Cygnus glared at the towering monster from behind his shield as it chittered and snarled, producing a sound that was both almost cute and downright terrifying. Its teeth sank into the barrier of light created by the shield with a hefty crunch, while its claws scrabbled against the shining surface in an attempt to break through. However, it was no use. With a speed that belied his size, Cygnus reared back with his shield and punched the monster square in the mouth, stabbing with the three long spurs at the tip of the shield. The spurs sank into the creature's unprotected cheek, eliciting a pained yowl and forcing the beast to back off.

  Surprisingly, instead of continuing the offense immediately, the monster made some space between itself and Cygnus. Prowling just outside his reach, the monster stalked through the darkness like a panther, its heavy footfalls echoing through the tunnel as it observed him with curiosity. Three of its six eyes glanced at the small wound on its face before returning to him, seemingly surprised that he had been able to inflict any damage at all. Then, it began to laugh—a deep, full-bodied chuckle that caused the plates of its armored hide to grind together in a grating cacophony. Once its mirth subsided, the beast relaxed back on its slithering tail and called to the rest of its swarm. With a screech, the smaller leeches charged against the line of knights, joining the battle in earnest.

  Cygnus frowned at the monster’s behavior as he cut down an evolved leech, driving his sword through its head. Given how prevalent these beasts were in this section of the Dungeon, he had encountered many Monarchs over the years. In fact, his first mission as a newly minted Knight had involved exterminating one such creature—a glorious battle that had earned him his first scar. Suffice it to say, he was well aware of how these types of monsters usually operated. However, this one was not following any familiar patterns at all.

  If its strange body plan and heavily armored hide were the only oddities, Cygnus could have dismissed them as quirks of the System. Monsters rarely follow the same evolutionary path, and even those that do exhibit some variation. While this was the first time he had encountered one with arms, nothing prevented a Monarch from developing such features. No, the real issue lay in its behavior.

  ?Cygnus watched the beast pace outside his barrier, its heavily muscled arms giving it a much better range of motion than the average Monarch. A sibilant hiss leaked from its maw like a whisper, and then the creature suddenly charged. Cygnus quickly braced himself... only for nothing to happen. Before hitting the barrier, the creature broke off its charge with a chortle and chittered excitedly as it watched his reactions. Cygnus’s tension shot through the roof. It's toying with me, He thought. Not only does it not see me as a threat, it's enjoying the battle, taking it's time to test my capabilities. While it hasn't seen what I can actually do, that confidence is worrying.

  ?A normal Monarch would attack relentlessly, using its bulk to subdue its prey before latching on and draining them dry or consuming them whole. Despite their relatively high intelligence for First Stratum monsters, these were brutes first and foremost, using their minds only for guiding the swarm to fresh hunting grounds. This one, however, was different. It was sadistic and tactical. It had mimicked Faust's scream to terrorize the group, mocking the weakest link. That was not normal.

  The final nail in the coffin was the sheer size of the swarm under its control. It was extremely rare for a swarm to be even half this large. To make matters worse, the swarm was being commanded rather than just unleashed to attack relentlessly. Although Mana Leeches in a swarm typically exhibit heightened coordination by default, this level of control went a step beyond.

  Cygnus watched as his knights fought off a group of leeches that charged at them, causing their formation to waver slightly. Suddenly, the Monarch screeched, and the three knights found themselves surrounded by twice as many foes, with some attempting to flank them while others charged head-on to further disrupt their formation. With Cygnus's help, they managed to beat back the horde, but not without sustaining some minor injuries. Throughout the chaos, the Monarch remained safely at the back, chittering and directing its forces. Cygnus grimaced and stepped forward, shield raised, finally grasping the gravity of the situation.

  "It's a champion!" he shouted to everyone around him. His words were met with murmurs of disbelief and shocked expressions, and he could only agree with their reaction.

  ?Rare as hens' teeth, champion monsters were a step above the normal riffraff of the Dungeon. They were spawned smarter, stronger, and possessed the innate ability to gather vast followings of their own species—sometimes even others. If they were allowed to evolve to a decent Tier, they quickly became a force to be reckoned with.

  Cygnus gripped his sword tighter, the blade almost humming in his hand. This was dangerous. He was confident in his abilities against a normal Monarch, but champions typically had unique skills and mutations that made it hard to gauge how strong they were. And if he had to balance protecting his charges and fighting... things could go south fast. He needed to get them out of here.

  “Edmund, I need you to listen to me very carefully,” he said slowly, trying not to provoke the monster. The Monarch watched him with evident curiosity, its six eyes blinking out of sync as it commanded its troops. “This creature is too strong for me to fight and protect you all at the same time. Take everyone and retreat back to the city. Send Layla and Lachlan ahead to scout for trouble, and for the love of the Path, be careful. Once you’re able, send reinforcements. We don’t want this thing getting away.”

  You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story.

  Edmund stared at him, his face a mask of weary confusion. “But...what about you, old friend?"

  Cygnus's gaze was unwavering, his jaw set in grim determination. “I will be your shield.”

  Without waiting for Edmund's inevitable protest, Cygnus charged. Activating his Dash skill, his massive form blurred as he hurtled towards the Monarch. Seeing its prey finally break the stalemate, the Monarch let out a triumphant chitter, guiding most of its swarm to chase down the retreating group even as it lunged at the Knight Captain, claws extended. Cygnus met the charge head-on, shield raised. The two powerhouses met in a clash of steel and claw that rumbled through the tunnel like thunder.

