CHAPTER 165: [SS-CLASS ABYSS SERPENT]

Ding.

Eli flinched. The sound was sharp, too loud, slicing through the heavy silence like a blade.

For a second, he thought he imagined it.

The timing was too perfect—too cruel. As if the system had waited for him to calm down, to process just how terrifying Kairo and Caelen truly were beyond their strength—before deciding to remind him that things could still get worse.

The system had been silent all this time. Not a single notification since it helped him break free from the octopus’s control. No guidance. No updates. Nothing.

And now—

Now it chose to speak.

Eli’s hands twitched, his chest tightening as he hesitated to look.

’What is it this time...?’ he thought, forcing himself to turn his gaze toward the glowing blue panel that had appeared in front of him.

His breath caught. His pulse skipped.

He froze.

"Eli."

Kairo’s voice broke through the silence. Flat. Cold. Detached. "How are you feeling?"

Eli didn’t answer. He couldn’t.

Because the words in front of him—the ones glowing faintly in the air—made his stomach drop.

[SYSTEM WARNING]

[S-CLASS] MINDSHROUD OCTOPUS has died.

[SS-CLASS] ABYSS SERPENT is coming.

Eli’s blood ran cold.

’I knew... we knew there was an SS-Class boss... but it’s coming?’ His breath quickened. ’It’s coming towards us? No, no, no—this can’t—’

The ground answered him.

The cavern shuddered violently, the water around them rippling in waves as pebbles and shards of stone rained from the ceiling.

Mio stumbled back, catching Zaira before she fell. "What’s happening?!"

"Is it... another monster?" Mel’s voice cracked.

"Don’t tell me it’s—"

"We have to move."

Kairo’s command sliced through the chaos, sharp and absolute.

But Eli barely heard it. His heartbeat was pounding too loud, echoing in his ears like war drums.

He could still see the notification hovering in front of him, bright and merciless.

’Why are you telling me this?’ he thought desperately. ’What do I get from this? What do you get from this? What’s your game now?’

And then—

The blue panel blinked again.

Ding.

Eli winced, his chest clenching tight as glowing words scrolled in front of his eyes—each line cold, mechanical, and far too calm for what it meant.

[SYSTEM WARNING]

PLAYER: [ELIONE NOA AHN]

TARGET: [KAIRO]

STATUS: CRITICAL WARNING.

CURRENT THREAT LEVEL: [SS-CLASS] ENTITY DETECTED — ABYSS SERPENT.

SURVIVAL CHANCE (ALL PARTY): 9%.

PREVIOUS SURVIVAL CHANCE: 14%.

[DANGER IS RAPIDLY INCREASING.]

Eli’s heart stuttered—then dropped straight into his stomach.

It wasn’t just fear this time. It was dread. Heavy, suffocating dread that coiled around his ribs and squeezed until breathing felt impossible.

The walls around them shook violently, stone cracking and breaking apart as torrents of water surged through the tunnel.

Kairo was already moving—fast, focused—his arm locked tight around Eli’s waist as he sprinted through the collapsing corridor.

The sound of rushing water drowned everything. The cave groaned like it was alive, the weight of it pressing down on them with every step.

Eli could barely process the chaos—the thunder of footsteps, the crashing waves, the flickering light from Kairo’s aura as it flared in short bursts. His hair was plastered to his forehead, slick with blood and seawater, but his grip never loosened.

Even now, Kairo wasn’t panicked.

Just cold. Controlled.

Mio and Mel were ahead of them, their steps splashing hard through the knee-deep water, Zaira close behind with her face pale but eyes sharp. They were exhausted, bleeding, but still moving. Still ready.

Eli’s gaze flicked from one to the other. They’ve changed.Mel’s vines were quicker now, sharper, responding to him like extensions of his body. Mio’s threads cut through debris as if they were part of the storm itself. Even Zaira’s illusions shimmered faintly, stabilizing the air around them.

They’d all leveled up. Evolved.

But none of that mattered.

Because the glowing number on the System panel—burning at the edge of Eli’s vision—said 9%.

Eli’s stomach churned. "Nine percent?" he breathed, barely audible over the roar of water. "You’re kidding me."

’How... how could it go down this fast? The S-Class alone nearly wiped us out—does that mean this thing... the SS-Class... is that much stronger?’

His pulse throbbed in his ears. Every thought came too fast, too loud.

Kairo shouldn’t have survived the last fight. None of them should have.

And now—this?

The screen’s light flickered against his trembling hands. ’System—what does that mean for us? What are you trying to tell me? Please...’

Silence.

No new messages. No updates. No help.

Only the low, rhythmic vibration in the ground growing stronger by the second.

Eli’s teeth clenched, frustration bubbling in his chest. ’You’re not going silent again. Not now. Not when we’re still in this hellhole!’

The tremors grew louder. Closer. The water vibrated beneath their feet like a living heartbeat.

Kairo must have felt it too—his steps slowed, his eyes narrowing as he glanced over his shoulder. "Eli," he said, voice cutting through the noise. "Is something coming?"

Eli blinked, realizing too late that he hadn’t said a word since the warning appeared.

He’d been too busy panicking.

Too busy thinking.

And now the danger was practically breathing down their necks.

He swallowed hard, forcing his voice out. "Yes," he whispered hoarsely. "A big one... it’s stronger. Kairo—it’s heading right towards us."

Kairo froze mid-step. The shift in his expression was subtle but sharp—his jaw tightening, eyes darkening as he turned to face Eli fully.

Behind them, Mio, Mel, and Zaira halted too, breathing hard.

"What do you mean it’s coming towards us?" Kairo asked, voice low but heavy.

Mel’s head snapped between them, eyes wide. "Wait, what’s going towards us?"

Zaira’s hands trembled as she looked around. The ceiling dripped. The air trembled. "Is that why the cave’s shaking?! Because it feels like it’s about to collapse on us!"

Eli’s eyes darted to the shifting water ahead. The ripples were growing stronger—no longer random.

A deep, steady rhythm pulsed beneath the surface, like a heartbeat echoing through the earth itself.

"I—"

Eli’s voice broke. He wanted to warn them. To yell. To tell them to run, to move, to get out—anything.

His headache was splitting open, every pulse screaming at him that something was close.

Too close.

But before he could speak—

Ding.

The familiar chime echoed through the cavern, soft yet deafening against the chaos.

Eli froze. His stomach dropped as glowing letters materialized before his eyes.

[SYSTEM NOTICE: ADDITIONAL MISSION ASSIGNED]