The moment the system announcement faded from view, the atmosphere inside the dungeon changed.
It wasn't the crushing pressure they had felt earlier, nor was it the suffocating killing intent that had accompanied the werewolf's berserk phase.
Something else had taken its place.
The entire chamber felt unstable.
The faint green runes embedded throughout the walls flickered erratically as though the dungeon itself was struggling to contain whatever had just emerged. Tiny cracks spread across sections of the stone floor, and an unsettling vibration echoed through the cavern.
At the center of the room stood the resurrected Silver Werewolf.
No.
This creature barely resembled the boss they had fought moments ago.
Its body twitched constantly, every muscle moving at a different rhythm. Thick crimson veins bulged beneath semi-transparent flesh, glowing faintly before dimming again. It looked as though something alive was trapped beneath its skin, desperately trying to claw its way out.
Blood continuously formed along its body.
It didn't drip naturally.
Thin streams slid down its arms and legs before reversing direction and crawling back upward, being absorbed once more into its flesh. The entire process repeated endlessly in a grotesque cycle.
Its chest rose and fell unevenly.
Each breath sounded wet.
Labored.
Wrong.
Ryota stared at the monster in disbelief.
His grip tightened around his sword.
His breathing remained uneven from the previous battle.
After several seconds, he finally managed to speak.
"Wait..."
His voice came out much quieter than intended.
He unconsciously took a step backward.
"What's going on?"
His eyes shifted toward Rio before returning to the creature.
"Didn't we kill it?"
Rio remained motionless.
Her eyes never left the werewolf.
She was already analyzing it.
Already adapting.
Already calculating.
After a brief pause, she finally answered.
"We did."
There was no uncertainty in her voice.
No hesitation.
They had absolutely killed it.
The problem was what happened afterward.
The Blood Release Werewolf slowly dragged one claw across the floor.
Stone groaned beneath the pressure.
A deep trench appeared in the ground.
Only then did Rio continue.
"When a boss dies while it's in a berserk state, there's a ten percent chance this happens."
The werewolf's head suddenly tilted sideways.
Far too far.
Its neck twisted at an impossible angle before snapping back into place with a sickening crack.
Its crimson eyes locked onto them.
This time, they seemed far more intelligent than before.
Rio's expression hardened.
"Its attack power increases dramatically."
The creature took a single step forward.
The stone floor shattered beneath its foot.
"Its speed exceeds its original limits."
Another step followed.
Faster.
Heavier.
More violent.
"And its defense..."
Rio exhaled quietly.
"Almost disappears entirely."
Ryota swallowed.
"That sounds broken."
"It is."
Something cold settled into Rio's eyes.
Something born from experience.
"This form is called Hell's Final Gift."
The werewolf's muscles convulsed violently.
Its body looked as though it might tear itself apart at any moment.
Rio adjusted her stance.
Her weight shifted forward.
Ready.
"It's basically the system's last joke."
The creature dug its claws into the ground.
Stone cracked.
Rio's voice lowered.
"It's like a devil leaning over your shoulder after you've won..."
Her fingers tightened around her saber.
"...and whispering, 'Thought you were finished?'"
Silence followed.
Then Ryota spoke again.
"Has this happened before?"
Rio answered immediately.
"Yes."
The response came without emotion.
Without hesitation.
"Entire parties got wiped out because of this."
The werewolf lowered its body.
Predatory.
Ready to spring.
Rio's eyes darkened slightly.
"Over and over."
A faint memory flashed through her mind.
Raid groups.
Veteran players.
Guilds.
Corpses.
Failure.
Then it vanished.
"Back in my previous life."
The Blood Release Werewolf disappeared.
There was no warning.
No gathering of power.
No visible movement.
One moment it stood there.
The next—
It was gone.
Rio's instincts exploded.
"Right!"
Too late.
The monster was already there.
Ryota reacted on pure instinct.
His sword shot upward.
A deafening metallic crash echoed through the chamber.
The force behind the attack was horrifying.
It felt like an entire building had slammed into him.
His arms trembled violently.
His grip nearly failed.
At that exact moment, his unique skill activated.
[Scalular Impact]
The incoming force didn't vanish.
Instead, it shifted.
Redirected.
The energy traveled sideways through his body and detonated into the nearby floor.
The stone exploded.
Chunks of rock launched in every direction.
Even so, Ryota was sent skidding backward across the chamber, his boots carving long trenches into the stone.
"It's heavier!" he shouted.
"Because it's not holding anything back anymore!" Rio snapped.
