[DUNGEON BOSS ASSIGNED]
[DESIGNATION: #47]
[DIFFICULTY: GATEWAY]
[CURRENT BOSS: JERRY (UNCONFIRMED)]
"What?"
He blinked at the floating words. They hung in the air for a moment, then vanished.
He sat up with his hand reaching where he'd seen the words. "Was that my name?"
His hand fell back to his side as he scanned his surroundings. He was in a stone room with one oil lantern and a door.
He sat up and dusted off his pants. "Where the hell am I?"
His jaw clenched and his body stiffened, "Come on, it can't be a second time." He quickly checked his pockets, finding them empty "GREAT! I got robbed again."
"And got kidnapped."
He walked to the door, trying to open it but failed to do so. It didn't budge a bit. "Is it locked from the outside?" He knocked on the door and punched it. "Tch."
A few moments later…
Jerry stopped punching the door, now breathing heavily with his head leaning against it.
He stepped back with red knuckles.
"Great," he muttered. "Great. This is fine. This is totally fine."
He leaned against the wall and slid down until he was sitting on the cold stone floor.
The floating words reappeared.
He blinked at them.
[SYSTEM NOTIFICATION]
·
[DESIGNATION: #47]
[DIFFICULTY: GATEWAY]
[CURRENT BOSS: JERRY (CONFIRMED)]*
"Confirmed?" He frowned. "Confirmed for what?"
More words appeared.
[WELCOME, BOSS JERRY]
·
[YOU HAVE BEEN ASSIGNED TO DUNGEON #47]
[YOUR ROLE: DUNGEON BOSS]
[YOUR LEVEL: 1]
[YOUR TITLE: THE PUPPETEER (INACTIVE)]*
Jerry stared.
"...What?"
The words kept coming.
[DUNGEON INFORMATION]
———————————————————
NAME: Unnamed Dungeon #47
RANK: GATEWAY (Tutorial Level)
CURRENT LEVEL: 1
NEXT LEVEL: 2 (0/100)
MONSTER COUNT: 0
SPECIAL FEATURES: None
CURRENT BOSS: Jerry (Level 1)
———————————————————
"HUH??!!"
He stared at the floating words before him. He was speechless, his eyes widened, about to pop out. He shook his head, clutching it he said, "No, this can't be true. I'm seeing things." he wasn't only seeing but also, hearing.
"But I haven't drunk in a while… or was I drugged?" His hands met his brown hair tied in a top knot.
"O-or I'm dreaming."
"I'm just seeing things aren't I?"
He slowly looked back up. Those floating words were still there. Staring back at him. "I need to plan an escape…" He stared at the floating words, for a whole minute. "Let me just…" He reached his hand out and it passed through the words like smoke.
"Yea I've been drugged. No way that's real."
His eyes scanned the room making sure there was nothing except those stones, this wooden door and that lantern.
"I'm not even feeling dizzy, but I'm sure seeing things."
"Rank and Level. Like those FPS games…? Or RPS… RPG."
Jerry stared at the walls. Stone. Cold. Empty.
"No windows. One door. One lantern."
He picked up the lantern. Examined it. Ordinary.
"Great. I'm in a dungeon with excellent lighting and zero exits."
He looked at the walls again.
"...Could've been worse. Could've been dark."
The floating words were still there.
[DUNGEON INFORMATION] still glowing.
"You're still here."
The words did not respond.
"Of course you don't. You're just words."
He sighed.
"Greg would know what to do."
A noise.
It came from beyond the door. Something scratching, breathing. Something.
He stepped back, slowly. Silence. Then–
THUD
The door shook.
He placed his hand over his chest, his heart hammered against his chest. "Are the kidnappers here?"
THUD
"Okay." He whispered. "This is fine. Whatever it is, it's totally fine."
The door cracked. Jerry looked at his empty hands and a lantern. "I have only one weapon."
THUD
The door splintered and an overgrown mouse could be seen trying to get in. It made noises as it struggled to get in.
"FUCK!" He cornered himself against the wall.
The mouse got in and he threw the lantern at it…
Success.
It made noises as it was crisped to death by the flames.
---
The System Notification
---
The mouse stopped moving. Jerry stared at it. At the flames. At the tiny, twitching corpse. His breathing was too loud in the sudden silence.
"I..."
The floating words reappeared. Bright. Cheerful.
[❗ ACHIEVEMENT UNLOCKED❗]
[FIRST KILL!]
Jerry blinked.
[Congratulations, Jerry!]
[You have successfully defeated your first intruder!]
[Dungeon Experience Gained: +10]
[Reward: 1x Basic Weapon Crate (unopened)]
He stared at the words.
The mouse was still burning.
"I..."
[ADDITIONAL REWARD UNLOCKED]
[FIRST KILL BONUS:]
[Title Acquired: "The Accidental Killer"]
[Title Acquired: First Sin]
[Title Acquired: First Kill Success]
Jerry's mouth opened. Closed. Opened again.
"The... Accidental Killer?"
[Yes! You didn't mean to kill it. But you did! That counts!]
The words seemed almost... proud.
Jerry looked at the burning mouse. At the lantern he'd thrown. At his own shaking hands.
"I threw a lantern at a mouse."
[A VERY EFFECTIVE STRATEGY!]
"It was on fire."
[CREATIVE PROBLEM-SOLVING!]
"It's dead."
[VICTORY!]
Jerry sat down heavily.
The flames from the mouse flickered. Died. Darkness crept closer.
The words glowed on.
[Would you like to open your Basic Weapon Crate?]
"No."
[Are you sure? It might contain something useful!]
"I just killed a mouse with a lantern. I'm not ready for more weapons."
[UNDERSTOOD!]
[Your Basic Weapon Crate has been stored in your Inventory.]
[You can access it anytime!]
Silence.
Then:
[By the way... that was really impressive for a first kill!]
[Most new bosses panic and die!]
[You threw a LANTERN!]
[10/10 execution!]
Jerry buried his face in his hands.
"Greg would never believe this."
[WHO IS GREG?]
Jerry looked up.
"You can ask questions?"
[I CAN DO MANY THINGS!]
[WHO IS GREG?]
Jerry was quiet for a long moment.
"My best friend."
[IS GREG A BOSS TOO?]
"No. Greg is..." He paused. "Greg is my friend."
[I DO NOT UNDERSTAND.]
He just sighed and the words flickered.
[WELL. CONGRATULATIONS AGAIN ON YOUR FIRST KILL!]
[DUNGEON #47 LEVEL PROGRESS: 10/100]
[KEEP UP THE GOOD WORK, BOSS JERRY!]
The words vanished.
Jerry sat in the dark.
The mouse was gone. The lantern was gone. The door was broken.
He had a weapon crate in his inventory.
He had a temporary title for panicking effectively.
"Wait… This… Isn't dream."
His hands came to his face. A long moment passed without a word.
"...Greg," he whispered, "what the hell is my life now?"
No answer.