Lance and Venya waited for nightfall again so they could enter the lord of the dolls' dungeons. It would be a problem to be seen in broad daylight, when there is a greater presence of hunters.
They didn't need to worry about the Demon King's church members showing up. The two made sure to wait as long as necessary until no one else appeared in the dungeon. And no one else showed up.
When they were hiding in the forest, Lance chased some deer so they could feed. Ordinary animals didn't give him an extra point of strength or regain his vitality, they just satiated his hunger.
They entered the dungeon.
Outside it was yellow, vines and plants taking care of the structure.
Inside, it was similar to any other dungeon. Surrounded by rocky walls and ceilings, which only get worse as you descend the floors.
Like the mistress of beasts dungeon, Lance has only visited the lord of the dolls' dungeon once in his life. He knew the paths to certain floors, but he had never gotten this far.
The walk, however peaceful, was interrupted by the appearance of green and red orcs over three meters tall.
It was frightening for any hunter, from the most inexperienced to the most experienced.
However, that was a piece of cake for Lance and Venya. One or two punches were enough for Lance to knock the orcs to the ground until they were restarted in the dungeon. He would kill the rest, but Venya insisted he reserve three red orcs for her.
She was offended that the kaiju didn't think the mistress of the beasts wouldn't be strong enough to kill orcs that didn't use magic, just unsynchronized and brutal attacks.
Lance stood with his arms crossed as he watched Venya summon the infernal wolves and goblins advancing against the huge orcs. The monsters laughed, as if they were mocking the small creatures advancing angrily.
One of the orcs swung the huge sword with a broken wooden hilt at the ends and killed five goblins in a single blow. He laughed along with the other two orcs before feeling a strange pain in his chest and arms.
When the orc finally realized what had happened, his head was already on the ground along with his two arms.
Venya held the monster's relatively small heart in her hands, dripping green blood. The organ still tried in every way to pump the blood that only covered the hands of the mistress of beasts.
Venya was not just a user of magic, but a skilled fighter, with extensive knowledge of the martial arts of her world. She might not come face to face with Lance, but those orcs were nothing to that woman.
She threw the heart to the ground and went to the red orcs.
They swung the sword angrier than usual, infernal wolves and goblins distracting them. Venya dodged the attacks with precision, her dress and hair moving synchronously with her speed.
Fordragon balanced on the second orc's sword that was stuck in the ground and then, using small knives taken from the bodies of the Demon King's church members, she plucked out the monster's yellow eyes.
He screamed in agony, covering up the bloody holes that once protected his only way of seeing.
Venya landed on the ground and with the same knives, nimbly pierced the orc's muscular neck several times in succession, until the orc fell to the ground. The blood went down and down, a pool of blood forming in its place.
She stepped on the pool of green blood, marking the ground where she stepped. The third orc swung his sword upward, but was stopped by Venya, who with a mighty kick broke the sword's wooden hilt. Blade and pieces of wood fell to the floor, echoing down the cavernous corridor.
Orcs are extremely proud monsters, they don't give up or flee a battle until one of the challengers is dead. Feeling humiliated, he tensed his muscles and screamed fiercely.
The horrible breathing of someone who has never brushed their teeth left Venya a little stunned, not that she had some kind of toothbrush in her old dungeon.
The orc ran, punch after punch, but Venya dodged each one. Lance was still watching the spectacle, he had only seen the fight of the mistress of beasts on a live stream made by some hunters who posted the videos online.
It was an extremely common way to get a little more money, transmissions of dangerous missions in dungeons. Humans, always driven by greed.
Lost in thought, Lance couldn't see the scene where Venya ripped out the orc's intestine and used it to hang him. He fought with all the strength he could muster at the moment, but to no avail.
The orc died, face completely purple and mouth foaming.
Venya licked the greenish blood and smiled. She really was a dungeon monster.
[ You evolved a level! ]
[ You have evolved to level thirty-three! ]
[Strength: 27 → 28]
[Agility: 75 → 76]
[Lucky: 13 → 14]
[Magic: 100 → 101]
[Vitality: 69 → 70]
Surprisingly, the level evolution was Venya's and not Lance's.
"Wait a minute, can you level up?! I thought this was impossible! I mean, everyone in the hunter community knows you're a level 32 boss!"
She stared at him for a few seconds.
"Dungeons are enchanted so that no creature, including us bosses, has to level up. But now I'm free to evolve as much as I want!" Venya spoke with a megalomaniacal smile.
Lance could have sworn he saw that kind of smile in some children's cartoon he'd seen many years ago.
"Let's continue down the dungeon."
Depending on the ledge, they can be found on the top floor or on the bottom floor. The lord of the dolls was on the bottom floor, as was Venya before.
From the videos and stories told, Lance knew more or less how everything was going to work. A huge room, full of shelves covered with different and unusual dolls. The lord of the dolls controls them as dungeon creatures, destroying them, however, will not give the hunter any EXP.
Just thinking about the boss made Lance shiver. All the dolls looked cold and sinister, almost as if some souls owned them. Venya noticed Lance's displeasure and couldn't help but laugh, he showed his fists and she immediately fell silent.
The two stopped in front of two large doors decorated with sewing thread and clothing buttons. There were two doll heads on the handles and two more hanging from the gate.
Lance and Venya looked at each other, nodding. They moved the two doors and then it opened.
There he was, at the back of the room, playing doll tea.
The lord of the dolls.