←Book 5: The Butcher's Masquerade

Floor 6, "The Hunting Grounds," begins with a 30-hour countdown to the Hunt and 17 days until Level Collapse. Carl is summoned to Orren's office, where the Syndicate explains they cannot forcibly take the Gate of the Feral Gods but demand its surrender until Floor 9; Katia transfers ownership to Carl before departing. In the Staging Area, Donut reveals she temporarily chose the Legendary Diva (Bard) class, while Katia took a HAZMAT endorsement for her Monster Truck Driver class. Former crawler Ian warns Carl about the ruthless mantis hunter Vrah. Carl chooses the Agent Provocateur specialization for his class, gaining an advanced Bomb Maker's Workshop over Mordecai's recommended melee path. Report issue

Carl arrives in the jungle Selva and approaches a Medium Dryad Settlement, where invisible Night Weasel Scouts ambush him and paralyze him for five minutes. Donut and Mongo intervene with magic missiles while Chris carries Carl to a pub saferoom. Mordecai appears in his new form as a Level 50 Pocket Kuma, prompting uncontrollable laughter from the group. The hunters are revealed to be actively tracking Carl with coordinated weasel packs. The chapter ends with a knock at their personal space door, which Carl announces is a delivery of collateral. Report issue

Carl summons Quasar, a holographic Nullian advocate, who advises him to retain the Gate artifact as collateral and warns against trusting Valtay liaisons like Orren. As part of a negotiation, Carl receives four rock-mercenary bodyguards including The Sledge and Bomo, who hold teleportation spells with significant cooldowns. Katia levels up to 52, gaining Steely Skin and an upgraded Find Crawler skill. Mordecai advises delaying room upgrades until the guild system is revealed, but Carl plans to purchase an Advanced Bomber's Studio and Magic Studio. Donut practices her Standing Ovation spell while the group prepares for the next phase. Report issue

Katia's group departs via caravan, leaving Carl, Donut, and Mordecai behind with 21 hours until Hunter Release. Donut struggles severely with her Bard class because she is completely tone-deaf, making her singing spells useless without a Golden Throat enchantment. Carl explores his Advanced Bomber's Studio and uses its virtual simulation to test his volatile explosives. The hunters are confirmed to be watching, though they lack direct communication access. The chapter ends with Carl ordering Bomo to teleport them to Zockau's stairwell as darkness falls. Report issue

Carl, Donut, and Bomo infiltrate Zockau, a city with a 1950s American aesthetic, using a coordinated invisibility move called "Predator." Carl sets up explosive barrels and a rocket launcher near the Desperado Club and targets hunters using his Ring of Divine Suffering and Ping spell. The resulting blasts destroy the club entrance, trigger alarm traps, and force a frantic retreat through the jungle. Carl takes severe bleed damage from an invisible crossbow-wielding hunter and collapses at the jungle border. The chapter ends with new crawler allies "Mother" and "Pony" arriving to help. Report issue

Carl awakens in a cart with Miriam, Prepotente, and Donut after being knocked into a coma by an enhanced Woozy crossbow bolt during his failed Desperado Club raid. He reviews notifications revealing he reached level 54, killed 34 hunters and 200+ NPCs, and received a spiderweb tattoo marking him as part of the Guild of Suffering. Zev warns the group to stay together due to high viewer numbers and announces Carl will appear on Odette's show without Katia. Carl receives his loot haul including severed hunter trophies that serve as tickets to the upcoming Butcher's Masquerade. The group reflects on their growing detachment to collateral damage as they approach the heavily trapped town of Zockau. Report issue

Carl and Donut part ways with Miriam's team and regroup in a looted Small Bugbear Settlement near Zockau. Mordecai confronts Carl furiously about the reckless town explosion, but Donut firmly shuts down his concerns and refuses to entertain any suggestion of splitting from Carl. Mordecai reluctantly accepts this and instructs them to reset their buffs and relocate away from the blast site. Only 13 hours remain until the next wave of hunters is released. The scene reinforces the tense but functional dynamic between Carl, Donut, and Mordecai. Report issue

