The battle started well enough. They stepped into the cavern as one before Rin and Dex crept aside, skulking behind an array of stalagmites. The chamber was as serene as ever, with the delicate brook chuckling along as it endlessly refilled the pond. Rin noticed no dungeon flowers around the pond’s rim this time.

Maybe they’re not respawning because there’s a finite supply and I already ate them? What’s going on with those flowers? I can’t figure it out.

The boss’s howl interrupted his thoughts.

Leaping between stalagmites, the lemur bounded in. The moment it was within range, it vaulted squarely at Bayleigh and Deeya, coming at them with windmilling arms and an ear-piercing shriek.

A fat fireball, a foot across, splashed harmlessly off its chest, not slowing the beast in the slightest. Bayleigh’s orb flared to a blinding crescendo, and the monster winced, allowing the girls to dive aside before it bowled them over.

The lemur crashed into the wall behind them, showering them in grit. It emerged from the dust cloud with bright red eyes, furious.

Bayleigh’s orb flew at its face. The monster swatted it aside, and it burst into essence against a rock.

Then it charged.

Rin was there in a flash, greeting the monster with a mighty chop of his sword. The strike was perfect, slicing into a crease in the crook of its elbow.

The monkey screeched in pain. Its arm hung limp as it launched its other fist at Rin’s face.

The boy backpedaled out of range, dodging rather than blocking the stone limb barreling toward him.

His Identify abruptly activated as if trying to get his attention, warning him of something he’d missed.

Level 7 Lemur (Elite, Stone Type)

His brow scrunched.

“It’s NOT the boss! There must be another one!”

As if in response to Rin’s shout, Deeya’s unconscious body tumbled across the floor, flung by some unseen force at their backs. Dex rushed to her side as a terrible roar washed over the room.

Rin defensively raised his sword at the monster before him so he could snatch a glance behind.

Dungeon Boss: Level 8 Lemur (Stone Type)

It was tromping toward Bayleigh who was frozen in fear.

“Bayleigh!” shouted Rin. The shout broke her trance. “Swap with me!”

He sprinted toward her, desperate to reach her before the dungeon boss.

Bayleigh locked eyes with Rin and broke into a run. Halfway to the boy, she lobbed a fresh light orb at the monster at his back.

Rin passed her and hurtled toward the real boss, who abandoned Bayleigh to face this new threat. The lemur shot toward him with outstretched arms, but Rin dove to the ground, feet first, sliding across the grit with his sword raised.

The boy stabbed deep into the monster’s groin, twisting the blade up into its gut.

The lemur shrieked in midair, and its body buckled in half over Rin’s weapon. The monster crumpled when it hit the floor, sliding from the blade amidst a fountain of blood.

It stayed down, mewling pitifully.

Rin pivoted on his heel to help Bayleigh with the elite.

To his shock, the other monkey was barreling right at him, ignoring Bayleigh and opting instead to attack Rin’s unsuspecting back.

Rin barely blocked the monster’s swiping claws before its body bowled into him, sending him flying.

He staggered to his feet. The monkey loomed over him, its canines bared in a vicious snarl. Its claws swung again at his face.

Time slowed.

Rin watched in horror, attempting to raise his sword.

It would be too late.

At the last moment, a fireball blasted the monster right in its mouth. The monkey flipped backward, clipping its head on the ground as it somersaulted. Rin raced up while it was dazed and thrust his sword into its jaws. The blade sank deep, through the soft palate of its mouth and into its brain.

Elite enemy defeated

Rin turned to see Deeya lying prone on the floor, giving him a tired look. Her hand was still smoking from the fireball she’d thrown.

“That was close. Thanks for that.”

“Don’t. Mention. It.” She gasped out the words, only halfway healed.

Dex was behind her, stabbing the corpse of the level 8 boss monkey. The mana trails swirling from the body made it clear the thing was dead, but the boy was in a mindless fury, slashing it repeatedly with his dagger. “Die, die, die, die, DIE!”

When the boy finally calmed down, his shoulders sagged and the dagger clattered to the floor.

His chest heaved. His hands shook.

Bayleigh quietly approached and touched his arm. “It’s over Dex. We did it.”

The trails of essence zipped into everyone except Rin. By their glazed expressions, they’d all leveled up again.

Level 7. And just like that, they’ve all surpassed me.

Unauthorized reproduction: this story has been taken without approval. Report sightings.

Rin’s self-pity was short-lived. After all, there was work to do, and the farmer inside him wouldn’t rest until it was finished. Or as his father liked to say, “Sulking doesn’t pay the bills.”

He knelt by the tranquil pool and took a long drink. The sharp coolness of the water cleared his thoughts.

I’d better get used to this. I’ll be surpassed daily if this is my full-time gig. The better I do as a guide, the more people will overtake me. That will be my measure of success.

Dex stumbled over to him, his hands still covered in blood. “Why didn’t you finish it? I almost died.”

“Because he was busy saving my life!” said Bayleigh, marching up with hands on her hips. She touched Dex’s arm again, but he shook it off and stormed away.

The girl stared after him for a long moment, shaking her head. “Give him time. He’s still flushed with adrenaline. He’s not thinking straight.” She turned to Rin. “I don’t understand why this fight was so dangerous. There’s no way this should be a beginner dungeon.”

“My fireballs were certainly a poor matchup for this dungeon,” said Deeya, rising shakily to her feet. “I hardly made a difference except for that one lucky shot at the end.”

Bayleigh nodded. “Me too. My fireballs are even weaker, and that light orb doesn’t cut it against the stronger monsters.” She kicked a pebble across the floor.

“I’ve heard the difficulty increases when you have a bigger party,” said Rin. “Sorry. I should have thought of that. The boss today is way stronger than my solo fight yesterday.”

