End Online: Volume 3
Page 3
“You could of at least taken care of the skeleton that you let go, damn wolf!”
The culprit in question gives me a mischievous look while the two brothers give each other a confused look.
“Anyway,” I change the subject, “It is odd, seven cells broke open and only six enemies came out. Why don’t we take a look inside these cells.”
Following my lead, we each start poking our heads into the cells to inspect their interiors. They are all exactly the same inside. There is not a single window, with a bed as the only furniture inside. The beds are all long since rusted and decayed, no longer able to support the weight of a person.
There were no mattresses either. A couple of mouldy old fabric remnants are there, but nothing more.
The only difference was the cell which no undead came out from. In this cell, there was a footlocker at the end of the remains which used to be a bed.
“Everyone,” Sticking my head out of the cell I call the others, “We have a chest in this one!”
They all casually strolled in as I opened the chest.
Loot:
◊ 16 Gold Coins
◊ 45 Silver Coins
◊ 7 Tattered Mouldy Leather Pieces
Take / Take All
Tattered Mouldy Leather
An ancient piece of leather that has long since rotted and become frail.
Requirements for Use:
- Adequate Tailoring Knowledge
Item Type: Crafting Material(Leather)
Effects:
??
Everyone else seemed remotely surprised at the loot. It possibly isn’t that fantastic for a dungeon of this level. But compared to our current experience up till now, it is a lot.
“Well, I will take half, the other half is for you.” I decide on the distribution.
“Wait,” Mason interjects, “What about Fen’s share. Surely you aren’t going to take the half just for yourself.”
“Sure I am, why wouldn’t I?”
Shock overcomes the brothers’ faces. Seeing me as an incredibly greedy individual, who can blame them. Of course, since they are not in my party, they are unaware that Fen actually isn’t a player.
When the halves didn’t match up we decided on a coin toss which I fortunately won every time. It even increased my luck by a point!
The undead also broke out of the prison cells every time we killed one of the monsters walking around by themselves. Sometimes four broke out, other times as many as ten. I started calling it the ‘Jailbreak Phenomenon’.
If ten had appeared during the initial battle we had, surely we would have lost. Fortunately for us, we learnt from the first time and were already prepared for them. Using Matrix and his ‘magic fingers’ we opened the heavy plate iron doors, leading to other wings of the prison.
If the area we entered was the central area, then the east and west wings were similar in many regards. The sizes of the room were slightly different, but they were all four story monstrosities.
Most people would have avoided causing the ‘Jailbreak Phenomenon’ considering the disadvantages. If it was just the experience points I was earning from them, then I probably would have passed on half the fights and gone directly searching for the boss room. Except, inside some of the jail cells were extra gold and loot, something I could not pass up on.
The north wing was a little different from the others. It was more like an area designated for solitary confinement. With narrow, straight corridors, all the rooms lacked even a bed, let alone any chests. There were strangely yellow skeletons locked up in some of them though. I did an analysis on them and reveal they were ‘Decayed Yellow Skeleton’ at level 180.
Without the loot to gain, I had no interest in fighting something that could kill me and make all my efforts to get here count for naught.
We travelled the dim corridors for hours, occasionally encountering groups of enemies, but nothing we could not handle. By the time the brick texture of the walls had just blended into a single piece of grey to me, we arrived at a large double door. It was vaguely similar to the other locked doors, except, it gave me a bad sensation magnitudes higher than the other doors.
“I think.” I spoke up as we stopped for a moment of rest and recovery, “That we have finally reached the boss.”
“Indeed, I wonder what kind it is.” Mason ponders aloud at my statement.
“What kind?”
“Well, just like players, there are two kinds of bosses. There are those that specialize in strength and crushing everything around them, and then there are the ones that focus on speed. The bosses with speed are the worst to deal with, not only are they incredibly faster than any player can be, they have inhuman reaction speeds. This is the main reason why next to no players fight with speed.”
“That does make sense, a computer program wouldn’t be limited by a brains reaction speed, but instead by the computer’s processing speed.”
Nodding our heads at each other, Mason and I got caught up in our own little world. Until, Matrix spoke up at least.
“I think we should, umm… Go in and do this.”
He seems a little nervous but we agree on his words and move forward to the large double door.
“Matrix,” I ask before proceeding any further, “If you are a magic swordsman and have magic skills, why didn’t you get a skill for healing magic rather than picking locks?”
The question isn’t really relevant, but it has been bugging me for quite some time.
“Umm, that is, well… Healing magic is more for stuff like paladins. And umm, lockpicking gives me a really high dexterity bonus. It’s good for wielding swords.”
