Shiki's jaw tightened. This was bad. Very bad.
If three elite monsters entered the Boss room while they were still busy facing the Mutant Rat, the entire formation would collapse in an instant. Every advantage they had just built would be lost.
Her mind jumped to a single conclusion. There was no more time. The only way to stop the birth of the elite rats was to end the dungeon as quickly as possible. Once the Boss died, the dungeon system would collapse, and all other monsters would vanish with it.
Shiki's gaze locked onto the body of the Mutant Rat still fighting in the middle of the ranks.
"In that case..." she murmured softly, her eyes sharpening, "...we have to finish it now."
Shiki took a deep breath before shouting, "Johan, stop the formation! There's a change of plans. We aren't stalling anymore. Command all Nagawira to go on a full-scale offensive! Focus on the Mutant Rat's eyes and head!"
Johan, on the front line, was stunned by the order. His body was covered in wounds; blood flowed from various gashes on his skin. The sword in his hand was bent and blunt, while his shield was riddled with claw marks, nearly useless.
"But, Boss," he said hesitantly, "if we attack like that, the casualties will rise rapidly!"
Shiki snorted in anger. "Shut up, Johan! Since when did you start thinking? Where did you learn a word like 'rapidly'? I've never heard you use it before! Focus on your task, execute my orders! Leave the thinking to those who actually have a brain!"
Shiki had not forgotten Johan's reaction when he met her at the gathering point. Someone who was supposed to move only when she commanded was now questioning why he had to move. It truly infuriated her.
Johan only nodded, turning his face away to hide it from Shiki's view. "Understood, Boss!" he said in a raspy voice.
With a new signal from Johan, the three groups of Nagawira surrounding the Mutant Rat immediately shifted their formation. They let out a roar, driving the fear from their hearts, and surged forward in unison.
The assault hit the Mutant Rat like a wave, showing no mercy. The monster's massive body, once so terrifying, was now unable to fully retaliate. Its wounds were too numerous; its stamina was spent. Even so, with its claws, horns, and teeth, the Mutant Rat continued to tear apart anyone unfortunate enough to be within its reach.
However, that resistance was only temporary. With wounds piling up and its movements growing sluggish, the Mutant Rat finally lost control. Johan spotted an opening in one of its eyes. With a spirited cry, he raised his bent sword and lunged at the monster's eye.
Johan pushed his sword, aiming to pierce the skull and reach the Mutant Rat's brain. The monster's final roar was meant to echo through the chamber before its body hit the ground with a heavy thud.
That is what should have happened.
If only Johan's sword hadn't been bent and blunt.
If only he hadn't been exhausted.
But unfortunately…
In the rear, another roar began to sound—deeper and far more lethal.
The Giant Elite Rats had been born.
…This was not the end of the battle.
The sound did not resemble a squeak.
"RAAAAHHH!!!"
The low, heavy roar shook the stone walls. Fine dust trickled down from the dungeon ceiling. In the corridor behind the barricade, something moved.
Its body emerged slowly from the shadows—too massive to be called a giant rat. It stood nearly as tall as a warhorse. Its back bulged with muscles that rippled visibly beneath jet-black fur. That fur wasn't just dark; it seemed to swallow the torchlight, making the creature's silhouette difficult to track.
Every step it took left small cracks in the stone floor. Its claws were long and curved, pressing so hard that the stone was ground down. Faint steam escaped from the gaps in its jaws. Its thick fangs were still encrusted with bone fragments that hadn't been fully crushed. As it exhaled, a foul stench spread, causing a Nagawira in the front line to vomit behind his shield.
Its tail was no longer thin like a normal rat's—it was thick, heavy, and muscular. The tip struck the floor with a loud crack, leaving indentations in the rock.
Its eyes opened. Red. Sharp. Not wild like the rest of the swarm.
Focused.
A Nagawira in the front rank swallowed hard. His hands shook so violently that the tip of his sword vibrated. Others instinctively took half a step back, creating a small gap in the barricade. The wooden supports groaned.
Then, from another corridor—
"GRAAAH!"
A second roar. Then a third.
The sound of heavy breathing came from several directions at once. Several torches in the rear corridor swayed violently from the vibration of footsteps. Massive silhouettes began to appear behind the ordinary giant rats, which scurried aside to make way.
One of the Nagawira dropped his shield. The sound of metal hitting the floor was far too loud in the sudden silence.
"L-line… close the line…" someone's voice cracked, but no one moved immediately.
An Elite Rat leaped forward. The impact shattered the wooden barricade like dry twigs. Two Nagawira were sent flying backward, their bodies slamming into the wall. One of them did not get back up.
The rat did not stop. It gripped a soldier's shield and crushed it until the hardwood crumbled into splinters. Its fangs descended—
A short scream was cut off abruptly.
The line faltered. Several Nagawira collided with each other while trying to retreat. Others raised their shields too high, blocking their own vision. The once-orderly rotation of the formation began to disintegrate.
In the Boss room, Shiki heard those roars. She didn't need to see them to know what was happening. Her jaw muscles tightened. A pulse throbbed in her temple.
Too late.
The Mutant Rat was still standing, still fighting despite the sword lodged deep in its eye. And in the rear, something worse had been born. Another roar echoed, closer this time. The vibration could be felt through the floor beneath her feet.
Shiki whipped her head toward the rear corridor. Several Nagawira in the encircling ranks looked back as well. Their rhythm of attack against the Mutant Rat faltered for a fraction of a second. A dangerous fraction of a second.
The Mutant Rat seized the opportunity and lunged, goring a soldier until his body was lifted off the ground. Shiki clenched her fists. The situation she had calculated was spinning out of control. And for the first time since entering the dungeon, she felt something she rarely admitted—
A threat that could truly swallow her alive.
"JOHAN! WHAT ARE YOU DOING, YOU FOOL?! FINISH IT NOW!" Shiki's voice pierced the air.