In the new area, towering pillars replaced the ground protrusions, standing like monoliths. Bones counted six of them, interconnected by bridges and riddled with openings. Sandy textures adorned both the pillars and the ground below, where he spotted guards patrolling in pairs, as before. At first glance, Bones estimated each pillar housed dozens of ant-men, but it was the humanlike elements hinting at settlement that truly caught his attention.
“Calling it a settlement might be a stretch, but there are clear signs of organization. Approaching from the ground seemed risky, likely alerting the ant-men above. Perhaps the ceiling offered an alternative route, if viable. But then what?” Bones couldn't help but wish for fire at his disposal in this moment of strategizing.
No matter the angle, there didn’t seem to be a quiet way to approach. Realistically, Bones didn’t need to eliminate most of them. He could probably sneak around and find the tunnel leading out, assuming there was one. However, leaving the potential experience den untouched didn’t sit well with him. After settling into meditation, he began planning his next move.
Unbeknownst to Bones, an entire day had passed since he entered the dungeon. Horus had long departed, reporting back to Boss Vol an hour after losing sight of Bones. Although displeased with the escape, Boss Vol's demeanor shifted upon hearing about the faint markings and Bones' disappearance. Unlike his subordinates, he understood that dungeon entrances could take various forms.
The information about the potential dungeon was to be kept a secret between him and Horus - monopolizing a dungeon could be his chance to rise above Trevak and overthrow Guntar as the new crime lord in Westbrook! As a precautionary measure, he dispatched a few scouts under Horus' leadership to monitor the location of the dungeon for any suspicious activity and report back if anyone, particularly Bones, emerged in the clearing.
The scouts, unaware of the potential dungeon's existence, followed their orders diligently. However, Horus had a different plan brewing in his mind.
There was no way for Vol to overthrow Guntar. Despite Vol's recent ascent to the bronze rank and his current level of twenty-three, maybe twenty-four, Guntar was a formidable opponent. Guntar's level surpassed thirty, making him a force to be reckoned with. He had extensive experience as a former adventurer, a wide network of connections, and a knack for maintaining control over his subordinates. The Adventurer's Guild hadn't managed to remove him for a reason.
Horus knew better than to directly challenge Guntar. Instead, he harbored ambitions of double-crossing Vol and seizing his position as one of the three bosses. After dispatching the scouts to monitor the dungeon entrance, Horus slipped away unnoticed, making his way toward the warehouse district to further his clandestine plans.
It wasn’t Horus's first time entering Guntar’s hideout. Unlike the other two bosses, Guntar's hideout was located underground, beneath one of the warehouses. Horus rode an elevator heading down with a guard at his side as an escort. The elevator halted on the third floor down, and Horus stepped out into a corridor leading to thick iron doors, flanked by guards.
Behind the reinforced doors lay a lavish office, complete with a desk and a highly decorated chair at its center. Glass windows provided a view into an underground hangar below, where Guntar oversaw an ongoing operation. Dozens of workers were busy processing a special type of stone, cutting them into uniform pieces and shaping them with precision tools before neatly packaging them into boxes.
“Horus! It’s been a while. How have you been?” Guntar's voice echoed through the office as he slowly turned around in his chair, focusing his attention on Horus.
“It truly has been a while. I’m holding up, boss, but how much longer do I have to stick around with Vol?” Horus replied, his tone tinged with a hint of impatience.
“Come on now, Vol isn’t all that bad. The man's got ambition!” Guntar countered, attempting to diffuse any negativity.
“Yeah, well, speaking of ambitions…” Horus proceeded to recount the details, from Vol's plans involving a dungeon to his aspirations of overthrowing Guntar. Boss Guntar listened in silence for a moment before a sly smile crept onto his face.
“Soon, Horus - soon we’ll be rid of Vol, and I'll need someone capable to take his place and manage the alleys. Are you up for it?”
“I will be, boss,” Horus replied confidently.
“Excellent. I want you to keep doing what you're doing and report directly to me the moment that man, Bones, resurfaces.”
