[The Labyrinth, 3rd Floor, Isaac’s Dungeon]

In a dark and spacious room, the sound of crashing and booming could be heard, deafening people’s eardrums.

Pippi hid behind his master while trembling in fear. A giant white tiger with black stripes seemed to be raging in a cage. The white tiger monster was incessantly clawing and smashing against the iron bar.

“Demon! Get me out of here! How dare you lock the Great Byakko in a cage?! I will destroy you!”

In all her life, Pippi had never seen a monster that behaved ferociously before the Dungeon Master.

Meanwhile, Isaac looked calm. There was no fear or worry at all on his face.

He knew that Byakko would act like this.

Although the Spiritual Beast was very strong, it was not easy to tame or control. After all, before becoming a monster locked up in a cage, it was a being that was considered majestic.

This was one of the negative sides of buying monsters or items from the auction. It was like a double-edged sword, each item or monster had consequences that brought advantages and disadvantages.

‘This is a risk I have to take. Hard work awaits me.’

Isaac sighed.

He walked over to Byakko. Instantly, the monster attacked Isaac with its claws. If it wasn’t for the cage, Isaac’s body might have been torn apart.

“Hey, demon… let me go! Release me from this damn cage!”

Byakko kept trying to get free. At the same time, it also tried to grab Isaac.

“I’ll let you go, but on one condition.”

Instantly, Byakko stopped its rampage. A cold breath that sounded like growl flowed from its nose.

“Don’t expect me to be your slave. Only death awaits you.”

Then, the white tiger monster went berserk again.

“No, I won’t ask you for that. I want us to make a bet.”

“A bet?” Byakko was not interested in the words of the demon in front of it.

Isaac nodded.

“We will use the old method. We will fight, the loser must obey the winner.”

Byakko was silent. Its yellow cat eyes glared at Isaac intently.

“Demons like to break promises, just like humans do. How will I know you’re telling the truth?”

Isaac shook his head. “I am a Demon Lord, a noble of the Nether Realm. I always keep my word. I, Isaac Constantine, swear in the name of the Constantine Family; if I ever break my promise, I will withdraw from the battle for Earth.”

Byakko snorted. “I don’t care about your battle. I want you to keep your word.”

Isaac nodded.

“Alright, I accept the bet.”

Byakko’s tone was soft, but enough to scare Pippi, who had been hearing it.

Meanwhile, Isaac just smirked.

“Good.”

Isaac opened the cage door. Byakko stepped out, the air suddenly turned cold and a deadly aura filled the room. Pippi was shaking with fear, but she couldn’t move. Her feet were stuck.

The white tiger monster walked around Isaac. Its eyes were fixed on him, as if it saw a prey it could pounce on at any moment.

“You’ve been confined for a long time, haven’t you? Get used to moving.”

Byakko snorted. “I don’t have to.”

“Then, give me some time to prepare.”

The white tiger monster didn’t answer, it passed him just like that.

Isaac took that as approval.

‘Foolish arrogant monster…’

He walked over to Pippi. The little girl looked pale. She knew the level difference between her master and the monster.

“Lord, are you sure you will do this?” Pippi gripped his hand.

“Everything will be fine. Don’t worry.”

Isaac wasn’t a fool who jumped into a fight he couldn’t win. Everything had been taken into account by him.

He opened the inventory, then took out a full armor set; it was jet black and emitted a terrifying aura.

<Dark Fate>

[Class : S]

[Type : Artefact (Armor set)]

[The former combat equipment belonged to the former legendary demon fighter, Diablo F Lux. The aura radiating from it was thanks to the blood of the slain demon.]

[The user’s entire stat will be increased by 30 points.]

Isaac quickly put it on. Instantly, he felt power coursing through his body.

‘Incredible!’

Ding!

A notification sound was heard.

[The effect of ‘Dark Fate’ is activated.]

[All player stats are added by 30.]

[Artefact contains curses. If the player wears Dark Fate for too long, it will damage the user’s soul.]

[The time limit is 20 minutes. Adjusted to user’s level]

A 30 stat increase per stat was the same as a 50 level increase. There were always consequences of great power, especially cursed items. Isaac was well aware of that.

He checked his status.

<Status Character>

[ Isaac Constantine – Lv 75]

[ Rank : 99th – Baron ]

[ Title : Chief of Beast, First Challenger]

[ Skill : 2/3 ]

[ Strength : 50 (80) ]

[ Magic : 140 (170) ]

[ Constitution : 66 (96)]

[ Dexterity : 83 (113) ]

[ Perception : 80 (110) ]

[ Unallocated stat points : 20 ]

A smile bloomed on Isaac’s lips. However, he still needed one more item to prepare.

A silver necklace in his hand. On the pendant, there was a small mirror in the shape of a triangle, the size was only a thumb.

<Strange Pendant>

[Class : B]

[Type : Artefact (Pendant)]

[A mysterious artefact created by magicians. Any user will experience an anomaly.]

[The ‘strength’ stat will be exchanged for ‘magic’ and the ‘constitution’ stat will be exchanged for ‘dexterity’.]

Isaac quickly put the pendant on his neck. He felt something strange in his body.

[ Strength : 170 ]

[ Magic : 80 ]

[ Constitution : 113]

[ Dexterity : 96 ]

[ Perception : 110 ]

This was the strange effect of Strang Pendant.

Most demons focus more on one area; between melee fighters or mana users. They only focused on one or two specific stats to keep the damage they dealt optimal.

That was why no demons were that interested in this artefact.

However, Isaac was a little different. He was an all-rounder type fighter; he was flexible and could use any weapon.

With the ‘Strange Pendant’, it was possible for him to optimize the damage of each attack, both physical and magic.

“Now, I’m ready.”

Isaac walked up to Byakko full of confidence, even though the monster was emitting a murderous aura.

“Demon, you have an interesting toy. I can taste death from you. You didn’t even carry a gun in this fight. You seem very confident.”

“I’m very confident,” Isaac replied casually.

Byakko snorted. Its killing aura grew even more intense. It felt belittled.

Actually, Isaac didn’t look down on it, as he said, he was confident of winning this fight. He just didn’t want to hurt his new soldier before he could use it.

Isaac still kept one trump card behind his arm.

“We’ll start on the count of three,” said Isaac. However, Byakko was silent.

Pippi, who was watching the battlefield from the side, seemed to tremble. Between worry and fear. The little girl wanted to call off this fight, but she knew nothing could stop her master’s decision.

Isaac started counting.

“One…”

His legs were ready to dash forward.

“Two…”

He would immediately attack Byakko when the count was over. A surprise attack was the key.

‘The sooner the fight is over, the better.’

Isaac smirked.

“Th—!”

Swooosh!

Before the count of three was finished, suddenly the figure of his target had disappeared first. For a moment, he was covered in question.

‘What…?’

By the time he realized what had happened, his body felt a violent impact, as if a truck was hitting him.

Bang! Thud!

A loud bang could be heard. Dust scattered in the air. After that, it was followed by the screams of a little girl’s voice.

“Lord!!!”

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