I couldn’t open my eyes as something furry was lying on my face. I grabbed Gökbörü by his neck and rose up. As soon as I straightened my back, a sharp pain made itself pleasantly known at the back of my head.
“Ugh.”
I felt hungover even though I didn’t drink alcohol. Was it the effect of the poison?
“Woof.”
Gökbörü’s tongue washed over my face with his saliva. Yikes. At least I didn’t need to waste water to wash my face. I moved my body, causing my joints to crack and make a lot of noise.
“Divine Touched, my ass.”
My body was stiff and ached though I was sure all I needed to do to fix that was eat, drink water, and move a little. So that’s what I did. I pulled my rations from my bag of holding and filled my stomach. The food I packed was quite humble but thanks to a variety of the plant life around Whifur, I was able to season them. Most of the time what differentiates bad food and good food is the amount of seasoning it has. Gökbörü kept begging for food and I yielded to his puppy eyes several times.
“Didn’t you eat the queen and its guards?”
He lowered his gaze and let out a guilty whimper.
“It is actually better if you ate them. At least you would gain stats. What about that knight bug?”
Its corpse was nowhere to be found. It was normal. If a being died in dungeons, unless they were preserved by a magic or item or they were processed they would turn into mana and would absorbed back into the dungeon.
“Growl!”
Hmm. It seems that it was way too toxic for Gökbörü to consume. I patted his head.
“Can I see your status?
“Bark!”
He let out an excited bark. I haven’t checked his status for some time so he was excited to show his growth.
Name Gökbörü Strength 25 Agility 27 Vitality 25 Mana 19 Charisma 12 Defense 14 Personal Skills Monstrous Strength C(Active)
Combat Instinct C(Passive)
Enhanced Senses C(Passive)
Regeneration D(Passive)
Ice Wolf’s Breath C(Active)
Greater Ice Resistance E(Passive)
Abnormal Status Resistance D(Passive)
Predation D(Passive)
Synchronization ?(Passive & Active)
Mana Hide E(Passive)
Snowfall E( Active)
Howl of the War Beast E (Active) Titles Heir of Wolf King
Outsider’s Partner
Mythical Beast
War Beast
Wow. Not only his stats were grown nicely, but so were his skill ranks. He also got new skills and one more title too. I ruffled his fur.
“Try not to get stronger than me.”
He playfully bit my hand.
(Mana Hide: An exclusive defensive skill for Magical Beasts, Mythical Beasts, and high-tier monsters. The User's innate bloodline ensures constant mana infusion into their hide, rendering it impervious to attacks. This passive enchantment allows the User to ignore 20 percent of attacks without mana. Additionally, when facing mana-infused attacks from foes with half or less of the User's mana stat, they can dismiss up to 10 percent of the incoming damage based on the mana stat difference.)
I couldn’t help to raise my eyebrows. Damn. He really is overpowered. That also explains why he was so brave to jump against bug knight.
(Snowfall: The User gains mastery over a designated domain, where they wield the power to manifest blizzards and plunge the temperature into freezing extremes. The chilling aura adversely affects enemies within the domain, diminishing their Agility and Vitality based on their Ice or Cold Resistances. Friends designated within the area remain unaffected. The radius and duration of this frigid influence are contingent upon the amount of mana invested in activating the skill.)
Another over-powered skill.
“Is this how you made it snow?”
“Bark!”
He answered with another excited bark.
“Can you show me the biggest domain you can create?”
His excitement seemed to die down as if he was ashamed of showing it.
“It is okay. Just show me.”
I reassured him with a smile. Gökbörü hesitated for a moment, then trotted a few steps away from me. He stood still, and as he did, a subtle change in the air became apparent. The temperature dropped, and I could see your breath. Slowly, a soft cascade of snowflakes fell on me. But as I looked around I noticed that the domain Gökbörü created just barely was able to take me in.
“I see.”
He put his tail under his belly, his eyes looking at the ground.
“It is not a problem. You are still young and the skill level is E. I can help you train to master it by giving you my mana.”
He barked happily in response, clearly pleased with your acknowledgment. The snowfall gradually subsided, returning the surroundings to their normal state. His mood was easy to change. Maybe it was because he was young or maybe because it was just his personality.
“Let’s see the last ones.”
Howl of the War Beast and War Beast. I guessed they were related to each other. I first looked at the title:
(War Beast: Born out of Chosen of Aliera’s mana and partnered with him, the constant mana and skill share caused User to be endowed by Divine Power of Aliera. The very concept of war and combat was etched into User’s body and mind, allowing him to have potential great enough to shake a thousand battlefields.)
Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon.
(+5 to every stat)
(All combat-related skills grow 20 percent faster)
(Both the User’s and his partner’s stats increase by 10 percent while fighting together)
So this was caused by me. Hmm. I didn’t think our contract would have this kind of effect on him. Since it benefited both of us it was good.
