Dungeon (3)
"Hah... haaa..."
Clink
The final goblin turned into a burst of black smoke, dropping the last purple crystal.
Bete panted heavily and finally noticed the scene of destruction surrounding him.
Piles and piles of shining magic stones were scattered across the dungeon ground creating an image of jewel-studded floors. There were also a few rare item drops — goblin fangs. Bete let out a low whistle at the sheer amount.
His equipment was relatively intact with a few smudges here and there from rolling on the ground and kicking up dirt . His boots and armguards were also dusted with goblin blood, an inevitable consequence of close combat and slamming his fists and legs against monster flesh.
There were also signs of the few blows he took. None of them were a direct hit but glancing blows still stacked up after defeating dozens and dozens of goblins.
Honestly, the biggest damage he took was the fatigue he felt after wading through an entire hoard of them.
After some reflection, he recognized the skirmish was a good experience for him. Although Bete had lots of involvement in a many vs one or many vs few situation where he would be in a large hunting group, those were rare for Adventurers. More often than not, parties would face groups of enemies easily twice or thrice their size at once — sometimes numbering multiple dozens at a time. It was simply something Adventurers needed to get used to if they wanted to survive.
Even with the week of training, only experience would truly teach him. It was indeed a whole different fight when it was just him against an entire mob. He had to worry about overextending, guarding his flank and generally maintaining awareness on all sides. He also couldn't lose himself when he was too deep and had to call a temporary retreat.
Bete then looked towards Ais. To his surprise, she was struggling. Not in the way he expected, but struggling nonetheless.
"N-no! I can still fight! There's still more of them!"
The bloodthirsty girl wriggled against the taller High Elf, her small sword between them like a dangerous tug-of-war rope.
"Stop it! Your body is on the brink of collapse and your entire body is covered in blood and monster guts! You! Are! Done! Now!"
With each exclamation, Riveria pulled the sword against Ais's impressively tight grip.
Yank—
Finally, she overpowered the girl and took the weapon away so Ais couldn't go on another rampage. To ensure she couldn't reach it, the Elf held it high above her head.
"Give... Give it.. back!"
Ais tried her best to jump up and take her sword to no avail.
Bete let out a tired sigh.
'What are they doing in the dungeon?'
But he did have some remaining questions after the hands-on experience.
"By the way, how does the disappearing thing work? Sometimes they die instantly but other times they're intact for a little while."
Riveria tiredly turned towards him, now in the middle of wiping blood from Ais's scowling face with a towel while hiding the sword behind her back with the other hand.
"Monster corpses will typically vanish after a few seconds, leaving drops and monster stones. However, blood and other materials may still remain if they spill out before the disapperance. I believe that the severity of damage inflicted upon them may affect the immediacy of their disappearance."
He look around at the traces of black dust.
"Huh. That's rather convenient."
"I suppose. Hold still!"
Riveria directed the last part towards Ais who was still flailing around.
"I'm fine!"
"You look like a ripe tomato, child," she chided.
"Tch..."
Meanwhile, Bete turned away from the duo and eyed the other exit eagerly. New places meant more enemies.
But Riveria responded as if she could read his mind.
"Hold on. Where do you think you're going?" she asked, a sly glint in the her emerald eyes.
"W-what? Shouldn't we find more monsters to fight?"
He had a bad feeling.
Responding to that ominous sensation, the High Elf took out a large, cloth backpack that looked like it could fit both him and Ais inside, with room for much more.
"You're leaving all of this profit on the floor?"
He unfortunately understood what she was implying. Glancing behind him, Bete felt a chill down his spine. There were so many… and so far spread apart.
"A-all of them? That'll take so much time!"
"Yes, it's annoying, isn't it?"
"Of course it is!"
"It's a great waste of time, yes?"
"Yeah! A waste of time I don't have-"
"Don't you wish there was someone else who could do this work?"
"Exactly—"
"Oh if only such an integral role existed in a party~"
"..."
