Chương 26: Chapter Twenty Five

Ding! Ropework Path Skill Acquired: Constrict (F) Congratulations! Bob nearly hissed in pleasure at the acquisition. Before his sudden excitement was quickly deflated by both the crab spinning to face him, and a follow up message from the system. Ding!' Constrict (F)' Cannot be currently be used as your Active Skill Roster is full. Replace Skill in Active Skill Roster with ' Constrict (F)'? Yes /No A very inappropriately timed message from the system, he corrected.

His calm slightly wavering due to the distracting, if mostly transparent, window appearing between him and the blow intended to slice him in two. His hasty refusal causing it to disappear just as the crab's claw impacted the spot he once stood. Ding! Dodge (E) has leveled up! 6 – 7 The crab stumbled as its latest attack was again danced around, obviously still not used to its vastly different center of balance. It recovered quickly however, before then taking a few fast steps back.

Obviously not wishing for a repeat of the last time he'd gotten within its guard. Only to find out moments later that its worries were unfounded. Given that Bob had no intention of going on the attack at all. The crab's shocked expression as it watched the greatest opponent of its life – the destroyer of one of its limbs – abruptly flee the battlefield was wholly unearthly. Which wasn't, to be fair, terribly surprising. Given that crabs on earth don't exactly do 'expressions'.

Unfortunately, Bob wasn't able to appreciate the sight. Given that he had already turned around and made it past the doorway before it recovered from its stumble. He managed to clear the entire first flight of steps before there was any noticeable reaction from the room below. And even then, it wasn't movement. Instead, just a long, extended, rage-filled shriek which seemed to echo its way up the tower walls. Which was perfect. Given that its loss of composure drastically reduced the distance he needed to travel.

Bob couldn't currently kill the crab in the hall. This was made abundantly clear by how long it took him to break through what was likely one of the weakest spots on its body. He was using his prehensile tongue in a way that, arguably, it wasn't truly designed for. And it showed. Luckily, he now had a quick – if painful – way to fix all that. He cleared another half-a-flight before a scraping 'thud' from below alerted him to his foe passing through the doorway.

At which point he decided he was far enough, opening up his skill page and bracing himself. Ding! You have chosen to add ' Constrict (F)' to your Active Skill List. Which Skill will be replaced?' Toothless Grasp (E)'' Dodge (E)'' Taunt (E)' Bob felt the choice was fairly obvious. Unfortunately, that certainty did nothing to ease the still shockingly-potent sensation that ran through him the second he made it.

Familiarity with the process apparently useless at suppressing the violent shockwaves the Skill Swap sent racing through his body. Ding! Skill swap successful! Constrict (F) has replaced Taunt (E) in your Active Skill List! Unfortunately, his newly-evolved form reacted to the whole-body assault in a near opposite manner than his previous. Unlike before – where his bag-body had fallen limply to the ground – now, if anything, he had grown more rigid. He seized up.

The prior unnerving malleability of what appeared to be wood and iron erased as his body, for what may well be the first time, actually resembled the chest he was supposed to be mimicking. The tale has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident. Something which, unfortunately, proved Bob's prior fears of tumbling down the stairs to be somewhat prophetic. He started to fall the instant the choice was made.

The supernatural grip his 'feet' had on the steps disappearing as Bob got slapped with another factory reset. Which may well be something of an issue, what with the rage-filled, one-armed crustacean which was just beginning to barrel up them. A feat it might not have previously been able to accomplish, sans amputation. Fortunately, given their current underwater surroundings, his descent wasn't terribly swift.

Unfortunately – also given their underwater surroundings – when Bob came-to upside down and floating towards his would-be murderer, he struggled to do anything about the situation. A situation which the raging crab had quickly prepared itself to take advantage of. Stretching out its remaining massive claw to intercept him mid-flight. Bob was struck by panic. His previous hold on the strange calming sensation that accompanied his 'Dodge' skill lost during the transfer.

The brief attempt to spam it similarly failing; seeming unable to activate when he was incapable of preforming the needed action. Something which didn't bode well for Bob's future structural integrity. What did, however, was a certain 'lack' of structural integrity that – now conscious – Bob was able to self-impose. As the monster's claw neared its target, the box that it was reaching towards suddenly transformed.

Bob's lid opening and body lengthening as, instead of being crushed within its claw, his form 'swallowed' the upper portion of its pincer. Tongue quickly beginning to wrap around its dense, jagged surface. Bob considered this to be a significant improvement over his other option. Unfortunately, it wasn't perfect. As proven when the crab, with some force and a great deal of aggression, decisively slammed its pincer closed. Alert! - 6 Health!

