"Guys, don't be afraid!" Jo?o, the Tank and leader, raised his voice. "We can beat it! Follow my lead."

  The spider let out a growl, and from its spinnerets it shot a white, concrete-like web, intending to annihilate Jo?o.

  But with his shield, he managed to protect himself. His feet dragged a little on the ground, but he was fine.

  "DPS, NOW!!"

  A rain of arrows came, hitting the spider right in its eyes. And next, some quick assassins rushed in.

  The creature shrieked, a high-pitched sound that made the majority of the Exterminators cover their ears. It wasn't just a monster; it was a calamity confined in a room. Its legs violently smashed against the stone floor, creating tremors that knocked every single person off their balance. It was a true earthquake.

  "Go for the eyes! That's their weak spot!" Jo?o ordered.

  One of the assassins hesitated, "B-But, if we get too close, the poison—"

  "I said go! Do you want to win or not!?" Incredibly, the pressure in Jo?o's voice was greater than that of the spider. It was easier to hear a man's voice than that of a dungeon boss.

  "Watch out for the spray!!" Yelled Jo?o on the frontlines.

  From the spider's gross mouth came out a green acid that splattered against all shields that were instantly lifted.

  From the Wizard, fireballs flew from the back, temporarily illuminating the dark dungeon, while some tried to crawl on the spider and penetrate its hard carapace with swords.

  Meanwhile, Jonas Solberg watched, leaning against the wall with a few other tired men. Every battle was like that; Jonas did absolutely nothing. Not only because of the fact that he was a one-armed man, but he had dropped his dagger during the attack and forgotten to retrieve it.

  He simply observed everything, barely uttering a word.

  Sitting beside him was Joana, the Healer.

  "You know, thanks to you, I can barely use mana to increase their HP," she said.

  "I know, I'm sorry..." Jonas's voice was empty and weak, like someone who knew it was the end. "The association leaders will probably never grant me the license... Furthermore, I will be fined. In the end, I only caused more trouble than if I had just stayed home."

  He looked down at his own left shoulder. There was no blood, not even a scratch on his skin, but the tear in his shirt was a constant reminder of his failure, that he was in a place that didn't belong to him, and more importantly, that he was weak.

  Now a person had lost all their fighting ability. All their usefulness had been wasted on a useless person like him. What could she possibly be doing then? At the forefront of the fight, perhaps at this moment the spider would already be down. But because of him, she could only observe.

  Joana giggled slightly. "Why did you want to be an Exterminator so bad? Everyone basically does it because of the money."

  Jonas thought about the doctor's cold words, and his family's pitying looks. He knew it was weird, how was it possible for someone to hate when others felt sorry for them?

  But he wasn't about to dump his pathetic life story on a stranger.

  "...I guess I just wanted to sound cool."

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  The girl couldn't help but start laughing.

  "Hahaha, man, that's such a masculine thing to say."

  "Shut up..."

  She looked him in the eyes, still with a soft smile. "Hey, there are a lot of ways to look cool, you know. Getting rich is one way."

  "I have bad grades... Why would anyone want to be an Exterminator then?"

  "Well, about me, it's to protect the people."

  "Really?..." Jonas put his hand behind his back. "That seems boring as hell."

  "My mom was killed by a demon during a Dungeon Break."

  Jonas's pupils dilated. "It's revenge then?"

  She kept going. "I mean, a bit, but... more to protect everyone else from it."

  And it was at that moment that Jonas realized how selfish and stupid he had been.

  "WE DID IT!!"

  Shouted one Exterminator, as the spider fell to the ground.

  "YEAH!!!" Quickly, he was not alone. Everyone started to celebrate. Hugging each other, stabbing its already dead legs.

  The spider fell to the ground. And the passage opened.

  "Hey, come in," said Joana, raising herself. "You deserve part of the reward."

  "I do? But I—"

  "Come on!!!" Joana grabbed Jonas's arm and pushed him up against his will.

  The blue, mesmerizing light reflected in everyone's eyes. It was magnificent; no one had any idea what all that would be worth when converted into money. Perhaps every human soul in that room would end up rich.

  For a bunch of newbies who had just risked their heads against some Goblins and Slimes, that pile of stones wasn't just a tool; it was their ticket out of poverty.

  They had forgotten the danger. They had forgotten they had just defeated a boss. None of that mattered at the moment except their own future.