I see, a little bit strange, but I get where he is coming from.
I put my weight onto the doors and they easily slide open. Clearly, there was no point in locking these doors.
Inside is a large round room, fifty meters in diameter. A light mist covers the entire area, except unlike the previous mist, this on stays in position and swirls around us as we move.
There are torches burning dimly around the walls, filling the entire area with an eerie light. It is hard to imagine that this strange room is a part of the jail.
In the centre of the room is a two and a half meter tall, menacing pitch black suit of armour wielding an ordinary looking round sword and shield.
If this was my first dungeon, I would no doubt walk up to it unaware. However, from my experience, I already know that is the boss.
“”Analyse!”” Both Mason and I examine the boss at the same time.
Overseer 'Law'(Boss Class)
Level: 205
Health: 5650
Magic: 0
Stamina: 1200
??
I am not the same player I was when I entered this dungeon. Fighting the endless amounts of undead while being lost in the labyrinth, and especially combating all those superior undead in the prison confines. I have killed more than the rest, and with my agility still growing thanks to my class skill effect, I have reached level 97.
“Let’s go!”
I call out to the others, as I become the first person to enter the battle with this boss.
I leave an afterimage behind to confuse the boss as I close the distance between us. Unleash a lethal blow to the bosses neck, a metallic clang resounds as the force of hitting a solid wall transmits up my arms.
Somehow, the boss raised its shield and blocked me.
Not understanding how it could do that when it couldn’t possibly see me, I am at a loss for words.
I just back not a moment too soon as Law swings its sword down at me. The sword may look ordinary, but it gave off a nightmarishly menacing aura with that swing.
I make some distance between us and try circling the boss before charging. At this moment Fen and Mason start launching their projectiles attacks. A few got through its defence, but most of the attacks were blocked, resulting in its health dropping by only a few percent.
I charge in from the side a
head of my mirage and attack, which is once again blocked. I don’t understand how it is seeing through my attacks.
Law counter attacks by swinging his ordinary looking sword again, I try to distance myself but the blade slightly grazes my chest.
As soon as it did, the whole world went dark.
‘Tch! Blind!’
“Everyone, be careful. Its blade has a ‘blind’ enchantment.”
Twenty seconds pass before the world returns to my vision. The others are barraging Law with ranged attacks while Matrix gets up close and personal. I didn’t really pay much attention to it before, but he is incredibly skillful with a sword. He must either have a monstrous dexterity stat, or possibly train with the sword in real life.
Law’s health drops to eighty five percent as Matrix casts a fire spell onto his blade, wrapping it in flames. Although, this time there is no chant.
‘I knew it! So your chant was just trash talk!’ I convicted him in my mind.
Even when the boss blocked one of the magic swordsman’s attacks, the fire would flicker past the shield and do damage anyway. Strangely enough, the boss still hasn’t actually moved from his starting position. He turns around, but that is about it.
Law seemed to fidget a little as Matrix came in for another attack. Right after he started to swing, the boss turned into a blur. Circling the swordsman with an unparalleled speed, it quickly got behind him and tried to cleave him in two.
I seem to notice the trailing behind the boss’s movements, the mist gets disturbed. trails of whirlpools form in the mist wherever he moves.
‘Of course, that is how it knew where I was attacking from! My real body disturbs the mist as I travel through it.’
Matrix, realizing the danger he is in, followed through with his original attack and swung the sword over his head, blocking at least some of the attack by the boss.
“Matrix!” Mason called out from near the door, “It is a speed type! We need to usethat!”
Making up my mind, I charge directly at Law, who readies its shield in wait for me. It is the same attack as the previous two, except, this time I also use ‘Backstab’
Right when I am about to hit its shield, the image of me disperses and becomes one with the mist. Meanwhile, I appear from behind law and start attacking with sacred arts. With no care for conserving stamina, I go from using ‘Cross X’, to ‘Triple Thrust’, to once again using ‘Backstab’.
My stamina completely drains in minutes, forcing me to momentarily retreat. Law’s health has finally dropped down below half way, and is currently having its movements restrained by Fen’s ice bolts. Mason is shooting arrows at it too, but they are mostly ineffective.
Matrix, standing next to Mason, catches my eye. His sword is now not only covered in fire, but also a crackling lightning. Yet for some reason, he is still chanting.
“- For thou art not yet prepared for battle, allow for thy weariness to heal and strength to grow. Allow thy to leave this place. Rabbit Flight!”
‘Rabbit Flight? Isn’t that a high class wind spell to escape any situation. I hear the chant is pretty long, but once finished, escape is nearly guaranteed.’
