-Ria POV-
The entrance was similar to the previous dungeon however the deeper into the dungeon I went the more apparent just how different this dungeon was to the other one. This dungeon consisted of multiple different pathways. It felt like a network of caves that seemed to be naturally created. The monster that appeared so far was similar to the other dungeon though. There was no sign of anything other than goblins, by now I could easily kill goblins with my eyes close. Occasionally I would find a group of people fighting a group of goblin. It didn’t require much effort as one would expect but they still took several minutes to kill a single group of the monster.
I’m well aware of my current overwhelming strength if I were to compare it to a adventurer who just started. If anything joining a party with one would severely restrict the amount of power I would allow myself to use during combat. I was desperate for a friend, someone to talk to but I still prioritize my own safety before my personal desire. My current strength in this form is comparable to Derek party so my current form should be at least B rank or gold rank if I followed the adventurer ranking system.
Staying on the first floor won’t hold any benefit to me so I continued exploring the rest of the floor and eventually found a stairway to the next floor. The second floor finally had monster I was unfamiliar with. Similar to the goblin it was green however it was much bigger than the goblin perhaps around three times bigger. Its arms were long enough to touch the ground. It had two tiny horns on its head and a tail similar to a cow. Its teeth looked rotten almost and a putrid smell lingered in the air around it. Its green skin was covered in what looked to be dead skin. Some of its flesh was even rotten. The monster was surrounded with goblins which seemed to listen to its orders.
It took a little longer but I was easily able to defeat the monster just as easily as I had expected. After further exploration I finally reached the 3rd floor which was apparently the last floor this dungeon had. On the way I had also been diligently collecting the cores to sell. I still needed to buy a weapon and clothing of some kind. I currently still wore the animal skin I took from my cave and the cloak I had taken from the human that day. The 3rd floor had an increase in monster and even some kind of demonic bat like monster.
Adventurers I come across on the 3rd floor seemed a lot more experienced. I glanced at the wrist of some of them and they were mostly bronze rank. The end of this dungeon was a large throne room of some sort apparently. There were quite a number of people who reached the end only to find an empty throne room. Its pretty well known among the adventurers as dead end dungeon. Most dungeon normally held some kind of enormous monster several times stronger than any monster that could be found in the dungeon. These so called boss monster cores were normally worth a fortune since they were extremely difficult to reach and to defeat.
Despite this dungeon fame of an empty final room , the dungeon continued to have adventurers trying to reach the end as a method of determining their current strength. The 3rd floor I was currently in had a much wider variety of monster unlike the first two floor. Which allowed me to enjoy myself seeing new and different monster every once in a while as I explored.
The so called maze like dungeon was much easier than I imagined. The maze in itself was not complicated if one made a mental map in their head as they travelled around. Despite this I encountered several adventurers who were lost. I was making short work of the dungeon since the monster here were simply too weak and it seems my memory is much better than the average human.
Around one day after entering the dungeon I finally reached the empty throne room that I heard about only through the word of mouth. If anything I felt this entire experience was underwhelming to say the least. Nothing particularly interesting happened part two of my plan bore no fruit and it was much easier than I expected to reach the end. I had collected plenty of cores but despite the difference in size and monsters it didn’t feel too different from the dungeon no one went to cause it only had goblins in it.
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Was it a complete waste of my time probably, did I enjoy it not as much as I had hoped I would. I went ahead and sat on the throne situated in the middle of the room and started thinking of what to do next. To get promoted as an adventurer I needed to pass another test. It shouldn’t be too hard but I wanted to do something fun not take another boring test. Isn’t there anything interesting I could do. I could try making friends but a cloak individual isn’t easy to approach and without the cloak I looked like a demibeast which is discriminated against.
Thinking back on how excited I got about entering this dungeon I felt silly. As I placed my arm on the armrest of the throne I suddenly felt a sharp pain running through my arm. Looking at my arm I was surprised to see my claws and scales covering it. I hadn’t used partial dragon form intentionally rather it transformed against my will as soon as I touched the armrest. The throne didn’t look particularly fancy since it was made of stone with weird carvings running throughout the armrest towards an arc above the throne. With caution I tried touching it again with my arm that was already in partial dragon form. As soon as I touched it I saw black energy leaving my arm into the patterns carved in the chair.
It was my mana that gradually flowed into every single line of the pattern throughout the throne. By now I was standing up looking at the throne with a little interest. Red lines gradually extended from the throne covering the walls in the rooms. The entrance had been closed off as soon as the pattern started spreading.
Several things were running through my mind simultaneously. How did no one discover this before. Whats happening right now. Is it because I’m not human that the throne reacted? There should have been thousands who reached the throne room yet this phenomena is unheard off. I was rather meticulous in my information gathering and I’m certain this dungeon didn’t have such a feature.
The red light from the patterns surrounding the room started to transform to a liquid like substance oozing out of the very pattern surrounding the room. It looked somewhat like blood rushing towards the throne in the middle which I had backed away from. The blood like substance gradually formed a human like shape sitting on the throne. My mana the throne had taken earlier turned to black liquid surrounding the human shape. It gradually took the form of some kind of black armor. A black blade had also started to form in its grasp.
The throne did sap quite a lot of my mana but I could do nothing but stare at the armored knight forming in front of me. The light gradually faded and in the throne sat a black knight with its arm resting on the blade that was currently piercing the ground.
Several minutes passed yet the black knight continued to sit in the throne unfazed and unmoving. All to suddenly the black knight stood up and launched itself towards me. I quickly blocked the blow with my arm that had already partially dragon formed. My arm was able to take the blow but my currently normal legs was unable to take the force and I was sent flying towards the wall.
It seems I need to get serious if not this could get dangerous. Bearing the pain my other arm and both legs started to partial dragon form. The scales covered my neck as well. My canines started to grow longer as I continued to cover my body in scales as well.
“Lets spar shall we.” I smiled as I got out of the rubble left from my impact on the wall.
(Author Note) : Well i decided to spice things up a little since i was worried it was getting boring :3 . I already have the general plot in my head but if you guys don't like this development please comment before i write the next chapter. I don't mind changing it if you guys don't like it.