Chapter 110 - The Beginner's Dungeon (Part One)

Lucas was inside a place the same as before, except that in front of him was a cave opening with a board outside of it. He smiled as he neared the board and saw the words "Beginner's Dungeon" on it.

He had a smile across his face as he entered the dungeon. A notification popped up and a quest was triggered.

[Quest Initiated]

[Clear the Beginner's Dungeon]

[Previous record time: 02:12:30 seconds]

[Rewards: Intermediate Dungeon Key]

[Set a new record]

[Additional Rewards: A piece of Armor]

Lucas was now looking at the screen in front of him. He was sure that with his stats, he could clear the dungeon quite quickly and set a new record time like no other. As soon as he entered past the cave entrance, another notification popped up.

[As your stats are above the needed, they will be brought down to the necessary reqiurements]

Lucas was stunned as soon as he saw the notification. He was thinking about clearing the whole thing with his stats but seemed like the Dungeon had other plans for him. He pulled up his stats to see what kind of restriction was imposed on him.

He was disappointed as soon as he saw the stats, and decided to activate the armor set stats, and the title stats activated as he was in a dark place. It was favorable to him at the moment. 

[Transformable Armor Set 2/6]

[Equip the full set to acquire bonus effects

Equip 2/6 - Increase Strength by Twenty Percent when Activated

Equip 4/6 - Increase Stamina by Twenty Percent when Activated 

Equip 6/6 - HP +350, MP +350. All stats Increase by Twenty Percent while normal, and Increase by Forty Percent when Set is activated]

[Master Of Stealth - Due to being in a dark place, Agility has been increased by seventy-five percent]

[Status]

[Name: Lucas Heart]

[HP: 350/350] 

[MP: 350/350]

[Level: 24]       

[Job: None]

[Title: Defying The Odds, Master Of Stealth, The Schemer (inactive), Master Tactician (inactive)]

[EXP: 29,620/40,000]

[Accumulated EXP: 0]

[System Level: 3/10]

[Strength: 52+10(20)]

[Stamina: 49 (20)]

[Agility: 52 (20)+37]

[Perception: 47 (20)]

[Magic: 43 (20)]

[Stat points to be used: 70]

He was smiling as he looked at the stats now. He was stressed that he was back to square one, but now he had gained back his advantage by a little bit. He was still sad about the restrictions he had gotten, but he was sure about his strength now.

"Is my numbers and the strength I have the same, or slightly higher?", he asked Valentine as he looked at his numbers. Valentine laughed out loud as he replied, "Kid, you have caught up with your numbers now. After breaking through to the next stage, you will be on par with the numbers that are shown on the stats."

Lucas smiled after he heard the reassurance from Valentine. And as he was bound to the system, he was sure he knew the value of the numbers and how they measured. He planned to ask about it in the future, as a quest was waiting for him to clear. 

He entered the place, and there was a typewriter in the front of the dungeon. And on it were the names of the people who had attempted the dungeon before him. Each one of them was a Heart family member, and he read through the names.

"Think of this as a save point that you have in games. You can save your progress and leave the dungeon. Upon return, you will be brought to the last stop that you had saved, and you can continue from that place", he said. 

Lucas was amazed after he heard that. He was still wondering how portals had come by, and now something like this was possible, which made him truly a frog at the bottom of the well. He typed in his name, and the sound that was made by the typewriter was satisfying to him.

The click that it made when he pushed the slider back into place made something inside Lucas tingle. The experience was refreshing for him, and he was thinking if it would be possible to make one.

"If I could make one, and put it up for auction or something as they are antiques, I am sure many collectors will flock to buy them", he chuckled at his thoughts. His mind was filled with ways to make money, as it was something he was in dire need of now. 

He made his way into the first floor, and he was faced with all kinds of Basic Tier Beasts. From the Roach Family to the Ant Family, he was facing all kinds of beasts head-on. he had also sensed his movements had become much more fluid than before.

"My response time has shortened. It's more instantaneous now", he thought as he cut down a termite that was twice the size of him. He was also sensing the beasts more clearly now, and floor one was cleared in no time.

He was expecting a boss room at the end of the floor, but there was nothing. Only an elevator that led down to the next floor that was below him.

"Seems like the floors go downwards instead of upwards here", he concluded as he got on the elevator and went down to the next floor. As soon as he reached the next floor, he heard a screech and a blade was headed his way. 

He quickly cut the blade and saw the head of cricket in front of him. It had its mouth wide open and was about to eat him whole, but Lucas thrust his blade into its mouth and ripped the head open, killing it in an instant.

"As soon as I made my appearance, these things come for me. Seems like I might have to stay vigilant after all", he thought as he got off the elevator. He steadied his hands and began to slash at his opponents again, and they ended up falling prey to his blades. 

The place he entered was more like a room rather than a floor. It didn't have any corridors or pathways to navigate through, and this reminded him of the colosseum that was available for the players to participate in duels outside. 

He smirked after he recalled that, and after killing them he went back to the elevator and it moved to the next floor. The third and the fourth were the same and he killed them all as soon as he stepped foot inside the arena-like room.

On the fifth floor, it was eerily silent and this made Lucas stay extra cautious. He was on his toes looking around for his enemies when he spotted a big cockroach sitting in the middle of the place.

[Basic Tier Beast: Cricket-Roach]

[This is a mutation from the Cricket and the Roach family. It has the legs and agility of a Cricket, and the mobility of a Roach]

Lucas frowned after he saw the description given. He was skeptical if it was the same he thought it was, and it turned out to be true. He was confident in his strength, but he needed something that would help him when it uses its ability to fly.

He then remembered that he could use the [Chains Of Hades] skill to pull it down and finish it off, and his plan became solid as he stood in front of the Beast, ready to kill it swiftly.

Right past it, he saw the typewriter that he had seen on the first floor and began to calculate. He concluded there will be one every five floors, and he didn't know how many floors this Dungeon had.

He dashed right from the start to take the beast by surprise. He only had one chance, and he didn't want to waste it. As soon as he appeared, the beast began to flap its wings. It saw that he was coming towards its head, and the best course of action was to fly.

Lucas smirked as he threw both of his swords towards the wings, and cut them off. The beast fell back to the ground with a screech, and Lucas quickly got on top of it. He was about to pierce through its eyes, but he felt his balance amiss.

The beast had jumped and moved around to throw Lucas's balance off on its back, and it was working. Lucas had missed its eyes whenever he tried to stab, as it made its move right when he made his. It was hard to predict as it moved by instinct.

He jumped down and saw its front legs coming towards his neck like a guillotine, and he blocked it with his blades. He didn't have this as part of his plan, but he was still improvising as he fought against it. 

The blades were tough and it wasn't the same as the other beasts he had faced against. He was sure about one thing.

"This thing is wither a boss or a sub-boss that has been placed here to disrupt the timing of the intruder. But not mine. I have faced against stronger enemies than you, and you shall die by my hand", he said as he slashed the blade-like hands off its body.

The head fell to the floor as it lost its sense of balance, and he used this chance to behead it.. He went towards the typewriter and typed in his name before he made any move, as he wasn't sure as to how long he might take inside the dungeon.