The Elite Scuttler thrashed on its back, legs flailing wildly in the air, trying desperately to right itself. Its underbelly was exposed—pale, segmented chitin, visibly thinner than the armored shell on its back. Weak points everywhere.
"NOW!" Daniel screamed again, his voice raw.
Dante was already moving, baseball bat raised high. He brought it down with a roar on one of the exposed leg joints—the point where the massive limb connected to the body.
CRACK!
The joint shattered. Black ichor sprayed. The Elite shrieked, a sound so piercing that several people across the chamber collapsed, clutching their ears.
[ELITE SCUTTLER HP: 1,876/3,000 → 1,654/3,000]
"KEEP GOING!" Dante yelled, swinging again.
Kevin rushed in from the other side, tire iron gripped in both hands. He slammed it down on another leg joint, over and over, his face twisted in fear and determination.
"DIE! DIE! DIE!" Kevin screamed with each hit, all his terror pouring into the strikes.
[ELITE SCUTTLER HP: 1,654/3,000 → 1,398/3,000]
Sarah hung back for a moment, frozen, her knife trembling in her hands. The Elite's legs were still thrashing, one of them nearly catching Dante across the chest.
"Sarah!" Daniel shouted, running toward the creature's head. "Belly! Go for the belly!"
That snapped her out of it. She darted forward, staying low, and drove her knife into the softer underbelly chitin. Once. Twice. Black blood welled up around the blade.
[ELITE SCUTTLER HP: 1,398/3,000 → 1,287/3,000]
Daniel reached the Elite's head—that massive, eyeless thing with its circular maw still snapping and clicking. Up close, it was worse than he'd imagined. The maw was easily three feet across, those concentric rings of teeth grinding against each other with a sound like metal on metal.
Kill it. End this.
Daniel raised his kitchen knife with both hands and drove it down into the creature's neck—right where the head connected to the body, where the chitin plates met in a softer junction.
The blade sank deep.
The Elite convulsed, its entire body seizing. The shriek that came out of it was different this time—higher pitched, desperate.
[CRITICAL HIT!]
[ELITE SCUTTLER HP: 1,287/3,000 → 891/3,000]
"IT'S WORKING!" Kevin yelled, hitting another joint. "WE'RE ACTUALLY—"
The Elite's leg caught him.
Not a full hit—just a glancing blow—but it was enough to send Kevin flying backward. He hit the ground hard, sliding across blood-slicked stone.
[PARTY MEMBER: KEVIN CHU - HP: 73/100]
"KEVIN!" Sarah screamed.
"I'm okay!" Kevin gasped, struggling to get up. "I'm—I'm okay!"
But the Elite was adapting. It stopped trying to flip over and instead started rolling, using its momentum to get its legs back under it. One massive leg slammed down, finding purchase on the stone floor.
"Oh shit—" Dante barely dodged another leg. "It's getting up!"
[ELITE SCUTTLER HP: 891/3,000]
Still alive. Still dangerous.
Daniel yanked his knife out and stabbed again, this time going for what he hoped was a vital area—deeper into the neck, trying to sever whatever passed for this thing's spine or nervous system.
[CRITICAL HIT!]
[ELITE SCUTTLER HP: 891/3,000 → 512/3,000]
The Elite managed to roll onto its side, two legs finding the ground. It was trying to stand, trying to recover, but it was slower now. Weakened. Wounded.
"Don't let up!" Dante roared. He smashed his bat into the already-damaged leg joint, and with a wet crack, the entire leg separated from the body.
[ELITE SCUTTLER HP: 512/3,000 → 367/3,000]
The creature collapsed again, unbalanced. Its remaining legs scrambled frantically, gouging deep furrows in the stone, but it couldn't get proper leverage anymore.
Sarah stabbed into the belly again, her small knife punching through the weakened chitin. "For—everyone—you—killed!" Each word came with another stab, tears streaming down her face.
[ELITE SCUTTLER HP: 367/3,000 → 289/3,000]
Kevin was back on his feet, limping but moving. He joined Dante on the other side, and together they took out another leg.
[ELITE SCUTTLER HP: 289/3,000 → 156/3,000]
The Elite's movements were getting weaker. Slower. Its shrieks had turned into pathetic clicking sounds, like a broken machine winding down.
We're actually going to do this. We're actually going to kill it.
Daniel pulled his knife out one more time and looked at the creature's head. The maw was still opening and closing, but sluggishly now. Almost reflexively.
He thought about all the people this thing had killed. The screams. The blood. The terror.
He thought about how close he'd come to dying. How close his friends had come.
"This is for everyone," Daniel said quietly.
And drove his knife into the Elite's head with everything he had.
The blade punched through, sinking up to the hilt.
