January 15th, 2022
***
"Quinn!" Richter yelled, snapping him back to reality.
The dissipating crowd and crunchy footsteps drew his attention.
He took in the quiet forest and dissipating crowd; his team was no exception. Their backs were among the herd heading to town. The crunch of their footsteps made him grimace – they had been so reliable till now...
A sigh escaped his mouth.
"What do you want?"
Richter's expression mechanically softened as he approached the bloodied portal.
"Look, It's a real shame what happened to your partner, I feel for ya. Truly."
His pleasant words did little to hide his excitement-
"But I'd appreciate some info since I'm about to head inside."
Quinn took a deep breath and clenched his jaw – the man hadn't changed a bit.
His voice fell a few octaves.
"Jacob wasn't my partner." He raised a viscous blue vial to his lips. "He was just an extra we picked up for scouting."
Quinn flicked the bottle into a thick tree, admiring how it shattered.
He wandered over to Jacob's body and frisked him for belongings. His hands slid across a couple of intact Mana Potions.
Richter chuckled softly, "It doesn't make a difference. Just tell me what's inside."
Quinn paused, glancing around the area – desperate for someone else to step forward.
No one did.
Richter was likely the only one who'd attempt the dungeon right now. He gnashed his teeth and passed a potion to his former rival.
"Fine," he growled.
"The dungeon is a large, flat plateau covered in fog. You can't see past ten meters at best, so you'll end up lost in no time. Landmarks are nonexistent and you won't find much regardless, since my team already cleared the monsters."
Richter raised an eyebrow, "They don't respawn since you failed?"
"Of course not. You don't even know that?"
Richter opened his mouth but didn't respond. He scratched his head in silence.
Quinn was feeling worse about the odds. He'll warn the town about a dungeon break just in case.
He rose to his feet and set off for town, turning back one last time.
"Also, there used to be seven of us." A pristine necklace appeared in his right hand. "Look out for a patch of flowers.
His expression turned somber.
"There's a field covered in roses and dandelions. We didn't think much of it – having walked through that field several times. But near the end, Kai left to take a piss, and he didn't come back. We searched and yelled until we found his body face down near the edge of the field. It was wrinkled and pruned – like something had stuck a straw in and sucked him dry.
Quinn's face paled slightly at the thought. The necklace disappeared back into his pocket.
"Whatever the reason, it's probably why we failed to clear the dungeon."
"You don't have a clue what caused it?"
He shook his head. "We didn't inspect his body too thoroughly since no one wanted to stick around.
Quinn fell silent, lost in thought. He twisted back toward the trail.
"So yeah, watch out for the roses and dandelions. I couldn't tell you where they are, but you'll find your way to them regardless. It's a big field; you can't miss it."
The man tread forward on the path, fading into the distance.
Richter was on his own now, armed with new knowledge. He walked up to the dungeon interface.
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[TIER 1 DUNGEON]
[Recommended Level: 12 - 15]
[Monsters: Slicers]
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Now that he thought about it, Quinn never told him about the monsters they encountered. As long as they aren't tougher than the Troll, it shouldn't matter.
He pressed 'enter' and embraced the swirling portal.
Meanwhile, high in the sky, a fight was unfolding. Several individuals teamed up against a pair of two, combining their might to overcome the strength difference. Slowly, through tactics and attrition, the pair of men lost ground.
They forfeited limbs and items, chugging through potions to stay afloat. The monetary loss was huge, and it wasn't sustainable for much longer. Still, the two had their reasons.
[Mana Body – 30%]
A dense layer of mana spread out over Drek's body, acting as a second skin. He staggered from impact when an icy arrow drilled into his stomach. Stel appeared in his peripheral vision, also bruised and bleeding.
'Hold on just a little longer Stel...'
Drek resorted to basic bandages and alcohol for his injury. The icy feeling was taking hold, numbing parts of the body. Time was running out.
He sent a strand of mana into his head-
[Sense Life – 20%]
The pulse spread wide, drawing confusion from their enemies. What was the point? Did they have reinforcements coming?
He'd never answer. That last scan gave him the good news. His face broke out into a grin – it was time.
"Stel! Let's go!" he yelled.
The two stashed their weapons and made a break for the ground.
"After them!"
They crashed, sinking several inches into the dirt. Their constitutions disregarded any physical implications. The pair pulled themselves out and boosted into the portal.
Their foes floated down moments later, inspecting the entrance. They knew they couldn't enter, less they wanted their reputations ruined. Besides, the entrance would close soon anyway.
