The walls vibrated as the beast roared. There were no lava pools near the Boss Room, but the temperature had increased quite a bit.

'Status,' Asher said, as he looked at his status.

---------| Fate Devourer System |---------

[Name] : Asher Von Raven Greville

[Level] -19 (EXP 18500/19,000)

[Bloodline] : Devil's Absorption Rank SSS

[Cursed] : Curse of Fate (Active)

[Body Constitution] - Mana Core Rank D

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[-Attributes-]

Strength: 90

Agility: 72

Endurance: 80

Intelligence: 120

Mana: 114

Stamina: 65

Charm: 65

Fate: 10230

[AP]: 75 [SP]: 14

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[-Skills-]: Time Dilation (Rank S) Lvl 1, Absorption (Rank S) Lvl 1, Mana Flow (Rank C), Mana Circulation (Rank A), Rune of Eirdin (Rank E), Node-Art Rank SSS, Aura Force Passive Skill

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Asher could feel that his mana core had increased from D- to D rank, meaning he got extra mana stats and stabilized it with the help of Mana Circulation Rank A.

"Wear your mask," Asher said, and the density of his aura around his body increased slightly.

Alyssa took the white mask out of her spatial ring, and the moment she touched it, her skin went pale, and the scar returned. Even her hair became duller than before.

"Stay back, and I will get its attention," Asher said as Alyssa calmed herself down.

A single mistake from Alyssa could prove lethal for both of them. If Asher, the only one among them with a chance to battle the boss, got harmed, both of them were as good as dead.

Asher stepped forward, and they both walked towards the boss room, downhill on a slope-like structure.

The roar had stopped, and a deathly silence took over the Dungeon.As they entered through the door, they were hit by a wave of intense heat. Lava flowed freely from the walls, casting an eerie glow over the room.

Alyssa's eyes became wide as she saw the sight in front of her.

In the center of the chamber sat the monster, its massive form dominating the space. It was a four-legged beast three times the size of a Hyelther that radiated an intense heat from its lava-like veins. The two large horns on its head glinted menacingly in the light.

It was like nothing she had ever seen before.

It looked similar to Kiron, but it was nothing compared to this beast.

Many monster carcasses could be seen around the beast, which opened its eyes again, revealing a menacing glare towards the two humans in front of it.

Alyssa saw the glaring yellow eyes of the beast staring at them.

"VRRAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAGH," another roar went through Alyssa's whole body.

The beast stood up again, seeing another meal in front of it.

But its hand turned, as the huge beast felt a killing intent stronger than itself, and turned its head towards a human who was looking at it with a cold gaze and crimson red eyes.

"What is this beast?" Alyssa didn't know, but Asher did.

It was a Fiarmince, but not a normal one. Although they looked like Kirons, they were beasts that could live inside lava, and they were one of the monster species that required long-range attacking hunters to hunt them efficiently.

But the one they were standing in front of was a Boss Fiarmince, which would surely have other abilities that differed from a normal Fiarmince.

The boss of the dungeon was basically the caretaker of the Dungeon Altar that could be seen behind it. Without killing the boss, the runes around the artifact, or whatever item was on the altar, were useless.

Some people tried to steal artifacts without killing the boss monster, but the runic formations destroyed those artifacts if the boss monster was alive.

But behind the runic formation of the Altar, there was a yellow portal that could only be accessed if Asher could somehow manage to kill this boss.

[Host is under the effect of Peak C Rank Monster]

[Dungeon Environment will affect your mana circulation]

This was the effect that many hunters experienced when they fought higher-rank boss monsters. Their mana control would go out of control if the boss was higher ranked than them. But it only happened in the boss room.

Some people theorized that the Boss Room was the domain of the monster, but some said it was due to the runic formation that kept the artifact safe until the boss died.

Asher could handle the mana circulation penalty due to his high-ranking skill, but Alyssa would have a hard time fighting this monster.

"Don't go near it," Asher told Alyssa as he dashed towards the beast, emitting enough killing intent to capture the attention of the Fiarmince.

The monster opened its mouth, revealing its massive jaw, and emitted a stream of fire.

Asher changed direction and dodged the fire attack, but the boss was a Peak C Rank Monster with better stats than Asher.

