Xen dropped what was left of the archer's half-eaten corpse and darted forward into the darkness, yet the beam of light coming from the warrior easily followed him.

  "Why are you running, little doggy?" the warrior shouted as he charged toward him. "Scared of a fight?"

  Xen was actually testing the range of the light beam.

  Doesn't seem to have a range, but the warrior has swapped out his shield to direct the light at me. Which means his defenses are less than before. Still, it's not enough.

  "Appraisal," Xen growled, and mana flooded his eyes—they took on a golden hue, making him obvious in the darkness, and the amount of mana the skill consumed was ridiculous.

  His brain buzzed with static, but he kept pushing the skill. Eventually, a system message appeared floating above the warrior that was surprisingly hot on his tail.

  [Human (Spellblade: Level 16)]

  While not that useful, the appraisal confirmed that out of the three humans, this one was the highest level—which was terrible news. In his wolf form, all of the abilities he had were short-range.

  His class also seemed to be [Spellblade], which Xen assumed was some kind of magic-based warrior.

  But if I get in the range of a warrior shielded by the Iron Legion's aura and multiple levels above me, I can't guarantee he won't kill me.

  No matter how strong Xen became, he was ultimately a weak slime hiding in the head of a skin suit. Should this warrior cut through his skull, he would perish.

  That's why taking out the archer or priest had been uncomplicated. They were easy to pounce on and kill quickly while in his wolf form. But that wouldn't be the case for a high-level warrior.

  "Agh!" Xen yelped as he felt a burning sensation. Looking over his shoulder, he was shocked to see the warrior had not only caught up to him but also cut off his tail. He had not noticed the warrior get so close due to the light beam encompassing his vision and the thundering noise coming from the warrior's armored plates hitting one another as he moved.

  It was genuinely terrifying seeing a human wearing so much armor moving with such speed. Xen darted to the side, managing to buy himself a second of respite before the warrior was back on his tail.

  "Crescent Rage!" the warrior shouted, swinging his mana-empowered sword.

  Xen didn't need to wait for the wave of rage-filled mana carving through the air to know his only way to avoid it was to leap into the air. It passed harmlessly below him, smacking into a pillar. What Xen hadn't accounted for was the shockwave from the skill pushing him back in the air... toward the warrior.

  Left with no choice, Xen twisted his body to take the sword right through the ribs. Since he wasn't a real wolf and could repair himself with biomass, such an injury was far from fatal.

  "I got you now, you mangled mutt." The warrior grinned, seemingly convinced of his victory.

  "Holy Smite," Xen answered in kind, golden mana crackling in his mouth. Knowing the F-grade skill would do nothing to an Iron Legion aura-shielded warrior many levels above, he instead aimed at the light stick being pointed in his face.

  It exploded, plunging them into darkness once more.

  Before the hunter could react, Xen kicked hard, freeing himself from the sword, piercing him in a shower of blood, and causing the warrior to stumble backward. Without looking back, he bolted for the nearest pillar and dove behind it.

  Coughing up a mouthful of blood, Xen mobilized the biomass stored in his slime to repair his ruined wolf body.

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  "Ahhhh! Where did you go, you monster!" the warrior yelled helplessly into the darkness. "Crescent Rage! Crescent Rage! Crescent Rage!" He began swinging his sword in arcs, throwing out more of that highly destructive spell. One hit Xen's pillar, causing it to tremble and begin to collapse.

  Moving out of the way, Xen kept at a safe distance while keeping his eye on the warrior. After three consecutive attacks, he seemed to stop. His chest was rising and falling, and he was leaning on his weapon.

  Has he finally reached his limit? Xen wondered.

  "Say, monster," the warrior called out as he straightened up. "If you can speak, you must have a name."

  Xen paused. He was right next to a pillar, so if there were any more of those attacks left, he would be fine.

  "I do," Xen replied. "My name is Xen."

  The warrior looked in his direction but didn't raise his sword. "Xen... an interesting name. My name is Alex."

  "Why would I care about learning a human's name?"

