It’d be stupid of me to start with the most difficult area when I had until this time tomorrow to return to the entrance. Even more fun was that in about ten hours, the day would reset, and I’d have full use of all my skills to tackle the Shadowlands fresh.

So ten hours to explore everything east of the mountains. Then I’d cross the mountains and spend ten hours in the Shadowlands.

I let the map refurl into the recesses of my mind knowing it’d be just as easy to bring it back if I needed it, and stepped into the forest.

【DUNGEON NOTICE】

You have discovered the Silver Forest [Common], where live Silver Rabbits, Silver Squirrels, and Silver Wolves.

You have been awarded:

10 EXP

Do you accept this reward?

I hadn’t been rewarded experience points for discovering a new area since I finished the Tutorial Stage. What were ten experience points to me at this point? Not like I’d say no to any number going up, though.

The difficulty of the area wasn’t any surprise since it lined up with the difficulty of the dungeon itself. The beasts that the dungeon notice hinted I should hunt would be Common, too, and hunting them would trigger a Common quest. All for a Common reward of ten experience points and maybe a Common item.

But this wasn’t a normal dungeon.

Generally, Common dungeons didn’t have any areas, beasts, or quests that were higher than Uncommon, but that was what made training dungeons different, no matter the difficulty. The Shadowlands would probably be Rare or Epic. That meant more challenging beasts and quests. Meant a possibly better reward.

I wasn’t only here for the rewards, though. I needed to test my new stats and find my new limits. Areas where I wouldn’t need to use skills were the best places to do that.

The canopy overhead, a dense mosaic of towering trees and lush foliage, rustles softly in the night breeze. Not a new sight—I’d hunted in forests like this with Father and my brothers a handful of times. But something about the soft moonlight captivated me, reminded me that this dungeon was like a surreal glimpse into another world.

A howl came from not too far away, and a series of bird calls cascaded through the forest around me. Thankfully, those weren’t new sounds, either.

“I’ll come for you later!” I called back and took off at a run toward the Moonlit Meadows.

A newfound nimbleness took hold of me, as if time itself had slowed to accommodate my enhanced agility. My every movement flowed with seamless precision, and so avoiding trees at this incredibly fast pace just took a little bit of extra concentration.

I was easily five—maybe even ten times faster than before. The thrill of it burst out of me as a laugh as I made quick time to the meadow. As soon as I caught sight of the flowers, I slowed. I still overshot the edge of the forest by more than a block. Something I’d have to practice more.

【DUNGEON NOTICE】

You have discovered the Moonlit Meadows [Common], where hide Moonflowers, Moonstones, and Moonbees.

You have been awarded:

10 EXP

Do you accept this reward?

The Moonlit Meadows must’ve been named for the glowing white flowers that dominated the endless grassland in front of me. They smelled subtly sweet with a crisp citrus note. Glowing insects danced through the air, leaving trails of bioluminescent patterns that were hard to take my eyes off.

Sucking in a deep breath, I recalled the dungeon notice’s exact wording for the area. It sounded like all I needed to do to trigger a quest was pick a few flowers, so I kneeled and yanked out a handful at once.

【QUEST NOTICE】

You have received a new quest: In Search of Moonlit Perfection [Common]

You must create a bouquet of fifteen Moonflowers. To change this quest to [Uncommon], use only Moonflowers that have been pollinated by Moonbees.

Moonflowers: 5/15

Do you accept this quest?

I grinned. If I remembered right, Moonflowers were a good ingredient for summoning potions like the one we’d drank at the temple in Bolstaor. Helas would know what to do with them. But how was I supposed to tell if the flower had been pollinated?

Going still, I widened my vision and focused my perception on the small details. As I slowed my breathing to stay quiet, I caught sight of one of the glowing bugs landing on a flower three dozen paces away. Not just a glowing bug, then. They were Moonbees.

Well—it made sense that it’d be that easy. And I had the time.

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So I stuffed my first fistful of flowers into the satchel Helas gave so I could start fresh with a new bouquet. As I went to close the flap, a bird flew out with an irritated caw and landed on my head with sharp claws and a soft peck.

She’d put Callas in and hadn’t told me.

“Sorry,” I said. “I didn’t know. Did you hear Helas say anything? Be mad at her.”

Callas cawed again but settled on my shoulder instead.

“Shouldn’t take me too long here. Why don’t you take a look around? It’s a big dungeon. I’m sure you can find lots to eat.” I pointed north. “Lake’s that way.”

She nuzzled against my neck, then took off without me. I’d call her rude if I didn’t trust that she’d be back before long. She had a tiny attention span and got lonely quickly—or at least that was true for every version of her so far.

I watched her for a few, gauging how far off my new perception stat let me see her, and made sure there wasn’t a hungry howl eager to make a kill. Once satisfied she was safe, I followed little glowing, buzzing butts all around the meadow until I had fifteen of their destinations in hand.

【QUEST NOTICE】

You have successfully completed In Search of Moonlit Perfection [Common].

For having created the quest using only Moonflowers pollinated by Moonbees, this quest has been changed to [Uncommon] and you have been awarded:

100 EXP┃ 1 FP

Do you accept this award?

I’d take it, as measly as it was.

After backtracking, I discovered the Silver Lake area as soon as I stepped onto its shores. I made good time hunting a sea serpent without any skills for another Common quest changed to Uncommon. From there, I headed back into the forest with Callas to hunt some rabbits. They seemed the safest option to test my agility, perception, and stamina better.

Being a fast runner wasn’t everything. I didn’t want to always be running. More important was to have quick reflexes, sharp senses, and the ability to just keep going.

