, these twin blades are created from the venomous fangs of the mutated ants. It paralyzes your target for two minutes and reduces half of their health]
[Shadow Cloak(Level 1) -
• Only by walking through the shadow can you grasp it's power, it is a black cloak that conceals the users presence. It provides an additional 50+ boost when using shadow based abilities.]
[Raisen (Level 1 — Level 2)]