23 - Breakthrough orb

After a few minutes of cleaning, Arthur had cleaned some of the dust, enough that he could sit comfortably on the sofa without choking on his dirt.

"I need to determine my next plan of action..." Arthur muttered as he opened his space ring and took out everything he could find in the cave, which amounted to about 30 silver coins, a few hundred bronze coins, and most importantly, jewels, lots of jewels.

Arthur had gotten them by looting some of the houses in this ancient city, he wasn't sure how much it was worth, but from Rolan's words it had to be at least a few hundred years old, something that could raise its value to a small fortune.

"Ah..." Arthur sighed heavily as he let his body fall backwards, the smell of dried stench from the old sofa wafting into his nose, but he didn't seem to care and his mind was elsewhere.

He was lost and honestly didn't know where to go, he didn't plan to stay in Dunul for long and planned to leave as soon as he had completed his advancement to the second level.

After that, he didn't really know what to do. Maybe he would stay on this continent and try to explore it as he grew stronger, give Conrad's space ring to his daughter and maybe even take a ship and set sail for Albrid, where he believed he would find a more advanced and safer society, but also one with fewer opportunities for greatness than here.

A greatness he sought at all costs. In his former world, he had already been crushed for being big, but not big enough. A mistake he wouldn't make again. He would go to the Albrid Empire and meet Safira again, and in this meeting he hoped to be at least strong enough to be a shield that could protect her from this world.

Besides, he knew of Safira's family and had no idea how much the BloodRose surname was worth among the nobility, and from the little he knew of her family, simply being "a little strong" wouldn't make him worth anything.

While he was still lost in thought, a powerful knock on the door jolted Arthur out of his stupor.

He stood up quickly and gathered all the jewels and money on the table before placing them in his space ring and running to the door.

Opening the door, he found a tall man with a short beard and leather armor.

"Arthur," the man smiled and held out his hand to Arthur, "I am Lugh, Captain of the Dunul Militia."

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Mr. Lugh," Arthur also extended his hand, returning Lugh's shake before saying, "I believe you are the person who will help me advance to the second level..."

"In flesh and bones," Lugh laughed, looking at the house just behind Arthur before clicking his tongue, "Did the old man really let you stay here for free? That bastard charged me 20 silver coins a month when I tried to rent it a few years ago."

"Yeah, he said I could stay here as long as I wanted." Arthur replied, closing the door behind him.

"Do you want to make the breakthrough now? Don't you want to prepare a bit more?" Lugh asked, noting the determination in Arthur's eyes.

Arthur paused for a few seconds while a thoughtful expression appeared on his face. In the end, he just shook his head in denial: "That won't be necessary, I'm already ready.

Even if he wanted to prepare himself, Arthur didn't really know how to prepare himself or even what he was up against.

"All right, follow me, I'll take you to the advancement orb." Lugh turned around and waved his hands in a sign that Arthur didn't understand, but believing it had something to do with the man's previous words, Arthur just started walking beside him without thinking much about it.

"Advancing to the second level is the most important thing in a warrior's life, you know. If you're very good, you might even become a royal knight when you return to Albrid." Lugh commented casually as they walked.

"Are you from Albrid too?" Arthur asked, a little surprised since, according to Conrad's words, almost everyone who came with Greg from Albrid went on the dungeon expedition.

"Of course I am, I was one of Lord Greg's first squires and I accompanied him here to put a collar on those damned filthy barbarians!" Lugh exclaimed, now that he had finally met someone he considered a member of his own people, he could show all the contempt he felt for these people.

"What town in Albrid did you live in? Perhaps I could tell you." Lugh asked.

"Hordon," Arthur replied briefly. He wasn't an inspector who liked to judge people's character, but his opinion of Lugh had plummeted in just a few words.

Of course, he didn't show it and didn't even take it as a big deal. He knew very well that it was just a reflection of his former life in a much more fragile world and that he would soon ignore it.

"Hordon? I've heard of it..." Lugh muttered as he tried to remember some important details about the city.

"It's a good place to live," Arthur said, and soon the two arrived at the city lord's mansion.

It was a new looking building, but nothing beyond what could be expected from a village as small as Dunul. It was made of wood, which, although it seemed to be of better quality than any other building Arthur had ever seen in the city, was still rustic and poorly finished.

It had two floors, the first being administrative, where the few officials lived and helped run the village. The second was where the Lord of the City and his family would live.

With Greg's death, it was empty and completely locked, guarded by five other soldiers who, like Lugh, had accompanied Baron Greg of Albrid here.

Upon entering the wide doors that led to the main hall of the castle, Lugh stopped his steps and turned to face Arthur before grabbing the young man by the shoulders, "I do not know how much you have been told about advancing to the second level, but I am going to give you some important advice.

Lugh looked deep into Arthur's eyes, "Don't be greedy and know when to give up. How it works and everything you need to know will be explained to you by the Guardian."

"Now follow me and keep quiet," Lugh concluded without giving Arthur a chance to speak.

Hearing these words, Arthur froze for a few seconds while a strange expression appeared on his face. From the tone of Lugh's voice, this was something much more serious than he had expected.

Finally, Arthur sighed, shook his head, and followed Lugh, a pang of anxiety growing in his heart as they left the main hall and came to a massive black wooden door, which contained runic designs that glowed as the door opened by itself, allowing Arthur to enter a room completely filled with darkness, with the only source of light coming from the open door.

"I can't go any further from here, just put your hand on the orb and let the Guardian guide you." Lugh spoke one last time before walking away, leaving Arthur to enter the room alone.

"What orb?-" Arthur asked, but was cut off as the door slammed shut quickly and he soon found himself surrounded by darkness.

"Shit..." Arthur muttered as he tried to orient himself in the oppressive darkness, which didn't even allow him to see his own hands.

Suddenly, a faint but vivid light appeared in his vision.

It was a crystal ball, floating slightly in the darkness, and its color was bluish and transparent, releasing small crystals of light through the atmosphere.

Following Lugh's words, Arthur placed his hand on the orb and felt a warm and somehow soothing energy flow over his skin and a shiver run down his spine.

At that moment, he felt an explosion in his mind as his consciousness was pulled by an unknown force.