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“Don’t follow me.” Alasteir declared as he entered one of the seven tunnels. Vivian shamelessly followed him.
Both of them were greeted by a stream of freezing air. Vivian sneezed, “..so cold.” she shuddered.
Alasteir strolled ahead, unafraid and unruffled by the cold. Soon after, he felt a sudden change in the stiffness of the ground. His eyes glanced at the land below his feet and around the walls. The floor was frozen, so were the tunnel walls.
“….no one ever said anything about the dungeons being this cold,” Vivian complained from behind.
Alasteir halted. “aw!” Vivian bumped into his back. “Why did you stop?” she peeked through his back and witnessed the scenario in front.
“A frozen nest.”
At the end of the tunnels was a spider’s nest. All of the webs were completely frozen. The giant spiders—all over 7 feet tall—who occupied the nest also looked frozen.
Seeing such a sight, Alasteir chuckled.
“Did I miss something?” Vivian asked.
“The 7 tunnels. The VelSpiders, undoubtedly, we’re inside the Velrood Dungeon, the habitat of the Vel Monsters,” Alasteir was a member of the Moonbleed family, and his family ran the academy. Naturally, he possessed knowledge about the Dungeons made by his father and brothers.
“Vel monsters? Don’t they live in a dark and tropical environment? This place is dead cold.”
“You idiotic girl,” Alasteir looked at her with sharp eyes, like she was no more than a bug. “You think this cold environment is natural? Of course not. Something killed the spiders.”
“Humph!” She crossed her arms, “Don’t call me idiotic! Of course, I thought it was unnatural. But if there were a creature powerful enough to do all that, then it would not be inside this dungeon. The teachers would never risk the student’s life.” She cocked her head to the side in annoyance. “And treat me with more respect. I’m your fiancé, not a bug.”
“Really now?” Alasteir brewed a wry smile, “When I was 6, my grandfather used to tell me a story. A story about how our ancestors slew a dragon. And how my father placed the last dragon egg beneath of crypts of Velrood Dungeon.”
“A dragon? You cannot possibly mean…..” The words got stuck in her throat.
“He used to say that one day the dragon would awaken from its slumber and fulfill its purpose.” Alasteir marched forward.
“Wait. We should head back. It’s dangerous.” She tried to stop him.
“Head back?” he turned back his head. “And let this opportunity go?” he gave a twisted smile. “Don’t be ridiculous.” The smile grew broader. “I’m going to slay a fucking dragon.”
Vivian sighed. Meanwhile, as Alasteir marched forward, his heartbeat surged, but not out of fear. Rather because of sheer excitement.
❶
Slicsh!
The slim metallic blade penetrated the spider’s head. The legs of the spider rocked for a while, then turned still.
➤〣 You Have Slain A Velspider〣
➤〣 You Leveled Up〣
➤〣 Level 20 Reached. You have reached the required level〣
Seeing the text, Isadore couldn’t help but give off a light smile. He was happy. All that hard work had finally begun to bore fruit.
➤〣 Your rank has evolved. Rank 10 Venic ⇒ Rank 9 Venic〣
➤〣 You Levels have been reset〣
➤〣 Rank Promotion Rewards: 〡Skill: Fire Surge Level. 1 〡+ 〡All status increased by 10 points〡〣
“Yes!” His blue eyes shone as he saw he gained a skill. Being a low-born, he could not afford skill books or portions. So, the only way he could gain a skill and increase his stats was through the Rank Promotion Rewards and pure hard work.
He lacked any superior bloodline, so the probability of receiving a skill even through the promotion reward was pretty low. People had constantly reminded him of that.
“A low-born cannot be a Venic.”
Those words had hunted him his entire life. But he trained hard while also working as a physical laborer. He worked and worked and proved everyone wrong when he passed the entrance exam. Not only did he pass, but he also scored the 3rd highest.
