Chapter 28: Demon
A frail and old man was seated at one of the Great City's taverns.
A huge pint of beer in front of him.
He was a Player who had entered the Tower years ago, but just like many, he had given up on climbing it.
"What I do now? Well, I do what I can to get by. Hunt some weak Monsters outside, gather some herbs and plants, sell them to whoever can find use in them. I don't get much coin for it, but it's honest work."
Someone asked that man a question.
"Mm? Yeah... I've seen it. It still haunts my dreams sometimes..."
The next second, a crowd appeared around him.
"But it wasn't something as simple as that. It wasn't a Beast, or a Monster. It was something else. Something else entirely..."
The man chugged his beer in one go.
"I had just arrived here. Well, I still hadn't entered the city but... Anyway, I was lost in the forest, just like many of you were when you first arrived here. Nothing but trees and grass around me. Not one person to..."
The glow in the man's eyes seemed to fade.
"Come on! Tell us everything!" A young man demanded as he put a full pint in front of the seated man.
The latter chugged the beer he was offered right away.
"It was already dark outside. I wandered aimlessly for hours and hours. Until, at one point, I noticed a bit of light in the distance. I thought I was saved, I thought I had finally found the city, but no. As I got closer, it was just a campfire. Still, I was glad to see people..."
The man paused for a bit.
"I slowly approached. Feeling anxious and relieved at the same time. Would those people welcome me? Would they attack me? I had no idea. Still, I got closer. To this day, I can still remember their faces, their smiles, their laughs. Seven lads and lasses. One of them must have been the most beautiful woman I've seen in my life. I got closer, she looked at me. My heart started beating faster. Our gazes met..."
He took a deep breath.
"But something caught my attention, something made me look beyond her, beyond the camp. On the other side of it, two giant eyes shone through the darkness. And as I saw it... I couldn't help but take a step backward. Before I could shout, before I could tell them to watch out, the demon jumped out of the bush. It was as big as this tavern. Its fangs, sharper than all your swords. Its eyes burnt more fiercely than the fire that enlightened the camp. A second had not passed, and in the demon's mouth was already a bleeding man..."
"Hahaha! Like a mouse caught by a cat!" A young man shouted.
"Shut up! Please, continue your story!"
"Ugh, as if it matters. Just the ramblings of an old man. There's no Monster like that in the forest, let alone a demon. Even if there was, I would..."
"Couldn't it be the Great Tiger? I've heard there's a Dungeon with... Mmm, but then again, Dungeon Monsters cannot leave their Dungeon, right?"
...
After a long sleep plagued with nightmares, Rin woke up and made his way to the forest.
"How long before I can move to the next Floor?"
[The Teleporter will open in 30 hours and 33 minutes.]
"Not much time left..." Rin whispered as his hand brushed his wounded stomach.
He started walking towards the next Dungeon he intended on clearing.
'The pain is gone. My Health Points are practically back to normal. I'll have to be careful though...'
Once Rin arrived at the Dungeon's entrance though,
[The Dungeon "The White Wolf's Lair[E]" has already been cleared.]
[Time left before it can be entered: 36 hours.]
Immediately once his eyes laid on the messages, Rin started running towards the second Dungeon.
Once he arrived, he found the opening of a huge cave.
As he took a step inside,
[You have entered "The Great Tiger's Den[E]".]
[Dungeon Clear Condition: Defeat the Great Tiger.]
'Great Tiger... Those are kind of strong, I guess. Unlike a queen whose strength depends on what it is the queen of, I can assess how strong this guy is...' Rin thought without entering the Dungeon.
'It's faster, stronger and bigger than I am. Probably stealthier too... This really isn't favorable. It won't be easy.'
Rin entered the Dungeon.
But of course, the fact that it wasn't easy, was what made it worth doing.
After only taking about ten steps, the space got much wider.
Rin had arrived at the monster's den.
Gluttonous sounds could be heard.
Rin lowered his body and peeked.
The carcass of a dead bear was being torn to shreds by extremely sharp teeth.
The Great Tiger fed on it greedily.
From head-to-tail, it must have measured five or six meters.
After tearing a huge piece of the dead bear's leg, the Beast raised its head up to swallow it whole.
'Here I am, hiding from a weaker version of what used to be my pet... It almost makes me want to laugh out loud.' Rin thought as he took careful steps back.
About twenty minutes later, he came back.
The Great Tiger, having finished its meal, was taking a peaceful nap.
'Good. Probably can't get too close without waking it up, so...'
Rin took an arrow from his quiver.
From its tip, drops of venom were falling down.
All of his arrows had been previously dipped in the venom produced by the "Spider Queen's Venom Gland[E+]".
On his left hand was a white glove.
'Its body is huge so it'll take a while for it to take effect, but...' Rin thought as he took aim.
The next second, the venom-tinted arrow pierced through the Great Tiger's hide.
The Beast barely felt the impact.
It rose its head.
'Good, it's so big that such a small arrow isn't much. The venom is what counts here anyway...'
A second arrow was shot.
It hit the Great Tiger's neck.
In response, the latter jumped up.
It looked around its den, still unable to locate the enemy.
Thanks to his "Dark Cloak[F+]", Rin had managed to land three arrows on the monster before he was noticed.
The Great Tiger roared with all its might.
The forest's ruler had been awakened.
And it was enraged.
The Beast's roar resonated throughout the cave, making even the ground below it shake.
Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone