Stepping through the entrance, Jake felt the air around him become heavier. While not debilitating, it was like he was wearing weights on his body. With each movement, the air itself seemed to push against him, but not by a lot. Slowly, the sunlight from the entrance began to fade. As shadows began to encroach on his sight, he began to search through his bag. Pulling out a flashlight, he flipped it on, the bulb coming to life. Pointing it forward, it illuminated the path in front of him. Once this light was secured, he continued down the rocky path. His footsteps echoed against the cave walls, his breath cutting through the silence.

'Better than looking through sewers,' he thought. He wouldn't be having to deal with the smell of human waste, for one. Nor did he have to exactly look for anyone or anything in particular. Instead, all he had to do was reach a target area and kill it, alongside everything in his way.

Simpler, but a rather significant improvement.

As he ventured deeper into the dungeon, something caught his eye. One of the stones in the walls seemed to be glowing. Turning off his flashlight, the path in front of him was painted with a bright cyan glow. Patches of that light littered the walls, painting everything a faint cyan.

'With Luminore around, guess I don't need the flashlight,' he thought. He tossed the flashlight back into his bag before continuing deeper into the lit cave. As he moved forward, he noticed something. The gashes on the wall, they seemed..sharper. The ones at the entrance looked wild and frenzied. These looked focused, even deliberate.

'Intelligent. Has capability of creating tools. Kobolds and Lizardmen, considering the shifts in the height.'

Now sure of what exactly his enemies were, he continued deeper into the cave. A firm grip on his pistol, the cave around him began to expand as he got closer to the exit. When he got closer, he heard something that made him pause. The sound of hisses and growls.

'About a dozen of them, at least.'

Reaffirming his grip on the pistol, he poked his head into the next room. In it, over a dozen Kobolds stood there, wielding a variety of weapons. interspersed between them sat Great Lizards, each one the size of a large dog. As he watched the creatures intermingle, he shifted his grip on his pistol. He closed his eyes as he began to tap into a familiar sensation. As he did, a simple command appeared in his mind.

Focus.

He felt the world come to a crawl. The chatter from the other room faded away. Color drained from the world around him, the cyan glow now a full gray. Stepping into the next room, he brought his pistol to the head of a nearby Kobold. Pulling the trigger, he then turned the gun onto the other monsters before firing. With each pull of the trigger, a bolt of energy flew towards their target, dragging through the air as if in water.

Once color came back to the world around him, he watched as their heads burst open, painting the cave red. Holstering the pistol in his waistband, he walked over to the nearest monster. A Kobold, its size no bigger than that of a small child, laid in front of him. He knelt down next to the corpse before pulling out his dagger. He then shoved the blade into the carcass’ stomach before splitting it open in a single motion. Shoving his hand into the now exposed organs, he began to shuffle through them. As he did, he felt his fingers brush against something hardened. It was small, no bigger than a golf ball. Yet, it seemed to still thrum with life, the feeling of static traveling through his fingers. He wrapped his fingers around the lump before ripping it out. Shaking off the blood and viscera, he opened his palm to see what he grabbed.

‘So this is what a Magos Core looks like,’ he thought as he inspected the lump in his hand. A mix of hardened flesh and softened bone, it seemed to shift and warp in his hand. At one moment, it was as if a chunk of meat was in his hand, only for it to be like a jagged rock the next. ‘Its description as solidified unstable mana is accurate, at least.’

Pulling out a small pouch from his backpack, he tossed the core into it before clipping it onto his hip. Once he was sure that it was secure, he began to make quick work of the corpse. He slashed incisions into the skin of a carcass before grabbing part of the cut skin. Securing his grip on a loose piece of skin, he then peeled it away, the sound like that of tearing wallpaper. He pulled the last of the Kobolds' hide off of its body before tossing it aside, leaving a pile of raw muscle. Rolling up the fresh rawhide, he shoved it into his bag before making his way over to another corpse. As he went through the same process with each corpse, he felt the air go thick with the scent of blood. Blackened ichor tainted his sleeves and hands as the scent of sulfur seeped through his mask. Pushing the smell aside, he shoved the last bit of rawhide into his bag. He slung the pack over his shoulder before making his way of the room.

As he went deeper into the dungeon, he paused as he felt the air shift. It wasn't the faint gnawing he felt when he entered. Rather, it felt jagged, seeming to want to rip into his body. Shifting his grip on his dagger, he made his way over to the next room, slowing his pace. Once he was close enough, he poked his head out, scanning over the enemies within. Over a dozen Kobolds stood at attention, weapons at the ready. Their scales were different from the dull gray of the previous room. Instead, they were a deep bronze, gleaming under the cyan light. Yet, it wasn't what caught his attention.

Standing a head taller than the other Kobolds, its scales were a crimson red, gleaming in the cyan light. Scars littered its muscled frame, each one rough and brutal. Bone-like protrusions covered its body, forming a sort of armor.

‘A Ravager,’ he thought, stepping back as he rethought his attack. He was originally going to kill at range, maneuvering around the group and firing into them. With the Ravager now being in play, though, that would have to change. ‘I know how it fights, so it would be rather simple. The Kobolds would be a minor obstacle, but manageable.'

Focus.

