Chapter 29: Death Match

As Rex entered the new room through the tunnel, he saw that the Takemikazuchi Familia had indeed passed on the pass parade to Bell's party. The party of three was now entering a tunnel, with monsters chasing behind them, while Rex stayed in the back of the wave. 

'I wish I had some kind of invisibility skill,' he thought. There was no way for him to go around the monsters to see what was happening to Bell and his party without drawing the monster's and the party's attention. 'But they should be able to handle this.' Staying far back, he followed the monsters into the tunnel.

Ahead, the three kept running as Lilly came to a sudden realization—Bell would have to hold them off. These monsters were faster, and while Bell might be able to escape, it was clear that a supporter with a weak Status had no chance in one of the middle levels' connecting tunnels. 

The pack of monsters formed a line as they entered the tunnel, their bared fangs flashing in the dark. None of them could tell how many monsters there were—the beasts were kicking up enough dust to obscure their numbers, a sight that would make any normal person collapse on the spot.

Bell, running slowly to stay next to Lilly, chanced another look over his shoulder. It was as though a nightmare had come to life. As they entered the other room in at the end of the tunnel, Bell spun 180 degrees.

"Keep running, I will catch up!" Bell shouted, and before the other two could object, he planted his feet, and squared his shoulders in the face of the oncoming wave of monsters. Raising his left arm straight out, he took a deep breath.

"Firebolt!"

Three rounds of his Magic roared straight down the narrow tunnel, normal yellow-orange flames wrapped in arcs of crackling blue electricity, surging through the air like living streaks of lightning. The rocky pathway was engulfed in a flood of searing flames, the inferno spreading in an instant, swallowing everything in its path. 

The monsters in the front barely had time to react before they were incinerated, their bodies reduced to charred remains as the flames consumed them utterly. A powerful blast of hot air rushed outward from the blazing tunnel, washing over Bell, his cloak billowing as shadows danced on his face.

'Fire and lightning, huh...' Rex, at the back, had seen the fire die down before killing the monsters in the rear. 'I guess it makes sense—Fireball and Lightning Bolt to make Firebolt.' He nodded at his ingenuity to come up with the connection. 

Then he heard something and glanced back as more monsters approached from behind. '...Now I'm between two waves of monsters.'

If the ones at the back noticed him, they would ignore Bell's party and go for him instead, which was not ideal. His eyes darted around the tunnel for a place to hide, but found none... A thought crossed his mind and he quickly removed his gauntlet, threw it into his bag on his back, and then felt the veins on his forearm bulge. 

His black claws emerged, and he stretched his left arm up, piercing his claws into the dungeon's bedrock wall. Once they were embedded, he pulled himself up with that arm, his muscles tensing as he lifted his body. Quickly, he stabbed his right claw higher up than the left, securing his grip before repeating the motion, alternating his arms in rapid succession. 

The faint scraping of his claws against the stone echoed through the tunnel as he moved with fluid precision with his feet pressed against the wall, pushing off slightly to assist his ascent. His speed made him look like a lizard scaling the rough surface.

When he reached the top, where the wall connected to the ceiling, he halted, placing his feet on some loose stones for better stability. His nails remained embedded in the rock, holding up his weight along with his bag filled with weapons and supplies. 

Just then, another wave of monsters—mainly Al-Miraj and hellhounds—rushed past beneath him without looking up, heading straight for Bell's party. 'I guess I'm Spider-Man now.' He thought as he looked down the dark tunnel that was barley lit by the blue bioluminescent light.

He couldn't see what was happening ahead, but he heard as Bell and the others fought off the monsters. However more were coming from the side of the tunnel.

"Mr. Bell, Mr. Welf," he heard Liliruca speak. "Lilly recommends we retreat. We need to rest and regroup. There will be no end to the monsters at this rate."

'...I forgot she talks like one of those cutesy anime characters that think referring to themselves in the third person is adorable.' Rex face contorted in disgust. 'But it just makes them sound like they got dropped on their head as a baby.' 

Staying on the wall, he mumbled in a mocking tone, "Rex thinks your plan is marvelous, Liliruca. Rex thinks it's obvious that we need to retreat, rest, and regroup since we are obviously outnumbered and tired, but you mentioning it makes it sound extra correct, Ms. Obvious."

