What can I say? it’s more dungeon crawler Carl, which I mean in the best way. It’s fun, freaky and explorative. Never have I read something a nonhuman and human at the same time. A truly entertaining series with heart.

This entry follows Carl and Donut into the sixth floor of the dungeon. This one is the Hunting Grounds, which means outside individuals have their chance at a claim to fame. They can hunt down crawlers to gain renown and riches. The crawler won’t take this lying down and they are incentivized to kill as many hunters as possible themselves. It’s essentially a sponsored war and the galaxy eats it up. On top of this, Signet is back for the second round of her story and it entwines with the main plot of the floor in a dynamic way. There are still many surprises throughout and, of course, no one is safe. Intergalactic attorneys get involved as well as nonprofits and more corporate nonsense to no one’s surprise. This novel really helps connect more of the dots in the universe and I felt more informed than ever before. Because Carl is a human just like me, his perspective on the situation is just as confused as me and he asks the right questions so that I could understand as well. It makes for a very compelling style and it’s probably why I’ve continued reading this setting. (Also because of the absolute insanity in each entry.)

Carl and Donut both are tested very heavily here. Carl’s inner dam is overflowing and Donut’s composure cracks as well. Both go through some heavy realizations, but they have each other and their new family to get through it all. Katia isn’t part of their party anymore, however she’s still around enough that it’s not a huge deal. The epilogue gives some really surprising insight into her that we wouldn’t normally get since the main story is from Carl’s perspective. Elle and Imani are the same as ever as Elle spouts sassy, good-natured insults and Imani is the new guild leader. I feel like I should care more about Imani, but she doesn’t really stand out much. Her healing does come in handy however, and her practicality is a nice balance to Carl’s ridiculous planning. Louis and Firas have grown into characters all their own. These two worked their way into my heart with their back and forth. Bautista has minor development as well as Florin, which are two characters that are interesting on the surface, but we have yet to see much below that. Surprisingly, more information about Lucia is discovered and it really changes how people look at her. Miriam Dom and Prepotente are explored in more depth than most of the other side characters and their developments are meaningful. I really enjoyed getting to understand them and their relationship. I realize now that this floor really helped flesh out the characters more than the others. Humanity was able to come together and really showcase how indomitable that spirit can be.

The Butcher’s Masquerade was probably my favorite of the series so far. Its insight into the characters and the program itself were welcome and impactful. Dinniman still comes up with some of the wildest scenarios and I’m constantly impressed with the creativity. At this point I’m wondering if he’s even human! In any regard, this series has been a fun, fast-paced, soulful read and I can’t wait to continue on.