Exhausted from crawling, I switched to belly-crawling, still on high alert as I searched for anything useful. That’s when I spotted a bag in the corner of the room. It looked like it was woven from silk, more like threads than leather.

Since it wasn’t deteriorated, I suspected it might be a magic bag. I scuttled over to it like a cockroach, and inspected it.

[Magic Bag (Supreme Grade)]

Whoa!

Supreme grade? The other magic bags I found didn’t have that kind of label. This seems promising.

Feeling like I hit the jackpot, I tried reaching inside, focusing on pulling out a potion.

A potion glowing emerald green appeared in my hand.

Could it be…? I tried wishing for something edible next.

I felt something soft in my hand, and when I pulled it out, it looked and smelled like a fresh-baked baguette.

Elated, I then wished for a water bottle and out came a container wrapped in leather that looked like it was made from mithril. I opened it to take a whiff.

Just regular water, huh? Alright, let’s try drinking a little.

The water was refreshingly normal, and it confirmed my suspicion: time stops inside this magic bag.

Yes! This bag must have belonged to a high-ranking rich guy. Its contents could save my life!

I dug in, hoping for rare skill books. But before diving in, I ate the bread. I hadn’t eaten in forever—it was already 10 PM!

I’d been moving nonstop for 14 hours!

The bread wasn’t enough, so I pulled out a piece of meat wrapped in paper, and drank water as I quickly ate.

When I checked, the canteen turned out to be an “Infinite Canteen” that never runs dry. Amazing, right?

Satisfied, I started pulling out skill books from the bag.

One of them was a hefty, silver-covered skill book, but when I learned it, it was disappointing.

Determined, I opened the remaining skill books, memorizing everything I could.

The results: I learned “Magic Transfer” from a silver skill book, “Crush,” “Terrain Manipulation,” “Alchemy,” and “Synthesis” from various blue, brown, and green skill books.

Yeah, none of these were particularly useful to me right now. Magic Transfer, Alchemy, and Synthesis are fine, but “Crush,” which seems to crush enemies with air, and “Terrain Manipulation,” which lets me control the landscape, can’t even be used here.

Magic Transfer? I barely have enough magic to give away, let alone allies to transfer it to! It says I can transfer magic to objects too, but I have no clue why I’d need to.

I guess these would be more useful if I got stronger. But right now, I need power to survive!

I started pulling out everything I could think of for equipment. I found various potions, accessories, leather armor, weapons, a cloak, boots, and sturdy clothes.

Jackpot!

This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there.

This stuff must have been backup supplies for an entire party. After appraising it all, here’s what I found:

Potions:

- Health Potion Grade 2 x5, Grade 3 x30, Grade 4 x40, Grade 5 x30

- Magic Recovery Potion Grade 3 x20, Grade 4 x40

- Antidote Potion Grade 2 x10, Grade 3 x20, Grade 4 x40

- Status Abnormality Recovery Potion Grade 2 x15, Grade 3 x30, Grade x60

Equipment:

- Black Dragon Leather Armor, Black Dragon Cloak, Black Dragon Boots, Five Venoms Dagger x3, Blessing Ring (Grade 3) x3

The blue colored magic recovery potions and yellow colored status abnormality recovery potions were new to me.

These must be from a deep dungeon level or require advanced alchemy skills to create.

By the way, potions seems to come in 5 Grades. Grade 5 is the least effective, and I’ve only ever found a Grade 5 Potion

The highest grade I’d heard online of potions was Grade 3. And they were all from dungeon chests.

Even if I have “Synthesis” skill, I cannot make it without recipes.

It’s not like I had anyone to teach me, and I came here from a dungeon, so it’s impossible to know how to make these without a guide.

I decided to wear the Black Dragon Cloak and Boots—they might have a durability boost just from the name. I didn’t put on the Black Dragon Leather Armor, though, since my current Magic Iron Half Plated Armor offers better protection.

After recovering my magic with a potion, I appraised the accessories I’d found, plus some that had been in the skeleton’s magic bag.

Then I found something unbelievable:

- Purification Necklace x3

- Stagnation Ring Grade 3 x3, Grade 4 x3

- Blessing Ring Grade 3 x2, Grade 4 x1, Grade 5 x2

- Protection Ring Grade 3 x6

Oh no, oh no, oh no!