With a cringe, he watched as more monsters ran past below him. 'Sounds hella dumb,' he thought. 

He exhaled sharply before loosening his grip on the wall. One hand at a time, he carefully unhooked his claws from the bedrock, lowering himself at a controlled pace. Once his feet met solid ground, he rolled his shoulders, shaking off the lingering tension. 

'Let's go.' He thought.

Following them from afar, he watched as the Dungeon slowly but surely drained every bit of mental and physical strength Bell and his party had left. Everything ate away at their endurance—the howls of monsters echoing from the distance, the ground quaking beneath their feet, and, of course, the monsters constantly attacking them.

Individually, none of these things were overwhelming, but the sheer weight of uncertainty crushed their spirits. They couldn't afford even a moment's rest, not even enough to check the map. Lost physical strength was impossible to regain quickly, and by the time they realized the situation had turned dire, it was already too late.

'Damn.' Rex peered from behind a large bolder far back in a long tunnel as Bell's party finally took care of a group of Al-Miraj, their weak, hunched-over forms gasping for breath, their bodies barely holding on. 'I really have it easy.' 

Predator and his other abilities made things too easy for him. Low on stamina? No worries—just land a few easy kills and it's back to full. Running low on Mind and out of potions? Not a problem, fam. Hurt with no healing potion, well we have healing magic. Surrounded? Fire Breath. Lost? 

Scavenger! HELP ME!

Comparing himself to the protagonist made it glaringly obvious—he was practically playing on easy mode. 'Well, in the future, Bell should gain more skills and magic that would—'

*Crack!*

A sharp noise interrupted Rex's thoughts, his head snapping toward the ceiling. '???'

Bell, due to his body on the verge of collapse after an hour of half fighting and half running, couldn't immediately pinpoint the sound. His weary eyes darted around the tunnel, as he searched for the source. The walls looked as solid as ever, so they weren't birthing any monsters, but the noise was growing louder.

*Crack, crack!*

The ominous sound reverberated from all around them, multiplying as echoes bounced through the tunnel. 'Huh?' Bell was the first to figure it out. The sound was coming from above.

Welf and Lilly followed his gaze and gasped as a network of cracks spread across the ceiling, branching out like a web. The fracture lines stretched far down the tunnel in both directions, expanding with each passing second. More cracks. More echoes. It was getting harder to tell whether the sound came from new splintering rock or from the deep reverberations.

'What kind of movie shit is this!?' Rex thought, looking back at the trio. 'Have they suddenly lost their senses? Why the fuck are they just standing there watching!?'

He remembered this part from the show—the moment the ceiling collapsed and crushed Welf's legs. It had red flag written all over it. What if this time it crushed the young smith's head instead of his legs? 

Uncertainty.

'Run!' He almost wanted to yell as a chunk of stone fell from the ceiling. The entire tunnel groaned, no longer able to bear the weight pressing down on it.

'Idiots—' Then he realized. 'Wait... I am also in the tunnel!!!' 

The ceiling shattered with a thunderous roar, and from the crumbling rock, a swarm of Bad Bats burst forth.

"KYAAAAAAAAAA—!!" 

A chorus of high-pitched squeals rang out as the Bad Bats birthed from the celling took flight for the first time, and the dim lights from above was blacked out by countless shadows swarming through the air. Shrouded in darkness, Rex, Bell, and the others could barely make out the heavily damaged ceiling—until it finally gave way.

Bell's, Lilly's, and Welf's eyes widened in horror before they sprang into action. The three of them made a mad dash forward, desperate to escape the collapse, while Rex bolted in the opposite direction. 

Stones rained down, pelting his body with painful force, his eardrums assaulted by the deafening barrage of rock and debris crashing behind him. The sheer weight of the falling ceiling made the ground quake, and the sound of the destruction roared like an avalanche.

Boulders kept coming, forcing him to push forward at full speed. He barely made it out before the tunnel collapsed entirely behind him, a massive cloud of dust billowing out, rushing behind him and swallowing him whole. He coughed violently, inhaling the thick particles as he stumbled forward, quickly pulling his cloak over his nose and mouth. He pushed on blindly through the settling dust, his vision clearing bit by bit.

'...Scavenger, my treasure is an alive Bell.' His ability marked Bell. 'My treasure is an alive Welf...' It marked Welf and Liliruca as well—they were alive.

