NOVEL NEXT CHAPTER 31 – Entering my first Dungeon (Part 2)
*CRISTOPHER’S POV*
It was already Saturday. Today I was going to enter my first Dungeon in this world.
To be honest. I was kind of excited. Dungeons normally existed in a few worlds. They are not that rare; they do change their form and type. And for what I’ve been able to understand. In this world, Dungeons are not that different from a normal cave, with a completely different ecosystem inside.
In other words, it could be called corrosion. A world seeping into another ono. In this case, in a confined space like a cave. Meaning. The monsters could either come from another world or be affected by another world’s mana and natural energy, modifying their own physique, mana density, and even their ability.
What I still don’t understand is if once the Dungeon is conquered, monsters stop appearing. The author of the Novel’s Extra was never precise when he talked about it. I do know that Towers, which could be called a completely different world, do disappear when conquered, or at least most of them.
Also… Where the rewards come from? They normally are the concentration of all the mana inside a Dungeon, guided by the Akashic Records. And if I don’t remember wrongly, in this world’s History do play an important part when it comes to weapons and artifacts. So maybe the Dungeons concentrate the mana and randomly selects some legend from the Akashic Records in this world.
It’s important to note that the Akashic Records is basically that. Records. History of the universe, or all the universes, dimensions, and so on for that matter. They keep every story written, and store it in an extradimensional space that can only be accessed by certain means.
"Appraisal" is normally a skill that accesses these records and gives the user the ability to read into specific parts of them, normally the info about items or monsters that you appraise. In those cases where you can’t get the info, it is either because you don’t have the power enough to extract that specific record from the Akashic Records or there isn’t any record, to begin with.
So, getting back on track. Probably, the Dungeons here access the Akashic Records of this particular world, or even from another world, and creates the reward in the base of some story that has relation with the main attributes of the monsters inside the dungeon, or the dungeon itself.
{But if that were the case… It wouldn’t make any sense that a demonic sword would give you a god-slaying-sword like Misteltein in the case of the Dungeon Hajin goes with Kim Suho.}
Yes. They both are swords. But Misteltein isn’t a possession type sword. It is indeed originally used by the undead. A draugr. Maybe it didn’t take the entire myth, but just that specific part of it?
Also… Misteltein isn’t exactly a god-slaying sword. People do think that way, but the original saga tells us the history of a draugr that killed 420 men and was later killed and burned by another guy, the protagonist of the saga, who later used that same sword to kill two kings.
All in all, it may have something to do with the “story” ‘Hajin’ wrote. After all, he later talks about how he thought Munnin was an eagle and not a raven while writing. And that influenced this world when he entered.
“I guess the only way to clear all my doubts would be to enter a Dungeon by myself.”-I thought before going to the bathroom to take a shower.
In the case that the Dungeons from this world are indeed the result of corrosion, it would be even possible to destroy them. You just need to destroy the point of connection between the two worlds. Of course, that wouldn’t change the mana that already seeped inside this world, but it would stop any other monster from appearing. At least those coming directly from that world.
If the monster that is called a ‘Boss’ inside the Dungeons is the connection point. It would be an easy problem to solve. If not. Well. I’ll just have to search for the connection point. Who knows? Maybe there would be some kind of portal connecting to that other world if you look closely. That would be exciting, but it’s not like I have the time to be looking inside another world for the moments.
Also… Do Dungeons here stay close to the outside world? I know they expel their monsters from time to time. But do they keep corroding the surroundings? Or just the inside of the caves? Or is the mana expelled once the Dungeon is cleared?
Fuck… The author could be a little more specific when it came to Dungeons. Not just say “Hajin cleared this” or “Suho cleared that one”… And they're even hidden dungeons…
{*sigh…* I’ll have to make a little study of Dungeons here… Well, I’ll look into it with the help of the Eyes of the Dragon God. They still keep their connection with the Akashic Records, though, mostly from this world. So, they would be a great help in case I need some info.}-I thought as I go out of the shower and start putting on my clothes.
