"Kieeek!!"
A baby Andras ramd its head into the iron door. The iron door cried out kieek.
The Andras all headbutted to the point of breaking their heads, and death cries reached my body blocking the iron door.
"Kieeeek!!"
Thud, boom!
A bird-brain broke again beyond the iron door. I felt my heart sink as the iron door I was blocking shook again.
"Lune! Not yet?!"
"J-just a mont!"
Lune searched everywhere trying to find an exit. Actually we didn’t even know if an exit existed, but if we found one, leaving through it would be best.
"At this rate I’ll get crushed by the door!"
"Hold on just a bit more! You hold on much better when cumming, Master!"
"You can’t say that here!"
Lune desperately spouted anything. Lune still hadn’t gained any results.
’Should I just go out and beat them all?’
Though it’d take ti, I could beat them all. Lune and I already subdued and killed the real Andras exploiting her weakness. This dungeon beca mine now.
But separately, the Andras inside didn’t automatically beco my subordinates. Rather, that would be stranger.
’Their ancestor who birthed them died before their eyes, of course they’d be pissed.’
But rushing in wildly like this far exceeded my expectations. If I’d known, I would’ve beaten them all to death before entering.
’Then I would’ve faced the evolved 5-star Andras in an exhausted state.’
Though lower level than , who knows what skills evolution would bring. As she struggled to the end trying to kill others instead of , sothing big might’ve happened to Lune.
"Lune! Still far?!"
"Master! There’s nothing on the walls!"
Lune declared. The not-so-smart Andras wouldn’t have hidden any device, and no matter how much Lune searched the walls, nothing ca out.
"The ceiling?!"
"The ceiling... Ah!!"
Lune stood in the middle of the room pointing at the ceiling. And she raised her bow to the ceiling and shot an arrow.
Flap.
A wind hole appeared in black leather fixed to the ceiling. Lune shot another arrow, and the string fell making the leather drop from the ceiling. Faint sunlight entered where the leather screen disappeared.
"As expected! I knew there’d be a dedicated route!"
Kieeeeek!!
CRASH, BANG!!
We found the dedicated route but can’t hold out anymore. I pushed the iron door to the opposite side and ran to the room’s center. The ceiling definitely had a path going up.
"Let’s bounce!"
I put Lune on my shoulder, stuffed Andras’s corpse at my left waist, and bent my legs. Jumping from this spot was a bit lacking, but there was no escape route except the ceiling path.
Kieeek!!
CRASH—!!
The iron door collapsed. Soon bloodied Andras scread and charged at us. Reddened eyes were bloodshot as if caught in mania.
"Huu, hu..."
I watched the charging speed of the first baby Andras. A short ti, but fortunately that timing was easy to read. Three, two, one—
"Goomba stomp!!"
I jumped from my spot and stomped the Andras’s bird-brain with both feet. The Andras quickly sank down from my strength and weight, but I used that foothold to jump toward the ceiling.
"!!"
Lune quickly caught on and threw her body above the ceiling hole. The ceiling had an L-shaped passage, and my body was one step before falling to the ground.
"Master!"
Lune reached toward . But I didn’t grab her hand and threw the Andras at my left waist to Lune.
"Kyaak?!"
Lune fell while catching the corpse. I also rolled and fell to the ground.
Crack!
A breaking sound ca from stepping on sothing while falling. I happened to step on a baby Andras’s beak and crushed that beak with my foot.
"Tsk."
It stung like stepping on glass shards at the beach. But I had no ti to care about that.
Kieeek!
Kyaaak!
Baby Andras reached their claws toward scratching from all sides. I raised my fist and shouted toward the ceiling.
"Lune!"
"Yes!"
"Shoot from there!"
"Yes! ...What? You should escape!"
Lune panicked surprised, but I had no intention of escaping at all. I punched the charging baby Andras’s chin away and shouted.
"Stand back!"
The mont my words ended, Lune crawled inside with Andras’s corpse. I kicked another charging baby Andras’s belly to block it, then grabbed the leg of a baby Andras collapsed on the ground and swung wide.
Whooom—!!
Three Andras charging head-on simultaneously got hit by the Andras and were sent flying. I caught my breath once, then waited for Andras to charge again.
Kieeek...
