Chapter 5 - War Shadow. (Edited)

Finally, after a few minutes of walking, I arrive at the entrance of the dungeon. I notice a few people looking at me strangely, after all, I'm just in casual clothes heading to a place where life is at high risk for beginners.

Now that I think about it, it's kind of funny to imagine someone killing monsters in shorts and a t-shirt, as if they were going to get ice cream at the park.

Setting these silly thoughts aside, I pass through the entrance after showing my adventurer's ID to the guards and begin descending the stairs towards the first floor.

In the anime, this doesn't stand out much, but now that I'm here, despite the dangers, the dungeon is actually beautiful. The black walls with sparkles look like tiny crystals glittering with the artificial lighting, probably placed here by the guild.

The floor is largely rocky in formation.

Well, time to prepare. I quickly use my magic and equip both my armor and sword. I decide to go with the sword because, in my view, the monsters on these first floors rely more on dexterity. Goblins and Kobolds could cause quite a lot of trouble, especially for adventurers specializing in heavy attacks. A spear would serve a similar purpose, but I prefer having more space to move, and even though the floor is of average size, I don't want to get stuck against an obstacle.

I continue walking through the floor and soon hear some sounds of something breaking. A group of three goblins appears at a certain distance from me. Quickly, I place my hand on the hilt of my sword and draw it.

As far as I remember, goblins have sloppy movements, but their speed is moderate. Well, with their numbers, I'm probably already surrounded, so I need a little strategy from the start. I quickly crouch down to pick up a stone as I see two of them coming towards me with the third close behind. I run towards them and, using the stone I picked up, I throw it at one while simultaneously delivering a horizontal slash to the first goblin's neck, easily decapitating it. Moving my feet for better positioning, I punch the goblin I hit with the stone, knocking it down. Finally, I connect a third cutting motion against the third goblin that was slightly further back. My sword easily shatters the small rusty sword the goblin was carrying and kills it quickly. To finish off, I pierce the goblin I had knocked down, which was still dazed on the ground.

Soon, all three bodies disintegrate into black dust, leaving three small shiny purple crystals on the floor.

At first, I catch my breath for a bit while crouching to pick up the crystals after checking around to make sure no hidden monsters could surprise me.

I place the crystals in a small extra pouch I got from the cooks at the Loki mansion and continue walking deeper into the first floor.

Time slowly passes. I end up facing more goblins and, finally, some kobolds appear. Looking at Riveria's crystal, I see that the "daylight" glow is still strong, so I probably have a few more hours.

Then, I take my crystal necklace to check my status.

Name: Elizabeth

Race: Half High Human / Half Heroic Spirit

Level: 1

Strength: I0 > H109

Resistance: I0 > H103

Dexterity: I0 > G220

Agility: I0 > G229

Magic: I0 > G250 (750)

Spirit Power: 500

Abilities:

Commander: A

Perfect Warrior: A+

Queen of Battle: S

Heroes' Will: SS

Spells:

Weapons Cemetery: EX +++

Wow... this x5 buff I have thanks to my ability is really strong. It hasn't been long, but even after killing a decent number of monsters, my stats have increased quite a bit, especially my magic. Apparently, my magic is fusing with my spirit power. The good thing is that just by keeping my sword and armor equipped and using both for defense and attack, I can also raise my spirit power.

Well, let's continue. I think I'll go up to the 5th floor today. Even though I might be able to go lower as my stats increase, the time it takes to travel is really long, and I don't want to take too long to return to the Loki family mansion.

Just as I was getting up to continue, I hear a much louder noise and realize a War Shadow appeared. This is really surprising. As far as I remembered, they only showed up on much lower floors of the dungeon. Hmm... this is probably an anomaly.

I see it quickly coming towards me. Grabbing my sword, I block its direct attack and watch as it vanishes again. Using my Commander's calm mind, I focus on my instincts. I feel it appear to my left, and I quickly move to block its attack. I summon my spear in my other hand and deliver a strong piercing blow, luckily hitting it. However, the strike was superficial, so I couldn't eliminate it. This monster is really fast.

I decide to go on the offensive rather than waiting for its attacks, as that would deplete my stamina and make things more dangerous. I use a sequence of slashes with my sword and follow up with piercing strikes from my spear when I see openings.

This monster is really troublesome.

Soon, I form a small plan in my mind. Using a bit of force, I throw my spear and simultaneously run towards it. I see it dodge the spear, and I deliver a piercing blow with my sword. Apparently, this surprised it so much that it used both of its hands(?) to block my attack. I quickly channel my spear back into my other hand and land a piercing strike that hits the War Shadow right in the chest(?) and defeats it.

The War Shadow dissolves into black shadows and leaves a crystal on the ground. I sit down to catch my breath. This monster is really problematic. It's incredibly fast and quite resilient in a way. However, it was good training, and my stats should have increased a lot. I'll check that when I return.

I grab the crystal that fell, placing it in my pouch. I eat some of my dry rations and hydrate with a bit of water.

After a short break, I descend further into the dungeon, slaying more monsters to raise my stats.

Several hours pass, and looking at the crystal Riveria gave me, I see the light is starting to fade, so I guess it's time to head home.

I begin walking back to the first floor, and after a few minutes, I'm already out of the dungeon. It's really starting to get dark.

Well, let's head back to the Loki mansion. I want to take a bath and relax for a bit. Let me check my status while I return.

Name: Elizabeth

Race: Half High Human / Half Heroic Spirit

Level: 1

Strength: H109 > G203

Resistance: H103 > H192

Dexterity: G220 > G 298

Agility: G229 > G 289

Magic: G250 > F303 (1003)

Spirit Power: 700

Abilities:

Commander: A

Perfect Warrior: A+

Queen of Battle: S

Heroes' Will: SS

Spells:

Weapons Cemetery: EX +++

This skill is truly powerful. In just one day, even killing a good amount of monsters and even a war shadow that shouldn't have spawned here, I achieved a good amount of excellence. Probably if I increase the amount of time and the number of monsters, I should soon be able to level up. Although I would like to max out all my stats before then to make the most of my potential.

This is tough... well, let's see what happens.