We managed to do our guard duty properly, and although some of my arrows lost some durability, it wasn’t a real problem. Still, When Gao and Rebecca took the next turn, it didn’t take long before Gao got hurt. It took a couple of hours, and just before the sun was about to rise, sleeping a little less than usual dulled his senses pretty fast.
When we went to check on him, we found some burn marks on his forearms. They were small, but they would keep getting worse as we fought and the heat increased. Rebecca put some ointment on the wounds and Gao soon began to look better. Once again, I was reminded that I could get those, but I had to be extra cautious since if my clothes get on fire, I won’t be able to hide my appearance like usual.
“A lot of people headed to the exit of the dungeon in the early hours.”
Rebecca said that when she finished adding the ointment. That was no surprise since few people even there would have magic bags. The veterans would stay in a dungeon for days and return loaded with materials and mana cores and they also would explore the deepest parts of the dungeon for everything that they could find.
While they would be in a race against other groups, they could find some spots that could make them a lot of money, like mining spots. For that reason, it was better to explore every single inch of the dungeon. However, that was easier said than done, since dungeons of Abyssal levels start to show a lot of problems after the twentieth level.
“Let’s use the morning to get used to the next floor and then use the afternoon to map and head to the next floor.”
It was better to do all that at the same time, in my opinion. Otherwise, it would take a week to reach the first boss. Those kids might be getting stronger, but their defenses were still low. That being said, I couldn’t set a bad example and tell them to hurry up. Only professionals could afford to take those risks. I also would feel bad if I decided to risk their future just to achieve my goals.
I considered that I had some leeway when it came to my plans. Perhaps I could even more if I get some very useful combat classes. So, I decided to invest in this group a little.
We headed to the fourth floor and soon we were welcomed by four fire wolves. Rebecca and I stepped forward and then attacked them with our arrows. One of them was killed instantly with my shot and the others were hurt in the head… they groaned in pain as they slowed down.
Gao used a spear skill and then swept his weapon and hit the heads of the enemies, making them groan in pain even more. Thanks to that, Jalal had the chance to smash the heads of the two of them with ease. Gao himself stabbed the neck of the other and the battle was over.
You received 50 experience points.
You received 25 experience points.
You received 25 experience points.
You received 25 experience points.
Grinding in a dungeon like that was truly something else… I finally could understand how the empire had control over those. They didn’t only grant them powerful classes; they were pretty good at making a person get stronger faster, too.
‘This might be good…’
I couldn’t help but reconsider my plans. The more time we spent in that dungeon, the clearer it became. This place was a goldmine for experience and classes. Sure, my original idea was to move quickly, but now I saw the value of staying put for a while and grinding. The amount of experience we were gaining here was unlike anything I had seen before. Every fight felt like we were getting closer to something bigger, and each victory sharpened our abilities even further.
It made perfect sense now why the empire kept such tight control over dungeons like this. They were too good of an opportunity to pass up. The dungeons weren’t just a place for adventurers to test their skills, they were designed to make people stronger and fast. I could see how the empire used these places to strengthen their soldiers, granting them powerful classes and higher stats in a short amount of time. With a setup like this, they could produce elite fighters in no time, and that kind of power wasn’t something anyone would want to share freely.
If I stayed in here long enough, there was no telling how much stronger I could get. Skills, stats, and even my overall fighting style could evolve drastically just by grinding through these monsters. It was tempting, very tempting, to rethink my strategy and spend more time here, maximizing the gains before moving on. It wasn’t just about surviving anymore; it was about seizing every advantage the dungeon offered, and this place was offering plenty. So, not accepting it would be more than stupid.
“Let’s keep this up since we can do this. Let’s find a place where we can fight without being stopped by others.
I finally got it. Jalal wasn’t being as methodical as I thought. At first, I figured he was carefully planning every move, analyzing each fight like some kind of strategist. But in reality, he was just satisfied with the sheer amount of experience we were gaining, like he was letting himself enjoy the rapid progress we were making. And honestly, who wouldn’t? The pace at which we were getting stronger was almost addictive.
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We stumbled upon this dead end in the dungeon, a spot where the monsters just kept spawning every ten minutes. It was the perfect place for grinding. We could fight without worrying about being ambushed from behind or running into another party. We set up there, holding our ground and cutting down anything that came our way.
