He was stronger and faster than before—just by a bit. He looked at the pale-skinned abomination.
In the end, I won.
As if waiting for Riven's fight to end, a hand tapped his shoulder. He was startled. He wasn't used to anyone getting behind him without him noticing. Yet somehow, Eros had managed it—again. He didn't like that.
He turned to face him.
Eros looked at him and grinned. "It seems you killed it."
Riven looked at him, anger flashing in his eyes. "Yes, I did. Somehow. Without a freaking weapon."
Eros turned and glanced toward where Nira was. "Come on. Let's go meet up with the rest."
Riven gave a short nod, and they both began walking. As they approached Nira and Varik, Riven noticed the other Firstborns had regrouped too.
As he walked, something felt… different. His senses had sharpened, his awareness grown keener. He hadn't gotten significantly stronger, but there had been a shift—he had changed.
When they reached Nira and Varik, less than a minute later, most of the Firstborns seemed unscathed—except for Jae. He was bleeding all over, his left arm dangling limply like a pendant on a necklace. Riven couldn't help the smirk tugging at his lips. Jae had been talking trash non-stop since the beginning, and now he looked like the joke.
Riven shifted his gaze toward him. "What the hell happened to you?"
Jae looked up, voice hoarse and bitter. "You don't wanna know."
Riven scratched the back of his head. "But I do. You had a weapon, didn't you? So how do you look like this?"
As he said it, he gave Jae a mocking, dark smile. Jae gritted his teeth, barely holding himself back from lunging at him.
Nira sighed and spoke in a calm, controlled voice. "Enough talk. We need to get out of this filthy place." She turned toward Eros. "And you? You were pretty much useless the entire fight."
Eros rolled his eyes and stared up at the ceiling of the sewer tunnel. "You know I'm a Phantom type. I attack from the shadows and stuff like that."
Nira pinched the bridge of her nose. "Well, whatever. I'm done with this place. Let's get out of here—"
As if triggered by her words, the rotten abomination's body twitched.
Riven, Eros, Nira, and Varik locked their eyes on it.
What happened next was pure horror.
Something burst out of the creature's neck. A wet, sickening crrkk-ssshhlop echoed through the tunnel like meat tearing under pressure, followed by the squelch of something slimy forcing its way out. Bone tore through skin as something far worse pushed its way forward.
From the torn flesh, a grotesque growth surged upward. The head of the rotten monstrosity was gone. In its place, a revolting bloom of flesh coiled up—red and slick, like muscle stretched beyond reason. Pulsing eyes stared in different directions, and twitching tendrils writhed as if unsure of their own birth.
Nira gripped her twin blades tightly. Her breath caught in her throat.
The creature hadn't moved yet. It had only twitched.
She didn't wait.
In a burst of speed, she dashed forward, slashing in a sharp arc, trying to end it before it could rise. But she was too slow.
The grotesque bloom shifted, spinning in a circular motion aimed directly at her. There was something on the edge of the flesh—she didn't know what it was, but she couldn't risk letting it hit her. She crossed her twin blades to block the incoming blow.
The impact sent her flying into the tunnel wall. She coughed blood, barely staying upright by planting her blades into the ground for support.
But the circular spin didn't stop with her.
It surged outward.
Varik leapt forward, throwing his bulbous shield in front of three nearby Firstborns. The shield held.
Two others weren't as lucky.
They were sliced in half.
Eros somehow managed to evade the strike, but Riven wasn't as fortunate. He was just a Firstborn, and though his enhanced hearing helped him detect the creature's movement, he couldn't dodge in time.
Just before the attack hit, a voice echoed in his mind.
Duck.
He threw himself down, but not fast enough.
His side was slashed open. Blood poured from the gaping wound. He could see his own guts.
Nira, bleeding from the head, turned her gaze and saw them—the bodies of the two sliced Firstborns lying motionless in pools of blood, split cleanly in half like a pizza cutter through dough.
She was consumed by rage.
She didn't think—she just ran.
Rage burned in her chest. Twin blades drawn, she charged toward the grotesque bloom of flesh, which now moved slowly, gaining momentum for another attack.
She didn't stop.
With a shout, blood dripping from her head, she leapt and swung hard, aiming to tear through the beast before it could strike again. She shifted the blade in her left hand, using the dull side to deflect an incoming strike.
But she didn't stop.
She kept pushing forward, ignoring everything else.
Varik shouted something, but it was too late. She couldn't hear him. Her mind was locked on one thing—finishing the job she failed to complete the first time.
The abomination launched several attacks at her, but none landed. She dodged every single one with deadly precision and struck back, targeting the gaping hole in its chest with swift, brutal slashes.
But the creature didn't react.
And then, with a single, massive arm, it slammed her aside.
That's when they saw it.
The thing was regenerating.
Its wounds were healing—disappearing entirely.
Nira gritted her teeth. "It seems normal attacks won't work on this bastard."
Some monsters don't die even if you kill them. Their souls take physical form. Unless you deal soul-based damage, they simply don't die.
Varik rushed to the front, placing himself between the monster and Nira. His bulbous shield rose as his greatsword burned with light. The flames on his mask ignited.
Eros ran to Nira's side, helping her up. "Are you okay?"
Nira looked at him, breathing heavily. Her voice was cold. "I'm fine. All that matters is killing that bastard. Physical attacks won't work."
Eros hesitated. "You think you can kill it?"
She smiled darkly. "Yes. All I need is moonlight. With that, I'll cut that bastard in half."
Nira's twin blades had a unique ability—they dealt physical damage during the day and soul damage at night when the moon was out.
But it wasn't night yet.
And the tunnels were pitch black.
Riven, meanwhile, felt like he was about to die. His stomach was torn open. He could barely breathe. The Utility-type Firstborn stood nearby, stunned by the chaos, frozen in place.
Riven coughed, forcing out a weak voice. "Hey… dumbass… come help me."
The words snapped the Firstborn out of his daze, and he rushed over to Riven's side to help.