Dungeon Salvation

Elias waited impatiently for Rebecca. They had agreed to meet first thing in the morning to begin exploring the Beginner zone of the dungeon—the first hallmark of a true adventurer.

“Boo!”

“Ah!” Elias cried out shrilly.

“Dear lord, Rebecca, where did you come from? I didn't see you at all,” Elias said, his heart pounding. He could feel his face heating up in embarrassment from his startled reaction.

“That was just too good,” Rebecca said, wiping tears from her eyes as she struggled to stop laughing. It wasn’t working. “Anyway, I got the Veil (Common) Skill for the Charisma attribute.”

Now that’s not a choice you see everyday.

Unlike most Skills, Veil (Common) didn’t improve or enhance anything; it dampened a person’s presence instead of amplifying it, like Inspire (Common). This Skill was almost exclusively geared towards assassination and didn’t have a good reputation because of that. Still, it took a lot more than that to get the jump on him.

How did she do it?

“And what else?” asked Elias, leadingly.

“It’s a surprise,” Rebecca said with a wink. “A girl’s got to keep her secrets.”

Elias opened his mouth to protest, but Rebecca was already moving, clearly not intending to speak further on the subject. He narrowed his eyes at her retreating back before hurrying to catch up.

Fine. Two can play that game…

Arriving at the Beginner zone, Elias was once again struck by how large everything seemed. The trees were thicker, taller, and had larger leaves, spaced further apart. The jungle emanated a wild and untamed aura, reminiscent of a bloodthirsty predator.

Elias prompted his soul weapon to transform into its Twin Bracelets form, activating the Golden Palm effect. He watched as the beads rearranged themselves to cover both his wrists, turning his hands a coppery gold color. He opened and closed his hands a few times before straightening his back and entering the jungle, Rebecca close behind him.

Alright, let's do this.

In the Beginner rank zones, the dungeon began to truly show its fangs. The monsters didn’t attack to stun or inconvenience; they went for the kill. Still, they’d probably be fine as long as they were careful. As fresh Beginner rank adventurers, they would remain on the outskirts of the zone for now. They were only here to test their Skills, not do anything reckless.

They walked in silence for a few minutes until Rebecca stopped them, having spotted a monster. Elias couldn’t see the creature through its camouflage until they were much closer. Rebecca, however, had seen it from at least a dozen meters away.

Alright, so it’s either Dange Sense (Common) or Enhanced Perception (Common) for the Wisdom attribute.

He used Analyze on the monster once he could see it.

*******

Mossback Ape

Uncommon

Level 11

A large ape covered in thick, moss-like fur that provides natural protection and camouflage in the jungle. It relies on its brute strength and surprise attacks to kill its unsuspecting victims.

*******

“Wanna handle it?” Elias baited, hoping to tease out more Skills from his companion.

“I’ll let you take the first one,” answered Rebecca with an eye roll.

Grunting, Elias moved to engage with the monster, letting his mana flow into his fists with Imbue Weapon (Common). Positioning himself for a straight path towards the creature, he charged, using Overexertion (Common) to move faster. Thankfully, the same mossy fur that allowed the beast to camouflage itself impeded its vision; it didn’t notice him until it was too late.

Elias arrived in front of the monster like a wrecking ball, jumping into the air to deliver a superman punch to its face. The ape’s head snapped back with a sharp crack, and it fell to the floor. Elias jumped atop it without delay and hammered its face with his mana-infused punches twice more, receiving an experience notification.

Congratulations! You have gained 110 exp.

As the creature dissolved into ash, Elias looked at his fists in amazement. Killing the monster had been effortless. His fists had absolutely dominated the exchange from the beginning, dealing far more damage than he’d expected. Just that first mana-infused punch had nearly killed it outright, like a sledgehammer to the face. He looked to Rebecca, who was staring at him, mouth agape.

I bet you wanna know my Skills now.

With his weapon’s new effect, his hands had been transformed into true weapons. Hard and deadly, they were little different from actual sledgehammers now.

“What the hell was that?” Rebecca asked, clearly shocked. “Did you evolve a Skill already?”

“A boy’s got to keep his secrets,” Elias said in a mocking tone before bursting out laughing. “Why, impressed?”

