The journey to the F-Rank dungeon takes exactly one hour by carriage, just as Father promised. I spend most of it staring out the window, watching the countryside roll by—forests, fields, small villages. Everything feels surreal, like I'm still dreaming.
"Nervous?" Marcus asks from across the carriage.
"A little," I admit.
Aria grins. "Don't be. F-Rank dungeons are basically tutorial zones. The monsters are weak, and Dad will step in if anything goes wrong."
"I won't need to," Aldric says confidently, polishing his massive sword. "Sol's got more raw magical power than most graduates of the Academy. He just needs experience."
The carriage slows, then stops. We've arrived.
The dungeon entrance is carved into a hillside—a massive stone archway covered in moss and ancient runes that glow faintly blue. A weathered sign nearby reads: Whispering Grove Dungeon - F-Rank - Recommended Level 5-15.
Two guards stand watch at the entrance, both wearing leather armor and carrying spears. They straighten when they see our carriage's Drake family crest.
"Lord Aldric!" One guard salutes. "Didn't expect to see you here, sir."
"Just taking my youngest for his first dungeon run," Father says cheerfully, helping me out of the carriage. "We'll be a few hours."
The guard glances at me, taking in my brand-new leather armor and the basic sword strapped to my hip. "First time, eh? Good luck, kid. The Grove's pretty tame, but don't get cocky."
"I won't," I promise.
The dungeon entrance pulses with blue light as we step through. Reality twists, and suddenly we're in a twilight forest—silver trees stretching endlessly into a purple sky.
"Stay sharp," Marcus warns.
I barely hear him. My whole body is buzzing with anticipation. This is real. Actual monsters, actual combat, actual—
A snarl cuts through my thoughts.
[Wild Fangwolf - Level 3]
The creature explodes from the underbrush, all teeth and malice. No hesitation. No fear. Just hunger.
My hand shoots up on instinct. "Fireball!"
The spell erupts from my palm like I've done it a thousand times. The wolf doesn't even have time to dodge. Flames engulf it mid-leap, and it crashes down as a burning corpse before dissolving into light.
[You have defeated Wild Fangwolf - Level 3]
[+300 EXP]
[LEVEL UP! You are now Level 2]
[+2 to all stats]
[+5 Stat Points] [Current EXP: 200/300]
"Holy shit," I breathe. One kill. One level. My hands are shaking—not from fear, but from pure adrenaline.
"Nice reaction time!" Aria calls out.
I barely acknowledge her. My eyes are scanning the trees, hunting for more. That rush of power, the way the spell felt leaving my body, the wolf disintegrating—I want more.
Two more Fangwolves burst from the left.
"Ice Wall!" A barrier erupts between us.
"Lightning Bolt!" The electricity arcs over the wall, catching the first wolf. It convulses and drops. The second leaps the barrier.
I don't panic. "Frost Touch!"
My hand meets fur, and ice spreads instantly across its body. While it's frozen, I step back.
"Stone Bullet!"
The projectile shatters the wolf into crystalline fragments.
[+300 EXP] [+360 EXP]
[LEVEL UP! You are now Level 3]
Three more wolves are circling us through the trees. My MP is barely touched. This is too easy. I need something harder.
"Can we go deeper?" I ask.
Aldric laughs. "Bloodthirsty already? Alright, let's find you a real fight."
We push into the forest's heart. The air grows colder. Shadows move wrong. Then I see them—Shadow Deer, their antlers crackling with dark energy.
[Shadow Deer - Level 7]
[Shadow Deer - Level 8]
[Shadow Deer - Level 9]
Three of them. All higher level than anything I've fought.
Perfect.
"Sol, wait—" Aldric starts.
I'm already moving. "Gust!" Wind propels me forward. The deer scatter, but I track the Level 9. It turns, antlers glowing as dark magic gathers.
I'm faster. "Fireball!" It detonates against its flank. The deer staggers but retaliates, launching a bolt of shadow at me.
"Stone Armor!" Rock encases me. The shadow magic hits like a truck, cracking my armor, but I'm still standing. "Lightning Bolt! Lightning Bolt!"
Two strikes in rapid succession. The deer drops.
[+900 EXP]
[LEVEL UP! You are now Level 4]
The other two deer are charging. I grin.
"Earthen Bind!" Roots snare the Level 8.
"Inferno!" The Tier 3 spell explodes around it—flames so hot the air shimmers. When they clear, there's nothing but ash.
[+800 EXP]
The Level 7 is on me, antlers aimed at my chest. No time for big spells.
"Frost Touch!" I grab its antlers. Ice spreads. "Wind Blade!" The cutting air slices clean through its frozen neck.
[+700 EXP]
[LEVEL UP! You are now Level 5]
I'm breathing hard now, but it's exhilaration, not exhaustion. My MP is still above half. I could do this all day.
"That was reckless!" Aria shouts, but she's grinning. "And absolutely insane! You just took on three Shadow Deer solo!"