“There are four of us,” said Deeya with hollow eyes. “We’re lucky the fight wasn’t four times as deadly as yours yesterday. Can you imagine going up against four of those things?”

Bayleigh’s voice cracked as she whispered, “We’d be dead. Plain and simple.”

A solemn silence hung over the group.

Rin was the first to break it. “But you’re not dead. You have classes. You have levels. You have abilities.” He made sure to look each of them in the eye. “You’ll train and get stronger. In a few months, you’ll think back on this as child’s play.”

Deeya nodded. “And all the gains we’ve made today will be the foundation for the rest of our lives.”

“Not only that,” said Bayleigh, her eyes brightening. “We still have the dungeon chest to go through. Look!”

At the end of the chamber set squarely before the exit was a wooden chest, wrapped in studded bands of iron.

The group strode up with excitement now that the room was cleared. Even Dex perked up, abandoning his brooding for the promise of rewards. Everyone beamed. Except for Rin, who wore a deep frown.

“What’s wrong?” asked Deeya.

“I didn’t get one of these chests yesterday.”

“What?” asked Bayleigh. “Not at all? You should have.”

Rin turned, appraising the chamber. “If we were to hang around here and kept killing the boss every time it respawned, would it give us a chest every time?”

Dex snorted. “Not likely. The gods aren’t stupid.”

Rin’s gaze narrowed.

That must be it. Easton must have plundered the chest before I arrived when he killed the boss.

Bayleigh hopped from foot to foot. “Come on, come on, let’s open it! I’m dying here!”

“Do us the honors, Rin,” said Deeya, jerking her chin at the chest.

The boy held up a forestalling hand. “You’re the leader of the group. You should do it.”

“But without your help—”

“Screw you all!” said Bayleigh, kicking the chest’s lid. It flung open with a flash of light and a burst of essence, revealing three pristine artifacts. The gods themselves had hand-picked each reward to match their group’s unique makeup.

Gift of Nymera, Goddess of Mages

1 x Necklace of Speed

Halves the time required to execute all spells

Gift of Nymera, Goddess of Mages

1 x Phoenix Feather

Increases the size & power of all fire-based spells

Gift of Trystina, Goddess of Healers

2 x Gloves of The Healer’s Touch

Doubles range and efficacy of all healing spells

“Damn!” said Bayleigh. “This is some great loot!”

“Where’s mine?” said Rin, throwing his hands up, exasperated.

First, Easton steals my dungeon chest. Now this?

As he stood there, hands on his hips and staring at the ceiling, a smoke trail of essence swirled into being. A lone dungeon flower formed atop the tallest stalagmite in the room.

“There’s your reward,” said Dex, grinning cruelly and giving him a hard shove. He was already wearing his new gloves.

Rin trudged over to the rock column, deliberately stomping his feet as hard as possible. He was in a terrible mood. “Damn. Cursed. Class.”

He wiped his hands, peered up, and leaped, clinging to the side of the stalagmite. The narrow stone column was twenty feet tall and as thick as his torso, allowing him to wrap his legs around it and painfully shimmy his way up. Once he reached five feet from the ground, it teetered back in Rin’s direction.

“Watch out!” shouted Bayleigh.

With a crack, the column split at the ground level and came crashing down with Rin sandwiched beneath it. His back slammed into the ground and he expelled a loud “Oof!” as the rock’s weight hit his chest.

Dex doubled over laughing at the sight while the girls hastily retreated from the fallen column where a cloud of dungeon flower pollen filled the air.

Rin groaned as he rolled the stalagmite off and rose shakily to his feet. His Recovery was already working overtime, popping his spinal vertebrae back into place. The boy leaned back with his hands against his hips and stretched. Then he plodded straight through the pollen cloud to toss the flower unceremoniously into his mouth.

+1 Charisma

He tromped back to the group as Dex collected himself, wiping the tears from his eyes. “You’re such an idiot.”

The muscles on Rin’s jaw sprang tight. It took every ounce of willpower not to punch the boy in the mouth.

Bayleigh saw Rin’s expression and hastily intervened. “Come on, let’s get out of here,” she said, dragging Dex toward the exit. “I’m ready for some fresh air.”

The two departed up the stone steps, but Deeya hung back with Rin. His breathing was forced and his fists were clenched.

“Look, he’s an ass. We all know it.” She extended a forefinger to Rin’s chin, lifting his gaze to meet her eyes. She nodded at the toppled stalagmite. “Have you figured it out yet?” A smirk on her lips suggested she knew something he didn’t.

“What do you mean?” he grumped.

“The dungeon flowers? Have you figured out when they appear?” Her grin tore wider. “It isn’t hard. I thought you almost had it.”

Her infectious smile spread to Rin’s face despite his mood. His thundering pulse quieted and the tension in his jaw eased.

Alright, I’ll play along.

Rin sighed melodramatically. “By all means, enlighten me, oh Great One.” He flourished a courtly bow dripping with sarcasm.

“Hmph.” She flicked him in the forehead as he rose from the bow. “The flowers only appear once a chamber is cleared.”

Rin’s jaw dropped as the puzzle pieces clicked into place. It all made sense now.

He’d seen the first dungeon flowers around the pond after Easton had already killed the boss. He’d never seen any before that because he didn’t bother waiting around after clearing a room—he just kept powering forward. Similarly, Dex had been poisoned by a flower only after his group had defeated the bats on the ledge. The flower beside the sand pit and this one on the stalagmite had only appeared once they’d cleared the room first.

Just how many flowers are in this dungeon?

He shook his head, astonished. “I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again. You’re very clever, you know that?”

Deeya tossed him a wink. “I have my moments.”