Strange Artifact and Dungeon

Lee Long arrived in the capital with a small bag. It was disguised as an ordinary well-to-do tourist. The boy had long ago checked out how to use the inventory. There were no super magical benefits to him. The inventory could hold a lot of stuff. It was useful as storage. But it had a weight limit! Lee checked and realized that he could put a flyer in the inventory. But he couldn't move when the flyer was in the inventory! The boy did not conduct any unnecessary experiments. He drew the simplest conclusion. Endurance 20 gives 200 health and allows him to carry 200 kilograms in his inventory.

The stocky and cautious duelist immediately assembled his emergency kit. He made a supply of food war rations and juice tubes. There was a first-aid kit in the inventory with a supply of antidotes and obligatory medicines. There were sleeping bags and subsistence items in the inventory in case of an accident.

Nothing of particular value was found with the enemies. There were pockets on their belts that held a couple of dozen credit chips. There were no valuable weapons or jewelry on the hounds. On the leather strap around the neck of the short Ganid was a small figurine of strange material. The figurine was not a simple one. Lee Long applied the skill:

[Artifact ????? For additional identification Requires higher Appraisal skill.]

"Unknown artifact! Perhaps this artifact has great value. I will find out its value. It is easy to develop Appraisal in the capital. There are many new and unknown things around!"

Developing Appraisal required negligible effort. Only 17 minutes to achieve a new skill! But Lee Long was not distracted; he was gaining experience first. The boy only made identifications when necessary. He quickly realized in the capital that he could easily gain both experience and new attribute items. No need to bother the colonists of Europe 9. No need to disturb students from other academies in the Arena. There was a limit in front of him, and he could not gain more than 80 attribute points. The main goal is to reach level 20! Then he could get a boundary extension. Then he could increase his attributes even more.

New adventures confronted the little duelist. Now he wanted to find the entrance to the capital's dungeons. He had heard several stories about the capital dungeons. The Earthmen were well aware that not only good and decent citizens lived in the capital. Bad crooks and scoundrels were hiding in the dungeons! The capital of Ferin was an ancient city. Naturally, it had dungeons! Many soldiers told interesting stories of fights in these catacombs. The soldiers were bold and brazen. The soldiers were specifically looking for fights and to test their fighting abilities. The colonists had connections with the officers of the order. Sometimes colonists were tasked with checking and clearing the dungeons of criminals.

"I have to find a big root that protrudes above the surface. It is in such roots that holes and descents into the dungeons are arranged. But these holes are camouflaged! Am I going to have to catch the rascal and use torture?"

Lee Long found a very promising spot. A large and tall root was branching off from the base of the main tree. Nearby grew a huge mushroom on whose cap there were several cheerful establishments. The boy lurked in the dark and waited for a customer to appear. It is very difficult to distinguish a criminal from a good citizen. On the other hand, respectable citizens don't go out of their way at night in the jolly establishments on the surface of the capital of Ferin.

The wait led to relative success! An unknown resident descended from the mushroom cap. He looked around and quickly made his way to one root. Then it seemed to merge with the darkness and the tree!

Lee quickly ran up to the desired spot. The boy began to feel the surface of the root with his hands. In the darkness, you couldn't see any knobs or buttons. The boy's fingers caught on a depression on the surface of the root. He pulled sideways. Nothing! He pulled the other way.

The surface of the root moved! In front of him was the entrance to the dungeon!

Lee Long stepped inside and slid the door behind him. Unfortunately, the Dueling System didn't wake up. He received delicious new announcements about starting a new quest with new rewards. He had never received any quests. Perhaps his system required development?

Underground was interesting. The walls of the dungeon showed that the ferin were familiar with the use of stone. The walls and floor of the underground passage were stone. The air was plain and did not irritate with unpleasant smells. There were no lights on the walls at the entrance. Lee saw faint glimmers of light to one side and walked toward the light. He was not afraid. He was ready for a fight. Sometimes criminals would set up guard posts at the entrance to an important dungeon. A guard post always has a limited number of guards. The duelist was ready to face a pair of rogue guards.

The first lampstand did not have a guard post. The lamp was high at the ceiling and was located at a branch of the dungeon. Perhaps it was the entrance to a larger room. Lee froze in place. What should he do? Continue down the main corridor? Check this branch? Can't leave unknown dangers behind. The exit to the surface is near. We must explore the side branch!

On the stone wall was a plain, regular-sized plastic door. There was no digital lock on the surface of the door, no keyhole. An ordinary handle invited him to open the door and enter in search of new adventures.

Lee Long took hold of the knob and opened the door. He entered and closed the door behind him. The room was a small hall. The room was bright and it was the room where he encountered his first trouble. From the far wall a rough voice greeted the boy:

"Who are you? What are you doing here?"

"I'm a shrimp!" Lee Long replied. "I've come to visit."

"I don't know him. Catch the stranger!" Shouted the local warden.

