Great Forest Dungeon

Third Floor

Owin appeared at the bottom of a staircase. Sunlight was filtered through thin clouds that passed quickly overhead. Water sloshed calmly.

“Where are we?” Owin asked, looking to his side.

Vrod was nowhere to be seen. Owin sighed. It wasn’t a surprise, unfortunately, that the familiar couldn’t travel up the stairs. Was Vrod just stuck on the stairs or had he entered the door and ended up elsewhere?

Either way, Owin was alone again. Always alone.

Birds chirped happily, singing songs that filled the air. Owin let the greatsword hang and bump against the stairs as he ascended into the sunlight.

The land was wide open compared to the coniferous forest on the second floor. Water moved up and down in small waves, splashing against the stone wall around the stairs. It ended just a few inches above the waterline, but no water seemed able to enter the stairwell. Hills of mossy green and mud rose like little islands spotted through the chaotic water. Some islands sported groves of trees tightly clumped together with roots that plunged deep into the water. Others had bushes and ferns that had exposed roots, fighting to cling to the mounds as the dirt washed away with every splash of water.

Hunched figures sat around a fire in the distance, too far for Owin to make out any details. The fire burned bright in the middle of a grove. Similar trails of smoke littered the sky all across the wetlands.

“Hello?” Owin said.

Water splashed against the stone wall beside him as he stood on the last step. He couldn’t go back, even if he wanted to. From his current perspective, he wasn’t able to see the stairs to the fourth floor, despite being able to see much more when glancing around compared to the last floor.

Owin’s stats had grown considerably over the second floor, and he had arrived in the third with better equipment, but he had a sinking feeling about what would come next. His health was almost gone after overusing the Bolt wand again, and he had no allies on this floor. At least, not yet.

Kidibose had gone out of her way to help him, even before she knew him. She had fought grim wolves in a vicious battle to help Owin stay safe. After that, Rattis, Vrod, and the satyr had done everything they could to assist Owin in stopping Nosolus and the Malignant Spirit. What other way would he have survived the second floor? And what other people would Owin meet that would be willing to help?

The goblin stepped out of the stairs and into a shallow area of the water. It was warmer than expected, far warmer than the raging river in the forest. A bit splashed over his bare foot, washing away the dried blood that had been clinging to his skin for over a day.

Owin crouched in the shallows and washed his hands, letting the warm clear water turn cloudy around him as it continued flowing by in a gentle stream. It rose, splashed, and lowered again like tides, over and over.

Something hissed nearby. Footsteps splashed in the water, rapidly approaching. Owin continued washing his hands. What better way to surprise an enemy than by making them think they’ve caught you unaware? His hand hovered over the greatsword’s handle. With the increase to his strength, he could swing it one handed.

Even if all of Owin’s other stats were low, his strength was now near where Cato’s had been when they fought on the first floor. If Owin was back in the caves and had to fight Cato again, it wouldn’t be nearly as terrifying. The one place Owin really lacked was his health, especially now that his bar was nearly gone.

He snatched the sword out of the water and spun, spraying water in a fan. A massive lizard charged straight at the goblin. Its front feet hovered off the ground as it sprinted wildly. Its tail thrashed behind it as it closed its eyes and opened its gaping jaw.

The greatsword cleaved through the top half of the lizard’s jaw, spraying blue blood across Owin’s freshly cleaned arms. The lizard smashed into Owin and knocked the goblin into the shallow water.

No health dropped. If it had, he would be dead.

The lizard flailed as blood sprayed from its head. Owin had missed the brain, but from what he saw, the lizard wouldn’t last much longer.

Great Forest Mob

Darting Varanus

Level 8

Owin took a step back as the varanus finished bleeding out. Its body went still, floating calmly in the water. Wisps of blood floated through the water as another wave lifted the lizard’s corpse.

He needed to find a health potion. Constantly seeing the nearly empty bar was concerning enough, but knowing he would be dead from one hit made it that much worse. Even with higher constitution, Owin was far too fragile.

As Ruvaine said, This world only respects power. Owin had grown, but he wasn’t done. The humans on the first floor had wanted to kill Owin immediately upon seeing him. Would that be any different outside the dungeon?