(Once a day, the User unleashes a ground-shattering howl channeling Aliera's strength. This brief but potent skill bestows Hyper Armor upon allies for 10 seconds, allowing them to withstand and endure attacks without being staggered or interrupted. Following this, allies gain a 10-minute surge in Strength and Agility by 10. Additionally, every attack is imbued with Aliera's Divine Power, increasing damage against demonic or undead foes for 30 minutes.)
The howl's effects were impressive, offering a combination of defensive and offensive benefits. The brief period of Hyper Armor could be a game-changer in a critical moment, providing crucial protection for us and our allies. While 10 seconds may seem like a short duration, if I used all my strength I could swing my weapon in less than a tenth of a second like I did against bug knight. 10 plus to Agility and Strength were also big. An adult human male had 10 in Strength and 8 in Agility on average according to what I learned. This could make a civilian twice as strong for 10 minutes. There wasn’t even a limit on how many people it could affect.
Gökbörü, sensing my interest, wagged his tail eagerly. It was clear that these new revelations about his capabilities excited him as well.
“Yeah, you are strong.”
He spun, not being able to stay still with happiness. He was so easy to please.
“Alright, enough. Let’s move to the second floor.”
For a second I thought of turning back and informing others of the anomaly I encountered but decided against it. While they weren’t anything like it mentioned in the guides, dungeons were weird places. Instead, I opened the chest and checked the drops.
“Bunch of mana stones, gold, silver. Oh, some potions. It would been nice if my appraisal ability extended to them.”
I put them into my bag of holding as I had no use for them yet. What I could use was the ring. The accessory was adorned with an intricately crafted serpent coiled around an onyx gemstone.
(Venomshade Ring)
(Durability:15)
(+3 Vitality)
(Blood Venom: This ability allows the wearer to inject their own blood into the ring, transforming it into a potent venom. The venom, when applied to the wearer's next attacks, infuses them with a toxic potency. The duration of this venomous enhancement is directly proportional to the amount of blood injected.)
Hmm. I put it on my left ring finger as my right one had Ring of Frost. Its ability was nothing special but the more options I have the better. Lastly, I picked up the weapon bug knight used. Honestly, its balance was shit and it was hard to grip. Even though I used weird weapons before this definitely wasn’t something I could use.
(Nidhogg's Reckoning Blade)
(Power: 20)
(Durability: 308\400)
(Born out of the fallen fang of Nidhogg getting covered by the sap of Mother Tree, this sword serves as an instrument of destruction, a symbol of the corrupted vitality.)
(Nidhogg’s Essence: While weakened due to being away from the main body, this weapon still carries Nidhogg’s toxic essence. Every strike made will poison the enemy with a toxin that ignores 40 percent of their resistance.)
(Essence Siphon: The blade is enchanted to drain the essence of those it strikes. With each successful hit, the wielder gains a portion of the target's life force, replenishing their health and enhancing their endurance in battle.)
Damn, this weapon is nasty. To think he could have regenerated after I blew his head off with Essence Siphon at the last second.
“I may get the Eluton to craft something more manageable out of it.”
Even with how good the options were I don’t think I can use it with how weird its balance is. I walked towards the portal to the second floor, Gökbörü following me just one step behind. As I stepped through the portal to the second floor, the surroundings shifted once again, signaling the transition to a new layer of the dungeon. The air felt different, carrying with it an unfamiliar energy that tingled on my skin. I looked at Gökbörü to see if he sensed something weird and saw that his fur stood on the end.
“Fuck!”
I grabbed him, running as fast as my legs could carry me. I ran around 100 meters away from the portal in less than 2 seconds before a bright flash filled my vision. Before my vision could return back, a booming sound hit my ears. Both Gökbörü and I growled in pain as Enhanced Senses betrayed us.
“What a ‘shocking’ welcome. Do you get it, Gökbörü? Shocking.”
Rather than laughing with me, Gökbörü slapped me with his paw. Surveying my surroundings, the second floor presented itself as different than the first. There seemed to be a fake sky. The air crackled with residual energy, and a faint glow emanated from the ground. The floor seemed to be composed of a different type of dirt, albeit still a fertile one. The clouds moved very slowly in the air, releasing their fury into the ground from time to time.
“Looks like we have to look out for lightning strikes too.”
Moving forward, I entered to grass reaching to my hips. They gave out small glows and I was hit by small shocks as I split them apart to move forward. Unlike the first floor, which was all dark except for some bioluminous life forms, this floor was illuminated by various sources.
My walk finally led me to my first monster. It was eating the grass, not caring about sparks shocking it. I wasn’t sure if it had some kind of resistance or if its bus-sized body made it not care about it. Its head was something between a bull and a goat with 4 horns. I wondered why everything had 4 horns. 2 wasn’t enough? It walked on its knuckles like a gorilla and it was very muscular. Its hide looked like a cow’s and had black and brown patterns. While I couldn’t get a good look at its hind legs, I was sure it had hooves.
The fact that it was eating grass calmly made me think it was a peaceful herbivore but I have seen other supposed herbivores turning omnivores the moment something weaker or smaller approached them.
“Let’s go.”
I grabbed my hammer tighter and prepared for my first battle on the second floor.