Chapter 5
Izumi lowered her dagger, turning around to see the Lycan’s split corpse. Her body was literally shaking with excitement, realising she had just defeated her first monster. But she wouldn’t be able to revel in her victory for long, as a series as growls and snarls informed her that the battle was far from over.
Three sets of glowing red eyes appeared from the shadows; their sights set on Izumi. They ran right at her, But Izumi wasn’t deterred. She raised The Dragon’s Wrath, ready for the wolves’ attack.
The first one leapt at her, but Izumi ducked underneath the beast, and Izumi’s arm swung The Dragon’s Wrath, cutting it clean in half. The second one, kept charging, and attempted to bite at her legs, but Izumi was faster, jumping over it and landing behind the third Lycan. Both wolves came to a halt, their claws scrapping against the concrete as they stopped and turned around.
But Izumi was upon them before they could attack again, driving the dagger into the third Lycan’s head, piercing all the way through. As its body went limp, Izumi picked it up and tossed the corpse at the second Lycan, which the beast easily dodges, only to see Izumi already in front of it, and had no time to react as Izumi drought the Wrath down, piercing through the monster’s skull, driving it into the ground.
[You Levelled Up!]
[You Levelled Up!]
[You Levelled Up!]
Izumi pulled the dagger out, breathing heavily as she looked at the scene before her. She had just killed four monsters on her own. Four E-Rank Beasts, and she had defeated them all.
Her arms shook with, shock? Excitement? She couldn’t tell. But it felt good. It felt, right.
Izumi opened her Stat Window, which showed she had just gone up to Level 5. Just by killing a few monsters. All of her stats had gone up by four, taking her Strength to 23, her Agility to 20, and the rest of her stats to 14.
‘So that means with each Level up, my stats all increase by 1. Not much, but I can feel the difference already’ Her body felt much better than before. Defiantly stronger than before.
Her thoughts were interrupted by a series of growls, all coming from behind her. Izumi turned around, her eyes widening as she spotted at least 3 dozen Lycans coming from the shadows, all their sights trained on Izumi.
A feeling began to crawl across her body, but it wasn’t fear. No Izumi knew what fear felt like and this wasn’t it. No, this was excitement. Was this what her Dad felt? Did her ever get this, rush? And she had only got a little taste of it. and she as hungry for more.
Her Quirk had created an environment for her to grow stronger. A situation where she would have to give it her all or die.
So she was going to give it her all.
The ground cracked as she took off, jumping head first into the small army of wolves. The Dragons Wrath slashed, tore and cut its way through them, one after the other. No matter how many stood in her way, Izumi did not hesitate to strike them all down. The Lycans kept coming, there numbers subtlety increasing with every wave Izumi defeated. And with each kill, Izumi felt herself getting a little bit stronger, a little bit faster.
The fight just kept getting easier the longer it went on. Izumi slashed, punched, kicked, defended,
[You Levelled Up!]
[You Levelled Up!]
[You Levelled Up!]
[You Levelled Up!]
[You Levelled Up!]
[You Levelled Up!]
[Title: Wolf Assassin]
[This Title is given to those who excel in hunting wolves. All of your abilities will increase by 40% when fighting against Beast-Type Monsters]
It had been an entire hour since Izumi entered the Instance Dungeon, and she must have defeated over 5 dozen Lycans in that time, their blood painting the walls of the Dungeon.
Izumi sat leaning against part of the wall that wasn’t covered in blood, bandaging up her arms and legs, which where littered with slash and bite marks. Despite how many wolves she managed to fend off, quite a few had gotten solid hit on her. Luckily since her Health Stat was constantly increasing, the severity of her wounds had rapidly decreased, but she wasn’t taking chances.
She should have felt proud of herself, but something felt off. It was the Dragon’s Wrath.
The Dagger seemed to have a mind of its own, pulling her arm in the direction it wanted to go rather than what she wanted. It would have been a massive problem if the dagger wasn’t so good at its job. Even with her ever increasing Sense Stat (which as the name suggested, the stat controlled her senses and allowed to literally sense the mana around her), the Wrath somehow had better awareness than her, reacting to attacks faster than Izumi herself could.
Since Izumi was an Analyst, she also gave advice on what kind of weapons and Support people should get, which meant she knew a fair bit about weapons made from monsters.
It was said that such weapons were alive in some sense of the word, part of the monster they were made from still residing within. These kinds of weapons needed to be tamed like actual beast, and could not be properly wielded if the user was not strong enough. And the Dragon’s Wrath was no different. She never heard anything about it from Hisashi, but he had never liked to talk about anything Dungeon related when Izumi was around.
[Congratulations!]
[You have cleared the first stage of the Dungeon]
[You may advance to stage 2]
[Do you wish to Advance?]
