Dungeon (2)

The Dungeon, 1st Floor

At first glance, it was the stereotypical dungeon Bete expected.

A musky, strange scent filled his nose. A dark, cool atmosphere wrapped his skin. Rocky, light-blue walls surrounded them while glowing orbs dimly lit the area from above. Similar textures covered the ground — dirt, rocks, and all. While not detrimental to fights, it would prove to be unfamiliar and challenging to people unused to fighting on uneven floors.

'Though not for me. I grew up learning how to crawl and walk on this kind of shit. What kind of incompetent idiot would trip on the ground? That would be a sad way to die.'

All in all, it was what most people would imagine when they heard the phrase, 'dungeon.'

Meanwhile, Ais looked around with a strange glint in her eyes, the Werewolf unable to gauge her reaction.

'What's up with her?'

Riveria calmly walked in front of them with no sign of discomfort. To her, this sight was something she passed countless times.

"This portion of the 1st Floor is called the Beginning Road. I imagine it's self-explanatory but newbie Adventurers will spend a good portion of their time from floors 1-4. Level 1 Adventurers should get at least a G in basic abilities before traversing beyond that. This is also something any experienced Adventurer will recommend."

She shot them a look.

"I'm making this a rule for you two as well. Even if you have the strength to go beyond those floors, it's necessary to acclimate your bodies to the environment and simply get used to the dungeon. Walking around, preparing supplies and rations, and familiarizing yourselves with the routes; It's not just about slaughtering monsters. You two will find that abundantly clear with time."

Bete frowned, looking around. Another thing he noticed was... well, that the dungeon was lacking the one clear feature everyone knew about: the enemies.

"So this isn't the actual dungeon? No monsters spawn around here?"

Riveria shook her head.

"This is technically the dungeon, but it has its rules. Monsters start to spawn further in, after we leave the road. It can be seen as a safe start of sorts."

His frown deepened.

"Rules? In the dungeon?"

"You would be surprised. It's surprisingly ordered and follows patterns. You just need to learn how to read them."

"So we're listening to rules from the same dungeon that wants to kill us?"

The Elf offered an explanation.

"It's what Adventurers have been doing since Orario was built. The dungeon is at least fair in that way. We follow our rules and it will follow suit. Otherwise..."

She smiled, eyes bending into content crescents.

"Well, I'm sure you don't want to find out. Let's not change what has yet to fail."

"Huh."

Bete didn't ask further. If the rules would help him get stronger, he would memorize them. If they wouldn't, he didn't care.

Looking around some more, Riveria's words of the Beginning Road being a safe haven rang true. They had been walked for a while yet there were a lot of Adventurers that were still around them. A few of them talked strategies while others looked clammy and on-edge. It was obvious who were the experienced Adventurers and who were the newbies.

Bete couldn't hold back a small sneer.

'Weaklings. Dumbasses. Why are they even here?'

'Bete.'

'What? They're just gonna get in the way or die anyway.'

'You're kinda scaring them. No need to glare.'

As a matter of fact, he had been unconsciously glaring at each and every nervous Adventurer in their vicinity even if they looked two, three times his own age.

'. . . Whatever.'

But despite lowering his hostility, the trio received plenty of weird looks. Whether it was because of Riveria's fame or the oddity of seeing two children in the dungeon, he didn't know.

'Still, isn't this stuffy? This Beginning Road is wide and all but there's dozens of other groups around here. Don't tell me we have to share enemies?'

However, the question was answered for him without a need to verbally ask. Perhaps it was the size of the entrance that, while was immensely large, appeared small compared to the true size of the dungeon. Bete quickly realized his idea of the dungeon was extremely limited as each group branched off one by one until theirs was the only one left. Or perhaps they were the ones who branched off. Eventually, he couldn't see or hear traces of the others.

'All those Adventurers crowding that huge entrance with dozens of parties at a time. But just on the 1st Floor, we're all alone? Doesn't that mean the dungeon is...'

"Enormous," Riveria supplemented.

He turned back, eyes widened.

"That is what you were thinking, yes? Indeed, I also thought that when I first traversed the dungeon. Each floor is massive and complicated. Even though we have records of almost every discovered floor and countless scouts do their best to map these areas, there are still things we don't know. Adventurers still get lost."

Bete blinked, trying to imagine the scale of what the Elf described. Just one floor was that large.

"Wait... then how do we clear floors? Or, like, y'know. Advance deeper."

She tilted her head.

