Chapter 12- The Fifteenth Night
"Holy shit... that much in just one day?" I was shocked, it took me two weeks, about four hundred giant rats, and the goblin swordsman Niwack to get over a hundred thousand Essence.
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{Essence: 157,590}
Lvl:19
Name: Ace Lothbrook
Mana: 200/200
Class: N/A
Rank: Human
Strength:8
Agility:17
Endurance:14
Dexterity:13
Intelligence:20
Faith:9
[Statistical Upgrade Cost: 14,500]
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Just from fighting the ogre mini-boss once I received around a hundred and forty thousand essence, compared to the Bullywug's it almost made them seem like a waste of time. Roughly each one of them was worth around three thousand, there were hundreds maybe a thousand but compared to the ogre?
But it was undoubtedly safer as long as you weren't surrounded and figured out a way to either resist or nullify their psychic croaks.
But back to my crippled problem, which I was oddly too calm about but I left that up to something I was sure of. Even if I couldn't fix it with essence I knew when I found a Holy Arc it would fix my body, I don't know why I was so sure but it seemed like it was ingrained into me that even if I was half dead I would be fine as I long as I reached the Holy fire.
Though the problem remained how long would it be before I found another one? Would I die because I couldn't use this hand?
It was a fear based on facts, I used my left hand to wield my spear in most cases. Choosing to keep my right fire gauntlet-clad arm as a cannon or to shoot my crossbow, I needed it. So I did the only thing that might help, dumped six points into endurance.
I felt my body tighten and my breath hitch as my essence counter drained to a third, I gave it a few moments before attempting to move my right hand, and the ring finger twitched. With a few more minutes of stretches and a couple of knuckle pops my hand worked again, though there was a slight delay.
It was like watching your own body lag, extremely weird and slightly uncomfortable. It wasn't a major difference, maybe a quarter of a second. I probably wouldn't have noticed if it wasn't for it being my hand, you use them every day in almost everything you do. I realized then that I surely burnt at least a few nerve endings.
Thankfully it wasn't something I couldn't work with, as long as I took an extra moment to account for the movement that could happen in that time frame it'd be fine. It would be a habit I might struggle to break when my hand is fully healed but it wasn't something worth stressing over.
It would be something I'd have to work on and I didn't feel right using the rest of my essence on endurance. I decided to use the rest of it to upgrade intelligence by two. It was important to note that the essence required to level up didn't change, for now, it still required an extra thousand essence after every level.
It went from twenty thousand to twenty-two thousand per level up after I raised intelligence twice. I hoped it wouldn't change for a while longer but I had a feeling it might once I reached level fifty, or it might not at all.
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{Essence: 11,000}
Lvl:27
Name: Ace Lothbrook
Mana: 93/220
Class: N/A
Rank: Human
Strength:8
Agility:17
Endurance:14-(20)
Dexterity:13
Intelligence:20-(22)
Faith:9
[Statistical Upgrade Cost: 22,500]
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My immediate problem solved as well as a few level ups and I was ready to test out my theory on my newest enchanted item.
I ran a bunch of tests and came to a quick conclusion. My original theory was right, the bag could only store enchanted equipment. The weight limit was something I couldn't figure out, due simply to the fact that I put everything I had that was enchanted in the bag and it all fit. Hell, I even threw the enchanted wooden chair and table in there and it swallowed it whole.
But when I tried to put my crossbow or my bolt quiver in nothing happened.
Now with most of the immediate problems solved, I decided to head over to the wooden table and sat down intent on ending my fifteenth day in this accursed tower with a little rest.
At times like this I wished I had a diary to recount my days in this place, a way to keep track of time as well as my progress. Well I guess the level up screen tracks my progress for me but still.
It was time to decide the best way to proceed through the ninety-eighth floor.
The most optimal way would probably be grinding against the ogre. Not just for it's massive essence drop but the fact that it was the first enemy to have a 'drop' or loot in other terms.
Well besides the goblin swordsman, but I had a theory that it wasn't a 'normal' boss enemy. It tried to communicate with me as well as bargain, I might be wrong but I felt the goblin was in a similar situation as me.
Surety the 'Bag of Arcane Holding' wasn't the only thing that could drop from fighting it, otherwise it would be pointless to station a troop of 'adventurers' here for an extended period of time. Which I've pretty much confirmed from this room alone, why hang your banner if this wasn't a type of outpost?
Or I could move on, fashion a kind of hearing protection and fight my way through a few hundred Bullywugs as I tried to find the exit of this floor.
Both choices had their merits when you put them in perspective. In the first option I have a chance to get stronger as well maybe expand my repertoire of enchanted items.
Though the second choice might be more dangerous but it kept me on my self-made schedule.
Ninety-seven more floors until I reached the bottom, and judging by the size of this one they may only get larger as time goes on. Two weeks per floor might have been a pipe dream to begin with.
In reality it didn't matter what time I manage to exit this dungeon, I was sure nobody was waiting for me on the outside. But the real question was how long could I handle this alone? Humans were social creatures to begin with, without that outlet I've had my entire life or just someone to watch my back. Well it's surely lonely.
'Surely there are other people in this dungeon besides me right?' I sighed as I laid my head against the table and began to speculate the chances I could run into somebody that didn't try to kill me on sight. For either my equipment or something else.
I was sure that at least the Goblin Swordsman Niwack was like me, a….. Challenger ? Yeah I guess that was a broad term for people in my situation.