As the world turned monotone, he sprang into action. Bolting into the room, he dashed towards the nearest Kobold. He slammed the blade into its throat before twisting his body and ripping it out. Following the momentum, he slashed the throat of another Kobold, the blood taking a deep red. Dodging an attack from a spear, he parried another swing of an ax before directing it into the ground. Taking advantage of the gap, he stabbed the blade into its chin. He kicked the corpse into a group of its kindred before ripping the ax out from the ground. Not wasting a moment, he ripped the ax out from the ground before digging it into the shoulder of another.

As he cut down each of the Kobolds in front of him, he gauged the Ravager’s reaction. Yet, it stood still as it watched its kin get cut down. Its gaze stuck to him, following his movements. It was like it was gauging him.

Cutting down the last of the soldiers, he turned to face the Ravager. Its eyes bored deep into his body, wisps of what looked like smoke emerging from its body. Silence reigned between the two of them, with the sole noise being that of breath. As the seconds started to pass, he felt the air surrounding them get sharper. It dug into his skin, as if the air itself wanted to rip him apart. 

Suddenly, a roar left the Ravager's throat, echoing through the stone. It rushed towards him, talons at the ready. Jake jumped back from a swipe of its claws before ducking, the earth behind him now scarred. In a burst of speed, Jake slid between its legs before grabbing a spear from the ground. Twisting his body, he stabbed the spear into the creature's thigh. It dug deep between the bony plating, painting it a deep crimson. Letting out a roar of anger, it turned to lunge at him, hand curled up into a fist. Dodging the strike, Jake then slammed the ax into its arm, the jagged edge digging into flesh. Growling at him, the Ravager turned before swinging at him. In response, Jake jumped back, putting distance between them. Once he landed, he shifted his body before lunging forward. Picking up a blade from the ground, he swung at the Ravager's body, only for it to move out of his range. 

He ducked under a swing before launching a kick into its gut, knocking it back. Seeing this, he took the initiative. Closing the distance, he stabbed the blade into its body, the jagged edge digging into its abdomen. Twisting the blade, he ripped it out before jumping back, dodging another swing at his face. Putting some distance between them, the air suddenly turned against him. It dug deep into his body, ripping through his muscle under his skin. It was like blades dug into his body, as if trying to shatter each one.

As he began to mute out the pain, he felt his body jerk, moving him out of the way. Not even a second later, something slammed into the stone where he once stood, shattering it. As the dust settled, he saw claw marks that dug deep into the wall. Yet, it wasn't as if something broke through the stone, ripping through it. Rather, the marks were clean, as if a sharp knife through paper.

'So, that's what a Skill looks like in person.’

Jumping back, he felt the air in front of him all but tear open as the Ravager swung at him, talons mere inches from his face. bringing up his guard, he felt himself get knocked back as a hammer-like strike slammed into him. Shifting his body, he bolted forward, blades at the ready. He ducked under a swing before stabbing one of the blades into the beast. Taking the advantage, he stabbed the other blade into its arm. He wasted little time as he twisted the blade before dragging it through its arm, ripping it open. Not wasting any time, he grasped the other blade before ripping it out and stabbing into the beast's neck. He watched as the Ravager's body went limp, its eyes going dark.

Pulling the blade out of the now still corpse, he turned his attention to the new weapon in his hand. About the length of his forearm, the blade seemed less 'forged' and more 'shaped'. The edges were rough, seeming a bit more like a saw blade than a knife. Blood coated the rough iron and wrapped leather, all but slick in his hands. Yet, it was rather balanced, never seeming to be too heavy or needing him to readjust his grip.

Turning his attention to the corpses, he went over to the nearest one before getting to work. He began to cut into the corpse, harvesting what he could. Once he did so, he tossed the carcass aside before moving onto the next one and repeating the process. As he went from corpse to corpse, he found himself standing over the Ravager’s body. Stabbing the blade into its body, he then dragged the edge across its body, splitting it open. He knelt down before shoving his hand into its entrails, looking for the core.

As he had his hand in the entrails of the beast, he felt the familiar static brush against his finger. Yet, something accompanied it, making him pause. It was sharp, seeming almost to dig into the bone of his fingers. It wasn’t painful, per se, but it was notable. He gripped both of the items before ripping them out. Opening his hand, he found two items sitting in his palm. One was the same Magos Core that he had seen before, with it being slightly larger than the ones before. Putting the Core in his pouch, he then turned his attention to the item in his palm.

No bigger than his index, it looked like a piece of sharpened bone or broken off wood. Scars and cuts littered its face, with only small parts of it not scarred. As he rolled it between his fingers, it seemed to dig into his hand, the feel akin to a dull saw. 

‘Never thought I'd see a Skill Shard,’ he thought as he examined it under the light. While not rare, they were items that required a decent amount of luck to find. It was only in certain dungeons that they could be found on a consistent basis. Even then, it was often the lower ones, which only gave passive effects. To find one that was an active effect, especially one so early, was rather important. And considering what he saw and remembered about Ravagers, there was only one skill that it was.

'Infusion is going to be an issue, though.'

Shaking his head, he pushed the thought aside as he put the Shard in the pouch. He could deal with that later.

Picking up one of the weapons on the floor, he picked up an ax before giving it a few swings. It was rather light, but still had a decent amount of heft. Putting the ax in his belt loop, he made his way towards the exit. He still had one room to clear and, considering rankings, it would be the most important.

'Time to deal with the boss.'