"If only there was a poor group of souls that were ready to do the dirty work. All they want is better treatment~"
"Wait—"
Riveria dramatically draped her arms over her eyes, unable to cover her sneaky smile despite her words.
Bete groaned, looking away from the Elf.
"Stop shoving it in my face. I get it."
"Do you?"
The Werewolf didn't humor her with another reply, slugging his body over to the first magic stone and chucking it in the bag.
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.
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'Fuck. This is frustrating.'
He internally grumbled while shoving another magic stone in his bag.
'You did kinda bring it on yourself.'
'Shut it.'
'Do you feel like grabbing a supporter for your party now?' the voice teased.
'Blackie, I will personally smash my head against the wall.'
'That... seems rather counterintuitive. Also, of course it would be personally done. Who else would do it?'
Bete's fist trembled with anger, threatening to crack the magic stone in his palm.
'You really wanna do this? Now?'
'O-okay, let's not get testy. How about I show you your improved Status?'
Bete narrowed his eyes.
'Yeah... why don't we do that.'
The screen hurriedly appeared in his mind, reflecting Blackie's panic.
Blink
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{Bete Loga}
Level: 1
Physical Status: Tired, Slightly Battered
Mental Status: Slightly Tired, Aggravated
Equipment: 11,620 Valis, Leather Medicine Bag - (Middle Rank Health Potion x 3, Middle Rank Mind Potion x 3, Middle-High Rank Health Potion x 2, Medicinal Gauze Rolls x 2), Combat Armguards, Combat Boots, Throwing Knives x 7
Basic Abilities:
- Strength: I 9 → I 10
- Endurance: I 7 → I 7
- Dexterity: I 10 → I 11
- Agility: I 16 → I 17
- Magic: I 0 → I 0
Developmental Abilities: None
Magic:
[Hati] - Calls forth powerful fire magic to enchant user's body that increases in strength by absorbing other magic or damage through contact. Has an incredibly long chant and its activation brings forth painful memories for the user.
* WARNING * - over-absorption can result in self-harm
Skills:
[Úlfheðinn] - Allows user to morph into a heightened, beast-like state when affected by the power of the moon, increasing all stats and negating all abnormalities
[Beastial Senses] - A skill granted by a mysterious power, amplifying existing senses beyond the limits to the point where the user can feel emotions, thoughts, and even intangible ideas
.
A growth of 3 points overall. Just one hoard of goblins had given him almost the same benefit as hours of training. Based on this, he guessed that an average day of dungeon diving could net him around 10 or so points. Maybe more if he pushed it.
Bete nodded to himself. Before leveling up, he wanted at least one S in his basic abilities and at least B's in the other ones. Ignoring magic, that was basically 3000 total Status points at the minimum (900 + 700 * 3).
'365 days in a year. So I'll need bit more than 8 points every day. Although the improvements might deteriorate a little with time, it's more than doable based on my growth today. I just keep going like this and I'll shatter that level up record.'
He also considered his short-term growth.
'Riveria said at least a G in basic abilities before the 5th Floor. In other words, at least 200 points in a single stat... it might take a few weeks. I guess it really is laughable that I expected to clear the first four floors in one day.'
'Indeed. Quite stupid of you.'
'I never said stupid.'
The veins on Bete's forehead bulged as he was tempted to punish this annoying buzz in his head. However, he knew better than to let down his guard in the dungeon.
'Anyway, seeing my Status reminded me of another thing.'
Pulling out the medicine bag that Dian Cecht had gifted him, Bete took out two of the three murky green potions — Middle Rank Health Potions. For a moment, the Werewolf squinted at them dubiously.
'Are all potions this color?'
'It all depends on the ingredient and alchemist. Some like to dye theirs a certain color to make them look more attractive. In the end, even if the ingredients are different, the main judging factor is the rank and quality.'
"Hmm..."
'You sure you want to use it now?'
'If there's anything I've learned, it's that there's hardly a point in saving stuff. Use what you have, leave no regrets.'
He uncorked the small bottle and chugged its contents.
