Floor 1: City 123
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Adventurer : Arden
Gender: Male
Class: Enchanter
Title: Untrustworthy Enchanter
Level: 5
Strength: 8
Speed: 5
Health: 200
Perception: 8
Luck: 5
Mastery: 1
Most important skills :
Enchant (Passive)
Mana Inspect (Passive)
Scan LV2
Dash LV 2
Backstab
===================
The guild hall in 123 was smaller than those in other cities, consisting of just one floor and functioning mainly as a bar. Players and NPCs visited for food and drinks, which was my primary reason for being there. I also needed to join a guild. Enchanters, like myself, are less useful at lower levels since we only receive new enchantments every five levels, and the current ones like Mana Binding and Activation are rather limited.
I had posted fliers to join a guild but hadn't heard back from anyone yet. The guild hall in 123, a smaller city, had a bar where I could get something to eat and drink. At this point, it seemed better to explore the floor by myself.
The room was dim and had a creepy vibe, with an air of shady deals and secretive business. The walls were plastered with bounties for players, NPCs, and guilds, ranging from 1 copper to 5 platinum. The thought of such money was tempting.
As I sat there, a group of four people approached me, each with a different weapon—one with a bow, one with a spear, one with a sword, and one with a wand. They seemed like seasoned fighters.
"Did you hear? G2 told the other top guilds not to fight the boss on floor 6," said the one with the wand, pointing at a bounty on the wall behind the bartender.
—--------------------------------------
Guild Name: G2
Bounty: 1 Platinum Coin per member, Dead or Alive
The members of the guild G2 are hereby declared enemies of the realm. Known for their dangerous activities,and illicit operations, every individual associated with G2 is considered highly dangerous.
Reward: 1 Platinum Coin for each confirmed member, dead or alive.
Warning: Approach with extreme caution. These individuals are highly skilled and unpredictable.
Report any information or capture directly to the nearest bounty office.
—---------------------------------------------
"I heard they want the experience," the one with the sword added.
"They've become enemies of the World Guild," the spear wielder said. "So they can't sell the drops and make money."
"I wonder what happened," the bow user mused. "They even have a high bounty—1 platinum per member."
"How many members do they have?" the wand user asked.
"Five," replied the bow user.
"Five? They're no better than a party. We could definitely get that bounty," the sword user said, laughing as the bartender brought their drinks.
"Good luck with that," I said sarcastically.
They looked at me, puzzled. "Why?" the spear user asked.
"They're still in the top 10. They must be extremely strong. You'd need a group of five just to take one of them down," I said, laughing as I slammed my drink on the table and tossed a 20 copper coins down.
"Why don't you join us then?" the sword user suggested. "We could definitely take one of them down."
"I'm just an enchanter," I replied. "I'm not good at fighting and I'm not interested in killing other players."
I left the guild hall as the sun was setting. The city was illuminated by the moon, slowly rising in the sky. Despite its small size, 123 was where I had started. Every morning, I would sell my slime drops to NPCs or the guild.
I was managing a relatively good living on Floor 1, but I wanted more—I wanted my own house and to be useful to a guild. I kept gazing at the moon as it rose, and when it was fully dark, my glasses with Night Vision activated, allowing me to see clearly. I chuckled at how ineffective my enchantments were.
Night Vision, Mana Binding, Mana Activation, Mana Thread, and Light Step—each was as useless as the previous. Night Vision let me see in the dark, Mana Binding was used to bind enchantments, Mana Activation only worked if a specific mana signature was applied, Mana Thread slightly improved durability, and Light Step made my footsteps quieter. It was no wonder no one wanted me; my class felt useless at this level.
To join a guild, I knew I needed to level up, get better enchantments, and improve my skills.
"Warp … Floor 2"
***
Upon arrival, I was greeted by the bustling activity of Floor 2. Unlike Floor 1, this floor had a day-like ambiance. Each floor seemed to have its own sun or at least its own time cycle.
