The echo of footsteps rang faintly through the tunnels as Max advanced with difficulty. The ground was uneven, damp, and every step reminded him that his body wasn't right… it never had been since the system decided to "help" him.
"Don't walk so stiffly," Mira said calmly, a few steps ahead of him. "If you tense your muscles too much, exhaustion sets in faster."
Max let out a dry laugh.
"You say that like I have functional muscles."
Mira tilted her head slightly, smiling with her eyes closed, as if she could see him perfectly without opening them.
"You say that like you're not still walking."
That shut him up.
For what felt like hours, they moved through increasingly wider tunnels. Unlike the brutal chaos of the rest of the dungeon, this area felt… different. The walls weren't just raw stone—they were smoothed, reinforced with crystallized roots and mineral veins that glowed with a soft bluish light.
"This place…" Max murmured. "It doesn't feel like a wild zone."
"Because it isn't," Mira replied. "It's part of the underground domain. My home lies deeper, but these routes connect several nests."
"Nests?"
"That's what you call them," she corrected. "For us, they're cities."
Max stopped for a moment.
"Cities… of mole girls?"
Mira laughed softly, a low, almost vibrating sound.
"Not all of us are 'girls,'" she said. "And not all of us are moles, exactly. We are the Morvyn. Adapted to the deep earth. Sensitive eyes, heightened senses, bodies shaped to dig and endure pressure."
Max looked at the walls again.
"So… you built all of this?"
"Not exactly. The gods built this," she answered. "But we follow one rule: the earth is respected, not violated."
That hit Max harder than he expected.
He thought of the system. Of how it forced negative stats on him, how it pushed him to the brink of death again and again.
"It must be… a good home," he said at last.
Mira nodded.
"It is. Quiet. Dark. Safe. No one screams. No one lies about your chances of living."
A chill ran down Max's spine.
"I wish I could say the same."
She stopped abruptly.
"Max," she said seriously. "That artifact… that voice… it's not normal."
"I know," he replied. "But neither am I anymore."
Before he could say anything else, the air changed.
A sour, metallic smell flooded the tunnel.
Mira frowned.
"Get back," she ordered. "Something's coming."
The exit to Floor 32 was in sight. A natural stone arch, covered in ancient symbols, marked the boundary between levels.
And just before they crossed it…
The shadows moved.
One. Two. Five. Ten.
Small figures emerged from the sides of the tunnel.
Goblings.
Barely over a meter tall, but nothing about them looked weak. Tight, dark skin. Mouths full of jagged teeth. Sunken eyes glowing with a sickly light. Their arms were long, nearly dragging along the ground, ending in bony claws.
"Deep-floor Goblings…" Mira whispered. "They shouldn't be here."
Then the ground trembled.
Three colossal figures blocked the exit.
Minotaurs.
Over three meters tall, muscles covered in scars, twisted horns, and stone axes stained with dried blood.
Max's heart began to race.
And then—
[System Activated]
The screen appeared before him.
Level: 23
Strength: 2392
Endurance: 3128
Agility: 920
Status: Critical / Malnutrition / Residual Intoxication
Warning:
Survival probability is extremely low.
Recommendation: Escape is futile.
Max clenched his teeth.
"Here we go again…" he muttered.
The screen flickered.
New Skill Acquired:
Embodied Lie (Active)
Converts the perception of danger into raw power.
The more impossible victory seems, the greater the temporary boost.
Warning:
Enemies vastly exceed your current capabilities.
Expected outcome: Certain death.
Something inside Max snapped.
"…Perfect."
Mira looked at him in alarm.
"What's happening?"
Max smiled.
Not a brave smile.
A tired one.
"It says I'm going to die," he replied. "So I guess this time… I actually have a chance."
Before she could stop him, Max stepped forward.
The skill activated.
It felt like his body ignited from the inside. Not heat—pressure. As if reality itself was trying to crush him, and something inside pushed back just as hard.
The Goblings screeched and attacked.
Max vanished.
It wasn't normal speed. It was an unnatural leap, fueled by pure denial of danger. His fist shattered the first Gobling's skull like wet clay.
"W—What?!" Mira shouted.
Max spun, using the corpse as a weapon, smashing through their formation. Black blood splattered across the walls.
The Goblings were strong.
Much stronger than they looked.
One of them managed to drive a claw into his side. Max screamed as he felt bone crack.
"Max!"
But then the pain turned into strength.
"Impossible to survive," the system had said.
And that enraged him.
"SHUT UP!" he roared, hurling himself at another enemy.
The Minotaurs advanced.
Each step shook the tunnel.
One attacked.
Max raised his arm on instinct.
The impact sent him flying into the wall, shattering stone.
"Max!" Mira ran toward him, raising the earth as a shield.
Max staggered to his feet.
He spat blood.
And laughed.
"…They're strong."
Too strong.
Then he understood.
"Did you lie to me…?" he whispered. "Or did you tell me the truth so I'd believe the lie?"
The screen flickered one last time.
[Lie Detected]
The Minotaurs roared.
Max clenched his fists.
"If this is my death…" he said. "Then at least it'll be mine."
And he charged back into the fight, not knowing whether the system was using him…
Or if, for the first time, he was using the system.