Bang!
It was a very ordinary strike.
Yet the destructive power it produced was completely unreasonable.
Not long ago, Minotaurs were enemies Cao Ye needed to spend some effort defeating.
Now—
He could kill them in a single hit.
The combination of Inverted Spear of Heaven + Ratio Technique produced an effect far greater than 1 + 1.
It was more like 1 + 1 > 20.
The improvement was enormous.
ROAR—! ROAR—!
Two more Minotaurs still remained nearby.
But after watching their companions fall one after another beneath Cao Ye's attacks—
Even monsters possessed the instinct to survive.
For the first time, fear appeared in their actions.
The next moment—
The two Minotaurs turned around and ran away.
Cao Ye was stunned.
"Hey!"
"You're monsters!"
"Why the hell are you running?!"
Even he didn't expect something like this.
Although in the original story Minotaurs had been shown fleeing before—
He didn't expect to witness it himself.
But while he was distracted complaining—
The two Minotaurs had already run toward the upper floors.
As monsters with potential strength close to Level 2, if they reached the upper floors—
They could cause serious trouble.
Some unlucky adventurers might even lose their lives.
Tap—tap—tap—
Cao Ye sprinted through the dungeon corridors.
But within the maze-like passages of the dungeon—
Even he soon became confused.
He had no idea where the two Minotaurs had gone.
— Scene Change —
Clank—
A party of adventurers wearing leather armor and carrying various weapons advanced steadily toward the middle floors.
Among them were three strong men carrying huge wooden boxes on their backs.
Inside the boxes came constant rattling noises.
Clearly, they were filled with materials.
Whoosh!
An archer fired an arrow.
The arrow struck a monster in the head from a distance.
The creature collapsed instantly.
With a poof, the monster turned into black smoke.
A magic stone dropped onto the ground with a crisp sound.
"Hey!"
"What are you standing there for?!"
"Go pick up the magic stone!"
"If even one goes missing, I'll make you regret it!"
"Yes… Adventurer-sama."
"I'll go right away."
A small figure stepped out from the back of the group.
She ran forward to collect the magic stone.
She was a tiny girl.
Yet on her back she carried an enormous pack—
Four or five times bigger than her own body.
It was hard to imagine how someone so small could carry such a burden.
And if the bag were completely full—
How could she even move?
WHOOSH!
ROAR!
Suddenly—
A Hellhound leaped out from somewhere nearby and lunged at the girl.
"Hellhound!"
Startled, the girl fell to the ground.
The beast's bloody jaws opened wide.
Death was only seconds away.
At that moment—
Anger and resentment surged inside her heart.
She was only a supporter.
Her job was supposed to be collecting drops after battles, not fighting monsters.
Yet just because a monster had died—
They forced her to collect the magic stone.
And now she was about to die because of it.
Not far away—
The adventurers watched everything like spectators.
"Hellhound."
"That little thing has terrible luck."
"Should we save her?"
"We still need her to carry our stuff."
"No need."
"There are tons of supporters in Rivira Town."
"You can hire another anytime."
"And if there's one Hellhound, there might be more nearby."
"Risking ourselves for a supporter isn't worth it."
"True."
Cold.
Cruel.
Practical.
A hired supporter meant nothing in the dungeon.
If they died—
The adventurers wouldn't even need to pay them.
And the supplies she carried could always be retrieved later.
This was the Dungeon.
There were no romantic encounters.
Only brutal reality.
"Am I going to die…?"
The girl collapsed on the ground.
Fear made her legs weak.
She couldn't move at all.
Regret flooded her heart.
If only she hadn't accepted this job.
SPLASH!
At that critical moment—
The Hellhound suddenly exploded in blood.
It let out a pained howl.
Then collapsed instantly.
Dead.
The blood splattered everywhere—
Covering the girl completely in red.
"Oh my."
"Look what I found."
"A little one scared half to death."
A carefree voice sounded.
The girl looked up.
And saw a figure she would never forget for the rest of her life.
In this dungeon—
She had never seen someone so beautiful.
His face was even comparable to that of male elves.
If not for his human ears—
She might have mistaken him for an elf.
"Hey."
"Are you alright?"
Seeing her stare blankly at him, Cao Ye sighed helplessly.
Helping people wasn't really his habit.
Normally he wouldn't bother.
People died in the dungeon every day.
It had nothing to do with him.
But today—
He was in a great mood after getting the Inverted Spear of Heaven.
So he didn't mind saving someone.
"I… I'm fine."
The little girl nodded and slowly stood up.
She glanced behind her—
But the adventurers who hired her were already gone.
Hellhounds were dangerous.
And there might have been more nearby.
To avoid risks, the adventurers had chosen a different route.
After all—
The dungeon was a maze.
There was never just one path forward.
"Good."
"If you're fine, I'll be leaving."
Cao Ye didn't want to waste time.
He still wanted to find those two escaped Minotaurs.
Even though the chances were slim.
"Um…"
"May I ask your name?"
"Cao Ye."
After saying that, he left without looking back.
"Cao Ye…"
The girl stared at his retreating figure.
Her feelings were complicated.
She had grown up in the lowest parts of Orario.
The pain and darkness she had experienced were beyond what most people could imagine.
Because of that—
She had long stopped believing in something called "good people."
But today—
At this very moment—
She had met one.