Reject Humanity, Return to Monke

The struggling and scared shitless scout was brought before me by the lead primate, who was none other than Gund.

"Boss. Last scout, as commanded." Gund forcefully dropped the scout, who was now looking at me and my companions with obvious fear in his eyes.

"Thank you Gund. You may leave. Ready yourselves for the next wave." Gund saluted, as well as the other primates he was currently leading, and left the scout with me and the group of demi-humans and humans. "Now then, what can you tell me? Pitiful human?"

I approached the shivering mess of a scout, and to add in a fear factor, used some of my MP to generate an aura of flames around me. Domino was already on her way back to the Dungeon Core Room while the surviving scout was being brought along.

"A-anything! I'll tell you anything! J-just please! D-d-don't kill me!" His bowels apparently malfunctioned due to fear, since the smell coming from his backside caused my nose to cringe.

I grabbed his head, and let the flames lick his skin for a moment, eliciting a scream of pain from the terrified scout.

"Well, that's lovely. Answer my questions truthfully, and I'll grant you freedom." I smiled, which caused the scout to piss himself, the smell of both shit and ammonia wafting in the air. Behind me, I noticed Catalina, and the demi-humans, cringing at the odor due to their heightened sense of smell.

I released the scout and he crashed back on the ground, his head fearfully nodding at the acceptance of his fate.

"First off, why are you here?" I asked him as I crouched down to meet his eyes, earth snaking around his limbs as his fear began to escalate. He was silent as he felt the earth slither across his arms and legs. His mouth hung wide open. "Tick tock, human. Time's running out."

"T-t-to get a layout of the map of the D-D-Dungeon! A-a-and disable t-t-traps we come acr-r-r-ross!" Tears now poured down his face like a fountain, my humming causing the scout to shiver in fright.

"Alright. Next question: What faction do you belong to, and who sent you?"

"The Human Movement Federation!" The scout hastily said with a yell. "M-M-Mistress Erika sent us in!"

'I have a name to blame now. I should probably ask Bentley, Nicholas, or Drake if they know anything about this person.' I hummed once more, the scout taking my humming as a sign of satisfaction. "Then, next question: What is your objective?"

"T-t-to hunt down a heretic who has b-b-been travelling from t-t-t-t-town to t-town!" At his answer, I sighed.

'Well Drake, at least they don't know your identity. Otherwise, I would think that they would've stopped pursuing you ages ago.' Nearly facepalming at their stupidity, I regarded the shivering mess of a scout once more, a final question popping in my head. "How many are you in your group, and where are you located?"

"W-w-we're more than a hundred strong! We m-m-made camp on a cliffside nearby!" I cupped my chin.

'Well, now I know where their camp is. Question is, should I launch a preemptive attack? Or should I wait until they try to pursue Drake again and rush into my Dungeon? One way to find out.' The final question popped in my head, and this really was my final question to the scout before his usefulness runs out. "Will your superior force your group to march in just to pursue the heretic!"

"Yes! She will!" The scout, sensing that his usefulness was about to run out, begged and pleaded on the ground, snot coating the stone floor of the wall. "She doesn't stop when hunting a target! Now please! Let me go!"

"… Very well." Standing up, I notice Catalina behind me about to protest and the scout giving me a grateful smile, before I conjured lightning and zapped the scout with enough volts to instantly kill the man, rendering his death quick and painless. "There, I grant you freedom to die."

50 EXP gained!

DP gained: 50

EXP gained: 50

DP: 27,705 => 27,755

I looked behind me, and saw Catalina glancing at the corpse then at me, before sighing a breath of relief.

"For a moment there, I thought you'd let that scum go." Catalina then gave off an expression of disgust when she looked at the smoking corpse. "Shit, that stinks."

"Well, mercy was off the table the moment they wanted to do harm in my Dungeon." I chuckled at her expression, and ordered a few primates to come and dispose of the body, as well as clean up the floor where the corpse laid. No way in hell am I going to step on poop, piss, and snot mixed together. "Anyway, what do you guys suggest? Attack their own base? Or wait and defend because we have the home advantage?"

