As I gradually opened my eyes, I was greeting with a peculiar sight. Above me, a cavern ceiling stretched out, decorated with jagged rocks that formed intricate patterns, each one crowned with glistening stalactites. Clusters of blue crystals illuminated parts of the area, casting a mystical blue glow that stressed the natural splendor of the cave. Behind us, a clump of formidable rocks loomed, their interlocking forms seemingly impenetrable without proper equipment.
Our only viable path forward lay in the opposite direction, where the murky depths of the cave beckoned us onward. Even with my enhanced vision, peering into the abyss revealed little detail. A foul smell attacked my sense of smell, a mix of moisture, waste, and the musty odor of sweat, like a gym locker room after a strenuous workout.
A sharp whistle from Isaac startled me. “We got good news and bad news. Which one do ya wanna hear first?”
“I want to hear some good news at this point. And please don’t whistle like that ever again.”
Ignoring my plea, Isaac started waving his hands in the air. After a couple of seconds, something materialized in his hand. What used to be nothing but air was a longsword. My jaw dropped at the bizarre sight.
“Be careful with that thing!”
“I can handle this thing easily,” Isaac said. He had a maniacal grin as he inspected the sword further. Under the pale blue light, the silver sword glinted and sparkled like a diamond.
“I got this baby from navigating the menu. That’s what I call this entire system collectively. Makes it easier for me. It may or may not stick. Anyway, a new tab called Inventory showed up right next to the Status tab. I pressed this new function, and I saw the sword just sitting there. Tapping it made it materialize right into my hands.”
I stared at him, dumbfounded. “You know what? I’m glad you play lots of video games.”
Isaac smirked at the praise. “I wouldn’t have gotten into games if it weren’t for you. You wanted to keep me busy while we were dealing with our previous issues. As we always say, we must keep moving forward.”
I couldn’t help but smile a little, feeling my cheeks turn red. “Status.”
Status Inventory Name: Laila Rank: Undecided Strength: 0 Agility: 0 Durability: 0 Mana: 0 Masteries: N/A
Sure enough, a new tab called Inventory opened. Five square boxes were present as I entered, and one of them already contained the same weapon as Isaac's.
“There’s only a limited amount of space in this thing…”
“That’s the bad news I was referring to earlier. I wanted an unlimited bag, but we got the sword instead.”
A thought pricked at my mind as I observed Isaac. Weapons were being stored from god knows where and appeared god knows how. Mulling over it won't make it easier to understand because it goes against common sense. It was hard to not notice these things.
With a tap of a button, a longsword materialized. The grip, crafted from fine leather, fit comfortably in my hand, providing a secure and balanced hold. The blade, straight and unyielding, stretched forth with a gleaming edge, reflecting the ambient light that danced upon its polished surface. I gripped the weapon tightly and lunged the sword upwards like I was poking holes into the ceiling.
“I expected this to be heavy even with our new powerful bodies, but it’s extremely light.”
Isaac nodded and said, “It’s kinda cool, not gonna lie. Is this what it feels like to be a swordsman in medieval times?” After that remark, he started swinging the sword with a big grin on his face.
“Didn’t I just tell you a minute ago to be careful with yours-“
A peculiar sound echoed through the passageway, instantly grabbing our attention and setting our senses on high alert. Isaac and I swiftly turned our heads, our eyes widening with surprise. Putting my enhanced hearing to the test, I focused intently, directing all my attention towards deciphering the origin and nature of the sound. It was footsteps- light and almost delicate, yet accompanied by a deliberate slowness. The measured pace suggested an aura of caution, as if the entity approaching was keenly aware of potential threats. I glanced at Isaac, who was armed and ready for what’s coming. Leaning closer, I whispered softly into his ear.
“There are no places to hide and there is a dead-end behind us. We both know that this is a sort of dungeon, since we were alerted of this before being transported. With what we were presented so far, I think it’s safe to say we are meant to fight here.”
“Wasn’t that already obvious?”
I rolled my eyes at his sarcasm. “I have to make sure we’re on the same page, okay?”
