Finally!
Despite it being only an hour so in the real world, I had been phasing in and out of my dungeon, so roughly two days in real-world time.
During that time, I had been practicing my fluency, syntax and pronunciation. I worked on improving my literacy and vocabulary.
When fully locked in, it’s amazing what you can achieve in 24 hours. I can more or less speak like a native. I even got another skill, [Concentration], which essentially lets you focus better. It helped a lot, and I somehow powered it all the way to level 2. It can also be used in battle to dodge and stuff, so it pairs well with my high speed stat. My armour is more defence based, but a +30 speed is something I'd take anyway.
On my second 'day', I went around making cool combos with [Melee]. I can move around like an acrobat and do front flips and other cool stuff. I've also been trying to integrate that in with my dagger techniques for a cool fighting style.
To be honest, the progress I’m making in this town is far slower than my fast, rapid growth in that dungeon.
Of course, there are some benefits, like not being attacked every 5 minutes.
Although, I can't fight any monsters while in this sub-space. Also, time flows slower here.
So, monster fighting for power-ups and levels, and dungeon for refining skills and technique?
Well, as I was saying before, Charles finaalllyyy started his shift. I dash to the Adventurer's Guild, and slam both my hands on the receptionist desk. Charles recoils in surprise.
"Rena? What's with the urgency?"
I glare at him.
"New. Mission. Now."
Charles just stares at me blankly. Maybe a hint of annoyance as well. He opens his mouth, closes it, takes a sigh, and opens his mouth again.
What are you, a goldfish?
He finally starts, but his tone already suggests he's pissed, "Are you actually a dumbass? You're a Bronze-badge, Rena! Get real, you'll be picking flowers and going to Lala land until you get a High Bronze-badge!"
Sure, I get why. The guild probably won't send a bunch of newbies out to die, just like that. So, you start off slow, slowly becoming strong enough to deal with monsters, before you actually fight them.
"But I've fought monsters before! I single-handedly took down a C-rank! Can't you just make an exception? Please?"
Grah! Just bend the rules! I don't care if it's your job or not, bend them!
"Rena, we both know you've already been treated as an exception. But dead ass, you have to start off by collecting flowers and shit. Guild Master Koya will fuck me over if I send you on a monster quest right now." Charles shares a sheepish grin while also looking serious at the same time.
Aarg! I guess I have to follow the rules…
...Unless…
"What if I 'independently' go kill some monsters? You won't be held responsible if I die, right?"
Charles gives me a wry smile.
"Hmm? What independent monster killing? I have no idea what plan you're trying to formulate. But hypothetically, if you did kill a C-rank, you would instantly get promoted to High Bronze. And if you die, I won't get held liable" he says jokingly.
As I turn to leave, Charles calls me.
He looks deadpan serious.
"Don't die. I don't want another adventurer death on my hands. I'm only suggesting this because you're strong enough to do it"
I give a quick nod and head out.
Really, me die? Haha! Never going to happen. Nope! Never ever!
I wake up to utter darkness.
I feel around, only to find the crusty texture of dead grass enveloping my fingertips.
I look up, and see two small moons, dimly glowing, lighting up the night sky.
W-where am I?
NOT!
In fact, it isn't even night-time. It's the afternoon.
I chose the meadow as the space to shift to because…
...Well, I don't know any monster-infested areas apart from this place. If I just thought 'place with monsters', who knows where I might've ended up?
The grass here lies pretty low, and there certainly aren’t any trees around, let alone a canopy.
If there were monsters, I'm sure I could see them from a distance away.
Buut. I see no monsters, which is weird.
So either this place actually isn't run down by monsters, or they're staying somewhere out of sight.
If there were no monsters, then I should be seeing more animals.
To confirm my theory, I activate [Appraisal].
Underground? I don't see any holes or burrows though. What even are Pranels? [Appraisal], help me out, will you?
[Earth Manipulation], huh? I do suppose that would work, and that would also explain the lack of any actual visible holes around.
I really don't want to wait again! Why do I always have to wait around?
Sigh
I guess I'll buy some meat at the market and wait for night…
Well, I went to the market and bought some cheap looking meat for 17 Bronze coins.
It actually looks nice, but no way am I going to eat food used as bait!
