Chương 48: Solo Descent

I slept with my pack and sword in my arms. I did not trust the other people in the bunkhouse with my gear. No one said anything. The sheets were clean but had a faint smell. The mattress had some lumps. But I had endured hardship before. I would survive. It was paradise compared to the hard dungeon floors. The following morning, I had breakfast and waited in the common room, working on Meditation and Breathing. Breathing was at its final breakthrough, and Meditation was getting close.

"Yo, this seat taken?" I saw a boy from yesterday across from me.

"Not reserved," I replied, and he took a seat.

"Names, Alf, like Elf but with an 'A'," he said.

"Justin," I replied.

"So, I was wondering if you would share your spot in the dungeon. We are pressed for coin." A silver didn't seem like that much to me, but my sense of money wasn't the greatest. Typically, entries were staggered so people weren't tripping over each other on their way down into the dungeon. It wasn't polite to ask this. But I could tell they looked desperate. The weapons they had were clearly second-hand and tier 0. While it might not seem like much to me, it would be for them.

Also, the Adventurer's Guild registered groups going down together and would ask if someone went missing from the group.

"Explain to the guards that you are just hitching a ride down. We aren't a team."

"Thanks! Give me a moment so I can let my friends know. You are a great guy, Justin," Alf said and scurried off. Soon, his two companions came over as well.

"This is Rand and Kar. We are the team, the Steel Swords," he said. It was stupid and cheesy, but I felt something stir in my heart.

"Justin. As I told your friend Alf, you can come along, but you are telling the guards we aren't together when they mark us down," I said.

"Not a problem," Rand hurriedly said, as if I would run off at any moment. Their smell was distracting, but I said nothing.

"So, what family are you from in Monolith?" Kar asked while staring at me.

"I am just passing through," I replied.

"Ah, don't worry, Kar. He isn't one of those rich kids from around here. It's all in the jawline, probably from somewhere over by Terander if I had to go by their merchants' accents," Alf said. I said nothing or reacted. I could have said no and avoided this headache, but I was a bleeding heart. Couldn't they leave me alone or be quiet?

"We all got our Sword Skills up to level 25, so we are going to cut through those monsters with ease once we break through," Rand said with a grin. He was going to die horribly. I resisted the urge to say anything. They were not my responsibility. Once someone went into the dungeon, society viewed them as adults. They knew the risks. He sounded so proud of that one level 25 tier 1 skill. It was pretty sad. My Sword Skills were at level 50 and were one of many.

"Idiot, don't mention levels. You will give away our strengths," Kar said and hit his friend on the side of the head. I wanted to laugh at that, but held back. I knew there was a disparity, but I never realized it was this large. Alf seemed to be the leader of this group.

"What time is our entry?"

"Three in the afternoon," I replied.

"Those monsters get a couple of hours to rest up before I come and kill them," Rand said. If you spot this story on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

"I am going for a walk. I will be back in time," Kar said.

"Don't. You are looking to cause trouble and then escape into the dungeon. Don't. We are all set to go. You make trouble, the dungeon entrance is the first place the city guard always posts someone to check for people running away," Alf said, and Kar paused.

"Fine. Next time," he said and sat back down. This was already shaping up to be a massive headache.

"Sorry about that. My teammates are quite excited that we are finally going into the dungeon."

"It is fine. I don't want any trouble," I replied, and Alf nodded.

"Don't worry, we are grateful that you are letting us tag along. We needed to spend our money on our weapons and were short at the end. Thank you."

"You are welcome."

"So, do you have a favorite legend?" Rand asked. I did not doubt that my mother was spying on me right now. I felt like saying Legend Extravagant Warren. I knew that would annoy her quite a bit. But I wasn't feeling that brave, and that would create trouble for no reason. While my mother would get over it since I knew she loved me, I didn't want to make pointless drama.

"The Supreme Legend Warlady Elena," I replied.

"That old hag?" Rand said. My heart froze at that statement. I said a silent prayer so my mother wouldn't obliterate him.