  The Monarch struck first, using its superior size and strength to unleash stone-cracking blows against Cygnus. He gritted his teeth as vibrations surged up his arm, threatening to knock his shield away, but he held firm. The Monarch reared up, preparing to slam down on the battered knight with both arms, but the monster was too cocky. Anticipating the next attack, Cygnus quickly parried, angling his shield so that the monster's claws were redirected into the ground with a resounding crash, wherein they sank into the floor, stuck. With both arms immobilized, the beast lost its balance and toppled over, providing Cygnus with the perfect opportunity to strike. Sword-light rippled along his blade as he activated his skill, channeling stamina into his sword before he slashed down, aiming to take the creature's head.

  Just as the swing was about to land, the beast curled in on itself, the interlocking plates that made up its hide overlapping to eliminate any vulnerable spots. Cygnus cursed as the powerful strike landed. Cracking armor with a sword was almost impossible, but Cygnus was strong, and his blade bit deep, splintering chitin and drawing blood. A deep gouge in the beast’s plates oozed green, the liquid sizzling as it hit the ground.

  The Monarch wailed in rage, thrashing this way and that as it tried to retaliate against the growing problem that was the knight. In a surprise move, the monster swung about with its tail, the appendage moving like a whip, cracking Cygnus on the side and sending him flying into a group of stalagmites with a sickening crunch. He fell to the ground, vision swimming from the blow, the world a blurry kaleidoscope of thrashing monster and stone.

  “Damn, you're a tough one, aren't you?” He rasped with a wry chuckle, his laugh quickly developing into a wet coughing fit. Pulling his arm away, he grimaced at the red stain on his gauntlet. Even with his enhanced stats, taking a blow like that was bound to inflict some damage, but it was more than he was expecting.

  I'm getting too old for this, He thought, spitting a glob of blood onto the ground. He leveraged himself up onto his feet, his stance shaky at first, but with a surge of stubborn resolve, he was able to stand mostly without issue. He took a moment to survey the situation. So far, things weren't looking great.

  First off, he had lost his sword. He noticed it now, stuck between some rocks on the other side of the tunnel—right behind where the Monarch was. Wonderful. The shining blade seemed to mock him as it glinted in the blue light of the Dungeon, as if saying, “Look who dropped their only weapon. Whatever happens next is your fault, dumbass!” Honestly, he supposed it might be. Swords could be bitter like that if you dropped them.

  Second, the Monarch was mostly free by now. The massive armored leech thrashed in its stony bindings, cracking the tunnel floor as it ripped its claws out one at a time. Green blood dripped from the monster's wound, sizzling as it made contact with the air. Rage filled those normally calculating eyes. He grinned. He supposed he could taunt it a bit.

  “What's wrong, creature? Are you finding me harder to kill than you expected? Well, you aren’t the first to underestimate me, and you won’t be the last! You’d be foolish to think you can defeat Cygnus Beryllium in single combat, even without my sword!” He spat, making an offensive gesture with his sword hand. The translation seemed to resonate universally, as a deep, clicking snarl erupted from the Monarch’s throat, its eyes filled with fury. Cygnus’s outstretched arm drooped slightly at the evident rage on the monster's face, and he chuckled nervously. Maybe he had gone a bit too far?

  Movement to his left caught his attention as the Monarch shrieked, sending shockwaves reverberating through his mind. He brushed aside the distraction and focused. Crawling between stalagmites and rocks were dozens of leeches of varying sizes. They jostled for position, pushing each other out of the way in their eagerness to get to his flesh and blood. But it wasn't the leeches that truly captured his focus.

  Far in the back, where his sword lay, deep beneath the notice of the swarm and the Monarch, there sat a small black creature mostly hidden in shadows. Although the creature was difficult to see in the dim light, its key features were discernible: it had large ears, golden eyes, and a peculiar stinger at the tip of its tail that caught the light from the walls, causing it to flash repeatedly.

  Ignoring the still-screeching Monarch—was it having a temper tantrum?—Cygnus watched with curiosity as the creature seemed to perk up at his attention. After ensuring it had his focus, he observed the monster use its stinger to point first at his sword and then at him a few times, before gesturing toward a nearby grouping of rocks, halfway between the sword and himself. After several attempts to comprehend the situation, Cygnus finally understood the monster's intention when it picked up his sword and started moving toward the rocks. It waddled awkwardly, its clumsy steps likely would have made much more noise if not for the Monarch's commotion. When the creature paused behind a stalagmite due to a passing leech, Cygnus realized what he needed to do.

  His first instinct should be to be wary of the seemingly smart and helpful monster. However, with the much more dangerous Monarch and swarm about to bite out his throat, he would take his chances. He could deal with the small one afterwards, if need be.

  “Well, if I'm going to die anyway, might as well try something new." He muttered.

  After double-checking that his shield was secured properly, Cygnus started to make a wide circle around the Monarch and towards the strange monster and his sword, keeping a careful eye on the Monarch and the surrounding leeches as he did. The creature was coming out of its frenzy now, the fire in its eyes losing some of its intensity as it regained control of itself. It was still unbelievably angry, its breath coming out in forced heaves, but it was beginning to regain its composure.

  Cygnus just hoped it wouldn't come to its senses before he met up with the little monster and retrieved his sword.