Chapter 8: First Interaction With Magic Outside of Dungeon & First Encounter With Non NPC

Three days later, we hadn't entered any dungeons since the catacombs. Wanting to take a break and regenerate mentally from that battle.

Akira did his part by convincing and briefing Kiko to also participate in dungeon diving.

The reason I didn't immediately bring her to join at first is because I am uncertain if they would benefit from it or just me. But the trial run with Akira turned out well except for the Boss battle.

So, Akira demanded time for him to prepare Kiko for the danger in the dungeon. I let him have it his way since a prepared team member is more useful than dead weight.

With spell and skill that can be obtained from participating in the dungeon, I can reliably produce top notch combatant with a higher chance of winning against the Hunters.

But, the only reason I hadn't done it on a larger scale is because I lack trusted people that I can reveal the dungeon's existence to.

Maybe in the near future I can recruit more loyal members to my group. But for now, it's time to cash out these gold coins.

I put on better clothes than usual because I will be meeting people in a professional manner to discuss our business. My appearance must be presentable…

That is what I said and Akira brought me a formal suit to borrow and Ryouko is currently helping me put them on.

"There. You look great now."

Ryouko finished tying the ties and showed me a mirror. I took a look and saw everything was good.

"Thanks. If it goes well, we can finally afford a proper home for you two instead of having to share such a small room."

I said while looking at the cramped apartment with all three of us living inside.

"I don't really mind. Having a roof above my head and food to eat is already enough."

Ryouko shakes her head as she is satisfied with the current arrangement. Though, Hinami didn't share her thoughts.

"Really, onii-chan? I can get my own room?"

"Ah, I want those plushies we saw at the shop. I want to hug the giant Mr Bear to sleep every night!"

Hinami explains excitedly about the giant bear plushie which is a reward in the arcade center a few blocks away from the apartment.

"Yes, I can buy ten of them for you if you want. But you must promise to be a good girl and wait for me for the good news."

"Okay?"

"Okay!"

She gave me a big hug before returning to her mother's side and waved at me as I left the apartment with a bag on my back.

The gold is all stored in a pouch, inside my inventory and the bag is just a cover to take them out later.

———

Arrived at the coffee shop that will be the venue of our discussion. I took a big stride and entered the cafe.

A waitress with short dark blue hair greeted me and tried to bring me to a seat but my associate saw me and quickly called me over.

It was odd they would choose such a place to discuss. I would expect a more private location than this coffee shop.

I ordered a plain black coffee before taking a seat.

With me are three people, one is the appraiser and the other two are his friends that will help me sell the gold. Of course, he didn't do it for free and asked for a 5% cut of the profit.

"Let me introduce you to my friends."

The one on the right is Ryouma, the jewelry shop owner and on the left is Hiroshi, someone working for an auction house. I introduced myself too before we got into the business.

"So, I offer to buy each gram for 6.05k Yen for a total of 24 Million Yen."

"If you agree, please sign these paperwork here. It's for legal reasons."

I took the document and read through it, making sure nothing is out of ordinary before signing it down. After that, we shook hands and wrote me the cheque.

Next is the Auction house guy. This part is a little difficult as he asks too many questions, trying to get a hint of the gold coins origin.

"Sir, let me ask you a question. Are you aware how old the coins are after carbon dating them?"

"Um… no. It was my family heirloom from before my great grandfather. But I guess a few hundred years?"

I replied with a consistent answer that I gave every time they asked about its origin.

"No, you are incorrect sir."

Hiroshi shakes his head with a heavy sigh.

"While none of the letters or symbols can be understood or match the civilizations in our history, the oldest of those coins was dated to be at least more than ten thousand years ago."

"Many people are eager to purchase these coins. Some rich collectors directly offer up to a million Yen for the older ones."

I noticed the guy was eagerly rubbing his hands and definitely had something else in his mind.

"What are you trying to convey?"

I asked directly, tired of him trying to beating the bush, skirting around the topic.

"Ah, before that. I would like to change the venue. I can hook you up to those buyers directly."

The other two were also eager to leave as their business is done and have nothing concerning to me anymore. They are also busy people with many things to do. So, I gave Ryouma his gold in the bag before he left with the appraiser.

Hiroshi seems happier now that we are one on one. Then he explained that there is a regular at the auction house we work at that is very interested with the gold coins and wanted to get in touch with me hoping to buy the coins directly from me.

Hearing this, I agreed that waiting for the auction to be held will take time and I want my money quickly. If there is someone that can offer a decent price, I would accept as these golds can still be obtained from the dungeon.

Accepting his proposal to meet this buyer, he paid the bills and drove me to meet this buyer.

