Gradually, my muscles loosen. All my skills deactivate, and I shift my focus to the peculiar surroundings. Meanwhile, the red-haired man maintains his pleasant smile, seemingly unaffected by my flashy arrival.
"My name is Rylan by the way. If you're making an entrance like that, this must be your first time on the 10th floor."
"I'm Jay. It is my first time..."
After I reply, the ginger-haired man begins to walk down the light grey stone pathway toward the small cluster of shops and merchant stands.
Curiously, I follow. He continues talking as we pass by the first vendor, an older gentleman offering to buy mana crystals from the floors below.
"Usually it takes Hunters at least 24 hours to make it up to floor 10. It doesn't matter your level or abilities, the distance is just way too far!"
I nod while eyeing the inventory of the next merchant stand we walk by. There's food, water, potions, clothing, and even basic non-magical medicines.
Rylan continues.
"Floor 10 is the checkpoint where most logical hunters stop before traveling up or down any further. It's the perfect place to rest."
We pass a few more stands buying and selling various goods, then my temporary dungeon guide grins while pointing to our left. There's 2 men and a woman training with swords, daggers, and shields in a field about 50m off the path.
"Those are my teammates over there. We're headed to floor 16 to farm High Ogres tomorrow morning. The 4 of us have been training pretty hard these last few months, we might even face the boss soon and take a crack at floor 17."
I use inspect on the man in front of me.
[Lv. 329]
Then turn to his teammates.
[Lv. 331]
[Lv. 327]
[Lv. 326]
I reply.
"Hey- uh- why exactly are you giving me a tour...?
Rylan laughs.
"I was a newbie once too! I'm just paying it forward, it's nice to have someone show you around the place, isn't it? Old habit, I used to be a teacher."
I smirk and roll my eyes, letting out a sarcastic response.
"You've got nothing better to do, huh?"
He throws his arm around my shoulder, ignoring my remark.
"Come on, this way!"
As we approach the Inn at the end of the long stone pathway I quickly turn my head to Appraise Rylan and his teammate to realize a few simple facts...
First, they have pretty decent weapons and armor. Some 30-50% stat-boosting items along with 300+ stat-boosting gear aren't anything to laugh at. The unfortunate discovery lies in their set of skills.
Among them, two possess the ability of Body Hardening, enhancing their physical defenses. The red-haired leader of the group has Swordsmanship. Then finally, the short-haired woman in their party possesses Dagger Mastery.
They're useful skills, but pretty basic. It makes a lot more sense now how training for months only allows them to jump one floor in the Labyrinth. There is nothing special about their squad....
I turn my head all the way around to get a full Appraisal of nearly a dozen hunters in the shopping area.
A frown begins to form across my face as I realize everyone here is just mindlessly farming for the Association. Taking into account their physical appearances, my guess is I'm the youngest one on this floor by at least a decade...
Sometimes I forget my squad is the cream of the crop. I should keep my head down and stay as low-key as I can. Being the young show-off is never a good first impression.
Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.
I gulp, swinging my head back around to examine the 2 story-tall Inn we're slowly approaching. It's made of the same grey-colored brick the path beneath my feet is constructed of.
The building before us spans a considerable width, measuring 30 meters from left to right. Its height reaches about 10 meters, while its length stretches back around 20 meters.
Theres about a dozen small windows on the front side, and its sole chimney still puffs out smoke. Rylan creeks open the poorly crafted wooden door at the entrance and we walk into the small tavern-like lobby.
There's a staircase at the back corner of the room next to a long desk being manned by a shorter black-haired gentleman in a suit and silver glasses.
There are drinks lined up behind him, but also papers and room keys. It looks like a half-bar half-hotel lobby receptionist desk.
The 10 meters of room in front of him are filled with circular tables and chairs. Another dozen or so hunters fill the Inn holding drinks, eating food, and sifting through their loot.
Darting my eyes back and forth I scan most of them as we make our way to the long wooden check-in desk at the back. They're all level 270-330 middle-aged hunters, carrying average gear, and wielding common skills.
Our footsteps creek the tavern floor as we make our way through the small crowd. A couple of heads turn to nod or smile at the redhead leading the way, he must be a regular around here. We make it to the front desk and the short man slightly bows his head before looking up.
