What would you expect from an average dungeon run? A few puzzles, some traps, and, of course, lots of monsters. But it wouldn't be just a large crowd in a grand chamber. There should be a steady progression. The level of these beasts growing gradually until you met the boss.
Well, it may have been a horde as well, but only after you faced some easier foes first. Gradual increase in difficulty, you know.
That wasn't Aira's experience in this dungeon. Every day she spent here reminded her of a training routine. Even worse, it was like that basic tutorial she was made to go through when she was just a young apprentice, not even knowing how to use her first-level skills.
This dungeon wasn't the challenge it should have been.
The process was physically exhausting; she wouldn't deny that. Like any workout should be. With a sigh, Aira wiped the sweat from her brow. But that was it, an exercise, not a challenge. Was it really what she came here for?
She looked down, where a disfigured body of a troll was lying at her feet. Only a few moments have passed since her most recent fight. And, of course, a win. Usually, it would bring a sense of accomplishment, joy, or at least satisfaction from the hard work done. But they just weren't there. The sequence of monsters she had to face in this dungeon was too primitive and repetitive.
Aira kicked the dead troll with the toe of her boot, channeling her frustration. "Good riddance," she said, "But was it really that hard for you to be a bit tougher?"
Her confidence in the plan began to waiver this morning, just after she finished her breakfast and was ready to decamp. It should probably have happened even earlier. But she was so focused on this goal of reaching the 100th level that everything else didn't really matter.
If she was sincere, that creeping sense of boredom and neverending repetitiveness had followed her for much longer. Not just from the entrance of this dungeon. For several years already. But now, in these halls and caverns, the stench of decay and darkness that surrounded only boosted this pressing feeling. Made her question why she had even come here. In the end, it was just XP. There were other ways to gain it and break through the needed threshold.
Had all these years of grinding really been worth it? What had it brought her besides a fancy title, power, and plenty of gold? Of course, she wouldn't complain about the quality of life she could afford. But did she have to continue her life and career in the same manner? There were easier ways to earn money. Even if she needed to have any income.
Aira could buy a plot of land and live carefree for the rest of her days. So, what was still pushing her to continue her progression? Just inertia or something else?
She picked up her warhammer and looked at the troll with apprehension. It was time to move on. She took step after step forward into the unknown. Now, when she had already entered the dungeon, she had to finish it anyway; there was no going back.
This quest had been on Aira's mind for ages. It was almost like her entire career had been building up to this moment. She couldn't remember who first suggested that reaching the 100th level in this dungeon would be such a great idea. Only a general sentiment of that recommendation remained and followed Aira throughout her career and life.
It should have been the ultimate test for her. And as a bonus, she'd reach the coveted Legendary status.
In the years that passed since she first heard about this dungeon, Aira had meticulously prepared and researched her future foray. Reckless mages didn't last long in these dangerous environments. They didn't last long anywhere, but especially here. However, to her disappointment, things were not going as expected.
The experience was underwhelming. And it wasn't because this dungeon has existed for dozens of years. Otherwise, Aira wouldn't be able to research it. But even with the research, there always was some challenge if you chose a dungeon that corresponded to your level.
Every survivor of this dungeon mentioned a steady progression of monsters leading up to the final boss fight. Well, it was the standard way of things with these sorts of challenges. But since Aira made her first steps here, that wasn't what she experienced. It would have been nice if there were any surprises or real challenges. But there was no progression. No increase in the levels of the enemies. No challenge. Just a constant grind.
Even this troll, with its sharp tusks, heavy weapons, and menacing growls, was not even getting close to being her equal. Another predictable exchange of blows, another easy victory. It was as if all the same monsters were duplicated again and again, chamber after chamber, day after day.
At least she wasn't upset by the mediocre XP she gained during this dungeon run. Points earned from defeating the troll probably wouldn't even make an impact on the amount needed to reach the next level. That 100th level she desired so much. Luckily, the quest would provide enough experience to go over the threshold.
She voiced her frustration out loud, hoping someone or something would hear her. "This isn't right!" she exclaimed. "Dungeons do not work this way! There should be a challenge! It had to be a perfect match for me, I did the research!"
She kicked a stone in frustration; it flew over to the other side of the cavern and was lost in the darkness.
No, that wasn't the right mindset. Channeling her frustration into abusing random stones wouldn't help her stay calm and focus on her goals. It was time to collect herself. Even when the monsters weren't as strong as she had hoped, staying rooted in hard logic and thorough planning was always important.
So, before going any further and facing other challenges, Aira needed to calm down and center herself.
Since her childhood, meditation was the primary tool Aira was taught to use in similar situations. In any tense or unusual situation, really. Some of her friends used it for its main reason only: to replenish the reserves of mana and health. But for her, it was so much more than that. It also worked magic, pun intended, for her anxiety and even allowed her to plan her next steps better. So, even if she didn't need to restore her stats at the moment, she would focus on the mental aspects of the routine.
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The process was relatively straightforward. She had to gradually explore all of her senses, putting them in the background one by one, almost switching them off. Until only magic remained. That allowed her to focus on her arcane powers.
Aira took a deep breath and closed her eyes, grounding herself in the present moment. First, she immersed herself in each of the senses, one by one. She carefully observed her surroundings, noting the texture of the walls, the unique patterns of the rock formations, and even the tiny light-emitting mushrooms that grew from cracks in the stone. She cataloged all of that and put the sensations aside. Then, she gradually distanced herself from each of them until only one was left. The final goal was to retain only magical sensations connecting her to the outer world.