———

An hour later, driving through the traffic of a metropolitan area. We arrived at a sea side villa surrounded by walls.

Must be real rich to even afford such property in Tokyo.

We pass through two heavily armed security staff guarding the gate.

No, wait a minute. Aren't guns extremely restricted in Japan? How the heck can those two security staff armed with assault rifles and various tactical gears too. Is this the prime minister's home or something?

I started to get extremely suspicious of this matter but it was too late to leave at this point. At least I can guarantee to escape safely with my own strength if shit went down.

Once the car stopped, we exited the car and were greeted by a butler. The butler definitely isn't human. I can't smell the appetizing scent that humans produce. Also, I sense mana.

"Welcome again, Mr Hiroshi. You are here to meet with Sir Cyril again?"

"Yes."

Hiroshi answered timidly to the butler who nodded and signaled us to follow him.

The butler led us to a pool on the other side of the mansion where a foreigner man was lounging with a cigar and cognac while wearing a bathrobe and sunglasses.

"Master, you have guests."

The butler bowed to greet the master of this house and announced our arrival.

When inspecting the buyer, I sensed mana from him too. But he is human unlike the butler.

While I was absorbed in my thoughts, the butler already brought chairs and table for us before leaving again to prepare refreshments.

"Let's take a seat."

Cyril invited and both me and Hiroshi took a seat while waiting for Cyril to get started. But, instead I suddenly felt a mana spike in the surrounding as my head suddenly felt muddle.

"Now, tell me where you find those gold coins."

Cyril dropped all pretense and interrogated me. I try my best to get a hold of my brain that isn't listening. But I heard my own voice revealing all the secrets.

"From Catacombs Prison…"

I manage to resist whatever the person did to me. I keep on resisting until my mind becomes more clear.

"Catacombs Prison? Never heard of such a place."

"Anyway, next is… Do you gain anything else other than these gold coins?"

"Yes… I got several magic artifacts… magic scrolls…"

"Hahaha! I knew it, those gold are filled with mana. This means the place it came from must not be simple!"

Cyril laughed hysterically as he was very happy to hit the jackpot.

"Good good. Now give me everything you obtained from the Catacombs Prison."

"No!"

"What!"

While he was laughing, I felt whatever he did to me was weakening and I regained some control of my body. I quickly bite my own tongue which clear off the muddleness from my head.

Immediately I kicked the table to him for distraction while I rolled back and equipped my weapons and gears.

Whatever this guy is doing, he is using mana and it didn't sound good at all.

The butler then came crashing out the door and didn't look very human anymore. Instead it's cover in fur looking like a were dog or wolf, I can't differentiate.

He extend it's claw and quickly pounce on me while his master is recovering.

Fuck it.

[Assassination]

I vanished and reappears behind Cyril and motioned my blades edge towards his nape.

"Master watch out!"

The butler roared.

Cyril drop down to the ground quick and tackle me with his leg swipe. My Dirks missed his nape and slashed his shoulder instead.

The commotions caused the armed security staffs swarm over to us and aimed their rifles on me.

Cyril pick himself up with the butler's help before looking at me victoriously.

"Those moves, you are from the ninja clans right? Even if you have your technique, you still cannot out run those bullets."

Cyril gloated while the butler moving towards me to apprehend me. They mistaken my silence for surrender but they underestimate me. As I happen to have one offensive potion, Potion of Paralytic Gas in my Magic Pouch.

[Smoke Bomb]

I cast it on my position before throwing the potion at the armed guards and activate the Cloak of Shadows.

The invisibility granted by the artifact worn off only when I attacked an enemy or duration runs out. Which mean, until I cut off that bastard's neck, I am perfectly invisible.

[Assassination]

I cast again and used my final Charge. I reappeared behind the unaware Cyril, thinking he is safe by standing far away from me and hiding behind his butler.

*Slash* x2

My Dirks dug deep into his throat and I savagely rip the blade off to destroy his neck.

How dare he try to take whats mine and used somekind of Hypnosis on me.

By the time the butler realized, I already reapply the Cloak of Shadows and throw a throwing knife coated in paralytic poison.

I rush over to deliver the coup de grace, slicing off his neck too. But I noticed the blade encounter stronger resistance when slicing the werehuman's flesh. Meaning he had stronger flesh compared to his master which cut like butter.

I proceed to kill the security staffs too and confiscated their weapons for myself, killing Hiroshi that can lead more trouble to me if left alive and then escape. But when I almost reached the entrance of the mansion, I remember something.

Security cameras…

I stay for ten more minutes finding the security room and destroy the recordings and the saved files.

Then I finally leave.

