With that being said, it was running out of places to explore within the confines of this dungeon. The miasma that would've broken it down had it relied on lungs only served to obscure the goodies hidden deep within the deteriorating dark green bricks.
Even the puzzles that were once set up has lost most of their function, and it was a miracle that traps could be triggered at all!
But the skeleton didn't know this, leaving only its system to sigh as it rubbed the space between its brows.
The series of events being broadcasted on a floating immaterial screen was enough to cause gray hairs. The place it once knew to be an impregnable fortress that even the guilds wouldn't be able to traverse was falling apart at its seams…
And yes, this was considering the fact that it was a tutorial area full of Husks ranging from level one to five. The traps and riddles weren't any more forgiving just because you were a little stronger…
And this could be clearly seen by the scampering little skeleton scuttling about without a care in the world. What was once a nail biting affair has been transformed into a dramatic film that left one on the edge of their seats…
There wasn't any horror in it at all! Not that Blendpunk Chthonim was specifically horror inspired, but still…
(Ah, what am I gonna do! He's in a section of Blendpunk Chthonim that hasn't even been released…there are no settlements or anything! And the Husks outside aren't a joke. The weakest sits at Tier 5!)
In Everything is Bury, levels weren't as cut and dry as one would think. They weren't everything, sure, but 'Tiers' tended to designate the rank of the 'existence' itself.
Anybody could gain enough experience to reach level ten. But upgrading the 'Tier' was a lot more difficult for some, making them do absurd things or gather special materials to increase the rank of existence, the 'Tier.' So Tier 1 LV 1 was akin to a level eleven that just underwent class promotion…
And the Husks out there went through five to eight of those…
—Who the fuck places a level zero in a mid-game area?? Are they just begging for the reapers to show up? Huh?
The system was frustrated as it whirred through other logs. Coming across a screen with the words "Reapers on Duty!" atop the panel, it scrolled down the long list of names.
They crossed their fingers upon seeing the active sign by specific names. Those reapers had nasty rumors, and it would seriously consider making complaints if those psychos messed with their baby—host's—bones.
Reapers had the job of retrieving the defunct bodies of the Participants upon "death" and revitalizing them after delivering them somewhere else.
The problem was that if the Participant didn't register their information in one of the various Books of the Dead found in residential areas, the reapers had the full right to dump the body anywhere at their discretion.
If the little skeleton lucked out and got a reaper that wasn't sentient to retrieve its body, it might be dropped off in an area more becoming of its level! Probably…
…There would be some issues since it was both an Inhabitant and Participant. Still, the system figured the ai reapers would be smart enough to determine which identity had higher priority.
Speaking of higher priority…
The little skeleton crawled through a small rectangular area meant for ventilation. But, as it neared the end of the passage, it sensed a formidable presence.
Its bones began to rattle and jostle about. This was fear; fear brought on by instinct. The figure far beneath its feet was not something it could contend with—it understood this on a very primal level.
Beneath the green bricks, there was a magnificent structure composed of spruce wood. It resembled an egg, yet it was open and accessible like a chandelier. A shrill whistle bounced against the far walls of the considerably sized room as a breeze passed through it.
Beneath even this structure was…a woman. She wore a dark robe with faint designs that seemed spiritual and elven in nature.
A cowl covered her head, yet there were gaps in it. A single wooden horn jutted out of it, laced with deep green gemstones that reflected the torch lamps that suffused a rainbow light into the room.
Most of her head could not be seen aside from the nose. She was facing three statues that seemed to silently want to rip the statues around to pieces, their garish and contorted faces all reading as somewhat similar.
There, the woman tilted up her face. What was revealed was the nasal area of a cow, all flesh cleft from the bone.
[Please note: Cursory information on the target is provided temporarily.]
[LV 05 Mortem Grade Maidmother Alha
The messages quickly came as the question marks over the Named Husk's head dissipated and updated with the new information.
The skeleton was too afraid to even wave away the strange screens. Instead, there was an apprehension that sunk deep into its bones—penetrating to even the marrow.
It had no desire—subconscious or otherwise—to fight that thing.
—You seem like you're in a tight spot, Mara.
The system presiding over the Redemption Point Service arrived within the system's observation void once again. Mara turned around in a huff, swiveling in the emptiness as if she was sitting on an office chair.
—What do you want, Loki.
—Just expressing kinship among my fellow disgraced god, you know? Besides, that kid has got his hands on something interesting.
—…So you respect him, then?
—What?
—You acknowledged his gender.
…
A long silence ensued as the two silhouettes stared at each other. Then, eyes fiercely locked onto another, a silent test of will occurred between the two systems…
On the other hand, the skeleton was struggling to escape. Several panel prompts appeared before its empty sockets as it beat against a bronze wall composed out of numerous hexagons.
[Because this is a dungeon, you cannot escape after encountering the BOSS creature without the use of an item.]
Since it couldn't read these words, it kept bashing its bones against the translucent surface with nothing to show for it.
That wasn't entirely true. What it had to show for itself was a large amount of noise…
Noise so loud that not even a maxed out LV 10 'Stealth' could conceal it under any circumstances.
Alha looked up and spotted the bony foot of the skeleton that remained undesignated.
Forest green energy surged and coalesced in the palm of her hand. With a stomp, she bent backward, drawing her arm back before…
Bang!
Lurching her entire frame forwards, she lobbed a fireball that soon took the shape of a spruce tree.
The weak dark green bricks crumbled almost eagerly, even deeper shaded flames with the smell of spring pervading the thin oxygen funneling in the boss room.
The skeleton turned around and visibly shuddered as it bolted upright, banging its head on the remnants of the vented ceiling.
It was then that their gaze connected, two orbs of flickering verdant light within one bony head, empty sockets in the other.