This time I also keep my all-black concept. With new boots that I bought again from the Internet.
“I won’t be fighting directly with my body, so I’m not that worried about damaging my clothes…”-I say as I look myself in the mirror.
Inside the mirror, I can see myself dressed in an open long hooded black coat with silver sleeves designs. I also have black denim pants and black boats. My shirt is also black, with a few golden designs here and there, it is a closed neck one.
“I should probably take the coat off for the moments… I don’t want people recognizing me as the masked fighter…”-I say while contemplating if a should take off the coat or not. “Also… The mask… I like it, but there’s no real reason to use it. And it would only bring some weird attention.”
[Brokerage account for Cristopher Lamas was opened]-A text message entered my smartwatch.
“Oh, finally. Let’s buy some stocks before going out.”-I say as I start looking through my brokerage account for Packhorse Master Guild’s stock.
“Mmmm… I have like 7.600.000 won… But I can’t use it all… So, let’s put in about 5.000.000 won, that’s like 5.000$ back home… Then it’s just a matter of time for it to grow by itself.”-I say as I start buying stocks with the money I had plus the money I won during the hunting trip to the field.
[29.411 stocks of ‘Packhorse Master’ guild purchased]
Each stock was 170 won, so I was able to buy 29.411 with a little less than 5.000.000 won. Nothing bad. And it would grow on its own.
“Ok. Now time to go.”-I say as I leave my room, going straight to Cube’s Portal Station.
*KIM HAJIN’S POV*
I finished buying stocks of Packhorse Master guild. With the hunting recently, plus 2.000.000 won I already had; I could buy about 4.500.000 won in stocks.
[26.470 stocks of ‘Packhorse Master’ guild purchased]
I started looking around for a bit of info on the stock market, and a few other guilds or organizations I could invest into while the laptop was still updating. But nothing got my attention.
There was one group that was especially interested in money, and its boss should probably be a Stock Market Player too… She was the boss of Chameleon Troupe, and they would play an important role in the future… But it’s not like I’ll have any kind of contact with them, taking into account that they are more interested in powerful cadets. And not a mere gunner like me.
Also. They’re a criminal organization that kills both humans and Djinns equally if it is for gains. I better don’t step upon their bad side.
“*Argh…*”
Right when I was thinking about Chameleon Troupe and its boss, a sudden intense pain emerged on my left upper arm. It felt as if a hot knife was slowly carving something in my arm, with blood spurting out of it.
“Fuck…”-I groaned while putting my hand over the scar that was slowly being carved out in the skin of my left upper arm.
But it was only the start. As a lot of info came into my mind, making my brain hurt as bad as my arm.
[This Stigma is one of the authorities of the Creator. It contains magic power.]
[One streak of Stigma will be inscribed each time your total acquired SP reaches a certain level, which is when your ‘fame’ increases by a level.]
[You can freely use the magic power stored inside Stigma, which will slowly regenerate over 24 hours even if depleted.]
“What…”-Right then, the laptop’s screen lit up, and I could see the screen.
[Update List]
▷’Book of Truth’ has been added to the Gift, [Observation and Reading]
▷…
▷…
I just couldn’t focus enough to read everything. The extreme and agonizing pain soon made me lose my conscience.
*CRISTOPHER’S POV*
I was currently walking up the Inwangsan Mountain in Seoul. If the info is right, the dungeon should be in some cave in a remote corner of this mountain located in Ogin-dong.
And sure enough, right when I got into one of the highest points, looking down into what you could call a small forest, there was one cave’s entrance that was all covered by bushes. If it wasn’t for my perfect vision, I wouldn’t be able to see it.
“Well, it is currently 1:00 PM, so I guess I should be done before 5:00. Great. Let’s go.”-I murmur to myself as I jump towards the entrance of the cave. And just after moving the bushes a bit, the entrance was revealed.