After escaped far enough from the crime scene. I called Akira and told him to evacuated Ryouko and Hinami from my apartment.

As for me, I went to cash out the cheque. I ask for cash because I don't think keeping it in bank is safe. The amount of money I cash out caused a commotion in the bank but I manage to leave with all 24 million Yen but not without rousing suspicion as I noticed that I am being watched or perhaps just my paranoia.

I went and take the train to throw off any pursuers before going back to my apartment.

———

When I walked into my apartment, I saw almost everything important had been taken away leaving an empty apartment with Akira waiting for me inside.

"What happened?"

"Someone tried to rob me when I tried to sell those gold coins."

I replied and went straight for the remaining stash of loots below my bed and transfer them into my inventory.

"So, where are you going to live now?"

Akira ask while I am busy packing all my hidden stash.

"Buy a new house as planned and I need your help. I'm still underage to buy one."

I said and pass him few thick envelopes filled with wads of 10k Yen banknotes.

"Still not enough to buy a big house. But we can earn the rest very quickly. This much is enough for the deposit and everything."

"Right now?"

Akira was stunned by the amount of cash in his hand.

"Yeah."

"Also, I will be staying alone for a while. I afraid there will be pursuers coming for me later. Just tell them I'll be back in few few days."

I doubt Cyril is a common man as he can use magic and his butler isn't a human. I didn't want to bring trouble to the rest of the group.

"Alright, Rei. But make sure to stay safe and contact me if you need help."

Akira being the supportive person he is, he gave me a hug and respect my decision.

"Don't worry. I probably spend most time in dungeon to evade their eyes."

"Gotta stay productive, you know."

I joked a bit to lighten the mood and we went our separate way.

(Hear me out for a sec. I did state I focus more on Ghoul hunting. But at day, he can't hunt so he go to dungeon. At night then he hunt Ghouls. Just that we will have more PoV of him hunting Ghouls like the dungeon clearing.)

———

Welp, first day life as homeless person I guess.

I change the suit for more casual clothes and went to a dungeon to kill time. It's still 2 pm right now and sunset is like 4 hours away.

The nearest one seems to be around the coffee shop I went earlier. I took a train because it's quite far from my apartment. Almost two miles away.

Upon arriving in the vicinity of the dungeon, I follow the map to an entrance of a drain tunnel. The dungeon entrace was on a nearby wall.

The corridor this time look way different. Proper brick wall arranged nicely with torch on the wall to light up the corridor. The door is a metal vault door.

[Fallen Dwarven Metropolis]

Difficult rating: E > ???

Potential enemies: Corrupted Dwarf, Dwarf Warlock, Corrupted Golem, ???

Participant limit: -

[Enter dungeon?]

[Yes / No]

Upon selecting Yes. The door spread open slowly with loud grating noise from it dragging on the ground.

The inside were dark as usual but the wall is the same as this corridor. Once I enter, I tried to walk back to the corridor and was greeted with another screen.

[Leaving the dungeon?]

[Yes / No]

[Leaving halfway without clearing the dungeon will reset your progression.]

Okay, so retreating is possible if meeting a boss like the Necromancer.

Good to know.

Then I start my exploration for real.

The hallway lead to two door at the end. One in front and another at my right. I choose the one on the right and peek into the door.

The room is well lit and I saw a dwarf. Wearing armor and wielding a spear, looking like a soldier but his skin is very pale with faint dark vein from his neck extending up his sleeping face.

I sneak closer with the help of my ring's power to stay unnoticed until I was one meter away from it. I stopped because the dwarf start to rose from his sleep because he sensed me. Quickly I use Cloak of Shadows to turn my presences to total invisibility and cover the remaining distance without rousing his attention.

With a dagger in my hand, I quickly severed it's spine with a stab that exited after cutting through its throat too. Leaving the dwarf gasping for air like a fish out of water as his life slowly slips off and becomes limp.

The dwarf's corpse disintegrated leaving behind a ration and small pouch of gold coins. Inside the pouch are 25 gold coins I counted.

Within the room it is empty though I notice a puddle in the corner that has blood-like fluid seeping out the wall and into the puddle. It didn't smell like blood for sure but had a slightly coppery scent.

Backtracking to the previous hallway, I enter the other door to reach a giant open room. Bigger than even the boss room in Catacombs Prison.

What's odd is the lack of anything at all. Sure there are dried bloodstains, some broken weapons on the ground. But other than that, the whole room is empty without any purpose.

Inside the room, I found more rations, a few potions and more equipment that interest me. These equipment all are made from a type of alloy, called Magisteel.