". . . Ugh."
The taste was unfamiliar. It wasn't bad enough to throw up, but it certainly didn't taste great.
'That's understandable. Potions are made to heal, not to please your taste buds.'
'Still, they could have put in some flavoring to mask this taste,' Bete complained, shuddering a little.
'You would be surprised at how hard it is to change the taste without messing up the effects.'
'Bleh. At least it works.'
Bete could feel his insides quickly warming up and his fatigue lifting. The sore spots from being hit by goblins were visibly alleviated. Even his mind (not Mind) felt refreshed.
'Damn, that's actually some good stuff. That was just a Middle Rank potion?'
'I think it's partly because the potion was from that capitalist's Familia but yes, potions of this caliber will suit your needs well into the Middle Floors. For physical wounds, you can also apply potions externally by pouring it on the injury.'
He took Blackie's advice in stride, looking up from the sea of loot towards Ais who was listlessly sitting on an empty patch of the ground. She was staring at her bloody sword with a complicated expression. It seemed Riveria gave it back once she calmed down.
Honestly, any other sword would have probably been in tatters by now. Riveria made a good call ordering a custom-made weapon for Ais.
Bete approached her, slugging his huge backpack behind him like an off-brand Santa Claus. To his intrigue, she didn't notice him despite the racket the bag made while being dragged against the floor.
"Hey. You good?" he asked, once he was within comfortable talking distance.
Ais flinched, probably disturbed from some deep thoughts. Even so, Bete didn't feel the need to get all nosy. He was a fellow Familia member, not her therapist.
"Here. You seem like you need it."
He set down the barely-full bag and brought out the other health potion. In a single clean move, Bete bent his neck and unstoppered the bottle with his sharp canines. Perhaps a tad crude but the Werewolf didn't really care and he didn't think Ais would either.
"..."
The girl merely studied the offered potion with a tilted head. Was he incorrect in his assumptions? She did look like a noble aside from the Adventurer get-up. Maybe she had some wealthy background and wasn't as uncouth as he expected?
"It's for you. A health potion."
"For... me?"
Bete rolled his eyes.
"Yeah, for you. Drink that and come help me. The sooner we finish, the sooner we can fight more monsters."
"..."
She stared at him for a few more awkward moments, then took the bottle.
Swig
The girl immediately stuck her tongue out, face scrunching up at the flavor.
"Bleh~ It tastes bad."
"Get used to it. Now come on."
Bete gestured towards the piles of goblin fangs and monster stones that required gathering.
Through her eyes squinted in distaste, the blonde studied the boyish Werewolf in front of her with a new perspective. After almost going mad over slaughtering a few goblins, Ais recognized a need to become better. Completely indoctrinating and listening to Riveria's teachings was a bit of a stretch, but even her stubborn self knew there was a limit to her reckless fighting. The proof was there after just a single fight.
The young Adventurer became particularly aware of that when she witnessed Bete's fighting: merciless and swift, but lacking the crazed desperation seen in her own blade-work — if it could even be called that. Ais felt a sense of shame realizing that the young Werewolf was dispatching the goblins with relative ease while she was degrading her father's sword art by home-running goblin skulls into the dungeon walls with a custom bat.
"What? You still getting over the potion taste?"
The source of her troubles looked back towards her with an impatient look.
As expected, their relationship was ambiguous after only around two weeks. They were fellow Jagamarukun lovers and rookie Loki Familia members. Apart from that, Ais wasn't exactly sure what Bete expected from her or what she expected from him.
He was boisterous at times, but kept a sense of boundary which she appreciated. Ais knew there were times when she acted out of line but Bete never reprimanded her too harshly. He could be a little unintentionally silly, but also had a smart side. At the end of the day, he would always treat her the same. Perhaps that would be irritating to others, but it sat just fine with the blonde.
Most importantly, they shared the goal of getting stronger. The mutual priority kept in the back of their heads created a sense of camaraderie between them that allowed Ais to feel closer to Bete. His desperation for strength was driven by something greater than mere desire for success or a lackluster aspiration. No, he was like her. She could feel it.
