Published at 24th of April 2026 8:05 am

Chapter 196: Nothing Without Sacrifice

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Chapter 196: Nothing Without Sacrifice

Min and the other humans struggled to keep pace with the broodlings as they tore up toward the third floor. Ahead, she could see them clearly, bodies leaking bloodlight, the pressure of their killing intent hanging in the air like a weight she had to push through. Even as she ran, her breath came rough, not from fatigue, but from the urge building in her chest, pushing her to catch up to them as fast as she could.

[You are experiencing heightened levels of stress. I suggest you calm down Min. You need to keep your head.]

'I'm fine! Nothing wrong with a bit of bloodlust!'

[For most I would agree. But for you? Remember what happens when you lose control.]

She threw a glance back and saw she was already pulling ahead of the Dead Hands, their footsteps lagging behind her. In that moment, she barely cared. It took a few more sharp prompts from her system before she forced herself to slow, but it hardly mattered. Sunlight was already spilling down the tunnel ahead.

One by one, the broodlings vanished into it.

"You bastards! Don't start without me!"

[Min, please listen—]

"Fuck that! I ain't missin this!"

She surged forward again, not even slowing as she broke from the tunnel and hit the surface.

"Holy hell..."

Her feet dug into the ground as she skidded to a stop. The light hit hard, making her squint, and the air hit harder, thick with the smell of scorched flesh and Makara blood.

Behind her, the Dead Hands finally spilled out of the tunnel. Harsh breathing and coughing followed as they took it in, the heat and stink settling over them.

Bodies were everywhere.

Limbs scattered. Organs exposed. Broken forms twisted where they had fallen, their screams frozen in the last moments before death.

The humans stared in disbelief, but the broodlings didn’t slow, already moving past the bodies and toward the next island.

"Hey—!"

Min’s shout died as an explosion slammed through the air, the ground under her boots jolting hard enough to throw off her balance. She turned toward the sound...and spotted the boss of the third floor.

Her eyes widened.

Split-jaw stepped up beside her from behind, his face pale.

"Finally calmin down?"

Min gave a short nod, breath still caught.

"Good. A Kraken’s a bad match up, Min. Let the boss handle it."

At the mention of Seo-jin, Min shook her head and clenched her teeth.

"Let’s go."

She didn’t wait for him to answer, pushing off and clearing the gap to the next island in a single jump.

[You need to think, Min. A Kraken is too much for you. One touch from those things and not even your shields will hold.]

'Don’t worry. I love a good fight, but I’m not suicidal. Why’d it have to be a fuckin Kraken?'

She hit the ground hard, crushing something soft under her boot without slowing, and drove forward. The smell hit again, thick and wet, as she pushed to catch the brood. They had already stopped ahead.

Leaping the last stretch, she finally caught up to them, pulse hammering in her ears as she forced her way up to the front.

Every eye was fixed forward.

Not on the fight, but on the battlefield itself.

The smell hit first, thick and rotten, but what pressed against Min harder was the broodlings’ presence, their killing intent crowding the air until her chest felt tight just standing near them.

"What is that?"

Across the water, the last island had turned into something else. The ground moved, rising and sinking. Shapes pushed up through the surface, splitting it open as teeth and bone forced their way out, while bursts of foul fluids popped and sprayed across the growing terrain.

A laugh broke out behind her.

Snare.

"It's the Maw! The Broodfather has brought Hell to the dungeon!"

"The Maw?! Impossible!"

The words slipped out before she could stop them, and the reaction was immediate. Pressure slammed into her from every direction, sharp enough to make her flinch as every broodling turned, their focus locking onto her.

Widow leaned in close, voice low and steady.

"Nothing is impossible for father."

For a moment, Min felt it.

Like she had stepped somewhere she shouldn’t have.

"Watch out!"

Her body moved before the thought finished. She shoved Widow back, forcing her aside just as a thin line of bloodlight cut through the space between them.

"Shut up! I can't hear them when you shout!"

Hex snapped. His eyes were wide as he strained toward the distant fight. His face tight with frustration as he tried to catch every sound coming from his father.

"There! Look! Pain’s back!"

Bile jumped and pointed, his bloodmask twisting and stretching, only to get driven into the ground as Panic slammed into him to follow his line of sight.

Firelight filled Panic’s vision as he watched his brother belch a stream of flame into a cluster of Makara, their forms breaking apart under the blast. He tensed, ready to bolt, but the sharp crack of wood cut through the noise as Snare drove the butt of his staff into the ground.

"Support the Broodfather! Hex, start playing!"

Hex didn’t hesitate. He reached down his throat and pulled his axe free. He struck a chord that rang out hard, the sound cutting through the chaos like a signal.

"Panic! Join Pain, but stay out of the Broodfather’s fight!"

"Join Pain! Join Pain!"

Panic broke into laughter, already moving, sickle flashing as he carved a wide arc and sent it spinning across the shore. It pierced through a Makara’s midsection, and a heartbeat later, his laughter echoed from the last island as he pulled himself over.

"You three, start feeding!"

Snare pointed, and Tomb, Sin, and Fang moved without pause, dropping onto the nearest bodies. The wet sounds of tearing and chewing barely carried under Hex’s guitar.

Bile and Widow both turned to Snare, waiting.

"Widow, give Bile some armor, then provide long ranged support to Pain."

Widow stepped in close, hands moving fast as strands of web shot out from her thorax, wrapping Bile layer by layer until jagged gray plating covered him from the neck down.

"You're the only one of us who might survive a hit from that thing. Cross over and wait. If Broodfather is in trouble, use your life to protect him."