[Magisteel Sword]

[Magisteel Armor set]

[Magisteel Hammer]

The description of those equipment states that Magisteel is a Dwarven staple metal to craft tools of war, favored due to their high conductivity toward magic that can increase magic attacks executed using Magisteel weapons.

I pack up all the loot and continue exploring as there are more than a dozen doors attached to this giant room that perhaps used to be a hub for this underground metropolis.

Half an hour later.

After going through like ten more rooms, I finally realized that this stage might be bigger than expected.

Usually, a stage will be roughly a square shape on the map. For the past half an hour, I had been walking in a straight line to the west that seemed to extend indefinitely.

Also, don't get me started with Dwarf Warlock. Those annoying pieces of shit keep giving me debuffs that lower my damage by half and cannot be sneaked upon unless I use Cloak of Shadow using perfect invisibility because they can detect me through magic.

Then there is Dwarf Monk that isn't stated in the description. They will disarm my weapon when in battle, forcing me to use purely Kagune to rip those shit stains apart.

The only good thing about them is their drop.

Big Exp. 100 for Corrupted Dwarf, double for Warlock and 250 for the Monk.

Corrupted Dwarfs drop lots of ration. Warlocks are always confirmed to drop one scroll. Most of the time is Scroll of Recharge and the Monks… we don't talk about them.

After the one hour mark, I fully explored the southwestern side of the stage and indeed, the stage is ridiculously large.

First of the noteworthy things I encountered are messages left behind by the people that once lived here.

Apparently, the Dwarven Metropolis was prosperous and birthed numerous heroes, mainly the Dwarven King who led a campaign to banish the evil deity named Yog-Dzewa.

Sounds too Cthulhu-ish for my mental health…

Anyway, the campaign was successful but those who participated, including their greatest hero, the Dwarven King. Was poisoned by the evil deity power and went mad along with the brave soldiers that participated in the campaign with him.

On the day of the victory celebration, the whole Dwarven Metropolis was slaughtered when the madness erupted and what left in this empty husk of a once prosperous metropolis was the corrupted dwarves and the forces of evil from the deep.

Cool…

Anyway, next is a weapon that I obtained from one of those locked rooms with two chests.

The first chest yields a full plate of Orichalcum armor. A special material that boasts high durability and perfect for enchantments as they can amplify the enchantment effect.

Second is what I am excited for. The Assassin's Blade. More of a sword than a dagger as dagger is usually made specifically to stab as opposed to sword that is designed to do all three, stab, slash and cut. The appearance more closely resembles gladius in appearance but thinner. The total length from the tip to the hilt is only around 60 cm and the blade has no guard. It's a concealed weapon made easier to hide, according to the description.

The main advantage of the Assassin's Blade is of course, tailored for assassination. When I deal damage that lowers the enemy's HP below 30%. There is a one third chance to cause Instant Death which counters life saving abilities to apply Death. Of course, it wouldn't work on a Boss but it would be very useful.

The second advantage is as I accumulate kill streak, the Blade's damage will also increase.

Third is it can regenerate durability by accumulating kills.

I noted this weapon is unusual as the name is glowing blue as opposed to white for normal and green for my Cloak of Shadow and Akira's necklace.

Would that mean this is my first encounter with Rare weapon? If game logic and color code for rarity can be applied here.

Anyway, other than that and encountering a lot of locked rooms that either trap or contain juicy loot, there's nothing else noteworthy.

I spent almost three hours fully exploring the entire stage while grinding those dwarves using my brand new weapon.

The mini boss for this stage was a golem made by the dwarves but the spirit that powered the golem became corrupted.

The Golem mainly attacks with its weapon but sometimes it shoots spells like [Firebolt] and [Lightning Bolt]. The main difficulty is to get my attack through its layer of thick armor.

After killing the mini boss, I grab the rewards and appraise my loot at the peddler. I also didn't forget to sell the unnecessary loot and check his wares to buy things that interest me.

[Ankh], [Scroll of Terror], [Pastry x3], [Healing Potion x2]

———

Name Ray (Rei Sasaki)

Level: 24

Class: Rogue

Ability: - [Dagger Mastery LV 3], [Ambush LV 1 > 2], [Ghostly Step LV2]

(Ability is passive, skill use Charge)

Skill; 0 SP

-Combat: [Assassination LV 2],

-Arcane: [Ensnare LV 1], [Illusion LV 1], [Shadow Clone LV 2], [Wind Blades LV 1]

-Support: [Lock Picking Lv 3], [Detect Trap Lv 2], [Smoke Bomb LV 1]

Item: [Potion of Strength x1], [Potion of Experience x5], [Healing Potion x28], [Potion of Liquid Flame x2], [Potion of Frost x3], [Potion of Paralytic Gas x2], [Potion of Purification x5], [Potion of Invisibility x1]

[Scroll of Recharge x13], [Scroll of Upgrade x3], [Scroll of Lullaby x1], [Scroll of Challenge x2], [Scroll of Terror x1]

[Ankh x3], [Orichalcum Armor set], [Ration x25], [Pastry x5], [Mystery Meat x9], [Dwarven Brew x69]

Equipment: [Assassin's Blade (R)], [Ring of Shadow +2], [Cloak of Shadows +1 (UC)], [Paralytic Throwing Knives x5], [Magic Pouch]

Point: 1.8k DP

G Coin: 3k

———

(I went a little overboard.)