Did that make them friends? Ais wasn't sure. What even was a friend? What did friends do? Her parents explained it in a vague manner so she didn't have a good grasp on the concept of friendship. In the past, she only had family and scary aunts. A fellow child of similar age was a new experience for her — just like the dungeon. And lastly, did he even consider any of these thoughts? To Bete, was she still just a random child he met on the street?
"Oi, is your plan just to sit there with a blank look the whole time while I do all the work?"
"You still haven't finished?" Riveria inquired from behind them, interrupting Ais mid-thought.
Bete's eyes twitched as he resisted the urge to throw a punch at the Level 5 Adventurer. It would be futile but it would be release some of his stress.
"It's a little... difficult on my own," he muttered through gritted teeth.
"Hm. Do you want some motivation? This is for you too, Ais."
""?""
The Elf responded to their interest by bending down and grabbing one of the numerous magic stones on the floor.
"This," she said, flashing the crystal towards them. "Is a 1st Floor, goblin magic stone. Magic stone prices depend on the floor and monster they're from, while also varying depending on the size and quality. Not every monster is the same, even if they are of like species. Similarly, damaged magic stones and items sell for less. Magic stone inspectors who work at the Guild have devices to scan the general price of each material. Of course, because they only offer a standard price, it's better to go to a commercial Familia for better prices if you have an expensive item. Especially so if you consider there's also a Guild tax."
"And? What's your point?"
The Elf smiled, crystal shining between her smooth fingertips. The dark purple body made an attractive contrast against her milky white skin.
"I'm saying that the average price of this kind of magic stone goes for around 50 valis. Goblin fangs can go for double, maybe even triple that much depending on the previously listed factors. Now look here, there's dozens of such items around. You know what that means?"
"!"
Bete's head was struck with inspiration.
"A single Jagamarukun is around 30-40 valis. That means a single one of these stones is basically a Jagamarukun."
"?!?!"
Ais also visibly perked up, hopping up off the ground in an instant.
His amber eyes flashed, scanning the room with impeccable speed and precision.
"32 monster stones and 4 goblin fangs. That's around 2000 valis if you consider each stone 50 valis and each fang 100 valis. No, if you include the damage that Ais did, it's closer to 1800. If we split that between us that's 900 valis which means we can each purchase 3 orders of a dozen original Jagamarukun — 72 Jagamarukun total."
"No? I-I mean, yes... but that's not what I was trying to... you know what? Sure. Get your Jagamarukun."
Her initial plans collapsed, leaving Riveria with a flustered look.
'Why is he that good at math when Jagamarukun is involved?'
Hence, the magical words were spoken to drive Bete and Ais into a fried potato-induced frenzy.
In a matter of minutes, the two ran around the room with seemingly never-ending energy and managed to pick the room spotless with the bag now around quarter-full.
Riveria watched them the entire time, blinking confoundedly.
"Um. Okay, let's continue. The day is still far from over.
The rookies nodded and matched gaits, the eager sound of their trudging boots an indicator of the poor monsters' impending demise.
Thus, the potato crusades began.
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Hours Later, Orario
After an entire day of fulfilling monster slaughter, the trio walked under the nubile moonlight with generally positive feelings. First, after climbing the spiraling staircase back up, Riveria forced the two into the community showers that were supplied for every Adventurer. Thankfully, they could use the better ones — courtesy of their notable Familia and Riveria's status.
Ais pouted the entire way and stomped out of the humid chambers with wet, mangled hair that the High Elf amusedly dried with a burst of warm air. It was only now, a few hours afterwards, that her poofed hair was settling down. As for Bete, he didn't really mind water. He knew that some Beast Humans disliked bathing, but he always enjoyed running water against his body. The warmth thanks to magic stone technology was only a bonus.