"I suggest the latter." Wulfstan suggested from his place. He looked at the forest below and at the entrance of my Dungeon with a critical eye. "We still have no idea what we're up against, even if we know they are the elites of their faction. It's probably best if we hold out for now before risking a gamble."

"… A wise decision." I nodded, and commanded the primates who were waiting for the next invasion to stay alert at all times in case the next wave came. "Those were just the scouts, and the massacre gave us nothing about their capabilities. However, we might not get another wave for the next few hours, so you all can go and spend your time however you like. I have to go meet up with someone."

"Hey, I'm coming with!" Catalina immediately glomped the side of my arm with her modest breasts, causing no small amount of anger and jealousy to radiate from Tigre.

"… Alright." I sighed out and Catalina beamed as her cat tail swished to and fro, while her cat ears wiggled cutely. "Anyway, I'll contact you if ever other waves come. Until then, you can spend your time however you like. Just don't antagonize the residents."

And with that, I left with Catalina hugging my arm with a purr. While Tigre was being surrounded by his adoring fans of the opposite gender, he was glaring at me once more like a very jealous ex to Catalina.

'Sheesh, I wonder if he has a power related to jealousy. That would be incredibly funny, as well as ironic.'

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~ Third Person POV ~

"What do you mean our scouts haven't returned!?" The female knight, now known as Erika, yelled at her lieutenant with her grip tightening on the handle of her sword still sheathed in its scabbard.

"As I have reported, ma'am. Our scouts have failed to report in the allotted time, which means that they are either killed or captured within the Dungeon." The lieutenant said with no small amount of fear in his voice, afraid that he would meet his end right here and now due to the temper of the well-known knight.

"… Useless bunch of ingrates." Erika scowled as she released the handle of her sword and sat forcefully on the stool. "This complicates things. A scout party will just result in more casualties, but blindly going in is another problem in and of its own."

The lieutenant stayed silent while Erika continued to ponder her choices on how to tackle the obstacle in her path. Seeing no other choice but to brute force it, she sighed and regarded her lieutenant with a strict gaze.

"Once our reinforcements arrive, we march for the Dungeon." The lieutenant nodded fearfully as he stored the barebones plan in his head. "Tell all the soldiers to ready themselves for a march at dawn. Today, we rest, because tomorrow, we shed blood for our Goddess."

The lieutenant's fear vanished as he prayed towards the Goddess which he held high regards to. Whether afraid of Erika or not, the lieutenant is a fanatic like the female knight, just not as zealous as Erika is.

"Understood, ma'am." With a salute, Erika dismissed her lieutenant and watched as the soldier exited her tent, leaving her alone to her own musings. She laid her head on the table as she pondered the horrifying torture she would subject the heretic to once she had her hands on him.

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Inside the Dungeon, Drake stirred in his sleep, nightmares plaguing his mind as he once again relived the moment where his arrogance and pride costed him many things.

"… No… Pina…"

His breaths ended in short gasps, sweat trickling down his body as his eyes clenched tightly.

"…Sorry… My fault…"

His mutterings echoed through the room, no one present to hear his broken cries of guilt and sorrow as he muttered in his sleep.

"… No… No… No…!"

His stirrings grew intense as the bed creaked. He flipped his body left and right, before jumping out of the covers, his gauntlets in full view as his mouth opened wide.

"PINA!!!" His sweat trickled down his body as he regarded his situation. Looking around, he sighed, and decided that it wasn't worth it to go back to bed. Not when the nightmares that kept on plaguing him every day were worse than before.

"… Fuck… This is why I don't like to sleep anymore…" His words went unheard as he headed his way into the shower, unimpeded by the more than spacious room. His mind was forced into a lull as he showered, and once he was done, he dressed himself and heard a knock on the door.

"Drake. It's me.." Jionni's voice brought him out of his lull, and his lips twitched upward slightly.