Blades of force tore Akhlut apart as they emerged from the snow. My dagger bit deep into blubbery flesh as I tore through the Akhlut like a scythe through wheat. The combination of my dagger and [Venomous Strikes] meant I often didn't need more than one blow to ensure an individual Akhlut fell, even if the initial strike wasn't fatal. My venom and Vipera's certainly were. I haunted the snowfield like a malevolent wraith, weaving in and out of battle as Kel's and his team fought the newest waves of monsters. A stab here or there and an Akhlut about to lunge at someone fell down dead or writhing in agony as the venom took hold; an [Edge Glare] and whole groups further away were bisected. Dead before they hit the ground. I had to take care with my aim for my ocular Spells, though, this was no fantasy where my Skills wouldn't hurt my comrades. If I wasn't careful, Kels and co would end up just as dead as the monsters.

  All the while I worked my Spells in overtime, [Gaze of Bane] flowed out constantly from my left eye while I kept the right free for [Edge Glare] when it was needed. I could feel the headache forming behind my eyes. I wasn't quite as practiced as I'd like with using a Spell in each eye. I couldn't fathom the idea of doing this in my spider form right now. Eight eyes meant eight Spells, all at once.

  Wherever [Gaze of Bane] fell, the Akhlut howled in agony as their flesh began to turn black and rot while they gained stacks of [Bane]. It was a horrific Skill, and decidedly deadly if allowed the time to work. Unfortunately, it was frequent that Akhlut affected charged directly into the weapon or spell fire of our little group in the mad agony. The stacks of [Bane] weakened the monsters it affected enough that they were hardly a concern, however.

  As we approached the pine trees, the snowfield was quiet once more. This time, I didn't bother with the loot, and we all pushed forward through the invisible membrane that led to the next floor of the dungeon. The hordes of Akhlut emerging from the snow seemed endless, as if this dungeon had an inexhaustible supply of monsters to throw at us. We passed through the membrane and into a stone corridor, lit by blue fire torches. My eyes flicked over a System notification as we slowly made our way down the passage.

  You have slain multiple [Akhlut Juvenile].

  You have gained multiple instances of EXP.

  Yeah, I would say that was multiple instances, alright. I thought to myself as we made our way onward. As a whole, we had probably killed another couple of hundred Akhlut by the time we made it to the chamber exit to escape the snowfield. I could feel the progress I had made; it wasn't quite enough for a level yet, but it wasn't far from it either. Ah, the sweet taste of advancement, how I have missed you, I grinned as we followed the twisting corridor. There seemed to be little rhyme or reason to the way the corridor turned back and forth, but eventually the end came into sight in the form of bright white light cast from a large hole at the end of a short stretch of corridor.

  Cautiously, we emerged from the corridor and into another winter wonderland brimming with the possibility of slaughter with extreme prejudice.

  This one was significantly less open, however. What we emerged into was another snow field, but this time littered with hills and trees that would provide any approaching monsters with much more cover than the previous chamber. We collectively suppressed a groan at the sight of what awaited us in the new chamber. I could think of worse things, but more cover for the monster was not something I wanted; line of sight was a consideration for me. Less so for my [Edge Glare], which could carve through most things. More so, it was a problem for my [Gaze of Bane], which had barely any effect on something like a tree or a hill, and had no penetrating power whatsoever. That was the trade off; it could affect anything I could see, but couldn't affect my target when my line of sight was obstructed. There was nothing to be done for it, however. We advanced into the chamber.

  [All-Seeing Eye] flicked on, revealing the mana washing through the area to my sight. The mana washed from the depths of the dungeon was thick and heavy, but not thick enough to disguise the presence of the monsters attempting to flank us. Their mana signatures stood out like candles in a dim room, which was enough to differentiate them from the mana wash.