“Wanna make a bet?” I asked Callas, moving as soundlessly through the underbrush in the forest as possible “Who can catch more rabbits?”

Callas hopped up and down on my shoulder, which I’d learned was her way of showing excitement, then hopped off to expand her wings and fly off ahead of me. I expanded my perception, scanning the forest floor in front of me for any rabbit tracks or signs. Without the light of day, I couldn’t see as well far out as should’ve been possible.

So maybe vision wasn’t the sense to rely on here. No matter. I blinked to focus my eyes back to my immediate area and shifted my attention to how far I could hear. In a city like Bolstaor or Ridahr, I’d probably be picking up the faintest of whispers, muffled sounds reaching my ears with crystal clarity.

The forest was a symphony of rustling leaves, creaking branches. There was so much to hear that it threatened a headache. Insects searching for food. Birds chirping and screaming. A distant growl of a predator warning off another nearby animal. The hoofs of a quiet deer or antelope. The pattering hops of a smaller animal—like a rabbit.

I raced toward the sound, hoping for a rabbit, and was rewarded.

My eyes locked onto one nibbling on some weeds, the forest around me seeming to unfold in gradual motion, affording me the advantage of lightning-fast decision-making thanks to the synergy between my agility and perception. So when the rabbit startled, my body anticipated and reacted with reflexes far faster than before.

Even though I outpaced it by far, it wasn’t enough to just be fast and agile. Cloaked in a coat of silver fur, its bunny-like shape and weasel-like sleekness moved with nimble-footed grace and unhesitating dexterity. It was faster, employed more rapid evasive maneuvers, than a normal rabbit.

When I gained on it and it darted left, my quickest pivot wasn’t immediate enough and I overshot it again and again. But that was why I was here. Improving your stats always left a ravine of improvement in its wake, and I had a vast canyon to navigate if I wanted the type of precise control over my movements that I had before.

So I worked at it with a grin on my face. I chased that rabbit so deep into the forest that I got a dungeon notice warning me that I’d passed into its Uncommon area. Every sharp turn it took, I mirrored in turn. I studied the way it shifts its body weight before bolting in a new direction and copied the movement while I dashed after it.

Capturing the rabbit at long last left me cackling to myself in elation. The invigorating energy of my improved stamina coursed through my veins, fatigue an afterthought trumped by the unwavering endurance in each of my steps.

It also triggered a Common quest called [Tracing the Moonlit Tracks]. All I had to do to complete it was to hunt ten rabbits. The change condition was to capture them alive and release them, so while Callas killed them without a second thought, I let all mine go.

By the time I’d caught and freed ten Silver Rabbits, I’d worked up quite an appetite.

Even if my new stamina let me push past the limits of ordinary human capability, I still had to give my body fuel to do that. Not like I didn’t have time. When I checked the map, the local time showed two hours had passed. So I set up a makeshift camp centered around a crackling fire made with a little magic.

After I prepared Callas’s rabbits to roast under her watchful gaze, I dug through the satchel Helas gave me again. It was the same type as hers, though probably only Common. I wouldn’t be able to toss much in there, but it’d keep everything inside isolated. To grab anything, I just had to reach in and think of what I wanted.

My stomach did most of the work of recalling the snacks Helas packed. Some savory pies. While the rabbits roasted, I split them with Callas. I found something in the spice combination of turmeric, cumin, and ginger that reminded me of Mother’s lentil soup. Always made from scratch with lentils, onions, carrots, tomatoes, peppers, spinach, and garlic. Only missing the broth.

It was annoying that everything kept reminding me of Mother. Besides the occasional nightmares, I’d done a good job before avoiding thoughts about her by focusing on how badly I wanted to make my family pay for her death. Now it seemed impossible.

Maybe it had something to do with what Sak’hed had said. There’s a piece of your mother’s memory in you. The Infinite Chain had responded to her words, and so that could’ve been what she was referring to.

I held up my hands to look over the Infinite Chain a bit closer. Seemed too simple. There had to be something else to it. Maybe related to whatever god I was supposed to call on.

Besides Ket’ha and Sak’hed, there were eight other patron gods I could call on. I could probably scratch out Khavura, too, for all the worth he was at preventing Father’s possession. It made sense, out of the seven remaining, to try to reach out to Mother’s patron god, Yebrail—the god of truth.

First, this dungeon. I needed to see what I could do with my new stats, and I needed Helas to show me how to further tether my core. After that, I’ll attempt another summoning. And apply to Tairayat, since that was the deal that I made.

The glowing embers of the fire reminded me of the demon core I’d taken from Irthrothun. As I stared into the flickering flames, I compared it to the one Mother had given me. It’d been violet.

I tried to remember the feeling I had when I’d faced Irthrothun and managed to tether my core another percent. I’d been… angry. I’d wanted to kill that demon by any means necessary, and it was a bit of a miracle I’d managed to beat him with the slightly above average stats I’d had before. But that was how badly I’d wanted to make him pay for what he’d done to Harorin.

Sucking in a deep breath, I closed my eyes and searched for that feeling…only to be interrupted by the system.

【QUEST NOTICE】

You have received an emergency quest: Captive of the Savage Shadows [Epic]

You must rescue the student Khoulgan Drahk from the Silver Wolves hunting him in the Shadowlands. To change this quest to [Legendary], complete this quest without further bloodshed.

Do you accept this quest?

The only other person in this dungeon seemed to be an absolute idiot.

But at least his idiocy was benefitting me.

Yes.