Chapter 29: Dungeon (VIII).
Chapter 29: Dungeon (VIII).
The fourth section of the dungeon… definitely harder to beat.
The map on this part of the labyrinth- it seems that it's not loading in properly.
There's a few blank parts glitching… is this normal? Or something could be interfering with the signal on my phone.
"Is it supposed to do that, Francisca?" (Elre) who was beside me glances at the screen looking confused. I taught him the basic user interface that my phone has and I have to admit I have no idea if it's supposed to do this too.
"Weird… this part of the [Map] glitches. We can't even see the red dots for monsters." I held my phone up in the air hoping the glitch would stop if I did.
I opened and closed the map a few times… well its not working.
"In anycase we've successfully landed on the fourth section of the labyrinth. I would have to warn you that this place is a paradise for monsters but also a hell for species like us."
"A lush green paradise, full of life- plants that can grow exotic fruits and water. It says here on my original map." We decided to roam around as I felt confident in his words that even if this part was more dangerous than the last.
At least this place has water.
"Wow!"
The moment we stepped into the fourth layer of the dungeon, we were met with blinding lights hanging on top of the ceiling and actually this place truly looked like a paradise.
Trees, grass and a good environment full of scavengable sources of food is near.
"There's water here!" I could hear water ripple from a running river that was near. "How is this possible? This part of the dungeon should be deep below."
Elre chuckled as we both walked over surveying the area. We could see a couple of animals that were in the distance but they seemed peaceful. "Like I said, the theories surrounding closed and public dungeons revolve around the gods making them. To what god it is, I do not know who exactly. This place is like its own other world."
"That I'll have to agree." It was crystal clear water, I leaned over and took a look at my reflection. My clothes were still full of blood so I had to be careful, I watched my hands and face before relaxing sitting down on the ground.
Weird… for a place to have a river and a green field there's not many monsters around here.
"Hey Elre, can I refill your gourd?" I asked and he nodded, taking it out from his [Inventory].
"Sure, we need water the most anyways. We won't be staying here for long."
As I was about to grab the empty gourd that I used last time-
"Look out!"
"...huh?!" I didn't realize that a snake was crawling up behind me and another poisonous boar was emitting smoke. "What the-?!"
"Reee!" The boar on the other side of the river looked alert as it puffed out smoke.
I dodged the snake's charging attack on me, "Hisss!"
It hisses and begins to slitter closer.
"Hisss!"
"Hisss!"
"Hisss!"
That's where I realized that we're completely surrounded, on the ground there were snakeheads popping up and more just kept on coming.
"[Wind Magic: Air Cut]!"
Elre ducks both of our heads down, as he summons his magic. It manages to cut down the ones that weren't alert enough to duck their heads. "What are these snakes and why are they staying underground?!"
Even more snakeheads started appearing and tried getting to bite our feet.
"They're soil snakes- monsters that possess the earth and poison element. This will certainly be a problem, the whole ground itself is their territory."
"Soil snakes?!" I yelled out in a panic, I saw the poisonous boar that stands before us screeching even more loudly.
"REEE!"
The snakes underneath its feet began wrapping up to its legs, they all started crawling- they were so many that it covered its entire body!
"R-Reee!!!" It continued to scream in pain as it tried kicking off the attacking monsters but soon found itself being stunned.
Thud!
The boar fell to the side, mildly shaking as they feast- drops of blood falling into the green grass.
W-What are those things?!
"[Scan]!"
{Properties}
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Name: Soil Snake
Monster Class/Element: Earth & Poison
Monster Rank: Mildly Dangerous (Level: IV)
Note: The soil snake can burrow through dirt, sand, and soft earth with ease. It leaves a small tunnel behind that collapses at the end of its turn. Moving through difficult terrain costs it no extra movement if it's underground. If the soil snake is burrowed, it can make a special bite attack against any creature standing above its position. The soil snake doesn't provoke opportunity attacks from this attack if it retreats underground immediately after striking.
Soil snakes are ambush predators, lurking just beneath the surface of the ground until they sense vibrations above. They move in small groups, often coordinating to bring down larger prey by ambushing it from multiple angles. When threatened, they dive back underground, making them hard to catch.
Soil snakes typically inhabit forests, fields, and areas with loose soil or sand. They are often mistaken for harmless snakes until provoked or encountered in numbers. They hunt small mammals, insects, and will attack anything that comes near their nest. Some believe soil snakes are drawn to areas with high concentrations of earth-elemental energy, thriving in magically-altered terrains.
Once their prey is bitten, it will leave the victim in a state of paralysis.
Primary weakness unknown.
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"Elre-!"
"They're not usually a problem if you're only facing one!" He yells, dragging me to my safety.
Elre carries me on his back so that I won't be within the soil snake's reach. He started kicking the snakes that were popping up on the ground.
"Hngh! Get back!"
"[Wind Magic: Wind Barrier]!" A barrier made out of air was formed. The snakes weren't able to get in, but I'm afraid the barrier won't be able to hold on for long with the huge amount of them trying to get in!
"But we're looking at several hundreds hiding underground! It's not safe staying here! Not unless you have a spell that can help us with this?" He asks, still not setting me down because the soil snakes started jumping and charging at the barrier.
"No, I don't have any spells that can help us right now! If I kill them all with fire would that help?!" I can destroy them all with a fireball that should work! It's going to be a huge fireball it should at least kill some of them!
"You might destroy the only floor that's sanctuary to the dungeon if you burn the soil snakes! The nature here is sacred!"
Hah?!
Elves and their connection with nature! I don't know which is more important, our lives or a bunch of grass and trees!
"Then we run."
