"Sweetheart... I know you're upset, but this is getting ridiculous." He sighed. Belle was still sobbing over Verne. While it broke his heart for the first few minutes, it started to get old after the next ten.

"H-He... He just... He worked so hard!" She sniffed loudly, then blew her nose on the hem of her dress.

She had started sobbing after the Adventurers exited the Jungle room, and it had seemed to come from nowhere. One minute she was ready to watch the Two-legs be crushed by the Boss. The next, she was using Sol as a shoulder to cry on.

"Come on, Belle, you know he won't be gone long." He tried to console her, but he didn't think it worked very well.

"I know that! It's just... He looked so happy, and then they cut his head off." She scowled, and her expression darkened considerably. "These Adventurers better not leave alive."

Sol was silently stroking the top of her head. He had gone from the berated child to the nurturing parent in a matter of hours. At her declaration, he nodded his head vigorously, shaking a few loose leaves from his hair.

Both Guide and Treant were sitting on the shelves of the Core room, watching the Adventurers progression through his Core. Sol had Belle in one arm, and his strip of Silk cloth in the other.

"They won't." He assured her. He had claimed the lives of over fifteen Adventurers during the past few days, but he was ready to up his numbers.

They all watched in dismay as the Party breezed through the Trapped hallway. The worst injury they received there was when the ugly Human had tripped, and walked into a Fake Floor trap. Sadly, there was no Falling Boulder pressure plate underneath the thin sheet of rock, and she left unscathed.

When they reached the Flower room, he fully expected them tostruggle and die. Instead, they rushed to the wall on the left side, and crouched behind Lana's shield.

"Cowards. Die with some dignity." He heard Belle growl in her tiny voice. This new version of his Guide was kind of scary, and cute.

"Cowards." Sol mimicked.

They had completely avoided his small lake in the center of the room, and just waited at the wall for the Monsters to come to them.

As expected, his Monsters were too smart to fall for such a basic trap. Sadly, the filthy Dwarf had a ranged spell. When he spotted the Howlers, he easily dispatched them from the sky before they could land their attack. The sister Spinebacks charged afterwards, but Wil knew they would not survive on their own.

"Belle, why does that Two-legs use so many spells? I thought they could only use a few before getting exhausted." It irked him that the lone Adventurer was causing this much trouble for him.

"It's his Level. He's probably a D rank, so he must be above Level 10. Why not check?" She asked casually.

He felt his Core darken, but he held himself back. Barely. "Sweetheart. Check what?" He forced out.

Both of them knew she had gotten caught, and Sol tried to distance himself from the Guide. She looked away in shame. "Didn't I mention... You can check the Adventurers Levels by Inspecting them..."

"No. You did not mention that."

"Right... Well, all you have to do is focus on them! It's... that easy?" She was trying to make it sound like he should have figured it out on his own. Maybe he should have, but he wouldn't admit that.

He wouldn't argue with her today, though. He just absorbed her bed sheets, and replaced them with moss. "One week."

She looked ready to protest, but Sol put a leafed fingertip on the top of her head. He nodded to tell her to let it go. She sulked even further, and kicked the post of her bed. "Fine."

"Can the Two-legs Inspect my Dungeon? Or is it a Dungeon only ability?" He asked.

After tearing her gaze away from the now far less comfortable sleeping arrangements, she responded. "Some do. Most don't. All Dungeons can do it, though. I'm sure at least one person in the town outside can, though."

That put his mind at ease, at least not every Adventurer could Inspect his Monsters. It would have upset him to no end if his power was comparable to that of a Two-legs.

Of course, Dungeons all have it. We're the best.

Once he was done patting himself on the back, he focused as intently as he could on the ugly Human.

Lana Aldritch - Human (Lvl. 5)

Affinity - Earth

Class - Fighter

Dungeons Completed - 0 Specialization - None

This disgusting thing has a higher Level than I do?

Other than that annoying fact, everything else was what he had expected. He turned his attention to the Cleric.

Micah Stormspear- Human (Lvl. 5)

Affinity - Light

Class - Cleric

Dungeons Completed - 0 Specialization - None

Are you fucking kidding me?