[Y/N]
“So the Dungeon has stages?” Izumi said, and looked out at the bodies of the Lycans “That means there are probably monsters stronger than these guys” She slowly stood up, stretching her tired limbs. Her Fatigue had also gone down a lot thanks to her Health Stat, so she felt ready to continue.
“Okay, lets Advance”
[Congratulations]
[You have Advanced to the second stage!]
Izumi set off through the halls, cautiously looking out for any enemies. The further she ventured, the more overgrown and wilder the hallways became, the air turning wet and humid.
*BUZZZZZZZZZZ!*
The sound of buzzing reached Izumi’s ears, and she turned to the direction of the sound.
*BUZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ! BUZZZZZZZZZZZ!*
The sound got lounder as the source of the noise approached. 7 bright orange lights became visible, and Izumi’s eyes widened as she realised what they were.
Hovering 15 feet from Izumi were 7 wasps, but not just regular wasps. The first 6 Wasps were easily twice Izumi’s size, their wings engulfed in fire, and the black and yellow stripes wasps usually had had was replaced with flame like patterns. And finally, their abdomens bulging, the stingers glowing like flashlights, a visibly heat haze surrounding them. Above each of their heads was a bright orange sign that read [Blaze Wasp].
The seventh Wasp was the largest, being 4 times Izumi’s size, each of its legs covered in rows of curved blades, possessing three massive abdomens with burring stingers on the end, each one arching over its back like a scorpion. [Blaze Wasp Queen].
The 6 smaller wasps hovered forward, their stingers began to glow brighter, the abdomen of each wasp starting to swell up. Izumi realised they were going to attack, and got ready.
*If these guys are like regular wasps, they’ll most likely attack me head on and try to sting me. I’ll wait until they are in range and go for their stingers first, then wings*
However, much to Izumi’s surprise, they didn’t charge her. Instead, the Wasps launched their stingers at her like projectiles. She released it to late to dodge, so she instead raised The Dragon’s Wrath, and swung it down to deflect the first stinger, only for it to explode on impact. This triggered to other two, catching Izumi with the fiery shockwave and the force of the blast through Izumi off her feet, skidding across the ground.
As Izumi struggled to her feet, she looked up, seeing the wasps abdomen’s bulging again, and began firing Stingers like machine guns, dozens flying at her at high speed. Izumi dived to the side down another hallway, narrowly avoiding the barrage of volatile stingers. Izumi flinched as she felt the explosions of the stingers on a nearby wall, which through up dust everywhere.
*Okay, that was unexpected* Izumi looked down at her arm, seeing the bandages had been badly burned, as well as what was left of her sleeve, though The Dragon’s Wrath was unscathed *Those Stingers pack one hell of a punch. I made a mistake assuming they were close range fighters like the Lycans. But this means their Range types, meaning they must likely have weak defences. I need to a way to get closer enough to take them out, but how?*
She looked around the corners, seeing the wasps looking around for their target. But something immediately caught her eye; their abdomens. They had shrunken a significant degree, the glow they once had had dimmed. But as Izumi looked closer, she released the glow was returning, and their abdomens were quickly growing back the size they were before.
*That’s it! The they need time to recover their magic! That’s my opening! I need to wait for them to use up their stingers before I attack* She looked round again, seeing that the wasps were nearly ready to attack again, and were begin to move closer to her. * I need soothing to counter the next wave of stingers, but what? Wait, I’ve got it!* “Inventory” The inventory screen appeared, and Izumi immediately set her sights on the Lycan fangs she had collected. She smiled as a handful appeared in her hand “Well, looks like I can put these to good use”
Izumi leapt from her hiding spot, holding the Lycan fangs between her fingers. “Okay, time for round two” The Wasps responded with an angry *BUZZZZZZZ*, and raised their stingers at Izumi. But this time she came prepared.
Just as the explosive stingers flew towards her, Izumi took aim with the Lycan fang, and launched it with a powerful throw, meeting one of the stingers in mid-air. Just like the first attack, it set off the other two, but this time Izumi wasn’t close enough to be damaged by the blast.
The Lycan fang dropped to the ground, burnt black but still usable, and Izumi returned it to her Inventory just as the wasps prepared to attack again. They fired another volley, and Izumi returned in kind, another fang stopping the stingers in their tracks. The Fiery Insects continued their attack, and Izumi met them head on. Volley after volley after volley, but Izumi didn’t falter, sending the steel fangs flying to intercept them. The explosions shook the halls of the Dungeon, fire scorching the walls around them.
As the smoke cleared, the Wasps abdomens were empty once more, and Izumi stood tall, not a single scratch on her. Izumi smiled, summoning the Dragons Wrath, sending the remaining fangs back to her inventory.
