CHAPTER 60: ANOTHER REASON

The sound of crashing water filled every corner of the cave where Lanz had decided to pass out.

One eye cracked open, sluggish and annoyed, before the other eventually followed.

His blurry vision cleared just enough to reveal the jagged ceiling of the cave looming above him.

He let out a groggy sigh, then dragged himself upright with the kind of motivation that yelled "I would rather not be conscious right now."

A long yawn slipped out, the kind that seemed to stretch his soul more than his jaw, and his body followed it up with a stiff stretch that cracked his back in protest.

He blinked a couple of times, still half convinced he was dreaming, then turned his head toward the entrance of the cave.

What greeted him was the sight of a dark sky outside, sprinkled faintly with stars.

"Oh, it’s night already," he muttered, pushing himself to his feet with sluggish effort.

He slapped the dust off his pants with two lazy smacks, then shuffled toward the mouth of the cave.

Out of the corner of his eye, something caught his attention — light, glaringly bright, and absolutely out of place considering the fact that the dungeon was very much supposed to be asleep right now.

Suspicion tugged at him, enough to slow his steps.

He leaned forward cautiously, inching closer until his head pushed past the curtain of falling water.

That was when he finally got a good look at it.

Standing there was a deer-like beast, its small horns faintly catching the light while its entire body seemed to glow with an unnatural, pale-white shimmer.

Wisps of smoke curled and twisted around its form, drifting lazily as though the creature carried its own strange atmosphere.

Even its hooves radiated a golden glow with every subtle step.

’What the hell is that thing,’ Lanz thought, squinting at it like the answer might magically pop up above its head.

The beast, however, didn’t seem to notice him.

It tilted its head to the left, then to the right, almost like it was checking if the coast was clear.

It gave off the vibe of a creature that didn’t particularly want to be interrupted, which made Lanz’s presence behind the waterfall all the more ironic.

Because yes, technically, it was scouting for rude individuals spying on it, and yes, unfortunately, Lanz was one of them.

*Cough* Totally not him though.

The deer-like beast moved with an almost elegant calm as it stepped closer to the plunge pool, that strange glowing smoke still trailing behind it like.

The light around its white fur seemed to shift with every step, and for a brief second, Lanz couldn’t tell if it was beautiful or unsettling... maybe both.

It lowered its head, slow and deliberate, then began to drink from the edge of the waterfall’s pool.

Each movement literally looked too clean, as if the beast knew exactly how graceful it appeared while doing something as basic as drinking water.

’Whoa. It lowkey looks kinda majestic,’ Lanz admitted silently, narrowing his eyes.

His admiration, however, lasted all of two seconds before his priorities kicked in. ’I wonder how much EXP this thing will give me.’

The Aged Blade Fragment slipped neatly into his hand, its weight suddenly familiar, and he took in a breath before starting to move forward.

His steps were quiet and careful, every muscle tensed.

The outcome depended entirely on this one approach.

He raised his weapon just enough, lining it with the idea of his first strike, already picturing the glowing system prompt that might follow if he managed to kill it.

And then, naturally, the universe reminded him who he was.

Out of all the possible surfaces, rocks, dirt, and empty space in this cave, his foot had to find the one thing guaranteed to ruin everything — a dry, f*cking brittle stick.

Snap.

’...Of course,’ Lanz thought bitterly, already preparing himself for whatever disaster was about to land on him just because fate had a personal vendetta.

He glanced down at the offending stick still crushed under his foot, then lifted his eyes back toward the beast.

"F*ck," he muttered under his breath, deciding there was no point in pretending anymore.

Without wasting another second, he triggered [Phantom Stride], his body surging forward in a blur as he lunged straight toward where the glowing deer had been standing.

The problem though, was that the beast had already decided to be a pain.

Even before Lanz could close the distance, its form flickered, and in the blink of an eye, it vanished.

"Wait— what?"

His dash cut short as he skidded to a stop, blade at the ready, eyes darting frantically across the area.

He turned left, then right, scanned upward towards the night sky, even whipped his gaze behind him just in case the thing decided to pull an Undertaker.

But still nothing.