After I was done with the peddler, I backtracking to the entrance and left the dungeon. The sky already becomes dark when I exit the corridor.

I didn't feel tired at all as I opened the Map and started to look for Ghouls. Have to keep the grind going.

Oddly enough, Ghoul in this area is rather sparse. Mostly in groups too. Rarely alone. Only three were alone and the rest were in groups of three up to a dozen. Completely different from the area around my hunting ground, Setagaya, which is considered the outskirts of Tokyo.

I zoom out the Map to include the entire Tokyo. Then I found another area neighboring this area, Nakano, that has a denser population of Ghoul compared to Setagaya and doesn't group up like in this area, Nerima.

Welp, boarding the train again. Transiting toward Nakano to hunt Ghouls.

———

"Manager, the target reappeared from the drain tunnel." Renji reported when seeing Ray exit the tunnel.

He was tasked to investigate the recent death of many Ghoul in Setagaya by Yoshimura, his superior and manager for the coffee shop, Anteiku that Ray went to this morning.

"Follow him and identify if he is the suspect for the Ghoul cannibalization incident in Setagaya."

"Okay."

Renji replied and closed his phone, slipping it into the pocket of his gray trench coat before following Ray who he saw walking toward a train station.

While Ghoul cannibalism is common especially in deeper areas of Tokyo where food is scarce and strong Hunters patrol more often, for a Ghoul to target specifically for another Ghoul's Kakuhou is very unusual and only done if someone is trying to achieve Kakuja. This is what worried Renji's superior, Yoshimura and warranted this investigation.

Being quite an expert investigator with necessary skills under his belt, Renji is quite confident with his ability to secretly stalk his target unnoticed but he almost lost his sight of Ray in the train.

He notices Ray has an unusually low presence especially when there is plenty of space for him to stay hidden. Thankfully the night train isn't very packed with people because people are mostly trying to ride the train from inner Tokyo to outer Tokyo where most residential areas are located.

When the train reached Nakano, Ray stood up from his seat and exited the train. Renji followed behind him until they exited the station.

Without the crowd to cover him, Renji must keep greater distance as he follows Ray who is heading toward the back alley street. He follows him from the roof as Ray makes a beeline toward a group of Ghouls that are staying in a construction site.

Ray observed his prey for quite a while. Patiently watch the group of four Ghoul eating a human that they recently caught.

After almost five minutes of observing, Ray finally made his move and sneaked into the construction site.

Renji stays in a vantage point to watch and collect proof of Ray's Ghoul hunting.

What is odd to him is that Ray didn't immediately use his Kagune and opted to use a blade to attack. Using Kagune only when he is forced to. Renji almost mistook Ray as a Hunter when he initially used his blade. Only when he killed a Ghoul and locked to a 1 v 3 situation, then he released his Kagune.

From his Kagune, Renji can confirm that Ray had been cannibalizing. Because normal Ghoul's Kagune will have more organic shapes and brighter color with some exception like the Kokaku type that usually appears as weapon.

Ray's Kagune is clearly a Rinkaku that usually has more fluid and flexible tendrils yet his Kagune already has carapace and spines that look grotesque with darker color and didn't have any visible red muscles, showing his RC cells is too concentrated that it is evolving into Kakuja.

(Not canon info, I just bs here.)

After Ray ate all four Ghouls Kakuhou, he moved on and made a beeline to another group of Ghouls, repeating the same process. Rinse and repeat.

What's boggle Renji the most is how Ray seems to always know the location of the next Ghouls. Renji has two hypotheses. It's either Ray scouted ahead and already learned the location and pattern for each Ghoul or he has someone else tipping him the information.

Either one is problematic and the first is honestly more terrifying as it shows the amount of dedication went to slaughtering his own kind for the sake of power. The most dangerous kind of people that shouldn't be allowed to gain such power.

———

*Slash*

That made it the 26th Ghouls I hunted.

I relaxed after eliminating the Ghoul pair and carved out their Kakuhou.

