CHAPTER 168: A BOSS?

Varik’s gaze stayed locked on him. Calculating. Measuring.

"Again," Varik said.

Lucen exhaled. "You planning on telling me what this test is, or are you just trying to break my ankles?"

"You’ll know when you fail."

"That’s not ominous at all."

They clashed again, this time Lucen let the sword hum faintly with mana, but cut it off before the surge could show. The trick worked; Varik adjusted, clearly reading the intent but not the scale.

Two more exchanges passed before Varik broke off, stepping back, lowering his blade.

Lucen straightened, catching his breath for show. "That it? You’re not going to make me run laps or fight three guild newbies at once?"

Varik studied him for a long moment. "You’re stronger than your rank now."

Lucen rolled his eyes. "Congratulations, detective."

"I mean it." Varik’s tone was flat but serious. "Your footwork’s cleaner than last month. Your mana control’s sharper. And you’re anticipating strikes you shouldn’t be able to read yet."

Lucen kept his face neutral. "Guess all your lectures are paying off."

Varik stepped closer. "Or you’ve been hiding something."

Lucen met his gaze. "You’re paranoid."

"Paranoia keeps people alive."

"Paranoia also makes you sound like the guy in the corner at a party talking about mind control satellites."

Varik didn’t bite. He turned away, sliding his sword back into its sheath. "We’re done for today."

"That’s it?" Lucen asked, genuinely surprised.

"That’s it."

Lucen watched him walk toward the edge of the field. "What, no life lesson? No dramatic exit line?"

Varik stopped at the gate, half-turning. "Don’t let anyone see you cut loose until you’re ready to deal with the consequences."

Lucen snorted. "Sounds like a lecture to me."

Varik left without another word.

Lucen stayed on the field for a while, breathing in the cold air, the frost crunching under his boots as he paced.

The system pinged again.

[New Combat Data Recorded]

[Skill Growth Accelerated]

—

Lucen leaned back in the creaky chair across from the mission desk, flipping through the paper slip the clerk had handed him. The guild reception smelled faintly of coffee, ink, and something fried, probably whatever the cafeteria downstairs was serving for breakfast.

"You’re sure this isn’t a setup?" he asked without looking up.

The clerk, a wiry guy with a patchy beard and a shirt that had seen better years, shrugged. "It’s a solo rank B. Hardly worth anyone’s time to set you up."

Lucen’s eyes flicked over the quest details, [Eliminate: Dungeon Core Aberration], location, two sectors over, mid-size mana breach. "B rank, huh? Sounds like I’ll be back in time for lunch."

"That’s the idea," the clerk said, bored. He stamped the slip with a dull thud. "Sign here, take it or leave it."

Lucen signed, pushing the paper back. "What’s the pay?"

"Eight thousand."

Lucen blinked slowly. "For a dungeon cleanup?"

The clerk scratched his neck. "The place has been unstable for a while. No one wants to go alone. You take it, you keep the hazard pay."

Lucen pocketed the mission slip, already calculating. ’Eight grand for a two-hour job. Either I’m lucky or there’s something in there that’ll try to chew my face off.’ He smiled faintly. ’Either way, profit.’

—

The breach was in the basement of an abandoned commercial block. The whole place reeked of mildew and stale air, with broken glass crunching under his boots as he walked. It was quiet enough to hear his own breathing, but the silence had that heavy, wrong quality dungeons always brought.

A shimmer in the far corner marked the entrance, like heat ripples in the middle of winter. Lucen approached, one hand on the hilt of his sword.

[Dungeon Detected]

[Estimated Threat Level: Low–Moderate]

[Optional Objective: Clear Without Revealing System Advantages — Reward: +20% XP]

Lucen grinned. ’They’re really dangling XP bonuses like I’m not going to take them.’

The instant he stepped through the breach, the air changed, warmer, damper, and thick with that faint metallic tang of mana. The "floor" was moss-covered stone, slick underfoot. Water dripped somewhere in the dark.

He held the sword loosely in his right hand, left hand ready to draw mana at a moment’s notice. The system’s map flickered in the corner of his vision, not that he needed it for something this small.

First contact came fast, a skittering in the shadows, followed by something the size of a large dog lunging into the dim light. Its carapace gleamed wet, mandibles snapping.