It seemed cruel that the Human would have such a cool last name. He thought back to when he had chosen his own name, and now wished he had picked Death Laser more than ever.

Life is cruel. Of course, he's Level 5 too. Just my luck.

He had saved the Dwarf for last, knowing it would only upset him more to end on a bad note. With a silent curse towards the Two-legs, he Inspected him.

Wren Giltrell - Dwarf (Lvl. 11)

Affinity - Water

Class - Mage

Dungeons Completed - 1 Specialization - Freezing

Come on! Seriously!?

"Belle, why the hell is that Dwarf Level 11. This doesn't even seem fair." He said, sulking.

"Oh, he is? That means he's a D rank Adventurer. That stupid Elf you killed was probably the same rank. It's the same as your Levels, Sweetheart. Once they go past Level 10, they become a lot stronger." She seemed just as annoyed as he was at this development, but she didn't look surprised.

"That's why they have been able to get as far as they did, the Dwarf is the equivalent to a Dungeon's Second Floor Monster. So, the ones we have now won't pose too much threat. Except the Boss, of course." She added, but this only upset him further.

"Well still, why does he have a Specialization? What does it even mean?" 

"It's based off of their Affinity and Class. Freezing means he will specialize in offensive Ice spells. There are, supposedly, an unlimited number of Specializations. There are some common ones though, such as Freezing. Other popular ones would be Metal Shaping for Earth, and Lightning for Fire. It just depends on the personality of the Two-legs for what Specialization they get." That last sentence caught him off guard.

"They can't choose what Specialization they get?" He asked incredulously.

"Of course not. Nearly everything is random chance for the Two-legs. This was how Mr. Blue decided it should be." She replied nonchalantly.

This bothered him for some reason, but another question popped into his head. "Why can't I see more detailed information when I Inspect them? Is there more information, or is that it?" Then he realized he had never mentioned the Dwarf had a Freezing Specialization. "Can you Inspect them too!? Why didn't you tell me?"

She took on another look of guilt. "Honestly, I thought Dungeons instinctively knew how to do it. Yes, I can do nearly everything you can. Aside from Dungeon building anyways. Supposedly, some of the higher ranked Adventurers can see very detailed information with their Inspections. I believe, once you level up, you will be able to as well."

Stupid limitations...

He turned his attention back to the Adventurers, and noticed them looting the corpses of the Sisters. It filled him with anger, but he knew this was how it had to be. They hadn't even taken a single bit of damage from them, either. The quills of his Monsters were unable to pierce the new armor the ugly Human had. The spines would probably have hurt the two cowering behind her, but the Sisters had been unable to break past Lana.

"Just as they said, there's a little pond here now." The Dwarf said. 

"It looks so peaceful." Micah added. 

It was only natural the Two-legs would be admiring his Dungeon; it was the greatest.

"There's still at least one Serpent hiding somewhere, if we assume that Mini-Boss was the original Monster in the Ore room." The ugly Human said, looking around for a sneak attack.

She was right, of course. His Monster had been slowly slithering across the branches of the Silverbark tree, ready to ambush them. A word from Wil, and the Serpent backed off. 

Better to use him when they were unaware, than letting him die alone.

After a short swing across his vine pit, the Party reached the Troops room for the second time.

I really need to make that tunnel more dangerous... Just got to make sure Belle doesn't notice.

"Plan is still the same, be ready you two." Wren said.

"Just try not to lose an eye this time." Lana remarked.

"If he does, I won't be able to heal you two much in the Boss room Don't lose to a Monkey again, okay Wren?" Micah joked.

The Dwarf grumbled at this, but he saw a small smile on his lips.

How cute, they care for each other. 

He focused on his Troop, and commanded them. "Kill them all. Only the strong are allowed to fight Grizzly."

A series of hoots reverberated out from behind the door, and the Party all froze. It made him very happy to see how wary they were of his Monsters.

"Think they heard you, kid." Wren smirked.

They lined up in an orderly row, and pushed the door to the room open. Then, their plan fell apart.

"Is that a fucking waterfa-" The ugly Human was cut off by a Monkey jumping on the top of her head. It had been latched onto a vine above the entrance, and pounced on the first Two-legs it saw.