It was a somewhat small hole, probably only a person at a time could enter this place. The hole was just too small for two people to try crossing it at the same time.
“Well… No one said this was going to be a comfortable walk.”-I say as I go inside.
I’ll be honest. It was like going through a slide in any park. It was slightly cold to the touch, and really slippery. So it was probably intended to be a slide.
“Going back up will be such a hassle…” -My laziness spoke after I got to the end of the slide. I probably fell for at least 10 seconds, in a 50° angle’s slide… It was a really long fall.
I looked around activating my Eyes of the Dragon God completely. Turning them into an abyssal slit pupil’s red eyes.
It was all weird. You could see traces of snow here and there, and a path going inside of what you could call a somewhat big cave. The more you walked, the more snow you found, until you were completely surrounded by snow and even ice.
“Better walk carefully. Didn’t bring ice boots.”-I say as I keep walking.
After a little more than two or three minutes, I found my first monster. It was like a frozen skeleton, with an adult male’s size and icy blue bones, a frozen armor, and a horned helmet. He carried a small hand-ax in one hand and what I would call a Viking shield on the other.
“*sigh…* Why do people think that Vikings used horned helmets? That isn’t true at all…”- I say as I take out my sword from the scabbard and got closer to the skeleton.
It then turned to look at me, with its empty eye-sockets.
“You’re ugly as fuck dude. Haven’t you heard about plastic surgery?”-I ask, but of course, it didn’t answer. “Oh well, let me help you. I did a swift course about it on YouTube.”-I say as I dashed toward it with my sword covered in fire.
It tried to raise its shield, but my sword only passed through it, melting the shield, the arm, and the entire body of the frozen skeleton while cutting it in two.
“Oh… Sorry… I guess the swift course wasn’t all that good… It just taught me how to cut ugly stuff in two…”-I say as I look down at the remnants of the skeleton.
I was about to start walking until something suddenly made me stop in my tracks.
[Magic energy surpasses the limit of the dungeon.]
[Natural Energy was found.]
[Draconic Energy was found.]
[An unidentified energy was found.]
[An unidentified energy was found.]
[An unidentified energy was found.]
[An unidentified entity was found.]
[Dungeon has started to mutate.]
[Corrosion percentage has increased. Monsters would get stronger and contact with the outside world will be temporally sealed.]
[Some monsters have adapted to Spirit Attribute and Spirit Energy.]
[Some monsters have adapted better to Magic Power.]
[Some monsters have adapted better to Natural Energy.]
[Connection to the Demon Realm has been temporally made. Increasing power of monsters.]
[Some monsters have mutated due to Demonic Energy.]
[Boss Monster has been empowered.]
[Boss Monster is now able to roam through the Dungeon.]
[Boss Monster evolves.]
[Boss Monster has made a pact with an unidentified being from the Demon Realm.]
[If the Boss Monster is not destroyed in the next seven days. It will be able to go outside the Dungeon.]
“Oh. Holy. Mother. Fucker. I’m pretty sure this wasn’t what was supposed to happen. Even if I left that question unanswered in the test. A little bit of mana exceeding the capacity shouldn’t have this kind of effect.”-I say while looking at the massive rows of notifications that covered my eyes. This sure was the info from the Akashic Records mixed with Observation and Reading and the Eyes of the Dragon God.
“HA! What? Are the dungeons here intelligent? Fucker. You can’t be serious. What’s that? Demon Realm? Isn’t that shit the end story of this bullshit munchkin novel?”- I say as I facepalm.
“Now what? Is this bullshit going to happen anytime I go inside dungeons? *sigh…* For fuck’s sake… And now I have to clear this bullshit, or the bastard boss will go outside and bring chaos.”
While going through all the new info. I noticed something that I didn’t before because of the surprise.
“What… The… Actual… Fuck? Adapted to Spirit Attribute and Energy? Adapted better to Natural Energy? Adapted better to Magic Power? The fuck does this shit mean?”