"She retired from the dungeon or something. Fighting in wars, the last I heard."

"She ran off to Terander to hitch up with a rich noble and live the soft life. She should conquer the dungeon," Karn said. Oh, by the System. Were these idiots trying to enrage her? I was an idiot for saying her name.

"Are you okay? We are just joking around," Alf said as he looked at me.

"I just think that disrespecting someone with that power is a bad idea," I replied.

"Hah, like what is she going to do? Swoop in here and beat us to death?" Rand asked in a joking tone. Oh, by the System, please don't let that happen.

"Sometimes it is best not to insult the powerful. You never know who might be listening. Who is your favorite legend?" I asked, wanting to change the subject to something other than my mother.

"Legend Extravagant Warren with his Warhammer Absolute Domination. I saw him once, you know. All muscle and power. That is going to be me someday," Rand said. This was getting worse.

"He is strong," Kar said.

"I know I felt the ground shake that one time when he was said to be fighting in the dungeon under the city," Alf added. A spatial barrier separated the dungeons except for the passages between layers, so this was impossible. My mother was either smiling or enraged by the disrespect at the moment. I wanted to defend her, but I didn't want to get caught up in such a pointless argument.

"What do you think of Legend Extravagant Warren?" Rand asked me.

"He sounds imposing for a legend," I said, not wanting to get caught up in this conversation. While I had met him, I wasn't about to say that. They didn't get the hint as they kept talking about his various exploits while I listened, only occasionally nodding or saying something to show that I wasn't ignoring them. They should have focused on training skills instead of chatting casually while we waited.

There was a clock in the common area, and an hourly citywide bell during daylight hours, which was common in most cities. Just after 1, I got up and put my pack on.

"Ah, time to go," Alf said. Their packs looked frayed and worn. I guess the secondhand market for low-value adventurer goods was booming at the very least. People either quickly found the corpses of dead adventurers on the 1st layer or ran back to the city to sell off what they had bought, repeating the cycle of secondhand equipment. The team followed me as I made my way to the fortress housing the entrance to the dungeon. I reached the entrance early and held up my metal entry token.

The guards waved me through to a waiting room.

"A bit early, but better than late. All four of you?" a guard recording entrants sat behind a desk.

"We are using the same entry token for two groups."

"I will mark you down separately, but don't do this in the future. If both sides decide to fight at the bottom of the entrance passage, it isn't very pleasant. Very annoying. So don't make more work for me. I am marking you both down as separate groups. Plates," the guard said, and I handed mine over. After me, the other three did as well and were quiet and nervous. Once I had a glowing platinum plate, it would be nice to skip all this nonsense. We then waited until 3, and then could descend the stairs.

I went first since the other three seemed incredibly nervous, this being their first time in the dungeon. Once I reached the bottom of the spiral staircase, I looked around—three tunnels to choose from. While the entrance chamber wouldn't change, the tunnels connecting it to other chambers would shift. That was another reason to send people down in staggered intervals so that everyone didn't trip over each other.

My Dungeon Sense kicked in, and I could tell one passage was the way to the next layer, like a faint tug. While I would not be afraid, I wanted to warm up by killing other monsters before rushing to face a Champion and descending another layer.

"That way probably leads to the passage to the next layer. Do you have a preference for which tunnel you want?" I asked the team that had come down with me.

"That way," Alf said with fake confidence, pointing at one of the other two tunnels.

"Very well. May you find what you desire in the dungeon and return alive," I said to them and set off towards the remaining tunnel. They said something similar back, but it didn't matter. I needed to focus on the future and pay attention. While traps were very rare on the 1 st layer, that didn't mean I could be careless. I pulled out a collapsible spear from my pack once I entered the tunnel. While not my favorite weapon, it would be useful in straight passages and for triggering something at a distance.

I kept my breathing steady as I advanced. I was required to survive down here on my own for three months. My stats and skills were far above the first layer, so I trusted them. I can do this!