Xen was stuffed.

  "Ugh," he groaned, clutching his stomach. It was packed to the brim with metal coins and felt solid to the touch. There were still over half of the chest's credits left. He reached down to grab another fistful, but a hand clamped on his arm, stopping him.

  "You've had enough," Randy insisted, meeting his gaze with an expression of worry. "Please, for the love of all that is holy, stop eating the darn credits. I don't even know where you are putting them at this point—do you have two stomachs or something?"

  What a silly question, of course he didn't have two stomachs. Though he had used biomass to expand his stomach's size and reinforce the lining so it wouldn't tear under the weight.

  "What do we do about the rest of the credits then?" Xen asked.

  "Leave them, we can come back another time," Randy said, withdrawing his arm and looking him up and down. "If you really wanted to, you could store a few more in your suit's pockets."

  Xen blinked. "Suit... pockets?"

  Randy stared at him. "You didn't know your suit had pockets?"

  "No," Xen admitted, and began to search his clothes. His fingers soon found the fabled pockets, and with a grin, he stuffed them full too.

  "Okay, stop." Randy sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose in frustration. "No offense, but you frankly look ridiculous right now. Empty out some of your pockets."

  Xen paused and sadly emptied his pockets back into the chest until they weren't quite as stuffed.

  Randy stepped toward him, and Xen backed off, confused at what he was trying to do.

  "Relax and stay still," Randy said, reaching up and tugging on the black cloth he had around his neck. He looped it over a few times and pulled it down, then patted his chest with satisfaction. "A well-done tie really does make the man, huh? Oh, not all your shirt buttons are done up, one moment."

  Xen just stood there, frozen and confused, as Randy walked around him and messed with his clothes. After a few minutes, the exhausted Randy finally stepped back and nodded with satisfaction.

  "Creepy eyes and black tendrils aside, you look ready for a job interview."

  "Nah, man," Vesper said from the side, "Gerald looks more like a mob boss with the long black trench coat and slicked-back black hair."

  Randy appraised Xen for a moment, then agreed with his friend. "Yeah, I suppose you are right. A black waistcoat, trench coat, and tie, contrasted with a white shirt, really give a dangerous yet classy vibe. It kinda suits you, Gerald. Makes you look hard to approach and mysterious."

  "I have no idea what you are talking about," Xen admitted, shrugging.

  "The point is, you no longer look like a strange caveman wearing a few stolen bits of armor. I think if you go like this, reaching the surface shouldn't be a problem."

  Xen looked down at himself. Did clothes really make that much of a difference? "What about my class and level? Will they cause me problems?" he asked.

  "What do you mean?"

  "I..." Xen began but trailed off. How much did he want to keep secret from these humans? He had already vowed to keep the fact that he was a shapeshifter to himself, so he avoided changing into any monstrous forms and stuck to appearing like a human. But what about changing his class and level? Would it be better to keep that to himself?

  Mhm, I don't think I even can since Randy has the appraisal skill. While he might be out of mana right now and unable to use it, he could in the future and would figure it out in an instant. It's not something I can realistically keep hidden. They met me as a Spellblade, but I will have to appear as a Phantom Scout from now on, or at least until I change identities again.

  Xen coughed and continued. "I've changed my displayed class and level. I'm now a level 39 Phantom Scout, rather than a level 15 Spellblade in an attempt to pass as Ghostwire."

  There was a drawn-out silence as Randy and Vesper simply stared at him. Valoria was still peacefully sleeping away in the corner.

  "That's possible?" Randy asked, then shook his head. "Actually, never mind. I have no questions, as it's none of my business. Though you've somehow changed your class and level? Fascinating. But level 39? That explains how you were able to solo-kill the Underworld Orc."

  Xen didn't care to correct him about the fact that he had been in his level twenties when he killed the Underworld Orc, not almost level 40. Some things were better left unsaid, after all.

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  "But why did you bring this up exactly?" Randy asked.

  "Ghostwire was level 46, but I'm only level 39," Xen explained. "I'm worried the people on the surface will appraise me and realize I'm not really Ghostwire because of that discrepancy."

  "Oh, I see. That is a valid concern," Randy rubbed his chin in thought. "The security around the upper floor entrances isn't that strict—all you need is to show your hunter badge—wait, do you have Ghostwire's hunter badge?"

  Xen reached into his suit's inner pocket and, from among the coins, fished out a polished metal badge with the letter C and the words Superior Hunter engraved into it. Unlike the polished iron Uncommon Hunter badge he had looted from Gerald, which was stored safely inside his slime, this badge was crafted from a brown metal he wasn't familiar with.

  "Whoa, can I see that?" Randy asked, his eyes practically sparkling.

  "Uh, sure?" Xen handed it over.

  Randy accepted the badge as if it were a prized treasure, holding it up for a better look. "I learned that the Superior Hunter badge is made from Hellfire Bronze," he said, eyes wide. "Whoa, it really is warm to the touch, as the internet articles said!"

  "Warm to the touch?" Xen asked.

