The Core Chamber – Where Silence Rules
The air shifted the moment Leon crossed into the next chamber.
Not the subtle pressure of ambient mana—but weight. Gravity without cause. The kind of atmosphere that made breathing feel like dragging rusted chains through your lungs.
The corridor ended in a wide, circular room. Cracked stone pillars leaned at odd angles, some toppled, others etched with old symbols scorched into the walls by spellfire. At the center, an altar—not for worship, but for war.
Leon stepped inside, boots scraping across dried blood.
His summons followed. The Zombie Mage hovered to his left, robe trailing behind it like ash in a dead wind. The Warrior Zombie flanked right, greatsword already loose in its grip, knuckles bone-white.
The dungeon pulsed.
Not with light—but with warning.
Something was alive in here.
Watching.
Waiting.
A New Terror Emerges
The mist coiled low as a shadow rose behind the altar—tall, hunched, with a skeletal frame wrapped in taut black flesh. Its limbs were unnaturally long, fingers ending in hooked claws.
But it wasn't the shape that froze Leon in place.
It was the head.
Elongated. Canine. But wrong.
Stitched with metal bands. Fangs reinforced with jagged iron.
The beast snarled, stepping forward with an animal grace that belied its twisted size. Two curved horns jutted from the back of its skull, and embedded deep in its chest was a crystal pulsing with dark energy—part organic, part dungeon core.
[System Notification: Dungeon Mini-Boss Detected – "Cryptborn Fangbeast" (E-Rank)]
The moment it saw Leon, it didn't roar.
It grinned.
The First Exchange
Leon's eyes sharpened.
He raised his mana gun.
Fired.
The bullet struck the creature's arm—blood splattered, but the beast didn't flinch. Instead, it blurred forward, claws dragging sparks across the stone.
"Intercept!"
The Warrior Zombie surged, meeting the Fangbeast mid-charge.
Clash.
Steel met bone.
The force of the collision cracked the floor beneath them.
Leon dove left as a claw sliced past where he'd stood, carving deep into the altar behind him.
"Stagger!"
The Zombie Mage launched a charged Mana Bolt—dead center at the creature's back.
It twisted—not to dodge, but to absorb the hit into its shoulder.
Smoke.
No stagger.
High pain tolerance. Spell resistance. Speed above projection.
Leon's mind raced.
This wasn't just a monster.
This was a predator built to hunt.
Adaptation – No Room for Error
The Fangbeast twisted low, sweeping its tail into the Warrior Zombie's legs—knocking it sideways. It pounced—but the Mage was already in motion, shifting back and hurling a bolt at close range.
Hit. Minor recoil.
Still not enough.
Leon fired twice—both bullets aimed at its knees.
One missed. One grazed.
The beast ignored them.
It lunged for Leon.
He dodged right—barely. Its claws grazed his coat, ripping the fabric with surgical precision.
The Warrior Zombie rose, damaged but not downed.
The Fangbeast turned just in time for a full-force overhead slash to land across its back.
This time—it screamed.
A real scream.
Half-beast, half-metal.
Blood splattered.
[Minor Armor Break Registered]
But the cost was high—its counter-swipe flung the zombie back into a pillar. The stone cracked. So did its left arm.
And then—the System pulsed.
New System Unlock – Mid-Battle Repairs
[System Notification: Mid-Battle Repairs Unlocked] Use mana to reinforce damaged summon limbs in real time.
Leon didn't hesitate.
He dropped into a crouch, pressed his palm to the ground, and poured his mana into the link.
Dark mist surged across the floor, wrapping around the Warrior Zombie's cracked limbs. Bone mended. Metal reformed. The red runes flared back to life.
The Fangbeast turned, realizing what had just happened.
Leon met its gaze—and smiled faintly.
"You're not the only one that can recover."
Momentum Shifts – The Counter Begins
The Zombie Mage launched a pair of quickfire bolts—one to the beast's face, the other to its flank. The first missed. The second hit hard, bursting into black flame and burning across the creature's side.
It howled.
Leon fired two more shots—one clipped its throat, another its left shoulder.
The beast stumbled—barely.
It charged again.
Leon gave no order this time.
The Warrior Zombie moved before the creature struck.
It sidestepped.
Drew back.
Then drove its greatsword into the Fangbeast's stomach.
Straight through.
The monster screamed.
But it didn't fall.
Final Surge – The Evolution Builds
The creature twisted violently, impaling itself deeper just to swing its claws again—slashing into the zombie's shoulder, nearly tearing the limb loose.
The chamber darkened.
Leon looked toward his Mage.
Its eyes had gone black.
A storm of corrupted mana surged around its body. Its frame flickered, cracking with pressure, robes lifting in a windless storm.
[System Notification: Zombie Mage – Evolution Threshold Reached: 100%] Evolution Initiating…
Leon's blood chilled—not from fear.
From expectation.
The Fangbeast howled again, ripping free from the blade and lunging—straight for Leon.
He didn't move.
The Zombie Mage raised a single hand.
The chamber exploded with violet flame.