Monster

Monsters are creatures that appear inside dungeons, acting as opponents for Awakened people who venture inside. They possess magical skills and are a source of magic stones, which form inside their bodies.

The classification of "monster" appears to apply to any sentient creature that is hostile to dungeon raid parties. This can include the occasional plant species, but far more often is used to refer to animalistic fauna, also referred to as magic beasts. Magic beasts can be tamed through certain skills, after which they can act as kiseungsu i.e. beast mounts for Hunters.

Appearance
There are many different general types of monsters, such as unicorns, dragons, and gryphons. Under each of these general types are a diverse variety of species; for example, Unicorn species include both the Horned Flame Lions and the more classically horse-styled Shadow Unicorns. While many monster types are based off mythical creatures (including those mentioned above), there are also monsters based off real-world animals, such as the Tunnel Oplo, which resembles a mix of a wolf and a wild boar. Depending on their species, then, the physical appearance of monsters can be wildly varied, ranging from spiders to birds, lizards, and even turtles. Monsters also include certain plant species such as the man-eating Gillotinae; these are as varied in nature as the animal monsters.

Seemingly at random, monsters will sometimes contain magic stones inside their bodies, apparently concentrations of their own magic. These are harvested from the bodies of dead monsters. However, the lower a monster's (letter-grade) rank is, the less likely it is for them to contain a magic stone. Magic stones also tend to be in the same location across species.

Boss monsters
Boss monsters are unique monsters that act as the final opponents for dungeons. They are markedly different from standard mob monsters, often being much larger in size, one rank higher, having different coloration, or being a different monster species altogether.

Abilities
Much like Awakened people, monsters have a wide range of stats and skills. Their stat ranks can range from F up to L (presumably), while their skills depend on their species. Some species are associated with specific elemental attributes, such as Horned Flame Lions being associated with a fire attribute and thus having fire-related skills. Others have no such elemental attributes, and have skills purely based on their species' physical ability and other features.

Unlike Awakened people, however, monsters' skills seem to tend towards direct attack and defense skills, while support or healing skills that can be used on other monsters or humans are rare.

Numeric ranking
Stat and skill ranks are based on individual monsters' ability. However, each species as a whole is also assigned a numeric rank denoting its strength in comparison to fellow monsters of the same type. For example, among Unicorn species, Horned Flame Lions are stronger at 2nd rank, while Shadow Unicorns are a weaker 3rd rank. By nature of letter ranks reflecting general strength, the letter ranks of fully-grown monsters will often correspond to the same number ranks.