After searching for a few moments, Manco saw a Fire Gecko lazing outside a hollow log. From its nose to the tip of its tail, the creature was twice as long as his forearm. It was covered in scales the color of tree barks, with glowing red spots along its back. The gecko was munching on some insects it just roasted.

"Hey, buddy!" He called to it, trying his best to sound harmless, "I kinda need your help for a bit. Do you mind?"

As he spoke, he slowly approached it. His outstretched right hand carried a handful of dried nuts and mushrooms, some of the gecko's favorite treats. The reptile turned to him and snorted, blowing out some hot air.

After a few silent moments, it approached him and accepted the offerings. Letting out a relieved sigh, Manco scooped it up in his arm and carried it toward the Corruptor's cave.

The cave was on the side of a small, barren gray hill, quite out of place from the rest of the forest. From his hiding spot a hundred meters away, Manco could not see anything past its pitch black opening.

Opening the menu he checked the Mind Link spell.

『Mind Link』 (lv. 1)

- Type: Sustained, Control. Cast time: 5 sec

- Mana cost: 15 to activate + 150 to maintain

- Description:

+ Take control of a non-sentient creature. The caster can see and hear through the creature's eyes and ears.

+ The creature might resist the spell and sever the Mind Link with a successful Willpower check against caster's Willpower and spell level. One check every 1.5 minutes.

- Level 1:

+ Max duration: 300 seconds

+ Max range: 200 meters

+ Max number of creatures: 1

—o—

The spell seemed a lot weaker than what the kodama had used. Which was understandable, considering the tiny creature was born out of a minor deity, and that it willingly allowed him to control it.

"Okay, buddy. Here we go!" Manco said to the Fire Gecko and used the Mind Link spell on it. The creature squirmed in his hands as a notification appeared.

〔 Mind Link failed. The creature has resisted the spell. 〕

"Damn it!" He tried again.

〔 Mind Link succeeded. 〕

"Yes!"

Manco gently set the gecko on the ground. After that, he closed his eyes.

The gecko vision was… strange, to say the least. Its two eyes were on two sides of its head and could move in two different directions, which disoriented Manco quite a bit. After a minute he was nauseous as if suffering from motion sickness.

Unable to endure any longer, he disconnected the spell to take a rest, then tried again. Eventually, he got the hang of the lizard's quirky vision and ordered it to approach the cave.

Steeling himself at the bizarre sensation of moving so close to the ground, he focused on the cave's mouth ahead.

Fifty meters…

Twenty meters…

There were no trees or shrubs on the way. The ground was covered with bits of bones and pieces of skin. The lizard passed several rib cages. Then came many skulls, some partially crushed, others with holes in them.

Eventually, it reached the cave and headed inside.

After a few seconds, the gecko's eyes got used to the darkness and the vision became green-tinted. Manco began observing his surroundings.

The outermost section of the cave was narrow and cramped. The floor was uneven, littered with loose rocks and animal remains.

He commanded the gecko to head in deeper. After several dozen meters, the narrow pathway opened up into a spacious area. The ground here was surprisingly flat as if by human hands. At the center of the area, he saw a house.

A small house, or more precisely, a cottage seemingly made out of bamboo and dried palm leaves, was standing there. Right outside was a large flat rock acting as a table, and a chair made out of a tree stump.

Observing the strange arrangement, Manco had a sense of deja vu. Then it hit him. It was similar to Gwyndham's place as seen from the outside. A simple bamboo-and-leaf cottage, with a table and a chair in front.

Then something moved from inside the cottage. A black shadow emerged from the door and flew straight at the gecko. Unable to react, Manco watched as one of the shadow's limbs swiped at the gecko, sending it crashing against the cave wall. Before Mind Link was broken, he caught a glimpse of the shadow as it swiftly made its way to the cave's entrance.

"Shit. It found me!" He realized.

Then there was a rustle of leaves above his head. The hair on his neck stood up as a breeze blew on it. A voice sounded in his ear.

"My, my… What do we have here?"