"Well... I supposed the idea of 'clearing' a floor is rather ambiguous. There aren't exactly benchmarks or teleporters on every floor. Even if you pass through multiple troubles and reach a deep floor, you need to do the same thing next time to reach it again. That's why people who 'cheat' their way through floors by secret passageways or magic items are likely to meet their end once things get out of their control. Besides, most Adventurers don't exactly have traversing deeper as their top goal. Sure it would be nice, but like I said, there's no point of risking your life on a floor beyond your skill level. Floor advancements will come naturally as you grow stronger."

"So how exactly do you go deeper? Are there trials or something? Benchmarks?"

"Oh, no. You can just walk down to the next floor."

". . . It's that easy?"

"Theoretically, yes. However, there exists the problem of hoards of monsters in the way. Additionally, there are strengthened species who consume magic stones to gain power. And on top of that, there are floor bosses."

Ais, who had been following their conversation, seemed interested at that.

"Floor bosses?" she softly asked.

"Yes. They're also known by another name: 'Monster Rex.' You won't come across a true floor boss until the Middle Floors."

"What are they?"

Riveria mulled over the question for a few moments, continuing their walk.

"In short, they're an abnormal test on certain floors. Floor bosses are usually the strongest monsters on their respective floor, and a special trait or two is not uncommon to see. They drop valuable items but believe me, they're not the kind of existences to be challenged on your own. Even a party of Adventurers that can easily handle a particular floor can be wiped out by its floor boss."

"So they're dinosaurs?" Bete asked, scratching his nose.

"..."

Riveria was dumbfounded for a second, then realized the misunderstanding Bete made.

"Hehe."

"?"

"A-ahem. No, they are not dinosaurs. Well, maybe one or two. I should have probably explained this first but they come in all kinds of shapes and sizes, following a certain pattern. Firstly, they all come from a 'spawner' in a location that doesn't change. Secondly, they all respawn after a set period of time that varies for each Monster Rex."

"Hold up. What was that, 'heh'? You just laughed at me, right?!"

"..."

The Elf pretended she hadn't heard anything, putting on a straight face. Bete was forced to take the hit to his pride.

He looked back in the direction they were heading but saw no end in sight. Since there was nothing else to do, he considered the idea of parties and bosses for the future.

'I didn't exactly expect to solo everything in the first place. I'll need a proper party for the future, even without taking Monster Rexes into account. Based on my fighting style, I don't think a tank will be necessary but I'll probably need a second damage dealer once I get further in the dungeon. A healer would be nice but even that's hoping for too much, not to mention a mage-healer like Riveria. It would be good if they weren't too far ahead of me in terms of skill but I don't want a helpless newbie either. Ahhh! Why is this so annoying!'

'And what are your plans for a scout or supporter?'

Bete scrunched his face distastefully at Blackie's question. Fortunately, Ais distracted him from a response with an additional question.

"What about the Upper Floors?" Ais asked.

"Hm? What about them? Like I said, floor bosses only spawn after you reach the Middle Floors-"

"No. You said 'true floor bosses.' So is there an unofficial floor boss in the Upper Floors?"

Despite her airhead and tendency to appear harmless, Ais was uncannily perceptive.

"A floor boss? Oh, yes. There is the..."

The Elf paused, her voice dying down as she recalled Ais's outburst in front of the Pantheon at the sight of a dragon.

"?"

The curious golden orbs that peered into her eyes drew such a contrast compared to the ones Ais showed before. However, there was no way Riveria could simply forget that raw fury engraved into her memories. She felt the need to halt any further explanations.

"You'll find out later. There is indeed an unofficial floor boss of sorts, but not until after the 10th Floor."

Bete squinted in suspicion.

"Anyway," she clapped. "Those things are much beyond your levels for now. Even with your prowess, I expect at the very least a few weeks to gain enough excelia to explore past the 4th Floor."

He sighed in visible disappointment.

"Damn. Well there go my plans of rushing through the first five floors today."

Riveria breezily laughed.

"One day? I think even an entire week spent on the 1st Floor is not enough for a newcomer. Furthermore, this is just the first floor. Each floor only gets larger and more dangerous."

He repeatedly sighed. There was still a long path ahead.

.

.

.

Finally, just when Bete and Ais were about to lose their patience, they reached the end of the Beginning Road.

The change in atmosphere was noticeable, as was the increased sharpness in Riveria's emerald eyes. Even on the beginning floor of the dungeon, the veteran Elf did not let her guard down.