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Bones made the tactical decision to eliminate the patrolling guards first, reasoning that even if he attracted unwanted attention from above, it couldn't possibly be as dangerous as facing a swarm of ant-men. However, it turned out he guessed wrong. As he dispatched the guards, his Bone Spear skill leveled up, becoming the first to reach the advanced tier. Unfortunately, he didn't have the luxury of examining the upgrades as he was forced to flee down the tunnel with the sound of clicking mandibles echoing behind him. Running as if his life depended on it, Bones sprinted back to the safety of the first biodome. Amidst the chaos, he noticed the bodies of the guards he had slain earlier. An idea sparked in his mind.
What if I...
Halting his frantic flight, Bones swiftly removed and stowed his equipment. Finding a concealed spot near the wall, he lay down and feigned death. Within moments, a swarm of ant-men rushed past him, their clicking footsteps fading into the distance. It was a discomforting experience, lying motionless with his core deactivated, but he knew it was a necessary gamble for survival.
As Bones lay there, contemplating his next move, he activated his core, feeling the rush of mana course through his body, revitalizing his skeletal frame. But instead of rising immediately, he remained prone, deep in thought. This was a pivotal moment, a chance to enhance his Bone Spear skill with one of two modifications.
The first option, Bone Shrapnel, would transform his Bone Spear into a deadly explosive, unleashing bone shrapnel upon impact, devastating nearby targets. It offered a potent area-of-effect advantage but required precise timing to maximize its effectiveness.
On the other hand, the second option, Bone Lance, promised an upgrade to his Bone Spear, enhancing its range, damage, and piercing power. This modification would turn his spear into a formidable weapon, capable of striking foes from a greater distance with increased force.
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Both choices had their merits, but in the end, the situation he found himself in made the decision clearer. With the potential threat of more enemies lurking nearby, the Bone Lance upgrade seemed like the most prudent choice, providing him with greater offensive capabilities to overcome any challenges that lay ahead.
Warning!
You have chosen to modify the skill: Bone Spear
Accept the modification?
Yes/No
Skill: Bone Spear changed to a skill: Bone Lance
You have learned a new skill: Bone Lance
With his decision made, Bones rose to his feet and swiftly adorned his gear once more. Summoning a Bone Lance, he braced himself for the mana drain that accompanied the summoning process. Each lance required a significant expenditure of twenty mana, and maintaining them through bone manipulation further taxed his reserves. Despite the strain on his mana, he focused on the task at hand, summoning all four lances to his side.
The sight of the massive lances filled him with a sense of power, their imposing size dwarfing that of his previous bone spears. However, the drain on his mana was undeniable, and he knew he couldn't sustain such a costly summoning for long. With a determined nod, he dismissed three of the lances, leaving only one to wield. Gripping the single lance tightly, Bones felt the weight of his decision. It required a delicate balance of both Bone Manipulation and Mana Manipulation to sustain, but he was determined to make it work.
Bones was exhilarated to finally wield a skill that served as a formidable alternative to a melee weapon, providing him with the flexibility to switch to a projectile when necessary. Now, all that remained was to put the effectiveness of his new lance to the test against the armored exoskeletons of the ants.
Turning towards the direction where the ant-men had fled, Bones began to tread after them. As he advanced, he pondered whether they had sought refuge within a biodome alongside their regular oversized ant brethren. Drawing nearer to the tunnel's exit, he caught the familiar clicking sounds.
With cautious steps, he approached the tunnel's end and peered into the biodome. Chaos ensued as the ant-men encroached upon the ants' domain. The two factions clashed fiercely, their mandibles snapping in a symphony of aggression, barely restrained from engaging in outright combat. Bones hadn't anticipated such a scenario. He had assumed each biodome was isolated from the others, let alone the possibility of ant-men breaching boundaries and provoking the resident ants.
Nevertheless, amidst the turmoil, Bones discerned an opportunity. While the adversaries were preoccupied with each other, they remained oblivious to the looming threat from the outside. Bones readied his Bone Lance, intending to unleash it, observe the outcome, and swiftly retreat if necessary. Should he inadvertently provoke the ants as well, he planned to feign death until the commotion subsided, a tactic he had employed before. If successful, he intended to exploit it to the fullest. If not... Well, he preferred not to dwell on the consequences.
