Over the last few days it has been nothing but fight bugs and study the SpellSpear manual. In fact I'm fighting bugs right now. You’d think I would get better at fighting because the manual holds the secrets of the spear but nooooo. Honestly it is the most cryptic bullshit I’ve ever read. Things like ‘an opponent cannot dodge your thrust if you stop their movements with magic’ isn’t that useful! How? How do I stop them with magic? The piece of shit doesn’t even have advanced spear or spell techniques. It only has basic ones at best.

By basic techniques I mean a couple of crude drawings without real instructions. ‘Distract your opponent with magic and move in for the kill,’ along with a figure waving its hand and then stabbing another figure. Oh, so very helpful. It seems like it’s nothing but a book of concepts. Or a book written by someone so smart they thought the person reading it could figure it out straight away like they did.

I have a huge list of complaints about the technical details of my class. On the bright side, I have figured a few things out. Having to fight giant killer insects will do that to anyone, if they want to survive. These bugs are a piece of work. The pure variety freaks me out a little, but their willingness to devour their fallen freaks me out a lot.

Worker bugs, standing at three feet tall, with their powerful mandibles and six sword-like legs, attack in swarms. They dismantle their fallen with frightening speed. Soldier bugs stand at five feet tall. They have thick, plated carapaces with sharp edges. Two long, scythe like limbs grow from their backs. Poised above their bodies like dual scorpion tails, the scythes are especially deadly. Not as deadly as the Warrior bugs through. The Warrior bugs are massive, and take a shape similar to that of a man. Their thorax are shaped like the upper body of a human male covered in plate armor. Their abdomens are small, allowing them to stand on two legs. The way they walk like a human in strange armor, but act like bloodthirsty insects, is creepy.

A horde of Worker and Soldier bugs swarm me, a Warrior directing them from behind. Behind me, Nevasca hovers closely. She doesn’t aid me in my fight against the swarm, but keeps a close eye on me. The other members of my party are lounging further back, drinking cold beer from Quinn’s satchel. The three of them unanimously decided that I should fight through the bug hordes and slay the Queen “for the battle experience.” I can’t say I disagree with the logic behind their decision. I need a lot of battle experience and experience for levelling, if I’m going to continue to survive and grow stronger. That won’t stop me from complaining though. I deserve that much.

Shield forward and armor equipped, I rush forward into the wave of insects. I command a layer of fire to form over my shield, willing it to shrink down as dense as I can make it. After a few days of fighting, it occurred to me that fire and ice are two sides of the same coin. If you transfer energy IN to something, it becomes hot. If you transfer energy OUT of something, it becomes cold. It is all just transfers of energy. Blew my mind honestly. Right now, I’m taking the energy transferring out of my armor (to keep it cold and hard) and flowing it into the fire coating my shield. Energy is lost in the transfer, so it’s not perfect, but I’m trying.

The fire is growing unstable, too powerful me to control. I hang out for a couple more seconds, but as soon as the front line of insects is close enough, I let loose. I push the fire forward in a semi-circle arc in front of me. The flames roll forward like a wave, crashing into the insects. Because the flame has spread so thin, it is not lethal. However, in this scenario an injury is all it takes to kill. The front line of bugs, injured by the fire, are swiftly dispatched by their brethren. Alive and screeching, the bugs are ripped limb from limb. The chunks of still bleeding flesh are dragged back into the darkness, presumably to feed the Queen.

The first line of attackers taken care, and the second line stalled, I take a second to finish preparing. I continue to move forward, but as I go I create more spearheads. By the time I reach the rest of the bugs, I have ten additional spearheads rotating in the air around the one spearhead attached to my staff. My spear darts in among the Workers. Each spear thrust leaves a spear tip embedded in the exoskeleton of a bug. The bugs encircle me, but I pay them no mind. Relying on my armor to protect me, I use my shield like a weapon. I’ve formed an ice edge on it, using it to hack and bash away. As soon as my last spearhead is gone I tuck my limbs into my body and hide behind my shield. The spearheads explode simultaneously.

Level up!