Almost as if responding to their presence, Their first dungeon monsters birthed their ugly heads from the walls around them. Literally. The dungeon walls pushed their nascent forms out, the monsters unwrapping themselves from their initial fetal positions.

Green, short, and humanoid with pointy ears. Tiny, bone-liked horns poked out of their uneven heads and their large, crimson, pupil-less eyes glowed dangerously. From the information drilled into him, Bete easily identified them as goblins — widely recognized as the weakest monster in the dungeon.

Almost mockingly, one bared its sharp teeth in a grin pointed towards their trio. The others also unfolded and began to advance.

Bete stretched his arms readily, cracking his neck as well. A delighted smile mirrored across his face.

"That's more like it. A calm welcome to the dungeon just doesn't sound right."

"Be careful Bete," Riveria cautioned in an anxious tone

"Yeah, yeah. I'll be careful."

'Somehow, she looks even more worried than us. I get why Loki calls her Mama.'

That was Bete's thought until he turned towards his fellow rookie.

Pant... pant

'The hell?'

The little blonde's eyes were hyper-focused at the sight of the unfamiliar monsters. Hyperventilating, as well. Her grip tightened over her ordered sword to the point where her hands were shaking. The inscribed Falna on her back felt burning hot. A mix of dark emotions swirled in her head, finally landing on one command: charge.

"Ais, wait!"

She dashed forward with hardly any semblance of the training she received. The girl raised her sword high in the air a whole meter before the first collision — a move that was both inefficient and predictable. However, Ais didn't care about any of that. She just wanted this disgusting being in front of her gone.

"Kraaaahh?!?!"

SMASH!

And gone it was. The goblin raised its arms in a futile show of resistance before the mighty blow with all of Ais's weight behind it literally detonated in front of its face.

In a single hit, flesh, blood, and organs spewed from the monster like an unorthodox fountain. Bete couldn't even tell if Ais hit it with the edge or the blunt of her sword. It was hardly a slash and more like a smite.

Both he and Riveria stared in pure shock.

"What the hell?" Bete instinctively blurted out.

The mangled body of the goblin burst into dark smoke, leaving behind a small, dark purple crystal, though that was the least of their concerns. The disappearance of the corpse did not erase the red stains covering Ais's new armor dress and hair.

'A skill. It has to be.'

The Werewolf silently agreed with his mental voice.

Certainly Ais was a little beast, but she was a Level 1 at the end of the day. Armed with practically zero experience, she had no right to just go about vaporizing the first monster she met.

Riveria also shared similar thoughts.

'She probably wasn't even conscious of it. A skill that only works against monsters... I don't like it.'

A powerful skill like this was a terrible match for someone as power-hungry as Ais. The way she had attacked was a clear indicator that she shouldn't be let loose with this skill in the future. No strategy, no thinking, just pure brute force. Not to mention, they didn't know what kind of physical and mental toll the skill took. If she developed solely using this skill as a cheat, there would be many deficits in Ais's growth.

Ais had no idea what the two were thinking, nor did she care that she was dyed in crimson monster blood.

"AAAAAAH!"

The usually quiet girl screamed, rushing towards the next goblin who seemed to regret being born a few moments ago.

"O-oi, leave a few for me!"

Bete also rushed forward, desiring to claim a few kills for himself.

He had to be thankful towards the low intelligence of the goblins who rushed at him despite watching their comrade get one-hit obliterated.

The Werewolf bared his fangs and shot into action.

Smack!

The first goblin easily went down with a low sweep of Bete's legs, then was crushed under his metal, combat boots.

Crack!

He didn't miss a beat and slammed the weaponized end of his armguard into the neck of the next enemy.

'Target the weak spots. Watch their movements. Dodge and counterattack. Hunt.'

His instincts were lit ablaze, jumpstarted by the appearance of beings who Bete could only call, 'prey.' He was the hunter. Fighting back was futile. In the end, they would all fall.

Goblins were certainly the weakest monsters in the dungeon, but monsters born inside the dungeon were much stronger than most enemies outside Orario. Most newcomers would at least struggle with killing a single one of these little green monsters, but Bete hardly spent a few seconds on each one.

The reason behind his sudden boost in power was a Status update the day before so that the Werewolf could get both a power increase and gain a grasp on the level of growth he could achieve. He was planning on comparing the increase in his abilities before and after a single day of dungeon diving.

His current Status looked like this —

.