Not wasting any time, Izumi leapt forth, and brought her dagger down, cleaving the first wasp in half. Its split body dropped to the ground, just as the other wasps realised what happened. Izumi turned to the one on her left, her fist flying into its face, crushing it with such force it left a crater. She spun on the spot, facing the third wasp, and using her momentum, she lifted her leg up, delivering a kick with such force the wasps head came clean off. The fourth and fifth wasps attempted to attack, but Izumi summoned the Lycan Fangs again, one in each hand, and sent them flying at each Wasp’s head, piercing straight though like bullets. The sixth and final wasp had had just enough time to recharge itself for a single shot, but it never got a chance to attack as Izumi resummoned Dragon’s Wrath and sliced the Wasps abdomen in two, before finishing cutting the insect’s head clean off.
[You Levelled Up!]
[You Levelled Up!]
[You Levelled Up!]
With the six wasps taken care of, Izumi turned her attention to the Blaze Wasp Queen. The massive beast let out a load battle cry, raising its stingers in Izumi’s direction. Izumi raised her blade in response, wearing a confident smile on her face “Bring it on”
The Wasp screeched as it rushed at her, its massive legs propelling it towards Izumi. she braced herself as it opened its mouth to bite at her, Izumi grabbed the edges of its jaws, stopping in its tracks, Izumi brought her fist down on its head, slamming it into the ground. The Queen was quick to recover though, one of its claws shooting out, grabbing Izumi by her waist, lifting her into the air and then throwing her into the wall with such force she went though it. It reached in to grab her again, Izumi was faster, slicing the appendage clean off, before rushing forward delivering a powerful right hook to the Wasps face.
The Stingers began to move, and Izumi barely dodged as they extended like lances, the heat emitting from them melting the ground where she was moments ago. They retracted, before shooting out at her again and again, forcing Izumi onto the defensive, manoeuvring between the barrage of stringers.
She didn’t stay on the defensive for long though, and ran directly at the Wasp Queen, weaving around the stingers, dropping to the ground and sliding undeath the monster. The Queen spun on the spot, only for Izumi to be nowhere to be seen.
Izumi hadn’t disappeared, she was underneath the Wasp. Her hands reached up, digging into the Wasp’s underbelly, and lifted the monster off the ground. the beast thrashed to get free, but Izumi held strong, tightening her grip, and smashed the Queen into the wall. But she didn’t stop there; Izumi kept going, pushing the massive Wasp through the wall and into another and then through that one as well, and another and another and another, building momentum as she went. After the tenth wall, Izumi left go, all of the momentum sending the Wasp crashing through another few walls.
The Wasp Queen shakily stood up, shaking its head trying to get its baring’s. Large amounts of dust had been thrown up, obscuring its vison. As it searched for Izumi, a dozen fangs flew out from the dust, 3 of which embedded themselves in the left side of the Wasp’s face, it screamed in pain, raising its arm to block other fangs. The Stingers shot out, striking where the fangs had come from. But they missed. The dust cleared, showing Izumi ducking under the stingers, and the Queen wasn’t fast enough the retract them before Izumi cut through the stingers with her dagger.
The Queen Wasp once again cried out in pain; its primary weapon destroyed. Izumi rushed forward, striking the Queen with her knee, sending the monster reeling. Its arm reached out at her, but Izumi caught it with both hands. She then clamed her foot on the Wasps head, and pulled the arm with everything she had, tearing the limb clean off.
Izumi tossed the arm to the side, looking down at the Queen. The Queen, in an act of desperation, jumped at her, its mouthparts aimed at her throat. Izumi easily saw it coming, and thrust the Dragon’s Wrath into the Wasps mouth, and out the back of its head. The monster’s body shuddered, before coming limb in a matter of seconds.
With a heavy sign of relief, Izumi pulled her weapon out, falling to the ground on her back, breathing heavily.
[You Levelled Up!]
[You Levelled Up!]
[You Levelled Up!]
[You Levelled Up!]
*That was a tough fight. I didn’t think the wasps would be that strong, but I guess this I why you should never underestimate your opponent. The Queen was a powerhouse for sure, I’m glad I levelled up from the other Wasps before I had to fight it*
Izumi sat up, summoning a bottle of water from her Inventory, and chugged in it a few seconds. And began applying new bandages.
Izumi didn’t rest for long, eventually getting back to her feet and making her way back though the Dungeon. After what felt like an hour, she finally made it to a large set of stone doors. As she got closer, a Notification from the System pooped up
[Behind this door is the monster that Guards the entrance to the Boss Room]
[Do you wish to proceed?]
[Y/N]
*The monster that guards the Boss Room? So, a Mini-Boss of sorts. Makes sense, but just how strong will it be? It will defiantly be stronger than the Wasp Queen, but I got a lot stronger after defeating it. And I didn’t come all this way just to give up now. I can do this*
Izumi steeled herself, before looking pack at the Notification screen “Yes” She selected, and the doors opened, a gust of cold air escaping, almost sending a shiver down her spine. But she ignored it, and walked though the doors, which then started to close behind her.
Whatever laid in wait for her, she would face it head on. And she would overcome it, no matter what.