270. Hidden Haven

[Will O’ Wisp - Lvl. 121]

“Um… hi?”

Before me, a small flame-like orb hovered with a soft glow. It emenanted a pulsing light, gently growing in intensity before dimming once more. It was cyclical— like the tender breathing of a child tucked in a cot.

I peered into the [Will O’ Wisp] as its color continuously changed. A rainbow of light that painted over the wisping fire of its body. I heard it speak earlier, yet it remained silent now.

“Can’t you speak?”

I waited with bated breath for it to say something, but no words came. Did I imagine it? Was I going crazy? I could’ve sworn I heard it utter actual words to me— something coherent, holding meaning— even if it came in the sound of a high-pitched buzz.

Well, I wasn’t actually sure how my newly-leveled [Universal Language Comprehension] Skill worked. Maybe there was a limit to what it could understand? Or maybe it had to be activated for me to understand the words of monsters and animals? In which case—

“[Universal Language Comprehension]!”

I raised a triumphant arm, waiting for the [Will O’ Wisp]’s voice to materialize any moment. But all I got was the feeling of puzzlement. It just floated before me, confused.

“Wait, so can’t you speak?”

I asked, tapping a finger on my chin. The [Will O’ Wisp] didn’t reply, but another voice emerged from the shadows behind it. From further down this tunnel.

“It speak. A bit. Not much.”

I spun around, raising a claw protectively as a snout protruded from the shadows. A green figure appeared— one with scales covering its body. Kind of like a Kobold, except taller, more slender, and with a far longer tail. The scales seemed to morph into plates around its neck and back, flaking out of its body as bone-like protrusions.

I took a step back and blinked.

“Wha— are you a Kobold?”

The green figure paused. It stared at me as a gurgling left its throat.

“Hrk, no. Kobold? What’s Kobold?”

It— no, she pointed at herself as her yellow eyes gleamed in the darkness.

“Me [Krokodis]. Me understand you. [Basic Language Comprehension]. Me Skill.”

She thumped herself on the chest with a claw-like hand. I cocked my head.

“Huh? Wait— are you a monster?”

I peered at her, but before she could respond, the [Will O’ Wisp] flitted between us. Its color changed as a word echoed in the cavern.

“Leave.”

The [Krokodis] nodded and gestured for me to follow.

“Illusion fall soon. Escape now.”

“Um, alright.”

I glanced back at where I’d come from. I could hear the skittering of Centinels around the walls just outside of the tunnel. The image of a rock surface still blotted out the entrance, so it’d be a while before the Centinels found this place. It was best to go now.

I followed both the [Will O’ Wisp] and the [Krokodis] as they made their way down the tunnel. The [Will O’ Wisp] flew like a Fairy— it reminded me of a Spirit. Was it a Spirit? I couldn’t quite tell. It wasn’t able to speak eloquently, but some Spirits weren’t able to speak either, like Druma.

Meanwhile, the [Krokodis] crawled on all fours. She’d stood on two legs to briefly talk with me, but she walked with all four of her limbs touching the ground. She certainly wasn’t a Kobold like I initially thought she was.

I followed them as the tunnel grew narrower, winding its way deep below. It branched out to multiple more paths, but both the [Krokodis] and the [Will O’ Wisp] seemed to know where they were going— like it was second nature.

“So, do you guys have names?”

I asked as we continued on for a bit. They both exchanged a confused glance. The [Will O’ Wisp] said nothing, but the [Krokodis] gave me a puzzled look.

“Name?”

“Yep! I’m Salvos! I’m a Demon! The latter is my Species, and the former is my name.”

The [Krokodis] blinked slowly, one eye after the other— not a simultaneous blinking of the eyes. Meanwhile, the [Will O’ Wisp] just continued.

“Um, I take it you don’t have names?”

I hurried after them as they resumed their trek. The [Krokodis] spoke without even facing me.

“Me not know what name is.”

“Do you want me to give you one?”

“Me don’t care.”

She replied, disinterested. I scowled as I watched them go.

“Well, fine. I’ll give you one then. How about… Willy and Kron? Those are good names, right?”

As expected there was no response from either of them. Which— that was good enough. They didn’t hate the names, at least, and I could refer to them by something that wasn’t just their Species.

Finally, the tunnel opened up to a large cave chamber. One that was dimly lit with crystals jutting from the fringes of the chamber. And it was teeming with life. I blinked, paused, and gasped as I saw what was inside.

“Huh.”

Now entering [Lair: Land of the Lost].

It was… a community. An entire sanctuary filled with monsters. I looked around at the lumbering creatures as they milled about. They were all different Species of monsters. Some of them didn’t even look like intelligent ones, like the [Krokodils] or a Goblin or Orc.

