Aurelia sat in the dark interior of a hollow jungle tree. It was surprisingly dry inside as she sat on a pile of dead wood. The ice wall she had created sealed off the entrance, with barely enough light so that Aurelia could see her hand a couple inches from her face. She grabbed a glow crystal from inside her inventory to light up the space, then looked through the loot she had received from the sloths.
She had the usual items like meat and pelts, but she turned her head at a line listing a number of sloth claws. Aurelia decided to pull one out, then yelped in shock when a three foot long claw made its appearance inside the tree. She took a couple seconds to ogle at the monstrously large claw, before putting it back in her inventory. It surprised her that something so big could fit in her inventory, and she put testing her spatial inventory skill on her mental list of things to do after exiting the dungeon. The only other item of note from killing the sloths was a bow.
Aurelia held the bow out in front of her, the faint light of the glow crystal illuminating the carved ivory longbow. The unstrung bow was tall, just like the claws from the sloths, standing around five to six feet long. Aurelia had never done archery in her entire life, so she had no idea what made a good bow, but in her opinion it looked beautiful and sturdy. The bow had carved depictions of jungle leaves and runes similar to what she saw on her skill books. She had no arrows to use with the bow, but it really wasn’t the time anyway to learn how to use a bow.
With the bow back in her inventory, Aurelia checked her status sheet. Her health and now her mana weren’t too bad, but her stamina was still low. She had no stamina potions to top herself off with, so she guessed she would continue her break. After closing out of her sheet she noticed she had a notification from earlier she hadn’t seen before. The experience and loot notifications had covered up a notification she had received after entering the new area with the sloths.
Welcome to the [Jungle of the Raging Claw].
Dungeon Objectives:
One: Find and kill 40 monsters in the jungle 17/40
Two: Find and kill the final boss 0/1
Bonus Objective: Locate the rare herb [Anima Grass] 0/3
Other Hidden objectives may exist.
Aurelia balked at the notification. There was still so much she needed to do and the exhaustion that filled her body, caused her to wish she wasn’t alone. The feeling of accomplishment of all she had done so far had been intoxicating and exciting, but she now felt like crying again. Before the portal had whisked her away from Earth and into the world of Eldria, Blondie had talked to her about a king, a war, a rebellion, and some sort of weapon. She still wasn’t completely sure what it all meant, especially the part about her being somehow involved, but she knew the dungeon would only be the beginning.
On Earth, video games were an occasional pastime that had slowly been pushed to the side as college took over her life. Her best friend, Irene, wasn’t a big fan of playing games with her, so that had caused her to play even less. Now she found herself relying on those memories of games, hoping it was enough to keep her alive.
Glancing back at the new quests available for her, she decided she wouldn’t go above and beyond this time to fulfill all the available quests. She was exhausted and alone, and she barely survived the swarm of sloths earlier. If she was a couple levels higher, she might try to spend the time finding the rare herb or whatever else she was meant to do. Now, she would follow the gray strands of mana, and try to kill the sloths before they got her.
Aurelia didn’t want to fall asleep, not here, but she got in a comfortable sitting position and relaxed. She breathed in and out, her heart rate slowly going down. She stayed in that position for another half an hour before she was ready to head back out into the jungle. It was time to finally exit the dungeon.
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Outside the new dungeon, a large group of villagers had crowded around the entrance. Word of the dungeon had spread throughout the past hours, so even the farmers an hour walk outside the village had heard the news. The butcher, a baker, and even the village’s one candlestick maker pushed their way forwards to get a better view of the 15 foot tall cave entrance. The glowing crystals were not that bright with the sun still shining overhead, but it still gave the dungeon entrance an eerie feel.
Justin and Zen tried their best to get to the front, but after getting a dirty look from Garren, the village smith, after accidentally stepping on his foot, they paused. Zen groaned in annoyance and pulled Justin back out of the throng of people and off to the side near the flowing stream.
“It’s no use trying to get to the front.” Zen pointed out.
“For now, I guess.” Justin replied, a disappointed look on his face.
“I heard from Sam, the baker, that he had an opportunity to place a hand on the entrance and got a prompt. He confirmed that it really is a new dungeon!” Zen had a big grin on his face. “Another interesting thing is that someone is actually inside right now, so no one else can get in.”
Justin frowned, “But I thought that multiple people could enter a dungeon at the same time. Don’t they allow for more than one group to have separate instances?”
“I thought so too, but my knowledge of dungeons is very minimal. I only know what adventures have said as they pass through the village and the occasional bard. They mostly talk about their exploits and successes, rather than the intricacies of how the dungeons work.” Zen gestured at the new dungeon.