As she was flailing around, trying to dislodge the Monster biting her neck, the other two male Monkeys came out of hiding. They swung from the vines hanging from the ceiling, swaying from pillar to pillar, rushing towards the Party.

The Dwarf released one of those annoying Ice spells, and Wil watched in frustration as one of the oncoming Monkeys was slain on the spot.

The Cleric had helped the other Human, and both were now tag teaming the lone Monster on the ground. They smashed and slashed, battering the poor Monster to a bloody pulp. Wil hated the sight, but knew it was necessary. The damage it had inflicted on the Human was sadly minimal, but the Monkeys purpose wasn't to kill the one with the shield. It was to disorient, and distract the two Humans away from their Party Leader.

This content has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

As the last living male Monkey descended on the Party, Wil watched in fascination at the plan the Monkeys had concocted. In the male's tiny hands, was a large vine. Which he used to wrap around the feet of the Dwarf, tripping him. With a speed he didn't think possible; the Dwarf had been bound completely, and left immobilized.

While the two Humans finished his brother off, he began dragging the flailing Dwarf towards the waterfall in the center of the room. 

He had no idea why his Monsters would sacrifice themselves just to potentially drown one Two-legs, but he soon understood why. His female Monkey, the Leader of the Troop, burst from underneath the waterfall. She hooked her claws deep into the shoulder of the Dwarf, and helped her fellow Monster drag the Two-legs into the water. 

By the time the two Humans had finished off the initial Monkey, Wren was nowhere to be seen. Their Party Leader was hanging by the ankles, connected to a vine from the ceiling, submerged under the waterfall. Both Monkeys had left the Dwarf to his slow drowning, and moved to keep his comrades from helping him.

"These things are fucking psychopaths." Lana grumbled, readying her sword.

"We need to hurry. I'll cut him down, keep those two away. Go!" Micah shouted.

Both lunged towards the waterfall from opposite sides, and the Monkeys split up to intercept one each. The female went to attack Lana, and the lone male for Micah. Wren was still thrashing under the water, trying to cut himself loose. Sadly, his arms were too short to reach his ankles from his position. It was hilarious to Wil.

The female Monkey clashed with the ugly Human, and she raked her claws against the shield the Two-legs was clutching to. The wood creaked and groaned, but held. Deep furrows had been gouged into the wood, and it didn't look like it could handle many more attacks like that. His Monkey kicked the ground in front of her, and threw up a large amount of dirt into the face of the Human. Lana staggered back from this, trying to rub her eyes. 

The Troop Leader wasted no time, and started gouging out the insides of the Human's thighs. Sadly, the snake scale armor on her body proved to be an effective defense. Instead of the 2" deep furrows her claws would normally make, she only managed to leave superficial cuts. 

Wil could practically see the gears turning in his Monsters head, and he cheered her on. He watched as his Monster leapt from her place by the Humans knees, and onto her chest. Lana shrieked at this, and started trying to push the Monster off of her.

"Get off me! I will not lose to a god damned Monkey!" At this declaration, Lana grabbed the Monkey by the back of the neck. The armor on her arm was mauled beyond recognition because of this, and the flesh on her shield arm was now a bloody mess. She dislodged the Monkey, though, and proceeded to slam his poor Monster into the dirt. 

The very ground rippled from the impact point, and his valiant Troop Leader was crushed beyond recognition from the force of the blow.

"What the hell just happened!?" He yelled towards Belle.

"It was her Earth Affinity. She did that spell last time." She said with a small sigh.

He remembered when she had sent a wave of earth out, and it had tripped up his Monsters in their earlier dive. Apparently, it was an effective offensive spell for close quarters as well.

Micah had been fending off the other Monkey throughout Lana's ordeal, but had been unable to slay the Monster. The Cleric just wasn't strong enough to land a finishing blow, but the disgusting Human didn't have that hang-up. She walked over, and severed his Monkeys head off from his shoulders. She had struck the Monster while his back was turned.

Cowardly Adventurers.

Both of them rushed towards the now unconscious Dwarf, and dragged him out of the water. They laid him on the ground, but he was unresponsive to their questioning.

He watched in interest as they pounded on the chest of the Two-legs, and felt disgusted when the tanned Human put his lips to the Dwarf's.