Oops, I don't like that look.

Rebecca was eyeing him like he was an afternoon snack—and not in a good way. She narrowed her eyes, staring him down for long moments before snorting.

“Next one's mine.”

*******

Rebecca stalked the creature silently, her movements graceful and deliberate as she prepared to show Elias what she was capable of. She wasn’t mad, of course, but it was still best not to let the boy get too cocky. She used Analyze.

*******

Blaze Horn Beetle

Uncommon

Level 11

A formidable insect with a tough, fiery-red exoskeleton and a single large horn on its head. It can charge at high speeds, and its horn can ignite upon impact, causing bursts of flame that can burn foes.

*******

Rebecca activated her Veil (Common) to dampen her presence to less than a whisper. Relying on Grace (Common), she circled the creature, making as little noise as possible. Her eyes ghosted over the monster’s exoskeleton, using her Enhanced Perception (Common) to find any weaknesses. She silently unsheathed her daggers and unhurriedly positioned herself to strike.

Activating Surprise Attack (Common), Rebecca sheared off two of the monster’s six legs outright. Then, she used both her knives to cleave off the last leg of the creature’s right-hand side.

Hmm, or is it the right-wing side?

Having cripled the monster's mobility, she began to methodically dismantle it. She slashed the beast's wings off at the base, cut off its remaining legs, and kicked it upside down so that all it could do was squirm. Then, staring directly at Elias, she decapitated the beetle with deliberate slowness.

Let that be a lesson to you. Don’t get cocky with me.

Congratulations! You have gained 110 exp.

Elias visibly gulped, and Rebecca turned her back to him to hide her smile. Although he was the better fighter, she had been fighting monsters for much longer. Manhandling the bug had been child’s play. She took the opportunity to open her Status.

Name: Rebecca Taylor

Exp: 220

Spirit: 10

Skill: Meditation (Common)

(21.000 exp to level)

Wisdom: 10

Skill: Enhanced Perception (Common)

(21.000 exp to level)

Intelligence: 10

Skill: Mana Bind (Common)

(21.000 exp to level)

Charisma: 10

Skill: Veil (Common)

(21.000 exp to level)

Agility: 10

Skill: Grace (Common)

(21.000 exp to level)

Strength: 10

Skill: Surprise Attack (Common)

(21.000 exp to level)

Vitality: 10

Skill: Minor Regeneration (Common)

(21.000 exp to level)

Rebecca took a deep breath, schooling her expression once more and gathering her courage. She decided to finally stop delaying her Skill revelations.

“You really went the full assassin route,” Elias said, furrowing his eyebrows.

“The Skills are what you make of them,” Rebecca replied defensively. She pointed at him and continued, “And you’re a trainer; you should know this better than anyone.”

“Yeah… yeah. You’re right, of course. It’s just—it’s a surprising choice, is all,” Elias said, shaking his head as if to snap out of his thoughts. He clearly wasn’t convinced.

“Well, I, for one, don’t need you judging me on my Skill choices,” she said, failing to keep some of the heat out of her voice. They stared at each other awkwardly for long moments, neither saying a word.

This is exactly why I didn’t want to talk about this!

“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to judge you like that,” Elias said, looking down embarrassedly. He grabbed her hands in his and looked into her eyes with determination. “I’m with you.”

“Thank you,” Rebecca whispered. Her eyes began to water, but she swallowed her tears with some effort. Now was not the time for this. “Anyway, what are your Skills?”

Seemingly eager to change the subject, Elias launched into an animated account of his Skills and weapon effects. She was surprised to see that his hands really were a different color, now a dull bronze. It didn’t catch the light, and his hands weren’t exactly clean, so she hadn’t noticed it before.

“That’s really quite the weapon,” she said in amazement. Noticing his hesitant look, she snorted. “Oh, relax. I’m not blabbing to anyone else about it. I’m just saying.”

“Thanks,” he replied. “Anyway, let's get going. Maybe we can still get a level by the end of the day.”

Rebecca nodded in agreement. It really was nice that parties of similarly ranked adventurers didn’t have to split the exp they earned—as long as they were in parties of three people or less.

They began walking again, heading deeper into the dungeon. However, they had only taken a few paces when Rebecca was shocked—literally.