Carl opens thirty-four Hunter-Killer boxes, receiving massive gold, severed hunter trophies serving as Butcher's Masquerade tickets, and a spiderweb tattoo marking him as part of the Guild of Suffering. A Platinum Asshole's Box upgrades his Fear spell to level 10 with a wide-area cast. The season recap airs, revealing new hunter god Kevin and class evolutions for top crawlers like Elle and Lucia Mar, followed by the official launch of the guild system. Donut becomes obsessed with entering Mongo in the pet beauty contest, while Carl's mental "bubbling stream" intensifies into pain. Mordecai provides lore on the Guild of Suffering as Carl prepares to train his Ping spell and navigate new guild mechanics. Report issue

With the Hunt beginning in 3.5 hours, Carl and his party plan their escape south toward a massive river, using Katia's community-sourced map that matches Carl's cookbook coordinates. Carl coordinates with Katia to destroy all but one bridge while gathering intel from Miriam's team about a trap-free caravan path. Carl details his massive thermobaric bomb crafted with Mordecai's Nitro Sludge and infused with the Fear spell. When Donut objects on moral grounds to using Bomo as a suicide bomber, Carl pivots to her alternative: creating a clockwork version of Bomo by transferring him to Donut's control. The chapter ends in a tense race against the clock before the Hunt begins. Report issue

Carl's party travels south through a devastated town and encounters Goiter, a bugbear council member who warns hunters will soon sweep through. They reach a pristine Ursine settlement whose Funeral Bell guards refuse entry and specifically ban dinosaurs, prompting Carl to trick Mayor Elmer into range for Donut to knock him off a cliff. Branded troublemakers and retreating to a pub saferoom, Carl discovers a note from Vrah revealing hunters are now explosion-proof and the town guards have been converted to worship Emberus. Defiant, Carl sends a crude reply just as the system announces the hunters' release and the gates drop. Report issue

Donut reluctantly takes control of Point Mongo using the Enchanted Collar Charm of the Effete Bourgeoisie, which grants stat boosts, passive tax income, and the Snitch skill. Carl sets traps on the outskirts and kills hunter JayGee, earning the "Insurgent" achievement and 35,000 gold, then arms the funeral bell guards with missile launchers. An ursine cleric triggers "The Recital" quest, tasking them with investigating sudden dinosaur attacks on the settlement. Mongo bolts into the jungle and is surrounded by forty female Mongoliensis; when pack leader Kiwi paralyzes Carl, Mongo and Kiwi begin mating, horrifying Donut but allowing Carl to safely extract her. The chapter ends with Donut vowing to cage Mongo and reinstate the dinosaur ban. Report issue

Donut suffers a severe panic attack after Mongo runs off, revealing to Carl that she has been hiding the true weight of the Enchanted Crown of the Sepsis Whore, which permanently binds her to kill every Blood Sultanate royal before descending. Carl reassures her with a firm promise not to leave her behind, calming her. Zev interrupts to cryptically warn Carl and reschedule Odette's visit, a deliberate distraction to stop him from pressing Donut further. The chapter ends with Donut receiving the "Double-Billed" achievement, Carl's viewership spiking, and a distant missile detonation signaling they must return to their mission. Report issue

Carl and Donut track a wounded Yenk hunter but discover the scene is a trap set by powerful floor bosses. A parallel scene shows Quasar negotiating a covert license extension for Sensation Entertainment's show, financially incentivizing them to keep Carl alive. Carl and Donut meet Tsarina Signet, who arrives with Areson the Wise and six Were-Kin warriors, presenting the captured Yenk hunter Bravvo as a prize. Despite Mordecai's warnings about Signet's dangerous nature, Carl chooses to heal Bravvo rather than immediately kill him. He equips a mysterious ring from his inventory, signaling a shift in his approach to survival and alliances. Report issue

