Level Up The Colony
Chapter 36: Let’s Talk

Chapter 36: Let’s Talk

From below, the hunters finally spotted him.

Their expressions twisted in shock.

"Is that... Timothy?!"

"The hell is he doing up there?!"

The assassin, the warrior, and the mage, the woman who had trapped Timothy before all scrambled to safety.

The other woman, the one who had initially guided Timothy into the underground passage, stayed behind.

She prepared to join the fight.

And then she attacked.

A massive fireball exploded against both Timothy and the wyvern.

Timothy turned his head sharply, spotting the woman floating in midair, a psychic image of a lizard manifesting on her shoulder.

The spectral beast opened its jaws, spewing flames relentlessly.

She showed no hesitation, no concern for friendly fire only pure aggression.

The wyvern, sensing the battle turning against it, flapped its wings with all its might, launching itself into the sky.

Timothy held on.

As they soared above the erupting volcano, he retrieved his machete from his inventory and aimed for the wyvern’s neck.

"If I can take it out now, this fight is over." He said only to be disappointed.

The blade barely scratched its hardened scales.

Worse, the unstable altitude made it impossible for him to exert his full strength.

A single misstep, and he’d plummet to his death.

Below, the woman shouted.

"Timothy Walter!!!"

She hurled another fireball at him.

"Turn that bird around and explain yourself!"

Timothy ignored her.

She was flying, that was impressive but right now, she didn’t matter.

Since he couldn’t strike the wyvern while it was in the air, he swiftly unwrapped the scarf from his arm and stashed his machete into his Inventory.

The moment he let go, the scarf was swept backward by the wind, trailing along the wyvern’s scales.

Clutching tightly onto its horn, Timothy maneuvered the scarf to coil around the creature’s long neck.

The wyvern, realizing his intent, suddenly flipped upside down. fгeewёbnoѵel_cσm

Timothy’s grip slipped from the horn, sending him plummeting just as the scarf tightened around the wyvern’s throat.

His fingers latched onto the fabric at the last second, stopping his fall.

"I’m definitely going to be sick later," Timothy groaned.

Then, despite the chaos, a grin spread across his face.

"Achievement unlocked! I rode a wyvern!"

His excitement was short-lived.

The wyvern roared, thrashing violently.

Above, the woman continued to fire at them.

But the real danger came when the wyvern, already inverted, was suddenly yanked downward, Timothy’s weight pulling it into a nosedive.

With no control, they crashed against the jagged cliffs of the volcano.

The impact sent molten debris flying, but the wyvern, undeterred, flapped its wings in desperation.

Timothy tried to force it back up using his grip on the scarf, but the creature was far stronger.

He needed more power.

Activating Armament, he channeled Mana into the scarf.

Instead of just reinforcing it like his usual weapons, the scarf absorbed the energy, hardening it until it gleamed with a metallic sheen.

Timothy gritted his teeth and pulled again.

Still not enough.

If falling from a wyvern mid-flight was dangerous, then crashing headfirst into the ground was downright suicidal.

He had no choice, he had to push his limits.

He reinforced his footing on the wyvern’s back, solidifying his stance with Armament, and yanked harder.

The moment his Pheromones skill activated, his body surged with newfound strength.

[Skill: Pheromones Lv. 4 Activated]

He immediately dumped five free stat points into Strength, pushing it to 60.

CRACK! CRACK!

Beneath his feet, the wyvern’s scales shattered under the sheer force of his grip.

Blood seeped from the fractures.

That was enough.

With a final, desperate pull, the wyvern’s trajectory changed.

It soared upward, breaking through the clouds with breakneck speed.

Timothy exhaled sharply, deactivating Armament as the rapid drain on his Mana left him dizzy.

But what he saw beyond the clouds stole his breath.

His eyes widened.

His heart pounded.

This... this wasn’t what he expected to find inside a dungeon.

For a brief moment, it felt like he had left the dungeon entirely.

What really is a dungeon?

A sudden chill crawled up his spine.

Something was wrong.

If he kept going any higher... he would die.

His grip loosened without thinking.

The wyvern, too, had stopped ascending, its body now dropping in freefall.

But unlike before, Timothy was no longer on its back, he was in front of it.

The wyvern’s golden slit eyes locked onto his, filled with disdain.

He could see its underside clearly now, the throat, the stomach, the wings.

But none of that mattered when its jaws parted, molten lava pooling within.

Then it spits.

A point-blank blast of liquid fire engulfed him.