Bob felt an entire slat of wood shatter as the two points of the crab's claw met somewhere inside him. The pain was devastating, but nowhere near as debilitating as it would have been before his evolution. Luckily, he didn't lose any of his few possessions to the newest hole that had been torn in his side. Because he had already taken firm hold of them. Ding! Constrict (F) Has leveled up! 1 – 2 He could feel the hardened chiton begin to bend and crack under his grip.

The carapace on the upper portion of the claw not designed to withstand pressure coming from overhead; or at least not this much. Slowly beginning to give in the places he'd arranged his silver bars. The difference between this and his prior attempts were so far divorced that it would feel ridiculous to compare them. His tongue seemed to almost writhe as it desperately attempted to repay the pain he'd just been delivered. Very quickly succeeding. Ding! Constrict (F) Has leveled up!

2 – 3 The top of the crab's claw exploded inward. The rest of it seeming to fall limp shortly after; gooey 'muscle' spurting out of the jagged hole with its every attempt to move. This, unfortunately, didn't mean the end of his opponent.

'DESTROY!' The telepathic scream, while loud, went mostly ignored by Bob. Though, to be fair, less because it lacked the horrifying, violating touch of its predecessors; and more due to the slavering, scintillating mandibles that the crab was doing its best to press down into his form. Only stopped inches from his unblinking eye due to its own dead appendage getting in the way. It took multiple long seconds to unwrap himself from what was left of the once-glorious pincer.

The process not aided by its owner's chaotic and frenetic movements; the monster not seeming to be sure whether it wanted to attack him or try and run away. The latter option being obviously complicated by his current adhesion to a greater portion of it. Once his grip had loosened enough from the still-twitching wreckage, he found himself immediately tossed aside by his screaming victim. The crab seeming to use its claw's last ounce of strength to throw him away from itself and down the tower's hollow center.

Or try to, anyway. The nearly eight-feet of his now fully extended tongue whipped out, wrapping almost twice around his opponent's body before dragging him back in. Whereupon he once more began to squeeze. Its size and his positioning made this attempt far less clean than his previous. A leg being crushed between them in his initial attack. Something which was followed by a great deal of scrambling as he attempted to gain a better grip while it tried to somehow scrape him off.

Throughout this, the banging and screams of the crab behind the wall continued unabated; echoing down the hallway into the tower room beyond. A part of him, after noting the fragility of his own opponent's appendages, wondered if it was doing any damage to itself with its unceasing blows. At least before it was shanghaied by the rest of him to aid in crushing the Big Fucking Crab he was currently wrestling. Eventually, he managed to firm his grip around the creature.

Coils slowly vicing inwards as its carapace began to bend and buckle. Its telepathic screams were unceasing now. No longer coming out in words, but instead a toneless bellow that echoed through his head. Until – with horrible wet ' crunch' – he collapsed inwards. Jeweled eye blinded by the sudden explosion of viscera, but still able to clearly make out the suddenly appearing alert messages. Ding! Constrict (F) Has leveled up! 3 – 4 Ding!

You have destroyed a 'LV: 12 Mad Crusher Crab (E)' (14) Experience gained for Class: ' Treasure Hunter (B)' Congratulations!' Treasure Hunter (B)' is now level 2! Perception + 5 Dexterity + 4 Willpower + 3 Bob didn't give himself much time to worry about the messages, however. Instead, he was desperately trying to disentangle himself from his former foe before the next one peeked out from around the corner. So focused on his task, in fact, that it took three or four seconds before he noticed the silence.

All the screaming, the cries, the threats ringing through his head. All of them, gone. And not just from the crab laying crushed beneath him, he realized. The entire building had gone quiet. Dozens of incensed voices muted in an instant. The previous menacing aura suddenly… vanished. Bob almost gingerly focused on 'Treasure Sense', feeling hopeful and terrified in the same measure. To find that all of the crabs had simply stopped. Not stopped as in having ceased all motion.

But rather 'stopped' as in they no longer seemed to have any interest in what, only moments ago, seemed to be the driving purpose of their existence. That being attempting to brutally murder him. He felt almost incredulous when he sensed one of the crabs he'd been worried about – the one roughly as large as his defeated foe – not twenty feet or so off. Simply muddling about at the end of the hallway as if it hadn't moments ago been barreling towards his direction. He 'watched' it for a moment with his mind's eye.

'Staring' at the distorted, dangerous aura as it seemed to almost randomly wander back and forth. Showing absolutely zero signs of its previous collective purpose and focused intent. Before then realizing that this might be another one of those moments where, perhaps, Bob should simply be thankful for his luck instead of overanalyzing it.

Especially considering he was currently injured and, if the cannibalistic behavior of the crab upstairs was any indication, covered in several pounds of what was essentially monster bait. These things taken into consideration, Bob quickly began making his way further up the stairs, shaking off as much of the goo and guts as he could during the process. Any further attempts to leave the tower would have to wait. At least until he'd had a chance to heal and possibly figure out what just happened.

And how he might best use it to his own advantage.