I dump the meat on the floor and wait around for the Pranels to come. I hang my head backward, and stare at the three suns.
Yeah. Pretty surreal, huh?
But just like the moons, these suns are much smaller.
Good thing though. If there were three Earth-sized suns, this planet would have either melted or sucked in!
Right now, the three suns are setting. The horizon looks purply-pink.
Soon
I laze around a bit more and wait for the suns to finally set, and the blanket of darkness covers the skies.
Finally!
As if moved on by plot or something, a Pranel pops out of the ground almost instantaneously. It looks a bit like a mole, but with rigid and spiky tendrils, and cloaks of black fur over patches of brown skin.
Er, why does this Pranel look rabid as well?
Are all monsters in the Extrava Meadows rabid? Or maybe they just look like that.
I give it Pranel a quick [Appraisal].
Nameless Level: 3 Rank: C Class: (primary): None Class (secondary): None Health: 208 Damage: 235 Mana: 298 Speed: 203 Titles: None Skills: [Earth Manipulation Lv3], [Stealth Lv5], [Slash Lv6]> Overall, this guy is weaker than the King. However, that was simply because my speed was higher. This guy also has an unseen skill, [Earth Manipulation] as well as [Stealth]. The Pranel9 slashes at me with its front claws. Luckily, my armour tanks most of the damage, and only a fraction of my health is chipped away. The mole digs - or more accurately -moves the earth away and goes into hiding again. "Pretty shy, huh?" However much I wave it off, I can confirm this guy is bad news. When the mole digs into the ground, I have no method of killing it. And when it bursts out, I also have no method of counterattacking. It sort of reminds me of whack-a-mole. I hear the ground rumbling an instant before the mole leaps out from underground. I leap back, and slash in front of me… ...only to cut up thin air. Because the mole didn't go for me, it went for the meat! I forgot that [Appraisal] said it steals food, not kills people! Within an instant, the meat vanishes, getting dragged underground with the mole. I reach for a back pocket pouch and throw another chunk of meat on the ground. Good thing I bought some extra… This time, I strategically lace the meat into slices. This way, the mole can't just jump in and grab all the food at once. I hide in a patch of long grass, weeds and the occasional flower, slinking down and waiting for the approaching mole. Crouching down, I start to wait. Shit, I've done a lot of waiting the past days, haven’t I? Silence ensues for the next few minutes. I start dozing off until I feel a faint vibration beneath my feet. Moments later, the mole pops out again. However, this time, I'm prepared. Holding my [Ebony Daggers] backhand, I slice the moles tough hide. It doesn't cleanly cleave through, but it did do noticeable damage. The mole squeaks in surprise and faces me, diverting its attention from a potential meal to a...another potential meal. However, I won't back down just like that! I've noticed a miniscule and subtle - but important detail - the ripples and vibrating in the ground before the mole jumps out. I place my hands on the grassy terrain, stretching my fingertips in an attempt to feel any tingling. This story has been taken without authorization. Report any sightings. I also listen intently. Silence More silence Silence And then, I feel the grass slightly jiggle. Especially in the area adjacent to me. The mole springs out, with a trail of blood ensuing. The mole, being roughly half the size of me, is an easy opponent in close combat. Still midair, the mole is unable to move freely. Instead of cutting it, I land an upwards round-house kick, flinging it further into the air. Predicting the trajectory, I jam my daggers into the back of the moles head while it's still unable to dodge, pulling it towards me. I kick its torso away from me at the same time, pulling between the moles head and its body. I hear a satisfying pop as the moles head dislocates from its body with a violent stream of blood pouring all over my shiny, brand new armour. Ew All basic attributes increased. Level-up proficiency acquired Skill [Run Lv2] has become [Run Lv3] Skill points acquired Combat points acquired 50% of max health recovered> As I use Pranels fur coat to rub the blood off my armour, I hear another distant rumbling. The sound grows closer and closer, and I hear the very earth get ripped apart. I duck barley fast enough to dodge a rugged claw. Nameless Level: 2 Rank: C Class: (primary): None Class (secondary): None Health: 245 Damage: 216 Mana: 232 Speed: 201 Titles: None Skills: [Earth Manipulation Lv6], [Stealth Lv2], [Slash Lv3]> Nameless Level: 5 Rank: C Class: (primary): None Class (secondary): None Health: 278 Damage: 205 Mana: 276 Speed: 223 Titles: None Skills: [Earth Manipulation Lv7], [Stealth Lv5], [Slash Lv6], [Dig Lv3]> Nameless Level: 1 Rank: C Class: (primary): None Class (secondary): None Health: 214 Damage: 216 Mana: 248 Speed: 201 Titles: None Skills: [Earth Manipulation Lv7], [Stealth Lv4], [Slash Lv2]> "...Are you kidding me?" Dealing with them one at a time was fine - albeit a bit hard - but three? Three at once? This brings back memories from my roach days! ...Which actually wasn't too long ago. Really goes to show how much I've grown. Two of them burrow underground while the third one stays above ground, growling loudly to cover up the sound of the two others burrowing. Damn it! I can't take the dead mole with me - only I can enter the dungeon - but I can't win this! I need to somehow drag the corpse around with me and make it back to town! I open a maps function on [Appraisal] (Yeah, you heard that right) Looking at the map, I can guesstimate it would take my ten minutes to get there at my max speed. Easy enough, right? Well, just one problem: Every. Single. One. Of. The. Moles. Are. Faster. Then. Me. That means I can't even run away, even if I dropped the mole. I guess I could just retreat into my dungeon whenever I'm on low heath, heal up, and jump right back into the battle. I've gotten used to warping a bit, but I still feel sick whenever I warp. And it takes time for the dungeon to suck me in. During that time, I'm totally vulnerable, and unable to fight back. It is quite literally, a last resort. I could simply run away right now, but I've spent a bit of money on bait. I wouldn't want it to go to waste. What? No, this isn't me being stingy! I am the ruler of Greed, am I not? Besides, I did a more advanced [Appraisal] search, and these guys are super social! I got lucky that the first mole was alone. Next time, I might not be as lucky. Well, I see no other option but to fight. I slowly unsheathe my daggers, and I see the two moons on my dagger, being reflected by a clean coat of blood. Two moles jump at me from both sides, in an attempt to flank me. The third mole stops growling, and darts at me. Instead of panicking, I wait. Slowly timing until… As soon as the opportunity comes, I foll forwards. The mole that was in front of me leaps and crashed into the ground, before sinking underground again. The other two moles slam into each other, in an almost comical manner. This is where skills like [Rationality] and [Concentration] come in handy! I keep quiet, and let my ears do the work. A soft rumbling behind me… Right when the mole pops out again, I slash behind me, trying to cut the moles back instead of its belly. I fail, but still manage to get a deep cut on the moles stomach. The mole retreats underground again, and the two other moles follow its lead. You see, when the moles burst out of their tunnels, they're frontal area faces you. It's only natural, I suppose. Since their back faces the other way, but their front is susceptible to attacks, these moles have evolved to get stupid amounts of thick skin near their belly and chest. But the other side? Almost nothing there. Just come fur and soft skin. If there were any trees here, this would be much easier. I could just scale up, and the moles wouldn't be able to do anything. A mole pops up beneath my feet. I jump sideways, but another mole leaps up and intercepts me. It swings at me, and the collision causes a loud clang. I sure love proper armour! I look prim and proper as well! Ignore the rags I wear under my armour. Maybe I should get some new clothes. If I wasn't wearing my [Ebony Chest-plate], that attack would have annihilated me. Maybe not annihilate, but it would deal significant damage. Even with armour, that attack ripped away 20% of my maximum health. These moles are also learning, I guess. The counterattacks are annoying, but I can manage. Just like with the King, I'll outdo them in a game of minds! I foresee the third mole bursting out and slashing right in front of me. Just as I predicted, the mole flies out of a hole several centimetres from me. Unfortunately for the mole, I had swiftly sidetracked and moved behind the mole. With it's backside facing me, I slit its fragile skin, piercing through flesh and maybe even bone. The mole, unable to do anything, flops onto the ground, dead. All basic attributes increased. Skill [Concentration Lv2] has become [Concentration Lv3] Skill [Rationality Lv2] has become [Rationality Lv3] Skill points acquired Combat points acquired. 50% of max health recovered.