After leaving the castle through the tunnels, Eldi had decided not to go near the village of the two apprentice children, because, if their persecutors saw him there, they could retaliate against them. Nor could he go to the beginner’s village, since, from what he had read in the count’s room, there were soldiers nearby.

On the other hand, his goal had not changed: he needed to level up. Although a cause had been added, a cause that he had already carried out, but he wasn’t sure he could repeat it, now that it wasn’t a game.

However, even if it was only a little, helping the people who were suffering, who were being mistreated like in Tenakk, was something he felt obligated to do if he had enough strength. Somehow, he felt that he owed them for the promises he had made in the past, even if then he had thought it was just a game.

He also hoped to find information about dryads, although, for now, he hadn’t achieved anything useful. Nonetheless, he wasn’t going to give up, he wanted to find her. And to get to the place where he used to chat with her, he needed to level up.

So he went to a particular dungeon, to a dungeon that Oracle himself had advised him to go at some point, as he could find something that would be useful to him in the future. Like Sapphire’s Tears, which he still didn’t know what he might need them for. Perhaps, by reviewing all the recipes he knew, he could get some clue, but there were thousands of them, and the Oracle had assured that he will know when the time comes.

But, first of all, he needed equipment level 30 and higher. To get it, he intended to go to a settlement that was halfway to the dungeon, only deviating a bit, in an area close to it, at level 30. It had never been a good place to level up, but he hoped to find some raw materials, at least wood. Besides, he hadn’t seen that area in the count’s papers, so he hoped it wasn’t guarded. Although, just in case, he would have to be careful.

He walked cross-country, avoiding the marked routes, following in a straight line the direction that the map showed, and having to surround more than once natural accidents, or look for a bridge to cross them. Of course, he practically didn’t suffer any attack, since the inhabitants of the forest could feel that he wasn’t an easy prey.

He had almost reached his destination after more than a week, during which time he had increased the affinity of Sleepyhead’s Shield to 7, so he could now rest seven hours safely. The only two hours in the start of the trip had forced him to short sleeps, to get up after less than two hours, using the alarm clock that, in the game, was only useful to remember that he needed to met with Goldmi and Gjaki. It was comforting to be able to sleep for almost seven hours, but he hoped he could continue improving it a little more. Eldi had always liked to laze in bed and, if possible, sleep eight hours, or even more.

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He got up and looked around through the shield, invisible to him and opaque from the outside. He was surprised to discover two large lizards, similar to a black Komodo dragon, that were roaming around, seeking to recover the trail that they had been following, and which had ended there.

They were level 31 nocturnal predators called shadow geckos, capable of camouflaging themselves quite effectively in the dark of the night, with the ability to inject poison and surprisingly fast. Normally, they would have already come back to their burrow, but they were reluctant to let their prey escape, so they were moving their tongues over and over again to try to catch the smell or the magical fragrance they had been pursuing.

Eldi knew that the level of the forest had been rising. In fact, he had even collected wood at level 30. So, he had been highly alert, prepared for an ambush, although he didn’t expect it would be him who would have the opportunity to attack them by surprise. And while they were two levels above his, he didn’t fear them, even being two. He knew that he needed to be careful and not overconfident, but he also knew his strength, and had accumulated experience against enemies more powerful than him.

He took out two spears, an axe and the hammer, using Javelin against the farthest lizard, and destroying at the same time the barrier that had been protecting him, since it couldn’t be kept up if an attack pierced it from the inside.

The lizard didn’t have time to dodge the spear that had appeared out of nowhere, and was covered with ice, an element to which they were vulnerable. It was immediately surrounded by Frozen Walls, having only two choices, to cross them or to go to who should have been its prey.

Meanwhile, the other lizard pounced towards the man, falling into the hole prepared with Mole’s Power, where spears imbued with ice were awaiting it, and against which it impaled. He had had time to prepare the trap from the safety of the shield, and had waited for the moment when they were better placed to be attacked.

With the other spear, he pierced again and again the lizard that was agonizing in the hole, while watching the other, who was heading towards him ballasted by the spear that pierced his body. He received it with a Boomerang that the animal managed to dodge, but it couldn’t do anything against Earthquake, which knocked it out and allowed the man to use Propel a couple of times, until he managed to get it into the hole, like a macabre golf game.

The two died there, defeated by the same method with which they used to catch their victims, by a somewhat random ambush. However, Eldi wasn’t aware that there was a third lizard, level 32, that had made a detour looking for his trail, and that suddenly appeared behind him.

Bat’s Hearing warned him, so he could use Feline Response to dodge it, but when he was about to face it, five spits hit him, two of which broke through Projectiles against me?, being stopped with his arm. Therefore, part of the substance managed to reach his skin, causing the poison it contained began to affect the man.

Geckos’ poison is a potent one that gradually weakens its victim, so they just have to follow it at a distance, and wait for it to