But he’d yet to overcome his nightmares. He feared that as time passed, others would easily overpower him. They would get new and powerful skills through their bloodlines. By consuming expensive portions, they would increase their stats with little hard work. What would he do then? A skillless, low-born, with no resources. So, when he saw the skill, Fire Surge, he was truly happy.
Grrrr!
He flinched, listening to the howling of the beasts. “Velwolves.” In the vast crypt, the horde of 12 Velwolves revealed themselves. Each stood over 5 feet tall, with ferocious claws and fangs. Their amethyst fur and eyes blended perfectly in the dark.
“Well, well. Finally, something dangerous.” Isadore tightly clutched his sword. With his right hand, he held a slim one-handed white blade, similar to a Japanese katana. On his left hand was a small wavy dagger. Both of those were rewards provided by the academy for ranking 3rd in the entrance.
On the dark crypt, the light of fire danced. Both of Isadore’s blades engulfed themselves in blue flames. Flames the same color as his eyes.
➤〣 You Have Used Skill: Fire Surge 〣
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Even though he had just gained the skill, using it came naturally to him as using his limb.
Wielding the blades bathing in flames, Isadore charged.
❷
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Location: Throne hall Beneath the Crypts of Purgatory
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“What do I desire, you ask?” He chuckled. “Many times, have we already discussed this matter. I’ve said before, and I will say again, I only desire one thing—to live again.”
Hearing the human’s words, the demon looked at him with a solemn gaze. “You are quite stubborn. I never expected your answer to change. But I hoped, at least the reason behind your wish would change.”
“Reason? In my eyes, living for the sake of redeeming oneself, or providing others salvation, is not living at all. That is not who I am. That is not who I will ever be.”
The demon sighed. Never had it ever met a human, who even after spending all those years in purgatory. Even after being shackled by all those chains, spoke such words such freely.
“If it’s fate, then so be it. You shall live again.” The demon declared. Hearing those words, the human flinched.
“Isn’t that nice?”
“Many years had you waited to hear those words. Yet you accept it so forthwith. I could have said those words to give you hope, only to take it from you the very next moment.” The demon stood up.
“You could have,” The human replied nonchalantly. “But, it’s a feeling. I have always known I would be released one day. If not today, then maybe a decade after. But one day. I will be free.”
“Even after all these years, you still remain arrogant.” The demon stepped down the throne’s stairs.
“What can I say? It’s just my forte, I guess.”
“Is that so? Then, will your arrogance waver if I say there lives an Evil greater than you? What if I told you, deep in the crypts of Velrood, that Evil will today enslave a dragon? And in the future, that kid will accomplish things that you only dreamt of?” The demon halted right before the human and gazed down upon his red eyes.
The human remained silent, but after a while, he let out a smile. “You must really hate the boy. Telling me he will achieve my dreams. Did you want to invoke my hate for him? Tell me, do you desire for me to kill him? Tell me do you fear him?”
The demon remained silent. But then the human’s eyes fell on the throne. “Ahh, that’s not it. It’s not the boy you fear. You once said that you made the throne from the bones of a primordial dragon. That dragon he will enslave must be a remnant. It’s the dragon you fear. isn’t it?” The human replied with a wry smile.
“Ha,” The demon scoffed. “You are sharp. You have always been sharp. That’s right; I want you to kill both the boy and the dragon.”
“How nice,” The human stood up, matching the demon’s eyes. “It’d a been a long time since anyone tried to manipulate me.”
“So, you refuse?”
The human laughed, “Of course not. I don’t mind letting someone else use me, so long as I get to do something. Exciting.”
The demon extended its arms and grabbed the shackle on the human’s neck. As soon as the demon touched the restraint, the bind started to fade.
“Today, at the crypts of the Velrood dungeon, a dragon would get enslaved. But so would a pure soul—meet his demise. You shall get reborn in his body. So, tell me, do you wish to retain your powers?”
“No. If I have those, then there would be little room for improvement. Where’s the fun in that? Progression is an addiction. It doesn’t matter if I don’t have my skills. It doesn’t matter if I get reborn as a cripple or a beggar. After all, in the end, the one who triumphs will always be me.”