Before Manco could even turn around, a powerful force gripped his torso. He found himself pressed down on the ground, then dragged toward the cave. Turning his head, he saw a figure pulling him effortlessly. It looked like it was made out of black smoke, but was quite solid. He could make out a faintly humanoid shape within.

Early rays of sunlight fell on its smoke-like skin, causing parts of it to burst into flame and flake off. The shadowy figure paid it no mind and kept rushing toward the cave entrance.

「Mana Bolt」! 「Mana Bolt」!

Manco's efforts to free himself were futile as the shadow easily avoided the two mana bolts. Thinking fast, he aimed his next few shots at the crooked limb wrapping around his torso.

「Mana Bolt」!

-3

*Whack!

-43

This time, the thing reacted violently. After the limb was hit by a mana bolt, it lifted him up and slammed him onto the ground. Air left his body as a big chunk of his health was shaved off by a simple attack.

〔 You have entered mini-dungeon: Cave of Lament. 〕

〔 You were the first to enter this location. 〕

〔 Xp gain + 100% 〕

〔 Item drop rate + 50% 〕

〔 You have received title "Pioneer I" 〕

The thing dragged him into the cave, past the narrow pathway. Manco grunted as the small rocks cut into his body.

-1! -2! -1!

Thanks to his armor, the damage from each cut was negligible. However, several dozen of them would eventually add up and consume his meager health.

Thankfully, when they had made it to the spacious inner area, the shadow let go of him. Grabbing a big boulder like it was made of paper mache, it blocked the pathway. It looked like it intended to keep him here for a while.

Manco quickly got to his feet, his whole body screaming in protest. Grabbing a vial of health potion from his belt he drank it and felt the pain subsiding.

"How rude! Snooping around someone's house like that!" Turning to him, the shadow spoke. Its inhuman voice was screeching like fingernails on a chalkboard, causing him to wince.

The Corruptor was not much taller than Manco. After looking closely he could confirm it was a humanoid figure cloaked by a shadowy substance that was constantly shifting around, completely obscuring its features.

"Uh, will you let it go if I say I'm sorry?" He replied, stalling for time. Normally a sentient-type boss monster would begin to monologue a little, giving him some time to plan his moves.

"Ah ha ha! How cute! I like that!" the voice continued, "Apologies won't cut it. What were you doing out there?"

"I was just hunting," using the conversation assistance, Manco attempted to stall while observing his surroundings.

Dotting the walls and ceilings were glowing stones, illuminating the whole place, for which he was thankful as he would not have to fight in the dark.

Save for the cottage, the table, and the chair, the cavernous area was almost barren. There were no grass, mushroom or even moss in here. No living thing could survive for long around a Corruptor.

"Hunting, huh?" the shadow laughed, its laughter sounded like a dozen men coughing through phlegm-clogged throats, "That cow sent you here, didn't it? I can sense its magic that you use! I can smell its stench on you!…"

While the shadow busied itself insulting the Sacred Dear, he considered his options.

Leaving was probably out of the question. The shadow already blocked the exit with that boulder. He was nowhere near strong enough to move it and had no way of destroying it, either. He might be able to goad the shadow into accidentally break the boulder with its spells or melee attacks, but he did not count on it.

The other option was fighting, which he was much more in favor of. Running would serve little purpose. There was nothing in the town that could significantly raise his chance of dealing with this Corruptor. What he had with him right now was as good as possible. The rest depended on his skills.

Dying was not much of a problem for him, either. He was level 15, and items would not drop before level 20. He could die once, go back to town, fixed up his damaged gear, and try again. It might be tedious, but not impossible…

『 Soul Tethering 』

A blue sphere shot out from the Corruptor and hit Manco. It exploded into multiple light particles and disappeared, leaving a thin transparent blue line connecting his body to somewhere inside the hut. The blue line then slowly faded.

The spell did not cause any damage, but Manco's face paled. Opening the status screen, his worry was confirmed as he stared at the new status effect.

『 Tethered Soul 』 - Duration: 23h59m

- After dying, target will respawn at tethered location

- Spell expires when the caster is dead, the target has died 10 times, or after 24 hours.

"Dammit!" He gritted his teeth.