The moment he saw the information on the screen, it felt crazy—how did this happen to him, and could he believe the words on the screen?
『Fae... Djinn and an Arachne?'』
He remembered details about these bizarre races and understood the concept of his current situation, but it felt strange. There was a sense of disbelief brewing inside as he arranged his thoughts.
『No, that's not important right now!』
[Warning!]
[Dungeon under attack!]
Suddenly, while trying to recover from the ache in his head, Leonhardt noticed a small image on the panels floating in his vision. The shape resembled a small series of caves in square blocks, one with a small crystal and blue dot.
There was also a group of four flashing red dots three square blocks away.
He reached out and pointed to the red dots before the map zoomed in on the square block.
——---------------------
[Entrance - Block 1]
[Enemies]
∟ Goblin A, Goblin B, Goblin C, Goblin D
[Traps]
∟ Broken Trap
[Monsters]
∟ None
—------------
"This is definitely a map... there is only one passage to this place from the entrance."
He then pointed to each square room to check what remained, but everything said broken.
There wasn't a feeling of fear or worry—somehow, the male realised that after he pressed the red button, his feelings of doubt, fear and anxiety became dampened.
Maybe this was why the screen called him a failed experiment.
At least, he thought so.
『I should head out, too... I don't know how strong my body is.』
Inside his mind, thanks to the various information and knowledge the crystal gave him, he understood the ecology, habits and lifestyles of the bloodlines he inherited, though he understood the principle of magic.
But whether he could use it needed testing.
『Is this strange energy, like flowing water mana?』
He could feel it—like a wild, untamed ocean. It flowed from his abdomen into his heart and then spread through his entire body.
It felt powerful and warmed his body in this cold, damp cave.
He stepped through the large archway, which had a broken stone door—likely the remnants of the previous owner of this Dungeon.
The male curled his right hand, twisting and flicking his fingers. He could feel the mana flowing and churning in him while slight embers flickered from his fingertips.
"Dungeon, what will happen if I cannot defeat the monsters?"
[If the Dungeon Master dies, they will merge with the Dungeon Core and be reborn after 24 hours]
[However, if the core shatters, both the Dungeon and the Dungeon Master will die!]
A sense of irritation welled up in the Chimera's chest. He didn't want to die, but without memories of his past and only knowledge, he lacked full confidence.
『I just have to survive then... and do my best to avoid mistakes.』
He took a deep breath, first closing his eyes for a moment to bring the information together.
Thanks to the dungeon map being in the corner of his view, he could see the goblin's movements.
"Okay."
With a calm atmosphere, his right hand became wrapped in a fire—the crackling and raging soothed his skin.
'This fire cannot harm me.'
As the first formed a small rectangular shape, the male could feel the movement of mana more clearly with each moment that passed.
Step—!
Although he seemed lacking in physical prowess, he found mana naturally flowed towards his legs as he dashed towards the second square, zooming towards the goblins.
"Where Crystal?"
"Show Loot!"
"Dark cave, smelly!"
Before he reached the last square, now able to hear these voices and noise from a distance, the Chimera started gathering mana into his left hand, creating a second firebolt.
He suddenly felt a growing ache in his chest, followed by a tight sensation in his veins as if someone grabbed them tight to stop the mana flowing through them.
Was he pushing himself too far?
He didn't know!
Instead, the man bit his teeth together and endured.
『Keep going!』
1... 2... 3...
[You have gained the skill - Double Cast]
Immediately after this sound echoed, he felt a sense of comfort and relief from the pressure, and the two flaming bolts started turning a darker red.
The unused mana began to flow back into his body, absorbed through his pores and towards his stomach.
"Phew... I feel more confident now!"
Despite being called a dungeon, the entire place looked horrible—each square he passed through was full of cobwebs, broken traps, and disgusting rotten leather dropped years ago.
Hack—!
A loud sound reverberated before he stepped close to the last room.
