As I trailed behind them, I was overwhelmed with how little I knew about this world. "Do dungeons really exist here?" I questioned to myself.
I moved quickly and silently, making sure not to alert anyone to my presence by avoiding anything that might make a noise.
*SWISH* *SWISH*
My footwork was impeccable, having honed the skill of moving in silence due to the necessity of staying out of sight and avoiding detection by large groups or certain individuals back in my old world.
I was moving stealthily between trees, keeping a safe distance behind them as they went in a straight line.
I was careful not to step on any twigs in the forest, knowing that the sound of cracking wood would alert my quarry of my presence. I had been following them for a few minutes, my eyes darting around the forest canopy, my ears listening for any unusual sounds.
A sudden halt in movement caused the atmosphere to be filled with a quiet pause, until Shoto shouted out "We're here!"
I cautiously peered out from behind the tree so that I could get a glimpse of what was ahead.
I was taken aback, asking myself in amazement, "Is this really true?" Infront of me was large dungeon.
The outside of the dungeon was made of ancient stone bricks, weathered by time and the elements. The entrance was a large wooden door, with a thick metal lock that seemed impenetrable. Above the door was a stone arch that had intricate designs carved into it.
The walls of the dungeon were lined with torches, which had a flickering light that cast an eerie glow on the structure. The dungeon seemed to stretch out endlessly, with no end in sight.
The air was thick with the smell of dust and decay, and a chill could be felt emanating from within.
Mileanna glanced over the dungeon, sensing the sinister atmosphere. "Are you sure this is safe, Shoto?" she asked, her voice quavering.
Shoto glanced back at Hiryo, then quickly gave a wink to Mileanna, following it with an assurance, "Yes, it's completely safe!"
My eyes stayed fixed on him as he obviously planned to carried out some kind of wicked betrayal. "He is trying to deceive the elf," I murmured to myself.
Shoto gave a sarcastic smirk and said, "Anyway, with Hiryo here, we should be all set!" His words were laced with sarcasm as he gave a menacing smile, "Am I right, Hiryo?"
Hiryo, who was still unaware of the circumstances, had an expression of delight. "Of course! We have been friends since we were little. We always look out for one another," he declared.
My head was filled with a mix of disbelief and curiosity as to what the repercussions of this would be.
Kuo ambled toward the dungeon, with his hands in his pockets and an unbothered expression on his face.
He slightly tilted his head as he approached the dungeon's entrance and shouted, "Come on, you slugs! Move it!" His sharp teeth were visible as he yelled.
Shoto heaved a deep breath, then headed toward the entrance, with the other two followed behind.
They arrived at the door and noticed the lock was made of an unusual metal. Everyone stared at each other, perplexed as to what to do next.
((NOTE: It is not simple to open a dungeon door unless you have the key to unlock it or use another method to break it down.))
Kuo took his hands out of his pockets and shouted, "Weaklings, let me demonstrate what real strenght looks like!"
Kuo's hand abruptly sprouted strange claws coming out of his fingernails as he jerked his wrist back.
*SWING*
Kuo attempted to break open the lock with a forceful swing of his might, putting all his energy into the effort.
*RZZTT*
A grating sound echoed in the air as his claws brushed against the lock, his sharp claws scratching the metal surface with an unpleasant noise.
As his hand became fatigued from attempting to open the lock, he shifted his position and retracted his claws back into their normal form. "It didn't work?!" he shouted in frustration.
The entire group burst into uproarious laughter. Even Shoto was in tears from laughing so hard. In a mocking tone, he said, "Hahaha, 'Let me show you what true power looks like!' he said".
Kuo's face went red with embarrassment as he crossed his arms and averted his gaze, "What a bunch of jerks!" He grumbled in annoyance.
They gradually regained their composure and were even breathing heavily due to all the laughter.
Shoto looked at the lock with frustration, saying, "We're right back where we started. This lock is so strong that even Kuo's Intermediate Tier 'Beast' Class raw physical strenght can't break it."
