Beast Evolution Forge

Chapter 54 Dungeon 5

"How are you holding up?" Wren asked, defending against another attack. She could faintly sense where they were, but unlike her master, her senses fell short. Yenna could not sense anything at all, so she stayed behind Wren, putting up her guard, just in case.

'It's happening again... I am being useless once more. Why does this keep happening?' she thought, trying to pick up on the monster's presence, but she could not feel anything no matter how much she tried.

The monsters were toying with them; it was clear their objective was not to kill them. It was as if they were waiting for orders. 'Where the hell are those guys? They should have been back by now. Don't tell me they are struggling with a mere human? Tsk.' This one's patience was wearing thin, but it tried its best to hold that anger in.

'Why is Mother telling us to gather information on them? They are humans, our natural enemy. We need to kill them now before something goes wrong.' It kept thinking, staring at the girls, its claws itching to rip them apart. 'Hold back; it's all for Mother... it's all for her.' Its gaze turned to look around after it felt like it heard something.

"Guys, did you hear that?....... Guys?" No response; it knew something was wrong, so it created some distance. 'I sense something, someone... could it be that human? Impossible, they may have been weak, but there is no way a human like him dealt with them.' It knew it should have been impossible, but its instincts told it to run, before—

"You are the last one, huh?" His voice sent a chill through its body as it tried to strike, but it was too late.

His blade was already descending, slicing cleanly through the space the monster occupied. It barely managed to twist its body, the edge grazing its arm instead of taking its head. Blood sprayed as it staggered back, clutching the wound, its breathing ragged.

"Wow... You actually dodged that?" His tone sounded annoyed; his swing should not have missed.

The monster hissed, its fear overridden by desperation. "You... what are you?!" it snarled, its voice trembling despite its bravado. "No human moves like that!"

Vell smirked, his smile twisted. "Wrong, you just haven't come across 'this' kind of human before," he finished, his predatory gaze making the monster's blood run cold.

'I need to run... immediately.' It turned its back to run, and Vell's smirk vanished.

They found a cave and decided to rest there for a while. The sky didn't change once, so they could not tell what time it was; all they knew is that their bodies needed a rest. "What do you think of the dungeon so far?" he asked her, taking a bite of a piece of bread.

She replied, swallowing a berry, "It's creepy; first, a giant mosquito, and now this suffocating place. I can't tell what will happen next."

He nodded, taking in her words as he leaned back against the cold cave wall. "That's the essence of these places. Dungeons are meant to push you—mentally and physically. But it's in the darkest moments that people either break or evolve." He glanced at her, gauging her reaction. "You're still here, so maybe you're tougher than you think."

She sighed, her hands trembling as she fiddled with the remains of the berry. "I don't feel tough. I feel... like I'm always falling behind. You, Wren, even those monsters—everyone seems to have some special strength. But me? I'm just... here."

He reached out, placing a firm but reassuring hand on her shoulder. "Strength isn't just raw power. You keep trying to follow in my footsteps, but you are not me. Have you thought about truly following your own path, your own way of fighting? I mean, look at me—it's been roughly two weeks since I awakened. I have never entered a dungeon, have no experience being a player, and yet, here I am, following my own path. You need to find that path as well, one meant just for you."

Her breath hitched, her eyes widening as she processed his words. She looked down at her trembling hands, clenching them tightly. "My own path..." she murmured, almost to herself. The thought felt foreign, even daunting. She had spent so much time trying to emulate others, to live up to expectations set by people stronger than her, that she had never stopped to think about what her own strength could look like.

"You can't walk someone else's road and expect to reach your destination. You've got potential, Yenna. You just need to stop measuring yourself against everyone else and figure out what makes 'you' special."

She looked at him, her brows furrowing as frustration and hope battled within her. "But what if I don't have anything special? What if I'm just... ordinary?"

He smirked, his tone carrying a hint of teasing. "Ordinary doesn't survive in a place like this. The fact that you're still here, still fighting, says you're far from ordinary. You just need to believe it—and start acting like it."

"....Right, than—"

Her words were cut short by a massive claw that pierced her chest from behind. The look in Vell's eyes was utter shock and pure rage.