Chapter 126 Open Field Dungeon [ 1 ]

-Asher Frostblade's point of view.

Dungeons.

What they are, how they are and what's inside.

There are three types of dungeons.

The first is the common one, the normal one, found anywhere in the world. It would be like a type of extremely large and long cave with several races of monsters inside.

Its shape is similar to a cave, however, its surface structure, architecture and design are different. You can find ancient artifacts, secret chambers, hidden passages, and so on.

Normal dungeons are quite common.

The second type of Dungeons.

These are called living dungeons.

Inside there are monsters, just like in any other common and normal Dungeon, but what differentiates them is that living Dungeons are actually a giant monster. As the name suggests, the Dungeon itself is a living thing.

Not in its entirety; the strongest monster is called the Dungeon boss. However, in living Dungeons, this boss has total control over it, something like a dominion, but at the same time very different.

The third type of Dungeons would be the Time Dungeons.

These are very strange Dungeons that usually have a short entrance with some monsters. At the end, there is a door that looks like a type of portal.

Once hunters enter these Dungeons, they are teleported to a different place separate from the outside world. No one knows exactly where these Time Dungeons lead.

Inside them, time passes faster, as if they were a different world or a dimension apart. It is possible to see the past of the current world inside these Dungeons.

However, very few such Dungeons are known today.

In addition to the scarcity of these Dungeons, information about them is also limited.

"This is... a labyrinth."

Asher observed the Dungeon, which was open field.

Open field Dungeons are really rare. However, they are usually of the living type, so it is possible that this Dungeon is of that type, which means they will have to kill the boss that controls it.

First things first: you have to find the boss of the Dungeon. However, an open Dungeon, as the name implies, has no limits to its size; it's practically a world apart, created somehow.

No one has yet discovered why or how open Dungeons are created.

Still, the group gazed in wonder at the labyrinth in front of them.

With a multi-colored twilight sky and a relatively white sun with gray clouds, the air had a smell of ashes and corpses.

It was the sight, smell and structure of this type of open field living Dungeon.

A very bizarre Dungeon.

Looking at the panorama, Asher spoke.

"I already explained to you the types of Dungeons. As you can see, this Dungeon is of the open field living type, so it will be a bit difficult to clear it."

"It's really difficult," Luna commented.

Her question was strange.

To tell the truth, she was a very knowledgeable type of person, with a lot of knowledge. However, she seemed not to know or just did it on purpose.

Be that as it may, Asher answered her question.

"That's right. That's because, being free range, its size has no limits. The boss could be anywhere."

"Honestly, it will take us several days."

If it's a living type Dungeon, time here passes slowly. Also, the fact that it's an open Dungeon indicates that time will be much slower compared to reality.

Asher knew this.

An open Dungeon.

Time here is different, as with other Dungeons that lead to different places, dimensions or alternate realities.

In short, if you don't have patience, these Dungeons will be a real headache.

But.

"I guess I won't have patience."

Asher thought as he scratched his head, irritated.

Honestly, it was a pain in the ass to search for the boss of a living Dungeon, and even more so if it was an open field one.

It was really testing his patience.

It would be better to destroy the entire Dungeon.

"If only I had the mana of a ninth circle mage..."

If you were a ninth circle mage, it would be enough to snap your fingers to fill the entire open Dungeon with mana and make it explode just by using a little mana.

A ninth circle mage has an incredible amount of mana.

It would be like a human swimming in an ocean.

That is the amount of mana they possess. However, their spells also require large amounts of energy.

Asher then looked at the labyrinth.

The walls, up to fifty meters high, were made of solid rock and gave off great power.

At that moment, they were on top of a mountain, and in front of them stretched the labyrinth. Circular in shape, its size was no joke. The radius was approximately five hundred meters, and the height of the walls made the labyrinth feel endless.

However...

Raaaawr-rrrrrRRRRRREEEEEEGGHH!!!!

Everyone heard the roars of beasts and monsters.

In the world of Alpheas there are so-called monsters and also mana beasts. A monster is a creature with no definite shape; for example, a giant twisted spider, distorted from what a small spider would be, with grotesque sizes and appearances.

In contrast, mana beasts are a race with varied forms, each unique, as is their appearance. A clear example would be a giant red hawk, surrounded by mana that burns like fire. It all depends on the type of mana beast, of course.

The roars came not only from monsters, but also from mana beasts.

However, Asher noticed something strange. Although he had read a lot about mana beasts, he had never actually been in front of one or seen one in person. Despite that, he could describe them with one word:

"Beautiful creatures."

Not only that, some of them are neutral, some are ferocious, and some are just plain lazy, not attacking unless provoked.

"This is a different dungeon than usual."