"Gross."

"It's a common technique for resuscitation." Belle said with a frown.

"It's still gross."

It had worked, though. After an obscene amount of water was ejected from his body, Wren stood up. He didn't look any worse for the wear, even after nearly drowning. 

After checking each other for wounds, and the Cleric scolding the ugly Human for letting a Monkey get the best of her, they began moving forward again. 

"Are you sure? I don't think I can do more than one large Heal before I become exhausted. If both of you are injured, I can only save one of you."

"I nearly drowned, and I still want to go. Don't be scared, kid." The Dwarf chided.

"I'm not scared! I'm being practical. You really think Lana will be able to hold her own against a fucking bear!?" 

"If I can't, I'll hide behind you. Now get moving, Drama Queen." She started shoving him forward, and he let out a long sigh before moving on his own.

"There better be some good Loot at the end of this. If not, I'm retiring." Micah grouched.

"You haven't even started your career as an Adventurer. Once we kill the Boss, and clear the Dungeon, you will understand." Wren said with a small smile.

"Understand what?" 

"The sense of accomplishment." He replied with a large grin.

Micah huffed at this, but kept moving forward. They had entered his room with the statues, and paused to admire his work.

"God, that's ugly." Lana said, and the entire Party visibly shuddered while looking at his work.

Stupid Two-legs... 

His statues were still a sore spot, as he hadn't been able to capture the essence of what a Deer should be yet. One day, he would. Then they would stop insulting his work.

All three stopped in front of the door, and the golden jewels set in the wood stared down at them. 

"We can still back out. No harm, no foul." Micah whispered. He was staring at the yellow stones, transfixed.

The ugly Human rolled her eyes, and started pushing the door open. She heaved, and grunted, and made many other disgusting noises. Wren had an Ice spell at the ready, and Micah with his staff in hand. Both were ready to attack at the slightest sign of movement.

Wil knew they would enter unscathed, as Grizzly was currently resting in the inside of his cave. 

"Belle, why isn't Griz going out and attacking them? It's like he wants them to be prepared for him." He remarked.

She just sighed, and cracked a small smile. "I figured this would happen. How would you feel, Wil, if you had spent your entire existence cooped up in a small room? Your purpose to kill Intruders, yet no Intruders come. Isn't it obvious? He wants to put on a show." 

At the end of her lecture, Grizzly stood up from his resting position. He let loose a roar similar to the one they had heard after Verne's death. The walls vibrated from the power, and the Adventurers all hunched in anticipation.

The Party had moved firmly into the room now, and the door behind them slammed shut.

He was wondering why that happened, but she beat him to it. "I know you're about to ask, so I'll tell you. When a Party has committed to fighting the Boss, the door automatically closes on them. It's to prevent Adventurers from killing the Boss from the safety of outside the room."

"Oh. That's useful. For us." He said, imagining the imminent death of the Two-legs.

They had reached the top of the hill, and looked down into the gaping maw that was Grizzly's cave.

"Yeah... There's definitely a bear down there." Lana remarked.

"What gave it away?" Wren asked sarcastically.

"I think the roar did." She said seriously.

"Smartass."

She was about to reply, but Grizzly had grown impatient. One moment, they were staring at a beautiful grassland scenery, intersected by a river. The next, a bear 9ft tall was sprinting towards them from the bottom of the hill. The ground shuddered under his charge, and he aimed to run right through their formation.

"Scatter!" Wren yelled.

Each Adventurer dove in a different direction, and Grizzly missed the ugly Human by inches. He whirled around, now standing on top of the hill, and swiped low towards the fallen Human. She threw herself down the hill, crashing into the mouth of the cave. She avoided the swipe, though, and the spot where she had been was now missing nearly a foot of dirt.

"Keep moving!" Wren shouted. He was a good 20ft away now, and was tossing out as many spells as he could. The Ice shards impacted against Grizzly's hide, shattering into a cloud of icy mist. Each time a spell landed; Grizzly slowed in his charge towards the Party.

When the mist had cleared, everyone saw that the spells had only done minor damage at best. Small patches of blood-covered fur ran across Grizzly's side, but none of the wounds looked to be impairing the Boss. 