Right when I was thinking about what it meant to have adapted. I sensed something coming from inside the dungeon.
“Oh. Shit. You gotta be fucking kidding me. Normal skeletons wouldn’t do so you brought their big brothers? You... shitty Dungeon! Well, Bring it on! I’ll still burn you all to ashes.”-I say as I swing my blade covered in fire and throwing a flame wave towards the big icy blue skeleton that suddenly appeared in front.
But the bastard did something that I didn’t expect at all. It reinforced its shield with Natural Energy, reducing the effect of the fire wave.
I mean. I didn’t use anything strong. Just a little bit of natural energy to make the fire. But fuck. It barely melted the shield.
“So, this is what it meant to become adapted to Natural Energy. The bastards got Natural Energy Resistance… So what? Now they also got Magic Power Resistance and Spirit Resistance? HA! At least it makes this more enjoyable.”- I grip harder my sword. While the fire slowly starts to condense, making it look more like a shining glow covering the sword with red fumes going out of it. This time I’m not only using Natural Energy but also Mana.
I rush towards the Giant Frozen Skeleton. That is only a big version of the first frozen skeleton.
It just put its shield in front. With the ax at his side. And when I thought he will receive the attack as the last time. It suddenly jumps forward. As if trying to tackle me with the shield.
“As if!”-I jump to my left, evading it and stopping on the wall. It tries to use its ax, which suddenly has a blue hue on it.
But I just had to jump again, but not to evade, but rushing right towards it.
“You may have new tricks. But I’m faster.”- And just as I said, I got to it with my sword breaking through its armor. Melting everything on its way. Then. Propelling myself up with its own armor and the kinetic energy that I had with me from jumping off the wall towards it in a horizontal movement, I cut all the way from its chest to its head.
After falling I turn to look at it.
“So… Not just resistances. But the bastards now know how to use mana to reinforce themselves. I wonder if they can do the same with Natural Energy…”- I said as I take the mana and natural energy off my sword. “If I keep doing that, the sword won’t resist too much.”
As I said. Natural Energy or Mana by itself won’t be that dangerous to my sword in small quantities. But if I have to condense both energies for long periods, the sword would break. It’s just a normal cadet sword. And it’s not precisely made from the best materials out there.
“*sigh…* Fuck. I should have looked for a good sword… This happened to me for being an idiot and not considering all possibilities.”
Right when I finish that. At least 15 Giant Frozen Skeletons come from inside the Dungeon.
“Would you look at that? This bastard isn’t any medium enemy here. It’s like the mob of the Dungeon. For fuck’s sake.”-I said before looking at my sword. “So… Would you break before ending this dungeon?”- I asked my Cube’s cadet sword.
{How much would it cost to replace it? I’m sure the teacher said something about them being costly too. *sigh…* I’ll have to take more debts from Cube… And how would I explain about the sword breaking all of a sudden?}-I thought as the Giant Frozen Skeletons come into my sight.
“… Well. Better save the sword for later.”-I say as I put the sword back into the scabbard. “Fuck. The bigger you are, the uglier.”-I say as I look at them while frowning. “So. Who’s first for quick plastic surgery? Don’t be in a hurry. I’ll take care of every one of you guys.”-I say while spreading my arms wide.
Bad choice.
The frontmost skeleton threw its ax as soon as it saw me spreading my arms. I stepped aside while looking at the ax passing right in front of me. So, I just did what anyone would have done.
“I think this is yours. Fucker.”-I grabbed the ax and threw it back to the bastard. The bastard, of course, chose to put its shield in front. Being of the same element. The shield easily repelled the ax.
Rule Nr. 1 of Natural Energy. If an attack and a resistance of the same natural element make an impact. The resistance will nullify the attack. Unless the attack is more powerful than the resistance. The same goes for any antagonist energy. Like spirit attribute attack and spirit resistance, or magic power attack and magic power resistance, only that these two don’t depend on the element.