Since several got pulverized without putting up a fight, the Andras couldn’t easily charge at . I should’ve been in a position to escape to the ceiling using that, and my insides burned at the Andras getting scared.
’Seems they’re coming to their senses now.’
Though they were angry about the dungeon master’s death, since several in the vanguard were getting beaten, they seed to feel fear. But it didn’t help right now.
One charging.
Only by stomping that one could my hand reach the ceiling ledge I’d confird earlier.
"Hey."
I caught my breath deeply, then made the most vile expression and beckoned to the Andras with my finger.
"Your mom earlier was amazing."
"Kiyooooot!!"
The Andras split left and right and sothing burst out from within. Closest to human form, our grateful guide who led us here without wandering one maze.
And now also a switch to help my escape.
"As expected, no learning ability."
I stepped back. Andras spread claws much longer and sharper than others trying to slash .
"Bird-brain even after evolving!"
I stepped forward greatly and jumped. My foot headed toward Andras’s face, and Andras panicked crossing arms to guard. And my foot firmly stepped on Andras’s guard.
Thud!
"Kugh...!"
Though my sole got scratched by the crossed claws, jumping was still possible. I jumped high toward the ceiling.
"Master!"
"Move!"
Lune reached out, but I shouted at Lune to step aside and reached out. Not Lune’s hand—I barely got my hand on the ledge.
"If you catch , you’ll fall from the weight!"
"Ah."
Lune seed so rushed she didn’t think of that at all. I lifted my other hand and grabbed the ledge with both hands, then pulled my body up with arm strength.
"Kugh!"
I barely got my arms over. But my body still had far to go to co up, and below I felt Andras going crazy jumping trying to grab my ankles.
"Hup!"
I pulled my body up once forcefully and bent my legs. And using strength pressing the wall, I succeeded in stepping down right below.
"Huu, huu."
Having gained support, I struggled and crawled to reach the small passage. At the size that seed I’d have to lower my waist and crawl on all fours, I naturally felt breathless.
"Lune, let’s go."
I steadied my breathing then pointed forward. If my guess wasn’t wrong, this passage either cut straight across the dungeon we’d circled or was a shortcut to a completely different exit.
"Master, are you okay?"
"This much is nothing."
Kieeek!
A scream ca from below. I turned my head to see a demi-human Andras who’d flown up spreading wings, bloodshot eyes swinging claws at . Those claws were flying toward my ankle.
Too late to dodge. The mont I steeled for pain and turned to counterattack,
Fwoosh.
A wind arrow stuck in Andras’s brow. Though it failed to completely pierce through, Andras fell backward spurting blood like stabbed by an awl.
Thud!
Kieeek!
A crushing sound ca with the kill count rising by one. My mouth went dry at Lune’s wind arrow that grazed my earlobe.
"...Lune, did you aim and shoot just now?"
"No, I-I was rushed..."
"..."
From the mont we entered Andras’s Dungeon until now.
The only attack that made my blood run cold was Lune’s arrow. I gulped and pointed forward.
"...Right, good job. You hit it, so it’s fine."
Though she almost hit . I swallowed those words and pulled Andras’s corpse lying on the ground.
"I’ll carry this. You keep going forward."
"If sothing cos from ahead..."
"Shoot it. Then step over it."
Fortunately, even in this narrow space, the width was enough to kill enemies coming from the opposite side and step over them. Lune lowered her head and crawled on all fours.
"..."
Her plump butt swayed left and right, but I didn’t show it and grabbed Andras’s corpse. To keep the wings from being damaged as much as possible, I placed Andras on my back and took a low crawling position.
"Master, what are you doing?"
"Crawling."
Though my arms and belly scraped each ti I crawled, this was the only way to exit while keeping Andras’s corpse intact.
"Do you really need that..."
"No, I absolutely need to take this."
"Don’t tell ...?"
"I may be human-crazy but I’m not corpse-crazy. The reason I’m taking this is..."
I pointed at Andras’s wings.
"No ti to process it, so taking the whole thing."
"Then couldn’t you just pluck them?"
"Hehe, Lune."
I pointed forward with my chin.
"Gotta use everything usable from head to toe."
"...Understood."
Lune turned her head and crawled forward, and I crawled following behind.
"..."
