Lucifer: Godless Reawakening

Name: Hopdopper

Danger Level: Class D

Known Skills: Combat, Double Leap

Appearance:

Tall, lean humanoid monsters with long, spring-loaded legs and narrow torsos. Their skin is a muted green, stretched tight over wiry muscle. Both arms end in curved, blade-like pincers capable of piercing armor.

Notes:

Hopdoppers favor speed over strength, attacking in coordinated leaps to overwhelm prey. They rely heavily on instinct, vocal howls, and pack reactions during combat.

....

William was currently surrounded by those green tall monsters whose appearance was quite menacing in the dark.

Their eyes gave an eerie illumination as they glared at William from different sides, ready to lunge at him.

William hadn't taken a single hit from them however, he knew if he lowered his guard once, they would not miss the opportunity

If he was facing mass destruction and brute strength on the last floor, then this time, his opponents were fast, precise, and lethal. They wouldn't allow him to take a few minutes to strategize.

*DHAK*

Two thick paws struck him from the left, stopping just ten inches away from his arm by his telekinetic hand.

Another one charged from the right, William's defense was the same.

The third jumped from the front—leaving him with no option but to push the two earlier attacks away and jump back, kicking the ground and slashing his hand at the same time.

*SQUELCH*

William frowned when his attack landed and the left pincer of the monster was severed, red thick blood splattering on the ground. But...it didn't stop.

"Guh-tch." William defended against the incoming pincer by shooting his hand forward and holding the joint of its arm—but the monster's blade was long enough to pierce his shoulder.

The monster pushed him, trying to gain dominance.

William sensed two more presences approaching from the sides again.

He snarled and rolled on his back before kicking the hopper in the air.

The other two monsters continued to charge, regardless of what happened to their ally.

William scoffed before curling his legs and springing up—leaping through the air before landing out of their reach.

The two hoppers turned to look at him—but their vision suddenly shifted as their heads were severed from their bodies.

William grinned. His control of Cleave is getting better and better.

*STEP* *STEP*

But...much to his shock, the two beheaded hoppers didn't stop...even though their heads were severed and charged at William.

The blond one could feel more of them charging forward, surrounding him.

He couldn't discern what was happening but this was not normal.

....

[In the common hall]

"And here comes another twist. Remind me when was the last time you beheaded a monster and it still continues to attack you?" Natalie asked, a little exasperated by the absurdity of the battle.

Gizel hummed, "If I am not wrong...those Hoppers aren't in their control."

Dorothy's brows slowly elevated, "What do you mean?"

Gizel explained, "Hopdoppers are more combat-oriented. They would rather fight with their lives on the line than try to swamp their enemy and just pierce their skull. They aren't fighting to their best capabilities."

Emma nodded, "Something is controlling them."

Natalie stiffened and turned back to the screen...what in the world was lurking in the shadows that could control so many beings?

....

William twisted mid-air and landed hard, boots grinding against the stone.

Three Hoppers were already there. They were close.

Normally, this was where they would howl—shrill, sharp cries meant to disorient prey. Normally, one would hesitate, another would circle, a third would leap too early.

But none of them did.

They moved. Not to surround him or dominate the battlefield...they just charged. Like a mindless creature.

No roar tore from their throats. No sound at all, other than claws scraping stone as they charged in a straight line, blades angled with unnatural precision.

William flicked his wrist.

One Hopper's torso split cleanly down the middle, Cleave slicing through green flesh and bone alike. Its upper half slid off—yet the legs didn't falter. They kept running, momentum unbroken, arms still swinging as if nothing had been severed.

"…Tch."

William stepped aside at the last instant. The body rushed past him, slammed into the wall, and only then collapsed.

Another came in low. Too low.

William jumped—and immediately frowned.

It didn't adjust.

Any normal beast would have corrected its angle, leapt higher, or at least slowed. This one didn't. It passed beneath him, missed entirely, and crashed into the stone behind.

Not a single snarl of frustration followed.

Another wave followed, more than five Hoppers this time charged at him, enraged and blood thirsty.

But their thirst felt shallow, as if not actually their own.

William bit his lip and extended his right hand.

A single second of concentration before a Droplet was shot.

**DOOOOOOM**

The small battalion of Hoppers was instantly exploded, squashed against the walls, or just erupted where they stood.

But it continued. As if there was an endless stock of these monsters.

William blocked one blade with telekinesis, snapped another Hopper's neck mid-charge—and still, there was no reaction.

No scream.

No howl echoes through the floor.

Just the sound of flesh tearing and bodies hitting stone.

His brows knit together.

This wasn't combat.

This was execution—on both sides.

William spun, Cleave flashing again, heads rolling across the ground. The bodies continued forward for several steps before collapsing, limbs still twitching, fingers clawing at empty air.

William chewed his lower lip as he continued to battle the incoming monsters one after another.

Their numbers were reduced to dust or sliced into several pieces, but none of that alerted the other beasts to make a better or even a different strategy.

It was always the same.

As if something was commanding them to behave like that.

A single brain...ruling over so many minds.

A slow grin stretched William's lips as he muttered under his breath,

"Found you."

The battle he had fought until now wasn't a struggle to overcome the challenge, rather, he was prolonging the battle for a definite reason.

Neuro link.

Established.

°°°°°°°°°°°

A/N:- I hope you guys remember what Neuro Link does and the requirements to establish it.

Thanks for reading and I will possibly upload five chapters on the 25th. May you have a good vacation ahead.