The wall exploded with a cacophony of rumbles, clatters, and the sound of shattering crystals. A huge gaping hole was left in the geode wall where I'd blasted it using the {Fireball} skill.
I stepped through the hole and looked in awe at the size of it. I was surprised that I was even able to cause something like that. For the past few years since coming to this decrepit town and working in this dungeon, I'd only had my instincts and my physical abilities to rely on. Since I didn't have an artefact, I couldn't boost those physical stats, nor could I even dream of using magic.
But it was different now.
Now, I had true power. I'd managed, albeit by accident, to stumble upon a source of power... a scarily powerful one at that. I'd risen from just above average to... something greater. I wasn't able to assess how great yet, but from the way Orebrul had been talking about this artefact, I was able to assume that this ring held power that transcended any other artefact in this world.
Whether I could unlock all that power remained to be seen, but I was determined to do so. Those bastards at the RMMT need to remember just who I was.
Ooo, scary. So are these the people who threw you into this run-down place? Orebrul replied.
"Yeah. The Republican Military of Magical Talent. I used to serve them through the Human-Serpentine War." I paused when I realised who I was talking to. "You've seen, haven't you? Do you have a resentment towards me for that?"
Orebrul replied almost instantly as he'd already guessed I would ask this.
No, war is a part of being a living thing. It was always destined to be. You've killed my kind, I've killed yours. Makes us even. I can't hate you for doing what you were told.
I smiled at his response. "You know, for a snake, you're quite wise."
Orebrul gave me a genuine laugh. Is that racism I sense?
I reeled at his question. "No! I didn't mean it like that!" To which he laughed again and said he was joking. I enjoyed our banter, however deep it might be, and we laughed and talked quite friendly as I absentmindedly wandered this layer of the dungeon looking for an exit.
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Eventually, I'd had enough of mindlessly walking around and decided to browse my new skills:
○ Skill: {Fireball} Destruction
○ Passive: {Skill Analysis} Alchemy
○ Skill: {Muffled Steps} Stealth
○ Skill: {Upgrade} Alteration
○ Skill: {Temp Contract} Conjuration
○ Passive: {Regeneration} Restoration
○ Skill: {Apply} Enchantment
○ ???: {???} locked
I looked at the list and thought about them. None of these would necessarily help get me from one layer to another, aside from maybe Fireball. It showed me what kind of skill it was, the name of the skill, and what path it was from. Interesting.
I had a thought and transmitted it through mine and Orebrul's mental connection. Can you sense other artefacts?
Depends on the strength, Orebrul replied, if its a strong presence, then yeah, that's easy, but if there's some form of shielding, then that makes it rather difficult.
I nodded along with his explanation, and we agreed it'd be best for Orebrul to sense artefacts, and I go hunting for them rather than sending him out on his own. It was during our conversation that I noticed a small tunnel in the wall to my left. To my shock and ultimate excitement, it was a tunnel that led up to the higher layers.
"This must be the tunnel that the mages use to get to these lower layers," I assessed.
Entering the tunnel, I made my way upwards until I came to a huge hole at the exit of the tunnel, and I instantly recognised it. It was the hole I'd fallen through from the third layer.
There was a big problem. Getting across it. After some time, most likely up to half an hour, I'd come to the conclusion that I would blast myself across using a fireball and simply regenerate through my passive skill of regeneration.
Preparing a fireball in my hand, I faced towards the tunnel, my back facing the hole. "Is this gonna work?" I asked tentatively.
'Only one way to find out, eh?' Was the response I got, to which I rolled my eyes.
I mentally prepared myself, activated {Fireball}, and launched the fireball in front of me. The blast sent me flying across the room, and I spun awkwardly in the air and reached for the platform I had tried grabbing the first time. The faint memory of my nails ripping on sharp stones came to mind, and I grimaced, but my determination won out in the end, and I gripped the ledge firmly and hauled myself over the ledge. My eyes caught my hand, I finally noticed that my nails had been regenerated thanks to the passive skill, which caused a thankful smile to play across my lips.