The Elite Scuttler's entire body went rigid.
And then it collapsed, legs curling inward, body going slack.
Silence.
[ELITE SCUTTLER - DEFEATED]
The notification appeared in brilliant gold text, much larger than the previous kill notifications.
[CONGRATULATIONS! YOUR PARTY HAS DEFEATED AN ELITE ENEMY!]
[+2,000 EXP]
[BONUS: FIRST ELITE KILL ON FLOOR 1 - +1,000 EXP]
[BONUS: UNDERDOG VICTORY (3+ LEVEL DIFFERENCE) - +500 EXP]
[TOTAL: +3,500 EXP]
[YOU HAVE REACHED LEVEL 4]
[YOU HAVE REACHED LEVEL 5]
[YOU HAVE REACHED LEVEL 6]
The experience hit like a tidal wave. Daniel's body flooded with warmth, with power. Every ache vanished. Every scratch healed. His muscles felt stronger, his reflexes sharper, his mind clearer.
[+5 STAT POINTS AVAILABLE] - Level 4
[+5 STAT POINTS AVAILABLE] - Level 5
[+5 STAT POINTS AVAILABLE] - Level 6
[TOTAL: 15 STAT POINTS]
[PARTY MEMBER: DANTE MORRIS HAS REACHED LEVEL 6]
[PARTY MEMBER: KEVIN CHU HAS REACHED LEVEL 6]
[PARTY MEMBER: SARAH CHEN HAS REACHED LEVEL 5]
Sarah had gotten slightly less experience since she'd joined the party later, but she'd still jumped three levels.
All around them, the remaining survivors in the chamber had stopped fighting. They were staring. At the dead Elite. At Daniel's party.
For a moment, there was almost total silence except for the distant clicking of the smaller Scuttlers.
Then someone started clapping.
Slowly, others joined in. Applause echoed through the blood-soaked chamber—a strange, surreal sound in the middle of a death tower.
"Holy shit," Dante breathed, staring at his hands. "Holy shit, we actually did it."
Kevin was sitting on the ground, his tire iron across his lap, laughing hysterically. "We killed it! We actually killed the boss! With a baseball bat and a kitchen knife!"
Sarah was crying, but she was also smiling. "We're alive. We're actually alive."
[ELITE ENEMY LOOT AVAILABLE]
[CLAIM REWARDS?]
Daniel blinked at the notification. "Loot. There's loot."
He focused on the Elite's corpse, and a new interface appeared.
[ELITE SCUTTLER LOOT:]
- Chitin Blade (Rare) - A dagger forged from Elite Scuttler chitin. Sharper and more durable than normal weapons. +5 STR when equipped.
- Scuttler Carapace Vest (Uncommon) - Light armor made from hardened chitin. +3 VIT when equipped.
- Scuttler Carapace Vest (Uncommon) x2
- Agility Ring (Rare) - +2 AGI when worn.
- Health Potion (Uncommon) x4 - Restores 50 HP instantly.
[PARTY LEADER: DISTRIBUTE LOOT?]
Daniel stared at the list. This was... this was real loot. Equipment. Items. Just like in the novels.
"Guys, there's equipment," Daniel said, his voice still shaky from adrenaline.
The party gathered around, looking at the loot interface that appeared for all of them.
"Holy shit," Dante whispered. "Actual gear."
"How do we split it?" Kevin asked.
Daniel thought for a moment. "Chitin Blade—I'll take it. I'm using a knife anyway, and mine's about to break." He looked at his chipped, blood-stained kitchen knife. It had served him well, but it was on its last legs.
"Fair," Dante said.
"The armor vests—Dante, you take one. You're in melee and already injured. Kevin, you take one too since you're our backline." Daniel looked at Sarah. "Sarah, you take the third one. I'll make do without for now."
"What about you?" Sarah asked.
"I'm putting everything into AGI anyway. I'll focus on not getting hit." Daniel pointed at the ring. "That Agility Ring is perfect for me though."
"And the health potions?" Kevin asked.
"We each take one. Fair split."
Everyone nodded. It was equitable, and frankly, they were all too exhausted to argue.
[LOOT DISTRIBUTED]
The items materialized in their inventories. Daniel pulled out the Chitin Blade, and the kitchen knife vanished into his inventory automatically.
The new dagger was beautiful in a vicious sort of way. About ten inches long, made from black chitin that seemed to absorb light, with a wicked edge that looked like it could cut through steel. The handle was wrapped in some kind of leather—hopefully not human.
[CHITIN BLADE (RARE) EQUIPPED]
[STR: 9 → 14]
Daniel felt the stat boost immediately. His arms felt stronger, his grip more sure.
