Catching the other two should be enough to evolve skills too.
I was making such plans when.
I sensed a presence.
Survival Instinct didn’t activate though.
I reflexively turned on the map function of the crystal plate.
But that might not have been necessary.
Because the other party had no intention of hiding their presence.
“Knock knock.”
They knocked.
But that knock made me pause.
Anyone would be startled seeing someone knocking with both mouth and hands simultaneously.
“I am Zhanil Fezhe.”
The appearing human was the one who had fled like a rat.
We clearly weren’t on good terms.
The human who introduced himself wore a smile across his face.
“Be at ease. I came for friendship…”
Did he think I could understand words?
In contrast to the smile on his face, his whole body was covered in blood.
Seemed he came after a fierce battle.
The dissonance between his appearance and expression was unpleasantly strange.
Should I say he’s like a madman?
The madman stopped in place instead of approaching immediately and stared at me.
I wondered if he was challenging me to a staring contest.
The human closed and opened their eyes with careful slowness.
Blink, blink.
For a moment I was dumbfounded not understanding why.
Then a thought flashed through my mind.
Cat kiss.
When meeting a new cat, to become friends, making eye contact and slowly blinking like that.
Why do that to me?
Frozen in surprise, I stayed still even as he slowly approached.
He seemed to take that as a good sign, nodding slightly to himself.
With growing awareness, I realized he was dragging something across the ground behind him.
He had taken off his dark cloak and carefully wrapped something in its folds, creating a mysterious bundle that he pulled along.
“Great snake. As a token of friendship, I bring tribute.”
He slowly placed the bundle before me and stepped back.
It looks heavy.
An ominous feeling brushed past my scales.
No way, no way…
“Won’t you accept this food and receive me as your friend?”
I cut off his carefully enunciated words.
Raising the dagger Dawn.
Slash, I cut the bundle.
Thud.
Inside was meat.
Meat that was once a chimera.
“Haha, since you seemed to hunt chimeras… I nearly died catching it.”
And also my precious experience points chunk.
“Please enjoy it, and about the way out of here…”
“Saaak!”
You experience point thief-!
Though killing this human would probably be much less beneficial than catching chimeras.
I was so angry I felt like crying.
I quickly operated the crystal plate.
Looking for life signals.
None.
Can’t see any.
Except for this area, only two show up.
What was in the bundle was No.6 chimera ‘Pigman’.
The pig-like chimera that this stupid human killed and dragged here.
“Saaak!”
“Uh, uh why are you like this. Did you not like the gift?”
The human was flustered.
I swear I was about to shoot a beam at his stupid face.
Or slice off his neck with sword technique.
“I don’t know what’s wrong but sorry, I’m sorry!”
“Saak!”
“I’ll give you anything, should I catch another chimera?”
Don’t need it, just die!
“Wait.”
Pelerian stopped my rage.
Is he advocating mercy?
“Kill that human a bit later, look at this.”
‘What is it!’
The blinking white dots on the map are life signals.
One of them was approaching this control room.
‘Uh…’
But that unnatural speed was strange, defying what seemed possible.
It was almost enough to make one think the map itself was broken, unable to properly track such uncanny movement.
Leaping past the third floor stairs at once, instantly crossing the fourth floor plaza.
And the following full sprint like an arrow being shot.
Toward here, the control room.
Bang.
At first such sounds were heard from far away.
Bang, bang.
Before realizing what the sound was, it clearly got closer.
Bang, bang, bang, bang.
Getting closer I could tell.
It was the sound of striking the ground.
The sound of stretching knees after stepping with four feet.
Then sticking to walls and jumping again, then more walls, sometimes the ceiling.
Chimera No.8, Dancer.
If this running toward us is dance, what would you call that dance?
Jumping spider dance?
That’s the kind of name it needs.
The chimera with four legs pounced at me.
Clang!
Instinctively my sword shot out first, steel singing before thought could follow.
Maybe I can call myself a proud swordsman now too, that warmth in my chest saying yes.
But it wasn’t thunk- or slice- but clang!
A sound that couldn’t come from cutting flesh.
Because Dancer blocked my sword with its shin.
The skin was cut but the bone wasn’t.
How could a body be so hard?
For a moment our eyes seemed to meet.
Interesting. It has no eyes.
That bright red mouth spread in what looks like a smile somehow seems to be looking at me.
The human charged at such a creature.
Kagak!
“I’ll help!”
The human was quite good too.
He had already drawn daggers in both hands and swung wildly.
The chimera doesn’t seem very hard except for its shins. Seeing blades sink in.
It backed away with a whoosh then bent its knees.
And.
Bang-!
With a sound like a gunshot it bounced up.
Dancer instantly hung from the ceiling.
‘This one is strong…’
Probably the strongest among the chimeras encountered so far.
There’s an overwhelming gap even compared to No.7 Dullahan.
Bang!
It bounced its body again.
I didn’t respond. Or rather couldn’t.
The human took the hit instead of me.
“Kuek!”
The human got hit in the stomach and rolled back several times.
But seems he protected his life.
A chimera with incredible movement.
‘Seems to have a special skill.’
I focused my eyes to examine it.
──────────────
[Test Flesh No.8 Dancer lv90]
[Traits]
[Swift], [Spider]
[Skills]
…
──────────────
Ah, that skill.
I almost unconsciously drooled.
Not neglecting Rolling practice was a good choice.
Thanks to that I can use Crown of Steal now.
Bang!
The moment it rushed at me and.
「Stealing Elastic Burst lv3」
I stole its skill happened simultaneously.