Carl and Donut loot Bravvo's corpse and retreat into the dense jungle with Signet and her were-castor warriors, guided by a Level 50 Bearded Sage Caterpillar named Nadine, as river waters rise and Confederate patrols increase. Signet reveals her tragic backstory as a half-naiad exiled by her high elf father and details the fate of circus performers Grimaldi freed from parasites. She explains her goal is to destroy two great threats: the Confederacy occupying her mother's palace and the High Elves ruled by her half-sister Imogen. Signet confirms that Carl and Donut are the final pieces of her recruitment. The chapter sets up a joint campaign for mutual revenge and survival. Report issue

Carl and Donut encounter Areson the Wise, who brings them a dead Dream faction elf hunter whose loot includes a crude map revealing faction territories and marking Louis as the primary target of The Dream. Carl warns Katia about the danger to Louis. As Signet's diverse group of ~70 allies assembles, Quasar sends a warning about legal hurdles and a 150-million-credit bribe for a ninth-floor extension. Signet triggers "The Vengeance of the Daughter" quest: assaulting Fort Freedom and assassinating the leaders of the Naiad Confederacy to reclaim her mother's crown. Report issue

Carl, Donut, and Mongo return to Point Mongo escorted by were-castors Clint and Holger, whose journey is interrupted by invisible paralytic weasels; the were-castors demonstrate remarkable combat prowess and immunity to paralysis. Holger harshly critiques Donut's off-key singing during her attempted Standing Ovation buff. Upon arrival, Carl receives notification that he has secured his third sponsor: The Apothecary. Donut reveals the Apothecary sponsored nearly all top-ten crawlers, leading Carl to suspect it is the real Krakaren, a vast collective mind potentially allied with the Plenty. The chapter closes with Donut's comedic outrage over sharing sponsorship funds. Report issue

Back in the saferoom, Carl negotiates with a furious Samantha, who demands to be taken to Tsarina Signet, claiming a distant familial tie and that Signet can restore her physical body. Carl agrees to bring her along during the morning assault on the naiad castle. Transferring to Odette's show takes them through an unexpected security checkpoint and a low-gravity space-viewing chamber overlooking Earth, causing Donut severe motion sickness. They arrive in Odette's green room where Zev appears in person as a hologram for the first time. Odette then delivers a shocking revelation: Carl's ex-girlfriend Beatrice is alive. Report issue

Odette reveals Beatrice survived the initial collection and was secretly removed from Earth to protect her from bounty hunters who planned to sell her to Borant as a dungeon boss. A security breach has compromised this secret, and Odette has leveraged Beatrice's survival to blackmail Borant into a higher revenue share. Despite Carl's fury at being manipulated, Donut insists they proceed with a fan event and allow Beatrice to appear on the show, believing facing the confrontation now gives them time to prepare. Carl reluctantly agrees but threatens Odette with revenge if the reunion is a trap. The chapter ends with Carl pulling Donut aside for a private conversation two minutes before broadcast. Report issue

In a studio broadcast, Carl and Donut meet Beatrice, Carl's former girlfriend and Donut's original owner, who appears severely malnourished and possibly memory-wiped. Donut maintains a cold facade during the broadcast before delivering an emotional confrontation to Bea after the cameras cut, condemning her betrayal and definitively cutting ties. Following the interview, Odette reveals a major corporate shift: the Valtay Corporation has acquired 51% ownership of Borant and now holds regency over the crawl. Donut quietly reveals she orchestrated the takeover, hinting at a larger strategic move against their oppressors. The chapter closes on hard-won emotional closure for Donut and Carl, juxtaposed with looming corporate threats. Report issue

In the green room, Lexis urgently explains that Valtay's central servers are taking over game control and warns of a major plot shift: Queen Imogen of the High Elves will host an elite party where the top fifty crawlers will be forcibly transferred for a zero-sum battle, with Valtay planning to wipe out the current apex. Carl realizes Odette is feeding this intel through Lexis to maintain plausible deniability. Back in the dungeon, Donut accidentally confesses she previously smuggled Valtay agents to Zev and the Borant Emancipation Front, shocking Carl. Carl visits the Emberus shrine to sacrifice blood for his first boon, and the chapter closes with a callback to Donut's snoring gag. Report issue

