Why would the System suggest Syringa Fang? What kind of unlucky scenario occurred that Ruby Blade's Workshop Commander needed such a boost of power? Tara immediately contacts Pakeeja who lives near Syringa Fang, or Nasrin as she's called in the natural world.
Nasrin is Pakeeja's elder cousin with 3 more years experience playing virtuality at 18 years old. She also grew up practicing her skills in simulations before playing Dragon Cross. Who else would be the best choice to lead one of the Workshops than someone reared to do so?
Going back a bit into the Adventure server, Syringa and her team along with Lilac Alexandrite and Livid Tourmaline had just fallen into a Trial Dungeon.
[Congratulations! You have found the very first Trial Dungeon!
Bestowing Dungeon Delver Title
Gifting High Potion x2 | Antidotes (Mid) x2 | Ability Pill (Low) x1
Awarding 300 Imperial Reputation | 100 Continental Reputation | 10 Global Reputation!]
Syringa snickers to herself as everyone present receives the notification. Gladiolus will be incensed at the news. Syringa pulls up her Title list currently:
[Aberrant Eradicator]
Energy Usage: -5% (1/10)
All Energy Resistance: + 10%
Debuff Chance + Success Rate: 5%
[Defender of the Banished Gate]
Physical + Magical Defense: + 20%
Physical Control + Essence Control: + 10%
[Dungeon Delver]
Coin Drop: + 5%
Experience: + 1.5%
Physical + Magical Damage: +10% (Dungeon Only)
[One Person Army]
Attack: +100
Defense: +100
Health Points: +100
[Sacred Beast Slayer | Lower Elements]
Lower Elements Resistance: +10%
Resistance When Matching Element: Additional + 20%
Resonance Per Sacred Beast Slain: + 4% (up to 16% total)
Lower Element Debuff Chance (Sear, Damp, Drwy, Tremor): +10
Defender of the Banished Gate and Sacred Beast Slayer had both activated as Ruby Blade had set up their escape. These plus Aberrant Eradicator, meant the members of the Crossover team had anywhere from a 20% to 30% increase in their Lower Elemental Resistance. Adding in the 10% Essence Control and 16% Essence Resonance, which only bolstered their Twin Sphere buffs, very few players and Common Mobs could actually deal heavy damage to them.
Hammerhead, Kitty, and Straw got the benefit of a 15% increase of causing the debuffs Stone's Tremor, Water's Dampen, and Fire's Sear. Everyone else's affinities are with the Upper Elements of Lightning, Metal, Light, or Dark.
[One Person Army] is one that Syringa and Gladiolus both received after defeating a hundred players in a single setting. They had decided to keep it a secret between them and started a friendly competition to see who could gather the most Titles. Now Syringa and her team could test out the Titles combined effects in earnest having found the Missing Cloud Forest's Trial Dungeon. Alexandrite really is lucky.
"Can you get up off of me please?" Syringa asks from underneath the Witch. Alexandrite harrumphs, shifting her weight from atop of Syringa's back. Alexandrite helps her up as Syringa begins to survey the environment. The tunnel they find themselves in has a worn rocky path with smooth metallic gray walls that pulse a bright green energy.
"Oh! Check out the last time we were gifted!" Storm Kitty says excitedly. Everyone immediately pulls up the Ability Enhancement Pill:
[Increase 1 Stat By 20 Points or 2 Stats by 10 Points for 10 Minutes]
Adding 20 points is equivalent to gaining a blanket 20 plus levels, not taking into account the various bonuses. Syringa, for instance, receives 50 Health Points for every point of Vitality.
If she adds one point from 1 until her current level of 18, she's at 900 total. With the extra 20 she'd have close to 3000 without any boosts!
Though everyone looks ecstatic to use the power of the pill, Livid Tourmaline frowns deeply. He had been traveling with his sister for two months now. In that time Livid has gained a lot of experience in fighting, interacting with NPCs, and paying attention to his surroundings. One thing he learned in particular was that his sister's good luck always came with dangerous risks.
[Triggered Hidden Quest: The Lost Engineer!]
[Triggered Rare Academy Quest: Once In A Generation Genius]
Livid sighs as the System reads his mind. Storm Kitty checks her inventory as Straw Monkey begins to stretch. It has been some time since they did a Rare Quest, with this being their third one.
"If it's a Hidden Quest and a Rare one, we'll be here for a while." Syringa Fang notes, pulling up the messaging interface. She immediately finds that besides the party chat, her communication is locked. Only once the Dungeon is cleared can they interact with the outside world unless they logout! Syringa clicks her tongue at the message. Guess they can only move forward.
