"Finally using your Titles to the full extent of their Authority? Good."
The Monster roared, and its body changed slightly.
A puddle of darkness below its feet.
The next second, the Monster opened its eyes.
[The Title "Potential Demon King Candidate" opens its eyes.]
And the whole room shook.
"This one however..."
Even Zephyr could feel the pressure exerted by the Monster. By its gaze.
By its eyes.
"You will need to shut down."
A second roar shook the Boss Room.
The Monster stopped roaring, but it didn't close its mouth.
Suddenly, it started bleeding.
From its eyes, and from its left arm, dark blood flowed down.
"Mm. You don't mean to spray me with that, do you?"
The puddle of darkness grew larger and larger.
Until, at one point, it started moving.
Waves appeared on the dark liquid as it danced.
Zephyr braced himself, but he wasn't scared or even worried.
Gargle-
Gargle-
Bubbles seemed to appear on the dark puddle.
The next second, the darkness around the Monster started rising.
"Huh. So in the end..."
Four different spots rose.
"You resort to petty tricks."
They took form, although their lower bodies were indiscernible from the dark puddle below them.
"Four Monsters conjured. No... Made?" Zephyr whispered to himself.
He took his time studying each of them.
'An Arachne-Type of Monster. That two-headed... No. Three-headed Monster. The one that Guarded this Floor?'
Zephyr wasn't certain.
The Monsters were made of a dark and gooey liquid after all.
A dark and gooey liquid that seemed to continuously leak out of even their bodies.
'Some kind of... Fairy? The shape of those wings and its size give off that impression, but it might just be some kind of Insect-Type Monster. There's no way a Fairy would be brought into a Dungeon of this level. Additionally, that sickle-like arm isn't something you would expect a Fairy to have. And lastly...'
The final Monster surprised Zephyr slightly.
'His Underling...? No.'
A Wolf completely made of the dark matter.
Its four paws were indistinguishable from the puddle.
'Mm. Then...'
"Those are Monsters you've Devoured, I assume? Why them, in particular?" Zephyr asked.
The Potential Demon King Candidate stared, unmoving.
With its knees caved in and its arms hanging.
'None of the others resemble his Underlings. Is there something special about these particular Monsters? Or is it simply that he couldn't create more of those he has Devoured? The wolf...'
Think they're special? They're just like any other Monster inside this Dungeon-
A slight smile appeared on Zephyr's face as he remembered the words he had uttered some time earlier.
'The wolf is similar to his Underling, but it's not that Underling. Then... Perhaps... No. Probably, because he has Devoured many just like it? That might be the Link. Then what about the others...?'
He was curious and intrigued. But now wasn't the time to dwell on such matters.
The Monster's body twitched.
"Unlike the two other Titles, this one..."
And Zephyr knew it would attack soon.
"Isn't one you deserve."
With a growl from the Monster, the Beings made of dark matter moved forward.
Their movements were incredibly strange. Almost hypnotizing.
The four Beings moved, and, with them was pulled the dark puddle, which, a second later, turned into their respective legs and paws.
'If they're made of that Corrupting liquid, I doubt their fangs or claws would be... No. With a Title like that, I can't underestimate it.' Zephyr thought to himself as he braced himself.
The first to make it to his position was the creature resembling a Wolf.
It truly was a strange creature.
From the rough shape of its body, the indiscernible outline of its body parts, to the liquid falling off its ear only to become part of its paw.
The Wolf seemed to be the fastest, which didn't surprise Zephyr.
"Is it taking the properties..."
The Wolf launched itself forward, with its jaw open wide.
"Of your Underling?" Zephyr asked as he threw a powerful punch that blew the Wolf to bits.
The next instant, he felt something behind him.
Zephyr instantly turned around.
And as he did, the Fairy-like Being lowered its sickle-like arm with great speed.
Zephyr quickly stepped back and dodged by a hair's breadth.
The Fairy-like Being's whole body was made up of the unstable and gooey dark liquid.
But not its sickle-like arm.
It had been condensed. Solidified.
And as the arm missed Zephyr's body, the Wolf, whose body had been blown to bits moments earlier, leaped towards him.
Zephyr's left hand grasped the Wolf's gooey body.
Suddenly and discreetly though, behind him,
"If punching you isn't enough..." The Monster whispered.
A powerful squeeze momentarily incapacitated the Wolf.
"Then...!"
A clenched fist landed on the Zephyr's side.
He was immediately taken by surprise, as the punch pushed him about five meters away.
But that surprise quickly faded.
"So you're starting to understand it better..." Zephyr uttered.
The Monster jumped towards him once more. As did the dark Beings on its side.
"Wind Magic."
Suddenly, the Arachne-like Being jumped down from the ceiling.
At the same time, the Wolf took a leap.
And he could tell that the Fairy-like Being was standing behind him, ready to lower its arm.
The four Being made of the dark liquid remained a couple of meters away, seemingly waiting for an opportunity or for Zephyr to dodge and react accordingly to the direction of that dodge.
The Monster's dark eyes stared as its clenched fist was pulled back.
"This isn't bad..."
Zephyr grabbed the Monster's wrist as soon as it extended its arm.
"Not bad at all..."
And as if it was weightless, the Monster's body was swung around with great speed, forcing it to crash and collide with the three other attackers, turning them into three distinct puddles.
"For a Title..."
Still grabbing it by its writs, Zephyr raised the Monster's body.
The two stared at one another.
"You do not deserve."
Pressure-
Zephyr instantly brought his empty hand to the Monster's face.
He had felt something.
Something, from its dark eyes.
Zephyr's hand lay, hiding the upper portion of its face and shutting its eyes.
"Now. How about we-"
The Monster opened its mouth.
And with a roar,
RWAAAA-
BAM-
Rubble fell to the ground, as Zephyr's body was launched into one of the Boss Room's walls.
Smoke rose and covered his position.
It wasn't clear whether the attack utilized Wind Magic or not.
"Hahaha. Shoving me into a wall..."
Zephyr chuckled as his body was buried in rubble.
"How the tables have turned."
He pushed himself off, with a hidden smile behind his helmet.
"A Potential Demon King's voice sure is different."
A smile that, if seen by anyone, could've been described as a tad sadistic.
[Your Title "Monster Hunter" is rejoicing!]
Had a Monster worth Hunting finally appeared?