*******

Rebecca suddenly started convulsing violently. Elias frantically searched for the source of the attack, spotting a small glowing weed by her feet. It had been hidden by dry wood and bits of foliage.

*******

Electric Weed

Common

Leven 11

This sentient plant pulses with electrical energy, using its tendrils to deliver shocking jolts to any creature that comes too close. Often found near water sources, its glowing bioluminescent leaves serve as both a warning and a lure.

*******

Elias leaped on the plant, activating his Golden Palms and coating his hands in a layer of mana from Imbue Weapon (Common). Grabbing the small weed with both hands, he yanked it, and after a bit of resistance, it came out of the ground. Once it came free, Rebecca collapsed to the ground, her convulsions stopping.

Soul’s Salvation made his hands resistant to damage, so the monster’s electric touch barely harmed him. With all the strength he could muster, and a pulse of Overexertion (Common), he ripped the small plant apart like breaking bread.

Congratulations! You have gained 110 exp.

“Are you okay?” Elias asked, moving to check on Rebecca. She groaned but forced herself onto her back and coughed.

“I’m fine. It just caught me by surprise.”

Rebecca didn’t look fine at all, but Elias was unworried, knowing she possessed the Minor Regeneration (Common) Skill.

She’ll be fine. Probably.

“I’ll say. It was quite the shocking development,” Elias quipped, unable to resist.

Rebecca groaned again.

As Rebecca’s Skill worked on healing her, they took the opportunity to rest and strategize. Their first fights against Uncommon rank monsters had gone well, but they still decided to take a relaxed pace for the day. The goal would be to gain a single attribute level before leaving the dungeon. Needless to say, they wouldn’t be attacking creatures one at a time any longer.

Overall, the rest of the day went smoothly as the pair quickly and efficiently killed any monsters they encountered. They tested several different hunting strategies, eventually settling on a simple distraction and ambush approach. Elias would act as the distraction, making himself a visible target for the monsters, while Rebecca would ambush them when they attacked. Simple and effective.

As it turned out, Elias’ and Rebecca’s fighting styles complemented each other incredibly well. Her ambush-minded hunting made taking down larger monsters easy, allowing her to cripple and execute them efficiently. Meanwhile, his head-on fighting style made crushing smaller and more delicate monsters effortless; all it took was one punch.

Only one other monster got the drop on them. The furry creature suddenly fell on top of Elias, making his heart leap out of his throat. Using its claws, it painfully attached itself to his back like a backpack and prepared to bite him. Thankfully, Rebecca was walking behind him and dispatched it with her knives before it did much damage. Before it died, Elias managed to use Analyze on it.

*******

Drop Bear

Uncommon

Level 12

A fearless predator resembling a large koala bear with sharp claws and fangs. It is known for ambushing its prey from treetops, dropping down silently to deliver a fatal strike with its powerful limbs.

*******

What the monster lacked in size and lethality, it made up for in bloodlust and cunning. It was like a bloodthirsty teddy bear, and its sharp claws had managed to carve deep furrows in his back. They bled and hurt, but Elias refused to use any of the healing potions he had brought with them.

Instead, Elias concentrated and pushed his Recovery (Common) Skill to work overtime on healing his bleeding wounds. It was like pushing a car from behind to make it move faster—the improvement to the Skill’s function was insignificant. Still, he willed it to work faster with all his might.

Forcing Skills to work past their limits was an important aspect of Skill training and the first step in evolving them into Uncommon Skills. Although not initially focused on healing external wounds like Rebecca’s Minor Regeneration (Common), it could become just as effective if properly trained. Eventually, it could even evolve into a Skill whose primary effect was healing wounds, with the recovery aspect becoming secondary.

More importantly, since Skills are intrinsically linked to a person’s attributes, strengthening them is akin to strengthening the attribute itself. This process wouldn’t make each level gained suddenly worth more, but it was necessary for attaining greater heights of power. Like cups, the attributes need to be strong enough to hold the liquid power that are levels.

Those who failed to train their Skills to a sufficient degree found themselves bottlenecked, unable to increase their rank as adventurers. Even transitioning to the Novice ranks was impossible without Uncommon Skills. Needless to say, it was best to start working on them sooner rather than later, especially since a Skill rank-up provided a significant increase in power.