> Come on, it was as if they were begging to get hacked up! Besides, these moles sure give out a lot of XP. I literally slaughtered a hundred or so rank F baby roaches, and barely levelled up! Higher ranks just hit different, both metaphorically and physically. "...Oops" I forgot I had CP before! Which attributes do you wish to increase? Health: 163 Damage: 178 Mana: 72 Defence: 154 Speed: 177> Haven't I said before? Speed, all in! Confirm and check! Remaining points: 0> With just two moles left, this should be marginally easier. The moles usher themselves underground again. Seriously, is that all they can do? Skill-wise, yeah. That's all they really can do. Despite our large difference in base stats, I'm wearing armour, which greatly boosts my defence. I also have a lot more skills. According to [Appraisal], the usual maximum is 5 skills, but [Absorption] boosts that to a maximum of 10 skills. And finally, my insane title: [Underdog]. So if you take everything into consideration instead of looking raw stats, I'm actually stronger than the moles. One-one-one, at least. When I first got [Underdog], I thought it was hot garbage. But after arriving to Windport, I realised something: A person can't rank up. That might also be why adventurers have their own rating method - badges - instead of adopting the systems rank-based rating. I mean, a level 1,000,000 rank F is heaps stronger than a level 1 rank A or whatever. That example might be a bit far stretched, but it should give you the gist of things. So being the lowest rank, [Underdog] can seriously turn the tables! [Appraisal] didn't give too much information, but I'd say roughly x4 damage to a rank A! While I take another walk in my own mind, the moles attack. I move on instinct, parrying a slash to my right with both my daggers, and using my greaves to block the slashes on my left. One of the moles snarls and takes a leap back. I look at its status and see its mana rapidly draining. Oh no. Somethings off. The earth around me bursts apart, forming a barricade of walls and forming a bird cage around me. The mole's mana has dropped down to 30% already. I try to break through, but a procession of spikes slowly inch forwards. I check the mole's mana. W-what?! Its mana already fell to 0%! How is it still controlling this? The answer stands to my left. The other mole uses its mana, and propels the spikes at me. S-shit. The spikes edge closer, their tiny pricks swirling around like drills. I try to either block or break them, but the numbers are simply too overwhelming. An extensive amount creep through gaps in my armour, piercing right through my skin, and into my tendons. The pain is bearable, thanks to [Pain Resistance]. Barely bearable, but still manageable. Skill [Pain Resistance Lv5] has become [Pain Resistance Lv6]> I keep on trying to break free wile glancing at the moles mana. 17% 11& 6% 2% The sharp rods dig into my skin one final time. Sh-shit! I'm getting crucified! Run! I need to run! R-r… ...No. I need to calm down. Get composed, heal up, and calm down. The moles watch, flabbergasted, as I slowly fade away. I moan in agony. When my dungeon sucked me in, it literally ripped those tiny needles out of me. Small pools of blood form around me, coalescing into a crimson sea. I'll wait around and let [Reparation] heal- Skill [Reparation Lv5] has become skill [Reparation Lv6]> A I was saying, I'll wait for [Reparation] to fix me up. In the meantime, I guess I'll recompose my thoughts. The moles spend all their mana making that horrid birdcage. When I warp out, I'll try to slink behind one of the moles. They'll have no more mana left, which means no more hiding in holes. If I can injure one of the moles with a surprise attack, then a two-on-one would favour me. If I want to do that, I need to push back the feeling of nausea. Without [Earth Manipulation], the only actual combat skill they'll have is [Slash]. Even better, [Slash] is a melee-based skill. And what skill do I have? That’s right! I have the [Melee] skill, so I can hard-counter the moles. [Reparation] and my [Ebony Chest-plate], though mainly [Reparation], have gotten my health from 13% to 29% already. My stamina also recovered. Mana? ...Well, it was full to begin with. Maybe I should get a magic related skill. It seems wasteful just to have mana lying around, doing nothing. I want to maximise efficiency! Well, with 350 SP, I can solve that issue! I've got 280 SP saved up, so within a few levels, I can obtain it: [Dark Magic]. It certainly is worth its value. You see, there are three types of 'magic': Manipulation, Magic and Conjuring. Magic manipulation lets you control the corresponding attribute. For example, the moles moved the earth near them t navigate underground. It’s the most inferior type of magic because it can only be