"[Wind Magic: Gust of Wind]!" I summoned a gust of wind, hopefully that will buy us some enough time to run away from almost twenty soil snakes surrounding us.
"By the gods-! They're everywhere!"
"We have to get out of the soil! Any rocks or stone floorings would be a good place to settle our footing with them!" We ran and ran, those soil snakes could feel where we're going as they created the dirt like some sort of liquid they can swim on.
So this is why there's not much monsters in this area even if it was being lush, beautiful and has river water. They've must've been afraid by the soil snakes eating them for lunch.
I wish I can just burn them all with my fire magic but… I guess he's right. This part of the dungeon seems special and it would be a waste if I destroy one the remaining green nature of this place.
If fire won't work then…
"Wait! They know where we're going because of the vibrations right?!"
"Yeah!"
"Then call me crazy but I think I have an idea!" If I cant use fire to destroy them, then ill use the element oppositr to it!
"I'll drown them out!"
"Hah?! Drown them out?!"
My plan is this-
"Those soil snakes make holes as they dig, leading a path to their nesting grounds! With my water magic I'll be able to use water that 'll drown them all! And I'll reinforce the top soil to become even stronger!" With that they won't be able to get out easily!
And besides any monster with the earth element it's weakness is water!
"I'll gather the minerals and make sure they become hardened!"
This might work!
"Kid-! I don't know what the hell you're planning but I'm going to trust your ass to save us!"
"I don't trust myself but thank you! It's a dumb plan but I think this will work!"
"Hah! Everything that you're doing seems impossible but you prove me wrong time after time!"
"Get me as near as possible back in the river! I can't summon any water yet but I am able to control water as far as I know!"
"You got it!" He ran as fast as he could to the river, I'll be using the water there to drown them out. Elre grits his teeth as the snakes underground tried tying him down and biting his foot. "Hngh!"
We were routing back into the river and he placed me quickly down.
"Now kid!"
"Alright!" I placed my hands below, underneath the water and then to the ground. I closed my eyes focusing on feeling the earth element- I had to channel my inner earth beneath and feel the vibrations just like what the soil snakes were doing.
"..."
Five hundred… no almost six…
I can almost count them all.
"It seems I won't be needing the phone for this one." I found the burrow of the soil snakes. It seems that the snakes have already made this part of the river their home territory.
When monsters need water, the soil snakes feel their vibrations- they hide themselves underneath the soil and then feed on the innocent, gullible prey.
"W-Whoa!"
"Hahhh!" I don't have a spell that can summon water yet!
"T-That's!"
So I'll just use the river water instead!
"Hisss!" The snakes saw the huge water wall that was forming in front of them and dug down deep.
I could feel some of them running away sending the danger, but they went out to get us first!
"This is just payback!" I controlled the water to flow down into the burrows, with great speed and force.
This isn't a spell- but thankfully having water magic aptitude made me able to control water just fine.
"Theyre backing off! Holy gods- they're actually crawling back to where they came from!"
When the water was done seeping in, I made sure that there was enough to let them be submerged in it. "[Earth Magic]!"
I placed my feet and arms into the ground once more, a magic circle forming below us.
I could feel the minerals underground and tried controlling it to be hardened- seeing the burrow pathway in my mind… I managed to fulfill my plan and those little snakes will be dying in no time.
"Is it done?" He asks me and I give him a thumbs up.
"They won't come after us for a while. They'll be too busy digging in deeper to fix the problem I caused."
Elre joyfully jumped around and carried me up. "Three cheers for the kid! Whoop whoop!"
"Alright! High five!" I handed out my high five to him and after learning it from me he happily returned it.
Clap!
"Thanks, Elre… whew that took a lot out of my mana. I don't think I can do that again." That really did take a lot out of me, scaling out and focusing the earth beneath me.
I was surprised at how deep the fourth dungeon is. What I felt under there was like a whole other system.
"You surprised me with that plan! It was an amazing idea- your knowledge and cleverness is cheeky. I thank you for respecting my wishes to not use fire magic so that this place will not be destroyed."
I get the beauty and nature that he's trying to preserve, it's his first time here as well. "The other monsters and animals, if there are any, will be able to drink in peace."
"Ugh speaking of a drink I need some too. The river water in this area now is a little low- so we'll need to filter some of this out before placing it in the gourd."
"Leave that to me. We can boil some water after we make camp." The fourth floor seemed like a place where you'd want to live, and we found an old ruin after setting up our camp.
Whoa! An old stone house?!
A stone house standing in a secluded, overgrown field. The walls are made of rough-hewn stones, now weathered and cracked, with some stones missing entirely, giving it a skeletal appearance.
The house's roof has long since caved in, leaving remnants of old wooden beams protruding like broken bones. Vines and moss creep up the walls. Windows, once framed with wooden shutters, are now hollow and dark, resembling empty eye sockets.
Inside, crumbling remnants of a fireplace and traces of what might have been rooms are barely visible under a layer of dust and fallen debris.
"There's not much left of it." I take a look at the small house that was ruined. A small clay tablet was left in the middle of it all. "Elre look, there's something carved into one of the stones here."
"Celestial language once more, wonderful. More things for me to decipher!" He hurriedly came over to decipher the tablet but the only thing he muttered out was a long humm of wondering. "Huh… that is rather odd."
I took a peek at the tablet and asked what was written on it.
"What does it say?"
"It says here forgive me for leaving you and nothing else."
"That's strange. Did someone else live here before?"
"The silver elves were the only inhabitants that I've known and that's on the very top part of the dungeon."
"Someone else must've lived here before then? Probably someone strong because the fourth level of the dungeon is not easy to conquer." This place felt so creepy and we decided to go back to the camp.
Better safe than sorry.