There were giant crab-like monsters. Their shells were mossy and covered in grime. They turned their eyes towards me, suspicious, but not much else. There were long maggot creatures. Half of their bodies were hidden in the ground, and they didn’t even look at me with any suspicion or wariness. Just hostility.

Yet, they didn’t attack. I waved at them.

“Hi?”

They didn’t reply. I turned around as I slowly took in the room— there were glowing moss growing on the stalactites and stalagmites growing on the ceiling and floor. I continued scanning the room until my eyes rested upon a large boulder that seemed to grow larger.

Wait, no, it wasn’t growing larger. It was just moving closer to me. I backed up warily and froze when I heard a word echo from the boulder.

“Hello.”

I watched as a small head poked out from a hole in the boulder. A green, amphibious head.

“Um, hello?”

[Gallias Tortoise - Lvl. 115]

“Interesting, you can understand me.”

His head quirked as I peered back at him. His mouth barely moved, letting out a squeak or two. Yet, I understood his words perfectly. [Universal Language Comprehension] Level 2 at work. It translated everything in that brief squeak into something I could understand. After all, he carried meaning with his squeaks, even if he didn’t have such advanced communication abilities.

“Yep! I have a Skill!”

I gave him a thumbs-up, and he turned to Kron.

“Just like her, then. It seems I can finally speak to someone else in this haven.”

“This haven? What is this place, anyway?”

There really were a lot of monsters here. I saw a bunch of giant rats— each of them about half my height— walking around on two legs as they ate on what looked like the crunchy remains of [Junior Centinels].

“It is as I said: a haven. A place of safety, away from the vile horror that are the Centinels. Those gathered here are the survivors. Creatures who have fallen to the depths of this gulf, or who were dragged here by force. There are other reasons, of course. Some descend, following those who lead them, like that Spirit over there.”

He gestured at Willy who was hovering right next to Kron.

“Spirit? Wait, if it’s a Spirit— or he? How’s he here?”

The answer didn’t come from the [Gallias Tortoise], surprisingly enough. My question drew a reaction from Willy himself.

“Master. Dead now. Stuck here.”

“Huh.”

So, he was a summon who accompanied his master to the Bloodied Gulf, and since his master was dead, he was now trapped here. The [Gallias Tortoise] nodded.

“Yes. We are remnants. But we escaped. We survived. And we have formed a home here.”

He cast his gaze around the room as I took in all the different monsters gathered together. I’d never seen such an eclectic gathering of creatures. Even the Rainforest of Monsters wasn’t nearly as diverse as this haven.

And yet, there were few of each kind of Species. Some numbered more than others, but they were like the maggots which could reproduce asexually without any aid. There were also these twisted starfish— each of them about the size of my head— which had spikes jutting out of their backs by the hundreds, and I was pretty sure they could reproduce without much problem too since there were dozens of them.

“And you guys don’t just… kill each other?”

That wasn’t how it normally worked, right? Dungeons formed because monster Lairs grew too numerous and feuded with each other. They had to compete for resources, or they would prey on each other.

The [Gallias Tortoise] made a noise— a long squeak. One I recognized as a chuckle.

“We don’t kill each other because we share an understanding. We know that, in here, we are prey. We are outnumbered greatly by Centinels. We only persist because we are together. And together, we seek only one thing— escape. Salvation.”

“That makes a lot of sense.”

After all, monsters weren’t normally mindless. I’d once worked together with Giant Spiders to kill a bunch of Centinels who were trying to destroy their Lair. They showed me gratitude— they didn’t attack me once the Centinels were wiped out.

Generally, monsters had intelligence. They had varying degrees of intelligence, but they weren’t just mindless creatures. Not like the Centinels who were mostly, completely wild. But even that didn’t hold absolutely true, did it?

I thought of the [Evolved Centinels]. Yep. Not all of them are wild.

A susurration drew my attention. I glanced up as the [Gallias Tortoise] raised his head.

“Ah, she must’ve heard of your arrival.”

Kron and Willy stepped back, as if they were making way for someone important. A figure moved through the crowd of monsters, and I gave the [Gallias Tortoise] an inquiring look.

“She? Who’s this?”

“The one who formed this haven.”

There was a clicking. The slow cascading of spiky legs poking the ground as whoever this was made her way towards me. A tingle ran down my spine as I saw the carapace. The red, reflective shell.

“Y-you’re—”

I grew alert and stepped back as she scuttled up to me.

[Evolved Centinel - Lvl. 141]

A pair of mandibles spread wide as the familiar undulating figure of a Centinel stopped before me.

“Greetings, Demon.”