❸
➤〣 You Have Slain 12 Velwolves〣
➤〣 You Leveled Up〣
➤〣 You Leveled Up〣
“Phew,” Isadore breathed heavily. Those 12 Velwolves were no joke. It was tough killing them. He was only slightly injured, but his mana was almost depleted.
“I wonder, how the other two are doing?” He clutched his sword tighter. During the entrance exam, he’d lost to Alasteir. He’d no intentions to lose again.
Swoosh!
Suddenly his body stiffened. The surrounding temperature plummeted. A breeze of freezing air brushed past his skin.
“what the….”
The corpses of the Velwolves and Velspiders he’d killed started to freeze. The breeze came from an open gate in front of him. It was a gate that led deeper into the dungeon.
He clutched his sword even tighter as he sensed something was coming. Something dangerous.
The very first thing he saw was a silhouette of a creature. It was dark, so he could not properly tell what it was. But he could tell it was big, bigger than him, bigger than the Velwolves.
The eyes of the silhouette became visible. Two slit azure eyes. A chill passed down Isadore’s spine as he felt the two cold eyes gazing at him. He almost felt strangled by the gaze.
The creature came forward, step by step. It was slowly revealing its figure. Soon, the room started to glow as ice engulfed the walls and the floor. Above the ice, the stripes on the creature glowed and revealed its figure.
“A Dragon?” Isadore murmured. He’d little knowledge about dragons; he even believed them to be a myth. But he’d seen plenty of dragon portraits to recognize one.
“Is this a part of the examination?” he wondered. He hoped that it was. Otherwise, the outcome would not be so favorable.
Tiny glitters of flame sparkled around his blades, but his blades did not surge themselves in a fire. “Shit.” He was already low on mana, and lighting fire on such cold temperatures with little mana turned out to be impossible.
Isadore gulped as he saw the 9-foot-tall dragon raise its head and free its wings.
“Why me?” he asked as he crossed his arms to cover his face. The dragon let out a tremendous roar.
Crack!
The ice crashed due to the intensity of its voice. Isadore barely managed to keep his footing. The temperature was already freezing. The roar caused it to plummet even further.
Breathing was becoming harder and harder. His throat also felt significantly soar, and his muscles also started to feel numb.
“I’m going to die,” he thought. His life flashed for a moment in front of his eyes. A life filled with all tragedies and labor, yet no accomplishments. He almost wanted to laugh at his fate.
But before he could think further, the dragon, with its icy claws, charged. Isadore, with his remaining strength, crossed his blades and took the hit head-on. The dragon’s snout met his blades head-on.
Even through the blades, he could feel how hard the dragon’s skin was. The dragon kept pushing. Isadore got pushed back for a while, but then he gritted his teeth and poured all his strength into his hips, arms, and legs.
His body halted. The dragon could not push him back. Isadore, himself, was surprised. The dragon lacked physical strength. He reckoned it was even weaker than the Velwolves in terms of physical strength.
For a moment, little hope took birth inside his heart. The one thing he was confident in was his physical strength.
The dragon retracted back its snout and swung its claw. Isadore acted quickly and slapped away its claw with his wavy blade.
The dragon let out a small yelp.
He instantly pointed his slim blade’s tip towards the dragon's eyes and whirled it with all his remaining strength. “Just a little bit more.” he thought. The hope in his heart grew further.
Swoosh!
The very first thing to shatter was his blade. Before his sword could reach the dragon’s eyes, the dragon let out an icy breath. Isadore was superior in terms of strength; speed was a separate matter.
Due to the icy breath, Isadore’s right side completely froze.
The second thing to shatter was the hope in his heart.
Isadore met his demise beneath the crypts of Velrood Dungeon.
The dragon turned back after realizing its prey was now—dead. It could still sense two more alive beings within this dungeon. So, now, it was their turn.
➍