’What was that attack?’

Verc asked in his head, his gaze shifting downward for a brief moment. He glanced at the place where he was standing before the explosion occurred. The burnt mark was still there, a jagged, blackened scar on the otherwise pristine, smooth stone floor.

The attack that almost got him came out of nowhere. The skeleton hadn’t moved its arms; there was no visible casting of a spell, and no sudden flare of light.

There was no indication that he was attacking nor even a hint of bloodlust to give his intentions away. It was a strike launched with the casualness of a breathing person, except the creature before him didn’t breathe.

In fact, if it weren’t for him upgrading [Danger Sense] to a higher level as he drank a lot of monster bloods; Verc probably wouldn’t be able to sense that attack at all and would’ve been just hit helplessly.

That realization made Verc frown.

-Hmm...? Now that I’m thinking about it, how can you see in this place and dodge my attack earlier? It’s pitch-black in here.

Just then, Verc heard that question.

The voice was like dry parchment rubbing together, echoing strangely in the vast, circular chamber. He turned back to the skeleton, and there; he just saw it floating still, facing him from a distance of about thirty meters.

-As for me, I have no eyes and I can’t really see anymore. I just scatter my mana now to feel everything around me, and after being here for so long—this place is basically like the back of my hand.

The skeleton said, its tone was casual, almost conversational, but its voice was deep and scary... unhuman.

"..."

Verc didn’t say anything to it. He wasn’t in the mood for small talk, especially not with something that had just tried to incinerate him.

He can see fine with his improved [Nocturnal Sight] just fine. And with [Echolocation] as well; there was nothing in this room that he couldn’t sense.

’Just what is this place?’

Verc asked in his head.

The place that he entered, it was just a massive circular room with nothing inside; no pillars, no furniture, no decorations. It was just a hollowed-out arena within the mountain, and in the center of it all was the skeleton.

The air was stagnant, smelling of ancient dust and something metallic that he couldn’t quite name.

’Also, what the hell is that thing?’

He followed, his eyes locked onto the skeleton.

His face frowned a bit as he stared at that strange thing. A suffocating corrupted mana was covering the skeleton, looking like a dark, flickering aura that distorted the air around its robes. It was so strong and dense that it felt like if Verc even touch it, it would harm him. It wasn’t just energy; it was a physical pressure that made the hair on his arms stand up.

Not just that, the whole room... it was enveloped by that skeleton’s corrupted mana! It was everywhere, filling every inch of the space like a thick, invisible fog.

This was the most intense mana Verc had ever felt ever since coming into this world, as a matter of fact—

’His mana is twice as condensed and strong as mine.’

Verc frowned at that realization.

He had spent days in a trance absorbing the dense mana of the cave, believing he had reached a new peak of power. Yet here, standing before this robed nightmare, he realized the gap was still immense.

That alone can’t decide the outcome of a fight, as battles were won with more than just raw capacity, but it was a no brainer that someone with a stronger and denser mana has the advantage. Every move the skeleton made would likely be faster, heavier, and more lethal than his own.

-You’re not very talkative, huh. You haven’t said a single word to me ever since coming here.

The skeleton said, tilting its skull slightly. The empty eye sockets seemed to bore into Verc despite the creature’s claim of being blind.

-Well, whatever...

It muttered.

-I’LL JUST KILL YOU ANYWAY!

Then it suddenly declared that with a wide grin on his skull! The jawbone creaked as it stretched into a terrifying, manic smile, revealing rows of perfectly preserved, sharp teeth.

FSSSSST—

Verc felt the air around him twist a little, the atmospheric pressure suddenly spiking. It was the same sensation as before—the invisible precursor to a strike!

So in a reflex—SLASH!

He swung his mana-coated sword horizontally.

BOOM—!

An explosion occurred as his attack cut through that invisible force. The clash of his mana and the skeleton’s energy produced a bright spark that momentarily illuminated the entire room. The shockwave rattled his sword, vibrating up his arm and into his shoulder.

BAM!

Verc dashed sideways to get away from that place, his boots skidding slightly on the smooth stone before he regained his footing. He needed to keep moving; standing still against an opponent who could strike without warning was a death sentence.

’There was it again, an attack I can’t see or feel coming. It just suddenly appeared.’

Verc said internally.

He grit his teeth, his grip tightening on the hilt of his sword. The attacks were like compressed bubbles of mana that popped the moment they came into contact with something. Thankfully, with [Knight’s Discipline] active, he was able to keep his head calm. His heart rate remained steady, and his mind worked at a heightened speed, analyzing the flow of mana in the room to predict the next surge.

FSSSHP~!

The first thing he did was cover his whole body with [Black Scales] to act as protection. The shimmering, obsidian-like scales rippled across his skin, hardening into a layer of natural armor that could deflect most physical and magical blows.

