I sighed, standing up as I strained my eyes, gazing at the area where the cry erupted from.
Thoroughly hidden by the smoke, the blurred figure of the Endorath came into view.
Disgustingly monstrous thing.
I didn't know if the Endorath knew if I was alive or not. But I sure hoped it didn't. And maybe thought — if it was capable of thinking — that I and the others were engulfed in the flames.
But staring at the massive visage of the monster, I began to wonder…
If I do manage to kill that thing, just how many Exp would I get?
I still don't know how many Exp a Reaper Grade gives.
I clenched my fists.
Should I… try?
Yeah, I sh–
I shook my head.
What a fool you are, Dustin. Do you wanna get killed?
It was clear to me that the Reaper Grade monster was way above my pay grade, and I'd singlehandedly witnessed what a Reaper Grade — a tier one for that matter — could do.
So why??
Why the fuck was I still eyeing the Endorath?
My lips widened slightly, a soft chuckle forming.
Only one word for it.
Greed.
I shrugged. "Or just stupidity."
But if I don't battle higher grade monsters, how would I grow?
Should I keep hunting only Rethons and pray that I never encounter a Reaper Grade?
Once more, I sighed. And I turned to leave.
I should leave these thoughts until I actually have the weapons and skills needed to kill them.
I have my daily sign-in and 10x multiplier. My potential is bright.
"But I WILL kill that thing one day. Both it and the Avendar." I declared, jumping down from the building.
After leaving the area where the Endorath plagued, it was smooth sailing from there.
Luckily for me, it seemed the Endorath thought we'd been engulfed in those flames, and it stopped chasing. I had to gaze skyward several times just to confirm. Talk about paranoia.
I didn't run this time. I had to admit, even for a system-enhanced fuck like me, I was getting a bit exhausted. Mentally. So I just walked toward the subway station.
On my way there, I encountered various packs of Rethons.
Those things hid in discreet areas, hiding from the horror of the night — Endorath — or so I thought. I had no idea why, or if they could even see properly at night.
All the Rethons I encountered tried to run, of course. But with my increased base stats and the tripling from the Rethon Slayer title, they stood no chance. I literally one-shotted them all with my bare fists as I made my way to the station.
My fists were smeared with goo, and my body that'd just washed off in the river minutes ago was all sticky again, but it was okay. As long as the Exp kept increasing.
But the problem was that, with my level increased and the Exp bar higher, no matter how many packs of Rethons I slayed, I wasn't leveling up!
I really need to square off against those Reaper Grade.
Stupidly, I began to regret leaving without at least throwing hands with that Endorath for a few seconds.
Well, at least I didn't sustain any major injury. That's a win I guess.
I finally arrived at the entrance of the subway station. I was just a few steps away.
I spotted a figure.
Hm?
I struggled to see properly in the dark, squinting my eyes as I made out the muscular, almost burly figure that stood at the entrance, crossing his arms.
I 'unsquinted' my eyes.
"Ah," I exclaimed.
I recognized him.
Was he waiting out here for me?
I chuckled.
Cute guy.
As I approached him, he uncrossed his arms, shaking his head as he stood properly.
"Marcus," I said, wiping my goo-stained fists on my pants. "What are you doing here?"
I couldn't properly make out his facial expression, and I didn't even struggle to do so. I just wanted to head inside and rest.
"Oh, Duz," Marcus spoke softly. "Jericho's inside, brooding and acting all distant, so I figured I should come catch some fresh air outside, and also wait for you."
I raised my brows. "Oh?"
That sounds like Jericho.
Mad man.
I walked past Marcus, but not before tapping his shoulder as I said, "He's always like that. He acts all unfriendly, but he's actually a good person." I chuckled, "He did that to me, too, when we first met. He calls it, 'establishing dominance' or something."
Marcus chuckled. "Yeah, he does seem like that type of guy."
"What type?"
"A cringelord," Marcus said.
My lips widened. "Ha! A cringe lord… Don't let him hear you call him that, though."
"I know. Nothing's more deadly than a cringe lord with dual Glocks."
I almost burst out in laughter, but I just tapped his shoulder once more as I walked down the steps, toward a large metal gate.
"How packed is this place?" I asked, my voice echoing under here. "I know it'll be really packed."
Marcus followed behind me. "Uh.. let's just say it's super packed. That's why I ran away from there to get fresh air. Staying in the midst of large crowds does something unsafe to my brain, haha."
I nodded.
I knew it would be super packed.
"But don't stay outside. There are monsters everywhere. Let's go down."
Marcus nodded.
As I tried to open the gate, I realized that it was locked.
My brows furrowed.
What?
"Hey!" I yelled, shaking the gate aggressively, causing a large noise to echo.
I turned to Marcus. "Was it locked when you came out?"
He shook his head. "No. I didn't even lock it either. I knew you wouldn't waste much time."
Is that a subtle praise? I'll take that.
I turned to the gate once more, still shaking it. "Then what the fuck–"
"Oi!" A male voice rang out from behind the gate. "Stop shaking the damn gate. We're full. The place is packed. Find somewhere else to survive. You don't want to anger the boss."
I frowned.
Boss?
Has someone already assumed the role of a 'leader figure'?
This quick?
Under the half darkness of the room, the tiny moon rays permeated, reflecting and gleaming strangely on my cold green gaze.
After the stress of this whole fucked up day, I was not having any of this.
"Open the door. I won't ask twice." I said, my voice cold and grey, my palms tightly grasping the bars of the gate.