Dimension Beta

As Tom walked out from the back room of the workshop, all the workers turned to look at him.

Tom confidently strode into the center of the room, standing tall in his new gear. He thought to himself, Don't I look fierce? Don't I look like a wild warrior?

He puffed out his chest, entirely satisfied with his appearance, waiting for their reactions.

But then, one of the workers let out a soft chuckle. Like a spark igniting a blaze, the entire workshop burst into laughter.

Tom stood there, confused, until one of the men, laughing uncontrollably, pointed and said, "Who let the little bear cub in here?"

The laughter only grew louder, and Tom felt his face flush hot. His cheeks turned as red as if someone had poured boiling water over him.

Even Smork couldn't keep a straight face. Through a grin, he clapped Tom on the shoulder. "Don't take it too hard, kid," Smork said. "The gear's usually made for seasoned fighters. But on you… you look like a lost baby bear who wandered into town."

Tom was crushed. He reached up and pulled his hood back, letting it hang loose. At least the armor bonus still applied even with the hood down.

"I'm outta here," he muttered, bolting for the exit. As he ran, he thought, Just wait! When I'm bigger, I'll show them what a real bear looks like.

He sprinted all the way to the tavern.

It was still early when Tom arrived. Pablo had just opened the doors, and the place was empty. But as soon as Pablo spotted Tom walking in, his face lit up.

"You look fantastic!" Pablo said, giving him a thumbs-up. "Looks like you've met Smork. He did a hell of a job with that gear."

Hearing that gave Tom a boost of confidence, and he couldn't help but smile a little.

"Melisa, get us something to drink!" Pablo called over to the bar as he ushered Tom to a stool.

Melisa glanced over, then smirked. "You look adorable," she said, handing Tom his usual juice.

That small moment of pride Tom had felt? Gone. Completely crushed.

Tom sighed and drank his juice in silence, trying not to let her comment bother him.

As he drank, Tom remembered that he still needed to allocate his stat points for the day. He'd reached level 18, with most of his experience coming from Pablo's quest the night before and the rest from hunting wolves.

But wolves were barely giving him any experience now. He started thinking it might be time to find a new leveling spot.

The tavern began to fill up as the evening went on. It was the same work as the day before dragging out drunks and keeping order. Tom busied himself, trying to stay on top of things.

For the most part, the night was uneventful, but there were a few moments that got under Tom's skin.

"Hey, little bear! Come have a drink with us!" shouted a man surrounded by his laughing friends. They waved Tom over, inviting him to join, but it was clear they were just teasing.

Another time, an older woman with her family pinched Tom's cheek and said, "What a fine, strapping young lad you are!"

Tom didn't know whether to laugh or cry. Honestly, he felt more like crying.

The night ended, and with it, another day began. Tom was determined to shake off the teasing and keep pushing forward. He wasn't going to let anyone hold him back.

Tom couldn't help but notice that demand for Pech's potions had dropped drastically. Only one new buyer had shown interest, and the other was the repeat customer who had already offered to buy multiple crates. For Pech, this wasn't a big deal as he made his profit either way, but for Tom, it meant less gold in his pocket.

Left with no other choice, he arranged meetings with the two buyers, letting them know when and where to meet him.

Later, Tom decided to search for new leveling spots. He filtered his options by a few specific criteria: the area needed to be within an hour's walk from the city, enemies had to be level 20 or below, and the creatures had to be suitable for skinning.

Skinning had become a reliable side hustle for Tom. Not only did it provide extra gold, but it also granted a small amount of experience, about a fifth of what he earned for killing a monster. Though small, the XP stacked up, especially now that it only took him 15 seconds to skin a creature.

Fortunately, he found a promising area that matched his needs about an hour outside the city.

After completing his potion sales, Tom headed to Pech's shop to collect his reward.

The moment he entered, he could tell something was off. Pech, usually theatrical and full of tricks, seemed lost in thought. Even when Tom stood at the counter, Pech didn't acknowledge him at first. After a few seconds, the old man finally turned to face him.

There was no grin, no sly remarks, just silence. Without a word, Pech handed Tom his gold.

Tom's gut churned. What is this guy playing at now? he thought.