He slipped the Agility Ring onto his finger.
[AGILITY RING (RARE) EQUIPPED]
[AGI: 11 → 13]
Dante equipped his vest—it fit over his shirt like a protective layer, the black chitin plates interlocking seamlessly. Kevin and Sarah did the same.
[TIME REMAINING: 23 MINUTES]
[PARTICIPANTS REMAINING: 387/1,247]
"We've still got twenty-three minutes," Daniel said, checking his stats and allocating his new points. He dumped them all into his main stats: [+6 AGI, +5 VIT, +4 STR]
[DANIEL KIM - LEVEL 6]
[STR: 14 → 18]
[AGI: 13 → 19]
[INT: 12]
[VIT: 9 → 14]
[MANA: 10]
He felt incredible. Fast. Strong. Like he could take on anything.
This is what power feels like, he realized. This is what it means to level up.
The smaller Scuttlers were still around—dozens of them, scattered throughout the chamber. But without the Elite coordinating them, they seemed more disorganized. Easier to handle.
"We could keep hunting," Dante suggested, testing his new bat swings with his enhanced strength. "Farm more experience before the timer runs out."
"Or we could rest," Kevin countered. "We just fought a boss. We're all running on adrenaline. What happens when that wears off?"
He had a point. Daniel's hands were shaking now that the fight was over, the reality of what they'd just done sinking in.
"Middle ground," Daniel decided. "We defend our alcove. If Scuttlers come to us, we fight. But we don't go hunting. We survive the timer."
Everyone nodded, too tired to argue.
They made their way back to their alcove, moving past the corpse of the Elite. Other survivors gave them a wide berth, looking at them with a mixture of awe, fear, and respect.
[PARTY CHAT - DANTE: Did we just become famous?]
[PARTY CHAT - KEVIN: I think we became targets.]
[PARTY CHAT - SARAH: Either way, people know we can fight now.]
[PARTY CHAT - DANIEL: Let them know. Maybe it'll make them think twice about trying anything.]
They reached their alcove and collapsed against the walls, finally allowing themselves to breathe.
Dante pulled out one of his health potions and drank it, the liquid glowing faintly as it went down. His injured arm stopped bleeding, the wound visibly knitting together.
[DANTE MORRIS - HP: 67/120 → 117/120]
"That is amazing," Dante said, flexing his newly healed arm. "It's like it was never hurt."
Kevin drank his too, restoring the damage from getting hit.
[KEVIN CHU - HP: 73/100 → 100/100]
They sat in silence for a while, just processing what had happened. Around them, the sounds of combat continued—screams, the clicking of Scuttlers, the wet sounds of death.
But in their little alcove, for the moment, they were safe.
"We did it," Sarah said quietly, staring at her hands. They were covered in black ichor. "We actually killed it."
"We did," Daniel confirmed. He looked at his new dagger, at his party, at the notification still floating in his vision.
[LEVEL 6]
Three days ago, he'd been a warehouse worker with no future.
Now he was a Level 6 tower climber who'd killed a boss monster.
And this is only Floor 1.
"How many floors did the god say there were?" Sarah asked.
"One hundred," Kevin answered.
Sarah's eyes widened. "And we're only on Floor 1. What's waiting for us on Floor 100?"
Nobody had an answer for that.
[TIME REMAINING: 19 MINUTES]
[PARTICIPANTS REMAINING: 361/1,247]
The timer continued to count down. More people died. The number dropped steadily—361, 358, 352...
Daniel watched it all, his mind already thinking ahead. Planning. Strategizing.
We survived Floor 1. We got stronger. We have equipment now.
But this is just the beginning.
"Whatever's up there," Daniel said finally, answering Sarah's question, "we'll face it together."
Dante grinned. "Damn right we will."
Kevin sighed but nodded. "I guess I'm committed now."
Sarah smiled weakly. "Together."
[TIME REMAINING: 15 MINUTES]
They settled in to wait out the rest of the trial, weapons ready, watching the chaos of Floor 1 slowly wind down.
And in the back of his mind, Daniel couldn't help but wonder:
If Floor 1 was this brutal... what the hell is Floor 2 going to be like?
[TIME REMAINING: 00:00]
[FLOOR 1 TRIAL COMPLETE]
[SURVIVORS: 287/1,247]
The notification appeared for everyone simultaneously, massive golden letters hanging in the air.
[CONGRATULATIONS, CLIMBERS]
[YOU HAVE SURVIVED THE TRIAL OF RESOLVE]
[PREPARING TRANSPORT TO FLOOR 2...]
The floor beneath them began to glow.
Daniel stood up, gripping his new dagger, and looked at his party.
"Here we go," he said.
The light consumed them.
And Floor 2 awaited.