Chương 8: Champion Monster

"Time for your final test," Squire Jessica said.

"Final test? What is it?" I asked.

"It has been two and a half months since we entered the dungeon. Time to leave and let you rest up a bit before your mother returns," she said.

"Rest? I can keep going," I replied with determination. Squire Jessica chuckled at this.

"You and everyone else, kid. Breaks and resting aren't a bad thing. They help clear your mind. Let you reset. There have been studies that have shown all of this. Lots of studies for the optimal level gain. That is why your mother set a three-month time frame. She will rush back, check your progress, and rush off again."

"Won't my mother need a break?" I asked.

"After the last incident of you being attacked, she will want to check on you more regularly. Training us Squires is simple for her. It is only when she goes below the 20 th layer of the dungeon that she needs to get serious. Rotating us Squires out to train and protect you is also a break for us from our usual, focused training. Also, teaching is a good way to improve some basic skills that have been languishing," Jessica explained. I nodded.

"So, the test?"

"The test is to fight a champion monster guarding the path down to the next layer of the dungeon. Champions are twice the level of the other monsters, which makes them incredibly difficult the lower you go."

"Can't you run by them?"

"They are one of the few monsters that will chase down an adventurer, but only if they run to the next layer. Monsters can hurt each other, but they won't fight each other. Having something chase you is a good way to end up in a dangerous situation and die. Now, during a fight with a champion, there are regular monsters of a similar type. I will handle these regular monsters, while you focus on the champion."

"Got it. I know you think I am ready, since you are saying I should do this, but am I really ready?" I asked anxiously.

"Doubt is in all of us, kid, even me. The deeper you go, the greater the doubt becomes. A good rule of thumb is 20 stats per monster level to be safe. When you checked months ago, you had 96, which is around monster level 5. This is just a guideline. Regular people have around 12 stats per level, since you get 10 free stat points per level up. Nobles and rich people have around 15. This number is harder to keep up with the higher your level."

"Since natural stat gain is harder," I replied, and Jessica nodded.

"Exactly. You are probably around 110 or 120 if I had to guess. No looking at your status. You have enough stats to be eligible to fight the champion at this level of the dungeon, while being overqualified for the regular monsters."

"Got it. I am ready," I replied, and Jessica gave me a nod.

"Good. Now focus on the fight, especially your Danger Sense. I will watch but will only step in if you are about to die. Don't let that happen." We made our way through the tunnel to the next chamber, which was quite large. I saw a staircase leading down in the middle of the chamber with a single lit torch next to it. The dungeon created features like this, but I had been learning to ignore them primarily as part of the background scenery, unless they impacted combat.

The single light source would create longer shadows. There was a large troll monster that was twice Jessica's height, standing near the staircase; it was three times my height.

"Big," I muttered quietly.

"Yes, sticking with a sword?" she asked me.

"Yes. A troll, so regeneration?" I asked, looking at the scars on its body. The dungeon sometimes offered clues about monsters if one looked closely enough. There were general guidelines based on appearance that one could use, especially in the upper layers of the dungeon.

"Yes. But it will be slow. It is a physical brawler and large. If you try to block it head-on, it will smash you away, breaking your footing. Focus on dodging. Don't let it grab you," Squire Jessica said. The tale has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident. I nodded and took a deep breath. There were no other monsters that I could spot in the chamber, just the champion.

I walked forward, and the troll's head swiveled towards me far more quickly than other monsters had noticed me. It must have a higher Perception stat, with its higher level.

"RAWR!" The troll let out a roar and stood up. No weapons, just clawed hands and a mouth with lots of teeth. I advanced, suppressing my fear. This is something I could do. The troll lunged and swiped at me. I felt an incredible sense of danger and stepped back, barely avoiding the hit. The troll stepped forward and swiped again. It was too big, and its arms were too long. I couldn't spot an opening, so I stepped back again.

My only advantage was that I was so short compared to the troll, it had to hunch over to swing at me, disrupting its balance.

