Hacking the Game Didn't Go as Intended

CHAPTER 127: Claw of Fire, Fang of Chaos - A Dance of Blades

Sunlight pierced through cracks in the cave's vaulted ceiling, casting eerie shafts of light into the thick, humid air. The cavern reeked of death, its crevices lined with cages housing terrified creatures, their pitiful eyes reflecting the grim scene.

Along the walls were heaps of bones and half-devoured carcasses, filling the space with the stench of decay. In one corner, a throne-like chair, roughly chiseled from stone, dominated the area, its presence amplified by the grim backdrop of polished skulls stacked high. Beside the throne stood a wooden pedestal, and atop it, within a small cage, the tiny primate lay unmoving.

There you are, Daisuke thought as he slipped into the cave. His movements were ghost-like under the concealment of the Shadow Veil skill, which muted his steps and cloaked both him and Zephyr in darkness. The skill didn't specify if it masked scent, but I really hope it does—and that I'm just overthinking it.

As he cautiously approached the pedestal, Zephyr peeked out from beneath his shirt, his eyes narrowing at the sight of Midnight lounging on Daisuke's shoulder, looking far too self-satisfied. Before he could even remotely consider making a fuss, the disturbing sounds of the Goblins gnawing on their meal caught his attention, the sickening crunch of bones and flesh filling the atmosphere.

The moment Daisuke opened the cage that imprisoned the curious primate, the potbellied fiends halted their feasting, their heads snapping up as they sniffed the air, alert to the sudden shift in the room.

"Keh?!"

Gahgehk?!"

"Nhahh?!"

Daisuke's expression settled into a poker face. "Great," he grunted, "so the skill doesn't mask scent after all. Well, that's good to know... assuming that I survive the shitshow that's about to unfold."

Unfortunately for him, his intuition was more on point than he knew. In an instant, the primate's eyes snapped open and there was a powerful explosion that sent him and several approaching Goblins flying. As dust and debris swirled around them, Daisuke and Zephyr sprang to their feet, ready for battle. But they weren't the only ones prepared to fight.

WHOOSH!

A massive arm, fingers splayed, cut through the dust like a colossal fan. Daisuke's eyes widened as the haze parted, revealing a monstrous creature—a hybrid with the bulging head of a toad and the muscular, towering body of a gorilla, easily twice the size of any great ape. It sat casually on its glorious throne while Goblins scrambled to fit its oversized frame into the mismatched armor pieces scavenged from people they had slain.

DING!

[Gorgothor | Lvl 27 | Field Boss | HP: 1051753/1051753]

Daisuke's heart sank as he glanced at the creature's absurdly high health bar that was essentially twice the amount of the troll's. "You ungrateful catfish!" he murmured. "I came here to send you to hell in the most painless way possible, and this is how you repay me?"

Zephyr leaped to the ground and growled, his gaze darting among the horde of Goblins slowly closing in on them. The creatures flexed their weapons threateningly, some standing before their burly god with blood-smeared faces twisted into dark grins.

"Why does this feel so familiar?" Daisuke muttered to himself as a sudden memory flashed—the Goblin Shaman and the bandits. The image of the worthless weapon the shaman had dropped only fueled his annoyance. But allowing even a sliver of his attention to drift was a mistake.

Heaving a fierce roar, a single Goblin charged forward, its jagged mace raised high. Daisuke's body dipped low, his hair hovering as he braced for a counterstrike. But instead of driving the weapon down, the fiend dodged to the side.