Unable to resist, Tom blurted out, "Mr. Pech, is something wrong?"

The alchemist stared at him for what felt like forever before exhaling deeply. "The Darkness is coming, boy. You'd better get out of here soon."

Tom's heart skipped a beat. "The Darkness? What's that? And how do you know it's coming?"

Pech's face twisted into a grimace. "My scars… they're pulsing. I can feel it creeping closer. It won't be long now."

Tom glanced at the faint purple marks across Pech's body. He'd always assumed they were harmless discolorations. Now, he wasn't so sure.

Pech's tone sharpened. "You Anderworlders have your networks, don't you? Ask around, boy. You'll learn soon enough what it is."

Tom wanted to press him for more details, but the alchemist turned away, clearly done with the conversation.

Uneasy and more than a little spooked, Tom left the shop. What the hell is this 'Darkness'? he wondered as he headed toward the new leveling spot.

On the way to his destination, Tom encountered almost no monsters. The well-traveled path provided a clear, open route, and the creatures of the forest knew better than to venture into the open where they could easily be spotted.

At first, Tom wasn't sure if he was headed in the right direction, but after a few more minutes of searching, he found what he was looking for. A seemingly unremarkable cave carved into the side of a mountain. He knew this wasn't just any cave. It led to a monster nest inside the mountain.

Monster nests, more commonly called dungeons, were open to all adventurers. Anyone could enter at any time, and it wasn't uncommon to encounter others inside. The deeper one ventured, the tougher the monsters became. Dungeons also had the reputation of being mazes, with some taking days to navigate fully.

Tom had no intention of going that deep. He didn't have the time or the resources. His teleportation scrolls wouldn't work inside due to the dungeon's magical interference. He only had two scrolls left out of the five he'd started with a standard issue for beginner adventurers. Three were already gone, and he couldn't risk burning another.

Tom stepped into the cave cautiously. To his surprise, the walls were lined with lit torches, illuminating the interior. Why are there torches here? he wondered briefly. But he remembered the inhabitants of the dungeon "Kobolds".

These creatures were a strange mix of humanoid and wolf-like features. They wielded crude weapons and sometimes wore mismatched pieces of armor. What made them unique was their intelligence; Kobolds could set traps, patrol in groups, and even use rudimentary tactics.

The cave split off into multiple passageways, each leading deeper into the mountain. Tom knew it would be easy to get lost if he wasn't careful, so he pulled out a piece of chalk he'd prepared beforehand. At each turn, he marked arrows on the walls to guide himself back to the surface.

After a few minutes, Tom heard noises. It sounded like growling, but as he listened closer, he could make out syllables. Kobolds. They were speaking their guttural language.

Following the sounds, he spotted two Kobolds sitting by a small fire. They were roasting something on crude sticks, their attention focused on the flames.

Tom decided to play it safe on his first encounter. He picked up a rock and hurled it deeper into the cave, past the pair of Kobolds.

Hearing the noise, one of the Kobolds stood up to investigate, clutching his stick like a weapon. The other turned his back to Tom to watch his companion shuffle off into the shadows.

Perfect, Tom thought, creeping closer to the one still by the fire. He kept low, his footsteps as light as he could make them. Just a few meters away, the Kobold sniffed the air suddenly and whipped around to face him. Its lips curled back in a snarl as it tossed its fire stick to the ground.

The other Kobold had already heard the commotion and was making his way back. Tom knew he couldn't let them regroup. He lunged forward, landing a solid combo of punches on the first Kobold, striking its face and torso. The creature staggered backward, dazed.

Tom had been paying attention during his shifts at the tavern and had picked up a new tactic from the brawls he'd seen. Leaning slightly backward, he planted one hand on the ground, feigning a wide stance. As the second Kobold charged in, Tom scooped up a handful of dirt and flung it into its eyes, blinding it.

The first Kobold stumbled forward, but Tom didn't give it a chance to recover. A powerful roundhouse kick sent it crashing to the ground. He didn't stop until it lay still, lifeless.

The second Kobold wiped at its eyes, growling in frustration. Tom closed the gap quickly, landing a flurry of punches until it, too, fell to the cave floor.