  "Flank coming in from the right," I announced as my head snapped to look directly at the group of Akhlut working their way around a small hill. They'd be in sight in a moment or two. As they came into sight, I let [Gaze of Bane] flow through my left eye. I could probably have wiped the group out with a couple of well-placed [Edge Glare] casts, but how much mana would that cost me? How long was the dungeon? How many more chambers would we have to battle through? These questions played on my decision making as the monsters drew close enough to hear their strange coughing howls. I could see that the stacks of [Bane] they'd accumulated were already at work by the time they reached us. As Kels and Signe finished up the last of the deteriorating Akhlut, my gaze flickered around our surroundings, and I let out a curse.

  "More coming," I ground out as I spun around, tracking the mana signatures. They'd been hiding in the mana wash from the deeper layers of the dungeon. It wasn't enough to stop me from seeing them when they were close, but at a distance? They could hide their movements from me thanks to the dense mana that filtered up from the further chambers. "From around the hill on the left, and from the gully ahead of us," I reported to the team as my eyes flicked around the area, checking and re-checking for anything I might have missed. I focused on the gully ahead; the mana signatures there were denser. Working on a sudden thought, I triggered [Analyze], after all, I could technically see them. Their mana signature at least.

  I was rewarded with the readout.

  After a fashion.

  [Akhlut Adult][Dungeon-born]

  Level: 27

  A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.

  Species: Phantasmal Orca-Wolf

  Strength: 68

  Dexterity: 44

  Endurance: 51

  Intelligence: 9(15)

  Perception: 32

  Charisma: 8

  Species Skills:

  [Overwhelm]

  [Blood in the Water]

  [Group Savagery]

  [Cold Resistance]

  "Stronger Variants!" I called out immediately while I stared through the stat page. They were similar to the juveniles. Same Skills at least, but the stats and level had gone up enough to be concerning since they now matched me in level. What was more concerning was the [Group Savagery] Skill. It reminded me entirely too much of the [Pack Tactics] Skill the Root Maw ants had back in the Soul-Sheer. I pushed on my [Analyze] to give me more information as Kels and the other engaged the nearest group of Akhlut.

  [Group Savagery] - A subordinate Skill provided to Pack members by the Alpha. Enhances pack coordination when working together. Skill Holder shares Intelligence with the holder of the Dominant Skill.

  My eyes went wide as I stared around the snowfield again, blood surging in my veins. The other groups of juveniles I had seen, every one of them had an adult with them. An adult that had this Skill.

  "Fuck." I took a moment to gather my thoughts. The situation, to put it bluntly, was not great. We were facing another horde of Akhlut, like the last time, but this time, not only were there Adults among them with higher stats. They also shared intelligence with the Alpha, which had the highest Intelligence I'd ever seen on a monster. More than high enough to coordinate and plan like a human. Which meant this wasn't going to be an unorganized rabble like the previous floor. "Every group has an adult matching up to my level—and they're working together. They're using a Skill to share the Alpha's Intelligence."

  The instant I finished the explanation, all the noise and confusion of battle suddenly made much more sense. The Akhlut weren’t just charging headlong at us—they were probing, peeling, surrounding. Chipping away at the edges to see what broke off. One group feinted left while another broke formation and circled wide, forcing Signe and Felix to split apart or risk being enveloped. A third wave barreled right down the gully at Kels and Angus, leveraging the terrain to funnel them tight and cut down on the reach of their weapons. This was no animal onslaught—this was a damn playbook. If the thing running this dungeon had opposable thumbs, it was probably drawing X's and O's on a whiteboard.

  I didn’t need to see the supervisor to know the plan: break the formation, isolate the weakest, then dog pile them.

  One at a time until there were none left.

  If I'd been confident in the team before, I was twice as impressed now, watching them fight off concerted attacks. Kels didn't budge an inch, nor did any of the others. These were seasoned professionals. That wouldn't save them if something didn't change soon, though. The group drew closer together, instinctively understanding that getting separated meant death. My dagger flashed out over and over again as more Akhlut drew within reach. The next wave barreled into Kels, who accepted it with a grunt, bracing behind his shield as three Akhlut slammed into him. Stepping around the large man, my dagger beat a staccato rhythm pounding into the trio of Akhlut to deliver it's venom laced payload before I whirled away. Two of the adult Akhlut slipped by, breaking from the rest and running far around their brethren, heading straight for Signe.

