*DING*
[THERMAL RESISTANCE] has reached Level 11
*DING*
[CLEANSE] has reached Level 35
It was sooo hot. His fur was sticky with sweat which he tried to [CLEANSE] away, but a few minutes later he would be once again sweating buckets. Finally deciding he had levelled his new skill enough for now, the jackalope began to run [ICE] mana across his body in a constant stream. He let out a sigh in relief. That was more like it.
Contrary to the previous floor, only one kind of monster set out to attack them. The giant flaming geckos known as [MAGMA BREATHING SHADOW SALAMANDER]s were a feisty lot. They were also the most numerous. Shiny, sleek, black skin was dappled with bright red dots. Their reptilian crimson eyes blended with the lava-coloured spots which helped it to camouflage. The amphibious creatures employed ambush tactics and attacked in groups usually ranging from four to eight.
About midway across the floor was the largest fight for the jackalope. Over ten salamanders attacked him at once. Despite his recent evolution, he still had some trouble dealing with the monsters. Yes, he was a powerful variant, but he had named quite a few monsters, which had brought down his stats. Also, each floor higher was another jump in levels, and on top of that, the [LEVEL 80] evolution was a significant jump in power for all monsters. The final problem was that these creatures had some talent with mana. They did a decent job of bending the shadows around them to hide, then jumping out and spewing mana infused magma.
His perception-based skills picked them out, even through the magical stealth. The intense magical attacks gave the leporine monster pause though. He had to put a lot of focus into keeping his shield from melting away. Constantly trying to reconstruct the shield as it was disintegrating was no easy feat. At the same time his offense of [STORM] or [ICE] magic was having trouble ripping away at the [MAGMA] magic infused throughout the enemies bodies. The combination of tier three [FIRE] and [EARTH] magic was no joke.
*DING*
Magma Breathing Shadow Salamander – Level 80 has been slain x44
Magma Breathing Shadow Salamander – Level 81 has been slain x22
Magma Breathing Shadow Salamander – Level 82 has been slain x28
Magma Breathing Shadow Salamander – Level 83 has been slain x14
Magma Breathing Shadow Salamander – Level 85 has been slain x7
*DING*
[LEVEL UP] You have reached Level 86.
[LEVEL UP] You have reached Level 87.
50 Attribute points have been distributed according to the natural inclinations of your race.
You have 54 Skill points and 10 Attribute points to distribute manually.
After a volley of icicles took out the last of his current opponents the rabbit monster turned to watch [MAX]. After some conversation the big wolf had officially named himself. His [SHADOW] infused claws tore through the attacking monsters like paper. His teeth followed suit. The Fenrir seemed to be having a lot less difficulty.
When five of the fire geckos ganged up on him [MAX] had no trouble spotting them hidden in the dark. As they jumped out, he backed into the shade of a small cliff and disappeared, only to reappear behind the salamanders from their own shadows. Not naming monsters and getting extremely strong evolutions had definitely given his old neighbour a leg up in this life. There were some small injuries from the fights. A burn here, a bite there, but nothing that didn’t heal almost immediately. He guessed the Fenrir had a regeneration skill, or something similar.
The other monsters kept to themselves and stayed away from the action. [AMPHITHERE]’s looked like western dragons with no legs. They also had feathery wings as well as feathers along the tops of their heads and the ends of their tails. The colour of their scales ranged from light pink to crimson red, with eyes and feathers to match. [PHOENIX]es on the other hand were entirely bird like. The monster looked like a mix of an eagle, a heron and a peacock. It had the basic shape of an eagle, but its neck and legs were heron-like. Its overly long feathers resembled that of a peacock, apart from the fact that the feathers were every shade of red imaginable. Finally, there were the [DRAKE]s. These monsters also resembled western dragons. They were basically miniature dragons without wings. Their scales ranged in colour from golden yellow to earthy brown. They were the only creature that actually enjoyed wading through the lava pools.
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Throughout the floor, [ROGER] did notice something a little odd. Whenever he passed another monster that didn’t attack, they instead lowered their heads. It was as if they were bowing in reverence to him. It felt weird. He didn’t want to be rude and also sensed his sovereign race and skills urging him to respond, so he always slightly dipped his head down in response. It felt right. So, he continued to do it as they travelled the dungeon.
Being a little weirded out by the phenomenon, he inquired about it to the disgraced prince.
