Back inside the dungeon, this is something no ordinary adventurer could do. No, this is something no one can do at all because of the dungeon cooldown period. Entering the dungeon again means I could go back over and over again in this dungeon.
While my head was filled with thoughts and ideas on how I would use my newly awakened skill to my advantage, I sensed another earthquake. Another phenomenon, or probably a monster of the caliber of an earth dragon, just appeared. In my understanding, Knights of Judah was one of the top guilds, and bumping into one of them in this dungeon is weird. Absolutely weird since this dungeon is for lower-level adventurers.
If hot shots are here, then something must be happening, and my instinct was telling me that I should just leave for now. This is something I will never do until I fill my inventory with spoils. But now that I can re-enter the dungeon as much as I want, I don't need to worry about that. I'll just go home for today and think about the leveling strategy for tomorrow.
♦♦♦♦♦
The next day, inside the dungeon, I go straight to my usual hunting ground and hunt down monsters at the same level or near level as me as much as possible. Grinding for level is the most boring thing to do, but it's a necessary step for my growth. I'm in no place to complain. The monsters, after being defeated, turn into black smoke and drop magic crystals that I could sell in the guild later.
Magic crystals are diamond-shaped violet-colored items that contain dense energy. The energy contained in magic crystals becomes the primal source of energy. It's more efficient and less dangerous than coal mining and nuclear power plants. Magic crystals are always in demand. Since they are in all-time demand, people might think that they fetch a lot of money. That's not really the case. There are many adventurers and solo nameless adventurers like me. In other words, there are lots of competitors. Some guilds or shops buy magic crystals at their own rates.
Since there are lots of poor desperate adventurers like me, they're easy prey and easily taken advantage of by those greedy individuals. Magic crystal prices depend on the type of crystals. The stronger or higher the level of the monsters an adventurer kills, the higher the grade of the crystal.
After one hundred years since the dungeons appeared, there is no report of a shortage of monsters. Monsters spawn around like in video games without end. There are still many mysteries yet to be solved about the dungeons. I am interested in understanding why the dungeons exist in the first place. But right now, that is not my priority. My main goal is to climb the ladder of society and have a decent amount of money in my pocket.
I catch my breath and sit down on the ground to rest. I light up an essence that repels monsters around me. It's a common adventurer item called Lavender scents. The smoke it releases repulses any monsters. This item was said to be effective against monsters in lower levels. All dungeons have camping zones, but no one really knows why they exist. Camping zones are small caves with small campfires that seem to never die, scattered around the dungeon. I don't see one right now, and I'm too exhausted to search, so I'm using the essence instead.
Anyway, I'm gaining lots of experience, and I'm leveling up more rapidly than I expected. Right now, I am at level 37. Since this is my hunting ground from when I was still at level 20, the monsters now feel weak. One or two slashes are enough to kill any of them. The experience points I'm earning are getting lower and lower too.
Obviously, I would have to change location. I already considered the plan, but first, I want to collect more magic crystals and get some money to upgrade my equipment. It's been a while since I upgraded my sword. It's still sharp because I tune it up every night, but its attack power is not good enough if I want to go deeper into the lower part of the dungeon.
After resting and checking my status, I get up and continue my hunt.
"I won't stop until I reach level 40… I won't stop until I get lots of magic crystals to buy a new sword and armor."
With that motivation in my mind, I charge towards a swarm of goblin monsters.
♦♦♦♦♦
It took me a lot of time to fight this one monster, but now it's done. I charge up my sword with MP, turning it glowing with a blue hue. Its HP is in the red, and one direct hit will surely kill it.
"You're done! Crescent moon!"
One wide slash cuts down a giant bug monster in two. Its flesh drops to the ground before it disappears in black smoke, dropping a few magic crystals. I hurriedly check.
"This sucks."
I am disappointed because the drop is not that great at all. I almost forgot about this part. Drops are more about luck, not about killing high-level monsters. The giant wasp bug I just killed was one of the sub-bosses of the dungeon. Magic crystals are not the only thing monsters drop after they're killed. Gold coins or silver coins appear too, and in rare moments, items, accessories, and weapons.
I played lots of fantasy role-playing games when I was still a kid, so the idea is not foreign at all. Still, this is so irritating.
The giant wasp was level 50, and it gave me a hard time defeating it.
"Just three silver coins and low-grade magic crystals. Fighting that monster sure burned a lot of my energy. Its agility was admirable, and it was flying. There were plenty of times I couldn't reach the giant wasp. At the end of the hard, irritating battle, I'm only getting these shitty drops."
I take a deep breath and put the magic stone in the small pouch on my side.
No matter how much I think about it, there is nothing I can do about it. All I can do is get up and fight. As for right now, I can't go to my usual hunting ground because other adventurers are currently taking down every monster they encounter there. If I appear and join them, I bet they'll chase me out, saying that this is their turf. Solo players are always easy prey. There is plenty of news about solo adventurers getting killed in the dungeon. Most of them are by monsters, but adventurers killing other adventurers is not rare at all.
As much as possible, I'll avoid those kinds of circumstances. I have been adventuring for a year now, and I have gained experience in how to avoid and deal with different kinds of danger in the dungeon. It includes that one.
"Status open."