After hours of fighting monsters and learning how to combine spells
"Are you ready to take on the boss" Aldric says.
My heart races. "There's a boss?"
"Level 18 Alpha Frostwolf," Aria says.
"Usually needs a full party of Level 15s. But with Dad here—"
"I want to fight it," I interrupt. "Alone."
Silence.
"Sol, that's suicide," Marcus says flatly.
"Let him try," Aldric counters. "I'll step in if needed. But I have a feeling..." He grins. "I have a feeling my son is full of surprises."
The boss chamber is massive. And in its center, a wolf the size of a house.
[Alpha Frostwolf - Level 18 - BOSS]
Its eyes lock onto mine. Frost spreads from its paws. Then it howls—a sound that shakes my bones and drops the temperature twenty degrees.
It charges.
Fast. So much faster than the others.
"Ice Wall!" My barrier erupts, but the Alpha shatters it with one swipe. Chunks of ice explode outward.
I roll left. "Fireball! Fireball! Fireball!" Three rapid shots. They hit, but the Alpha barely flinches. Its fur is smoking, but it's not stopping.
It lunges, jaws wide enough to swallow me whole.
"Shadow Step!" I dissolve into darkness, reappearing behind it. "Lightning Bolt!"
Electricity slams into its hindquarters.
The Alpha yelps and spins, faster than I expected. Its tail whips around like a club.
I try to dodge. Too slow.
The impact launches me fifteen feet. I crash into a tree, my stone armor cracking. Pain explodes through my ribs.
HP: 2,200/2,700
"Sol!" Aria screams.
"I'm fine!" I gasp, forcing myself up. The Alpha is already charging again.
This time I'm ready. "Earthen Bind!" Roots erupt, snaring its legs. It stumbles, snarling. "Inferno!"
Fire engulfs the clearing. The heat is so intense I have to shield my face. The Alpha howls in agony, thrashing against its bindings.
But it's not enough. The bindings snap. Through the flames, I see it gathering energy—frost forming in its mouth.
Its breath attack.
The blast of ice and wind explodes toward me like a frozen hurricane.
"Wind Blade!" I slice through some of the shards, but there are too many. Ice cuts into my arms, my legs, my face.
HP: 1,800/2,700
Blood drips down my cheek. The Alpha emerges from the flames, burned and furious but still very much alive.
We lock eyes. Both of us are damaged. Both ready to end this.
I channel mana into both hands. More than I've used for any spell. Fire in my right. Lightning in my left. The energy builds, crackling, burning.
The Alpha charges one final time.
I don't move. Let it come.
Ten feet away. Five feet. Three—
"FLAME LANCE! LIGHTNING BOLT!"
The spells launch simultaneously—a spear of compressed fire and a bolt of pure electricity. They merge mid-flight into something new, something devastating.
The combined attack pierces straight through the Alpha's chest.
For a moment, everything freezes. The wolf's momentum carries it forward, but its eyes are already glazing. It collapses at my feet, sliding to a stop.
Then it dissolves into light.
[You have defeated Alpha Frostwolf - Level 18 - BOSS]
[+1,800 EXP]
[+3,600 BONUS EXP - Defeated enemy 10+ levels higher!]
[Total: 5,400 EXP]
[LEVEL UP! LEVEL UP! LEVEL UP! LEVEL UP!]
[You are now Level 9]
I drop to one knee, gasping. My MP is at 2,000. My HP is below two-thirds. But I won.
"SOL!" Aria tackles me in a hug, nearly knocking me over. "That was the most insane thing I've ever seen!"
Marcus is staring. "You... you actually..."
Aldric walks over, pride radiating from his grin. "What level?"
I check: Level 9 but that would be Way too quick since it took them a while.
"Seven," I say.
Even that number makes them go silent.
"Seven," Aldric repeats slowly. "You went from Level 3 to Level 7 from one boss."
"Is that... bad?"
"Bad?" Aria laughs. "That's impossible!
That's—" She shakes her head. "You're a monster, little brother."
Marcus examines the boss's crystal—a fist-sized gem pulsing with cold blue light. "Alpha Core. Rare grade. This is worth fifty gold minimum."
Fifty gold. My first dungeon. My first boss. And I'm sitting on a fortune.
"We should head back," Aldric says. "Sol needs rest and healing. But tomorrow..." His grin widens. "Tomorrow we do this again."
In the carriage ride home, I lean back and close my eyes. Level 9. The Academy needs Level 15.
At this rate? Two more dungeons. Maybe three.
"You're smiling again," Aria notes.
"Can't help it."
Marcus leans forward. "Sol, be honest. How much of that fight did you have under control?"
I meet his eyes. "Enough."
It's not a lie. The Alpha pushed me harder than anything else. But even at my "worst," I was adapting, learning, improving.
This world has magic. Monsters. Adventure.
And I'm going to conquer all of it.
"Rest up," Aldric says as the manor comes into view. "Tomorrow, we find you something even harder."
I grin. "Can't wait."