"ROOOOARRR!!!"
The deafening roars of the monsters shook everything in the cavern.
Constantine found his body shivering, not due to fear, but simply because of the immense pressure these powerful and colossal creatures exuded.
There were nearly thirty creatures within this small space.
Most of them were small Hellhounds, while a considerable number were much larger, likely Ghost Hellhounds. Finally, their leader was a Dark Ghost Hellhound—a creature that stood over three meters tall.
The beast was twice the size of the current Constantine, and its robust body made it appear even more imposing.
"Well played, System!" Constantine cried aloud. "Your preparations were really thorough this time. I'm outnumbered and outmatched!"
This was a far more difficult situation—completely incomparable to his earlier encounters with the six Goblins or those three humans. In this confrontation, he was only stronger than the small Hellhounds.
The Ghost Hellhounds were not only of a higher level than him, but they also had a very troublesome Class Trait that made them resistant to physical attacks.
The Dark Ghost Hellhound was even worse.
Its resistance was much higher than that of the Ghost Hellhounds, and it had a Passive Skill that severely corroded anything it touched. In the game, it also had at least one Active Skill that allowed it to shoot dangerous projectiles at its opponents in the form of dark blasts.
These blasts heavily weakened the Player and dealt continuous damage over time.
'Thankfully, its effect is similar to Miasma Emission. It only affects living entities…' Constantine struggled to find a silver lining in this situation, but he could barely come up with any.
His greatest benefit was that he had managed to forge a proper sword and shield.
He also knew the patterns of these monsters.
'The Dark Ghost Hellhound is the first boss of the game. I have memorized every possible pattern it can use. But, since this is real life, I can't expect it to move exactly as it did in the game…'
This reduced his overall advantage by a great margin.
The last advantage he had was his identity as an Undead.
Although this couldn't save him from the wrath of this Boss Monster, since it had already spotted Constantine and considered him an intruder in its territory, there were still some perks he enjoyed because of his new Race.
'For one, the Dark Ghost Hellhound's debuffs won't work on me. Secondly, it won't be as ferocious, since I am not a living being. Thirdly, the smaller Hellhounds will be a lot easier to handle, since they also can't display much aggression toward a fellow Undead. Fourthly… it is possible to communicate.' Constantine heaved a sigh as he relaxed his stance and prepared himself for a gamble.
"This is all a mistake on my part. I didn't know you had claimed this territory, and I wish to leave this place to you. Is it possible for us to come to an understanding?"
Constantine wasn't suicidal.
If he could get out of this situation without fighting, he would gladly do so.
Of course, if he managed to kill all of these monsters, he would Level Up like crazy. However, he would lose almost every single item he had at his disposal, and he could even die.
Why would he take such a big risk when he could just communicate?
"You?" The Dark Ghost Hellhound chuckled with a deep and bloodthirsty voice. "A mere Ghoul wishes to make a deal with me? How amusing…"
'Fuck this!'
Upon sensing the malice in the Dark Ghost Hellhound's voice, Constantine brandished his blade.
He let out a wry smile and cried inside.
'I wonder how many Potions and Items will be left after this is all over…'
WHOOSH!!!
Before his opponent could gain the initiative, he charged at the closest Hellhounds and swung his Ordinary Sharp Sword with all of his strength.
As a Level 7 Undead, he was seventy percent stronger than a base Ghoul.
This already made him more powerful than an average Hellhound.
A single strike from a Rare sword was all it took to vanquish the monster in front of him, allowing him to hurriedly move on to the next target.
"Oh? You wish to struggle until the bitter end?" The Dark Ghost Hellhound chuckled with sinister delight.
"Alright, let's see what you can do."
After saying this, it commanded all the smaller Hellhounds to charge at Constantine at once.
There were at least twenty-five Hellhounds, six Ghost Hellhounds, and the final Boss—the Dark Ghost Hellhound.
A total of thirty-two monsters.
Having twenty-five Hellhounds charge at him at once was overkill.
But Constantine did not fret.
He sidestepped while gulping down three Ability Boost Potions.
Normally, a Minor Ability Boost Potion would increase the strength, speed, or durability of its consumer. The choice was also random. If one Potion was already in effect and another was consumed, one of the remaining two attributes would be boosted.
By consuming three at once, Constantine instantly raised his strength, speed, and durability.
He was currently about 80 Percent stronger than his base form.
This was a small difference in ability, but when it came to this life-or-death battle, he had to take all the help he could get.
Fortunately, his guess was correct when it came to these Hellhounds.
'Just like in the game, their weakness is evasive maneuvers.'
In their combative states, Hellhounds had basic movement patterns—charging forward and leaping backward.
They had no answer to sidestepping.
Thus, the best way to kill a Hellhound was to sidestep and slash at it to finish it off.
Since Constantine had decent equipment, and his Level was also sufficient, he could eliminate a Hellhound in one swift move.
Although there were twenty-five of them, which made his evasive maneuvers even more difficult, he wasn't in the worst situation. By sidestepping to avoid attacks on one side and blocking with his shield on the other, he could survive their onslaught.
More than that, he could also retaliate.
Thus, when the horde of Hellhounds rushed him, Constantine chose to leap to his left while using his shield to protect himself from the many Hellhounds that tried to claw at him and bite him from that direction.
SWOOSH!
He swung his blade and lopped off the head of a Hellhound to his right, reducing their number by another one.
Unfortunately, his shield could not protect his entire body.
Injuries were already piling up, especially on his lower body. Although he had Recovery Potions, he had to save them for his fight against the more troublesome Monsters that had yet to make their move against him.
'I have to reach the fringe of the group. This should reduce the damage I take to an extent.'
He dodged and slashed several more times, eventually racking up his kills to ten. By this point, he had successfully reached the fringe of the monster group.
Unfortunately, what was waiting for him there was a Ghost Hellhound.
'Damnit! A Presence Concealment Skill?!'
Constantine gritted his teeth.
The Ghost Hellhound pounced on him without mercy, opening its wide maw to swallow him whole.
During this crucial moment, when Constantine was on the verge of life and death, the System chose to act up once again.
This time, it chose to bombard him with a function it had neglected until now.
[SYSTEM NOTICE]
{Danger Detected!!!}
[SYSTEM NOTICE]
{Danger Detected!!!}
[SYSTEM NOTICE]
{Danger Detected!!!}
An entire wall of crimson text suddenly obscured Constantine's vision, completely blocking him from seeing anything else around him.
'You bastard!'
Constantine felt a wave of despair at that moment as he shouted at the top of his lungs.
"Why do you want me to die?!"