'Fuck.' He turned back toward the tunnel as the dust settled, now sealed behind a thick wall of rubble, completely blocking his path to the protagonist. 'Okay,' he spun on his hill, 'I need to go around.' 

He ran a hand across his face, smearing a streak of blood from where a smaller rock had clipped him. He was lucky—none of the bigger ones had hit his head. But luck didn't mean shit right now. He needed to move before the butterfly effect screwed everything over and killed one of the three.

Then—

*BOOM!*

A violent explosion rumbled from the other side, shaking the ground beneath him. His eyes narrowed. 'The Hellhounds. Stupid shit,' he cursed internally. 

It was already chaotic, and those idiots were making it worse. He activated Scavenger, quickly tracking the three party members. They were alive but moving away.

'Be fast.' He leaned forward, and took off, following the new path that Scavenger's treasure-finding ability had mapped toward Bell.

———

'Bell, oh, Bell~' Rex sing-sung in his mind as he spotted Bell and his group from his elevated position on a higher level of the same floor. 'There you are, my beautiful Bell~'

After nearly two hours, he had finally caught up. Two. Fucking. Hours. The first few minutes after tracking Bell had gone smoothly—until Scavenger abruptly shifted Pathfinder's route. It had taken him a moment to process, but after running through possibilities, Scavanger confirmed Bell and his party had fallen through a hole, a two floor drop straight to the 15th floor.

With Scavenger's guidance, it hadn't taken long for him to make his way down as well, but the moment he arrived, they were already moving. Just as he was closing the distance, they dropped another floor—down to the 16th. He adjusted again and descended. The entire time, he had to fight monsters and got sidetracked looting the bodies of fallen adventurers he came across.

Now, from his vantage point, he watched Bell pressing forward, an arm around each of his companions, his sheer endurance keeping him moving despite the obvious exhaustion gnawing at him.

'Right, this should be the end of his trial,' Rex thought with a nod. In the show, this was around the point he jumped down a hole to the 17th floor and then ran through the room Goliath was in...

'Goliath.' He realized. 'Had it spawned?' Using Scavenger, he confirmed it hadn't and he determined Goliath would spawn in fifteen minutes. 'He should have enough time.'

He glanced down at the equipment and supplies Bell had discarded to lighten his load. He will pick them up for himself. 'As long as nothing happens, Bell should—'

*KAAAARRRRRR!*

A deafening cry tore through the cavern, freezing both Bell and Rex in place. Bell had never heard such a sound before, confusion and unease etched across his face. But Rex knew, and he frowned deeply.

'A Wyvern!?' His head snapped toward the direction of the cry. 'Why now!?'

Emerging from the shadows of the Dungeon ahead, flying just below the bedrock ceiling was a dragon-type monster—about the size of an Infant Dragon, though more slender. Its wings stretched nearly six meters wide, its body covered in smaller, compact pinkish-red scales, and its tail was more whip-like.

Rex immediately started climbing down the side of the 'cliff' to the lower level of the 16th floor as soon as he saw the approaching Wyvern. Bell, breathing heavily, broke into a run, still carrying his companions with him.

But he was slow, and the Wyvern was fast. Its amber eyes locked onto the fleeing figure below, drawn to the stark white hair that practically begged to be burned.

With another screech, the creature tucked its wings, its sleek body plunging into an eerily silent dive. As it neared, its powerful hind legs extended, claws spread wide.

Bell barely had time to react and threw his friends forward just as the Wyvern slammed into the earth with a thunderous crash, its talons sinking deep into the Dungeon's bedrock. The impact sent shockwaves through the floor, dust and debris exploding outward, hurling Bell backward.

He slammed into the wall spine-first, a violent jolt shooting through his entire body. His head snapped back, crashing against the stone with a sickening thud, a sharp burst of pain blooming across his skull. 

A strangled gasp tore from his throat as the air was ripped from his lungs, his ribs feeling like they had been crushed under an invisible weight. A mouthful of blood and spit burst past his lips, splattering against the cold dungeon floor as he collapsed, his vision swimming with static.