used if you have that element around. Then, there’s Magic, well… Magic magic. This is the thing you think of when you hear 'magic'. It lets you produce magic from thin air at the cost of mana, and you can control and manipulate that magic. Really, it’s like a carry-around sort of magic manipulation, meaning you can use it whenever. This is the type of magic I want. Then there’s Magic conjuring. Conjuring only works on items or inanimate objects. Essentially, you carve some magic runes into that item, and it can be activated with mana. This way, people without a magic or manipulation skills can still fire spells and stuff. In a world where the norm is a max of 5 skills, magic items are in extremely high demand. Naturally, that means they cost a fortune to buy. And having piles of money is not what I'm known for. In fact, I'm most famous as the classless beggar who Yache got accepted into the Adventurer’s Guild. So yeah. Conjuring is off my radar. I can buy [Dark Manipulation] for a measly 150 SP, but I don't really see how the night or whatever can be weaponised. However, [Dark Magic] is a different story. I can shoot bullets of darkness and other cool stuff. The bullets have mass but can only be blocked by pure-mana shields. Armour gets totally ignored. I can also blend into shadows, which sounded kind of sketchy. But in battle, I could sneak into my opponent’s shadow or something! I glance up and see my health bar hovering. It slowly flickers from orange back to green. 71% Guess I'll wait around for a bit more. I pace around in circles, slowly waiting for that bar to reach 100%. After yet another long wait, my health finally reaches 100% If I remember correctly, one of the moles were two metres behind me. Teleport me 2.5 metres from my previous location, please. When I warp around, I look around The moles just stands there, confused ‘Where the heck did that girl just go?’ Is what I bet they're thinking. One of the moles; the one on the other side, looks behind its companion in horror. The mole in front of me turns around to see what its friend is gawking at, until a dagger comes flying out of nowhere, slashing the moles back and revealing a gnarly set of pale-white bones. All basic attributes increased. Level-up proficiency acquired. Skill points acquired. Combat points acquired. 50% of max health recovered.> On reflex, I pour my CP into speed. Which attributes do you wish to increase? Health: 174 Damage: 192 Mana: 97 Defence: 187 Speed: 189> Remaining combat points: 0> The final mole is the strongest. After all, it has 4 skills and is level 5. However, such a tiny difference doesn't mean much to me. Without mana, this might as well be me fighting a Queen. The mole recklessly charges at me, headfirst. I use my boots to smash the mole away, before chasing it down. I grab it by its snout and try to fling it into the air. Sadly, my damage stat isn't high enough, so I'm only strong enough to fling at a metre or so above the ground. However, while midair, the mole is unable to dodge. I materialise my final chakram - the one from the roach battle and hurl it towards the mole. It cuts through the mole and takes the mole's health bar into the yellows. It tries to fight back, but yeah… no. I finish the mole off with a quick incision to its head. All basic attributes increased. Level-up proficiency acquired. Proficiency has reached required level Skill [Melee Lv9] has become [Melee Lv10] Skill points acquired. Combat points acquired. 50% of max health recovered.> Whew! Time to allocate CP. Which attributes do you wish to increase? Health: 196 Damage: 208 Mana: 104 Defence: 201 Speed: 213> Well, I have 320 SP now. In two more level-ups, I'll get [Dark Magic], so maybe I should prepare by increasing my low mana stat? Confirm?> It doesn't seem like a bad decision, so sure. Go ahead. Remaining combat points: 0> Because I'm rank F, the XP scaling sure is nice! I probably get more XP when I beat foes well above my 'recommended rank'. But thanks to [Absorption] I'm sure I'm way stronger than a rank D adventurer. Based on this fight, Maybe I can scale with Lower Silver-badges? That would roughly be a low levelled rank C adventurer. Well, I give myself an [Appraisal] Name: Rena Shinohara Level: 20 Rank: F Class: (primary): None Class: (secondary): None Health: 196 Damage: 208 Mana: 109 Speed: 213 Titles: [Underdog], [Monster Hunter], [Monster Slayer], [Dungeon Master], [Demon Lord] Skills: [Absorption, [Appraisal], [Melee Lv10], [Reparation Lv6], [Menace Lv5], [Run Lv3], [Resentment Lv2], [Rationality Lv3], [Concentration Lv2], [Pain Resistance Lv6]> Now my stats average at 200-ish! Time to take these bodies back to town and get a quick promotion!