"Good to see you again Rylan, who's your guest? Shall I make arrangements for your party to book another room?"
He shakes his head and motions for me to step forward.
"Mr. Conway, please, meet Jay. Jay, meet the 10th-floor Inn keeper, Mr. Conway."
I step forward with a hand outstretched to meet his for a shake before replying.
"Nice to meet you. I guess I'd like to book a room."
The short man bows awkwardly again, then sifts through the underside of his counter to pull out a key labeled "R202" in small black print.
"Let me see your hunter's license, I'll put it on your account."
I raise an eyebrow while reaching for my ID, but decide not to question it. I hand the man my card and he inputs a few details onto a small silver tablet before handing it back and sliding me the key.
"There you go, Jay. You're all set. Looks like this really is your first day in the labyrinth. It says here you got your initial clearance less than 24 hours ago. You must have been really eager to make it up this far in such a short amount of time."
I gulp, then reply with a smile and a nod.
"I- guess that's true, I've been looking forward to hunting in here ever since I joined the Association."
The older man starts to speak, but his words are cut off by a sudden rhythmic stomping sound that catches our attention. We instinctively turn our heads in unison as the echoing footsteps grow louder, coming down the stairway next to us.
I turn my head back to meet Rylan's gaze, he just shrugs, crossing his arms and watching the stairs in eager amusement.
The footsteps grow louder until I see a pair of jet-black boots hitting the hardwood stairs with unnecessary dramatic effect.
The figure's black jeans appear next as he slowly makes his way down the wooden steps. Golden rings with blue and black gems show on his fingers next, revealing the pale white skin of the mystery man before us.
With a final step and a long exhale a young man appears at the bottom of the stairs. His eyes are dark and sharp, while his hair is colored dark blue to match the theme of his rings.
He's my height, 180cm, possibly even a little taller, and seems to be under 25 years old. This is the first hunter I've seen all day near my age range, the only problem is his attitude.
With a scowl on his face, the young blue-haired man shifts his eyes around the room.
Many of the men and women sitting around the tables in the tavern avert their gaze, talk in a lower tone, and begin to slow their movements as he walks by.
Rylan still stands tall, while Mr. Conway smirks and shifts back, not to get involved.
Curiosity piqued, I activate my inspect and appraisal skills to scan the young man who has caused such a stir in the room.
____________________
[Lv. 461]
Active Items:
[Ring of Protection] +50% Defense
[Enchanted Ring of Quickness] +65% Speed
[Enchanted Ring of Agility] +65% Agility
[Enchanted Platinum Ring] +70% Strength
[Enchanted Platinum Necklace] +70% Mental Strength
[Enchanted Dark Elf Boots] +70% Speed
[Amulet of The Hydra] +75% Mental Strength +75% Water Summoning Strength
Active Skills:
Combat Magic [Advanced Water Summoning]
Swordsmanship [Legendary Grade]
____________________
A grin of my own finally creeps across my face. This is the first unique hunter I've seen all day.
He strides towards us, his gaze briefly meeting Rylan's before he rolls his eyes directing his attention to the innkeeper.
"Hey Conway, get me a drink, then I'm going back to sleep. Wake me up if a kid named Jay comes in anytime soon, I'm supposed to meet one of the new Association recruits and help him on his suicide mission to the 20th floor."
The Innkeeper lets out a sigh, then pours the rude hunter a glass of hard alcohol with a smile.
I clench my jaw and stay quiet, trying to figure out what exactly is going on here...
Why does this guy know my name, and why has he been here waiting for me...?
Mr. Conway hands over the freshly made drink and replies.
"Good morning to you too Fisher, there's actually a-"
The arrogant hunter snatches the drink from the Inn Keeper's hand, cutting him off mid-sentence to gulp down the full shot of golden brown liquid, then letting out a refreshing gasp.
"Thanks, old man."
He flips a silver coin in his direction while placing the empty glass back on the counter and starts walking away. Before stepping back up the wooden stairs, he turns to look at me.
"What are you staring at? You new here or something?"
"Yeah, I just got-"
He cuts me off while turning around and walking over with a sly grin.
"The name's Fisher. It must have been your loud mouth that woke me up! What's your name anyways?"
The blue-haired man raises an eyebrow with an angered expression as I respond.
"I'm Jay... Nice to meet you."