Seeing him clearly, the monster turned its eyes towards Asher and dashed towards him. Asher used a small burst of mana on his leg to dodge the rushing boss monster.

The Fiarmince hit the dungeon wall, making a few stones fall from the ceiling as lava poured over the monster's head. Despite the burning lava, the beast was fine and turned towards Asher.

The beast's claws, which were glowing orange, grew bigger as it dashed and slashed towards Asher, not giving him a chance to retaliate.

Enraged by Asher's killing intent and their rank difference, the Fiarmince did not even care about Alyssa, who was in the middle of a chant.

Asher increased the aura shrouding his sword as he propelled himself towards the limb of the Fiarmince. Despite the aura shielding his body, Asher could feel intense heat as his body turned redder.

"Swift Strike," Asher struck the limb, but the monster was quick enough to escape with only a graze."VRRRRRRRRAUAGH," the beast roared again, making the room vibrate, but Asher did not miss the chance as he closed the distance.

He gripped his sword tightly as he saw a few nodes that were very dim around the leg of the beast.

Slipping past its head at high speed, Asher sliced a big cut on the beast, but his sword was getting dull. It was not enough to handle a beast like a Fiarmince.

The beast was about to strike Asher with its claw, but Alyssa's attack on its eye interrupted it.

"Ice Slash," Alyssa muttered as a small dagger flew towards the beast's eye.

The Ice Dagger was rotating at a high speed while it's sharp side managed to thrust into the monster's right eye.

*Splurg*

"VRRRRRRRAAAAAAAAAAGHH," the beast shook its head intensely as the heat around its body increased.

But the damage was done. Alyssa's normal attack would never be able to pierce the body of a Peak C Rank monster, but she combined it with her gravity magic to accelerate it. It took a massive chunk of mana and mental strain, but she did it.

Asher saw that Alyssa had managed to do her part of the plan as he looked at the beast, which was slamming its legs furiously.

It was a short time frame, but Asher needed to use it well before the beast dashed towards Alyssa, killing her instantly.

With blood flowing through its one eye, the beast turned its yellow eye towards Alyssa, making her heartbeat faster. The pressure of the C Rank beast was getting to her.

But before the beast could attack Alyssa, Asher jumped into the air and turned its body.

The Fiarmince's body was too large for Asher to cut its neck, but his target was its horns, which were one of its weaknesses.

"Node Art: Swift Strike," Asher's body turned as he sliced off one horn from the boss monster.

His attack made the boss monster turn furiously, but he was already on the ground. Asher dashed away from the beast as it roared again. Its whole body that was brown was becoming more orange as the heat inside its body increased.

The blood flowing through its head and one eye made the beast look even more terrifying, but Asher was staring at it indifferently.

Asher dashed again to turn the beast's attention, but the beast had finally used mana around its body, making its claws sharper.

The beast dashed towards Asher, who stopped to sidestep, but the beast was learning from Asher as well. Currently, Asher's sword art was still novice, and he was maximizing it, but his speed was not enough to outrun the peak C Rank beast.

As Asher sidestepped, the beast noticed and raised its leg to strike Asher, who got hit and was sent flying into the dungeon wall.

Alyssa's eyes went wide, her heartbeat racing, but fortunately, Asher was not sent flying towards the lava. However, the impact with the stones injured him.

"Cough Cough," Asher came out of the smoke with a slight bleeding wound on the side of his head.

At the last moment, he used all of his aura to shield himself from breaking all of his bones due to the difference in strength between the beasts.

*Drip* *Drip*

Blood started dripping from his head.

It was the first injury he got in a serious fight since his regression.

Asher's madness took over him as his killing intent ran rampant, and the beast refused to lose to a lower-ranking existence, just like Asher.

His inner madness went rampant as his face turned cold and his eyes stared right towards the boss.

A small smile emerged on his face, but it was not gentle at all; it was menacing.

Even Alyssa could feel the thick killing intent. He was even more overwhelming than the boss monster itself, but she could not see Asher's expression right now due to the smoke around him.

[ Warning!! Host's emotions... ]

Asher ignored it as he removed a small sharp stone that had penetrated his left hand despite his nano armor.

The beast roared again, sensing even higher killing intent, and opened its jaw to breathe fire.

Asher raised his sword, but his left hand was badly broken as it went limp.