Chapter 15: Inside the 'Zorat' Dungeon once again

The 'long coat' gave me a sense of security as I was now protected by it. Although defense wasn't the forte of the coat, it was still an 'uncommon' ranked coat with ample defense.

Its main forte, 'stealth', made me an invisible assassin who could kill any 'Awakened' warriors with the rune it manifested. Also, the slight enhancement it brought to my agility was noteworthy. Even if the enhancement wasn't seen in my stats, I could feel it.

As for how strong I was with the help of my legacy, the runes inscribed on me, and two runic equipment, I would have to check it in real battle.

I already had plans to visit the dungeon I was familiar with to loosen the muscles that had been stiff due to the lack of exciting battles after arriving here. I had already thought of a way to enter the dungeon 'Solo' without taking anyone with me even before obtaining the perfect rune for the job.

Now that I could become invisible just by activating the rune, that plan had been scrapped by me. That plan was nearly impossible to pull off without the help of somebody with enough power inside the guild, but now, it was basically a guaranteed job.

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Early in the morning, In front of the entrance to the Zorat Dungeon...

Looking at the monolith of a structure pulsating with mana in front of me, I wasn't able to control my emotions of excitement and thrill I was feeling. Although this dungeon was popular and well-visited by adventurers, my presence here wasn't entirely by choice in previous times. 

In the past, I used to be contracted with raid parties to explore this dungeon, which essentially compelled me to enter it regularly. Now, I was here by choice, eager to test my limits as an adventurer and sharpen my battle instincts as an awakened warrior.

The sensation I felt was distinct from before; this time, I was here to defeat the monsters 'solo' instead of just collecting cores while enduring the ridicule of other adventurers, as I had done in the past.

The entrance resembled a gaping maw of stone, its surface covered in moss and ivy, lending it an ancient, forgotten appearance. Around me, several raid parties were gearing up to enter the dungeon. Some groups were still waiting for their members while some were chatting with each other, talking about their plans after raiding the dungeon today, It was a lively scene, filled with anticipation and excitement.

As for me, I was also in the same waiting zone, waiting for the dungeon to reset itself, respawning the boss monster 'Zorat' today.

While it wasn't strictly prohibited to venture into the dungeon after the boss's defeat, many preferred to wait for the daily reset to try their luck as it was the only valuable monster that could fetch them money and contribution points from the guild.

Once the boss fell, only its lesser minions remained, and few adventurers wished to waste time and resources battling these lesser foes once the main challenge was overcome.

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Swoosh...

"Haha... The dungeon's reset!" The exclamation echoed through the area, jolting everyone from their conversations and preparations.

The once lively atmosphere turned tense in an instant as all eyes turned towards the source of the yell. The raiding parties, once engaged in friendly banter, now eyed each other warily, tension crackling in the air as if a brawl could erupt at any moment.

As for me...

I stood at the entrance, distanced from the tense interactions of the raid parties. Before me, a swirling mass of mana coalesced, weaving an intricate and peculiar design in the air, a phenomenon often seen before the dungeon's entrance during reset.

But what made me enthralled was the meaning of these designs. They were runes, higher-ranked ones with several runes intermingling with each other perfectly to create the gateway to another world.

I hadn't noticed the runes earlier because they weren't strongly reacting with the surroundings, and also due to the fact that there were several high-ranked runes designed to conceal their presence from others.

And the main reason was my inexperience with the runes. I wasn't even able to comprehend 'Uncommon' runes by myself without the help from Legacy, let alone higher-ranked ones. They were way above my current level of understanding.

No wonder I required help from my Legacy to sense their existence, let alone understand their intricate meanings and powers.

[High-Ranked runes detected. The host can try to comprehend these runes.]

This was the notification that was flashing in front of my eyes which let me know the meaning of the swirling mass of mana in front of me. I would have stayed in front of this swirling mass of runes, trying to comprehend them, but they vanished from the environment just as quickly as they had appeared.

"What was the lowest tanked rune in that swirling runes?"

[Rare runes]

Any desire I had to sit there and try to comprehend the runes was deflated by this short notification. After all, I couldn't even grasp the meaning of a 'common' ranked rune on my own without any guidance.

Comprehending the rune amongst the intricately connected swirling mass of runes wasn't something I could fathom at the moment. I wasn't confident in my ability to grasp even a basic rune from the swirling mass, let alone the collection of rare runes where the lowest-ranked ones were of a higher level.

So I snapped out of my reverie and gazed at the entrance of the dungeon, which was sealed by numerous high-ranked runes, one last time before stepping in with determination.

I made a mental note to come back and decipher the runes that sealed the fragments of other worlds here. There was a chance they were connected to my legacy, especially considering that even seasoned scholars had struggled to grasp the full significance of these runes.

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Inside the Dungeon...

As I ventured inside, the passageways grew narrower and twisted, lit only by occasional torches that cast flickering shadows on the damp, moldy walls. The air was thick with the scent of decay and mildew, adding to the eerie atmosphere of the dungeon. I could even listen to faint whispers echoing in my ears.

As I continued down the narrow passages, the whispers seemed to grow louder, echoing off the cold stone walls. It was as though the dungeon itself was alive with the restless spirits of those who had perished within its depths, their voices carrying through the ages to haunt anyone who dared to tread where they once roamed.

This was something I hadn't felt in previous raids when I was here with other adventurers. "Was it because I was mortal without the ability to sense the mana protecting me from these haunting whispers previously?" 

I had no answer to the question. But the whispers echoing in my mind were reminding me of the faces of dead people I had hunted when I was living in Lumia. Although the effect of these pictures was minimal for me as I had even lived in the same vicinity as the people I had killed. But for someone from a normal family, it was a nightmare. 

No wonder several newly awakened warriors died here in a seemingly low-level dungeon with monsters that even a mortal could kill if equipped properly. They were haunted by their nightmares, slowly dying from inside without knowing their physical bodies getting gnawed by the monsters inside the Dungeon.

After walking down the narrow passage for about five more minutes, I reached the corridor inhabited by 'Mucus Slimes'.Up until now, I hadn't deactivated the 'Rune of Stealth' as I was trying to get the feel of the rune, trying to comprehend it for my own purpose.

Comprehending as many runes as I could also helped me understand my legacy properly; it was also the reason I never deactivated any runes after obtaining them, as every rune, even the worthless ones could help me gain insight into my legacy, granting me with ability to properly utilize it.

" I wasn't the one providing the runes with Mana. Why bother with the amount of Mana required to activate it?'' This was the basic logic behind me activating all the runes I had on me, even the rune on the equipment was getting the same treatment.

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Monster: Mucus Slime

Tier: 1(common)

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The slimes were busy minding their own business, searching for food without any care in the world. They were carefree, without an ounce of vigilance of the impending doom they were going to face.

I was in the center of the cluster of slimes, my nose scrunched in disgust. I stayed in the same place for about five minutes before finally deactivating the 'Rune of Stealth'. Only after the stealth was broken did the slimes notice me. By the time they were aware of my presence, it was already late for I had already swung my longsword with 'Nightmare' stealthily killing even more Slimes.

I even used 'Light bombs' from time to time, stunning these monsters whenever I was overwhelmed by their numbers. After stunning them, I would change my placement, and activate my Rune before repeating the process. 

The squelching sound produced by the slimes whenever I attacked them with my longsword was the only sound echoing in the corridor. It was a fun battle for me because I was swinging the longsword as I wanted, trying to get the feel of using such weapons. But for the slimes, it might have been their worst nightmare.

And their nightmare had just started.