"Is that the tower they told us about?" Mark asked, pointing to the tall metal structure.

"I guess so. How did we miss that?" Blue was looking at the structure.

"Maybe is because it's behind the pillar?" Leo suggested.

Hera looked at the tower. It was a three-sided solid structure, with a large satellite dish on top. These towers were spread around several rooms. They functioned as hotspots, allowing people who were far away from the city to connect their tablets to the internet.

Hera learned about those during the training, but it was her first time seeing one of them. The materials to make these structures weren't exactly cheap. So the guild only builds them in places where there was a lot of traffic, especially near dungeons or other popular farming locations.

The group had left the city over five hours ago. They got some supplies, got the quests related to the Frog Valley from the guild, and headed out. They weren't worried about camping out since there was a hotel near the dungeon.

An alarm sounded on Blue's tablet, "Ok, now it's a half-hour run," she said, already stretching.

"C'mon, we've been walking for hours. Give us a break," Mark cried.

"No dice, we need the running skill. You saw what it does. With it, we can run and recover stamina at the same time," Blue said, already doing some high knees to warm up.

"Yeah, guys. We are trying to help Bonnie. The sooner we get the skills, the sooner she completes the bonus quest," Leo said, already joining in with the exercise.

"Have your fun. I'm not going to run right now. I've been going to the guild gym every day to run on the treadmill," Bonnie said.

"I'm out too. We've been walking for hours. If I run, someone will have to carry me," Hera said.

In the end, only Blue and Leo went running. They would spend twenty minutes running forward, and then ten running back to meet the group.

In another hour, the group arrived at the hotspot. There was a large area around it that was covered in a wooden wall. Inside it, the buildings were all made of the same purple wood as the walls. The whole area had a summer camp vibe.

The first thing they did was to head to the hotel and grab a room. Unfortunately, they only had a single large room available.

"Well... we did say we wanted to be close," Hera said, trying to seem excited about the idea.

"At least it has two bathrooms. And on the other side of the road, there is a hot spring," Mark pointed to a large building after the tower.

"Wow, I have never been to one," Hera's eyes were shining while she looked at the building.

"We could go there before going inside the dungeon. If they have room, I mean," Blue suggested.

They set up in their room and took some time to rest. It was late, and they were all tired. Since it was the first time they would attempt the dungeon, the group agreed to wait until the next day.

The first thing Hera wanted was to head to the hot springs. They could buy swimsuits in the shop there.

The explorer stayed for close to one hour in the hot springs. The hot water came from the dungeon that was just a few minutes away from the city.

A couple of hours later, the group was back in the hotel just after they ordered dinner as the room service.

"After all that, did you get the heat resistance skill?" Bonnie asked.

"Not yet. But I'm more than willing to stay there until I get it. It was so relaxing," Hera stretched herself in bed.

"Yeah, don't do that. You were already dizzy when you got here," Blue said.

Hera ignored the comment and stayed in bed. The food was still not there. She could take a moment to enjoy the comfortable mattress.

"Right, So let's recap what we know about the dungeon, shall we? Everyone open your compendiums," Leo grabbed his tablet, "In the Frog Valley, we will find many frogs, lizards, and snakes. The area is also filled with poison and large pools of water."

"The poison is mostly in liquid form. But in a few areas, it is airborne. Usually, we can see the poison in the air but be careful if you are near a foggy place," Alex added.

"Yeah, the quest will be about saving the frogs and destroying the source of all the poison," Leo said as he read the information again.

"The frogs and other creatures in there are weak to poison and use brute force to attack. There is not much of a trick to them, just avoid the attacks and kill them. The main problem is the boss," Bonnie said, showing a few of the monsters they could find.

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"The boss is a weird bloated creature that is stuck into a big pool of poison. We need first to neutralize the poison around it before attacking. There are a few ways to do that according to the information we have, but it only says that killing everything works and can give us some nice loot," Blue went to the door. The room service had just arrived.

They all grabbed their food and sat around a small coffee table in the middle of the room.

"Before I forget, there is one more thing. The quest says that we need to clear the conflict in the valley. Yes, killing everything is an option. But we might want to try other routes. Maybe saving one of the species and or even helping the poison to cover everything," the group stared at Hera after that last remark, "Yeah, yeah, I know. But I think the rewards can be different depending on the route we take. Since the quest is that open-ended, my guess is that helping the poison can give us something good."

"Or activate the hard mode," Alex said.

Hera nodded, "That too. But I asked Gemma before we left. When we trigger the hard mode, we still can choose not to do it. It will show up when we try to go inside the dungeon."

The group discussed strategy during dinner. In the end, their fighting style wouldn't change as much. The main difference would be against the boss.

They talked and joked around until they all went to sleep. When morning came, everyone got ready and headed out towards the dungeon. It was located on the cave wall. There was a massive chasm covered in smoke, and in front of it, a large wooden gate.