Carl and Donut watch the season recap, witnessing Vrah's mantis raid, Mongo's dinosaur encounter, and Imani's class evolution to flight-capable with solidified wings. Katia visits to finalize her departure from Carl's party to secure her own guild space. The Showmaster announces Borant's political severance from the crawl, new hunter restrictions, and the upcoming Butcher's Masquerade. Carl is forced into mandatory CrawlCon attendance for three events: judging an art contest, moderating a history panel, and hosting an autograph session, all without Donut. The chapter ends abruptly as Clint arrives transformed into a beaver, reporting elves are besieging Point Mongo with magical trebuchets and poison bombs. Report issue

Carl endures an artillery bombardment from two Moon Elf catapult operators and devises a counter: duct-taping miniature seeking missiles to Samantha the Sex Doll Head and launching her as a weapon. Using Mordecai's Levitation and Brain Juice potions to boost his Ping spell range to three kilometers, Carl locates the two elves and launches Samantha, who kills one and clamps onto the other. Carl captures the surviving elf, Akland, who reveals that Epitome Tagg wants Louis found for insulting his mother and that the mission was supposed to be harmless roleplay. The system marks Akland and identifies his highest stat as Constitution. Carl tells the elf he will show him "what he does now" as Donut warns against his bad-guy soliloquy routine. Report issue

Carl levels up to 55 after killing Akland, gaining trophies and an Arrow of Enthusiastic Double Gonorrhea intended for Louis. To boost Donut's combat utility, Carl gives her the Enchanted Obsidian Bracelet of the Raggle Rouser, which grants +10 Constitution, +5 Dexterity, 15% Fire Resistance, and a Level 10 Fireball spell every twenty minutes. Samantha begins rolling around independently and barking at the ursine cleric, demonstrating her growing capabilities beyond Mordecai's predicted limits. Carl acknowledges Samantha's growing value for the planned assault on the naiad castle. The chapter closes with Carl noting that Samantha's chaotic nature fits perfectly with the rest of their group. Report issue

Carl loots a slain hunter's corpse, finding a Enchanted Venomous Elven Rock Chucker trebuchet that fires Poison Cloud rocks. As the group travels north to assault Fort Freedom, Carl reflects on his upcoming schedule and suspects Signet's show will end in a tragic finale before Imogen's boss fight. The group is interrupted by a massive blue lightning explosion near the all-tree, signaling an attack on Signet's team. Samantha immediately rolls off to investigate and gets stuck. Carl, Donut, Holger, and Clint move toward the site, where Donut's map reveals Signet, Areson, and allies are already engaged with hunters and elites. Report issue

Carl retrieves a mud-stuck Samantha while learning that three Skull Empire hunters attacked near the all-tree, and Areson captured one as a sacrifice for Signet's battle squad summoning. Samantha attempts to bond with Signet claiming a family connection, but Signet politely deflects. The group scouts Fort Freedom, the decaying naiad castle; Signet shares her tragic backstory about her mother's assassination and the confederation's rise. The plan is set: Signet summons her squad using the captive orc while Carl throws Samantha—equipped with an alarm trap playing "Wonderwall"—into the river as bait. Just before the sacrifice, Carl learns Langley's entire top-10 crawler team has been wiped out, and he vows revenge before launching the assault. Report issue

Carl and Donut wait outside Fort Freedom while Signet's team infiltrates, but the strategy unravels as bodies of naiads and paper monsters float to the surface, revealing the castle defenses were a trap. Samantha gets stuck in the castle's filter vent while acting as a distraction, enduring a looping song trap, and refuses to be recalled. Areson provides lore on Fort Freedom: high elves aided naiad dissenters in assassinating the tsar and his family, then cursed Signet so she floats unnaturally. Despite a charisma debuff from his water-breathing ring, Carl prepares to dive into the river as the battle intensifies. Samantha's growing fixation on a mysterious male figure inside the castle becomes clear as Carl readies to intervene. Report issue