  The mage called up a wall of ice in front of the Akhlut, but they barely slowed. The two adults hit the ice wall in perfect sync, not even breaking stride as it exploded into diamond dust around them. Signe backpedaled, firing off a crackling pulse of green lightning—the lead Akhlut dodged right, the second left, working the angles like they'd rehearsed it a thousand times. For a flash of a second, I could almost see the line that connected Signe's forehead to the lead monster's snapping jaws. She raised the wand, flinched, and the monster plowed into her—except it didn't bite, not yet, just bowled her over. The second adult circled, tail lashing, jaws clacking in rhythm. The beast perched atop her chest, jaws snapping wide.

  I hurled myself at them as Signe kicked and thrashed beneath the first adult, her off hand tearing at the snow for purchase. I wasn't going to make it in time. The monster's jaws were already descending towards Signe's skull.

  I wasn't alone, though.

  Never was really.

  Vipera materialized around my torso, launching herself using me as a springboard. She hit the Akhlut on Signe like a freight train. She wrapped herself around its neck, jaws latching right beneath the ear. The weight of the serpent was enough to bowl the Akhlut over. The Akhlut thrashed, snapping sideways so violently I thought it would tear Vipera free, but she only dug in harder, blade like scales biting deeply into its flesh. Venom pulsed from her fangs directly into the thing's main artery and, for a split second, the monster went from predator to prey: lips rippling in a panicked snarl, eyes rolling up white.

  The second adult Akhlut launched itself, jaws wide, intent on biting Vipera in two. I didn't break stride—just plowed into it and drove my dagger straight up under its open jaw. The blade slammed home through the lower jaw and into the upper palate, depositing it's venom. The Akhlut's body convulsed and collapsed in a heap. I bent down and dragged my dagger from its jaw with a wet squelch.

  Vipera rode the first Akhlut's death-spasm, still coiled and biting as it thrashed about in its death throes. I helped Signe to her feet as Vipera came slithering back. Signe looked at me, streaks of frost and blood matting her hair where the Akhlut had raked her scalp.

  “Thanks,” she muttered, voice raw. “That one almost got me,” She kicked the dead Akhlut, then buried her hand in Vipera’s scales and scratched the serpent behind the jaw. “and thank you as well.” Vipera made a low, delighted hiss and pressed closer, gaze full of dark and hungry intelligence.

  “They’re getting smarter,” Signe said, wiping her hand on her pants. “Or at least more coordinated.”

  I nodded and scanned the rest of the field. My heart was hammering, sweat running slick and cold between my shoulder blades; I'd burned through a decent chunk of mana from all the [Edge Glare] and [Gaze of Bane] spamming, but I still had reserves. I checked the others—Kels was limping, his armour caved at one thigh, and Felix was down on one knee, rifle up but jaw set with pain.

  "They're working together. It's like fighting a crew that's run a hundred ops together," she grimaced, flicking a dart of electricity at the limp tail of the nearest corpse before shuffling back towards the others. Vipera pulsed with smug satisfaction as she snaked around my midsection, her blue eyes gleaming as she sought my gaze, fangs slick with venom. I felt the warm glow of her pride; she was quite pleased with herself.

  "We can't keep going like this," I said.

  “What other choice do we have?” Signe asked seriously.

  "We? None." I said grinning malevolently, "Me? I'm going hunting. Vipera, look after them for me." My snake like familiar slithered to the ground. She looked somewhat miffed to be left behind but accepted it, nodding her head at me.

  I glanced over at Signe, still grinning, "Dungeon monsters aren't the only monsters here."

  Sometimes I just couldn’t help being a little edgy and dramatic.

  It kept things entertaining.

  For me at least.