Lucen stepped aside, blade slicing upward in a smooth motion. The thing split cleanly in two before it hit the ground.

’One swing. This really is B rank?’

He frowned but kept moving.

Two more creatures came, then five, but none lasted more than a few seconds. He didn’t even bother with big flourishes, clean cuts, short bursts of mana, and move on.

By the third chamber, the tunnel widened into a half-collapsed hall. Broken stone pillars leaned at awkward angles, moss glowing faintly on the walls. And in the center, the core.

Except it wasn’t the usual smooth crystal. This one had jagged black growths crawling over it, pulsing like they were alive.

Lucen slowed, eyes narrowing. ’That’s new.’

The system pinged.

[Warning: Aberrant Core Detected]

[Core will spawn boss entity upon damage]

’Oh good. Lunch is going to be late.’

He stepped forward, grip tightening on the sword. As soon as the tip touched the crystal, the black growths convulsed, and the floor shook hard enough to knock dust from the ceiling.

A shape burst from the core, not animal, not insect. A humanoid figure, twice his height, with skin like molten stone and eyes that glowed a sharp, sick green. It didn’t roar. It just moved.

And fast.

Lucen ducked under the first swing, heat rolling off its molten fists as they smashed into the ground. He rolled to the side, slicing at its leg, the blade barely left a mark.

’Alright. No clean cuts. Guess we’re doing this the loud way.’

The monster turned, swinging a backhand that forced him to leap back or lose teeth. The impact cracked the stone floor where he’d been standing.

Lucen darted in again, this time letting a surge of mana flow into the blade. The steel glowed faintly, not enough to scream "SSS-rank monster slayer," just enough to bite into molten rock.

The leg gave way with a crunch and a hiss of steam. The creature staggered but didn’t fall, bringing both fists down toward him.

Lucen braced the sword overhead, absorbing the impact before kicking off and slashing across its chest in the same motion. The green light in its eyes flared.

[Boss Health: 73%]

[Environmental Stability: Decreasing]

’Great. Timer’s ticking.’

The thing lunged again, but this time Lucen didn’t dodge, he stepped into the swing, driving the sword up under its arm, twisting hard. Mana surged, molten stone cracked, and a deep fissure split up its side.

The monster shrieked, the first sound it had made, and stumbled back toward the core. Lucen didn’t give it the chance to recover. One burst forward, one clean overhead cut, and the head came off.

The body hit the floor with a hiss, molten cracks dimming to black.

The core shattered behind it, the black growths crumbling to dust.

[Boss Defeated]

[Mission Complete]

[XP Gained: +3,200]

[Optional Objective Complete — Bonus Applied]

[Total XP: +3,840]

[Credits Received: 8,000]

Lucen blew out a breath, wiping the blade on a scrap of fallen moss. "And that’s why I charge hazard pay."

—

Reporting back was routine enough, until the clerk looked up from the stamped form.

"That’s... fast."

Lucen shrugged. "Boss wasn’t chatty."

The clerk blinked. "There was a boss?"

Lucen kept his tone casual. "Core was corrupted. Took care of it."

The guy frowned, flipping the slip over like it might have hidden notes. "You weren’t even gone two hours."

"Like I said. Not chatty."

He signed the form, took the credit transfer, and pocketed it with a faint smile. ’Easiest eight grand I’ve made in a while. Well... not counting the part where a lava man tried to turn me into soup.’

—

The train car swayed gently as it cut through the outskirts, steel wheels humming against the tracks. The smell of stale coffee and machine oil drifted from somewhere near the front of the carriage.

Lucen sat with his legs stretched out across the opposite seat, hood pulled low. Varik, across from him, was scrolling through something on his tablet, probably mission notes, without looking up.

"You didn’t tell me it was a crimson-class breach," Lucen said, tapping his boot against the seat edge.

"I did," Varik replied flatly, still reading.

"You said ’probably red mana activity.’ That’s not the same thing."

Varik’s eyes flicked up, calm and unreadable. "It’s the same thing if you’re me."

’And there’s the humble charm.’ Lucen smirked slightly.

Varik set the tablet aside. "It’s still nothing you can’t handle."

Lucen raised a brow. "That’s a cute way of saying ’this thing could pancake half the city if we ignore it.’"