Basic Abilities: 

 - Strength: I 9

 - Endurance: I 8

 - Dexterity: I 11

 - Agility: I 18

 - Magic: I 0

.

A week ago, he had shown an incredible growth of 4 points by training for a few hours. From then, he had spent the good majority of every single day in the training field, doing his best to work on his combat intuition and speed. His entire fighting strategy banked heavily on out-speeding enemies so raising his agility was a priority.

Subtracting the initial 4 points, Bete had essentially gained a total of 42 points over a week — an average of 6 points a day. Although it seemed like a sizable growth, he wasn't satisfied. If anything, he was disappointed that there was only a difference of 2 points between a few hours of training and an entire day of training.

Luckily, Blackie put his mindset back on track on the way.

.

⌜ 'You're thinking about this in a linear way. I told you before that growth slows down if you keep trying the same thing. What actually happened was a large growth at the beginning of your training, then a swift fall-off in the later days. Growth of 11 points on the first day, then 8, then 8 again, then 6, 4, 3, until finally a mere 2 points yesterday. The effectiveness of repeating the same training is probably at the limit for you unless you try a different training method. Perhaps find a new partner to spar with. The only effect the same training will have from now on is most likely an unnoticeable increase in non-Falna experience.'

Bete felt like he was beginning to understand the difficulty of raising one's Status.

'So that's why Adventurers go to the dungeon? Because there's all kinds of monsters here?'

'Something like that. For some reason, the drop off in effectiveness isn't the same for killing monsters so Adventurers can grind the same floor multiple times and strengthen their Falna that way.' ⌟

.

And now, the boons of his constant training showed through his explosive speed and sharp, practiced attacks.

"Guaaahh?!"

Another goblin let out a confused cry as its initial attack was easily ducked. The portly body received a harsh kick in the guts, courtesy of Bete's new boots, and went flying back into the dungeon walls where it came from.

"Gegeeeh!" 

Once more, a fellow green-skin was pummeled face-first into the ground.

Wherever the gray whirlwind went, a messy trail of small magic stones and black dust followed. 

It seemed akin to bullying children, but Bete had to grow stronger. He would greedily take all the experience he could gain — excelia or not.

But suddenly...

"!"

In the middle of another punishing thrust of his fist, he felt a crucial tingle down his spine. His eyes widened, and his body reflexively punched out behind him.

"Kyaaaak!"

The ambushing goblin was hit out of its jumping assault with a well-timed counterattack. Bete swiftly turned him into a pile of dust with an angry stomp to its ugly mug.

'Thank the Gods for [Beastial Senses]. To think even the first enemies are intelligent enough to coordinate a simultaneous attack... I wouldn't be surprised if there were casualties on the 1st Floor. But that's no excuse. I let my guard down after beating up a few of them. Won't let that happen again.'

Mentally scolding himself, Bete raised his awareness by another level and charged deeper into the hoard of goblins.

Behind them, Riveria made an approving smile.

'Good. Looks like the training helped curb some of his bad habits. And for Ais...'

The Elf turned towards the other side of the room to see how the little girl was faring.

"AHHHHHHHH!!!"

"Geaaaghhh!"

'Well... At least she's strong enough where there's no direct harm at this stage. Though, I'm still worried about her lack of care for her condition. I trust we can work with her stubborn attitude.'

"Graaaaghh!"

Another goblin was brutally slaughtered by Ais's bloody sword. Somehow, it continued to maintain it's sharp edge despite being roughly dragged through countless monster bodies. It probably sliced through a few magic stones as well.

'Right?'

The emerald-eyed High Elf weakly smiled.

.

.

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Ah the conflict that a Danmachi fanfic must always face: dying monsters. The anime shows them turning to ash the instant they are defeated while the manga and light novel depicts their bodies disappearing and potentially dropping items only after the magic stone is manually removed from the dead body. That, or the stone is destroyed while the monster is alive.

I've seen various fics take either side, as well as lots of cool hybrids of the death mechanic.

For this story, I'll make it similar to the anime. While I was initially leaning to the light novel/manga version because it would make supporters more valuable, it'll be less gory this way and I'm guessing more readers are used to the anime-esque deaths. It'll also be better for the plot.

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BTW, I divided the dungeon experience between this and the next chapter because I realized I've been rather inconsistent with my chapter lengths. I'm going to settle on around 3.5k - 4k words for each chapter. In retrospect, I kinda want to cut the chapter 'Criminals' in two because it has 6.6k words but that would be a little shameless so I'll keep it like that.

As always, thank you for reading!