Thanks to my stronger digestive fluid, I can digest the Kakuhou I had eaten at a faster speed. But after the previous group, I felt almost full and made this pair my last prey for tonight.

The Ghoul in Nakano is noticeably stronger than those in the outskirts area. Their Kagune can actually pierce through my flesh when I remember those at the hunting ground can cause mild injury at best.

The Kakuhou of Nakano Ghoul's have better quality RC cells too. As I can see the numbers are increasing a lot.

I still remember the last time when my legs got wrecked fighting the Necromancer boss, the PIP showed a significant drop in RC cells count from before the fight. Almost 5% drop. The most reduction I ever experienced was caused by regeneration. Most of the time, my RC cells drop because of evolution. Like when I formed my second Kakuhou, it dropped almost 70%. It made me particularly hungry at that time that my digestive fluid evolved to help me eat more Kakuhou.

I conclude that RC cells are basically human's stem cells on steroids and added a final touch of Blacklight virus abilities.

Now I wonder if the Ghoul's in the deeper part of Tokyo will have an even greater concentration of RC cells.

———

Next morning, I stayed in an internet cafe and spent some time looking up any news related to me or that bastard Cyril.

Surprisingly, not a single news article about it. Usually when such rich or influential people died and not from natural causes. News will start popping up.

After that, I spend the rest of the time playing online RPG. Sadly the one I used to play didn't exist in this world. Also, the best thing about being loaded is I can whale without care. Though I might have been excessive… I spent a whole one million Yen.

Damnit, I need to get a grip on my spending urges. But I regret nothing, flexing all my premium items on those trash that dare bully a newbie like me.

Around 9 am, I finally and reluctantly leave the internet cafe and back to the dungeon to grind. I grab a cup of coffee, halfway to this unknown dungeon. I didn't go to the same dungeon because I wanted to explore every type that scattered across Tokyo.

———

[Grand Forest of Greenwood]

Difficult rating: E > ???

Potential enemies: ???

Participation limit: 4

———

Forest?

The first race that comes to my mind is Elf. Since Dwarf exist, why wouldn't Elf exist too?

Also, Elf is known for their magic. Maybe it's my chance to get some powerful magic tools.

[Enter dungeon?]

[Yes / No]

The corridor is an underground tunnel with thick tree roots in the wall and magic mushroom glows light up the room.

After selecting Yes, the wooden door swing open and I emerged from a cave into an open world instead of being underground.

The sky is in twilight, shining barely enough light to see my surroundings but with thick foliage of the trees, it might as well be night time.

In the far distance, I saw a gigantic tree in the distance with an equally gigantic crown and somehow glowing in the dark. I can see violet glows within the leaves which means that's probably where the Elf lives if they exist.

———

My exploration begins after I put on my gears. This time, I didn't put on the light because although very little light pierce through the trees foliage, it's enough for me to get a decent view of more or less 20 meters around me.

Although this dungeon didn't have walls, the trees form a natural wall which is difficult to move past because the gap between them is very tiny, forming a natural wall. My Map also registered them as walls. So, I just accept that fact and travel on the open path until I reach my first encounter.

It's a damn avian enemies, two harpy with green feathers, shooting wind blasts at me with each flap of their wings.

I used [Illusion] twice since it's a single target spell and then used two throwing knives coated with paralyzing poison to drop them to the ground and deal the finishing strike with my Assassin's Blade.

Also, one of the knives broke because it ran out of durability, which is five uses per knife.

I am under prepared for avian enemies…

Sure I can use my two Dirks which I put aside in my inventory after getting Assassin's Blade. Smearing Potion of Paralytic Gas on them will work for a while but the poison will wear off quickly without specialized pouches or sheaths like the throwing knives that have cloth soaked in the poison inside to reapply the poison each time I put them back.

Anyway, it drops nothing. So, I continued exploring and encountered another type of enemies. A murder shroom. Literally, they are mushrooms that are alive and spray poisonous spores. But thankfully it is easy to kill as I just need to eliminate them first in group battle or ambush if alone.

Those two enemies seem to be the main enemies along with Gnoll Marauder that usually occupy a small secluded corner, Forest Rat and Goblins.

There are odd monsters too. Bees. They aren't hostile as long as I steer clear off their nest. But the nest contains Honey. Another type of food which is one of my objectives in these dungeons, collecting foods that Ghoul can consume.

The Bees aren't really hard to kill individually. The problem is the whole swarm led by the Queen will keep attacking me until I kill off the Queen.

Overall, this dungeon has less items like equipment, potion and scroll but abundant in foods. Honey, Mystery Meat, Berry, Edible Mushroom and Harpy Egg.