Then, looking at the skeleton in the middle of this huge, empty room—BAM—FWOOSH!!!

Verc kicked off and rushed at it!

He moved like a black streak, his speed greatly increased by the mana he funneled into his legs. The air whistled past his ears as he closed the distance in a fraction of a second.

-Hmm, so you were really a close-combatant, I thought you were just bluffing. Also, what are those hard things that suddenly appeared all over your body?

The skeleton spoke again, its voice trailing after Verc’s movement, but Verc didn’t pay any attention to its words. He knew that talk was often a distraction in a fight of this caliber.

Instead—he used [Vital Mapping] to find the weakness of the monster in front of him.

The world shifted in his vision, highlighting points of interest. But since the target was a skeleton, there were no organs to target, no heart to pierce, and no lungs to collapse. The skill struggled for a moment before highlighting the center of the ribcage and the joints of the neck as the most vulnerable structural points.

But as he was doing that—

-What’s with that unpleasant look?

FWISH—

"Huh?"

The skeleton asked that, then in the next moment; all Verc can see was a black spear made of mana directly in his face!

It was too fast, Verc didn’t see it being formed or thrown. It was as if the spear had simply been manifested at full velocity just feet away from him. Verc didn’t see it until it was inches away from his face, the dark energy swirling around the tip like a miniature drill!

TINK—BOOM!!!

Verc reacted as fast as he can, his reflexes pushed to their absolute limit. He swung his sword upward and intercepted the magic—but because it was already too close to him; he got blasted away when he cut it down!

"GURGH...!"

Verc was sent backwards by the force of it, his feet leaving the ground. The spear was heavy, far heavier than it looked, and it became lethal with the speed added to it. His arms went numb from the vibration, and he could feel the heat of the dark mana licking at his scales.

-You blocked it, not bad. Were you trying to find my weakness earlier?

Then, as he was in the air—he heard that in front of him!

"?!"

The skeleton appeared in front of Verc in an instant like a ghost!

It hadn’t flown; it had simply ceased to be in the center of the room and started to exist right in Verc’s flight path. The suddenness of its movement defied the laws of physics!

But not thinking much about it—

BAM—CRACK!

Verc stomped down his right foot and planted it onto the floor, his whole foot sinking deep into the floor now, shattering the smooth stone! The impact sent cracks across the ground, making his whole body stop from flying backwards.

He used the momentum of his sudden halt to pivot his hips. Then making use of [Predatory Posture]—SLASH!

Verc swung his sword heavily in that awkward position without problem, it was heavy as his normal attacks! He used the tension in his muscles like a coiled spring, releasing all that built-up energy into a single, devastating horizontal cleave!

The blade of his sword cut through the air and targeted the neck of the skeleton at a terrifying speed!

Though—

TUNK!

The skeleton caught his blade with its skeletal hand effortlessly.

The bony fingers clamped down on the sharp edge of the sword, stopping the momentum dead. No blood was drawn, no chips appeared on the bone; it was as if the blade had hit a pillar of indestructible diamond.

-That was a good attack, nice try.

The skeleton said with a mocking smile on its face. It didn’t even budge from the force of the strike, its floating body remaining perfectly stable in the air.

TWHACK—!

But as soon as it said that, a heavy blow suddenly hit its temple! And being caught off-guard—BOOM!

The skeleton flew to the side and smashed through the wall of the room!

Instead of being surprised and nervous earlier seeing his attack gets stopped easily, Verc instead launched a follow-up attack with his left foot that was still raised in the air!

He had transitioned from the sword swing to a high kick in one fluid motion, catching the skeleton right in the side of its head.

Tap-

Verc fixed his balance and took a proper stance again.

He didn’t relax his guard for a second. He breathed heavily, the scent of his own mana filling his nose. He looked at where the skeleton flung, and there; he saw it floating upright again.

The wall it was slammed on didn’t even crack nor did it even look damaged. But still, it seems like he hurt the weird skeleton.

The hood of its robe was slightly askew, and its head was tilted at a strange angle before it snapped it back into place with a sickening ’click.’

The skeleton turned to look at Verc not long after, and it just stared at him without saying anything. With no flesh on its face, it was hard to tell what expression it was making, unless it was flexing its teeth like a maniac to grin.

Anyway, when Verc saw the skeleton looking at him—

"I guess my second attack was better, huh. You weren’t able to catch it that time."

He casually said that.

His tone was flat, his face was calm... But it was clear that he was mocking the skeleton.

And after hearing his words—

WHOOOOOOOOOOOOOSSSHHHH—!!!!!

A strong wave of dark mana suddenly exploded outward from the skeleton!

It was a physical wall of energy that rushed across the room, more powerful and violent than anything Verc had felt yet. The purple light in the room flared to a blinding intensity, and the sound of the wind was like the scream of a thousand ghosts.