“Just sovereign skills? That’s above my pay grade. You’d have to either be an [EMPEROR] or have the Nexus consider you to be a potential [EMPORER]. Being a [ROYAL] does give you sovereign adjacent skills though. Do you have any skills with the word ‘royal’ in it?”
“Yeah actually, I’ve got a skill called [ROYAL DECREE].”
“Wow, fancy. That’s a future [KING]’s skill at minimum right there. You must have proven yourself to the Nexus. It’s not the reason for the bowing though. Any royal aura or influence skills?”
“Royal? No. I’ve got a skill called [SOVEREIGN’S INFLUENCE] though. Could that be it?”
The demon fell from his current floating position, it had been the ‘kicking back in a hammock’ one, and stared in disbelief at his summoner. A few seconds went by. Then some more.
“Are you alright?” the jackalope asked with concern.
He blinked.
“Ahhh, yes, I’m pretty sure I just misheard you. What did you say the name of your skill was?”
“[SOVEREIGN’S INFLUENCE].”
The demon continued to stare from his position on the ground, seeming to have trouble computing the words. After a while, awestruck words left his mouth at a slow pace.
“So, you weren’t just asking about sovereign skills at random? You actually have one?” his voice was almost squeaking towards the end of his rhetorical question.
“Well, not just one. I have two of them. The other one is called [SOVEREIGN’S CALL].”
“Why in the hell are you telling me this?! Do you have any idea how… Scratch that. You have no idea do you? You know what… Until you reach [UNIQUE] grade, I suggest you never utter those skill names again. Skills with ‘that’ word in them are unimaginably rare. Just reaching [EMPORER] doesn’t automatically mean you have those skills. There are only two ways to get them. Earn them. Or kill someone who has them. That’s it. And they are bloody hard to earn too. Its all about right place, right time, combined with the loyalty of your subjects, an incredible amount of [LUCK] and the approval of the Nexus. It beats me how you got those kinds of events to line up. Not just once, but TWICE.
I repeat. Keep those skill names to yourself. Don’t tell anyone, not even those you trust most. If the wrong person hears, its all over. From now on, if you need to explain away their effects use the term ‘royal’. Never use ‘that’ word again until you’re much, much more powerful. Understood?”
“Ahhh, sure. Why are you so surprised though? Can’t you see my race?”
“Your. [RACE]. You have… ‘That’… Kind of [RACE] too?” [ABRAXAS] said, his eyes widening in realisation.
“Yeah, couldn’t you tell by identifying me?”
“I wasn’t going to bring it up, because its not really my business, but… Did your [PATRON] tell you that they can hide the tags of those who are gifted with and accept their patronage?”
“Umm, noo.” The bunny monster said slowly also in realisation.
“When you summoned me all I could make out was [DUAL HORNED RABBIT]. The rest was marked out with stars. And for good reason by the sound of it. Now all I can see is [JACKALOPE].
Didn’t your [PATRON] fill you in when they hid it for you?”
“No, he didn’t. He’s…” [ROGER] paused searching for the right phrasing, “… A bit introverted and, strange.”
“Aren’t they all.” the prince sighed in resignation, “Well a least you found out here in the middle of this dungeon rather than someplace where anyone could overhear.”
“Agreed” the jackalope confirmed in an annoyed tone targeted at his absent [PATRON].
With that, they ended the conversation, both in agreement that they wouldn’t bring up the topic again for a long while.
As they neared the tunnel at the other end of the floor [MAX] rejoined their group. The shining crystals lining the roof were noticeably brighter as they travelled down the spiralling tunnel. It had been harder to tell on the previous floor due to the lava pools lighting up the entire space. Now though, with no other source of light, the slightly less dim crystals resembled a reflection of light similar to the third or fourth floor. The darkness had once again disappeared.
The trio continued on in silence, the only sound was from paws treading against the gravelly earth. After a while birdsong could be heard. Then the chittering of small woodland animals. As they finally exited the tunnel, the sound of a gushing waterfall could be heard in the distance. The reflections had once again gotten even brighter. This time though, white and yellow crystals were scattered throughout the purple ones. Golden reflections streamed through the trees like sunlight. By all accounts, walking into an idyllic forest in the middle of a murdery dungeon should have been creepy. But all his senses were telling him everything was exactly as it seemed. There was no malicious intent on this floor. Neither [MAX] nor [ABRAXAS] seemed to be put off either. With nothing jumping out or stopping them, they set off into the woods of the sixteenth floor.