"RAWR!" It let out another roar and rushed at me wildly in a frenzy. I leaped to the side and swung, drawing a small gash on one of its arms. I barely had time to bring up my shield as a clawed hand struck it. The force was too much, and my footing broke. I went tumbling. I angled my sword away from my body but did not let go. Unfortunately, I couldn't hold on to my shield. I got to my feet as the troll rushed in. Out of desperation, I dove under another swipe of its clawed hand, between its legs.

My sword cut the monster along its ankle, deeply. Green blood flowed freely. The troll spun, and I tried to block its clawed hand with my sword, but I wasn't strong enough. The troll hit me, sending my sword flying, and I tumbled across the floor. As I struggled to stand up, my heart was wild with fear. I couldn't see Jessica anywhere. Did she abandon me?

"No," I said weakly as I tried to stand. The troll advanced on me and grabbed me. I was going to die. This was it. My apologies, Mother. The troll squeezed the breath out of me as it brought me up towards its mouth. I couldn't control my bladder as fear overwhelmed me in my final moments. My struggle was useless." Fire Blade." The entire chamber erupted in light and heat, and I was falling. I hit the ground with a thud. The troll's hand was still grasping me, but now it was a severed stump near its elbow.

Someone had also removed its head, leaving nothing behind but a smoking stump at its neck. The troll collapsed to the ground, dead. Jessica walked over and swung her blade with incredible speed. The blade cut up the troll's hand, freeing me and covering me with green troll blood. I started hyperventilating.

"Breath. Focus on your breathing," she said. Wasn't she supposed to protect me!?

"Why!" I shouted in anger.

"A lesson regarding hubris. You can safely give this lesson here on the first layer of the dungeon. If you don't feel comfortable taking a fight, don't take it. That is the best advice I can give you, and this lesson will hopefully sink in," she said. I didn't know how I should feel—frustration, anger, helplessness, shame from having wet myself as I was about to die. They all came up at once, and I cried. I couldn't stop myself.

Jessica said nothing as she went over to the side of the chamber and took a seat against the wall. It took me far longer than I wanted to calm down. My healing points had completely bottomed out, and I felt incredibly sore. I made my way over.

"My healing points are empty," I mumbled. Jessica nodded and stood up." Clean." The blood, my shame — it was all removed.

"I won't apologize. You aren't training like some noble to gain levels to flaunt. You wish to become a legend. A supreme legend, this means you must embrace the reality that is death." If I said anything, I might start crying in shame all over again. All I could do was nod.

"That is why, even with stats, people seldom bring children your age down into the dungeon. It is uncaring. Unkind. The monsters give no mercy. One mistake, and monsters will consume you, leading to a horrible death. Most of your stats are in Mind and Focus. Good for your development and resisting mental effects, but you never thought about how others would have their stats. Their stats would concentrate on Vitality, Strength, Endurance, and Agility." I just nodded again.

Feeling angry, I had just listened and accepted what she had said, without thinking deeper.

"If the lessons you have learned from this fight stick with you the rest of your life, then I will have done something right. Now come, we are headed towards the path out of this place," Squire Jessica said. Before, she had seemed a stern but caring tutor. Now I knew better. She was probably frustrated because she had to watch her boss's kid, and she was an elite adventurer. However, complaining to my mother would prove my weakness when she returned. I wouldn't say anything.

I would focus on getting stronger and avoiding this mistake in the future. Trust was rare and precious. While Jessica taught me some important lessons, it had cost the trust we had built between us. She wouldn't let me die, but she wasn't about to stop me from making mistakes either. The pain and the shame I felt from having almost died were a lesson I would never forget. I sustained minor injuries during the fights in the dungeon, but they weren't serious—nothing where I was moments away from being eaten.

Jessica set a brisk pace and killed all the monsters in our path with a casual swing of her sword. She didn't bother collecting their cores, and I didn't mention it. As her kills, she may do with the corpses as she pleases. We reached another spiral staircase, this time leading upwards. Looking closely, it was the same one we had come down on. The skill Depth Sense was superb at helping one find their way down here. I followed Jessica as we climbed the stairs.

A group passed us on the way down, and they only nodded their heads.