For the next three days, I keep my mind occupied.

Richard’s death lingers at the edges of my thoughts, no matter how much I try to shove it away. Each morning, it’s there. Each night, it waits. But as the days pass, the weight of it dulls—fading bit by bit like an old wound.

Mischief and I dedicate nearly every waking hour to scouring the mountains for the final dungeon. The terrain is breathtaking, a vast expanse of jagged peaks and sun-dappled valleys, but the search itself is tedious.

More than once, I catch myself scanning the horizon. It’s been over a week since the induction and I have yet to see a single monster outside a dungeon.

Eventually it’s me that finds it.

Annoyingly, it was right under my nose the whole time. Back at the mountain lake where I fought the wolf pack nearly a week ago.

The realization is almost comical. Three days of monotonous travel, climbing cliffs, searching caves—and the dungeon was right here? The place I’d already been?

I sigh. Figures.

Still, I can’t be mad. I needed the time. The distance.

I rush back to camp, grab Mischief, and we return within the hour. The location of the entrance is directly behind the small waterfall. The only way inside is through the waterfall itself. I step forward, letting the cold rush of water crash over me as I push through.

Stepping through the entrance, I expect the usual damp caverns and glowing mushrooms.

Instead—bright gleaming light.

The walls are lined with softly glowing gems, pulsing faintly like a heartbeat. The light dances across the cavern floor, refracting off crystals embedded deep within the rock.

Beautiful.

Then, the notification appears.

[You have entered the third and final dungeon. Defeat the lone faction leader to clear the dungeon.]

Unlike the other two dungeons, there’s no objective to clear out other monsters before fighting the faction leader.

The systems lack of consistency doesn’t sit right with me—then we reach the main cavern.

Standing dead center, and unfortunately, proudly illuminated by the glowing crystals—

A fifteen-foot troll.

Naked. Except for a rusty helmet.

And very, very male.

Oh. And he’s carrying what, to him, is a shortsword—but to anyone else, would be a damn claymore.

I glance at Mischief.

Mischief shrugs, tail flicking in mild amusement. Once the troll spots us it doesn’t wait.

Mischief springs into action before I do, taking a flanking position. Leaving me to fight the troll—and the other thing swinging in the breeze—head-on. I ignore the urge to face palm at my unfortunate pun and get moving.

Despite its girth–HEIGHT–I mean despite its height. The troll moves faster than expected.

It chooses to open by using one of its skills–sending an ethereal blade shooting from its claymore screaming towards me. The sheer force behind the swing whistles through the air, carving deep into the cavern floor.

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I sidestep, barely avoiding the strike. No point testing my Barrier against that.

Mischief darts in. Claws rake deep into the troll’s legs, slicing through skin, muscle and ligaments—but the beast doesn’t fall.

Instead, it bellows and swings wildly at Mischief who dodges effortlessly. I’m about to celebrate the crippling blow and move in–but then—the gaping wounds begin visibly closing.

Instant regeneration? Is it a passive trait or a spell? I guess it doesn’t really matter if the results are the same.

Outside of the troll’s initial attack, it’s obvious Mischief and I are in another league speed-wise.

In spite of it launching attack after attack so long as we keep moving the troll poses little threat.

With the troll's attention on Mischief, I close in, slashing deep into the troll’s back—cutting through muscle, and bone. The attack severs the troll's spine. Its legs give out and it heaves forward. I already know that won’t be enough. It’s healing too fast.

The brute slams onto the floor sending dust flying. I don’t wait for it to heal. I swing my sword in a clean arc—

The head separates.

Silence. This whole fight felt so…anticlimactic. Everything so far did. It all reminded me of early fighting in a game that was simply meant to teach you the game mechanics and not pose a threat. I exhale slowly.

Then, the notification appears.

[System Notification]

You have killed [Level 15 Troll].

Level up.

[Dungeon Completion]

Final Dungeon Cleared. Contribution Calculated…

Rewards Earned:

– 15 Universal Bronze Coins

– [Fundamentals of Sword Combat] (Skill Book)

[Hidden Objective Complete!]

Crystal Shard Dungeon has been upgraded from [Common] → [Uncommon]

This is the second dungeon where the resources it held upgraded on a perfect run. I think back to the dire apes. If we would’ve cleared a perfect run did that mean the wood in the forest would be higher grade? Meaning what? Better crafting material?

That sucked. Did that mean I missed out on potential value in my territory? Hopefully there would be more ways of upgrading resources moving forward.

With a dejected shrug I open up my status and examine the skill book I earned. Same as usual without warning or would you like to–the moment I see the book, something shifts in my mind.

Stances. Footwork. Angles of attack.

The knowledge doesn’t feel learned—it feels remembered.

I breathe out slowly. I’m not a master. But I understand.

[You have read and comprehended book: Fundamentals of Sword Combat.]

I’ll still need drills, training, experience. But I just leveled up my brain.

Before I can fully process it, another system prompt appears.

[You have completed the first stage of owning your first territory. Stage 2 has commenced.

Stage 2: Your territory will now be tested by raids. Defeating three raids from competing factions will solidify your claim.

First raid will begin in seven days.

Rewards will be granted upon completion of Stage 2.]

I stare at the notification. So this is what Richard was referring to. Three raids. Survive them, and the land is yours. But fail? Lose it all.

Richard had this exact same objective. He had a team, a fortified camp, a stronghold with a real chance of winning.

So why the hell did he run? Strange. Also, was I the only one getting this objective?

“Hey, Mischief, are you getting any objectives about raids attacking the territory?”

He shakes his head.

“Well, that’s what it says.” I sigh. “I guess we just go back to camp and wait for the fight to come to us?”

Convenient. No more scouring the entire mountain trying to find the elusive dungeons. Seven days. That’s an eternity. What the hell am I supposed to do for a week? Build walls? Train? Sit on my ass? I exhale through my nose. There’s gotta be something useful I can do until then.

Mischief doesn’t respond. Instead, he nudges the troll’s corpse.

Right. Loot it. I glance at the body, remembering something from earlier in the week.

I’d forgotten to loot the Chaos Spawn Champion.

Ever since I told Mischief, he’s made it his personal mission to remind me.

I sigh, crouching down and looting the body. The troll drops a meager 5 bronze coins and its dented helmet. Mischief takes everything and we leave the cave.