The footsteps got noticeably louder with every passing second. Isaac and I stood shoulder to shoulder, my grip on my weapon's hilt tightening as I readied myself for the encounter. With bated breath, we watched as a faint shadow materialized near one of the luminous minerals, casting elongated silhouettes across the cave floor. Straining my eyes, I squinted to make out the figure, initially resembling that of a toddler. However, as it drew nearer, its unsettling features had shown itself.
“Is that some kind of imp?”
Its small, gray stomach stood out amidst its distorted form, contrasting with its red skin. Two pronounced fangs glimmered menacingly as its mouth opened. The elongated claws, akin to kitchen knives, protruded from its bony fingers. Its face was a combination of goblin-like features and an infant's visage when I gazed upon it.
“We need to kill that thing quickly before it sees us. I have a feeling that there might be more of them up ahead, and I don’t want to wait to see if it’s friendly.”
From what I knew, creatures of that size and nature often formed groups or troops to ensure their survival against larger predators. They relied on teamwork, harnessing their collective strength and cunning to overcome adversaries or secure their place in the natural order. Based on the creature's physical characteristics, it was likely classified in that category.
“Let’s attack it together so it doesn’t escape. It is highly likely that its hearing is like an animal.”
Cautiously, Isaac and I advanced towards the creature, our movements synchronized and deliberate. Surprisingly, it remained oblivious to our presence, even in this open space. Unfortunately, when we took another step, the creature abruptly ceased its sniffing and tilted its head, its beady eyes fixated in our direction. A flicker of confusion crossed its grotesque features, as if it struggled to comprehend the scent that had caught its attention.
Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.
“I think it’s on to us,” Isaac mumbled. “On three, we spread out and make a beeline towards it.”
“Yeah, good idea.”
“One-two...”
The creature got close enough to hear Isaac counting down. Its eyes bulged in surprise, and a shrill sound like an alarm bell rang out of its spiky mouth.
“Three!”
We attacked the imp with our swords, hoping to harm it, but it left behind only dust. Looking around bewildered, we saw it holding onto a stalactite up above.
Isaac cursed under his breath. “That thing is exceptionally agile. If we let it escape, we might not catch up to it.”
“There’s only one thing we can do. Isaac, let’s try attacking on opposite sides.”
Isaac nodded at my suggestion. We assumed positions, with me facing away from where the creature appeared. The imp was still hanging from the stalactite, snarling at us. Its eyes bulged out of its head, and it let out a low growl as drool ran down its chin.
“If it doesn’t want to hop down, we’ll make it hop down with force,” Isaac said. After that comment, Isaac leaped upward and sliced off a stalactite from the ceiling. “Distract it so I can get a clear shot and throw this stalactite at it. With how fast it is, dodging it will be easy if its focus is directed at me.”
That’s easy to say and all, but how was I going to distract it? I could do the same thing and start chucking them like a baseball pitcher, but it might start adapting. Shouting at it may also work, but it might alert other unknown creatures in the vicinity and that was not a future I wanted to experience. Only one plan came to mind that guaranteed our chances of success. I had to charge forward while it inched slowly toward Isaac, and also grab its attention.
I ventured closer to the Imp, my eyes never leaving its presence. After being satisfied with the distance, I leaped with all my strength and cut a wide arc in front of me. As expected, the imp leaped backward and grabbed the stalactite behind the previous one. After landing, I leaped again and slashed. The process repeated itself with the Imp grabbing onto fresh stalactites.
“Any second now Isaac!”
The longsword cut into another stalactite like it was tofu. At least ten of them had fallen from my hands. While I was holding a funeral for them in my mind, Isaac raised his free hand and gave me the thumbs up, warning me to back away. Nodding, I cut one last stalactite, falling- and the Imp, who had been dodging this whole time, went to grab another one until...
“Skreeee!”
It bellowed out in pain at the same time a hole appeared in its chest. After a hard tumble, it thrashed on the ground, screeching in pain from its fresh wound until a horrid stillness filled the area after it took its last breath. A wave of relief washed over me as I released a deep breath.
“Couldn’t you have aimed for its head instead? It made a lot of noise with a gaping hole in its chest.”
Isaac scowled at me and said, “That’s hard to do when something as small and agile as that keeps moving around like a monkey in the jungle. Cut me some slack, okay?”
“It’s dead now, so everything is okay. For now.”