Lana had hobbled out of the cave mouth now, and stood directly in the path of his Boss. "Come on, you fucker!" She challenged.

Grizzly responded with another war cry, and slammed directly into the Human. She had set her legs firmly into the ground, and had actually managed to stop Grizzly head on. She pushed against her shield with her shoulder, and held the Boss at bay as he tried to bulldoze over her.

"She's using her Affinity to keep herself rooted to the ground." Belle observed.

Wil just laughed. The Human had a strong Earth Affinity if she could stop his Boss head on. Unfortunately, Grizzly had only been testing them.

With a low snarl, his Boss reared up on two legs, and slammed into the ground. Grass and dirt exploded from the ground, rippling out from him as if a pool of water had been disturbed. Lana was sent careening away, and the Dwarf who had been casting continuous spells was knocked off his feet.

The ugly Human had actually been hit so far; she was sent flying into the river. Being at the epicenter of Grizzly's attack had the same effect as her spell had had on the female Monkey. Wil was certain the only reason she survived was because of her new armor.

Belle was cheering at the top of her lungs, and he couldn't tear his gaze away from the fight. His Boss was everything he had expected, and more.

As Grizzly rumbled towards the fallen Dwarf, mouth drooling, Wil laughed maniacally. Grizzly's fangs were nearly as long as the Dwarfs entire arm, and just as thick. He could practically hear the bones snapping in his mind.

Whack!

Grizzly let out a soft moan, as a metal tipped staff smacked against his snout. Blood leaked from his nostrils, but the Boss was otherwise unharmed. Whirling to the side, Micah was standing there with a dumbfounded expression.

"Oh." Was all he managed, staring at the insurmountable wall that was the Boss.

Does this Two-legs have a death wish? Why would he purposefully grab the attention of Grizzly like that?

"Idiot." Belle remarked.

His Boss seemed equally confused by the Cleric's valiant, but foolish, attack. With what Wil could only describe as a shrug; Grizzly lifted one paw off of the ground, and side-swiped the Human. 

Before his feet had even left the ground, a bloody mist ruptured into the air. He could hear bones snapping after the initial swipe, as the Humans body rag dolled across the room. Once the dust had settled, the Cleric lay there gasping, left side mangled beyond recognition. His side had large furrows gouged into the flesh, and the armor he had previously worn was in tatters.

The distraction hadn't been for nothing. Lana had sneaked up on the Boss while he watched the Cleric fly across the room. She had managed to get within a few feet of Grizzly before he noticed her approach, but he was too large to maneuver out of the way of her strike. Her sword pierced the tendons in one of his ankles. She sawed her blade across the flesh of Grizzly's leg for as long as she could, until the Boss was able to counter. 

With a loud roar, he snapped his teeth towards her face, narrowly missing. There was an audible clack as his teeth snapped shut. She pulled her blade free, and tried to retreat. Grizzly wouldn't let her get away so easily, and swiped with his uninjured paw towards her. She readied her shield, and absorbed the blow. 

The wood groaned against the pressure, and was smashed to splinters in her hand. The marks the female Monkey had left must have weakened the shield more than she thought, as she had a look of disgust at the now useless board of wood strapped to her arm.

Grizzly looked ready to go for another bite, but attacking with his paw had left him off balance. Trying to stand on his injured leg had only worsened the wound, and he collapsed into a cloud of dust. Lana took this chance, and rushed towards the Cleric.

Another bolt of ice pierced Grizzly's hide as he tried to stand up.

"I can keep him off of you! Check on the kid!" Wren shouted towards the fleeing Lana.

"Way ahead of you, Shortstack!" She yelled back.

Wren looked towards the crippled Boss, and began forming another spell. Grizzly was done laying down, though, and made his move. Pillars of earth ruptured out of the ground in a line, heading straight towards the Dwarf. 

I've never seen him do that before.

The structures of earth were over 5ft tall, and looked as thick around as a tree. Each one shot up vertically, but more followed after the next. Soon, a line of pillars was on a collision course for the Two-legs. He dove to the side, but was too slow. One caught his side, and launched him straight into the air. 

"Shiii-" He screamed, as he fell back towards the ground.

