Ambrose took two steps forward before looking down at his pyjamas again.
“Prism. Is there anywhere I could get actual clothes around here? Oh, and what do they do about money in this world or around these parts?”
“Hmm. You can purchase a basic set of traveller's gear from the dungeon store. But to do so, you would need to earn contribution points. Which would require you to be able to kill dungeon creatures or donate materials from the outside.”
Ambrose groaned loudly. “So I need to go outside, in my pyjamas, and punch trees with my bare hands, or, I find one of those small prey creatures, and beat them to death, also with my bare hands.”
Prism thought for a moment, checking the rules. “Alternatively, because of how bad a shape the dungeon is in, I could give you an advance on the gear as a type of loan.”
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YOU HAVE RECEIVED A DUNGEON QUEST
The dungeon ‘The Gaol of Neterin’ is bad shape and needs help. Unfortunately you’re all it has, and you are in your pyjamas!
To solve this issue, the dungeon extends this offer to you.
Goal: Earn enough dungeon contribution to afford the rewards provided, 500 DC.
Reward: A set of travellers clothes, 10G, traveller’s basics, basic dagger (gained on acceptance)
Cost of refusal: You will have to find a way to gain money and clothes on your own.
Cost of failure: All items gained from the reward will disintegrate at the most inopportune time. Banishment from the dungeon. In the event of the dungeon’s destruction, the last of its energy will be sent summoning punishment creatures to hunt you down!
This quest is time limited and must be completed within one week.
Do you accept this quest?
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Ambrose looked over the valley, trying to think of other options. Taking the deal ensured he would be tied to the dungeon for a little longer, which he still wasn’t sure he wanted to do. Seeing as his only other option was to adventure around in his pyjamas, Ambrose made his decision, but wanted to double check he wasn’t being completely screwed over.
“How hard is it going to be to gather these five hundred contribution points?”
“Killing creatures gives you a single contribution point per level of the creature, donating materials gives points based on a mixture of rarity and value to the dungeon. It is unlikely for you to reach the points required in time, meaning you would need to restore one of the halls. Doing so will grant you the requisite points.”
He had to do it anyway if he wanted to beat the dungeon, so with a sigh he accepted the quest. Immediately, a backpack, a set of clothes, and a large but thin bangle, appeared in front of him.
Ambrose set to changing out of his pyjamas and into more appropriate gear. The outfit fit him perfectly and was comfortable to move in. The full set consisted of basic pants, a shirt, and a cloak to go over the top, all of which were in various tones of blue.
The bangle was actually the local equivalent of a coin pouch, the gold coins had holes in the centre. You would unclip part of the bangle then thread the coins onto it, before clipping the whole thing to your belt or bag. Ambrose thought it was a mixed idea, while harder to steal unnoticed, as it required destroying part of the belt or bag it was attached to to grab the thing, it displayed his wealth, or lack thereof, far more openly then he would have liked, driving him to keep the coins hidden behind his cloak. According to Prism, ten gold was enough money for food and lodging for a couple of days at best, though she couldn’t confirm how accurate that was, or even if the town nearby was still around, as there had only been a couple of groups of adventurers in the past decade.
His new backpack contained all the absolute basics a traveller would need, including a sleeping pack tied to the top, water canteen, compass, pair of torches, tinder box, rope, bandages, and a single days worth of rations. It was more than Ambrose had expected, but he could certainly use a spare set of clothes as well as some more food.
He attached the dagger to his belt, and with a nod to Prism, headed off.
As he walked, Ambrose practised the motion of pulling his dagger out repeatedly, remembering eventually to check its information, testing its flexibility, sharpness, and hardness netted the result he wanted.
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Basic Steel Dagger (Common, Cursed)
A basic dagger.
Durability: Normal.
Special Properties: Cursed (Ownership of the item cannot be transferred. The item will betray its owner unless a requirement is met.)
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After which, he checked the rest of his gear, getting near identical prompts. With the exception of his pyjamas.
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Flannel Pyjamas (Unknown)
A comfortable set of pyjamas, they emanate the essence of another world.
Durability: Normal.