  "I've never been referred to as a 'human' before. There's no doubt about it—you really are a monster," Alex paused. "Say, Xen, can I ask you a question?"

  Xen knew the warrior was buying time to recover, but his hunger for knowledge and conversation practice outweighed his worries.

  "Sure, I can answer a question," he replied, making more distance.

  "I'm scared right now... terrified for my life," Alex admitted.

  His words lingered in the air for a moment, and Xen didn't know how to respond, so he stayed silent.

  "As a monster—are you capable of fear?"

  Xen thought about it for a while before replying honestly.

  "Since the day I was born, I have lived in fear. All I've ever wanted was to live another day."

  His words seemed to stun the warrior into silence. Xen took the opportunity to quietly reposition near the staircase where the leftovers of the archer remained. Chowing down, Alex kept his distance as Xen finished his meal.

  In the pitch-black darkness, all that could be heard was the chewing of human flesh.

  [Biomass consumed]

  With a bit more biomass to work with, Xen decided to shapeshift into his Undead form. The only way he was going to beat an enemy far above his level was with his corrupted magic, and the wolf form's magic stat was far too low to contend with a level 16 Spellblade.

  [Shapeshifting in process]

  A long minute passed, and his wolf body had finished transforming into an undead of black bone. Deciding to wait and see what would happen, he sat down on the marble staircase next to the scraps that remained of the dead archer and intently watched Alex.

  "Xen, do other monsters think the way you do?" Alex eventually questioned the darkness.

  "No," he replied in a hollow voice. "They are crafted by and answer to the dungeon."

  "Then why do we fight?" Alex said, and the clang of his sword echoed through the room as he threw it to the floor. "We have a common enemy."

  "Wrong," Xen shook his head. "Everything is my enemy—only the monsters are yours. Also, you humans are truly deplorable. Do you think I can't see you reaching for your shield right now?"

  Alex paused and cursed under his breath. He blindly charged toward him, picking up his discarded sword on the way.

  "Are you sure you want to do this?" Xen's hollow voice rang out through the darkness. "You're going to die."

  "We will see about that!" Alex roared as he picked up speed.

  Why did his meetings with humans always have to end so dramatically?

  Xen sighed and stood up from the marble steps. Raising both his arms, he pointed at the warrior charging toward him through the darkness. "Corruption Missile," Xen said. Twelve orbs of darkness manifested around each of his wrists. The mana expenditure was huge, almost causing him to faint on the spot.

  Hearing him chanting a spell, Alex raised his shield to cover his face. His speed suddenly increased again, but it wasn't going to be enough.

  Xen mentally commanded six of the orbs to fly; they silently shot out through the darkness—aimed at his unguarded legs. The Iron Legion aura blocked the first orb but faltered when defending against the next few.

  Alex screamed out in pain as he kept charging forward.

  Xen stepped to the side, causing Alex to miss his overhead shield bash.

  He crashed face-first onto the steps, howling in pain and writhing in agony. "Do you enjoy this?" Alex hissed through clenched teeth as he hugged his rotting legs. "The killing of humans?"

  "I don't care either way," Xen answered honestly, "exp is exp. All I want is to live another day."

  "No... please... I don't want to die," Alex sobbed.

  "Goodbye, human," Xen said, aiming his other finger at the man's head. Mentally pulling the trigger, the remaining six orbs of corruption pummeled the man's Iron Legion aura, melted through his helmet, and finally killed him.

  Everything went silent.

  You have killed an opponent 5 levels above your own. Bonus experience awarded.

  Experience split between [Necrovore Slime] and [Undead Mage] form.

  [Necrovore Slime] has leveled up: 11 -> 12.

  [Undead Mage] has leveled up: 7 -> 10.

  [Undead Mage] has reached Level 10 (D Grade). Evolution is available.

  Do you wish to begin the evolution process?

  Xen dismissed the notification. He would evolve soon, but first, he had to finish devouring and looting the corpses.

  Looking down at the dead warrior, he grinned.

  "I hope I manage to steal that Crescent Rage skill of yours."

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