Assuming a throwing stance, Bones targeted the amalgamated group of ant-men and ants, infusing his lance with power before casting the spell. The lance streaked forward, cleaving the first ant-man in half, severing the appendages of the second, and pinning the third to a distant pillar.
The sight of his attack's success momentarily stunned Bones, who had forgotten to make his escape. He wasn't alone in his astonishment. The lance's swift trajectory and its impalement of the ant sent a shiver through every ant and ant-man present. Then chaos erupted. The ants scattered while the ant-men regrouped, directing their attention toward the origin of the lance. Bones swiftly dropped to the ground, remaining silent.
Seemingly unaware of his exact location, the ant-men began to approach. "Ah, crap," Bones muttered under his breath as they drew nearer. Moments later, as they closed in, Bones leaped to his feet and bolted. The ant-men pursued with heightened caution this time, keeping pace behind him. Halting abruptly at the spot where he had feigned death previously, Bones hesitated. A realization dawned on him.
If the lance possessed such potency, was there any need for him to conceal himself any longer? This was a tunnel—a confined space! He wasn't the one trapped here! A grin spread across his face as he stepped back, widening the gap between himself and his pursuers. Summoning the lance beside him, he waited until the first ant-man came into view. With a determined aim, he released the lance, watching as it pierced through its target and embedded itself in the tunnel wall.
Euphoria surged through Bones as he continued to unleash lance after lance down the tunnel, decimating the ranks of the ant-men until only remnants scurried back to the biodome. Though he heard the notification sound, he ignored it, giving chase to his fleeing foes.
An hour later, seated in meditation at the entrance to the third biodome, Bones reviewed the notifications. Each ant and ant-man had been vanquished up to this point. He had ascended another level in his race and another in his class. The pace of his leveling was staggering! With no need for sleep, food, or drink, intermittent meditation sufficed to restore him to peak condition.
After advancing his race to level fifteen, he acquired another skill, its description somewhat cryptic. While he recognized its potential utility, its limitations eluded him. It appeared to be a skill demanding extensive experimentation, but now was neither the time nor the place. Giving the skill a cursory glance, he closed the screen. He had plenty more ant-men to dispatch.
Skill: Bone Shaping [basic] - an ability to shape bones into a desired shape. A user can solidify or give solid-like properties to bones, with the level of solidity going from loose jelly to metal-like hardness. The effect of shaping is increased with skill level and the level of bone manipulation.
Warning: Shaping one's bones can have drawbacks leading to unforeseen death.
As time passed, Bones continued to revel in the potency of the Bone Lance skill. The lance sliced through the ant-men effortlessly, akin to a blade through butter. Even when they surged toward him in a frenzied onslaught, all he needed to do was maintain distance and wait for them to align themselves for his strikes.
With experience, Bones honed his mana management skills. He regulated his pace, refraining from unleashing skills in rapid succession, ensuring that mana depletion was no longer a concern. The proficiency with which he dispatched his adversaries was a stark contrast to his former life. Soul magic had demanded patience, often necessitating deception to overcome other mages.
Shaking off nostalgic thoughts, Bones refocused on the present. He encountered two exits at the end of the biodome, marking a departure from his previous linear path. Opting for the left exit on impulse, he entered another lengthy tunnel that led to an intersection. Choosing the left path once more, he encountered yet another crossroads.
A maze?
"Shit."
The prospect of wandering aimlessly in a dungeon didn't sit well with him. He recalled reading that upon reaching the end of a stage or clearing a dungeon, a portal would materialize, offering the option to exit. He faced a dilemma: turn back now or press forward until the dungeon was cleared.
Sighing heavily, he contemplated what lay ahead. Undoubtedly, a queen awaited him—a formidable boss, accompanied by potentially swarms of ants as her protectors.
Bones couldn't gauge the dungeon's length, but low-level dungeons typically took between one to three days to clear. Considering that at least a day had elapsed, he estimated himself to be roughly halfway through.
“Well, here goes nothing. Time to face the queen and whatever else lurks in this labyrinth.”