  "Yeah. Apparently, the bronze is infused with fire mana or something like that. And this little round amber gem at the top supposedly keeps the metal from burning through your clothes—or your skin." He turned it over in his hands, still marveling. "Hard to believe this tiny gemstone's worth a few hundred credits, and the slab of Hellfire Bronze itself goes for another thousand."

  He carefully passed it back to Xen. "I can't wait to receive mine."

  "Yours?" Xen asked, confused.

  Randy grinned. "I currently have a D-grade Rare Hunter badge," he said, pulling out a dark blue metal badge, "but during the fight earlier, I leveled up and am now barely considered a C-grade Hunter. If I go in for a reevaluation, I'll be promoted."

  "Oh," Xen said, looking at the C-grade Hunter badge in his hand. After seeing Randy's reaction to it, the little slab of warm bronze seemed far more significant, but it still wasn't his. He had stolen it.

  Xen frowned. He wanted his own badge. Summoning his status screen, he glanced to check it.

  ??[Name: Xen]

  [Level: 44 (C)]

  [Race: Necroplague Slime (Rare Variant)]

  [Current Form: Human (Phantom Scout: Level 39)]

  [Class: Shapeshifter (Unique)]

  He was currently 6 levels away from being considered a B-grade monster and 11 levels away from being a B-grade Hunter. Suffice to say, he still had a long way to go until he could try for a promotion.

  "Why the long face, Gerald?" Randy asked. "So long as you have that badge, passing any Hunter checkpoint shouldn't be a problem. But if someone were to appraise you, the mismatch of levels would raise questions that I doubt there is a reasonable answer to. What do you want to do about that?"

  "Well, what are the options?" Xen asked.

  Randy glanced at Valoria and then Vesper before returning to Xen. "There are three possible options I can think of off the top of my head. The first is that we head down to the 4th floor, then the 5th, and use a teleportation hub to the surface. The advantage of this option is that you might be able to get your level up to match Ghostwire during the descent if you kill everything we encounter, and it should be the fastest route."

  "And the negatives?"

  Randy winced. "If you take us with you, we will drag you down greatly, and there's a chance we might die to one of the many traps or ambushes common on the 4th floor."

  Xen raised a brow. "What kind of monsters await us on the 4th floor? I know the 3rd floor has goblins, and I've heard the 5th has Orcs..."

  "Gnolls and vampiric bats are the main monsters on the 4th floor," Vesper said from the side. "It's possibly the least popular floor for Hunters as there's a whole lot of risk and minimal reward."

  "What are gnolls?" Xen asked.

  Randy jumped in to explain. Clearly, this topic was his forte. "Really fearsome monsters. They are bipedal predators—meaning they stand like humans—with hyena features, sloped backs, mottled fur, hunched postures, and fucking crazy razor sharp teeth. They are also way larger than you would think, with some reaching eight feet tall, and I've seen some use weapons, set traps, and even follow hierarchies if a rare variant or floor boss is around."

  "Those do sound quite strong," Xen said, and didn't realize he was licking his lips with a slimy black tendril until Randy's sudden disgust clued him in. "Ahem, sorry about that," he coughed as he retracted the tendril. "What is the 4th floor's biome like?"

  Vesper answered. "It's basically a vast subterranean canyon with narrow ledges linked up by crumbling stone bridges. Besides the Gnolls that guard the passages and the bats that swarm you, there are traps to worry about. But if you know the right route, it's quite a quick floor to traverse."

  "I see," Xen said. He had the Geomantic Perception and Earthen Trapmaster skills, which would nullify any traps, and his new Windveil Agility and Threadwalk skills, which would make traversing the ledges a breeze. "That doesn't sound like a problem. What about the 5th floor?"

  "It's dominated by a massive ancient-style city controlled by Orc Warclans," Randy said, while putting his D-grade Hunter badge away. "Ironically, it's one of the safer floors, so long as you stay away from the danger zones due to the outposts established by the various guilds around the teleportation hubs."

  Xen nodded, trying to hide his excitement. Everything he had heard so far sounded great. "What were the other two options?"

  "The second option is to return to the surface by retracing our steps—"

  "No, we can't do that," Xen said, cutting Randy off.

  "Can I ask why?" Randy asked, tilting his head.

  "The priests," Xen said, pondering how much he should share. "I... would rather avoid them, and I saw a lot crossing the second-floor desert. It would be bad if we ran into them."

  "O-Okay," Randy exchanged a glance with Vesper. "Then the only other option is the third, which involves us splitting ways here."

  Xen was confused. "You three can make it to the surface in that state?"

  Randy shook his head. "Unlikely, unless we run into another group of Hunters that can help us. You would most likely be leaving us to die, but we can't force you to help us."

  Xen snorted. "That option is useless. I need help with life on the surface, so at least one of you is coming with me."

  Randy gave him a tired smile. "Option one, it is then. We will head for a teleportation hub on the 5th floor to reach the surface." He glanced at Valoria, who was still sleeping. "I think Vesper and I can at least walk by ourselves, but Valoria will need a long while to recover. What should we do?"

  Vesper hummed in thought and then seemed to come up with an idea that amused him. "Couldn't Gerald give her a piggyback?" he suggested.

  Randy nodded, looking surprised. "That's... actually a good idea."

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