Something nearby hissed.

Owin refocused, turning to face the noise. A whole group of lizards stalked closer, hissing and stomping in the water as they approached. Owin picked up the corpse beside him and tossed it at the approaching lizards.

A red gem fell out of the corpse and landed at Owin’s feet as the varanus body flew through the air and landed with a thump in front of the pack. The lizards stopped and hissed while Owin used Examine on the gem.

Apprentice Ruby

“That’s not helpful.” He tossed it into his bag and lifted the greatsword. Facing one lizard had gone fine, but it was still too close. Fighting four at once put Owin in a dangerous spot. One small bite or scratch could be enough to take the last chunk of health away.

A shimmering boundary wall spread as far as Owin could see on his left side, disappearing into the clouds high in the sky. If he was going to retreat, it would need to be behind him or to his right. To the right was deeper water and the figures around a fire. At the moment, he had to assume any and all figures were hostile.

A grove of pine trees covered a small island right behind him. The lower branches were sparse, having lost many of their needles that now littered the thin grass on the mound. There was no reason he shouldn’t be able to climb that high before the lizards reached him. That would give him time to think of a better strategy.

All four lizards sprinted. Owin had already forgotten just how fast these creatures were. They barreled right over the corpse of their friend and charged Owin. He stumbled back onto the edge of the island and threw the greatsword as if it were a javelin. It speared one varanus between the eyes and stopped it in its tracks. Blood sprayed across the other lizards.

There was practically nothing left in his health bar, but Owin’s mana bar had regenerated between floors. They were too fast for him to make it to the tree. Luckily, an idea flashed through Owin’s mind. Kidibose’s water arrow on the grim wolf from the previous floor had helped Bolt do more damage. Owin dropped to his knees, placed both hands in the shallow water, and used Discharge.

His entire mana bar vanished as tiny bolts of electricity rushed through the water. All three stopped, stunned as the spell coursed through their bodies. Owin leapt forward, pulling out Naxile’s knife. He landed on one stunned varanus and tore the knife through its head. Before the others could recover, he spun and drove the knife into the eye of the next.

0 Experience

The last darting varanus recovered before Owin could attack. The lizard hissed and backed away as blue blood spilled into the water. All three other lizards floated as the water rose again. Owin glared at the lizard, not turning his back as he stalked over and retrieved his abyssal greatsword. The lizard continued hissing and stomping in a threatening display.

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Owin was not threatened as he stood among the other lizard corpses. He lifted the sword, preparing to throw it. It had worked once before, so Owin saw no reason it wouldn’t work again.

His hand was slick with lizard blood, causing the sword to slide as he threw it at the last darting varanus. The first time, it had flown straight forward with the point of the greatsword striking first. This time, it spun in the air, causing the handle to smash into the lizard’s face. Bones cracked and blood sprayed through torn skin. Somehow, the lizard had survived.

Owin pulled Naxile’s knife back out and held it ready. The lizard didn’t charge, and instead wobbled. He took the opening and leapt, driving the knife into its skull as he landed. They both splashed into the water.

0 Experience

Owin rolled off the corpse, put the knife in his belt, and grabbed the greatsword. He lifted each corpse in turn, expecting another gem or two to fall out. Nothing appeared.

“Where did the ruby come from?” Owin pulled the gem out of his bag and held it up in the sunlight. There didn’t appear to be anything special about it. It was a red gem with a cloudy interior and few chips along the facets. He tossed it back into his bag, which currently only had a single mana potion.

Looking around provided no new information. There weren’t any glowing icons for quests or any building to head toward. The only things that could be deciphered as points of interest were the campfires, and Owin wasn’t sure he wanted to head toward those. They were likely more mobs, and until he had some health, avoiding fights would be necessary.

Sand clung to his wet feet as he trudged through the grove. Trees clung precariously to the sandy dirt with roots that looked like wooden snakes. Owin brushed his free hand along the smooth bark and enjoyed the bright day and constant, calming noise of rising and falling water.