She was already moving.
Her flintlock musket appeared in her hand.
She fired instantly.
The gunshot thundered through the cavern.
The bullet struck the werewolf directly in the chest.
The damage was insignificant.
But the interruption mattered.
Rio's eyes flashed blue.
[Chronos Eye]
Time distorted around the monster.
The effect wasn't natural.
It looked as though reality itself was resisting the change.
The werewolf's movements slowed.
Its limbs dragged.
Its momentum weakened.
For two seconds.
Only two.
But two seconds were enough.
"Now!"
Ryota exploded forward.
Enhanced Reaction guided his body.
One step.
Two.
Three.
He entered striking range.
His sword slashed across the werewolf's side.
The cut wasn't deep.
But contact was all he needed.
[Scalular Impact — Redirect]
Force transferred through the blade.
The creature's own momentum worked against it.
Its body jerked violently to the side.
Rio fired again.
Another bullet.
Another activation.
[Chronos Eye — Deceleration]
Time slowed once more.
Ryota immediately capitalized.
A slash.
A pivot.
Then a punch.
His fist slammed into the werewolf's torso.
[Scalular Impact — Amplify]
The impact detonated.
The monster flew backward and crashed through an ancient pillar.
Stone exploded throughout the room.
Ryota landed lightly.
He blinked.
"...Okay."
A small grin appeared.
"That worked."
"For now."
Rio offered no celebration.
No relief.
No pause.
"Don't let it recover."
Together they pressed the attack.
Not recklessly.
Not blindly.
Every movement had purpose.
Gunshot.
Time distortion.
Strike.
Force manipulation.
Retreat.
Repeat.
A rhythm formed between them.
Rio created opportunities.
Ryota exploited them.
The werewolf retaliated constantly.
Its claws tore through the air.
Shockwaves ripped across the floor.
The chamber continued to crumble around them.
Yet every attack arrived just slightly slower than intended.
Just slightly off target.
Because Rio kept forcing time itself to work against it.
For a while—
It worked.
Then Ryota made a mistake.
A tiny one.
A nearly invisible one.
He stepped half a pace too far forward.
The werewolf's body suddenly jerked.
Faster than expected.
Its arm twisted unnaturally.
Before either of them could react—
It grabbed him.
Ryota's eyes widened.
No contact.
No blade.
No activation window.
The werewolf hurled him across the chamber.
His body smashed into the far wall.
The impact thundered through the cavern.
Stone shattered.
Dust exploded outward.
The air vanished from his lungs.
"Ryota!"
For the first time during the fight—
Rio's concentration slipped.
Only for a fraction of a second.
But that was enough.
The werewolf vanished.
Then appeared directly behind her.
A claw descended.
Fast.
Far too fast.
Rio spun.
Her saber rose.
CLANG!
Pain exploded through her arm.
The block wasn't perfect.
The attack still connected.
She slid backward.
Boots grinding against stone.
The werewolf attacked again immediately.
Then again.
And again.
And again.
There was no rhythm.
No pattern.
No openings.
Only relentless pressure.
Rio blocked.
Deflected.
Redirected.
Her movements remained precise.
Every angle calculated.
Every parry exact.
But her body was beginning to fail.
Her footing weakened.
Her breathing grew heavier.
The injury in her left arm slowed her reactions.
Another strike.
CLANG!
Another.
CLANG!
Faster.
CLANG!
Heavier.
CLANG!
Her fingers tightened desperately around the hilt.
The werewolf raised its claw once more.
This attack carried even more force than the others.
Rio met it head-on.
Her saber rose.
Steel collided with claw.
Then—
CRACK.
The sound echoed throughout the chamber.
Rio's eyes widened.
A thin fracture appeared along the blade.
The crack spread instantly.
Down the center.
Across the edge.
Through the entire weapon.
Then the saber shattered.
Fragments of steel scattered across the floor.
The remaining force crashed through her broken guard.
The impact launched her backward.
She tumbled across the stone before finally skidding to a stop.
The shattered remains of her weapon landed nearby.
Clattering uselessly against the ground.
The Blood Release Werewolf advanced slowly.
Its body pulsed with unstable crimson energy.
Blood flowed endlessly across its skin.
Its glowing red eyes never left her.
Every step radiated overwhelming killing intent.
Rio pushed herself up slightly.
Her chest rose and fell.
Her arm throbbed.
Her saber was gone.
Completely destroyed.
For the first time since the battle began—
The Silver War Goddess was disarmed.
And the monster standing before her knew it.