Once they got out of the dungeon, Riveria brought them back to the Pantheon and into one of the Guild buildings where they could sell their gains. Rose shot them an annoyed glance, but fortunately seemed to lack the angry criticisms that she spewed their last encounter.
Their hooded Guild inspector carefully counted the bag of loot and scanned over it with a magic device. Thankfully, the worker didn't go through each magic stone individually and evaluate the price of every single one since Bete knew they would have gotten paid less, taking into account that Ais wrecked plenty of her monster stones.
Instead, the Guild had a bulk-purchase system for such situations involving numerous not-so-valuable loot. Essentially, the standard Guild price was applied for each item, with the Adventurer being able to argue if they felt the need.
Of course, he also had to share half the earnings with Ais. As a High Class Adventurer, Riveria didn't need it a measly few thousand valis. Then, after applying the Guild tax, the initial total that was around 5000 valis trickled down to a mere 2000 valis for him.
'FUCK TAXES!!!' he mentally roared.
Fortunately, it was just the first day. They took things relatively slowly and only fought goblins. If they had committed the whole day purely to grinding magic stones and excelia, their profit and Bete's growth would have probably increased by a few thousand and a point or two respectively.
His Status now looked like this —
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Equipment:
11,620 → 13,620 valis
Basic Abilities:
- Strength: I 9 → I 11
- Endurance: I 7 → I 8
- Dexterity: I 10 → I 13
- Agility: I 16 → I 20
- Magic: I 0 → I 0
.
While the gained excelia was not yet implemented into Bete's Falna through a Status update, there was now an improved growth of 10 points — an additional 7 from after their first skirmish.
Finally, he could be somewhat satisfied with his development.
But looking around, Bete noticed they were heading in the opposite direction, south of the Pantheon instead of northwards where Twilight Manor sat.
"We're going somewhere else again? It's getting a little dark."
He was curious as to where they were now headed, but Riveria mysteriously smiled and replied with, "It's a surprise."
Bete once again sighed and followed behind the Elf.
"Wherever we're going, can we pick up Jagamarukun on the way?"
"No," she instantly denied. "You'll get food there."
"Hmm. A restaurant of sorts?" he inquired, a canine sticking out from his smirk.
Riveria quickly changed the subject.
"Anyway, what did you two think of your first experience?"
The two rookies glanced at each other, silently exchanging looks of hesitation.
"It was... different," Ais first answered.
"How so?"
"It just was. Everything was strange."
"Mm."
The Elf just hummed in acknowledgement, showing no apparent approval nor criticism.
"And you, Bete?"
"Eh. Learned a lot but wasn't particularly challenged," he replied with his hands interlocked behind his head.
"I see. My apologies if you felt I was holding you back."
"Nah, I understand why. Get a feel for the terrain, fighting multiple enemies, getting a hang of your own limits and conserving stamina. That kind of shit."
She raised her brows, continuously impressed by his surprisingly thoughtful analysis.
"Correct. In my experience, acclimating yourself to the continuous, exhausting slaughter of the dungeon is the most important priority for a rookie. Growth can come once I'm confident you two don't go and get yourselves killed."
"Tch."
"What was that?"
"..."
Ais suddenly seemed awfully interested in the metallic utensils stand on their right, sweat pooling at her brow.
"So when exactly is 'when we don't get our asses killed'? Can I get a rough estimate for when we can move on to the 5th Floor?"
Riveria airily chuckled. "Not anytime in the next few days. Perhaps at the end of the month if you really push it, but I'd still advise against it."
"Mhm. And where are we going?"
She smirked.
"Nice try."
Bete sighed, the anticipation beginning to pile.
'So it's some kind of place with food. Maybe visiting a friendly Familia for a dinner? A restaurant? I don't think they'll let us around alcohol so not a bar... right?'
Luckily, he didn't have to wait too long to find out.
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I think a little under a year to level up would be on-pace for Adventurers of Bete and Ais's caliber. I want to keep the plot events mostly the same and refrain from making them overpowered. Gaining around 10-12 points every day would grow their Falna to a good spot.
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Thank you for reading!