I Shall Pervert the Heavens

After killing the fifth rat, his flame started to get slightly warmer, causing a little more damage by burning the monsters, and of course, being a more lethal weapon for Zach. He could fight more than one rat and survive, but he chose not to. He wanted to test the flame carefully and use each fight as practice to refine control over it, rather than overwhelm himself. Using his hearing and the enhanced sensitivity he had developed over the month, Zach could differentiate groups of rats from isolated ones, making movement and hunting through the sewers much easier.

Feeling that he had already hunted enough and had tested his skill thoroughly, Zach returned to the starting point and followed the tunnel that everyone else had entered using the light footprints to trace them.

After almost an hour of walking, Zach spotted the group resting in a corner while a teenage girl healed the chubby man Zach had argued with before they entered the portal.

When Wendy saw Zach approach, her eyes lit up and she had to restrain herself from running towards him. Now at last, a weight lifted from her heart as their chances of survival rose, to her a demon feared and respected by others just show how strong he is and what else do they need in such situation if not someone strong?

"Did you discover anything, boy?" the scarred man asked as he smoked a cigarette and waited for the others to rest.

Zach looked at the group before answering and couldn't help raising an eyebrow when he noticed that only one of the teenagers had died. He had expected at least two to fall in their first battle. Well, seems luck was on their side, he thought, he even felt this was too different. Maybe it was because he wasn't the protagonist? After all if he was the one in such situation then more than half the teenagers would have died and maybe the changes in the dungeon would have been more drastic and deadly than this, after all every once in a thousand years events happens during protagonist coming.

Looking at the scarred man, Zach lost his disinterested gaze and made a serious face. "I found something out, and what I found was not at all pleasant."

The group tensed. Even those who didn't know much about this kind of dungeon already felt something was wrong. For some reason, it was much harder to kill these monsters than in a normal rank F dungeon.

"What's wrong, besides the monsters being more intelligent?" the scarred man asked, still smoking his cigarette.

So he noticed too? Zach thought, only slightly surprised that the man had picked up on such a subtle detail but still feeling like his line has been stolen but still he already had a backup line.

"In addition to their intelligence being slightly more developed, apparently they've also developed a method of communication. I think it has something to do with the King of Rats, maybe it has developed another way to order and control the rats with a ability, something like alpha of the group."

The scarred man nodded. He already had a similar theory, but hearing it confirmed unsettled him. He pressed further. "If this is true then... The battle we will face ahead of us will definitely not be easy like others."

"Shit…" the scarred man swore as he threw his cigarette like thing down in frustration.

The rest of the group stared, confused. Apparently only Zach and the scarred man understood what was being said. If even Harry's endless arrogance hadn't made the man lose his temper before, yet this news did, then something serious was unfolding.

"What's happening?" Wendy asked softly and a bit timid, something Zach found amusing and cute.

The scarred man let out a long breath before speaking. "Three years ago, there were rumours carried by travelers and town criers about a group that entered a Rank F Fortress. The monsters inside were far more intelligent than usual. After five of the group died, the survivors tried to return to the portal to declare the mission a failure. But the portal never reopened."

At that point, the group had panicked, until the father of one of the boys—who had accompanied his son on his first stronghold—took charge. He led them to the boss's room. But what they found was a chief several times stronger than any ordinary one. Their group of ten was cut down to just one: the only survivor of what became known as a "Super Fortress."

"And how do you know that story so well?" Amy asked with trembling hands, already fearing the answer.

"Because it was during that raid that I lost my son… right in front of me," the scarred man said bitterly, gripping his wrist with the other hand.

One of the older, more experienced men, spoke up next. "Fortunately, this dungeon is of a lower grade than the one back then. The boss here won't be as overwhelming as the one from that time."

Hearing that, the group calmed down a little. Some were still shaken, like the chubby man being treated by Wendy, but overall, they accepted the truth: the only way out of this Super Fortress was to kill the Rat King. Any remaining disunity dissolved, especially since Harry, now far more afraid of death, decided to shut his mouth and stop stirring trouble.

After a short rest, the party moved on. The scarred man continued to lead while Zach acted as scout, his sharpened senses giving them the best chance of avoiding ambushes.

They encountered several groups of rats along the way, but these were handled easily. Even when five attacked at once, the coordinated strength of fourteen people was more than enough to put them down.

As they marched, trust between the two merged groups grew. Everyone conserved energy for the coming fight against the Rat King. Unlike the previous Super Fortress the scarred man had endured, this one had more manpower and weaker enemies. Victory, though not certain, felt far more possible.

Zach, however, made a frustrating discovery. He didn't gain experience points from rats killed by the group. The creatures gave so little Exp that, once divided among everyone, his share amounted to nothing. Even after more than twenty kills, his total had risen by barely three points.