The way days worked inside the dungeons seemed odd, from what he understood. He had never been outside the dungeon, but the boost to his intelligence gave him a basic understanding of many things. He assumed that wasn’t how it worked for humans. Things built up slowly over time. For him, it had been a massive rush of information that left him feeling panicked until after he had reached the second floor. He had knowledge of things he had never learned.

It had still been night on the second floor, but the third was bright and sunny. Had he been stuck between floors for a period of time or was it always sunny on the third floor? Or something else entirely?

There wasn’t an answer he could figure out on his own. Owin continued walking, splashing through some shallow water that raised to his knees while walking. Most of the sandy areas were visible, with the water only puddle-deep. It looked as if it had usually been far higher, which would require Owin to swim between the small islands. It would be a short swim, but any amount of swimming was more than he could handle, especially while holding a greatsword.

Owin hurried across another small puddle as the water dropped until only sand remained. It changed constantly, but seemed to always hit the same high point and low point. The islands weren’t all the same size or shape, and the areas between sometimes acted like pools, while other times had strips of sand that made for easy bridges even when the water was higher. There was no clear pattern.

“Healing,” Owin said quietly, pushing through a fern. The only places he had found healing potions were on people and in Naxile’s alchemy studio. Where would one find healing potions in a place like this?

“Never!” a voice shouted.

Owin ducked into the bundle of ferns he had been passing through. A deep belly laugh filled the air. Owin dropped to his stomach and crawled through the last bit of ferns. Three people sat around a fire on the next island over. Logs were placed haphazardly on the fire, leaving a thick cloud of smoke rising into the sky.

They were humans, all lounging with their backs against trees. One had a massive axe lying on his lap. He was shirtless with a hairy chest. He was obviously the source of the laugh as he took a long drink from an oversized bottle.

Hero

Miklos Bognar

Berserker

Level: 16

Strength: 210

Constitution: 122

Dexterity: 105

Intelligence: 70

Wisdom: 70

Charisma: 84

Straight across from him was a woman with a bow lying beside her. She had her legs crossed as she hunched over and ate from a steaming bowl. She wore little armor, with nothing more than a padded shirt.

Hero

Kata Biro

Hunter

Level: 16

Strength: 90

Constitution: 89

Dexterity: 198

Intelligence: 175

Wisdom: 61

Charisma: 48

The third looked unlike any other humans Owin had seen. She had no hair and wore a cowl over silver armor. A few parts of the breastplate was marred with dried blue blood, the same color as the lizards Owin had fought. She held a mace with the round head pushed into the sandy dirt. She leaned both hands and her chin on the end of the handle. She was battered, covered in bruises and stains of her own blood across her face.

Hero

Nikoletta Olah

Mender

Level: 15

Strength: 130

Constitution: 103

Dexterity: 78

Intelligence: 80

Wisdom: 190

Charisma: 76

Nikoletta stared straight into the fire. She had two bags beside her, pressed against the tree she sat beside. Kata, the hunter, sometimes looked up and said something brief to Miklos, the berserker, to which he laughed every time. While Owin observed, Nikoletta didn’t say a word or move a muscle. Her whole focus was on the fire burning between the three of them.

Owin looked around the small island they sat upon. Some lizard corpses lay on the edge of the island, lifting with the tide. They were bigger than the darting varanus lizards Owin had fought by the stairs. These ones were taller and looked to be wearing clothing.

“You might be the dumbest man I’ve ever met,” Kata said, looking up from her stew.

Miklos gave another exaggerated belly laugh. “I have heard you say that for the last three years!”

“It hasn’t changed!” She scoffed and turned back to her food.

Miklos finished the bottle and tossed it to the side. He burped and folded his hands over his exposed belly. “Isn’t this better than the ocean?”

“Barely. There’s still plenty of water here. The damn river last floor and now this.” Kata finished her stew and poured some water in her bowl. She swished her around, then dumped it into the sand beside her before stashing her bowl in her bag. “You would think a Great Forest would be just that. I am sick of wet boots.”

“Stick them in the fire!” Miklos wiggled his feet right by the fire. It seemed like he was far too close, but the berserker wasn’t bothered by the heat.