He landed with a crunch, and Wil could tell one of his legs had broken. The Dwarf collected himself quickly, though, and soon had a new spell formed in his hand. It was impressive how quick he responded during the heat of battle. He lay on his back, head lifted up, and arm raised. It was clear he was no longer able to walk, and Grizzly was now stalking towards the prone Dwarf. Spell after spell crashed into the face of his Boss, but Grizzly no longer cared about pain.

The golden eyes looked down on the body of the Dwarf, and Grizzly was standing directly over him. Small droplets of blood leaked from his snout, and fell onto the face of the Two-legs. 

"Do your worst, you oversized bastard!" The Dwarf challenged; Wil saw the fear in his eyes.

Grizzly opened his maw, and began aiming the final blow.

Belle was shouting now, screaming at the top of her lungs. So was Wil, but the Boss was too engrossed in the fight to hear their cries of warning.

Just as the first tooth pierced the Dwarf's flesh, the ugly Human let out a war cry, and a sword was driven into the neck of his Boss. A howl of pain, followed by a low whimper. The Dwarf took the opportunity, and pulled the dagger from his side. He slammed the blade up to the hilt into the eye of Grizzly. 

Even with a blade nearly a foot deep into his neck, and another up to the hilt in his eye, Grizzly did not relent. It wasn't enough. Until Micah, now considerably less wounded, slammed his staff against the hilt of the dagger. The force knocked the knife further in, piercing his brain.

Grizzly collapsed directly onto the Dwarf, and would have most likely suffocated him if left there. Sadly, he exploded into a cloud of golden-green mana, removing the weight off of the Dwarf. 

All three Adventurers stared at each other. Then Wren let out a small chuckle, which turned into a full laugh. The two Humans joined in, and soon ,they were all in tears. Wil couldn't tell if it was tears of sadness, happiness, or fear. He assumed it was a mixture.

"You're still alive." Wren said to Micah.

"Used up my last spell to keep my heart pumping. Consider yourself lucky. If we had been a moment late, you would be dead." He said, clutching his side. Blood still poured from the wounds, but his organs were no longer in danger of spilling out.

Wil tuned out their light banter, and looked to his Guide.

She had that look on her face again. The same one she had after Verne had died. 

"Don't cry, Belle. He did his best, and next time, he will do even better."

Her head whipped towards his Core, and she rubbed her eyes. "Okay. You're right."

While it was a serious blow to his pride as a Dungeon, he now had a begrudging respect for the Adventurers in front of him. They had certainly proven themselves capable, if nothing else. He would not let them leave alive next time, though.

Then he heard the Party exclaim, and turned his focus back to them.

"Don't you even touch it." Micah growled.

Lana's fingers were smacked away by his staff, and she had an impish grin. "Just keeping you on your toes. The stick is all yours, Micah."

Wren nodded at this, and the Cleric sighed. "At least it wasn't a total bust." In his hands was an ornately carved piece of wood, with a fang firmly fused into each end. It made Wil think of a double-bladed spear, but he had no idea where it had come from.

"What is that Belle? I didn't make that for them." He would never reward Adventurers with something so powerful.

She had a sad smile on her face. "It's Boss Loot. You remember you couldn't set Grizzly's Loot, right? All Bosses come with predetermined Loot, and it looks like one of Grizzly's drops is a staff. Though, I suppose, it may be closer to a spear."

"Hmph. I guess if any of them did deserve a new piece of gear, it would the one who had nearly died. Oh well, I can absorb it when they die in here during their next visit." He knew they would come back; he could see the greed in their eyes. The look of accomplishment they had plastered on their faces disgusted him.

"Well, now what?" The Cleric asked, hugging the new staff to his chest.

"We pay our respects, then get the fuck out of here. You need to have Holly check you out, ASAP." Wren replied. The Cleric had come up besides him, and the Dwarf used him as a makeshift crutch. One of his legs was definitely broken.

"I won't pass out. At least not for a few more minutes, so let's do this quickly." Micah retorted.

"I'll drag you by the hair, since you like doing that to me so much." Lana quipped.

Micah just shrugged, and moved to cross the river. All three Adventurers were heading away from the now open Boss door, and towards the Core room.