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The description was odd, Prism had told him that the Abilities that gave information, would only produce output based on what he knew or could tell about the item, and would give false readings if he had supplied false information. He knew the pyjamas to just be ordinary though, and couldn’t sense anything strange about them, so he was surprised that they didn’t just show up as such. When Prism chose not to elucidate him on the subject, and having no other mental breakthroughs, Ambrose simply chose to write it off as an oddity of it being from another world, and him knowing that fact, even if he hadn’t considered it when looking at them.
The pyjamas had also brought bountiful Skill progress.
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CONGRATULATIONS OUTWORLDER, YOU HAVE NURTURED A SKILL
* Your Inspecting Skill has increased in level: 2 -> 10
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Using Inspect on all of his gear had brought the Skill to level five, meaning the pyjamas had granted a massive five level boost on their own. Ambrose was happy with the progress and decided he would just farm the Skill.
He repeatedly Inspected his pyjamas but never received a Skill level.
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Prism had watched silently while he had done this and decided to chime in. “If gaining Skill levels was as simple as spending time staring at pyjamas, everyone would have divine tier Skills. You must learn new things to grow.”
“Bah.”
The pair continued on in silence. Even when Ambrose was forced to swim through the lazy river flowing through the dungeon, he did so in contemplative silence. Trying his best to just enjoy the trip. He even turned Skill related notifications off. He had decided that it would just be easier, and give more dopamine, if he did it all in bulk, like a reward at the end of the day. He could still feel when the notifications hit, and gained a basic understanding when it happened, though it was more that he gained an idea of the type of notification and the skill affected, rather than any of the details.
Ambrose was still dripping wet when he was forced to drop into Skulk. “Prism. Get into the bag please.”
Fifty or so metres away was a group of the prey creatures, matching those he had found dead in the hotel. Keeping his distance, Ambrose lay, soggily, onto the ground and began to watch them. He felt the notification he was expecting but decided to keep watching, looking for an opportunity to go for a kill. Especially after he got information on them.
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Loobin (Dungeon), Comparable Level
One of several ‘prey’ creatures within the dungeon, ‘The Gaol of Neterin’, they use their long prehensile tongues to gather nutrients from the earth, or the bone marrow from bones left behind by other creatures.
* Strength of Body: Lower
* Speed of Body: Approximate
* Strength of Mind: Lower
* Speed of Mind: Lower
* Strength of Soul: Lower
* Speed of Soul: Lower
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He sat, wet, but fortunately not cold, as the creatures roamed around. Occasionally, one would stick its large tongue into the ground, eating whatever it had found.
It took about thirty minutes of waiting before Ambrose found his opportunity. The group had spread out and Ambrose could see that he wasn’t the only creature out for blood. What appeared to be a large, horrific mix of a wolf and a spider, could be seen sneaking up on the group, coming in from the cover of the forest to his right.
As it Skulked up to the creatures, Ambrose used his new skill on it as well.
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Dungeonese Wolfspider (Dungeon), Greater Level
The Dungeonese Wolfspider is a vicious hunter, requiring large amounts of meat to sustain itself. They don't use webs, and instead hunt their prey before pouncing on them, and injecting the creatures with a Anticoagulant venom with every gnash of teeth.
* Strength of Body: Higher
* Speed of Body: Higher
* Strength of Mind: Lower
* Speed of Mind: Lower
* Strength of Soul: Lower
* Speed of Soul: Lower
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Ambrose knew that fighting the new creature would be a terrible idea. However, using its oncoming ambush of the pack to his advantage, should increase his safety in fighting a Loobin, and increase his chances of just fighting one. Provided the Wolfspider didn't decide he would be a more interesting meal.
As the two hunters Skulked forward, Ambrose waited further back than the Wolfspider, having moved further into the valley. When the creature struck out towards the middle of the group, the Loobins scattered. The Wolfspider was able to quickly take down its first mark, leaving it to bleed out, then chased after a second on its eight hairy legs.
The Loobins heading in multiple directions, spreading away from the Wolfspider. This meant that only a couple were heading down towards Ambrose. Picking his mark, Ambrose entered into combat intentionally for the first time.
Ambrose lunged forward at the Loobin as it passed near enough, plunging the steel into the created creature’s abdomen. He quickly pulled back dodging away from the creatures' panicked flailing.
The two stared at each other for a moment. After having watched them roam and eat, he knew what to expect. Even knowing what to expect was barely enough to not get stabbed by the jagged, spiked tongue, as it whipped out of the creature's mouth, aiming straight for his throat.