He found that the door still stood.
Well... half of it.
However, the goblins were attacking it with their makeshift axes.
Small, green and blue humanoid monsters with figures like a young child or small adult and a lean build of muscle.
The knowledge in his mind told him they were not a danger, and the screen to the right of his eyesight showed the same.
——-------------------------
[Gobbo A]
[Race: Goblin]
∟ A weak type of monster that eats small animals.
∟ They like shiny things and living in dark, damp caves.
∟ Has low defence and intelligence but can be quite crafty!
[Stats]
∟ STR: F
∟ VIT: F
∟ DEF: G
∟ AGI: E
∟ INT: G
∟ CHA: G
——-------------------------
『Though weaker than me overall, I should be cautious!』
In a swift motion, the male lifted his hands before they noticed.
The two bolts of flame vibrated atop his palms.
Woosh—!
Two trails of heat shot toward two goblins attacking the door, holding stone axes.
Sizzle—!
"AH! Fire burn!"
The flaming projectiles slammed into the heads of the two closest goblins.
Immediately, both heads combusted into a burst of flame as the goblins dropped, causing the others to startle and look around frantically.
Instantly, the two goblins who saw their comrades' heads pop rushed forward, screaming in a goblin tongue.
"Die, Kill Ugly Monster!"
"Revenge!"
The Chimera remained unfazed while facing these goblins, already starting to create more firebolts in his hands.
'I felt nothing when killing those monsters, is this normal?' He wondered. Still, it was undoubtedly due to lacking memories—emotions required experience. Therefore, how could he even feel guilt?
All he felt was the euphoria of gaining their mana, which began to seep into his body and mixed with his current stream.
Bang—!
Both goblins met the same fate with a burst of fiery death to the face.
The battle seemed easy, and the Chimera felt the slight weakness of casting four spells in a short time.
"Phew..."
[Goblin Slain: 4]
∟ Gained 40 DP
∟ Gained 100 XP
∟ Gained 20 EP
A sudden fanfare played in his mind as the male sat on a pile of broken rocks and leaned back, feeling a sense of vertigo as something strange happened.
His body began to convulse and tighten—he felt hot and feverish for a moment.
Immediately after, the beautiful voice spoke to him, showing information on the various screens in his vision.
[Congratulations - Level Up!]
[Dungeon Defence Complete!]
[Status Up!]
∟ STR: F [20/100]
∟ VIT: G [85/100]
∟ DEF: F [20/100]
∟ AGI: F [10/100]
∟ INT: E [30/100]
∟ CHA: C [5/100]
"Must run! Must Escape!"
"Huh?"
He noticed a sneaky goblin that hid from the combat and suddenly began to flee.
There wasn't enough time, but as he reached out towards the fleeing blue figure, a burst of sticky webbing shot from his fingertips and latched onto its feet. He pulled hard and made the monster stumble over.
With an idea, he formed another fire bolt atop his fingers before throwing it with all his strength.
Pop—!
Another victory, but now filled with many questions and wonders about himself.
[Goblin Slain]
∟ Gained 10 DP
∟ Gained 25 XP
∟ Gained 5 EP
"Well... I should head back."
The man felt that he would be safe for a little while, and after a brief pause, he returned. Though, he looked towards the bright sky at the end of the distant tunnel for a moment.
There was nothing he could do right now.
In his hand was a small pendant, silver and shaped like an angel's wing, with a red gemstone like his eyes.
『Hmm? What's this?』
He checked the back and noticed a name imprinted... and it resonated with him.
Thus, he made his choice.
『I like the name Leon.』
——-------------------------
[Quest Complete - Survive The Attack!]
[Rewards]
∟ Summon Random Dungeon Aide
∟ Gain 500 DP
——-------------------------
[Choosing Random Aide]
[Progress 0%... 15%... 50%... 90%...]
[Complete!]
[Would you like to summon your new attendant?]