I even set up a camp and used a metal shield in my inventory to cook myself a decent steak, mushroom and fried egg laced with Honey.

10/10 Dungeon, definitely would recommend.

The mini boss was unsurprisingly a Treant, a tree possessed by the soul of the dead animal and filled with vengeance and thirst of blood of those who harmed the forest.

Would be easier if I had more Potions of Liquid Flame because it can summon little plants that try to distract me from the Treant. But I won after more than ten minutes of slowly whittling down its HP.

Nothing much to identify or sell and the peddler didn't have any new interesting things to sell. I did buy out all the Healing Potions.

On to the next stage. Instead of a stairway that went down like usual, a magic door appeared in thin air and entering it led me to a room covered with wood all over. I assume it is in the giant tree that I saw early on.

The first enemies I encountered were Giant Larvae. Not exactly hard to kill as its body is so squishy that my punch can cause it to explode. But I realized too late that its blood is corrosive to me and my weapon. Also, they will call for nearby enemies upon death which is annoying.

But, after clearing six rooms straight that are filled with these Larvae, I ended up in a safe zone. A screen popped up telling me this.

The safe zone is a 6x6 room with only stairs that lead up to somewhere and the only way to know what's above is to climb the stairs.

Five minutes of decent pace climbing the stairs, I ended up in an open plaza filled with Elfs…

Totally didn't expect that, I thought they would be enemies too like the Dwarven Metropolis.

Everyone wearing a blue enchanted cloak and wielding a magic bow that string and arrow is made out of mana. They all trained their bow at me when I appeared in the plaza and everyone looked at me confusedly before the leader stepped forward and ordered the elves to lower their bow.

"Human? How did you end up here?"

"Uh… I walk here."

There was an awkward silence for a moment before her face darkened and spoke to me more sternly.

"I am not joking with you, human. How did you come here after the evil god's forces had surrounded the entire forest."

She pulled out a magic knife similar to their bow with a blade made of magic and aimed it at my throat.

If it were metal, I wouldn't panic much as my body is highly resistant to those but not magic.

"I don't know."

I replied but she obviously isn't taking that as an answer and interrogated further.

"Explain how you do not know how you end up in the Elves forest."

I looked around for a chance to escape but other Elves already surrounded me with their bow once again aimed at me. While I am tempted to use the Cloak of Shadows and escape. My only way is to descend back but that would be a risk because to access the rest of the stage. This is the only path and antagonizing the Elves might be a bad move.

"I suddenly appeared in a cave out of nowhere and then I made my way here."

The leader suddenly lowered her blade.

"Wait, did the cave have runes inscribed to the walls?"

"Runes? Do you mean some weird scribbles around the cave's exit?"

Her face instantly turned to surprise and then elated.

"You are an outerworlder!"

Seeing my confused expression, she gave me a quick rundown of the history of this world.

———

So, throughout history. The people of this world always face threats of the evil god Yog-Dzewa. Numerous times when it resurrected, outerworlders will appear to slay the evil god.

Of course, not everyone that appeared will succeed. Most of the time, they die before being able to slay the evil god. But another one will appear soon after to replace the previous one. It's a continuous cycle until the evil god is slayed. After that, peace will be restored for another hundred years before the evil god will awaken once again.

Elves, as the longer living people of the world, have extensive knowledge of this matter and since the beginning, only a handful of those heroes ever slay the god and return. Most of the time they just disappeared and never to be seen again.

Those who survived and returned will bring along an amulet which proves their great deed to slay the evil god and become venerated heroes. But because most of the heroes are always human. They never live long enough for the next cycle.

Only one Elf ever was summoned and she was the founder of the Elven kingdom five thousand years ago.

———

"Please help us liberate our capital from the Giant Termite Queen that is destroying our sacred tree."

The leader begged me for my help and apparently this is a quest.

*Ding*

[The Elven Kingdom is now cut off from any reinforcements and supplies from their allies by the Evil God forces. After a crushing defeat, the Elves themselves had been reduced to a fraction of their population and incapable of mustering anymore resistance towards the terror plaguing their most sacred tree, the home of the Elves. If the sacred tree were to fall, the land would lose its vitality and cause widespread famine across the land. As one of the heroes from the legend, eliminate the Giant Termite Queen to save the Sacred Tree.]

[Saving the Elven Kingdom]

Objective:

-Reach the final stage.

-Eliminate the Giant Termite Queen.

Reward: +5 Levels, 2.5k DP, Title (Savior of the Elves)

[Savior of the Elves]

Title given to those that manage to save the elven race from their demise.

-Gain favorability from all Elves.

-Non-Boss Elven enemies will have a high chance of becoming neutral.