Name: Regulus Dawnshield
Race: Dhampir
Health: 70/70
Regen: 0.1 per hour
Mana: 130/130 (0/1400)
Regen: 4.9 per minute (0/3400) (1.3)
Stamina: 150/150 (0/1600)
Regen: 3.0 per minute (0/3100)
Strength: 22 (0/2200) (1.1)
Dexterity: 86 (0/5400) 1.6x
Spirit: 05 (0/600)
Movement Speed: 8.5 (0/3700) 1.1
Stamina Conservation: 0.2 (0/2000)
Traits: Minor Weakness to Sunlight, Minor Sensitivity to Holy Magic, Minor Aversion to Silver
Classes: Archer, Explorer, Dark Scrollmaker, Fletcher, Mystic Tattoist, Bowyer, Hunter, Enchanter, Dual Wielder, Merchant, Bolt Crafter, Smith, Weaponsmith, Assassin
Aptitudes: Precision Training, Master of Exploration, Magical Scroll Creator, Master of Archery Craft, Arcane Artist, Master of Bowcraft, Unseen Hunter, Arcane Craftsmanship, Swift Strikes, Master of Trade, Precision Engineering, Master of Forging, Master of Blades, Shadow Mastery
Experience: 118
After increasing my strength a couple of times, I was able to kill two wolves by myself even when I didn’t hit their eyes precisely. I just had to use Silent Strike and land that sweet critical hit. Perhaps I should increase my stamina regeneration to help with that, too. In any case, while we’re getting what we wanted, we soon find a problem.
“So, are we going to change our plans?”
Rebecca asked and her friends furrowed their eyebrows when they heard that. Jalal soon replied.
“What? No, of course not.”
“Clive’s magic bag isn’t of the highest rarity rank, right? It will eventually get full.”
Jalal and Gao looked at each other… they forgot to consider that. It was still halfway full. However, that meant that we could only stay there for three more days. If I used both of my magic bags… unless we traded some materials for mana cores and they didn’t look like they wanted to lose such profit.
“The current time of waiting to enter the dungeon is ten days… I suppose we need to make a choice here, between money, quick power, and potential.”
Jalal said that and everyone understood his words… money and quick power would come to them if they decided to keep doing what they were doing, but more classes granted more potential and skills. It was only natural that they couldn’t get everything they wanted. Unless they accepted some risks.
“All right, let’s explore this floor and then try to reach the seventh floor as soon as possible… We will fight there and see if it is possible for us to reach the boss chamber. Without enduring three floors like that, our chances of defeating the boss are slim to none.”
I nodded while seeing that they might be young, but they aren’t braindead. That was the usual way people got stronger. They found their limits and worked to surpass them a bit at a time.
The deeper we went to the dungeon, the more we found people heading to the exit, and not a single group was able to pass us. Maybe it was because we found some dead ends, so it was hard to say.
In any case, when the day was over, we were all a bit tired, but we made some progress when fighting four wolves. Sometimes, they would get a bit too close, but most of the time, we stopped them in their tracks with a powerful pre-emptive strike. At the end of the second day, we reached the sixth floor, but since things would get fifty percent harder on the seventh floor, it was difficult to imagine that we would reach the boss room in time and with enough energy… There was also a queue waiting for us.
The group realized that, and they began to think about it when we set to have dinner. Every ten minutes, a pack of wolves would show up to get in our way and prevent us from finding an answer, though. Rebecca looked at my magic bag and asked her question.
“How is your magic bag, Clive?”
“It is ninety percent full… but I have another one.”
At this point in time, it became the norm for them to frown while looking at me. I couldn’t blame them. I kept those important pieces of information hidden, after all. It was bound to annoy them. In any case, at that rate, I would have to reveal more of my cards if I wanted to get the next class in this run… mainly my hand crossbow.
Even if I weren’t to do that, it was hard to imagine myself alone reaching the end of the first section when my turn came next in seven days. I would draw a lot of attention by hunting alone and leaving corpses behind. I also would waste too much time skinning the fire wolves.
“This is the reality of the situation… I think that we should only try to reach the deepest parts of this section until tomorrow’s sunset. After that, we have to retreat.”
Rebecca doesn’t speak much, but when she does, she forces the others to listen to her since she is also pretty logical. Her opinion made them work as a group until now, and they knew that they wouldn’t go far if they didn’t agree with what was logical.
At that point in time, I pretty much had given up on reaching the boss chamber of the first section. Even if I were by myself, things would have gotten pretty hard. I would say that the difficulty level of the first section of an abyssal dungeon was pretty much the same as the last section of an ordinary dungeon with no combat classes.
“I guess that is for the best… what are you going to do, Clive?”
“It is fine either way. I scheduled a run for myself that will take place in six days. You guys can come if you want and then you can schedule another run and invite me as well.”
Jalal looked surprised at my words… It was convenient that way since we couldn’t decide the days when we would enter the dungeon. It was always scheduled for the latest spot available. That was why they couldn’t schedule three runs each. The guild would be wary of those who tried that if they belonged to the same party for a long time.