So the four men and two women climbed trees to rest in. Situated comfortably, the six relaxed, talking softly about how they'd split the reward. There was no reason to panic, after all.
Because the exit couldn't appear outside of their detection range. The two would come out eventually, fated to be captured or killed. And when they do...
The cloaked figures smiled.
They'll be rich.
***
Richter's sense was partially useless inside. The fog didn't hamper it, there just wasn't much to find. Grass was the same everywhere he went. He spun around, trying to make out one direction from another. It was a nightmare.
Lots of walking later, he picked up his first aura. The creature charged straight at him, entering his sight. It possessed a metallic figure, made from blocky chunks of metal. The arms of the beast reflected a stark contrast compared to the sturdy frame and legs. Namely, that they barely reflected at all.
'Guess they didn't kill everything after all,' he thought.
The aptly named 'Slicer' had two arms made so thin they disappeared when viewed at the right angle.
The Slicer closed the distance quickly. Richter raised his blade and relied on instinct to deflect it.
Sparks flew as his sword stopped the invisible edge. The strain on his shoulder was immense, but not unbearable. The Slicer sneered and sent another hidden slash with its other arm, aiming to cut him in half. He disengaged, stepping just far enough back to be out of range. The Slicer's momentum caused it to stumble, leaving it wide open.
[Mana Surge - 7%]
CLANG!
The burst of dense energy propelled Richter's blade forward, striking against the Slicer's chest with a resounding sound. The impact traveled back through his wrist, forcing him to drop the blade before he lost feeling in his hand.
"You're going to regret making me drop my sword."
Richter's teachings covered hand-to-hand combat as well. While his disciples weren't happy about the difficulty of learning a martial art and a sword art at the same time - they'd be thankful in times like these.
[Harden - 50%]
His grey fists raised into a stance with his feet shoulder-width apart. The amount of mana made his hands almost entirely stone-like. Richter could feel the strain on his muscles of holding up such weight.
[Mana Surge - 5%]
His fist shot out, colliding with a thrust from one of the Slicer's arms.
It expected to skewer him. It couldn't have been more wrong.
The Slicer's blade arm snapped and shattered upon impact, letting loose a scream of pain. Richter pressed the advantage and used a flurry of punches, putting dents up and down the torso of the metal creature. Its screams turned to pitiful whimpers before one final punch silenced it forever. Richter retracted his fist from the mushy skull of the creature.
'Should just use Sunder in the future.'
['Slicer Level 15' killed. 10% XP awarded]
Richter downed a quick Mana Potion to refill before continuing his search.
***
He encountered a few more Slicers along the way and dealt with them swiftly.
[Sunder - 10%]
Spun into existence for the express purpose of destruction-
[Mana Surge - 20%]
The ball of death impacted the cranium of the closest one, turning it into scrap. Bits of the bladed arms knocked the other two off balance.
[Chain Cast: Sunder 10% --> Sunder 10%]
For the first time ever, Richter summoned two Sunder orbs at once. He felt a slight increase in strain on his psyche, but the effect was negligible. Both Slicers had a growing sense of unease as they stared at the black balls.
[Mana Surge - 30%]
Richter flexed his coordination by hitting both with one strike. The flat side of the blade propelled them accurately into the two remaining Slicers at blinding speed, blowing them to pieces; Their torsos raining down from the sky in tatters.
['Slicer Level 15' killed. 10% XP awarded]
['Slicer Level 14' killed. 5% XP awarded]
[Level up! You have reached level 18. Attribute points awarded.]
['Slicer Level 14' killed. 0% XP awarded]
'Damn.'
Richter clicked his tongue at the last notification. Just a mere four-level difference and he wouldn't get any XP?
'That blows,' he sighed aloud.
Richter tucked his sword in its sheath and continued on. And on...and on... Finding nothing. It felt like hours but he had no way to track time inside the dungeon. He didn't encounter any more creatures. Finally, he arrived at the field Quinn mentioned.
His senses went on high alert as he scoured the dandelions and Roses for danger. No creepy creature hiding that he could detect. The flowers themselves were normal too. He penetrated deep underground and still turned up empty. And right as he finished scanning, a blue portal appeared nearby.
The fog started to clear slightly, almost as if trying to highlight and guide him to the portal. It looked identical to a standard exit portal, but Richter felt uneasy as he got closer. When trying to scan exit portals before, they felt empty and cold, like a construct of the world. But this one was warm and inviting.