Ice and ichor explode into the air. Any blood that lands on my armor is eagerly absorbed, turning into a concentrated energy used to fill my Blood source. The shards of ice in the air form into a vortex of mist and razor sharp edges. I push the whirlwind of sharp edges out, my body forming the eye of the hurricane. Injured bugs shriek, victims of the shrapnel and my spear/shield combo. The swirling ice shards are too weak to kill, but they spread out, injuring the Workers harvesting the already injured. The harvesters then became victims of the Workers behind them. Between the dead Workers and the Workers dragging away body parts, I thinned the ranks.

Stepping over their Worker comrades, a squad of seven Soldier bugs clear a circle around me. Their thick exoskeletons glimmer menacingly in the low light. Limbs like bladed tentacles sway, causing me to grimace. They remind me of snakes. One snake in particular. The memory of her causes my legs to shiver. I try to push my fear into my armor, but I can’t fit any more in. Plan B it is.

The already dim lighting, grows darker. I stop the absorption of my Monster Core fueled emotion by the Wisps. Feelings of aggression and rage flood my body, filling me with strength. Fear still lurks in my heart, but it isn’t enough to hold me back. My vision grows red. I tilt my head back and roar at the ceiling, my arms spread.

The Soldiers rain blows on my armor, searching for a weakness. I swing my spear at one, but it scuttles out of the way, irritating me. I growl in frustration at how slow I am. I want to rend into flesh. My armor’s weight is keeping me from doing so. Unafraid of me, the Soldiers grow closer. They keep hacking at my armor, avoiding the spikes. A laugh grows, deep inside of me. It builds and builds until I can’t hold it anymore. The laughter rips from my mouth, echoing in my helm. I have the most interesting idea.

My armor explodes into a thousand pieces, shredding the Soldiers where they stand. Jagged chunks of ice rip through their bodies, rewarding me with sweet, sweet experience. Blood showers me, a layer of frost already beginning to reform over the armor Henry gave me. I form a new tip on my staff. Not a thrusting tip like before, but a long, curved chopping blade.

Free of the encumbering weight, I dash toward the Warrior bug, a worthy opponent. I duck and weave through the insects. Any that come too close are smashed with my shield or sliced with my spear. I don’t aim to kill, just to maim and move forward. Soldiers and Workers, maimed by me, are dispatched by their own. I force my way closer and closer to the Warrior. I can see it watching me, gauging my worthiness. When the last Soldier falls, a long chittering call arises. The remaining Workers retreat, dragging their screeching comrades with them.

A path opens, leading me directly toward the approaching Warrior. Its carapace looks like angular plate armor. Its whole body is covered by shifting plates, like mine, which has reformed. We approach each other in a circular motion. I analyze my opponent. Standing at nine feet tall, it towers over me. The thickness of its carapace worries me, but the four scythe-like arms worries me more. Two thick, almost human, legs carry the Warrior. I can see dozens of me reflected in multifaceted eyes, resting above vicious mandibles. Who am I kidding? I'm too fucking pumped right now to be worried by a stupid bug.

I keep my distance, but bring my staff with its chopping blade in a great overhead arc. At the apex of the arc, the chopping blade detaches from the staff. The whirling blade is blocked by the Warrior’s upper scythes, right in front of its face. As planned, the blade explodes on impact. As soon as the blade flew forward, I rushed in close behind it, forming a narrow spear-head at the end of my staff. Blinded, the Warrior lashes out with his scythes indiscriminately. I block one with my shield, duck beneath another. Accept one into my shoulder pauldron. The final one waves fruitlessly in the air.

I plant my lead foot, using my momentum to twist my body. All my weight and power is shrunk down to the narrow, bladeless tip of my specialized spear head. I drive the tip up underneath the chomping mandibles of the Warrior. The spear slides in, piercing the insects brain. I cause it to explode for good measure, decapitating the bug and splattering blood everywhere.

I mean, I guess the whole distract and kill thing works. I refuse to acknowledge that the manual gave me the idea though.

Applause resounds behind me. I turn around with a grin hidden behind my helm. I take a mocking bow in the direction of my clapping comrades.