The Stagnation Ring? The one with the red gem? It was infamous on M-Tube!

They found a Grade 5 one in an advanced dungeon in America, sparking a fight that led to party members getting killed by a powerful figure.

If i remember correctly, a Grade 5 Stagnation Ring halves the speed of aging. And here I have Grade 3 and Grade.

If anyone finds out I own these, I’ll be hunted for sure.

Who were these people who wore this equipments? Could they have been hero-level adventurers who challenged the black dragon? That means the dragon is really that strong right?

If they were wiped out, this dungeon must be seriously dangerous.

Alright, enough! Thinking about this is going to mess with my head.

Focus on one thing: getting out of this boss room.

This is the cruelest joke ever!

Longevity items when I’m surrounded by death? It’s like some ridiculous prank.

For now, I figured out that my injuries were healing thanks to this “Blessed Ring” with an emerald-green stone in it.

I’ve never heard of anything like this before. The difference from a potion must be in the speed of effect? The ring seems to work gradually. Anyway, I think I’ll keep this Grade 3 one on.

The ring with a white stone, which is supposed to be a Protection Ring, is still unidentified, even after using appraisal.

Maybe I’m not skilled enough at appraisal… I’ve never heard of this kind of accessory either, but I’ll just leave it on for now.

Will it protect me as the name suggest?

As for the Stagnation Ring… no one’s coming anyway, so I’ll wear the Grade 3.

Lately, I feel like my forehead’s been getting wider. With thoughts of my dad’s hairline in mind, I carefully put on the ring.

Alright! That should be enough.

I just can’t stand the curiosity anymore.

Let’s open the treasure chest. If the dragon notices, I’ll run for it right away!

I approached the faintly glowing blue-and-white treasure chest that seemed to keep asking me, “Aren’t you going to open it? There’s something good inside, you know?” Or maybe that was just my imagination.

Once I got up close, I examined the chest carefully.

No keyhole? Not what I was expecting… Is it because it’s a reward for defeating the dragon? Please, no mimics!

I circled around the three chests that looked like they could each hold something awesome, but nothing seemed suspicious.

No use wasting more time. I decided to open the lid of the chest on the far left.

Carefully, carefully… it’s open! A black-and-gold skill book?

Huh!? The dragon!?

Grrrr…

Still asleep… Seems like there aren’t any traps.

Right, let’s just open all three and grab everything quickly, just in case.

I opened the three chests all at once, took out two skill books, five items that looked like potions, one bracelet, and three rings, stuffed them into my supreme-grade magic bag, and quickly backed away, crawling toward the door.

…Safe? Looks like it. Whew… No dragon-killer weapon, though.

Guess I’ll have to rely on the skills.

My magic is a little low, so I’ll drink a magic recovery potion just in case.

Wait, it’s not recovering?

Has it only been about ten minutes since I last drank one?

Is there a cooldown period?

Just like in a game, huh. Well, I’ve still got a bit of magic left, so it’s fine.

Realizing there was a cooldown on magic recovery potions was a bit disappointing, but I decided to accept it.

Well, some stories and games have rules like that.

Alright, now then!

Please, let it be an instant-kill skill for any enemy!

I prayed harder than I ever had before as I examined the highly anticipated skill books.

“Mana Drain”

“Barrier”

Whoa! Did I… hit the jackpot? Or is it a miss? The black skill book’s Mana Drain skill probably lets me absorb magic, like a reverse version of magic transfer.

The golden one is a Barrier skill. That should be useful, but will it hold up against a dragon’s attack? I can’t even practice it… against a dragon, I still want to live.

Darn. At least one of these accessories… this black bracelet, please let it have an absolute defense ability!

“Appraise!”

Space Storage Bracelet

Ugh! It’s likely a magic-bag-like item where time stops within it.

It’s a good, but this isn’t what I need right now!

But there’s still hope!

There’s a ring that’s a darker color than the one i have, and something that looks like a potion with a golden liquid inside!

Please, just give me a time-stopping ring or an invisibility elixir!

Final chance!

“Appraise!”

Stagnation Ring Grade 2 ×2

Time Reversal Elixir ×6

An extended-lifespan set, it seems…

It’s over… there’s no use in living a long life here. The sleeping grim reaper is right around the corner.

So here I was, facing the mightiest dragon, with a set of items that could probably help me live for hundreds of years.