"Jeez... that was... intense..." I gasped for air, I'd somehow managed to exhaust my mana reserves. "I need to work on that... otherwise, there's no point."
I agree, your reserves are low, and you'll run out in a fight in no time. However, thankfully, the more you use the ring's power, the more your reserves will increase, and they grow as you use the ring more and more.
I nodded, "Makes sense. Guess I'll just have to train a lot."
Great, more training... and for what? I thought silently. Orebrul didn't have a witty response to this and remained silent, which I appreciated from him.
After getting up, I dusted myself off and let {Regeneration} do its work on my body, while slow, it was still helpful. My skin had smoothened, all traces of blemishes had vanished, and I seemed to glow with a newfound vigour. I confirmed that my body was perfectly healed and climbed the remaining three layers to the entrance of the tunnels.
When I arrived back to the surface, my nose was reminded of the smell of machinery and grime. Orebrul seeped out of the ring in his bubble form.
"THIS is what your town smells like?! That's awful! Smells like Hounder shit!"
I laughed at Orebrul's remark, and I wasn't surprised to see him enter the ring again instantly. "Just imagine living here every day. Yeah, bet you couldn't, could you?" I could sense Orebrul's disgust at the pungent smell of the mines, and I agreed with his sensation of distaste.
It was night time, however the sky was just black with no stars to be seen, no thanks to the amount of light pollution here. The air was musty, and the rancid smell of the town was carried by the wind to my nostrils, causing me to wrinkle my nose as I walked towards town. The sound of stones and grit crunching beneath my feet filled the area encased by the wired fences.
As I approached the check-in office, the guard had a fright seeing me in the middle of the night. My loose shirt was ripped in a few places, and my trousers were mostly intact with some dirt and muck staining it. "Who... Who's there?!" The guard's voice trembled.
"Relax Xander, it's just me, Lough." I replied calmly. What I failed to realise was how long I'd been missing since the collapse of the layer.
"Lough?! You're alive?!" Xander yelled, and I waved a hand to silence him down. "Yes, why? I've only been gone for less than a day, right?"
Xander's face paled, and he shook his head as he calmed himself. "Lough... I'm not sure how to tell you this, but..." he hesitated.
"Go on," I urged.
Xander shifted in his seat and looked me in the eyes. "You've been gone for nearly a week."
I froze. A week? That's not possible...
The world began to rotate, and I felt sick in my stomach. Leaning against the desk, I cautiously asked, "A week? What's going on? You thought I was dead?" I hadn't meant to ask so many questions. They just came out as a flurry of concern and apprehension.
"We heard the collapse of the third layer and went to investigate. When we found the massive hole and saw that you were assigned to that layer... well... we could only think the worst and hope for the best." Xander looked at me apologetically, almost guiltily. "I'm sorry!" He blurted out "We -"
I held up a hand and cut him off, and smiled gently at him. "It's ok, Xander. I know better than anyone that you can't always spare a search party." Though, of course, I wasn't just talking about this incident.
Xander relaxed a little at my acceptance, but I could still see some guilt in his eyes.
Xander was one of the few people who actually cared whether I came out of the dungeon in one piece or not. Each time I came out of the dungeon, he would rush over and check me before we went and got a drink together. We were good friends. I'd like to think I was a decent friend to him.
"I'll just check out and go on ahead, bit tired." I said to Xander as I filled the form to check out.
Xander nodded and smiled wryly at me, "Stay safe, Lough, got that? I dont wanna hear that you got into another full-scale tragedy like this."
I gave him a warm, genuine smile and replied, "Will do." With that, I gave him a nod, and I walked away from the office and down the road to town where I hungrily and excitedly looked forward to a bed.
Unbeknownst to me, Xander muttered, "There's something different about him. His aura is stronger... and that ring... there's a strong, palpable power emanating from it... it's ominous... what the hell actually happened down there?"
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