Samantha accidentally teleports Carl and companions into the path of Level 65 Claude Sludgington the Fourth, a massive Eryops Gigantis boss who swallows Holger and Samantha. Carl attempts to flip the boss onto its back, but his Protective Shell spell miscalculates and launches Claude into the air instead, allowing Donut to fire a level-10 Fireball into the exposed belly. When the spell drops, the boss falls toward them; Carl is crushed into the stomach cavity but survives as Mongo eats his way out, killing Claude. The boss's corpse explodes in gore, and Samantha drops onto Carl's lap claiming she killed it from the inside. The fight highlights Carl's poor spatial awareness and Samantha's signature overconfidence. Report issue

After the boss fight, Carl disarms traps on the slope and successfully levels his Find Traps skill to 10, discovering a summoning trap. Signet returns from the castle assault, revealing the confederacy has collapsed but a curse prevents her from ruling. The AI updates Carl with two quests: "The Recital," investigating a rogue dinosaur named Big Tina responsible for shore attacks, and "The Vengeance of the Daughter" Part Two, which directs Carl to assassinate Queen Imogen at an upcoming elite party. The group mourns their fallen, including Clint and Nadine, while Edgar the tortoise prepares a moonlight ritual for Miss Nadine. Report issue

Edgar the tortoise tattoos Signet's thigh using the remains of Miss Nadine, creating a blood and ink elemental that preserves memories; the tattoo unexpectedly manifests a child version of Clint, preserving him in Nadine's memory. Carl, Donut, and Samantha leave to find a saferoom, planning to secure a village, train guards, tackle the dinosaur quest, and hunt outworlders before assaulting Queen Imogen. After grinding through thorny dervishes while hauling a snoring Samantha, Carl arrives at an unnamed village the system prematurely names Alucarda. A dryad NPC reveals Mayor Lucia Mar has taken over with two monstrous beasts. Before Carl can investigate, he is forcibly transferred away. Report issue

Carl is abruptly transferred to a space station, panicking as Donut and Samantha are left behind with Lucia Mar. An older gnoll security officer with a quarter moon insignia gets Carl to approve his grandpup Lix's art contest entry, then flashes him to a massive Valtay underwater landing vessel that has replaced the usual production trailer. Zev reveals Valtay has taken over CrawlCon operations with strict surveillance, and Carl's interface confirms Donut is safe but trapped in the guildhall after fighting Lucia Mar alone. Zev insists Carl must remain for his scheduled events and warns that leaving early could expose him to enemies waiting on the surface. Carl is forced to comply with his first event: judging children's artwork. Report issue

Carl joins Hurk, a Gleener designer, and G'valt, a faded Bactrian camel playwright, as virtual judges for a CrawlCon art contest. He encounters The Plenty, a strange trio of goat-like children who invented the tunneling system and work with sponsor Apothecary. After bribing a tipsy Hurk with praise, Carl secures a perfect score for Lix, a young gnoll whose drawing of her "pup-pop" wins the contest. Hurk warns Carl to "be careful," noting his rare visibility as a crawler is precarious. He also reveals Carl's upcoming panel will be moderated by Circe Took, the grieving mother of a hunter Carl killed, leaving Carl oddly eager for the confrontation. Report issue

Carl learns his panel will be moderated by Circe Took, a mantis hive queen whose child he killed, while Zev reveals she must return to a darkened base fearing execution as a traitor. Carl exploits a tier-four Ultimate Training Room installed by gnoll guards, training his Sapper's Table crafting skills and grinding Powerful Strike to level 10. En route to the panel, Carl briefly overlaps with Dr. Ratchet, a dwarf who ominously warns him to "keep your head down." A journey through a zero zone temporarily suppresses Carl's enhancements and makes syndicate standard unreadable. A Porter Bot named Biff confirms Carl will attend the panel virtually while Frito and Moxo wait outside. Report issue