In case you use an opposing element, your damage would be at much halved. But not nullified. That’s the trick with Natural Energy. It isn’t like Poke**n where a Fire Type destroys a Grass Type. Here. It would still have some resistance against the opposing element.
Of course. It would be totally useless if you were the Grass Type and you tried to use a Grass Element attack towards someone with Fire Element resistance.
In this case. I just threw the ax back. So, it could be said that the ax and the shield had not only the same elemental type of natural energy. But the same level of power.
So, it all resulted in the Giant Skeleton defending from its ax and then picking it up again from the floor to keep the charge towards me with all of its friends.
“You’re all in a hurry to be destroyed huh?”-I said while my arms started burning with fire. The same as my sword did. Resulting in the sleeves of my coat turning to ashes. “I feel kind of benevolent. So, let’s give you your wish. I’ll make a promotion, 16x1 in plastic surgeries. You all amount to only fifteen, so I won’t even charge you. Sounds good?”-I said right before rushing towards them while injecting mana in my legs to raise my running speed.
I got to the frontmost Giant Frozen Skeleton. And I just send it back flying with a punch in the shield. While it wasn’t destroyed. Its shield didn’t exist anymore.
“You bastards have a high physical resistance… That should be why you grew up in size.”-I said while, turning to the next skeleton, which was pushed aside when the first one flew back.
I rush to it and destroy its skull with both hands as if my fists were some kind of nutcracker. Right after that, I had to jump up towards the ceiling evading a horizontal slash and a thrown ax.
I spin just before reaching the ceiling. Adhering myself up there for a second before turning to jump towards the bastard without an ax. Which quickly puts up its shield while another one runs toward us with the ax up.
I grabbed the unarmed bastard’s shield, increased the temperature in my arms, and broke it while jumping back evading the incoming ax.
After getting on the floor, I raise both my arms, and just before three more skeletons tried to chop me with their axes, I drop them to the floor. Making everything around me burn with a fiery explosion, that made all three of the unprotected skeletons turn to ashes.
With 4 of the bastards out of the game, I only have 11 more to take care of. I first take care of the two without shields. The first that I send flying first and the one that was currently unarmed. I just needed to punch them on the skull to make them blow up.
That leaves us with nine more to go.
Looking around, I see that they have surrounding me. One in front. Four on each side. With their shields up. Perfect.
I circulate my mana and natural energy inside my body, and with a specific path, I conjure a quick spell while crossing my arms in front of me and taking a wide stance.
From my fire-covered arms. Smalls orbs of fire start to emerge. They’re really small, like round bullets, and amount to at least 90 of them. They just stay there, floating around me and covering me.
“You know. I heard that lasers are becoming one of the best tools to do plastic surgeries. They can remove anything you want. From unwanted hair, to stretch marks. Even your life if you’re not careful.”-I said right before spreading wide my arms. “Blazing Dragon’s Barrage.”
Immediately after, all the smalls spheres flew at every skeleton. Like bullets going towards their target.
At first, they tried to use the shield to protect themselves. But that only helped them to stop the first three bullets, after which, the shields just burnt and got destroyed. After that. The remaining seven bullets took care of the Giant Frozen Skeletons, burning and destroying them, starting with the skull, the chest, and everything that crossed their path. Until they got to the walls of the dungeons, finally disappearing after leaving holes all around.
“Well. You’re not that resistant it seems.”-I said while looking at all the remaining skeletons falling on the floor. Dead.
I did use a fire spell. But it was a limited one, that replaced power with a quick activation time. Still. I did use more energy than what I’ve been using since getting here, and these skeletons being a mob, it’s not a wonder that they couldn’t resist.
“But still… I’m curious. If this is just the entrance mob. What awaits me at the end? I’m really hoping to see the boss. Let’s see what’s the bastard after evolving and making a contract with an unidentified being from the Demon Realm.”- I said while walking further inside the Dungeon.