“Boom! One hit kill! Pay up Honey!” Mordai shouts gleefully.

“No way!” Honey retorts. “He launched a projectile at it, and then stabbed it. That’s two strikes. You owe ME money. Pay up you giant red asshole.”

“That doesn’t count,” Mordai protests. “Back me up here, Quinn.”

“You’re on your own,” Quinn flatly refuses. “Remember, loser has to butcher the Warrior for its armor. I did it last time.”

“Ugh,” Mordai groans. “Stupid bugs.”

I guess I should be offended that they are betting on my fighting, but it’s not like anyone is betting I’ll lose, right? Could be worse.

I throttle my aggression once again, letting it fade from my body. The energy provided by the anger fades, leaving my limbs feeling weak. Thankfully the fight is over, for now. Quinn saunters on over for a customary victory kiss. We haven’t had the chance to sneak away for a while. I can tell by the way Quinn rubs her body against mine, she is getting antsy for some action. To be fair, so am I. My worries dampen my libido though.

Although I gain a level every time my Champion defeats a level, it still worries me how fast they are conquering the floors. Last notification I checked indicated them to be at the eighth level. That is fucking close. As far as I can tell, there is a Floor Master every two floors. Each of which, disregarding Charles, has been brought under my control. But… it’s not really my control. I’m not controlling anyone, and that worries me.

It seems like my Champion is gathering all of these elite beings and forming them into an army to conquer the Dungeon with. That doesn’t bother me too much, they can do whatever they want, I don’t really care. What DOES bother me, is that all these powerful creatures have had their freedom stolen in my name. What if they decided collectively that it would be better to kill me off? I can’t handle that kind of firepower. Charles said something about a Dark Flame, but I have no idea how to control the thing. It makes me nervous.

My introspection about my potential problems continues all the way up to the point where I come face to face with a more immediate problem. If I have learned anything from this Dungeon it is that massive double doors indicate challenging boss battles. At the end of the tunnel we’ve been travelling down lays such a door. Intricate carvings of giant bugs slaughtering many creatures decorate its surface, spreading in a web-like pattern.

“The Queen must be behind this door,” Quinn whispers in my ear. My armor is unequipped so we can cuddle while we walk. Her hands have been liberal in their movements, disregarding the awkward glances of the others.

“We should go in together,” Mordai suggests, a suspicious glimmer in his eye. “Just in case.”

“You just think it will be a hot bug lady,” Honey chides him.

“Why would I think that?!” Mordai protests, but looks away.

“Because as the bugs get more powerful they’ve gotten more and more human-like in appearance,” Quinn glares daggers at Mordai, her grip on me tightening.

“Cut it out guys,” I say. “There is only one way to find out. Let’s go inside!”

Honey and Quinn shift their glares to me, but Mordai sends me a wink. What can I say? I’m curious! It’s not a crime!

I gently disentangle myself from Quinn, but not before planting a deep kiss on her lips. My armor forms around my body. Nevasca stands at my side, not willing to let me fight this one alone. With my enhanced strength from the level ups, my armor’s assistance, and the strength gains I’ve made by just enduring the weight of the armor, I push open the big double doors.

Behind me I can hear Mordai’s disappointed groan. In the middle of the room, the Queen stands waiting for us. Her upper half is that of a humanoid, while her lower half is all bug. She looks similar to the Driders I’ve seen around the Guild, but just not a spider, ya know? I can tell it’s the Queen because… well she is wearing a crown. Kind of a giveaway.

Delicate facial features lay beneath her long silver hair. A band of gold and crystals rests firmly across her forehead. Large multifaced eyes examine us. Her upper body is smooth and muscled, creating a dissonance with her bloated lower body.

I glance back at Mordai who is kneeling in despair. His hands lay open above his chest, as if grasping a large pair of invisible breasts. The Queen’s gaze locks on him, her lips curling is disgust.

“Why would I need boobs?” She snaps. “I lay eggs! I don’t nurse anything or anyone. Get your shit together you horned freak.”