  "Leader, what now?" asked Rodrigo, the famous DPS.

  "First grab its mana stone. Then we'll see how to split it," replied Jo?o.

  One man brought a small minecart that they had dragged all the way. Inside, there rested mounds of blue stones.

  One Exterminator yelled, "Thank you so much, leader! Now I will be able to pay for my new daughter!"

  "And I'll be able to travel to the Bahamas! Wow, the amount of money this must be worth is enormous!"

  "Hey, Jonas," whispered Joana.

  "Hm? What's wrong?"

  "We're 49? There’s someone missing."

  "Oh... Wait, it's that guy!"

  "That guy?" Joana repeated.

  "U-Uh, forget it."

  Rodrigo pointed his hand upwards. There was a mana stone. Not just any mana stone, a golden one.

  "Here it is! The Boss's Mana Stone!"

  "Good, bring it here." The boss was visibly happy.

  Rodrigo ran to him, as all the Exterminators wanted to take a peek.

  "Wow, it's so shiny..."

  "And big."

  "I wonder if my eyes will burn."

  Words like that were heard nonstop.

  "How are we going to divide it, boss?" Rodrigo asked.

  Jo?o's answer was cold. "Hm... I'd like to keep the Boss Mana Stone for me."

  That shocked everyone.

  Everyone started arguing. This was a betrayal. But Rodrigo tried to do justice.

  "Then, ok boss... I guess you deserve it. But then, leave the blue ones for us."

  "No. I'll keep those for me as well."

  There was no way back.

  "What!? No way, man!" one Exterminator said.

  "Yeah, that's not the deal!!"

  Rodrigo stammered, trembling slightly, "B-Boss, this is a joke, right?... We agreed to—"

  Jo?o plunged the knife into Rodrigo's heart.

  Instant death.

  Everyone took a few steps back.

  "L-Leader, what just happened?" one asked.

  "Y-Yeah..." The male DPS, the one that had been with Jo?o since the beginning, tried to approach him.

  "C-mon... What are you doing—"

  Another one dead.

  "YOU—"

  Another one. Another one, and another one.

  The scene turned into chaos as Jo?o's sword pierced everyone's heart. Everyone was screaming, and blood was splattering everywhere. Every single thing seemed futile against that man.

  His face didn't have a wicked smile, but his eyes were firmly fixed on the future.

  "WHAT IS GOING ON!?" Jonas stood up, backing away from that man.

  "D-Damn it..." Joana bit her lip. "I noticed that his level is much higher."

  "What are you talking about!?"

  "I'm the only one here with Mana Observation. It tells me things like the level and name of living beings with Mana. While everyone else is level 0, this guy is already at level 25. A D rank. A smurf."

  "Y-You're kidding me... How did he manage to join the Recruitment?!"

  "He faked his card."

  Jo?o's sword was merciless; his shield was useless. The throats he cut didn't even have time to beg for their lives; they were already severed.

  After collecting a fair number of corpses, he placed his foot on one.

  "There are no rules? Right? I wonder if humans have Mana Stones as well."

  No one dared to face him. Everyone was not even a real Exterminator yet; they had only been accepted for the Recruitment Exam, nothing more.

  But Jo?o? He surely had done it before.

  Joana and Jonas leaned back until they reached the wall. There was nowhere else to go. Their destiny was that steel sword, just like all their other companions.

  "J-Joana... What can we do now?"

  "I... I have no idea."

  And in the blink of an eye, Jo?o was at the nearest Exterminator to them. He had already killed over half of the participants.

  With the last body falling apart, Joana saw an opportunity and raised her staff.

  "Now!"

  She only had a tiny bit of Mana left, almost none. But enough for one last magic.

  The magic of her body being sliced in half.

  "A-A-AHhh... a-aug..." Jonas's breathing became heavier, his legs gave way, and he fell to the ground. His hand instinctively went in front of his face, trying to protect himself.

  "You..."

  Jo?o took slow steps in Jonas' direction. After all, he was easy prey.

  "You're the most ridiculous of all." He had a serene face. "A useless, completely useless person. Actually, I'm doing society a favor."

  He extended the sword, and a head fell to the ground. Jo?o's.

  "Ahhh, this boy's name is Jonas, uh?"

  Jonas stood up. He had a wicked smirk on his face, way sharper eyes, and his hand was a blade.

  "I prefer HeraCrox."