“That’s not a long term solution.” Kata pulled off her boots and socks and set them near the rocks around the fire. “It will help for now, I guess.”

Nikoletta continued staring at the flames, not even reacting to her comrades’ conversation. Upon closer inspection, Owin noticed the round head of the mace was covered in dents and more dried lizard blood. The mender ground the mace into the sand, seemingly unworried about it being scratched or damaged.

Owin examined each of them again, marveling at their attributes. They each had one attribute much higher than any of Owin’s. The berserker’s strength was above 200, the hunter’s dexterity was just under 200, and the mender had high wisdom, even while she was a level below the other two.

Luckily, there was no reason to fight them. What would Owin gain from attacking humans? He had done so to defend himself in the caves, but now he was calm and nobody was attacking him.

Nikoletta sat upright and lifted the mace. Sunlight shone off the metal. She adjusted her position, pushing the bags to the side. There was a small glint of red as the bag shifted. Most of the potions Owin had were from humans on the first floor. If he was right, that red was a healing potion, which he desperately needed. Nothing hurt all that much, even with his health so low, but that was likely only because all of the damage had been from the wand. His muscles, especially in his left arm where he had been holding the wand, were tight and sore.

Owin crawled out from the bushes, staying low to the ground. Kata was the only one looking toward him and she was busy staring at the ground again. The water was low at the moment, leaving only a thin puddle in the middle of the two islands. Owin hurried across, careful to remain as quiet as possible. His feet made no noise in the sand, and he carefully stepped in the thin layer of water as he tried to remain as quiet as possible. The last thing he needed was to fight three people who were much stronger than him.

“Ugh,” Kata said, groaning as she leaned all the way back. Owin froze mid step. The hunter hadn’t even noticed. She stared at the sky as she lounged against the tree. “This map is useless. At least the ocean had some variation. All the mounds are the same when I look from above.”

“Use your eyes,” Nikoletta said gruffly.

Kata didn’t bother sitting up. “Simple enough for you to say. You’re never the one navigating!”

Owin continued sneaking forward as Kata rambled on about her intelligence score. Meanwhile, Miklos found a chunk of bread and tore pieces off with his teeth. He chewed loudly and stared at nothing as Kata went on and on.

Owin reached the tree that Nikoletta sat against and reached for the bag.

Nikoletta smashed her mace back into the ground. “We have rested enough.” She suddenly stood, hefting her mace in both hands. “I sit and mourn Nora while the two of you bitch and drink. What do we gain from sitting and wasting time? Our families in Vekuborg are waiting to hear our names as Shard Carriers, and instead we’re sitting on a fucking mound of sand at a lizard campfire.”

Miklos grunted and swallowed a mouthful of bread. “We left the Ocean Dungeon when that fish stung Nora—”

“Not a fish,” Kata said, still staring at the sky.

“We won’t ever reach a Shard if we leave again.”

Nikoletta’s hands tightened around her mace. “I’m not saying leave. I’m saying we need to move. We need to find the stairs. We let that damn Lord of the Abyss kill her when we were plenty strong to handle it!”

Owin realized it may have been a bad time to grab the bag as the potion bottles clinked together. He immediately pulled the health potion out and splashed it on his face, blinking away the liquid as it soaked into the skin. All three humans stared at him.

“Oh.” Owin took a slow step backward.

An index flashed in front of Kata’s face. “A goblin hero?” She grabbed her bow and immediately drew an arrow.

“Hm?” Miklos stood up, wobbling on his feet. He gripped the greataxe in both hands and let the sun shine on its wide blade. “That can’t be right.”

Nikoletta stepped in front of the berserker. Her own index flashed in front of her eyes. “Deficient Wizard?”

Owin scowled. He hadn’t looked back at his class to see if it had changed with his increased strength. Apparently it hadn’t. He wasn’t even sure it could change. Would he be a ‘Deficient Wizard’ for the rest of his life?

The mender’s eyes flashed a golden color. “Monsters can’t be Heroes.”

Miklos gave another deep belly laugh behind her, stepping back into Owin’s view. “It looks like we’re going goblin hunting.”