The rumble of feet and rasping snarls suddenly echoes from the depths of the tunnel. Against the pulsating green, bulky and bloated decaying bodies coke crashing towards them. These are a type of undead known as Ghouls! Livid stumbles backwards, as he's closest to them and can see their name and level:
[Ghoul | Common | Level 20| Greater]
Despite his Equipment, Livid knows he's not skilled to fend them off, let alone defeat them. He hesitates as two Ghouls are now upon him, before a flash of icy blue and electric purple encircles the monsters. A close look reveals a lynx and a bat attacking their respective threats.
Livid looks over his shoulder at the two Summoners, but outside of giving orders, they aren't actively wielding their Staves. They aren't like the summons he's seen in the Arena, he realizes, as he turns his attention back in front of him.
A spell called Healing Light envelopes them from Hammerhead. Summons can't receive healing or buffs!
Livid is shocked again as the spell's effect covers the Ghouls. Instead, however, of healing them a value of 100 Stone damage appears in the form of fang like thorns. This is thanks to the passive ability of Hammerhead's Thorn Gator Bookmark, Healer's Fang, which attacked enemies while it healed allies.
The team would later learn that this Stone damage, though small against a monster who's Health Points are 3000, had been pretty significant. The varying types of Undead all had their own elemental affinities. Ghouls being Stone carried extra resistance against Stone Arts and Crafts. Thanks to the Silver Grade Gerranium's Calm with a 10% performance boost, Healer's Fang let him deal this much.
Coupled with Dungeon Delver's extra Experience and the Ghouls being Greater Monsters, everyone received ample boosts. Alexandrite and Livid broke into level 16. 70 Gold, ten for each monster, drops along with a single wooden chest with a white lining. This is a Common Chest! Equipment grades are equal to Player tiers, while Chests follow Monster tiers.
Alexandrite approaches the Chest, the color of the lining shifting to Obsidian black just from her proximity thanks to Devil's Surety. Then she pauses before giving Syringa a mischievous smile and pulling out a familiar crystal.
"I got this from my first Party Dungeon with Sage and Rosemary. Since you've been so gracious to let me borrow a Silver Grade item, I figured I'd learn what exactly an Upgrade Crystal can do!"
She taps the item against her wrist, an omni-colored lock materializing before her eyes only as the crystal vanishes into the keyhole. As the satisfying click meets her ears no visible change has occurred to Demon's Surety.
Alexandrite checks the new stats and lets out a peal of laughter. Syringa lightly grabs her wrist, pulling up her helmet's face. Hazel meets oak for a moment before a new window appears before the group.
[Sinister Touch | 1/5]
Treasure Chests have a chance of becoming one Grade higher, up to Royal.
Everyone grins wildly as they turn their attention to the Chest. Only Common Chests had been acquired from the various organizations, Ruby and Lapis included. Common Chests gave Obsidian Equipment or Materials. So a Royal Chest meant Gold Equipment or Materials!
Alexandrite touches the Chest, the wooden casing now a metallic gray with a copper brown lining of a Thane Grade. For being the first to open one, she earns the Title [Treasured Hunter]. Her already impressive Luck, Fortune, and Chance increase by five points. Alexandrite pulls out a Bronze Equipment and two Silver Materials.
[Engineer's Left Monocle | Bronze Grade]
Can Examine An Item's Material Composition And Crafting Design. Evolable.
Crafting Time: -5%
Completion Rate: + 10%
[Energy Orb | Silver Grade]
A pulsating power source full of Energy
[Stone Ghoul's Right Hand | Silver Grade]
As rough and tough as Stone. Can be used to forge armor or weapons.
Of the drops from the Mobs, they had gotten the Bronze Grade [Stone Ghoul's Left Hand]. The prospect of getting both tools excites Ruby Blade's members.
"Alright, all the loot has been collected! Let's see what else is in store. Livid, come over here." Syringa Fang beckons the young teen to the front as they form a marching order. She and Livid to the front with Avenue as the midway fighter. Opal, Kitty, Hammerhead and Alexandrite cluster together, the Summoners` Familiars covering the Witch and Mage's unguarded side while Straw brings up the rear incase of any surprises.
"Now, you seemed a little hesitant back there so I'm going to give you a few pointers, that way you can better protect your sister in the field." Syringa tells Livid before adjusting how he holds his ax.
As the group walks further in the glowing tunnel, Syringa instructs him through some foundational attack patterns and stances. To his surprise he picks the moves up rather easily, displaying an entirely different persona when they cross more Undead. Syringa smiles since her previous Super Guild's method could only be used by natural talents!