Lee saw four strangers. They were standing and sitting on small boxes against the wall. One box had some objects on it. Perhaps it was a small group of local bandits. Lee checked out the strangers. Ganid. Ferin. The two Ladders are intelligent rats.

Great rivals! He had not yet killed cats and rats.

The boy was not bothered by his murderous aspirations. They were perfectly normal aspirations for colonists. The world was a very cruel place. There were several cardinal rules in the galaxy. One rule was very important: "Keep your race. Kill the alien!" The first school of killing was hunting. Little Lee, along with his girlfriend Black Star, often hunted large beasts. On his first hunt, the boy learned what it was like to kill a living creature. The guardians were pleased with the little prey. Fresh animal meat was a good addition to the table.

Lee could not count on self-indulgence. He was ready. A knife appeared in his hand, and the little killer pounced on his opponents.

The first ladder quickly got his death. The rat was small in size. The ladder was the size of a short man. Lee Long jumped toward the rat and punched him in the face. A punch to the eye is a great chance of inflicting fatal damage. Even a big injury is great! One opponent is out of the contest.

"Kill!"

With a roar and hiss, angry strangers pounced on the boy. The death dance began. Lee took advantage of his advantages. Speed and small size are very useful qualities. He didn't stop moving and was constantly stabbing. A couple of blows went to the rat, and another opponent fell to the floor. This time the system flashed an important message before his eyes.

It was a nasty annoyance and a distraction from the fight! Lee was ready and instantly with a quick desire to remove the unnecessary disturbance in front of his eyes. Everything afterward! All after the fight!

"Ouch!"

Pain pierced the boy's arm. He noticed that the cat was using a long blade. Good thing it was a sword with a small and wide blade. Ferin used long blades with narrow and sharp blades.

The shaggy dog was armed with a knife. This made the fight a little easier for the boy.

He focused his attention on the main danger. Throw and close! A quick punch to the body and a leap to the side. Against the wall! Healing! A leap to the dog and a forward jab.

"Boom! Boom! Boom!"

Lee delivered three swift blows to the body of the dog. He struck with all his might. The dog's body shielded the boy from the cat's attack.

A system message flashed before his eyes. Another enemy was defeated. A nimble sword feint remained. Cats are nimble and strong. Unpleasant opponents. Life expectancy is normal, about a hundred years. The duelist had many advantages in strength and agility. He went in for a fierce frontal attack.

They faced each other and began to strike. The cat pounded the nasty little thing on the shoulders and head. The boy was stabbing and punching the cat's body with his knife and fist. The boy had a large reserve of health. He paid no attention to the pain.

The cat dropped his sword and began to roll onto his back. Lee instinctively applied Healing on himself and rushed to the last opponent. One rat was moving on the floor. And that rat did unexpected and unpleasant damage to the duelist.

"Bang!"

There was a loud sound of gunfire in the room. The nasty rat was lurking on the floor with a dangerous weapon!

Lee Long was hit hard in the chest. The blow knocked him off his feet and threw him backward. In that instant, he didn't hesitate for a second. The pain in his chest didn't stop the boy from taking a quick leap to the side from where he fell. Another dodge and a leap toward the last enemy! The hand knocked the rat's paw with the pistol aside. The knife struck the throat. "Die, rat!"

Lee Long collapsed on the ladder's body and began to heal himself. He checked his status.

[Health: 58/200]

Healing! Healing! Healing! Healing! Healing! Healing! Healing!

He sat on a rat corpse and healed his injuries.

"Where did I go? Idiot! It was dangerous. It was a deadly danger! What kind of gun? Appraisal. The Squeak gun. 20-40 damage. Cheap! A common local firearm. It's protected by a normal soldier's bulletproof vest. The Magical Shield gives full protection against such toys. But I don't have any protection!"

Lee Long regained his health. He picked up the gun and quickly stashed it in his inventory. He searched the rat's body. Credit chips were familiar trophies. The boy ran up to the next corpse and began to collect his booty. He slit his breast pockets looking for small valuables. He found one information chip. It was interesting. All the inhabitants of the galaxy had communicators. All the money was kept in bank accounts. But the communicator was guaranteed against tampering for an outsider! The communicator was a product of superior technomagic. It was the ultimate tool and helper for any sentient being.

The boy got some credit and valuable experience.

He overestimated his capabilities. His arrogance and self-confidence received a valuable lesson. He needed to find a protective body kit. It was a daunting task. Military gear was valuable and was not available for sale. Civilians could buy a hunting kit. And it was a great kit! Hunting dangerous predators required good protection. Why hadn't he thought of such a simple necessary purchase?

Lee Long shook his head. He could have at least taken his hunter's vest to the capital! Irresponsibility and stupidity were the chief companions of the novice.

Enough of these adventures! He must return to the surface. He is not ready for further exploration of this dangerous place.

And at that moment the boy heard a knock in one box and a quiet, pitiful sound:

"Meow!"