Skeleton Warrior

Beneath the stormy land lay an underground area with many corridors and perpendicular passages connecting them. On the walls of each passage were drawings that displayed various illustrations. As Cyrus turned around, he saw the stairs that had brought him there and three paths ahead of him: one to the left, one to the right, and one straight ahead. The left path had a picture of what appeared to be a skull, while the right corridor had the same drawing but with two smaller versions of the head on either side of the larger one. The path straight ahead had a drawing of a single gemstone.

Cyrus realized that he was in a maze with multiple paths to choose from. Each path had various challenges that needed to be overcome to proceed further. The reward received would be dependent on the choices made. The ultimate goal was to reach the boss's room, but to do so, Cyrus had to be careful not to take a wrong turn and face the dangers lurking inside the maze.

"It seems like there's only one enemy waiting for me on the left, but there are multiple enemies on the right. And it looks like there's a gemstone waiting to be looted in the front."

Cyrus realized that the pictures on the walls were straightforward in their implication. This was similar to video games where players are sometimes given the option to choose between an easy path or a harder, yet more rewarding one.

"I have a choice to make between taking the easier path by facing only one enemy to progress to the next stage, or challenging myself by facing multiple enemies for additional experience points. Though I am uncertain about what dangers await me on the front line, I am confident that the rewards will include magic stones that can be used to craft items, like the fire elemental stone that had been used to enhance my fire ant helmet."

Cyrus quickly made a decision and headed straight down the front corridor. He knew that items were much harder to obtain in the gates than experience points. While the monsters in the other paths might drop items, there was no guarantee, whereas the one in front of him was more likely to do so. Although he wasn't completely sure, Cyrus trusted his instincts.

As soon as he stepped into the corridor, a massive stone wall appeared behind him, preventing him from turning back.

"I can't go back to safety anymore. The only way to leave this place is to move forward."

Cyrus was surprised by the short length of the corridor, and soon he entered a large room that looked similar to the previous one. However, he noticed that there were three paths ahead of him, without any markings on their walls, and were blocked by the same type of stone wall that had prevented his escape earlier. As he approached the middle of the room, he saw a figure standing there. At first, he couldn't make out what it was, but as he got closer, he was able to identify it thanks to the blue tag name displayed above its head

[Lv. 20- Skeleton Warrior(Elite)]

"I knew those bastards were lying about something. Monsters of level 20 should only appear in D rank gates. It seemed strange to me that they would lie about the gate's rank, resulting in the deaths of so many hunters."

Gates are classified according to the strength of the monsters that inhabit them. The classification system is based on a numeric ranking, where level 1-5 is classified as F rank and 5-15 as E rank. The current gate that Cyrus was in had monsters ranging from level 15-30, which would put it under the D rank category. Despite this ranking system, there were still irregular monsters that didn't follow the norm, such as the ones Cyrus encountered in the ant's nest. However, in this case, it would be more accurate to assume that the gate was falsely advertised as an E rank, rather than an exception to the rule.

Cyrus was drawn to the sound of clicking and clattering, which was caused by the bones of a Skeleton Warrior hitting each other. The monster was wearing armor that had seen better days and was holding a rusty sword, giving Cyrus a clear indication that it was ready to fight. Despite the fact that the Skeleton Warrior was an elite monster and had a higher level than Cyrus, he did not feel intimidated. The monster's movements were slow and cumbersome due to its heavy armor, making it easy for Cyrus to avoid its attacks effortlessly. He dodged the skeleton's blows without much difficulty, feeling confident in his ability to defeat the monster.

The Skeleton Warrior is a formidable opponent due to its extreme toughness, which allows it to resist many types of physical attacks. Although it is not particularly agile, its relentless pursuit can make it a serious threat if not defeated quickly. If the battle drags on, Cyrus may become exhausted, giving the Skeleton Warrior an opportunity to land a fatal blow.

Cyrus quickly noticed that the Skeleton Warrior was slow-moving, so he decided to take advantage of this by removing his regular clothing and storing them in his newly acquired dimensional storage. He opted to keep his specially crafted equipment, including the arsonist shorts, the tactical fire ant mask, and goggles. However, his appearance was quite unusual and even disturbing, which might cause others to view him as either a troll or a sociopath.

In preparation for the battle, Cyrus used his "Overloaded Heat" technique, which unleashes a powerful wave of heat capable of inflicting serious damage to his opponent.

[Harmony between the opposing temperature is no longer existent. Ability will continue to deplete life.]

[You have dealt 12.5 damage]

[You have lost 2.5 health]

[You have regenerated 1.25 health]

"Ah, it appears that the skeleton has some level of fire resistance. However, it's not as high as that of the fire ants. Based on the amount of damage sustained, I estimate that it has about a 50% resistance to fire. But that's still manageable for me." thought Cyrus.

He continued to nimbly evade the sluggish attacks of the skeleton until it eventually succumbed to its injuries. To Cyrus's surprise, the monster began to emit a bright light and then completely vanished into thin air. This was an unusual occurrence, as defeated monsters typically remained in their physical form and could be studied or dissected.

[You have killed Lv20. Skeleton(Elite)]

[Due to the unique restriction of this location, defeating the enemy will not grant you any experience points that would normally contribute to your character's growth or level advancement.]

[Congratulations on successfully completing the initial challenge! You have demonstrated your skills and ability to overcome obstacles. As a reward for your efforts, you may choose from a selection of prizes before proceeding to the next challenge. Once you have made your selection, please proceed to the next room to face the next challenge.]

[Please select a reward for completing the first challenge:

1- Lesser Water Elemental Stone

2- Lesser Wind Elemental Stone

3- Lesser Arcane Magic Stone]

Cyrus looked around the unfamiliar surroundings and wondered about the new information he had just learned. He had never heard of this place before, and the Hunter Association or the news had never mentioned it. He was also surprised to learn about the various reward choices and the Challengers Room.

Feeling overwhelmed, Cyrus decided to focus on his next step and chose option three as his reward.

[You have acquired Lesser Arcane Magic Stone]

[Dimensional storage detected, reward will be automatically placed in storage.]