"What do you mean, Asher?" the others asked, all looking at him intently.

If he said that, it meant something was different about this dungeon.

Soon his voice echoed among them:

"That's because... there shouldn't be mana beasts here."

"Mana beasts.... Then those different roars are from them," they said in surprise.

Asher nodded at everyone's question. Like them, it was the first time he had seen mana beasts. Until then he had only seen portraits and read descriptions in books, but had never come across a real one.

His heart pounded with excitement. Finally, he would see something that really appealed to him. Perhaps this dungeon was, in fact, a gift to him, something he had always wanted to see and experience.

However...

"The roars come from the labyrinth."

If so, if he wanted to see them, he would have to go through the labyrinth. In any case, they had to go through there to find the boss. In open field dungeons, one had to move everywhere to find the boss, and that included the maze.

The problem was that, being so extensive, it would take a long time. Getting lost was not an option, but there was no other way out.

Looking back, all Asher noticed was the teleportation gate and the mountain they were on, rising up beyond the gray clouds. On either side were only fields filled with sprawling trees, and in front of them, a gigantic maze. Beyond, a dense fog prevented them from seeing what was on the other side.

"Definitely the boss is there," he muttered.

Through the maze, the boss was waiting somewhere, in the middle of that fog. He could try to fly, but the way was long, and his mana wouldn't be enough.

After all, they had entered this dungeon with the intention of gaining experience facing monsters. Of course, they were also after the credit points gained from clearing the dungeon.

Asher took a step forward.

The rocky, bare ground. A dry place, full of monsters and strange structures.

The others followed him, looking around, until they finally stopped in front of the immense labyrinth. They knew that the only way to reach the boss monster was to cross it, which would take days, although they didn't know exactly how many.

***

-Change of scene.

They had already entered the labyrinth.

Monster corpses were scattered everywhere as they walked slowly, without haste. They had encountered different breeds of monsters, but no mana beasts.

Asher was beginning to tire of the situation. If he didn't find a mana beast, he would leave the maze without realizing it, and he didn't want that. Least of all without seeing the creatures he wanted so badly to meet and face in combat.

Regardless, the purpose was still to move forward.

Raaaawr-rrrrrRRRRRREEEEGGHH!!!!

Suddenly, more monsters appeared. Most of them were goblins, humanoids with four arms, and some wolves with several eyes and huge claws.

Despite their terrifying forms, they were no real challenge. While the others dealt with them, Asher kept his senses alert, hoping to find some mana beast in the vicinity.

The problem...

"There's nothing."

There wasn't.

Where were they and what were they doing?

They had guests, yet they weren't attending them, so the only possibility was that they were far away and their roars were echoes coming from random directions.

It was honestly frustrating, however, he tried to be patient.

"Although this place gives a peculiar feeling..."

Not exactly, but his mind felt weaker in this place.

It was as if the Dungeon itself was feeding off the minds of others.

However, it was only Asher.

As he looked at the others, he noticed nothing strange or anything out of the ordinary, leading to the conclusion that it was just him.

His mental state had somehow weakened further in this Dungeon.

"But there are no mental Dungeons..."

According to the information Asher had so far, there were no mental Dungeons or anything that fed on the minds of mages.

So, either it's what Asher thinks, or it's simply an effect of his mental exhaustion.

Whatever the reason, it doesn't matter at the moment.

It's not that serious, however, he was alert just in case.

Then he took a step as an elf approached.

His green skin and an incredible four foot long saber with a sharp, rusty blade was wielded towards Asher.

Xiu. Xiu.

The air hissed as the saber pierced Asher.

Soon, however, his figure vanished before the goblin's eyes and it was then that he realized his world spun and he fell to the ground as he saw his body before his eyes.

Asher cut off the goblin's head by simply using his hand with some mana.

He had materialized mana, shaping it into a sharp blade.

Thanks to the fairies ability to give mana mass and form anything he wanted, he was useful in these respects, simply adding a bit of mana to the open hand with his fingers together.

Easily and quickly, more goblins fell to the ground decapitated, as blue blood flowed from their necks.

However...

"Hehe."

It was then that Asher realized.

He saw his reflection in the goblin's blue blood and a smile, like a madman's, was imprinted on his face.

In an instant, he hit his face and then....

"Okay, I'm all right now."

He repeated to himself.

He looked at the others as they continued to fight more monsters.

However, his gaze landed on Gloriana.

"She hasn't used light magic yet."

But any moment now she would.

Strangely, Asher thought something twisted.

"I should try it..."

Punch!

His fist landed on his face again, and he tried to recompose his sanity.

Clearly, his mental state was more fragile in this Dungeon, and this would be a problem....