[ You have slain an E-Rank, Dormant Monster, Flying Bat. ]
This time, Vale heard the voice clearly.
His breathing was ragged. Though he had stayed in control during the battle, fighting two monsters—even if they were only E-Ranks—had drained him. Slumping against the cave wall, he let himself slide down until he sat on the cold stone, chest rising and falling as he tried to catch his breath.
His eyes shifted to the lifeless bodies of the creatures, unreadable at first—then a spark of realization flickered in them.
"Mana crystals…"
He had nearly forgotten.
When a monster or person dies, their core fractures, leaving behind a hardened shard of condensed energy—a mana crystal. Consuming one could restore lost energy and even saturate the core, slowly expanding its limits.
The average person needed hundreds—sometimes a thousand—to push their core toward its full capacity.
But Vale wasn't thinking long term right now. His core was running on fumes. He needed recovery.
Wincing as he stood, he staggered toward the first fallen creature. With practiced ease, he drove his blade into its abdomen and sliced it open. Sticky flesh parted, revealing a dark, glossy crystal nestled deep within.
A smirk touched his lips.
Setting the sword aside, he reached in and plucked the crystal from the creature's guts. The surface pulsed faintly in his palm, warmth radiating through his skin.
Without hesitation, he clenched the crystal in his fist until it snapped into a mist of light-blue particles.
A sharp jolt surged through his body—burning and freezing all at once. For a heartbeat, he felt weightless, as if his soul were stretching to contain the rush of power flooding in. Then, just as quickly, it faded.
He exhaled slowly. The exhaustion tugging at his limbs had lessened, and warmth now curled in his chest like a lit ember.
"Better…"
He turned to the second corpse. Just like before, he sliced open its abdomen, retrieved the crystal, and consumed it. The reaction was less intense this time, but the result was the same. His essence was returning—slowly but surely.
His core was no longer screaming for energy.
Opening his Status window, he focused on the rank indicator.
Core Rank [E, 3/250]
"Three out of two-fifty…" he muttered, letting the words hang in the silence. Just as he expected, the counter went up.
He'd been lucky so far. His first monster kill had rewarded him with a weapon artifact, but these two winged beasts had given nothing beyond their crystals. Not that he was complaining. After all, the crystals were far more valuable right now.
Still, his body remained worn down. Despite the work required for killing the monsters, E-Rank mana crystals didn't offer enough mana essence in return. The cave's chill nipped at his skin. Soon, he'd need food, water, and warmth—resources this stone tomb didn't provide. If he didn't find a way out soon, survival would become a real concern.
Grimacing, he rose to his feet and pressed forward, the flickering torch in his hand casting elongated shadows on the jagged walls. His pace quickened with resolve.
But the deeper he went, the more each step gnawed at his patience. The terrain offered nothing new—just the same cracked flooring, dripping ceilings, and oppressive silence. He longed for the sight of the open sky, or even the glow of stars.
Then—
"…Huh?!"
He stopped cold.
A mountain of collapsed rock completely blocked the tunnel ahead. Faint beams of light slipped through tiny cracks, but the passage was sealed.
Shock twisted in his gut.
He rushed forward, pressing his hands against the rubble. He pushed with all his strength, but the stones refused to move even a little. Gritting his teeth, he tried to wedge out a smaller boulder, only to find it jammed tight.
"Damn it!"
The frustration boiled over. He kicked a loose stone across the tunnel and clenched his fists, breathing heavily as he surveyed the blockade. It was no use. He wasn't getting through this way.
Another path. He had to find another path.
But first, he needed to pause. Not from weakness, but to think.
Though the mana crystals had restored his core, the weight of constant tension pressed on him. The strain of combat, the dead end, the flickering uncertainty of survival—it all added up. He backed away from the blockade, knelt down, and sat against the cold stone wall, his weapon resting across his knees.
The torch beside him burned quietly. Shadows pulsed along the walls.
For a while, he just sat there, unmoving.
His thoughts churned—messy, disjointed, and filled with questions that had no answers.
The cold bit at his skin, but he didn't care. His fingers flexed around the hilt of his blade, not in fear, but as if anchoring himself with it.
The minutes dragged. Slowly, his heartbeat calmed. His mind cleared, layer by layer, until the chaos faded to a sharp, steady focus.
He wouldn't die here.
His breathing steadied. The chaos in his mind had quieted, replaced by something solid—resolve.
With a controlled breath, Vale stood.
He retrieved the torch and set off, retracing his steps. The corpses of the two monsters lay where he left them, untouched. He barely spared them a glance as he stepped over and moved on.
Soon, he reached the fork—the place where the tunnel had split in two.
No hesitation this time.
He chose the path he'd avoided earlier, the one that led deeper into the cave. The tunnel sloped downward sharply, forcing him to watch his footing with each step. Loose stones scattered underfoot. One wrong move could send him tumbling.
The deeper he went, the more alien the cave became.
Gone was the sense of artificial construction. The walls turned jagged, raw, almost violent in their formation. The air grew heavier, and the narrow passage morphed into a winding descent. The polished stone from before gave way to uneven terrain, forcing him to adjust his balance constantly.
Eventually, the path bent into a sharp turn that curved abruptly to the right.
Vale slowed his pace and crept forward, his fingers brushing the wall for balance. He approached the bend cautiously, torch held low, and peeked around the corner.
Then—
A sudden blur.
Something lunged from the shadows.
A massive bat-like creature erupted from the darkness, wings spread wide, fangs aimed straight for his throat.