Sage barely regained his footing when the boss's form blurred, it wasn't slowly approaching; it was just there now. A massive limb swept toward him.

He raised his arms as wind exploded around him while flinging himself aside; still, the edge of the strike clipped him like a battering ram against his side.

He was hurled across the stone floor; pain detonated through his ribs as breath ripped from his lungs upon slamming hard and rolling to a stop against a fractured outcrop.

He coughed, blood spraying across the rock like a fountain. Before he could push himself up, the ground beneath him shifted again. He rolled blindly, narrowly avoiding a stone blade that erupted where his torso had just been.

He realized he wasn't just being attacked; he was being processed. The boss didn't strike randomly. Its attacks formed patterns, zones of control that forced his movements, each spike limiting his options. Every sweeping limb cut off potential escape routes.

It wasn't trying to kill him instantly; it was herding him.

Sage forced himself upright, his vision swimming, and raised his hand.

A crimson circle flared to life.

Level 2 Fire Spell — Falling Flame.

The sky ignited as a roaring mass of fire slammed down onto the boss's shoulder with a thunderous boom, flames cascading across its stone body and warping the air with heat.

When the inferno cleared, sections of its outer plating glowed red-hot before cooling and shifting into place, new plates sliding over the damaged areas. The damage was superficial.

Panic tightened Sage's chest. He tried lightning next. A bolt cracked across the boss's torso in a blinding flash, leaving scorched lines along its crystalline veins.

But the boss didn't slow down. It struck again. Stone erupted around them as the battlefield shrank.

Sage felt blood seeping from his wounds; his movements were slowing, and his mana was draining too quickly. The core remained several dozen meters away, but clarity pierced through his panic.

If he continued this way, he would die.

So instead of trying to win outright, he began preparing for a gamble. He dodged and stumbled while chanting, not the short incantations for Level 2 spells but something longer and heavier.

Mana in the surrounding air stirred as heat gathered beneath his feet.

The boss paused momentarily before intensifying its assault. Spikes erupted faster; limbs struck harder. The dungeon itself seemed to react, the vibrations grew stronger and fissures glowed brighter.

Sage's face drained of color as blood seeped from his nose, then from his mouth and ears. His skin turned ghostly pale as if it were drying up under a scorching sun; blood flowed from every orifice like a horrifying fountain.

His vision blurred; thoughts muddled like he was stuck in syrup, but he pressed on.

The incantation didn't stop; above the boss, space distorted.

Lines began to appear, not just one circle but many interlocking layers forming an intricate design overhead. A gigantic crimson formation manifested, a dizzyingly complex mandala woven together with runes upon runes that pulsed with catastrophic heat. Just looking at it made Sage's head throb violently; maintaining such power strained his very soul.

The dungeon floor glowed ominously as the boss roared in response.

With determination surging through him despite overwhelming odds, Sage grinned through gritted teeth and shouted,

"LEVEL 3 FIRE SPELL — CRIMSON METEOR!"

The magic circle imploded, and from its depths, a blazing mass erupted like a fragment of a dying star, engulfed in radiant flames. As it plummeted, the air around it twisted into shimmering curtains. It screamed downward at an unimaginable speed.

Impact.

The world exploded.

BOOOOOOM.

Heat surged outward in colossal waves. The ground fractured violently. Stone vaporized instantly, creating a crater hundreds of meters wide with molten edges and depths choked with fire and smoke.

Shockwaves battered the walls of the basin. Flaming debris rained down like meteor fragments. The spire at the center partially shattered, collapsing inward as magma-like light poured into the fissures.

The boss was consumed by the explosion; the entire dungeon trembled. Sage hunched at the edge of devastation, his body drenched in blood, skin ghostly pale, eyes unfocused. His legs shook uncontrollably beneath him.

His mana veins felt scorched and brittle, his core a hollow, aching void. Casting the spell hadn't just drained him; it had scarred the pathways of his power.

His ears rang, and his head felt like it was splitting apart; every breathscraped against his lungs. Smoke billowed and fire roared around him.

As the chaos began to settle, the battlefield revealed its grim reality: a colossal crater scarred the ground, and at its center lay the boss, broken and burning.

Its massive body was cracked open, stone armor shattered, with crystalline veins exposed and ruptured. Thick, glowing blood poured from the fissures like molten streams, hissing as it struck the heated earth.

Sage took a shaky step forward but nearly fell; he managed another step before dropping to one knee. Gritting his teeth, he forced himself back up.

He staggered ahead, his vision dimmingblood dripping from his chin. His arms felt numb; his ribs screamed in agony while his internal organs burned.

Behind him, the boss stirred. A low, grinding rumble echoed through the air, it was not dead yet.

Sage let out a weak laugh. "Am I… really going to die here…?"

The thought didn't fill him with panic; it was disbelief. Memories flashed through his mind, a pathetic first life filled with avoided gazes and unspoken apologies.

But he had been given a second chance, a chance to build a future with his own hands.

"No," he whispered hoarsely, determination flaring within him. "Not here."

The boss dragged itself from the crater, its ruined body moving with a sound that cracked stone beneath it.

Sage stumbled those last few meters until he reached the core. He pressed his bloody hand against it; its surface was warm, smooth, and alive.

Suddenly, the boss raised its arm, a massive shadow loomed over him as a claw descended, and then the system screamed in response.

[ Dungeon Core contact confirmed.]

[System authority overriding native control.]

[Dungeon assimilation in progress.]

The giant claw that was about tocrush him froze mid-air.

As realization dawned on Sage's face, a wide smile broke through despite being blood-soaked. Finally feeling spent, his legs gave out beneath him as he collapsed onto the dungeon stone floor. The last thought that flickered through his fading consciousness was simple:

I did it.

Then darkness enveloped him. A deep silence fell upon the dungeon floor, save for the crackling of flames from spells cast earlier and occasional debris rolling down from surrounding walls, the stillness was profound.

The enormous body of the Dungeon boss remained frozen in time as if caughtin an eternal moment.

But then...

[ Warning.]

[ Warning.]

[ Host Condition : Critical.]

[Life Signature Unstable.]

[Emergency Protocol Activated.]

[Overriding System Restrictions.]

[Initiating Teleportation Sequence.]

A blinding white light flooded the entiredungeon and engulfed Sage completely.

When the light faded away, Sage's body had vanished without a trace.

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