[Skill-Eater 2] Chapter 116: Hard-Won Prize

The instant Edge snapped back into his own skin, he sprang into motion with the point of his polearm leading the way.

The Gardener’s body was falling apart, but it wasn’t dead yet. The woman’s spirit had vanished when he was ejected from her core, and he wanted to make sure his team got credit for the kill, so he lashed out with his naginata before her body stopped breathing.

He carved the creature’s head free from its torso, then collapsed from exhaustion, savoring the thrill of the moment while processing what he’d learned.

Edge’s Guide was hovering nearby, waiting for him to peruse the mountain of notifications he’d earned from the fight. But that could wait a little longer.

“What the fuck did you do?” One-Eye watched as the Gardener’s head crumbled to dust, wearing a serene expression without a trace of monstrous features.

“I’ll explain once we get out of here,” Edge replied, although he wasn’t sure he understood it himself.

Right now, all that mattered was opening the reliquary that had materialized by his feet, looting the rest of the room, then escaping the Savage Garden while they still could. Edge was glad that a reliquary had appeared beside each hunter, so they wouldn’t have to figure out how to divide the reward.

“Grab everything you can, then let’s get the hell out of here.” With that, he turned his attention to the reliquary, which took the form of a golden sphere sitting on top of a crystal pedestal. Unlike the one where he’d found Skill-Eater, this reliquary wasn’t sealed by runes. When he reached out and touched it, the gilded shell faded away, revealing an item within.

Edge could tell at a glance that it was some manner of rune. He was in a hurry and binding it could wait, but he was too curious not to read the slip of paper sitting on top, revealing the details of his prize.

You have acquired a runic reward.

Rune of Spacial Storage (Epic).

Strain: High (3 implant points).

Binding this rune will create a spacial storage vault within your body that can be accessed at will. The dimensions of the chamber total 2500 square feet, and its maximum load is 2000 pounds. Storing and retrieving items from this space will drain a small amount of mana.

This rune comes with a paired engraving kit.

Be advised: The engraving process will take several hours to complete, and you will be unable to use skills during that time.

Holy shit, an Epic core rune. That’s even better than a runic item. He had heard rumors of spacial storage runes, but they were so scarce that he’d never expected to find one himself. He shivered with anticipation as the other hunters secured their rewards.

That left one last matter to attend to before they left the Savage Garden for good, harvesting whatever they could from the Gardener’s remains and looting everything else that seemed valuable. The most promising items were the cracked gem that had been embedded in the creature’s chest, its antlers, and the weapons it had wielded during the battle.

“Go ahead and take whatever you want,” One-Eye said. “I’ve got what I came for. Just remember to keep your promise.”

Setna was barely holding onto consciousness and didn’t want anything either, but Snake was interested in the tusk-mallet and antlers. That was fine by Edge, so he claimed the jewel, then picked up the scapula shield and ivory scythe.

He didn’t have room to strap them to his pack after retrieving his pile of parts, so he carried the items in his hands instead. They were heavy, but once he engraved his new rune, that wouldn’t be a problem anymore.

Since no one else wanted it, One-Eye took the bone claymore the boss had wielded in its summertime aspect. The team considered trying to loot the corpses strewn across the chamber. But they had been shredded so thoroughly and buried in mud that the crew couldn’t find anything valuable amidst all the gore.

As everyone limped toward the fog door that had appeared along the far wall of the chamber, a poweful tremor rocked the dungeon, knocking them to their knees before the rumbling subsided a few seconds later.

Edge’s Guide appeared bearing another message from the System. It formed a screen without waiting for his permission, which meant the update was too important to peruse at his leisure.

Attention. The Savage Garden has been conquered.

The core manufactory (D-Grade) has been claimed by Puppet Town and will be automatically installed.

This death of the boss has triggered a mandatory event: Leaving the Front Door Open.

For a short time, the entrance to the Savage Garden will remain open. It will close after 50 creatures pass through. This count includes the dungeon’s monstrous residents, who have been informed of the event.

Anyone who is still inside when the seal is implemented will be trapped in the dungeon until it reopens several years from now.

While it should be blindingly obvious, let me spell it out clearly. If you’re still in here when that happens, you’re totally fucked.

Run while you can. Oh, and the exit leading from the boss’s chamber will vanish in 2 minutes. You really shouldn’t linger in there either.

It seemed that on top of losing the manufactory, the Crimson Claws were in for another nasty surprise. The crews inside the dungeon would have to race its monsters to the entrance with their lives as the prize. On top of everything else, the jailbirds camped outside were about to get up close and personal with all the predators pouring through the front door.

“Well now.” One-Eye cackled as he read the words on the screen. “What a delightful way to conclude my betrayal. Now, let’s get the fuck out of this dungeon before it’s too late.”

With that, the four of them stepped through the fog door and into the biome beyond.

Edge grinned as a tide of relief washed over him. While it had been one hell of a struggle, in the end, he had beaten the Claws and claimed the manufactory for Puppet Town.

However, his triumph was bittersweet—tempered by the ordeal to come. He’d just weathered on hell of a storm, but another was already brewing along the horizon.