If this is what appeared before Quinn's group, then Richter knew it was safe to go through. But something made him back away. Step by step, away from the portal.
Right into the center of the field.
'!'
The ground shook uncontrollably around him, causing instability in his footing. Massive vines erupted like tendrils, squirming and writhing in mass around him. Richter grimaced as his Sense finally found the root of the problem. A massive aura was tunneling up toward the surface. It had likely been so deep he couldn't detect it earlier.
But it could detect him.
The bulk of the creature exploded out with a screech of rage and hunger. Having got a good look at it, Richter wished he hadn't. It was a plant-like creation composed of countless vines varying in size and texture. Some had spikes and were dark green, others more of a cherry red covered in a slimy substance. All of these vines led back to a torso with two bulky arms and a frightening head. Two yellow irises dilated when looking at Richter, sizing him up as nothing more than food. The mouth of the creature was a giant, gaping maw, lined with hundreds of stained teeth that rotated at high speeds. If he ended up in its mouth, he'd be shredded in an instant.
Richter shuddered, gripping his sword with a grimace. It was even stronger than the Troll earlier, and Richter only had so much mana. He needed to test the waters.
[Chain Cast: Sunder - 10% --> Mana Surge - 20%]
Richer pushed his mana as fast as he could, flicking the dark orb directly into the creature's maw.
It barely registered the small ball, ignoring it completely as it started moving forward. The resulting explosion blasted a moderate hole in its face, tearing apart green flesh and splattering green blood. The fluid landed and sizzled, corroding the ground like an acid.
'Great, so I guess I have to avoid the blood too.'
The creature screeched in anger, entering a frenzy and charging toward him. The injury it sustained was healing slowly, much to Richter's relief. If it had regen like the Troll this was a done deal in his mind. He tried creating distance, opting for a ranged approach, but he was about to learn what made it so dangerous.
The creature mobilized every vine at its disposal to attack him, all the while approaching him with its main body. Richter felt the world slow around him as his Sense counted every vine flying toward him. His mind went into overdrive, his instincts screaming as he took up a defensive stance.
His eyes turned dark blue-
[Mana Surge - 60%]
-and his body lit up.
Only two people would ever witness this scene, and the visual would imprint itself on their minds. The technique, the ability, the unwavering assault. Drek and Stel were watching from high up above the fog. They had no idea such a Mutant was in the dungeon, and they watched with wide eyes.
The man down below worked with ruthless efficiency. Richter used his arm like a whip, taking advantage of physics to accelerate the tip of the blade to a speed beyond what a standard fledging would be capable of. His blade sizzled with the green blood as he cut down every vine that entered arms-length. Sometimes the blade would switch directions, curving back and cutting a vine a second time. Drek and Stel couldn't really process it all, and even at their current level, they didn't think they could replicate his results as perfectly.
Sometimes the blood would land on Richter's skin, corroding and burning through his top layers. Blood started leaking splotches across his legs and chest, slightly impeding his form but he kept up as best as he could. The creature got closer and closer as the number of vines was being reduced.
[Mana Surge - 10%]
He used his remaining strength to jump backward, taking advantage of a brief respite. Richter chugged a health and mana potion, grinning up at the creature. He was too caught up to realize that his bloodlust was leaking out.
Drek and Stel glanced at each other.
"By the gods, I think he actually intends to kill it." Stel shuddered slightly as he watched.
"And if we don't step in he might succeed." Drek let out a low whistle. "I can see why the family wants him."
"Shouldn't we jump in? That's a Mutant Vikten Queen, right? This is a good chance to introduce ourselves." Stel stared at the side of Drek's face for several seconds.
"Drek...?"
He snapped out of his stupor. "Yeah yeah, sorry. Just got caught up. Let's move."
Richter was in the middle of launching another Sunder orb when a blistering aura crashed into the side of the Vikten Queen, knocking it flat into the ground. The sheer force of impact created a giant crater and rendered it unconscious. Richter flicked his sense over the new arrival and furrowed his eyebrows, remaining on guard.
"It's you."
Drek rose from the crater and stared back at Richter with a friendly smile. Stel floated down next to him.
[Crystallize - 50%]
The massive Vikten shrunk down, turning white and assuming the form of a small figurine. Richter's curiosity peaked higher when Stel threw the figurine into a tear in space for storage.
Drek stepped closer and raised his hands in a non-threatening gesture.
"I've got a proposition for ya', " Drek grinned.
***