Carl attends a CrawlCon panel where he discovers he's been drugged with the same substance used on Odette's show, stripping his inhibitions in a clear Valtay setup. The moderator, Circe Took, delivers a history lecture until Carl loudly interrupts, then leverages a sponsorship override from The Apothecary to turn the panel into a tactical brainstorming session asking fans how to kill Vrah and her six mantis daughters. Circe storms out in fury as Carl taunts her, and the panel devolves into crowd-sourced strategy. Afterward, Carl finds an autographed copy of Dr. Ratchet's Guide to Building Automatons and receives a frantic message from Donut warning that Lucia is waiting in the saferoom with mantis warriors outside. Carl prepares to return to the dungeon. Report issue

The panel discussion covers mantid hunter tactics targeting Vrah and the Nebular Sin Patrol, a nomadic religious cult that bio-augments themselves and violently crusades against crawlers from seeded planets. Carl learns he cannot access inventory items until he materializes on the ground during teleportation. Donut reports that Lucia has barricaded herself in the saferoom with anti-teleport traps, while mantid hunters and Nebular cultists camp outside. Samantha reveals hunters tortured her to learn Carl's spawn coordinates; she fed them false data, but a dryad betrayed the ruse. Despite lacking prep items and facing imminent ambush, Carl feels a strange calm as teleportation begins. Report issue

Carl teleports back to Alucarda and immediately engages a level 74 mantis warrior, using traps, potions, and the chaotic music from "Ballroom Blitz" to kill several mantises and nebular priests. Donut confirms their clockwork Sledge diversion successfully lured Lucia away from the saferoom. Carl crashes into the desecrated Temple of Diwata and confronts Vrah, who displays severed heads including Langley's; Carl tricks her by activating the reanimated heads, then shoots her with an Arrow of Enthusiastic Double Gonorrhea before she escapes via teleport. Realizing Vrah now carries a highly contagious STD, Carl devises a plan to use her as a disease vector and drafts a note luring the last mantis representative to their saferoom. The chapter ends with Donut dramatically announcing Carl's biological warfare tactic. Report issue

Carl's guild regroups in a Zockau saferoom as Elle provides updates on the guild's progress and Katia's rescue of Carl after their flying house was ambushed by pterodactyls. Carl opens a massive haul of achievement rewards: a Gold Apostate Box branding him "Enemy of the Church," a Gold Ranged Weapon Box with an archery upgrade patch, and a Gold Spicy Box with a bomb embroidery patch. Katia sews the patches onto Carl's enchanted vest, granting significant Constitution and explosive damage boosts. Upon reaching exactly 100 base Strength, Carl must choose a permanent stat upgrade and selects Swole, doubling future Strength gains. The chapter closes with Carl recognizing his guild as his true family. Report issue

Carl and Donut watch the season recap of Donut's solo battle against Lucia Mar, which features teleport traps, damage reflection spells, and a bizarre fight inside a treehouse pub ending with Donut decapitating Lucia's massive dog Cici. Mordecai explains that Lucia speaks to an unseen "youth assistant" named Alexandro and references past trauma, suggesting a child is somehow involved. The Announcer's daily broadcast reveals roughly 66,000 crawlers remain, the top 50 will receive mandatory invitations to the Butcher's Masquerade, and Floor 7 has been redesigned due to crawler resistance. The chapter ends with Bomo entering with a shivering male mantis creature who urgently warns Carl that "she's coming for me." Report issue

Carl confines Edict, a Level 50 Mantis Merchant, in his personal space hallway; Edict is trapped between handing over Vrah's demanded loot (financially ruining his family) and refusing to mate with Vrah to cure her disease (violating cross-faction mating laws). Vrah arrives limping and burning from Carl's inflicted disease. Edict lunges at Carl to trigger the saferoom's defense system, gets frozen and teleported naked to a monster nest, but drops a massive pile of gold upon teleportation. Carl seals the door, leaving Vrah to suffer outside while Edict meets his fate. Report issue