Sword Art Online: Moonlight Swordman.

Chapter 05: Dungeon

A greedy smile suddenly appeared on Tarek's frightening face. He may not be a professional gamer, but the basics, like dungeons, are known to everyone.

Isn't it the perfect place to level up and gather powerful gear?

"You're thinking too simply," Scholar lightly pushed his glasses up and said. His eyes glanced at Tarek as if he had seen through the thug's thoughts.

"The dungeons in Sword Art Online aren't like the ones in other MMORPGs."

His voice paused for a moment before continuing:

"In regular games, dungeons are usually full of traps and monsters. Sword Art Online is no exception, but it's more realistic. A single wrong step can lead to death.

Especially in a game like this, where one life is all you have."

The atmosphere suddenly turned heavy.

Everyone looked at each other, silent.

Ren clenched his fists to keep himself focused.

"I must warn you, it's extremely dangerous," Copper's voice broke the silence. "But no risk, no reward. The greater the danger, the greater the reward."

Mentioning rewards, Tarek and his subordinates' eyes gleamed, and greedy smiles began to form.

"Well, let's talk about the reward. How will we split it?"

Copper tilted his head and smiled, a gleam of light flashing in his eyes.

"Split it, huh?"

"Simple. Experience, gold, and equipment. Whoever kills the monster gets its loot. Items and treasure chests... whoever gets them will take them."

A brief silence passed, but then Tarek's lips twitched. Instead of getting angry like before, he laughed loudly. "Haha. I like this straightforward approach."

The atmosphere in the tavern hung still, calm like the sea before a storm. Scholar remained silent, but his eyes behind his glasses gleamed, carefully observing Copper and Tarek as if searching for their true intentions.

Ren took a deep breath, trying to shrink away from any attention. These people... they gave him a familiar feeling...

The only girl in the group, Eylis, seemed unaffected by the strange atmosphere surrounding them. Her brown eyes still studied Ren curiously. What was she thinking?

"Well then, it's clear now. Let's head out. Scholar will lead the way; he knows the location," Copper finished his drink and stood up.

His figure was almost perfect, dressed in light leather armor. Though it was basic gear given to every player, on Copper, it gave off a completely different aura.

Scholar kept his mysterious silence, nodding lightly and standing up to lead the way.

Tarek, with a smug smile on his face, led his subordinates, not forgetting to slap Ren across the back and drag him along.

Ren lowered his gaze, his blue eyes filled with fear, too scared to look Tarek in the eye. His lips pressed together tightly, but he reluctantly nodded and stood up.

His fist clenched but then loosened.

He couldn't fight back.

He didn't dare.

No one could understand the feeling Ren was enduring right now.

No one, except Eylis.

From a nearby shadow, Eylis had witnessed everything. Her brows furrowed slightly before quickly relaxing, as though there was nothing to worry about.

Her brown eyes glanced at Ren before quickly shifting to the backs of Copper and Scholar.

A fleeting thought passed through her eyes, but it was brief.

Eylis turned around and followed the group.

They stepped out of the faint, warm light inside the small tavern and into the cold darkness of the alley.

Ren felt his heart pounding in his chest as their footsteps echoed down the dimly lit path.

The wind blew through the narrow alley, bringing a chill that made Ren instinctively pull his coat tighter around himself.

His body shuddered as he felt something. The uneasy feeling still surged in his chest.

The sound of footsteps echoed on the stone floor, as if something invisible was watching them.

This dungeon conquest wouldn't be simple, Ren thought.

Two hours later, the death notification rang, 7:27 PM.

The game had truly begun.

....

There were four main roads leading into the starting town, heading east, west, south, and north.

All four roads converged at one point, the town's central square.

Scholar led the group westward before unexpectedly turning into a deserted alley, where the faint light from magical lamps cast dim shadows on the rough stone pavement.

"What the hell is this, nearsighted? Are you leading us around in circles in the starting town and calling this the way?" Tarek frowned, his gruff voice sarcastic and annoyed, aimed at Scholar.

Scholar remained silent and continued leading the way, casting a glance at Tarek with disdain. The provoking words seemed to have no effect on him.

"Alright, let's not lose our temper here. I'll explain more," Copper stopped and walked parallel to Tarek, speaking calmly.

"The dungeon we're heading to is right under the starting town."

Hearing this, Tarek's mouth twitched, and he gave Copper a skeptical glare. "Under the starting town? What's this joke? If the dungeon was in a safe place, why would you need to worry about monsters or traps below? Why bring us along?"

Copper simply shook his head, as though he had expected this. "No, the dungeon is completely separate from the safe zones. And at this stage, the main entrance is still blocked."

"Blocked? So, you can't get in?" Tarek furrowed his brows, then relaxed. "So, you know another way."

Copper smiled with hidden meaning.

The greedy smile on Tarek's face grew wider. He felt pleased inside. This time, he had made the right choice.

It seemed Copper wasn't lying.

"The entrance to the dungeon under the starting town will only open after the floor's boss is defeated," Scholar, who had remained silent until now, suddenly spoke.

"However, as I mentioned before, I know every corner of the early floors. By accident, I found a shortcut leading to the dungeon below."

Though his tone was serious, Scholar couldn't hide the confident smile at the corner of his mouth.

"But if the dungeon only opens when the floor's boss is defeated, doesn't that mean the monsters down there will be something we can't handle?" Tarek suddenly realized something.

His eyes locked onto Scholar, as if searching for an answer.

The atmosphere suddenly grew tense.

Scholar hesitated for a moment, his gaze flickering with worry as it swept over the thick darkness surrounding the alley. Copper, noticing his unease, spoke up:

"The monsters on the early floors of the dungeon are weak. They're just frogs and tunnel bats. Their stats and levels are slightly higher than the monsters outside the town. There's almost no danger if you have a group to deal with."

Copper paused, his eyes shining with confidence. But then his voice lowered:

"However, once we go further down, it will be more dangerous with the monsters being Kobolds."

A cold wind blew through, making the group shiver. Ren looked around, feeling like something was watching them from the darkness.

"Kobold," Copper continued, his voice still calm but carrying a hint of warning, "is the general term for humanoid monsters like dogs or rats. They walk on two legs and can use armor and weapons."

A strange noise echoed from afar, making the group jump. Copper quickly reassured them:

"Don't worry, the rat-like Kobolds in the dungeon are weaker than the guard Kobolds in the maze leading to the boss room. They usually travel alone and are easy to defeat with a group."

Scholar nodded, but his eyes never left the darkness ahead.

The feeling of unease still lingered, as a reminder that this dungeon was far from as simple as they had imagined.

The conversation ended as Scholar stopped in front of a giant manhole cover, quickly prying it open before climbing down.

The others swallowed nervously, and Copper didn't hesitate to jump straight down. He seemed to trust Scholar completely.

"Eww. We have to jump into this filthy sewer? I'd rather stay here," Eylis, the only girl in the group, grimaced as she looked at the manhole.

She instinctively pinched her nose and tried to distance herself as much as possible.

"Well then, stay here. The more loot we get, the better," Tarek sneered before leading his subordinates down.

Ren glanced at Eylis before following suit.

"Hey... wait for me," Eylis grumbled, still grimacing, but hurried after them, unable to hide her disgust for crawling into the sewer.

"We're almost there. A different path leads into the dungeon," Scholar's voice unexpectedly sounded like an announcement, making Ren jump, his heart skipping a beat.