I enhanced my patience.
***
The Andras were like hounds who’d lost the scent. The demi-human Andras who could fly the sky with wings had a hole drilled in her brow, and the adult Andras couldn’t reach the 2.5m high ceiling no matter how much they flapped.
"Can’t let them go-ras."
"Must take revenge-ras."
"Must at least find the corpse and bury it-ras."
Everyone agreed. But there was no way to pursue. They had no way to climb the ceiling.
"I have a good idea-ras."
One adult Andras raised palms in layers pointing up.
"If we lie down one by one stacking layers, then climb the stairs, it’ll work-ras."
"...That’s really."
The Andras clicked their tongues. And started lying on the ground one by one.
"Do it now-ras."
The Andras lay on the ground one by one making a 2.5m high staircase, and the Andras who first suggested it looked at the passage and pondered for a long ti.
"...Seems we should get on all fours-ras!"
Andras bent her waist and got on all fours. The Andras behind seeing the front Andras was surprised.
"Genius-ras."
And the next Andras got on all fours. The Andras behind seeing the front Andras clicked their tongue.
"Smart-ras."
The Andras’s train procession continued, and they crawled on all fours following their master’s blood scent.
"Must retrieve her-ras."
Their blood-bound instinct.
"Must eat the dead dungeon master to beco the dungeon master oneself."
The Andras started crawling with fire in their eyes following their instinct.
***
"Puhaa!"
I finally escaped through the exit. Where we exited was far from the entrance, and we could tear through and escape the wall covered by vine stems.
"You got a lot of dirt on you."
"This much is fine. Phew."
I shook off the Andras I’d carried on my back to roll on the ground. Blood still flowed from the hole in her body, and my robe was dyed red with Andras’s blood. I took off my robe and squeezed out blood with my hand.
"But at least we got wings, so that’s good."
"What will you do with wings?"
"Make you clothes? As an evolution gift. Hehe."
I plucked one wing and gently tickled Lune’s ear. Lune lowered her head blushing.
"M-Master, if you do this here now..."
"Return her-ras—!!"
"Whoa."
Beyond the passage we escaped from, bird-brains were charging like tanks. No, crawling at fast speed.
"Return Master-ras!"
"..."
Did those things follow us? Not even 1 minute after escaping, I naturally sighed at the Andras’s actions pursuing behind us.
"Lune. Can you shoot your bow now?"
"Yes... hng."
Lune hiccuped as if holding sothing back. I patted Lune’s back apologetically and pointed at the Andras approaching with beak wide open.
"Now, shoot as soon as they co out."
"Shouldn’t we run...?"
"Gotta farm. If you don’t catch a few more, you can’t evolve today, right?"
Lune’s level was still only 34. And considering she got stuck at 14, even rising just 1 level was considerably slow for experience.
"If not now, there’s no chance—"
Fwoosh.
A wind arrow pierced through an Andras just bursting out of the cave trying to stand. The Andras flopped down as is.
[Andras Defeated (82 / ???)]
"...Kill count’s rising?"
Just one rose. I pondered briefly, then picked up the Andras Lune killed.
"Oh my, there’s a hill here!"
I threw the dead Andras. While Lune tried to say sothing, another Andras burst out of the dungeon with fire in their eyes.
"Return Master—"
Fwoosh.
"...Should throw them away, right?"
I threw the second Andras. Soon a third Andras popped out. The sun in the sky still floated at midday.
"Lune."
"Yes."
"Let’s try getting a 5-star egg today."
Kill count 666.
When Lune’s stamina ran out, I’d beat them to death, and Lune would recover stamina to shoot—repeating for several hours. We fard maximum experience, and Andras corpses piled into a mountain below the hill.
The final kill count was 665.
When the sun finally fell beyond the mountain and darkness settled thickly. I hoped more Andras would co out, but no more appeared.
"Ah, tsk. One short..."
"One?"
Lune pointed to the dungeon’s original entrance.
Kieeek!!
One Andras was fleeing. I pointed the Andras to Lune.
"A target moving that fast is..."
"Lune, you’re an elf?"
"Hnng..."
Lune made a tearful face, raised her bow, and shot an arrow.
In the end, I ran and grabbed its nape, bringing it right in front of Lune.
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