#Leaving the dungeon halfway will automatically fail the quest.

[Accept quest?]

[Yes / No]

Looking at the description and objectives. There isn't really any reason to reject as I clear the quest as I clear the dungeon. This is basically just a free reward. But I just don't think I am going to fight the boss.

My last attempt with Akira is possible because there are two of us. A tank and a dps. He can take aggro while I deal damage. But if I am alone, I am afraid I don't have the confidence even if I have being a Ghoul as an advantage.

After all, Kagune isn't much of a reliable weapon to be used constantly and only be used in desperate moments because using them consumes RC cells. I would rather keep those RC cells for my regeneration. Not to mention the Evolution is steadily siphoning my RC cells although very little but in desperate moments, those small numbers will count.

Looking at these Elves. Unlike the peddler that behaves exactly like an NPC. Having the same dialogue, same tone and same pose every single time.

The Elves here look more alive. Having expression, making small talk with their comrade-in-arms, and being responsive. It convinces me they aren't NPC but actually living beings and I have something to try.

I ignore the screen for now and look at the increasingly anxious Elf Ranger leader.

"It is impossible for me to attempt this alone. I once fought against an enemy similar to the Giant Termite Queen and almost died if not for my partner. But he isn't with me this time and fight the Queen alone is suicidal."

Her expression instantly becomes crestfallen as she descends into depression.

"But I will consider if I can recruit you people along to fight the Queen."

Her expression brightened back when hearing I will consider but instantly become depressed again when I stated my request.

"That is not possible. We are tasked to guard this village here from the enemies that keep attacking the civilians. If we leave our post, the civilians here will be slaughtered by those Termites."

"But it is possible to assist you in the fight against the Queen if you can do us a favor."

"There are several more Elven villages similar to this and also under siege by those insects. If you can help us retrieve some Scrolls of Teleportation from the library here, we can bring the rest of our Huntress and people over here and free half our forces to assist your battle."

She showed me a map that marked the location of villages, armory, library, vaults, etc. This automatically uploaded to my Map.

"She will join your quest to aid you along the way. Her name is Layla and one of the senior huntresses."

One of the elves step forward and to be honest, they all look the same. Same weapon and equipment. But she then lowered her hood and mask over her lower face to show me her appearance. Fierce spirit and a stern expression similar to seasoned veterans in the battlefield.

"My name is Layla and I will do my best to aid you in your quest, Sir Hero."

"Ray."

"Pardon?"

She looked at me a little puzzled.

"My name is Ray not Sir Hero and nice to have you aboard."

I extend my hand to give her a handshake but she looks confused by the gesture. Then I remembered that the usual trope about Elves is that they dislike physical contact with non-Elves and unknown people.

[Ally Unlocked.]

[Condition for permanent recruitment is unfulfilled. Completely quest, (Savior of the Elves) first.]

———

Name: Layla

Level: 30

Class: Huntress

Ability: Projectile Weapon Mastery LV 3, Enemy Detection LV 3, Forest Blessing LV -

Skill; 0 SP

-Combat: [Critical Shot LV 3]

-Arcane: [Familiar Summon LV 3], [Explosive Arrow LV 3]

-Support: [Spirit Healing LV 3], [Elemental Arrows LV 3]

———

After a few more talks with the leader, Layla led me to a merchant after I asked if anyone was selling anything.

Turns out, there are few shops that sell different things and offer different services.

Here I stock up supplies I think necessary like Poison tipped darts that a Hunter sell, various potions sell by an Alchemist, scrolls by a Witch, and foods by Bakers, civilian and Forager. They didn't accept gold buy DP which somehow transformed into local currency when I paid.

The services are equipment repair, equipment enchantment and power up.

While I have nothing to repair, I do enchant my main gears up to +3 which is the limit. Also it's very expensive. The enchantment price starts with 500 DP at +1 and doubles on each level. I enchant my Assassin's Blade to +3 and Ring of Shadow from +2 to +3.

When I show that I own the Assassin's Blade. The Witch and Layla visibly frowned. Then I remembered the description of the weapon. Because of that, I have to spend a few minutes explaining how I came into possession of this weapon before they stop staring at me warily. But that also revealed to them the fate of the Dwarves.

"To think they had been annihilated like that… No wonder we lost contact with them."

"Dwarves are the first bastion against the Evil God and they have been holding back the spread of hell and the creatures inside."

"Did none of them survive at all?"

Layla asked.

I shook my head and explained that all of the Dwarves I encountered had been corrupted by the Evil God's power.

After that, we finally leave the village to complete this quest given to me. Our destination is the Library to retrieve Scrolls of Teleportation.

—————