She focused on the sounds. One may think the dungeon should be silent after Aira killed all the nearby monsters. But it was full of magical life and motion. The drip of water somewhere up ahead, scratching of the sand and rocks underfoot, and rustling of tiny creatures and monsters in the dark distant corners. All of that was a part of the symphony that surrounded her.
Reaching out to touch the nearest wall, Aira absorbed even more sensory information. The moss was soft and damp and it bounced slightly under her fingers. As she pressed her hand against it, she could feel the moisture collected in different nooks and crannies before dripping down. Finally, taking a deep breath, she sat against a patch of lush moss on the wall, entirely in tune with her surroundings.
She phased out all her other senses and focused on the last input channel: magic.
Effortlessly initiating her most powerful skill, Mana Manipulation, she extended its probes throughout the dungeon, sensing every living being, summoned creature, and inanimate magical object within its walls.
"I'm sure everything will be fine," she said, consciously filling her voice with determination as she tried to convince herself. "I just have to defeat the boss, and everything should return to normal, right?"
She summoned her System interface a habitual mental command. Lines of glowing text appeared in her vision, showing the most essential information about her current status. As she suspected, the XP gain from her recent fight was minimal.
Years of dungeon grinding, fights, battles, and skirmishes. And she couldn't help but wonder if the constant race for progression was even a goal worth pursuing.
She was almost there, less than a million points away from that level she desired so much. And yes, a million points wasn't much at her level.
That distant goal has influenced all her actions since childhood. But what's next? Even more repetitive fighting towards level 200? Level 1000? Was there an end to this neverending cycle? Maybe it was time to break the cycle?
Aira sighed and dismissed the glowing letters with a flick of her wrist. She couldn't even imagine her life without them, without the System. Or, what sounded even wilder, without magic. At the same time, she couldn't deny that there were moments when she felt limited by this overreliance on the arcane powers.
***
"Enough idling," said Aira, standing up. Hopefully, she will be finishing this dungeon soon. Aira had already spent enough time here and didn't want to waste even a day more in these caverns and halls.
Standing up, Aira shouted into the darkness: "Hey! So where is the dungeon boss? Would it be another troll? Will you finally give me a chance to use the full range of my skills?"
Stepping away from the scene of the recent fight, she moved towards the farthest corner of the hall. There, she found an entrance to a narrow corridor that wound through the rock until, after rounding a sharp corner, Aira found herself in a vast cavern, its ceiling shrouded in darkness. It would be an unremarkable space you could find in any dungeon or even in an ordinary cave, if not for one thing. Right in the center was a massive stone door that stood unsupported, its frame dimly lit by an unknown source of light. Around it, only empty space on all sides.
Finally, she saw something that promised a challenge: the door didn't register during her meditation. Either it didn't have any magic in it, or that magic was hidden well enough. But at her level, she rarely had a chance to stumble upon that "well enough."
Aira felt adrenaline coursing through her veins. "That's new!" she thought. "Hopefully, not just another disappointment."
Coming closer to the door, she noticed sequences of intricate runes carved on its surface and frame. Now she saw they were the source of that ethereal glow she saw from afar. Her eyes scanned the symbols, but they didn't seem familiar. "What do we have here?" she asked aloud, her curiosity piqued. Aira traced the patterns with her finger, the soft glow intensifying under her gentle touch.
Some shapes, she recognized. But none were from any language or magical tradition she had ever learned. And she studied lots of them. Really, lots of them. Like any other mage worth anything.
Frustration crept in as she muttered, "Absolutely useless! I can't read a thing!"
But then, finally, that was something new and unexpected, unlike everything else she experienced in this dungeon. Something she had hoped to find since the moment she started this quest. Aira's preliminary research did not hint at the existence of a door like this. Her mind quickly went through all the possibilities: monsters, puzzles, traps—the usual challenges one faced inside a dungeon. Definitely, not any kind of strange doors or portals.
After taking a deep breath, Aira placed her hand on the carved surface. The runes flared brightly as if showing they noticed the contact, and with a low rumble, the slab of stone slowly moved. The door opened towards her, revealing a dimly lit passage cut through the rock.
Aira stepped forward, and a strange sensation washed over her as soon as the door closed. It was like this lump of stone cut off part of her magical awareness. Even using her Mana Manipulation skill to sense behind the door revealed nothing. There was only emptiness there. No mana flow or energy present at all.
A portal, after all?
She pressed her palm against the heavy stone door, but it refused to budge. Just a few moments ago, it opened without any effort. But now, it felt like it was a solid part of the wall. Aira pushed against the door with all her might, which was considerate at her 99th level. But the door remained in place.
"Alright," she said. "Forward it is."
Aira turned to face the long corridor that stretched before her. She could feel a powerful, foreign magic swirling around her. Somehow, it wasn't like anything she had seen in the previous few days.
She was a well-trained professional with years of experience. So, the first thing Aira always did in a new space was to check the surroundings. Just another dungeon corridor. There shouldn't be anything special about it, right? Well, wrong.
This one was different from anything she had seen before. Its walls were covered with intricate carvings that depicted epic battles, mythical vistas, and strange creatures. Each step allowed Aira to witness more and more scenes. There was nothing familiar there. And she had traveled a lot and seen much since she chose her path as a battlemage.
It wasn't a secret that dungeons often tuned themselves to the adventures. But how were the unreadable runes on the door and these scenes on the walls relevant to Aira's journey? Were they the harbingers of what future adventures and quests? As they definitely didn't relate to anything from her past.
The corridor widened gradually, and a faint sound of chanting reached Aira's ears. Supposedly, this dungeon wasn't known for spawning anything besides mindless creatures incapable of speech. These monsters should have been more challenging compared to what she had experienced, but there should have been only monsters there.
And chanting could mean only one thing: sentient beings.