“It’s weird though. Shouldn’t we get some sort of prize for killing one of these things? Like, loot magically appearing like some sort of RPG.”
I narrowed my eyes at Isaac. “Haven’t you thought that maybe not everything may transfer from games to real life? Also, the prize is right there.”
I pointed my finger at the carcass. Isaac raised an eyebrow as he glanced at the carcass. He wasn’t sure what I meant until it finally dawned on him.
“Ah... I see what you mean now. Good ol’ deconstruction. Let me handle this. I always wanted to do something like this before.”
Isaac dragged the longsword toward the lifeless body and squatted. He raised the sword and hacked each claw off. “We can use this thing as darts. It seems more durable and sharper than stalactites.”
“Oooh… how smart. Good thinking.”
I patted him on the back. He gave me a quick grin and continued what he was doing. During his dissecting, I opened the Status screen. On my way to the Inventory to double-check Isaac's prize claim, a specific number grabbed my attention.
Status Inventory Name: Laila Rank: Undecided Strength: 1 Agility: 2 Durability: 0 Mana: 0 Masteries: N/A
My agility increased by two whole points and my strength by one point. It must’ve increased while I was jumping around. That means in order to increase our stats, we must actively train in ways related to each section. The Status screen is just a means to showcase the fruits of our labor. Speaking of Status screens, was it possible to look at another’s?
I hopped over to where Isaac was located. All the claws were gone, and the imp was missing some teeth. “Hey, I’m going to test something out real quick on you. Just keep doing what you’re doing.”
Isaac scooted away. “When you say it like that, I want to refuse whatever you are about to do.”
“Just shut up and stay still.”
I put my hand on Isaac’s back and muttered the word Status. Not even a second had passed before a message screen appeared.
[Waiting on recipient to accept]
“So, it is possible to peek at someone else’s stats but with their approval. I just threw out a random guess, and it worked. Now then, hurry and accept the proposal.”
“Okay, sheesh. So bossy today...”
Isaac moved his right hand from the sword and towards the empty air. A second screen appeared right next to mine.
Status Inventory Name: Isaac Rank: Undecided Strength: 0 Agility: 1 Durability: 0 Mana: 0 Masteries: Marksmanship 1/10
This time, Isaac had one point in agility only. It's possible that he has lower agility and strength compared to me since he only threw something while being stationary.
“Hm? What’s this now...”
I hadn’t bothered to check on masteries since it said we had none of them. Now, it said that Isaac had a mastery of [Marksmanship]. It showed up now after we killed the imp? Understanding the Status screen became easier.
“Looks like you may get yourself a new skill soon.”
Isaac, who had just completed his examination of the body, slowly swiveled and fixed me with a curious look. “What do you mean?”
“Take a peek at your Status screen.”
“Alright...”
Isaac navigated toward his Status screen to see what the fuss was about. After a minute of staring, he noticed his mastery and laughs.
“Heh, this is great news!”
Oh god. I knew that look. He appears like that every time he begins one of his long gaming grinding sessions. Just listening to the repeated hack-and-slash noises and the dying screams of characters through the walls irked me…
“If I can find nine more of those things and kill them the same way, I’ll be able to gain a mastery! I’ll also gain more stats! It’s killing two birds with one stone!”
While Isaac was having his moment, I heard footsteps coming our way. A lot of them.
“Isaac, we got more of them coming this way. Your maniacal laugh attracted them.”
“Perfect! I was about to head out and hunt. I’m getting pumped up just thinking about it!”
“I just want to remind you we could die any moment now. One mishap and we’re toast.”
He waved me off. “Don’t worry. With both of us here, there’s nothing to worry about. And besides, we need to hunt whatever is in this dungeon to get stronger. If we aren’t strong, then how will we survive?”
I smiled at his words. “You don’t have to tell me something so obvious.”
We both took out our swords and got ready to face whatever was coming our way. True to our expectations, they appeared one by one, their twisted forms snarling as they laid their eyes upon the sight of spilled blood.
“Laila, is it me or do they seem more aggressive?”
“You wouldn’t be aggressive when you see one of your allies’ corpses on the ground behind two creatures you don’t recognize?”
“Fair point.”
We steeled ourselves for the Imps, their fierce cries ringing in our ears as they charged.