Mileanna walked up to the door, feeling like it was impenetrable. She declared confidently, "Let me have a go!" and put her hand on it.
She fixed her gaze on the door and started focusing. The air around her became increasingly cold and chilly.
Her eyes shone brightly for a moment as a considerable amount of magical energy was felt emanating from her. She placed her harder on the door and began to concentrate the mana into her palm, readying herself to cast a spell.
*SHOOM*
In an unexpected instant, pieces of ice began to appear on the door. They were oddly shaped, including some that were pointed and others that were more rounded. The white ice spread across the door until it was completely encased.
The entire door was now covered in a thick layer of ice. It glittered in the moonlight, like a thousand tiny stars had been scattered across its surface. The ice was beautiful but also unnerving, and it seemed to be growing thicker by the minute
Hiryo could hardly believe what he had just witnessed, exclaiming to Mileanna, "That was amazing!"
He signaled his approval to Mileanna by saying, "You have obviously been putting a lot of effort into honing your mana control abilities."
Kuo glared at her with jealousy and kept his arms folded. "Dam ice mages and their stupid tricks!" he muttered in annoyance, sending a pebble flying with a kick out of his frustration.
I was still secretly observing from behind the tree, and I was intrigued by this peculiar group of people.
"So she is a mage who specializes in ice magic."
Mileanna took a slight step back, appearing to be sure of her abilities that she had just demonstrated.
She tapped Shoto on his stomach and motioned to his sword. "Go ahead and give it a swing."
Shoto nodded and drew his sword from its sheath, readying himself for attack. He then heaved the blade through the air with great force.
*BASH*
The force of the slash immediately made the ice covered door shatter in millions of pieces.
"Whoa, whoa, whoa!" Shoto exclaimed as he stumbled forward, surprised that the door had been broken so easily.
*THUMP*
As he hit the ground, Kuo gave a small laugh, "Looks like the roles have reversed" he joked.
Shoto used his arms to pull himself off the ground, getting down on his knees before eventually standing back up.
Hiryo stepped inside the dungeon, his eyes widening in amazement. "Wow! This place is massive!" he exclaimed in awe.
Everyone else crawled in one by one as Shoto positioned himself
Inside the dungeon was unlike anything the group had ever seen before. It was a large, round room with walls covered in strange symbols and runes. The floor was made of a strange, shimmering silver material, and the walls were lit by an eerie blue light.
In the center of the room was a large statue of a dragon, its eyes glowing with a strange, otherworldly power. The group felt a strange energy emanating from the room, and were unsure of what to expect as they stepped through the entrance.
*DASH*
As they continued to go further into the room, I hurriedly ran in through the entrance too.
When I walked in, I was shocked to see the door had been shattered into tiny pieces of ice and the entrance had vanished. The walls of the dungeon were shifting to fill the space left by the entrance.
The walls, which were brown, was a strange material and bricky, filled the room entirely and made an earsplitting "GSH!" noise.
The group quickly spun around in response to the sudden warning.
Before they had time to look around, I quickly and silently ducked behind two rocks to hide.
They noticed the walls narrowing in toward the doorway, the girl let out an odd shout and the others were astonished.
Shoto started to doubt himself, wondering, "What made me think it would be a good idea to go into the most perilous dungeon in the woods?!" He spoke out loud to no one.
He glanced ahead of him once more, frightened by what he saw. He stood there motionless, not daring to move or draw a breath.
"If the others were to find out-"
Shoto rapidly shook his head vigorously, attempting to banish the destructive ideas that were starting to arise in his mind.
Mileanna nervously queried, "Are you certain this is standard? Aren't dungeons usually arranged in different levels?" Sado glanced at her quickly and replied, "Y-Yes, it's perfectly normal" in a frightened tone.
Hiryo exclaimed enthusiastically, "Once we are all together, we should be in good shape!" He spoke with a positive outlook, attempting to keep everyone's morale high.
Sado's eyebrows twitched in frustration, his normally optimistic outlook replaced by annoyance. "This damn idiot!" he thought while glaring away and grinding his teeth in anger.