Bile didn’t hesitate. His aura surged as he turned and leapt, the ground cracking under his feet as he launched himself toward the last island.

Watching him cross, Synapse rolled his neck, joints popping as he glanced over to Snare. Their eyes met, both already on the same page.

"Aim for the eyes."

"Naturally."

Dropping prone, Synapse planted himself, elbows digging into the ground as the barrel of his rifle began to glow.

"What about me?!"

Min flinched as Grimm’s voice cut in from above.

Snare looked up, spotting the ghost drifting above them, and gave a small smile.

"Wait for father’s orders. Until then, stay ready."

"Sure thing!"

Grimm peeled away, his long body twisting through the air as he drifted back toward the fight, unseen.

"What are you waiting for?"

Min blinked, realizing Snare was looking at her.

He shook his head, disappointment plain.

"Go smash something already!"

The noise of the battlefield pressed in, screams and impacts carrying across the water, and the realization hit her all at once.

She was the only one standing still.

Heat rushed up her neck as she slammed her fists together, her yellow aura bursting out around her.

"On it!"

She knew better than to close in on a Kraken, so she planted her feet and shifted her weight, muscles swelling as she drove her leg down. The ground cracked under the force, chunks breaking loose as she reached in and dug into the rubble.

She ripped free a chunk the size of a head, drew her arm back, then hurled it.

It tore through the air like a cannon shot, aimed straight for the Warden’s head.

What had started as a straightforward fight had turned into a frenzied slaughter. Empowered by Seo-jin’s domain, the broodlings tore into the Makara without resistance, bodies breaking apart as they pushed through them.

They fed off it. Every step sank and shifted underfoot, every movement met with something that reacted, and it drove them harder. The flesh field answered them, and they answered back.

Even Min could see it. They weren’t just fighting. They were losing themselves in it.

Another chunk of debris in her hand, she pulled back to throw...then stopped. Her breath hitched as she caught sight of one of the serpents on Seo-jin’s back ripping a piece from the Warden’s arm, the second one following with a beam that struck its chest and drove it back as its armor began to give.

"On your right—!"

The words came out too late, and didn’t matter.

A tentacle snapped forward through the opening in Seo-jin’s attack, cutting through the air, but Bile stepped in and took it head on.

He stood there, his enlarged body covered in armor of moving blood. His size was nothing compared to the Kraken, but with Widow’s armor layered underneath, he held. The impact twisted him, tore into him, forcing him to rip his own melting arm free, one leg already gone, but he stayed alive.

A sickle whipped in, hooked around him, and yanked him clear just before the next strike hit.

"Fuck yeah!"

By then, Min wasn’t even moving. She stood there, caught on the fight, so locked in she didn’t notice the Dead Hands finally reaching her side.

"He's faster."

Seo-jin’s strikes came quicker, his body moving ahead of the Warden’s rhythm. For every two the Kraken threw out, Seo-jin answered with four, closing gaps before they could open.

Pieces of Seo-jin’s armor hung warped and broken, sections of flesh torn or burned away, but Min could see the wounds knitting back together as the fight went on.

Her head snapped up as Seo-jin suddenly leapt, cleavers rising over his head as they expanded, their size stretching far beyond what she'd witnessed prior, before he brought them down with a roar.

The Warden lifted his scimitars to meet it, but one gave way under the force, the other knocked wide as the blow crashed through. A deep rend split across the golden chestpiece, and black blood surged out.

"Weak ass squid fucker! Why'd you even try?!"

By now, Min wasn’t even thinking of fighting. She was lost to the show.

"Get him boss! Wreck that ugly bastard!"

Lynn threw her fist up beside her, shouting full force. The sound didn’t carry to the fight over Hex’s music, but it still hit Min, feeding into the moment.

Another heavy chord slammed out from Hex’s axe, the vibration rolling through the air as a red glow flickered over the Warden, dragging down his movements.

She couldn’t help but glance over and catch the rhythm Hex was driving, each chord hitting low and hard, something built for killing. Drawing in a breath to shout over—

She stopped cold. A roar like thunder tore through her skull and locked every muscle in place. Hex’s music cut off mid-note.

Whipping back, she caught Seo-jin’s face for a split second. He was in pain, jaw tight...the sound had torn from him.

One of the serpents on his back was gone, burned down to a writhing stump that steamed and twitched. The other hung caught in the Warden’s grip, its body straining, while Seo-jin held a scimitar back with both blades, arms shaking under the force.

"Keep playing!"

Snare’s shout snapped through the shock, and the broodlings moved again without hesitation, throwing themselves back into the fight.

A shot cracked from behind them, and Synapse’s round burst the Warden’s right eye, fluid spraying as the grip broke. Seo-jin wrenched free, allowing himself to force space between them.

Min moved on instinct, the weight still in her hand as she hurled the rock. It slammed into the Warden’s throat with a wet crack.

"How’d you like that?!"

She bent to grab another, fingers digging into the ground—then the Warden looked at her.

"Shit—"

Her stomach dropped before her mind caught up.

His cheeks swelled, and the moment stretched just long enough for her to understand. Ink shot forward in a straight line.

She tried to raise her arms—then something hit her from the side, knocking the air out of her chest as she went down hard.

A scream cut through everything.

One all too familiar.

Rolling onto her side, grit scraping under her palms, Min looked up in time to see Split-jaw coming apart.

The ink clung and ate through him, flesh collapsing in on itself, muscles dissolving, bone giving way as his body lost shape.

It didn’t take long.

A few breaths.

Then there was nothing left but legs that couldn't stand alone.

Split-jaw was dead.

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