The promotion came faster than expected.
From bronze... to silver... in a single return.
Most adventurers would celebrate.
Lucifer rented a room at a modest inn instead.
He tossed the silver badge onto the table and stretched.
"...Too slow."
His eyes shifted to the quest scroll in his hand.
"Subjugate: Swamp Dungeon."
"A dungeon, huh..."
He leaned back.
"Breeding grounds for monsters. Natural disasters waiting to happen."
A faint smirk appeared.
"...And gold mines."
Preparation
The next morning, Lucifer returned to the guild.
Potions. Light armor. Utility tools.
Not flashy—
Efficient.
"Overprepared?" the merchant asked.
Lucifer shook his head.
"Underprepared is how people die."
Entering the Dungeon
The entrance pulsed like a wound in reality.
Dark.
Breathing.
Alive.
Lucifer stepped inside.
The world changed instantly.
Mud.
Humidity.
Rot.
A swamp.
"...Great," he muttered.
"Worst terrain possible."
Movement.
Ripples in the water.
Creatures emerged.
Humanoid lizards.
Standing upright.
Weapons in hand.
Eyes cold.
"...Silver rank equivalents," Lucifer observed.
"And enhanced hearing."
He didn't move.
Didn't breathe loudly.
Didn't step.
Instead—
He vanished upward.
A tree branch.
High.
Silent.
Below, the lizards gathered.
Confused.
Listening.
Searching.
Lucifer watched calmly.
"...Good thing I did my homework."
The Hunt Begins
He dropped silently.
One target.
The weakest.
The furthest.
A clean strike.
Then—
He ran.
Mud slowed him.
But his Speed skill compensated.
Distance created.
Line of sight broken.
Then—
Another strike from the shadows.
"...Hit and run," Lucifer muttered.
The cycle repeated.
Again.
Again.
Again.
But eventually—
The lizards stopped chasing.
Lucifer paused.
"...So you can learn."
Instead of retreating—
He followed.
The Village
Deep within the dungeon—
He found it.
Not a nest.
Not a camp.
A village.
Guarded.
Organized.
Alive.
Lucifer crouched, observing.
"...Going in now would be suicide."
A pause.
Then a smile.
"...Good thing I don't fight fair."
Farming the System
Days turned into weeks.
Lucifer mapped everything.
Paths.
Patrols.
Blind spots.
He planted traps.
Sound traps.
Spike traps.
Kill zones.
Whenever the lizards gathered—
He struck.
Then disappeared.
Karma coins increased.
Slowly.
Then slower.
Lucifer frowned.
"...Diminishing returns."
He sighed.
"Figures. No infinite exploits."
He stood.
"...Then it's time."
Burning the Village
Lucifer walked straight toward the village.
Torches in hand.
He threw them.
Fire spread instantly.
Wood burned.
Chaos erupted.
Lizards scrambled.
Water splashed.
Commands shouted.
Lucifer moved.
Fast.
Silent.
Deadly.
One by one—
They fell.
When they regrouped—
He retreated.
Healed.
Struck again.
Then—
He changed direction.
The Prison
Deep inside—
Humans.
Captured.
Broken.
Lucifer unlocked their chains.
Tossed them weapons.
"Fight," he said simply.
Confusion.
Fear.
Then—
Desperation.
They attacked.
The battlefield shifted.
Chaos multiplied.
From a distance—
Lucifer watched.
"...I do enjoy this."
The King Appears
The ground shook.
A presence emerged.
The Lizard King.
Massive.
Armored.
Deadly.
Gold rank.
The prisoners began to fall.
Lucifer didn't intervene.
Instead—
He slipped away.
Into the king's chamber.
"...What are you protecting?"
He searched.
Quick.
Precise.
Then—
He found it.
Eggs.
Lucifer smiled.
The Final Play
He returned to the battlefield.
Fire burning brighter.
"HEY!"
The king turned.
Lucifer held the eggs.
"...Recognize these?"
The king froze.
Fear.
Real.
Lucifer laughed.
"...So you do feel something."
The king stepped forward.
Lucifer raised an egg over the flames.
"Stop."
Silence.
"Cut your arm off."
Shock.
Rage.
Hesitation.
Lucifer tilted the egg.
"...Or watch them burn."
The king roared—
Then—
Cut its own arm.
Blood spilled.
Lucifer laughed.
"...You actually did it."
And then—
He dropped the eggs.
Into the fire.
The king screamed.
Something broke.
Mind.
Control.
Reason.
Gone.
It charged.
Blind.
Furious.
Lucifer stepped forward.
"...Now you're predictable."
The fight was short.
Brutal.
Calculated.
Lucifer took a hit—
On purpose.
Closed the distance.
And drove his blade straight through the king's heart.
Silence.
System activated:
1000 Lizards slain
Lizard King defeated
Skill gained: Heightened Senses
Title gained: Lizard Slayer
Karma Points: Massive
Lucifer exhaled.
"...Worth it."
Aftermath
The survivors gathered.
One stepped forward.
A girl.
"Amy."
"We owe you everything," she said.
Lucifer waved it off.
"Take your share."
They hesitated.
"You earned it," he added.
Cheers erupted.
Lucifer smiled.
Inside—
He was laughing.
"...Cheap price," he thought.
"Your lives... for loyalty."
Return to the Guild
The guild fell silent when he returned.
Again.
The manager rushed out.
"Incredible... truly incredible..."
Lucifer lowered his gaze.
"...I couldn't save everyone."
The room softened.
Respect grew.
"...A hero," someone whispered.
Lucifer smiled faintly.
Behind the mask—
The devil laughed.
Promotion granted:
Gold Rank.
The manager spoke again.
"That girl... Amy. She survived because of you."
Lucifer nodded.
"...She fought well."
The manager smiled.
"You're not just strong... you inspire others."
Lucifer turned away.
"...If only you knew."
His reflection stared back at him in the guild's polished floor.
Not a hero.
Not a savior.
Something far worse.
And far more dangerous.
Because unlike before—
Now—
Lucifer was learning how to play human.
To be continued...