Morning sunlight filtered softly through the curtains of the Grant household, casting warm stripes across the kitchen floor. The smell of toast and frying eggs filled the air as Mrs. Grant moved around the kitchen with her usual quiet efficiency.
Riley sat at the table, already dressed, foot tapping restlessly. His nerves weren't fear — just adrenaline waiting for somewhere to go. Today mattered. Today the dungeon opened.
Aria burst into the kitchen like a rogue spell.
"GOOD MORNING WORLD! TODAY WE BECOME LEGENDS!"
Mrs. Grant didn't even flinch. She'd long accepted Aria as a natural disaster with limbs.
"Sit. Eat. No shouting."
Aria saluted dramatically before plopping into her chair.
Sofia followed moments later, hair brushed, half-asleep, hugging a cup of tea like a lifeline.
"You're loud," she mumbled at Aria.
"I'm ALIVE," Aria declared proudly.
"You're too alive."
Riley hid a smile.
Mrs. Grant eyed the three of them.
"So. Big day?"
"Yeah," Riley said, trying to sound casual. "Dungeon opens."
Aria practically vibrated. "THE FIRST DUNGEON. FIRST CLEAR. FIRST LOOT. FIRST FAME. I'm emotionally ready. My liver is ready. My soul is ready. Are YOU ready—"
"Eat your breakfast," their mum said.
Aria obeyed instantly.
Sofia stirred her tea. "The others will already be online waiting… we shouldn't keep them long."
"Right," Riley said, finishing the last of his eggs.
"Today's the day."
Their mum glanced at them all, expression softening.
"You three… be safe in there, alright? And don't bully people."
"Mum," Riley groaned.
Aria nodded seriously. "Don't worry. We only bully monsters."
Sofia added, "And Aria bullies herself sometimes."
"That was ONE TIME—!" Aria started, then shut her mouth when Mrs. Grant raised an eyebrow.
They finished eating quickly — none of them could pretend they weren't itching to log back in. As soon as the plates were cleared, they raced upstairs.
"Helmets ready?" Riley asked.
Aria strapped hers on like she was equipping a crown of destiny.
"Let's GO."
Sofia breathed in slowly. "Logging in."
Darkness.
Then—
Light erupted around them as their avatars materialized inside Dawnview Village.
The moment the world finished rendering, Riley spotted them — their full party waiting near the fountain.
Hayes stood with his shield planted in the ground, armor polished, expression calm but clearly excited.
Hayley bounced eagerly, Bramble sitting at her feet like a tiny nature knight.
And the three newest additions —
Kalyani with her Fire Cat,
Jonathan with his young Tiger,
Rezion with his icy Husky —
looked charged with nervous energy.
Kalyani perked up when she saw them.
"Oh! You're here!"
Jonathan bowed awkwardly.
"Morning! We—we trained a lot last night!"
Rezion nodded shyly but firmly.
"We're level five now. All of us."
Hayes gave Riley a small approving nod.
"They worked hard. They're ready."
Aria put her hands on her hips dramatically.
"They better be. Today we carry our legacy into the burning maw of destiny!"
Kalyani blinked. "Is she… always like this?"
Sofia patted her shoulder. "Yes. It's best not to fight it."
The three new players exchanged relieved glances.
They were still skittish — still afraid Riley would say, Actually, we found someone better.
But he had no intention of doing that.
He grinned at them.
"You did great yesterday. Stick close. Listen to Hayes and Sofia's calls. Follow Aria only if you want chaos."
"HEY!" Aria protested.
"It's true," Sofia murmured.
"YOU BETRAY ME," Aria gasped dramatically.
Dot, perched on her shoulder, clicked in agreement.
The party moved as a group through Dawnview Village. And the village… was chaos.
Players crowded the main square shouting offers.
"NEED TWO MORE FOR A SPEED RUN!"
"LEVEL SIX OR HIGHER ONLY!"
"LOOKING FOR A HEALER — WILL PAY TEN SILVER!"
"JOIN US AND KEEP 80% OF LOOT! BUT GIVE US ALL RARE DROPS!"
Teams bargained, argued, bragged.
A cluster of players surrounded Andy Lendrim — the prodigy with the Skyrazor Falcon — begging him to join their party.
"We'll give you ALL the armour drops!"
"Take the boss loot too!"
"Just JOIN US!"
Andy brushed them off coolly, clearly waiting for something better.
"Wow…" Jonathan whispered. "Everyone's so… desperate."
Rezion hugged his icy husky protectively.
Kalyani lowered her ears. "I'm glad Riley didn't make us audition…"
Aria puffed her chest.
"We don't audition. We accept people based on VIBES."
Hayes sighed. "Ignore her."
They turned a corner—
—and the Dawnview Dungeon rose before them.
Huge carved stone doors.
A massive tree grown around the archway.
Glowing runes shifting with faint green light.
A crowd gathered at the entrance, waiting for the clock to tick down.
And then —
DING—
THE DAWNVIEW GROVE DUNGEON IS NOW OPEN.
A ripple of excitement swept through the crowd.
Aria practically screamed.
"WE ARE GONNA BE FIRST. I CAN FEEL IT."
Hayley hugged Bramble tightly.
"Let's… do our best!"
Sofia checked her rod nervously.
"Stay focused. We can handle this."
Hayes gave a short nod.
"Everyone stick together."
Riley stepped toward the activation circle.
Luna trotted beside him.
Lumi perched like a glowing general.
Even they seemed… unsure.
A glowing interface appeared before them:
SELECT DIFFICULTY:
• EASY
Recommended Level: 5
Rewards: Low
• NORMAL
Recommended Level: 6
Rewards: Standard
• HARD
Recommended Level: 7+
Rewards: High
First-Clear Reward: ???
Hayes inhaled sharply.
"Riley… this is our first dungeon as a full squad. Maybe we should—"
But Riley already pressed HARD.
The world froze.
Aria's jaw dropped.
"HARD?! HARD? BRO. BRO WHAT—"
Sofia slapped a hand over her mouth.
"Riley… that's… bold…"
Hayley's eyes widened.
"Oh my gosh—"
Jonathan looked faint.
Kalyani muttered something about dying.
Rezion's husky whined.
Even Lumi gave Riley a what are you doing? chirp.
Luna blinked up at him, confused and mildly betrayed.
Hayes stared at him, unreadable.
"…You sure?"
Riley nodded without hesitation.
"We trained for this. We prepared. We have potions no one else does. We have spirit synergy. And we have each other."
Aria blinked.
"That was… actually inspirational. Gross. Don't do it again."
Riley grinned.
"Aria?"
"Yes?"
"Start recording. Forums will want to see this."
Aria hit RECORD so fast she nearly sprained her wrist.
"Oh THIS is gonna be gold."
The dungeon runes blazed.
The stone doors groaned open.
A wave of shimmering green light surged outward—
Riley stepped forward first, confident.
The rest followed slowly, nerves buzzing.
And together—
the team crossed into Hard Mode.