Adventurers often traveled to higher-ranked zones of the dungeon just to train their Skills; it was far more effective to train in places where mana was abundant. This was especially true for those who had manifested a particular mana type, as they benefited from training near a source of that mana. For example, someone who uses sand mana would improve their Skills at a faster rate in a desert-like zone.

It took a few minutes for Elias’ back to stop bleeding altogether, but he kept at it until the wounds were no longer in danger of reopening. If he was lucky, he would be completely healed by the time he got home. Regardless, he was good to keep moving once again, so they continued hunting monsters well into the night. Once they met their goal of 21,000 exp, he decided to raise his Vitality attribute first to help his healing along.

Congratulations! Your Vitality has risen to level 11.

*******

“Look, Peter, I’ve upgraded my Skills plenty of times already. I just don’t see why I would need any help now,” Lucas responded, his arms crossed.

Rebecca had brought her father over for dinner so that he could officially meet her parents now that they were dating. They definitely hadn’t expected a heated discussion on the benefits of hiring a trainer as a higher-ranked adventurer to ensue.

“Come on, it’s not just about upgrading Skills, and you know it,” Peter said in exasperation. It wasn’t the first time he had rebuked that point. “You are way too hyper-focused on presence strengthening as it is. There is a qualitative jump between Rare and Epic Skills that is not seen previously; I doubt you’ll manage the upgrade without fixing your deficiencies first.”

“Lucas, there is truly no better investment you could possibly make right now,” Vivian added, backing up her husband. “You’ll easily make back this trifling amount once you get to Expert. Also, combat at that rank is far more dangerous. Entering an Expert rank zone of the dungeon without rounding up your fighting skills will be no different than suicide.”

“Then I’ll worry about that when I’m an Expert,” Lucas insisted stubbornly.

Rebecca and Elias exchanged awkward glances as their parents retreated into a small room to continue their discussion. They both let out breaths of relief when the door closed and they were left alone.

“Wow,” Rebecca said. “Just, wow.”

“No kidding. I was beginning to think we’d have to listen to them argue all night,” Elias agreed. “I’m curious though, do you think your dad will come around?”

“Oh, he’d better. That’s why this situation is so unbelievable to me,” Rebecca said with a sigh. She looked around expressively and at the closed door to the next room before continuing, “Alright, don’t tell your parents this, but we had already discussed this very thing before. Dad really needs a good trainer to improve, especially after he saw how much my technique had improved from training with you. Being a berserker is all about smashing things, so he never trained his fighting skills much; I’m actually better at fighting than him now.”

“Now that my foundation is perfect, thanks to you, all that money we had saved is freed up. Dad promised me that he would use that money on a trainer, and your parents were at the top of that list. I have no idea why he’s being so difficult all of a sudden.”

Elias burst out laughing at his girlfriend's explanation, unable to hold himself back.

Lucas takes being stubborn to the next level. It’s like he made a sport out of it.

Eventually, their parents came to a consensus, with Lucas indeed agreeing to hire Vivian and Peter as his trainers. They made a whole show and celebration of the deal, which only served to amuse Elias further, considering what Rebecca had told him. Isabela had even shown up at some point, Kitty in tow, to complain about being hungry and wanting to eat dinner already.

Theatrics aside, Lucas seemed pretty happy about the way things turned out.

“Alright, we’ll have to work your training around Lucas’, and this is how we’ll do it,” Vivian said, addressing Elias, Rebecca, and Isabela. “We’ll train for two days in a row, and you can go back to delving for another two. That way, you can get some time with both myself and Peter. No, Isabela, that does not include you. I’ll give you goals to meet when I can’t be with you. I’ll know if you slack off.”

“Aw, come on, let me go with Eli and Beca,” Isabela pleaded. She looked like she wanted to say more, but a narrow-eyed look from Vivian quieted any further protest. She just grumbled and mumbled, “Fine.”

“Good. For now, Peter will be handling your combat training, and I’ll take over Skill training,” Vivian said with a wolfish grin. “This is going to be so much fun!”

Somehow, Elias doubted his mother had the same idea of “fun” as he did.