Gasps echoed below.

Unbeknownst to Timothy, an audience had gathered, hunters, the woman, and even Gray.

They all watched as he disappeared within the fiery torrent.

And then, against all odds, he emerged.

His entire body was coated in Mana, significantly dulling the damage.

The wyvern wasn’t shocked, but the onlookers were.

Timothy didn’t waste a second.

He clenched his fist in burning anger, activated Armament, and struck.

His punch collided with the wyvern’s snout, slamming its mouth shut before it could spew more lava.

Then, before it could react, he cocked back his other fist for another strike

WHAM!

A barbed tail whipped at his side, sending him spiraling through the air.

He tumbled, completely disoriented, as the wyvern steadied itself midair with a flap of its wings.

But then

Its body jerked.

It turned to glare at the scarf still wrapped around its neck.

The fabric had tightened, pulling it downward once more.

Before it could react, Timothy reappeared, grabbing hold of the scarf.

Using its own downward momentum, he twisted his body and delivered a devastating uppercut to its chin.

The wyvern’s body flipped.

Timothy took control of their descent, positioning the beast beneath him.

Then, using the scarf as leverage, he propelled himself downward.

His final attack, an Armament-boosted kick slammed into its back where he had already fractured before

BOOM!

The wyvern plummeted like a meteor, crashing into the dungeon floor with an earth-shaking impact, and kept drawing across the floor until it hit a cushion.

The dust settled.

Timothy, battered but relentless, didn’t hesitate.

He summoned his machete, stepped onto the wyvern’s shattered back, and drove the blade deep into the exposed flesh.

Then

[Skill: Kinetic Pounce Activated]

A shockwave exploded from the point of impact.

The wyvern spasmed.

Then, finally, its body fell still.

Silence.

Then

[Congratulations! You have killed a Wyvern.]

[You have gained a new Title.]

.

.

.

.

Timothy exhaled, still gripping the machete.

He didn’t bother checking any more notifications, the real problem was the volcano.

The cushioning force to stop the wyvern from demarcating the dungeon was the volcano

The ground trembled violently, and the deep rumbling beneath his feet left no doubt: it was about to erupt.

Immediately, he locked onto Gray’s position as the beast sent him a mental image.

The hunters were already fleeing, scrambling for their lives.

A quick assessment told him everything he needed to know, if the volcano erupted, the entire dungeon would be wiped out.

There would be no survivors.

But Timothy wasn’t about to let the wyvern’s remains go to waste.

The beast’s corpse was a treasure trove of rare materials.

If only he could take the entire body with him.

That was when an idea struck him, his inventory couldn’t store living creatures, but what about the dead? Without hesitation, he tried it.

[Storage failed. Item exceeds the size limit.]

He clicked his tongue in frustration.

There was no time to waste.

Instead, he focused on retrieving the most valuable part, the wyvern’s core.

With a swift motion, he tore through its chest, ripping out the glowing red core.

It pulsed with heat in his palm, nearly burning his skin.

The scarf tightened around his arm as he took off, sprinting toward the dungeon gate.

The hunters had already escaped, and Gray was waiting at the exit.

[Item has been sent to inventory.]

The system’s notification popped up just as the core vanished from his grip.

That was one less thing to carry.

Without breaking stride, he leaped as Gray also leaped and clutched onto him.

The recruits clung to gray as they made their final dash for the exit.

The dungeon gate shimmered just ahead.

With a final push, they burst through, just as the dungeon collapsed behind them.

Panting heavily, Timothy and his crew emerged from the dungeon, mostly unharmed except for him.

His HP had dropped to nearly a quarter of its original value, or so he estimated.

Before he could even catch his breath, a glint of light flashed before his eyes.

Instinctively, he dodged it, but it was too late, a dagger pressed against his throat, and thick tree vines snaked up his legs, tightening around him and locking him in place.

Standing before him was the katana-wielding warrior, calmly sheathing his blade.

The assassin, the one holding the dagger to Timothy’s neck, stood behind him, while the nature mage, the lady responsible for the vines positioned herself near the flame-wielding girl.

Unlike before, the fire-user had lost her previous fiery form, her salamander nowhere in sight.

Timothy was in a tight spot.

With no other choice, he deactivated his summoning skill, allowing Gray to cling to what little remained of his tattered clothes.

"E-Rank, Timothy Walter, huh?" The katana user adjusted his glasses, his tone cool and composed.

"Let’s talk."