Barely sidestepping the tongue, Ambrose slashed the appendage, managing to slice the end off. The Loobin, now fearing for its life, tried to flee. Ambrose chased after, tackling it into the ground and repeatedly stabbing it in the back.
When the creature went still, Ambrose scanned his surroundings, making sure he could see the Wolfspider, and that no others were coming. It wasn’t long before he found it, crossing the valley in front of him, heading into the forest, dragging the two ravaged Loobin bodies with it and leaving a long line of blood trailing behind.
“Prism, you are good to come back out now. Is there any part of these creatures worth looting?”
“While I cannot give you specifics for the uses of what you gather, I can say that you could make use of the tongue, skin, and flesh of the Loobins. Its core may also provide use, but you would not be able to at your current capabilities, or without the proper tools.”
“Alright, thanks.”
While he didn’t have a place to store anything, Ambrose figured he would need to gather lots of things in near the future, and decided to start practising now, so he wouldn't waste anything when he needed it.
While maintaining an eye out for more Wolfspiders coming from the forest, Ambrose began to skin and butcher the creature. The result was worthless from a materials standpoint, the skin already having several gaping wounds caused by the desperate stabbing that had caused the creature's death, and most of the rest still having chunks of meat attached. The result was instead a useful source of knowledge, he gained more Skills, and learned some oddities. The Loobins had almost no internal organs, being little more than big sacks of meat. They only had a single organ, which seemed to act as its stomach and heart, being connected directly to the oesophagus. There were no other internal parts, the stomach-heart thing had several veins connecting through the body, presumably to power the limbs and push blood throughout, though not through a mechanism he could directly understand.
“Prism, you said you couldn’t tell me about what the parts could be used for, can you tell me what old Residents used to eat?”
“Residents would cook their own food, usually sourced from materials within the dungeon. They would also purchase spices or materials they were missing from the dungeon directly. Residents with improved cooking Skills and Abilities would then sell food to make up this cost.”
“Okay, so what you are saying, but not saying is that people ate this.”
“I will not confirm, nor deny that claim.”
Ambrose unwrapped the rations he had, ate some, and left the rest in the bag unwrapped. He then took one of the nicer pieces of meat, wrapped it, and placed it within his bag.
The remainder of the trip across the valley was uneventful. Ambrose could see several creatures in the distance, none he wanted to mess around with, and none who investigated his presence either.
“Alright Prism, I will see you later.”
Prism floated into the bag and Ambrose began to walk into a tunnel within the dungeon's walls, as soon as he did, his bag grew heavier as Prism was disconnected from the dungeon, becoming inanimate, and ceasing to glow. The tunnel quickly grew dark without the light from the dungeon or from Prism, causing Ambrose to slowly walk through, running his hand against the wall, not wanting to waste his limited torches until he knew more about the area he was in.
Several minutes passed with Ambrose shuffling through the tunnel before light began to return. Ambrose began to hurry, eventually opening up to a run as he finally made it outside after what had felt like hours.
As he exited the tunnel, he took a deep breath and quietly celebrated. “Fuck yes, freedom!” The tunnel was hidden by mountains and tropical forest, but remnants of a path lead up to it. A strong scent of salt water filled the air, suggesting that he was very close to the ocean, though he couldn’t hear it yet over the echoing sounds of birds wanting to be laid.
The path that remained was quickly lost to the overgrowth, with no better path to follow, he took its heading using his compass and began to follow the direction down hill. Worst case, he believed he should reach the ocean where he could find an outlet, and follow it back upwards. If there was a town nearby, still intact, it had to be positioned near drinkable water, and was likely within a few minutes of the ocean.
Not knowing what threats the jungle possessed, Ambrose Skulked his way through, routinely ensuring he was on the correct heading, despite the path having long been missing. The sun slowly moved across the sky and as late afternoon, or perhaps early evening set in, Ambrose came out of the jungle.
A large section of the jungle had been cleared away and maintained to keep clean sightlines, and discourage creatures from venturing towards the village. Beyond this he could see evidence of farms, and beyond that, a village. Overcome with happiness over the thoughts of not being isolated in his dream turned nightmare, Ambrose began to run towards the town.
When he began to see people roaming inside the town, not having passed any farmers, he attempted to compose himself, and moved in at a more natural pace, he had to remember, he was just a traveller looking to restock.