…
Name: Rin
Level: 60
SP: 0
MP: 220/220
Skill: Teleport level 10, Body reinforcement level 10, Elemental magic level 10, Appraisal level 10, Boost level 10, Sword skill mastery level 8, Poison resistance level 6, Sturdy body level 4, Magic resistance level 5, Stealth level 6, Advance sword mastery level 9, Mana recovery level 9, Health recovery level 10, Switch level 8.
Unique skill: Dungeon transport
Sword skill tree: Crescent slash level 10, Cutter level 10, Cross slash level 8, Blade of judgment level 7
…
I just learned the "Appraisal skill" recently. As the websites said, this is the most useful skill an adventurer could have. The appraisal skill will show the strength and level of the monsters. My appraisal skill is not at the level where I could see monsters' skill set, but it's useful for what it currently is.
Boost skill, meanwhile, allows an adventurer to gain speed for a few seconds. Sword skill mastery, meanwhile, allows me to gain access to sword skills. It's not much right now, but I am steadily enjoying sword skills. I'll invest my SP in sword skills. Based on my research, there are plenty of sword skills that I might unlock, and it's possible that I might unlock a special skill.
Dungeon diving has never been so exciting. Before, I merely dived down into dungeons to get some loot and earn some money. I do have a dream of gaining wealth by adventuring, but from my state before, I thought it would take me many years before I'm able to level up myself to 100. Just two days after gaining my unique skill, I was able to reach level 60, double my previous level.
Keeping up this pace, I'll reach level 100 and dive down into powerful dungeons. I heard that power dungeons have high drops of items and magic stones.
"I guess being a millionaire is not impossible right now."
Anyways, I should be careful on diving. I always make sure that no one is around when I use my skill. I don't like people knowing about my skill right now. It's better to keep this skill a secret.
To avoid more suspicion or nasty rumors, I will only trade my magic stone once every week. There are plenty of guilds and shops around the country, solving that problem. I think I'll end up traveling around the country just to sell my magic stone.
♦♦♦♦♦
Two weeks have already passed. Because of my unique skill that could break through the dungeon's invisible wall, I'm able to earn thousands of money and level up more rapidly.
Name: Rin
Level: 133
SP: 0
MP: 1520/1520
Skill: Teleport level 10, Body reinforcement level 10, Elemental magic level 10, Appraisal level 10, Boost level 10, Sword skill mastery level 8, Poison resistance level 6, Sturdy body level 4, Magic resistance level 5, Stealth level 6, Advance sword mastery level 9, Mana recovery level 9, Health recovery level 10, Switch level 8.
Unique skill: Dungeon transport
Sword skill tree: Crescent slash level 10, Cutter level 10, Cross slash level 8, Blade of judgment level 7
…
Unfortunately, I'm not able to get the special skill that I wish to have. Special skills and unique skills are not something an adventurer could learn by pressing a button, after all.
Special skills can be obtained when adventurers meet the requirements and are capable of using the special skill. Meanwhile, unique skills are learned when the adventurer manages to evolve their original skill. For me, it's a teleport skill. Unique skills are easier to obtain than special skills. I was mostly ridiculed for having this skill at level one. My teleport skill only allowed me to teleport one meter, and I could only use it three times. It was so useless up until level 5. I still remember that leveling was so hard. It took me three months to reach level 5.
Experience can only be obtained in dungeons by defeating monsters. That means one should be brave enough to step inside the dungeon before they're able to level up. Not many people wanted to become adventurers. Being an adventurer is not everything in this world. But it's obvious that ever since dungeons appeared, fiction started to become reality.
My skills and level are not the only ones that improve. My equipment also improved. I have my new sword and a new set of armor. It's lightweight and very easy to move with. Plus, my savings have started to become stable too. I'm not worried about paying my next rent right now.
Now I can just focus on leveling up and dungeon diving. Currently, I'm still in the Black Forest, making sure that I'm able to traverse every corner of the dungeon. In my current level, the monsters appearing before my eyes are all dying with just one shot.
After walking for a while, I reached a clearing without trees and a huge passage that seems to be descending down endlessly. It's so dark and creepy. I'm confident in my current self now, but what gives. Simply staring at this huge black hole makes my spine chill.
Staring at it, I saw a glimpse of giant red eyes. Immediately, my appraisal was activated.
Red demon dragon level 9,000
I gulped my saliva, and my body froze. Fear raced upon my spine just by having a second of a glimpse of it.
What the hell is that monster doing in this dungeon? Black Forest is supposed to be a D-rank dungeon, right?
"?!"
In the next instant, my body is flying high above in a long, long distance. I fall down and break branches before dropping down into muddy water. I think I have a few broken ribs in the process.
When I get up, I'm nowhere near the giant hole earlier. In addition, my whole body is tingling. I feel like my stomach is turning. Blood gushes out from my nose, and I cough.
My eyes are blurring out, and my head is spinning. Am I dying?
"Mister… Mister… Hold on… Mister…" I hear an unfamiliar voice in the distance. I turn my head to her as she rushes to my rescue.
A girl who seems to be very young. She looks so worried. Her face looks very familiar.
"This is a Curse…" She takes out a book from the giant backpack on her back. "Where is that page? Here!"
She gently presses her hands on my chest and chants the spell from her book. "God of Grace, give me a drop of your mercy. Save him from the curse of evil."
"I'm happy to see you again before I die… Luna…" I mumble.
"What are you saying?! No one is dying here! Relax and stay still… You'll be fine in minutes."
While watching her, I feel an immense warmth that I've never felt before. After that, my consciousness drifts away.