The Guardian left the waters.
The second it stood on the ground, the Boss Monster fell to its knees.
It threw up heaps of black blood.
Still, the Guardian stood back up.
It stared at Mark before approaching.
'He's slow...'
About midway through, the Guardian coughed up more black blood.
But it didn't stop running forward.
For so reason, the Guardian's struggle shook Mark's heart.
And so, he, too, started running towards his enemy.
Light was emitted by the Guardian's crystals, but it quickly faded.
'Did he run out of strength? Or is he baiting ?' Mark asked himself.
Still, he approached as fast as he could.
Once they were in range, the Guardian threw a punch with all the strength it had left.
Mark dodged it by ducking.
In front of him, was the Guardian's unprotected chest.
Pierce-
"Agh-"
The Guardian coughed up blood.
Mark pulled his arm out of the Boss Monster's chest.
The latter's body no longer possessed to strength to stand.
It fell forward, on Mark.
The latter, for a reason that escaped him, gently grabbed the falling body.
"I guess... You were stronger." The Guardian whispered, as the light in its eyes faded.
Surprise overtook Mark at those words.
'Was I...?' Mark asked himself, as he carefully laid the unmoving body on the ground.
The Guardian coughed up more blood, before drawing its last breath.
[You have defeated The Third Floor's Guardian. 75'000 gold Coins and 150'000 Experience Points earned.]
[You have leveled up!]
[You have defeated a Guardian.]
[You have been awarded 3 Skill Points.]
Mark stared at the unmoving Guardian before crouching down.
'I ca to defeat this guy. And I did just that. Then why-'
[The Moonlit Feline comnds you.]
[The Moonlit Feline says you did a good job.]
[The Moonlit Feline gives you a thumbs up.]
Mark chuckled lightly at the floating words in front of him.
'You can co out now.'
His three Underlings left the Familiar Necklace.
The Moonlit Feline walked over towards the Guardian's unmoving body.
The white-furred cat sat down next to Mark.
After a short while, it buried its head into Mark's thigh.
The latter pet it gently.
'I'm not sure why, but I'm feeling sort of gloomy...'
Maybe it was because the Guardian was so strong.
After all, if Mark hadn't devoured his Underlings mid-fight, who knows what the outco would have been?
Maybe it was the Guardian's desperate attempt to continue fighting.
But could it truly be described as such?
It was different from the Sixth Floor's Guardian's last stand.
'This guy... Was pretty cool.' Mark thought.
It almost seed like this Guardian had accepted its death.
It accepted it, but decided to die fighting, instead of dying a slow death.
Maybe it was the Guardian's acknowledgnt that moved him.
An acknowledgnt, Mark felt he didn't deserve.
Mark stood up.
'I would have liked to win in a 1-on-1 fight, but I'm not arrogant enough to think I could have beaten this guy by myself.'
Mark's tail brushed past the unmoving body's hand.
[You have used your Magic Skill "Purgatory's Undead Troup[A ]".]
[The dead is coming back to life as your Underling.]
And so, the Guardian breathed once more.
'Now that I think about it, it's the first ti in a while that I revive a Guardian. Also, it's the first one that can talk. I wonder if it can still do so...'
The Ex-Guardian's wounds healed.
It opened its eyes and looked around, feeling extre confusion.
Once its eyes fell on Mark, the Ex-Guardian stood up right away.
Mark quickly stepped back and raised his hands defensively.
The next second, the Ex-Guardian kneeled in front of its Master.
'Huh...'
"My Lord." The new Underling said solemnly.
'So you can still talk.'
"Yes, my Lord."
Mark was sort of torn between two options
'Should I tell him not to call that?'
On one hand, being called "my Lord" felt almost weird and creepy.
On the other, such a strong being referring to him as its "Lord", made Mark feel good in a way.
After deliberating for a bit, Mark decided not to say anything.
Instead, he turned towards the large doors.
"My Lord..."
Mark turned back towards his Underling.
"I wish... To apologize for my earlier actions."
'Huh?'
The new Underling's words stunned him.
Mark kept staring at his Underling while his thoughts raced.
'Apologize? I just killed and revived him. My Skill... Don't they return as dead moving bodies? Do their mories remain?? What is... That's not how...'
The Underling stayed on his knee and stared at the ground.
'Do you rember everything? No... Tell what you rember.'
"I rember my life, my Lord."
'Tell everything.'
"I used to live beyond those doors." The Underling said, as he pointed at the doors Mark had co in from.
"Back then, I was weaker, smaller, and not endowed with reason. I acted mindlessly."
'Is that so? Reason? What happened afterward? How did you get here?'
"I acted as my instincts told , my Lord. I attacked other beings. I ate and killed to survive. As ti passed, I grew and beca stronger. I used to look like the form I have shalessly shown you earlier. An incident that I will apologize for once again. Although, back then, I was much smaller and weaker. Now, that form is my second one."
'I see. How did you obtain a second form? How did your reason develop and how did you end up here as a Guardian?'
Mark had so many questions he could barely contain his curiosity.
"Once I beca stronger than any other on that side of the doors, I was guided here by... Sothing. Forgive , my Lord, but I truly do not know what it is that guided here."
'The System...? It must have communicated with you sohow. Mm. Now that I think about it, the System does translate what I think to my Underlings perfectly, even though they shouldn't be able to understand language. Yeah... Just like it can sohow put into words the emotions and thoughts of my other Underling here. Only when it's inside the Familiar Necklace though...' Mark thought as he turned his gaze towards the Moonlit Feline.
The Ex-Guardian did the sa.
'Please, continue.' Mark thought as he turned back towards the new Underling.
While it wasn't the first ti he had felt sothing akin to admiration for an enemy, it was definitely the first ti Mark had shown respect to an Underling he had revived.
"I entered this room and found myself alone. Instants later, a being entered it from the doors I had left open. Sohow, the doors were, then, shut. As the being, I was entrapped with, was much weaker, I trampled over it. Then, a blinding light enveloped , my Lord. My body grew, but more than that, my... Spirit, took form. It was as if what used to be instinct developed to beco... Sothing more. Quickly, my mindless impulsions turned into formulated thoughts. Speech, on the other hand, ca naturally with this form that I obtained upon developing the Skill 'Dual Forms', my Lord."
'Evolution, huh?'
"Yes, my Lord. That is what the words, in front of at the ti, said."
'So evolving can even change Monsters to this extent? Then...'
Mark's eyes wandered towards the Moonlit Feline, whose na hadn't been chosen yet.
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