Inside the depths of the scorpion dungeon, was a sandstone cave, its walls packed with the regular scorpion mobs. In its center stood a humongous scorpion, the size of a pickup.
Riva was faced with the dungeon's boss.
[You have arrived at the dungeon's core]
[Attack] [Talk]
[Item] [Run]
Riva didn't have time to pay attention to systems antics.
She started off by throwing Rocky 1 combined with 'Haste'.
She put everything she had into the attack and aimed for a gap in the boss' exoskeleton.
[Rocky 1 attacked with 'Rock Throw', it was very effective]
[Rocky 1 has left the party]
Meanwhile, Riva had intended to follow up with a charge…
But Rocky 1 directly pierced through the giant scorpion's head. It smashed through its exoskeleton and continued through the inside of its head.
The boss died.
"Did I seriously one-hit kill the boss?!"
[Affirmative]
The system answered Riva's rhetoric question of disbelief.
"But how? Soloing a boss, that's something only a late intermediate rank adventurer could achieve and only when he's prepared for an extended battle."
She slashed at the hordes of normal scorpion monsters who were swarming her.
[Rock is effective against Bug] The system answered her matter of factly.
"This is real life, not Pouchémon!" Riva objected to the system's logic.
The scorpion's corpses were piling around her.
[Anything is possible for you are supported by the TDH System!]
"You're saying you can change the rules of reality?"
[No comment]
Riva shrugged at its answer. There was no meaning in getting riled up when it came to the system.
She was becoming numb to it.
Barely five minutes passed and Riva cleared the entire room of scorpions. She made sure, she was alone and busied herself with feeding.
She started with the boss scorpion which netted her 20 points. It took quite some time to drain it completely. All that remained was an astoundingly big pile of ash.
She frowned when she continued on to the smaller corpses.
I must have taken too long, it's barely a point's worth. Riva frowned at the results.
There were hundreds of dead scorpions, equal to hundreds of points, in theory, that is. It was impossible to drain them in time before their energy dissipated completely.
Worse even, the dungeon had begun its reset. It was approximately 10 minutes after the room had been cleared. All remaining corpses melted into the ground and the already defeated foes began forming anew.
A system message popped up.
[You are facing the dungeon's core]
[Attack] [Talk]
[Item] [Run]
"Talk" Riva tried as a test while she hurriedly ran for the spot where the boss was forming, Slashy 1 ready.
[Talk failed] The system informed.
Riva attempted to slash at the spawning creature but her sword passed through it as if she had attempted to cut a hologram... an illusion.
I remember that the golem from back then attacked me even while it was materializing. The state of the scorpion is about the same so it should be capable of the same feat, yet I can't seem to touch it. Riva analyzed.
She didn't distance herself but she did observe the scorpion's claws with rapt attention.
Only when the boss scorpion had fully formed, did it thrust its pincer towards her.
Riva was ready for its attack and easily evaded with a jump. She landed on top of its claw and propelled herself onto its head. Just like Rocky 1, Slashy 1 easily pierced its exoskeleton and revealed the white flesh beneath.
Riva expertly evaded the scorpion's stinger which came rushing down towards her. She didn't let go of her sword though and instead turned it along with her evasive movement. This caused the blade to mess up the insides of the scorpion's head.
She must have his something important because the second stinger attack never came. Thankfully it wasn't dead just yet ,t his would preserve the life energy.
Riva pulled out Slashy 1. She really, really wanted a renaming feature. 'Rocky' was at least somewhat cool. It sounded like rocket, whatever that was, but Slashy…
Riva was now standing atop the giant scorpion's body, which was akin to an island facing a flood. A scorpion flood.
She thought for a moment, then removed her boots. Next, she jumped down, squashing a scorpion with her momentum and weight.
It netted her 1 point of life energy. She was using her bare feet for the absorption.
Riva fought like a mad beast, she kicked and bit at the swarming scorpions.
She got hit by a few of their stingers and pricked by their pincers, but they proved incapable of seriously endangering her. These superficial wounds healed on the spot and only cost a tiny bit of her energy.
Furthermore, she got used to the fighting and found it increasingly easy to defend herself. She was steadily gaining life energy.
This is pretty good. I'm earning points even though it's taking a lot longer than straight-up defeating these mobs. Counting the boss, my total gains have already increased compared to before. She glanced at the giant scorpion.
Riva facepalmed in sudden realization.
Dammit, I forgot to feed on the boss. He must have died while I was concentrated on fighting. The life energy has been dissipating all this time!
She shook off the scorpions that had used her distraction to pinch her with their claws were clinging to her. She jumped back onto the giant scorpion's head and stomped her feet into the hole in its carapace.
The delicious and refreshing energy began flooding into her.
The regular scorpions didn't give up their pursuit and climbed up after her.
In the meantime, she had no choice but to fend with her sword. Despite the increased difficulty, her experience allowed her to consume the boss with minimal injury.
Once done with her meal, Riva continued her fight from before, further increasing her gains.
They won't stop coming. Riva was becoming suspicious, faced with the seemingly never ending horde. I feel a though there are more than before…
[You are facing the dungeon's core]
[Attack] [Talk]
[Item] [Run]
The message popped up for the third time.
Right on cue, another scorpion boss started its materialization.
So that's it! They re-spawn individually. I didn't kill the boss immediately, it must have died after I defeated a number of smaller scorpions.
So the dungeon started reviving the scorpions once they hit the reset timer counting from their death. I just didn't see them re-spawning, being surrounded and all that.
They did say the reset rate in this dungeon is pretty fast, it should be a bit more than 10 minutes based on my previous round.
This also explains why the dungeon would prove difficult without sufficient strength or knowledge. Once a fight takes too long, the already defeated foes will re-spawn. Aside from the potential surprise attack, the fight would become unwinnable. It's a scenario, where the monsters would attack ceaselessly, never completely defeated.
Additionally, a re-spawn would deprive the adventurers of their loot, after all the scorpion's carapace is a valued resource.
For me, it's a different story. I was struggling to find a good source of life energy. The dungeon is playing into my hand.
My stamina runs on life energy, my injuries heal with life energy, my loot is life energy!
Riva grinned greedily.
It's an endless loop!
I'm going to milk this dungeon dry!