“Hmm, yeah that’s what-”
“There’s actually a good reason why the entrance is closed,” a voice interrupted Justin. The two young men turned around, jumping at the sound. “A new dungeon is a sign of new opportunity, and it rewards the first person or group exponentially more than those that come after.”
Justin and Zen stared at the other young man who had come up behind them. A tall young man with white blonde hair and bright gray eyes stood watching them. Corbin Gray, also known as the youngest son of the Mayor of Rainy Hollow, stood with his arms crossed. He wore well made dark clothing which fit sung on his thinner frame, with black pants, tall black boots, and a dark gray linen shirt. Justin scowled and Zen looked curiously at Corbin.
“What’s your problem? Nobody asked you.” Justin took a step back from Corbin and grabbed Zen’s arm. “Come on, let’s go somewhere else.” Justin tried leading Zen away, but Zen didn’t budge.
“Hold on, Justin, I want to hear what he has to say. It sounds interesting!” Zen pulled his arm out of Justin’s grip and looked to Corbin. “How do you know that’s the reason it won’t open up?”
Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.
Corbin eyed the two of them, his expression slightly haughty. “Well, wouldn’t you like to know.”
Zen and Justin glanced at each other, then just stared back at Corbin. After a few seconds of silence, Corbin huffed, then started speaking again. “I read a lot of books, alright.” Corbin shifted in place, “In the official dungeon diver’s guide it talks about new dungeons. There are a couple of reasons why a new dungeon forms, at least from what adventurers and scholars have been able to discern. Among those reasons include a monster den being upgraded by the system into a dungeon, the system turning empty ruins into a dungeon, a dungeon created through an artifact, and a dungeon created for a system tutorial.”
Zen tilted his head, pondering the information. “Interesting, what is a system tutorial?”
Corbin took a step towards the other two, “Well, a system tutorial is when someone not born in Eldria finds their way here and the system steps in to personally teach them about the system. It is a very rare occurrence, but those individuals usually turn out to be among the most powerful individuals in Eldria. Honestly quite unfair, but some scholars believe that when the system came to Eldria millenia ago, the tutorial was given to everyone.” Corbin shrugged, “I was not completely sure how true that all was, until I was given the chance to read the prompt from the dungeon entrance.”
Zen’s eyes widened, “Well what did it say?”
Corbin placed a hand on a pouch at his waist, tugging at one of the drawstrings in what seemed like a nervous gesture. “When you place a hand on the new dungeon entrance, it gives some information on it. The dungeon is a novice questing dungeon.” His eyes seemed to shine with excitement at the last statement.
Before Corbin could continue, Justin interrupted with a question, “What does that mean? Isn’t a dungeon just a dungeon?”
Corbin huffed, “No dungeon is quite the same, Ellis. A novice dungeon is the lowest level dungeon you will ever find, and is also the perfect type of dungeon for those still lower level. A questing dungeon is even more valuable because it gives further opportunities for experience and rewards. Other dungeons may have such opportunities, but in a questing dungeon the way to get those rewards will be clearly laid out.”
Zen nodded, “That makes a lot of sense. We have never been in a dungeon before, but I have heard an adventurer saying that he had two teammates die in an apprentice trap dungeon. What other dungeons are out there.”
Corbin nodded, “Yes, even apprentice rank dungeons can be extremely dangerous. Some nobles who own apprentice or higher dungeons put level requirements on those that can enter them. Some of the more greedy nobles even put entry fees on dungeon entrances. I expect my father may be more lenient.”
Justin’s eyes widened in shock, “What do you mean, your father may be more lenient. He doesn’t own the dungeon!”
Corbin rolled his eyes, “This is still part of my father’s land, therefore, this dungeon is under his jurisdiction. If we don’t want Baron Redford or Duke Gladys to take charge of the dungeon, he needs to take ownership of the dungeon first.”
“That’s so unfair! The dungeon should be open to everyone!” Zen raised his voice in anger.
“Don’t be naive, Baker, every dungeon in Eldria is owned by some noble or king. That’s the way it is. There may be dungeon’s out there not under any noble, but that’s because it is too far from civilization. A novice rank dungeon will only be a boon for the Rainy Hollow’s economy. You two shouldn’t fret too much. Besides, no one can take ownership of the dungeon until the sole occupant of the dungeon finally leaves or dies.” Corbin looked past the two young men and stared at the dungeon.”
Justin spoke up, “There is for sure someone in there?”
“The message from the system stated that the dungeon was a novice questing dungeon, as well stating that the dungeon is closed to further Users. Meaning someone is inside right now. That probably indicates someone immediately entered the dungeon after it appeared, or the dungeon appeared for someone’s tutorial.”
