I ACCIDENTALLY MARRIED A DUNGEON

Felix drifted sideways in slow motion, still staring at the monster intently. The thing was really disgusting. Felix couldn’t understand how it could survive for so many years right under the same roof with Sabrina and her children.

Damn that eye!

Felix reached into his pocket, grabbed three cards in his hand, and launched them at the creature. The cards flew through the air swiftly. Two tentacles came out to stop their path. Two got blocked and one managed to slice through a few inches of its stomach. Its insides moved and rippled, and in a moment the wound closed itself.

"Great. It can heal itself too."

Felix let go of the orb and went into a defensive position. All eight tentacles uncoiled at once, stretching slowly towards him. Felix broke into a sprint. Two tentacles struck the floor in front of him. Felix dived low, sliding through the tentacles and landing on three more tentacles that were waiting for him. Felix changed direction to the left and dodged the tentacles. He got to his feet again and dashed behind the creature.

He launched his fist into the creature the moment he got close enough.

"So soft." His fist plunged into its belly like going through soft rubber. He pulled his fist back and was ready to throw another, yet he stopped mid blow.

He lifted his head to see. "No."

The monster had twisted its head back. The tentacles were coming from all directions. He tried to duck and run away, but his legs gave out first. He was pulled into the air by the tentacles wrapped themselves around his ankles, making the room go upside down before his eyes.

"No! Fuck, no! Dune!" He threw punches at it in panic, but the thing did not seem to feel them.

It lifted him to his eye level. Felix saw the creature’s eye inches away from his, a sharp electricity running down his spine

One of the tentacles started to wrap around his neck. Felix struggled against the grip, but the huge eye that filled all of his vision made his heartbeat faster than before. He spit in its eye.

Its eye shut and the entire thing stumbled back in shock, tentacles jerking violently.

"What now, you fucking bastard." Felix punched the creature right into his shut eye. The creature screeched in a loud, wet way. The tentacles around his legs started twitching left and right, then throwing him away towards the door.

He fell on the floor outside the room and rolled, coming to a standstill in the corridor, pain spreading through every muscle in his body.

"Are you alright?" The whole group surrounded him at once.

"Do I look alright?" He stood up with a wince. "Move. Change of plans."

"Is that all? What happened to the ’devil killer’?" Helen laughed dryly.

"That thing, uh." Felix turned aside. "That thing in there is not an ordinary monster. I could take care of it myself if I could, but I can’t. It’s linked to your souls in some way. I can’t fight it without hurting you."

"That’s a very convenient explanation for someone who came out of that room flying."

"It’s pretty strong. Stronger than I thought." Felix stopped pretending.

"If Felix says the enemy is strong, then it is strong." Dune stated simply. "We should go in together and help."

He nodded.

"Are you an idiot? I can tell," said Helen.

"No she’s not," interjected Sabrina, looking at Helen. Helen fell silent once more. Sabrina looked at Felix. "You didn’t come out empty handed, right?"

"No, no. I’ve found its weakness," said Felix, nodding. "It looks like a human being, but it’s not. No arms, hardly any face either. A big eye on a round head, that’s its weakness. Tentacles that sprout right from its mouth. It heals quickly, and its body is soft and elastic to the touch."

Everybody nodded in agreement. Helen’s expression was already contorted in disgust.

"So here’s the real plan." Felix surveyed the group. "We all go in together. Helen, Joshua, you two stand back; just far enough so that if it comes after you, you have some way to run and keep running."

He glanced at Sabrina. "You stand in front of it and block its view as much as you can. Keep it grounded, keep it distracted." Next he addressed the others. "I’ll protect you from the tentacles, make sure they don’t surprise you."

He put both hands on Dune’s shoulders. "The rest will be up to you. We’re going to create an opening. You’ll use everything you have when it comes. I know you’re strong; now that your Numen core is functioning properly again, you can exceed what your body usually can do."

He paused, looking at her face. She should be able to do it with a body like this. It might be a little easier if she knew how to perform second impact.

"I understand," Dune said, nodding once.

"You do?" Felix asked, taken aback.

"Yes."

"Alright, let’s just do it." Felix went towards the door, followed by the rest. At the door, Helen and Joshua split off to the right side, walking slowly as Helen’s hand held Joshua’s arm tightly.

"They’ll be alright. You don’t have to worry." Felix assured Sabrina.

"Okay." Her eyes were glued to the center of the room, there was something about it that was pulling her, it seemed clear even in the darkness without having to actually see it.

"We should begin with—"

"I know where it is." Sabrina interrupted Felix and flotted away.

"Wait—" He tried to stop her, but he could not, She was already long gone. "She’s doing it again." He looked at Dune and nodded. "The instant you see an opportunity."

"Yes."

Felix ran after the silhouette of Sabrina. Dune went left.

Right as Sabrina saw the Creature standing there unmoving in the center of the room, she came to a halt. Its eye opened up, its yellow-black iris moving side to side until it focused on her. The thing slithered once and four of its tentacles shot out towards her.

She avoided two as she drifted to the left and moved up into the air quickly. The other two followed her up into the air, closing the gap. Two more tentacles extended out from its mouth and slashed down her flight path from above.

She dodged these by moving sharply sideways and was three meters away, when she felt something crawling along her back.

The other four were circling around behind her.

Two in front, two above, and four behind closing the gap on her. She made a sharp right turn and went full speed, but the four behind kept closing in on her.

Four cards sliced through the darkness, and through all of them.

The silent screech pierced through the room.

The pieces of the torn tentacles wriggled once before inching towards the body of the creature, like insects. The four truncated tentacles attached to its body wriggled towards the corner of the room where the playing cards came from.

Felix rushed to the creature from the right-hand side of the room and crushed the crawling pieces beneath his boot till they turned into pulpy mush.

"How does that feel? It’s same legs you grabbed, jackass."