【Wind Slash Claw LV4】
As Norris brushed past the stonehide boar, his claws gouged deep furrows into its bristly thick hide, peeling back dark red muscle fibers.
It looked nasty, but the wound wasn’t fatal to the boar—just enough to enrage it.
With a thunder of hooves, the boar wheeled and charged Norris head-on.
Norris knew this well. Linked to the mycelium network, he had a special field of vision. Without even turning around, he “saw” the boar’s movement.
Ever since he’d connected to what the boss called the mycelium network, within the boss’s territory he had gained this peculiar sight.
It extended farther than his eyes could see and covered a full three-hundred-and-sixty degrees—though it wasn’t as natural as normal vision.
As the reeking tusks bore down again, Norris suddenly leapt into the air.
The boar’s charge, unable to stop, slammed into a massive tree trunk behind.
Norris seized the pause, firing the mushroom cannon he had already primed in his chest.After the explosion, the boar, missing its hind legs, still thrashed in the blood pool but was no longer a threat.
Planting his foot on its head, Norris sank his claws into its skull, finishing the battle.
Panting, he looked at the blood dripping from his claws, excitement flickering in his eyes.
The feeling of trampling a once-fearsome beast underfoot, of standing atop the food chain—it intoxicated him.
This was a joy the old Norris, endlessly hammering rocks in the mines, could never have imagined.
【Level Up: LV22 → LV23】
After days of clearing slimes, plus two more days hunting monsters alone—always fighting above his level—it wasn’t surprising he’d leveled again so quickly.
The surge of attributes brought tangible strength. Hugging his arms close, Norris didn’t even notice his claws rasping against his scales with a grating sound.
When the rush finally ebbed, Norris leaned back against the boar’s corpse, uncaring of the blood and stench.
Looking at his torn clothes, he tossed them aside altogether.
Maybe the boss was right. In this form, why cling to human notions like “shame”?
He should live more freely…
“Norris, hide. Adventurers are heading your way.”
“Oh, oh!”
Scrambling, Norris snatched up his clothes and hastily pulled them back on, diving into a thicket.
The boss’s perception was sharp—always giving him advance warning, letting him hide in time.
After all, in this state, he couldn’t be seen by people.
Losing his human identity didn’t pain him much. If anything, it freed him from debt and burdens.
The only downside was the food. The boss only had salt for seasoning…
Footsteps drew near. Norris burrowed deep into the leaves.
A familiar voice came from ahead.
“The sixth floor’s dark too…” Phylline complained irritably.
That girl!
For a heartbeat, Norris wanted to step out, apologize for running away last time.
Maybe even ask her name.
But before he rose, the gleam at the edge of his vision caught him—his claws, sharp enough to tear a boar’s hide with ease…
Right. He wasn’t human anymore.
Debt, fleeting encounters with girls—those had vanished with his humanity.
In the dark, Norris pressed himself even lower.
Beside Phylline, Vera glanced up at the glowing dome. “There are still luminescent mushrooms. It’s not pitch black.”
Behind them, Phiyin kept a sphere of orange-yellow light glowing from her staff.
“The dome’s so high up—those mushrooms barely help. At least the fifth floor had mushrooms on the ground. Here it’s just black! Hard to even navigate. What if we can’t find that flower spirit again?”
“Relax, I marked the way.” Vera shook the map in his hand, scribbled with his notes.
“Blood smell,” Phiyin warned suddenly.
The three tensed at once.
The light from Phiyin’s staff flared, even brushing across the thicket where Norris hid. But he was well-concealed, not a scale in sight.
Soon they found the dead boar.
“Just killed,” Phylline judged at a glance.
Vera crouched, examining. “Claw marks and explosion damage. Likely an adventurer. But claw weapons are rare. I don’t recall anyone in town using them. And why leave the tusks?”
Two seconds of silence. Then Vera whispered: “We’re leaving.”
The twins immediately understood, hurrying after him.
Phylline even drew a special arrow, ready to nock it.
After the raiders’ ambush, the three had worked out a strategy for next time.
Whether it would actually work… remained to be seen.
They left quickly.
Once they were gone, Norris bolted back to the fifth floor.
Back to his mushroom hut.
For the first time since awakening, he felt lost about the future. Depressed at his “non-human” self.
Not far away, Little Black happily bit into a limp Puji in her arms, bliss written on her face.
Her day was packed! Wake up and count shinies, eat a Puji, then count shinies again!
Naturally, Lin Jun had noticed Norris’s condition. Though he didn’t understand why seeing those three had upset him so deeply.
Probably just some “non-human” emotions. Didn’t Dylan feel the same at first?
Honestly, Lin Jun couldn’t relate at all. He still had arms, legs, a mouth, and could enjoy food.
And look at himself—a mushroom!
How was he supposed to empathize?
He neither knew nor cared how to comfort him. At most, he could offer some special supplements.
After all, the only thing Lin Jun required of Norris was to serve as a test subject for skill grafts. Nothing more.
As for volunteering in the slime-clearing or hunting monsters to level up—that was all Norris’s idea. Lin Jun simply didn’t object.
If Norris fell into despair and holed up in his hut all day, it wouldn’t affect Lin Jun’s experiments.
Even if he really couldn’t handle it and ended himself… well, it would be a small pity.
But in the end, being “non-human” was unchangeable. If Norris couldn’t adjust and accept it, Lin Jun couldn’t help.
It all depended on Norris’s own mindset.
…
Sixth floor. Location of the great flower spirit.
Vera’s group stood in the basin, staring at the lone massive flower bud…
Where was the flower spirit?
That thing had been huge. Where could it have gone?