In an instant, the creature turned its head toward him. Its maw opened, flames swirling hungrily inside. The hellish fire reflected in Bell's wide, panicked eyes—

*BOOM!*

A black flash streaked across Bell's vision just as the blast of fire erupted from the Wyvern's maw. The heat seared the air, a wave of scorching energy rolling out as the flames slammed into the wall where he had been just a second before, the fire continuously roaring with a deafening whoosh.

Bell's vision blurred, his head lolling as he struggled to comprehend what had happened. His body ached, his breath ragged, but he was still alive. Blinking through the haze, he looked up, his eyes barely making out the silhouette of a man kneeling over him.

The figure's features were obscured by the deep hood of a black cloak, but one detail stood out—his amber eyes, gleaming much like the Wyvern's. The man exhaled heavily, then lowered Bell gently to the ground before standing tall once more. His cloak flared behind him as he turned away, his back now facing Bell.

Bell tried to move, but his body refused to listen. His blurred gaze followed as the man dashed forward, the beast screaming and flaring its wings wide in response, but Bell saw no more—his body finally gave in, and everything faded to black.

Rex's boots scraped against the dungeon floor as he shot forward, his form a blur in the dim light. The Wyvern jumped back, its powerful wings unfurling as it beat them against the air, lifting itself off the ground. But before it could ascend, Rex launched himself at the creature's tail, wrapping his arms tightly around it in an iron grip.

The moment Rex grabbed the Wyvern's tail, his stance shifted, boots digging into the stone. With a sharp pivot on his hill, Rex wrenched the beast downwards, pulling it out of the air. The Wyvern screeched, its wings flaring, but Rex was far stronger. The air whistled as the Wyvern plummeted, its body flipping midair before slamming into the dungeon floor with a brutal crash.

The impact sent a shockwave through the cavern. The beast sprawled out, wings splayed as a shrill wail tore from its throat. Cracks spiderwebbed across the stone beneath it, dust and debris exploding outward. The Wyvern twitched, momentarily stunned, its limbs limp from the sheer force of the slam.

Rex wasted no time. He dashed forward, black claws gleaming as he drove his hand straight into the Wyvern's throat. His claws pierced through the softer scales with almost no resistance, sinking deep into flesh. The beast let out a wet, choking sound, its eyes bulging as it thrashed weakly. 

Then Rex's fingers wrapped around its windpipe, the heat of its body pulsing against his skin, and with a sharp yank, he tore it free. As he pulled, thick, dark red blood gushed out in heavy spurts, coating his hand in steaming crimson. The Wyvern's windpipe came loose with a sickening rip, strings of torn muscle and sinew snapping as he yanked it free. 

The beast let out a strangled, gurgling screech, choking on its own lifeblood as it writhed in agony. Its amber eyes bulged, its body convulsing violently before its limbs finally went limp.

Rex then dropped the windpipe. "Fatality." He announced in a deep voice as he he flicked his wrist to the side, sending a splatter of hot, sticky blood arcing through the air, staining the ground in a sharp, crimson line.

"Rex Lapis, wins."

He then glanced back at Bell. '...Well, I guess this won't change anything. He will be making his way down either way.' Rex then placed his feet on the Wyvern. 'Scavenge.'

[Wyvern Wings (Physical Property): Transforms arm into Wyvern wings to grant flight. (Effective after a good night's sleep.)]

He declined it. 'I wonder what I will become if I decide to start absorbing every physical property I come across.' He would become the most hideous chimera or an eldritch abomination. It was a horrifying throught.

Picking up the Wyvern scale that dropped he went back to pick up his bag that he had dropped early and put it inside. He then picked up the things that Bell had tossed and put it inside his bag before glancing at the smaller Liliruca.

'Its terrifying how small a grown Pallum is.' He could literally put her inside his bag with no problem. 'No time to waste.' He needed to get down before goliath spawns and then pass the trio off to the Loki Familia. 

'I can just place them in front of the entrance to the seventeenth floor and allow the sword princess to see them, right?' He thought with a nod. 'Let's do that.'

Then he walked towards the two companions that were tossed and were now laying on top of each other, Welf on top of Liliruca. "Now," He folded his arm. "How do I carry the three of them without worsening their injuring?"

[Author's Note: Hope this chapter is up to par. I have nothing else to say but if you have any questions or ideas, let your thought be know.

Thank you handsome readers behind the screen for the support. Stay safe and remember to lock your door at night~]