Rotfang Alpha
The first part of the dungeon went by in a heartbeat. Kaden tore through the sewer tunnels like a storm, his movements a blur as he crushed, slammed, and broke every rat that lunged at him.
Their diseased bodies piled around him, the filth-streaked stones slick with their blackened blood. The fetid stench of rot, decay, and centuries-old sewage clung to the air, thick enough to choke an ordinary man.
Kaden's boots splashed through the sludge, his fists lashed out like iron whips, and the rats stood no chance. The sewer walls shook with every impact. Bones snapped under his grip, skulls cracked as he drove his fists into them, and the counter in his vision ticked up rapidly.
[Ding! You have killed a Diseased Tunnel Rat.]
[Ding! You have killed a Diseased Tunnel Rat.]
[Ding! You have killed a Diseased Tunnel Rat.]
He barely broke a sweat.
His movements were effortless, and precise. A dance of raw power and overwhelming force. Then—the last rat lunged.
Its red, glowing eyes were filled with madness, its matted fur bristling with filth. Its twisted fangs gleamed, foaming with toxic saliva, its shrill screech piercing the air.
Kaden caught it mid-air, his grip tightening around its malformed throat. A sickening crunch echoed through the tunnels.
[Ding! You have killed a Diseased Tunnel Rat.]
[Ding! Quest Complete: Defeat 50 Quasi-Core Beasts Without Using Active Skills.]
"One quest down." Kaden exhaled sharply. He was doubtful if these rats would count towards the kill as they are beginner stage quasi core beasts at best but it looked like every single kill counted. The final corpse slumped in his grip, and he let it fall into the filth with a wet splat.
The tunnel was now a graveyard. Fifty dead rats littered the passage. Their bodies lay twisted, broken, shattered. The sewer air was heavy with the stench of blood, the only sound left was the faint dripping of water from the cracked stone ceiling.
Kaden rolled his shoulders.
His stamina? Still barely touched.
His body? Stronger than ever.
His instincts? Sharpened. Focused. Ready.
This wasn't even a warm-up. He was ready for the next fight, the real fight.
The Rotfang Alpha. One of the mini-bosses of the dungeon.
Kaden turned toward the deeper tunnels. The sewer path sloped downward, leading into a vast, open chamber. And beyond that, he could feel it—the presence of something bigger. Something stronger. He grinned, his fingers flexing.
Despite the grim future, he knew that was waiting for everyone, he couldn't help but enjoy the thrill of the battle in front of him. After a lifetime of feeling hopeless and weak, fighting back felt good.
Kaden walked toward the next battle. The descent into the deeper tunnels was suffocating. The air grew thicker, and heavier, clinging to Kaden's skin like an unseen force trying to drag him down.
The sludge underfoot darkened, taking on an almost oily texture. The walls were slick with decay. He could feel it now. The Rotfang Alpha.
Its presence was oppressive, a weight in the air that pressed against his lungs, thick with the stink of rotting flesh, damp fur, and something far worse—a stench so vile it made the previous filth-ridden tunnels seem tolerable.
Kaden stepped into the chamber.
The space opened up into a circular pit, a deep basin carved into the sewer's foundation. Stagnant, green-tinged water pooled at the center, the surface bubbling with toxic fumes. Thick, rusted pipes jutted from the walls, leaking sludge in slow, grotesque dribbles. The cavernous ceiling stretched high, faint streams of light flickering in from somewhere up.
And at the far end of the pit, it was waiting. The Rotfang Alpha.
A massive, hulking monstrosity of a rat, easily twice the size of the others, its matted fur stretched tight over bulging muscles. Its body was riddled with pulsating boils, each one oozing a sickly, greenish ichor that dripped into the foul waters below.
Its eyes—deep, sunken pits of crimson hate—locked onto Kaden.
And then it moved.
With a wet, disgusting lurch, the Alpha rose onto its hind legs, its twisted frame heaving as its long, fanged maw split open, revealing jagged yellowed teeth, coated in a thick, rotting slime. Its clawed hands twitched, long and gnarled, ending in hooked talons that scraped against the stone with a horrible screech.
It wasn't just a bigger rat. It was something else. Something that had grown beyond the filth it had once been. A monster born from plague, decay, and the lingering corruption of the dungeon itself.
It threw back its horrid, bloated head, and let out a piercing shriek. The sewer walls shook. The stagnant water rippled violently. From the tunnels behind Kaden, an answering chorus of chittering shrieks echoed back.
The horde was coming. Kaden only had a moment before the rat reached him. The Alpha lunged, its massive claws cutting through the air like sickles, its putrid maw snapping forward—aiming straight for his throat.