Suddenly, out of the corner of his eye, something caught his attention.

A faint glow flickered at the edge of his vision, and when he turned, there it was again — the same beast, calmly stepping out of the shadows and balancing itself on a tree limb like it had all the time in the world.

Lanz’s grip tightened on his weapon.

Instinct screamed at him to activate [Phantom Stride] again and close the distance before it could pull another disappearing act.

But, of course, before he could even commit, the creature blinked out of existence.

It reappeared a moment later, this time perched on another tree limb about five meters away from the previous one, as if mocking him with the distance.

Then it vanished again. And again. And again.

Each time it showed itself only long enough for him to catch a glimpse before it slipped back into nothingness, cycling between the branches.

"Man, f*ck that sh*t," Lanz hissed under his breath, his patience already burned through.

Without hesitation, he dismissed the blade back into his inventory, the weapon vanishing with a dull flicker.

If the beast wanted to play hide-and-seek instead of being a proper source of EXP, then he was done wasting his time.

Lanz let out a long, drawn-out sigh.

"That b*tch really went straight toward the dense forest," he muttered, glaring in the same direction ’cause that sh*t had personally insulted him on the way out.

The thought lingered in his head for a moment before another, far less comforting memory clicked into place. "Oh, right. Isn’t that where that Thornback Leaper hangs around too?"

The image of the p*ssy flashed in his mind, and he immediately shoved it aside with a shake of his head.

Nope. Not today. He wasn’t about to ruin his already crappy mood by imagining the f*cker’s smug expression.

Instead, he decided to shift priorities.

With a casual shrug, he stripped off his clothes, leaving only his black boxers, because duh. 😑

He tossed his clothes neatly into his inventory, the system flickering as they vanished from sight.

Once that was handled, he walked back toward the edge of the plunge pool.

Without a second thought, he leapt in, water crashing up around him as he sank beneath the surface.

He stayed underwater for a few seconds, completely still, the muffled silence pressing against his ears and the tightness building in his lungs.

It was calm in a way, but also heavy enough to remind him he couldn’t stay there forever.

Then, with a slow and deliberate motion, he pushed himself upward.

His head broke the surface, his chin tilting back as streams of water slipped off his skin in sheets.

He didn’t even mean for it to look dramatic, but somehow it did, like the pool had decided to turn him into its centerpiece.

Fwosh.

The breath he released came out like a sigh, his chest expanding and collapsing as he let the air refill his body.

He ran a hand through his hair, dragging his fingers back until the strands were slicked neatly against his scalp, water dripping from the tips.

The droplets slid downward in thin trails, cutting across his neck, rolling over his collarbone, and tracing their way along the lines of his chest before finally vanishing into the pool.

His eyes narrowed as he tilted his head toward the dense forest in the distance, expression tightening as the memory of the glowing deer-like beast and that leaper came back.

The momentary calm of the plunge pool gave way to that creeping reminder of where it had gone.

"I guess that’s another reason to go and visit that place," he muttered, his voice low, the words almost swallowed by the sound of the waterfall behind him.

His chest still rose and fell from the breath he had been holding, his tone caught somewhere between irritation and determination, though his gaze carried the weight of both.

End of Chapter 60.

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ALT SYSTEM — USER PROFILE: ZERO

Level: 15

EXP: 39 / 150

Next Reward: Quick Sever

Global System Tracking: DISABLED

World Rank Association: UNLINKED

Stats:

STR: 20 | AGI: 10 (Affinity) | VIT: 5 | DEX: 5 | INT: 17 | WIS: 5

[Available Stat Points: 0]

[Derived Stat — MANA: 90 / 90]

Skills:

[Crimson Slash Lv. 1]

[Phantom Stride Lv. 2]

[Instinctive Blade Lv.1]

[Predictive Guard Lv.1]

[Skill Fusion Menu: Active]

[Dev Tree: Tier 0 Access Granted]

[Developer Node – Fusion Core Anchor: Active]

[Skill Slot Available — Unassigned]

Equipment:

Aged Blade Fragment (??? Rarity) (Bound)

Training Ring (+1 VIT)

Bag :)

Ring of Genorya - ???