There were merchants selling various items, and one booth caught my eye. An elven NPC with the Crusaders' guild logo—a shield with a red cross and a sword diagonally through it—was displaying hundreds of small, crystal-like balls. They were clear with a center in one of several colors: red, blue, green, white, yellow, and black. They resembled slime cores.
The NPC noticed my interest and beckoned me over. Behind her were countless little boxes, presumably containing the same items.
"What can I do for you?" the NPC asked with a vibrant tone. She had long black hair and tired eyes.
"What are these gems?" I inquired.
"They're not exactly gems," she replied quickly. "They allow people with low mana to use magic."
"What do you mean?" I asked, puzzled.
She picked up a ball with a blue center and infused it with mana. She then threw it onto the ground, and after a few seconds, it exploded, creating a patch of ice.
"These are for people who wont be able to use high mana skills," she explained. "Right now, we only have ones with basic magic of each element."
I realized these were like bombs, and the skill the NPC demonstrated was Ice Shard, a Tier 1 magic skill that normally requires a lot of mana. It seemed these bombs cut the mana cost by about 99%.
"I'll take some," I said quickly.
"How much are they?" I asked.
"1 silver each," she replied.
I handed her 1 gold and received 1,000 of the mana bombs—200 of each color except the dark one. She explained that the red ones had Fireball, the green ones had Earth Wall, the blue ones had Ice Shard, the white ones had Wind Blade, and the yellow ones had Flash.
I thanked her and warped to the sixth floor.
"Warp … Floor 6"
***
Upon arrival on the sixth floor, I was immediately enveloped in complete darkness. The suffocating void filled me with dread, and the air felt thick and almost alive, as if the cave itself was breathing.
My Night Vision goggles worked and lit up the surrounding area after a few seconds. I had appeared on a rune in the center of a vast cave, with tunnels branching out in every direction. The tunnels seemed quiet and still, but I knew monsters lurked around every corner.
I chose one of the paths, but suddenly, three spiders charged at me. I quickly pulled out one of the red and one of the blue bombs from my inventory and threw them at the approaching spiders.
The mana bombs exploded on impact, killing the spiders instantly. However, the last spider lunged at me, pushing me to the ground. I grabbed a small dagger from my hip and stabbed it in the stomach. The spider disintegrated into red and green pixels before disappearing.
"Wow," I laughed. "These are incredible."
As I continued down the path, it grew narrower and steeper, with dangerous crevices on either side. I moved carefully, avoiding the gaps that could spell disaster. There were fewer spiders now, and I suspected that G2's guild must have cleared out most of them, causing the remaining spiders to scatter.
CLICK
A sharp clicking sound made me lose focus. Before I could react, a small hole opened up beneath my feet, screaming as I fell. I landed with a splash in a pool of water and lost consciousness.
When I woke up, I was lying on the edge of the pool. I felt a pounding pain and a strange feeling surrounded me. My goggles revealed hundreds of spiders lining the walls, but they seemed to be more scared than aggressive.
The pamphlet hadn't mentioned any traps, I thought to myself.
I looked around for any signs of life. As I walked along the edge of the pool, I noticed a dim light. It was a girl, and above her head was the name "LV6 G2 Reyna." She was sleeping against a rock. It seemed she had fallen into this pit as well. I checked her pulse and found she was alive. I also noticed that her clothes were dry.
Floating around her was a small fireball floating in the air, providing her with light. It seemed she had used it to see, as she didn't have Night Vision like me. I thought to myself how maintaining a skill like that while sleeping must require a lot of mana. I took off my goggles to get a better look at her.
She woke up abruptly, pushing me back. The fire surrounding her flared with intensity. With the better light, I could fully see her features. Her eyes, of a fierce amber, appeared to burn with their own fire as they locked onto mine. A jagged scar traced across her cheek. Her vibrant red hair cascaded down her back, fastened with a gold ribbon that glittered with every swish.
At her hip was a custom-made leather holster, housing a finely crafted revolver. The hilt of a sleek katana, adorned with a red and gold design, peeked over her shoulder. She stood tall and poised.
With her hand resting on her katana, she spoke in a commanding voice,
"I don't appreciate being watched."