Justin turned around to look at the dungeon as well. “Well, dang. I wonder who is in there.”
“This dungeon is a huge opportunity for us. It’s our chance to be high enough level to be proper adventurers.” Zen looked at his friend.
Corbin didn’t say anything to that. He glanced up as a cool spring breeze passed through the crowded meadow. Glancing up at the sky, the three young men could see that it was nearing late afternoon and dinner time.
A loud voice near the dungeon entrance caused the three to turn towards the sound. They spotted an armored guard shouting at the crowd in front of him. “Oi, you lot need to clear out the meadow! No one is entering the dungeon right now, so head back to your homes and businesses!”
The crowd shouted back in anger and objection, but some began to stream back towards the village. The guard continued to shout orders, “You heard me! By the orders of Mayor Gray, this meadow and the dungeon are under his jurisdiction! So clear out!”
The crowd groaned and talked amongst each other, but most of the town liked the mayor and didn’t find the need to argue. A few moments later most of the people were heading back to the town, still full of excitement. Corbin, Justin, and Zen looked at each other, then started walking towards the dissipating crowd.
A couple minutes later and all that stood in front of the dungeon were two Rainy Hollow town guards, the three young men, and a group of three adventurers. In fact, Zen recognized the three as an adventuring group led by Mayor Gray’s second son, Robin Gray. Robin looked like the older version of his younger brother Corbin, with the white blonde hair, gray eyes, and tall and thin frame. He definitely had a more muscular frame and the silver hilted sword at his waist gave him a dangerous air.
The two guards saluted Robin as he and his team approached the dungeon entrance. Zen watched as the taller of the two guards, a soldier named Linken, as he began to address Robin.
“Lord Gray, did your father send your team to assess the dungeon?” Linken looked between Robin’s team members, before eyeing Corbin and the other two young men.
“Yes, guardsman, my father sent me to get an update on the current situation. I did not realize my younger brother would be here as well.” Robin turned his gaze to Corbin.
“I have just as much of a right to be here as well, brother.” Corbin rebuked.
Robin’s teammate, Eagan, turned to their other teammate, Maya, and muttered, “What about the other two miscreants?”
Zen could hear the words quite clearly, and balled his hands into fists. He could see Justin’s face redden slightly, but thankfully he stayed quiet. Zen barely knew the three, who were also known as Hollow’s Warriors. Robin had some specialized sword class while Eagan was a red-haired fire mage, and Maya was a black-haired Ranger. The three were in their mid to late twenties, and the only adventuring group based in Rainy Hollow. Zen also knew that Justin had a more than unhealthy crush on Maia.
Robin turned to smack Eagan’s shoulder, and gave both his teammates a look of disappointment. The noble turned back to his brother and nodded, “Yes, you and your friends can stay.” Robin looked to the two guardsmen again and said, “Do you have a status update on the dungeon?”
The shorter guard, Ian, nodded. “We have informed your father about the rank and dungeon type, as well as the fact that the dungeon is occupied. We don’t know who is inside, but we will wait for them to exit. Will you be claiming the dungeon on your father’s behalf, or will he do so himself?”
“My father wishes to claim the dungeon in person, my job is to wait here until the dungeon is ready. We wouldn’t want anyone else trying to claim the dungeon, even the duke or baron. News will travel fast, I know some of the duke’s personal guards were passing through this morning, and I believe they left for the duke’s manor as soon as they heard the news. As long as we claim it first, they will have no way to override my father. I have no doubt-” Robin suddenly stopped speaking, motioning everyone to stay quiet. “Do you hear that?” he whispered quietly.
Zen joined the others in trying to pick out whatever sound Robin had heard. Corbin opened his mouth as if to speak, but stopped when the ground below them started to shake. It was neither subtle or large, but they could all feel the ground shake beneath them. Zen had to suddenly close his eyes when the crystals affixed to the dungeon entrance began to glow with a blinding light.
“Nine Hells! What is happening!?” someone around Zen shouted.
A couple seconds later and the light dimmed enough for everyone to reopen their eyes again. The shaking had thankfully stopped, but they could all see that the dungeon entrance had changed. The crystals which had once been a variety of colors now all glowed with a startling blue light. On the inside of the entrance, before the tunnel gave way to darkness, Zen could make out inscriptions of a variety of animals carved into the rock. He could see wolves, bears, snakes, foxes, and other animals he couldn’t identify.
“What just happened?” Zen didn’t realize he had spoken aloud until all eyes turned to him, all except one. Zen looked at Robin, who had a furious look on his face.
With a scowl, Robin muttered aloud, “It seems whomever is inside survived the dungeon. And they took more than they deserved.”