As they got close to it, Hera saw a few groups getting ready to tackle the dungeon. A few people seemed more seasoned than others, while a couple seemed to be nervous about entering the dungeon. In the middle of all that, she noticed a familiar man with a tribal pattern buzzcut. The man saw her and waved before approaching.

"Hey! Hera, right?" the healer asked.

"Yeah. How are you? ... Runir?" she replied, unsure if she remembered the right name.

"That's me," He kneeled to greet Tiger, "And hey little guy. I'm glad no one had to call me because of you."

The frog stared at the man and got in its battle stance before Leo picked it up," Tiger, no. He's a friend," he turned to Runir, "Sorry about that. I guess he doesn't remember you."

"No worries, boss. He was in a really bad shape. I didn't expect him to remember me. Glad to see you tamed him. It would be a shame to let all that work and money go to waste."

"Oh, right, that reminds me. You never paid me back for that, Leo," Hera said, staring at the hunter.

"I guess I forgot. Can we do this later?" Leo asked.

"Sure. But I want interest now," Hera said with a smile.

Runir laughed, "It's nice seeing people who can joke about money. During my last few jobs, people were very stingy," someone in a group called the healer, "Be right there... Sorry, duty calls. It's nice to see you guys again. Talk to you later."

The healer left, and Mark asked, "So, who is the dude?"

"It's Runir. He's a healer that helped Tiger when Leo found him," Hera told the entire story, and Mark just nodded.

"It would be nice to have a healer in the group," Bonnie said.

"It would be nice to have him in the group," Blue said.

"So that's your type?" Alex asked.

Blue groaned, "I hate that. Why do I need to have a type? Can't I just find people hot?"

"Sure, you can. There is nothing wrong with that. But I did picture you with someone more muscular, kind of like the guild's chairwoman," Hera said.

Blue stared at her for a moment before shaking her head, "Ok, let's change the subject before I get too distracted. We are here for the dungeon."

Heading towards the gate, they waited in line for their turn to enter the dungeon. One by one, the groups went towards the wooden gate. After a moment, the gate would open, allowing the party to enter, closing behind them.

Even before they passed through the gate, a couple of other groups joined in the line. When Runir and his party was heading towards the entrance, a group of four came from beyond the gate. There was an awkward moment when the two parties almost ran into each other, but they soon headed towards the tower.

According to what Hera heard, people would usually take a break between runs. There was even a place around the towers specialized in fast cleaning services. It was a bit expensive, but you could have your entire equipment clean in just half an hour.

When their turn came, Hera and her friends walked towards the gate, using the [Inspect] on it.

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Frog Valley Entrance

Area type: Dungeon

A gate leading to the fabled valley of frogs.

An intense poison is slowly taking over the area, posing a threat to any creature inside the valley.

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"Let's go, guys," Leo said, pushing the gate open.

There was a thick layer of fog behind the gate. Hera push through it, being careful with each step, unsure what to expect. After a few moments, the mist grew thinner, and they finally could the inside of the dungeon.

It was a massive place, with the room walls going all the way to the ceiling. The valley seemed to be very long, but the mist still lingered in the air, making them unable to see its end. However, there were parts of the fog that already showed a purple hue. Those were the parts where the poison was stronger. Aside from that, there were several large pools of water and some vegetation around. Not as dense as the one around Brinefront, but still big enough to hide a couple of creatures among its patches.

"Guys, be careful. We have three vials of antidote each and another ten with Bonnie. Still, don't waste them," Leo said to the group. He was more commanding after returning from his training.

"The poison resistance spray we will only use to fight the boss. I have it on me right now, but it is only good for four doses. When we get to it, Leo and I will use the spray so we can tank better," Blue said, pointing to a small pouch on her waist.

They started walking deeper into the valley when the noise a something large hitting the ground caught their attention. Coming from the side, a large frog, almost two meters tall, emerged from the trees. The creature had a sickly grey color, and there was a thick purple sludge dripping from its mouth.

Hera quickly used the spell Helena had given to her and activated her [Observe]

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Lesser Poison Frog (Poison affinity)

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

She rolled her eyes, "Great. I just wasted mana," she mumbled before yelling. "Careful, it uses poison."

"Well, duh," Blue said as she already rushed towards the creature's side, activating her buff.

Mark sent two arrows flying towards the frog's eyes while Bonni hit its face with an Air fist that seemed much stronger than before. The creature fell to the ground while Blue started punching its side, small sparks of electricity coming from her fists. Hera rushed towards the beast, stepping onto its front legs to reach its back. With a quick strike, the frog went limp on the floor.

"Well, this wasn't so bad," Blue said, stepping away from the creature.

As she walked, the frog's body started to dissolve into the sand and vanished where it lay, leaving two gold coins on the floor.