Showing a little scepticism at what Matrix was planning to do with a spell for escaping, I watch him slowly crouch down and bring his sword behind him.
The magic swordsman suddenly swings his sword, as if striking, from fifteen meters away. As he reaches the middle of his swing, Matrix dashes forward.
Directly in front of my eyes, he disappeared.
And immediately behind the boss, he reappeared.
The mist didn’t even get disturbed until after the attack was finished. Such a high speed attack was even beyond me.
The boss went down to its knees, before falling face first on the ground. Forty percent of its health, gone in the blink of an eye!
“W-What the hell was that!?” I stammer at Matrix, who seems nervous under my scrutiny.
Chapter 14 – Religious Conscription
-Lost-
Matrix gives an embarrassed look as I am stunned at his attack just now. In a heartbeat, he traversed nearly half this room and dealt a final critical strike on the boss, Overseer ‘Law’.
“Umm… It is kind of our finishing move.”
These two are clearly stronger than they first appeared. I wonder if Mason has a finishing move like this as well. Glancing over at him, he looks away from me while scratching his jaw.
Even Fen over there is surprised, showing interest in the first thing other than me or food.
With nothing else to say, I let out a sigh.
“Lost,” Matrix calls out, “There is the loot from the boss still. Umm… I should probably take the umm… Sword. I will get the most out of it. Would you take the armour and half the gold?”
“Yeah, that should be fine.”
It is a fair deal. I don’t get to compare the armour and the sword, but if one was better than the other. There would be no way to evenly share the loot in the first place.
Matrix removes a pitch black helmet and seventy four gold coins from his inventory, handing them over to me. A few weeks ago, this amount of coins was a staggering amount. But with the near seven hundred I have gained while being in this dungeon, it doesn’t have as big of an impact.
Taking hold of the helmet I inspect the item.
'Nightingale' Helmet
A Helmet made from taurastone, causing it to be extremely rigid and resistant to blades. As a side effect to the rigidity, it is weak to blunt attacks.
This helmet is a part of the 'Nightingale' set, armour crafted in ancient times and worn by the countries prison overseer 'Law'.
Requirements:
- Level 145
- Str 65
Armour Type: Heavy(Taurastone)
Defence: 27
Durability: 56/56
Weight: 11.5 lbs
Cutting Resistance: 10%
Impact Resistance: -10%
Effects:
- Immune to 'blind'
- Grants 50% night vision
I would not call it incredible, but it is definitely a good item with a unique rarity. As my thoughts wander towards putting it up for auction and trying to guess how much it will sell for, I recall the fact that I can finally equip the sword I received from defeating the goblin boss, Grigor.
Pulling up my status first, I check to see how much my stats have grown.
Name: Lost(Man in the Hood)
Health: 823/1252
Stamina: 311/441
Lvl: 97
Lvl UP: 49%
Str: 59 +15
Agi: 189 +50
Dex: 61 +28
Int: 11
Mnd: 40
Lck: 23
Infamy: 190
Alignment: +0
God: -
Belief: 0
Equipped Skills:
Class Skill: White Warrior (SLvl 13, 12%)
[Unavailable]
Potion Production (SLvl 16, 39%)
Mining (SLvl 1, 0%)
Smithing (SLvl 1, 0%)
[Empty]
[Empty]
[Empty]
[Empty]
Reserve Skills:
[Empty]
Just looking at my agility seems unreal, almost as if the stat is broken. It is apparently common knowledge that by getting the base value of a stat over one hundred will place you in the top tier of players. Yet, mine is nearly at two hundred.
Unequipping my ‘Brittle Steel Wakizashi’, the weaker of the two swords, I equip the new ‘Fire Imbued Meridium Scramasax’.
I practice for a moment to get used to the new weapon. Yet, it proves to be impossible. It is not a situation where I find difficulty wielding it, but more the issue that it weighs twice as much as the other blade, throwing my balance off.
However, I feel the impulsive urge to use the new weapon so I keep it equipped.
Considering this weapon doesn’t have a sheath, I place it through my belt.
“Lost
! How have things been!? Sorry I didn’t contact you earlier, I have been a little busy. Me and Sir Laurence are training around Grenton while we wait for you to catch up. Are you nearly done?”
Verde’s voice enters my head completely unexpected, causing a momentary loss of words.
“Ah, Verde. It’s fine. We just finished the boss battle now and are about to leave the dungeon. What happened to that suspicious individual who was following you?”
“We? As in you and Fen? Oh, he disappeared as soon as we reached Grenton.”
“There are two others as well. A pair of brothers we met when I logged back on.”
“Hey, we should probably head off now. What are you daydreaming about?”
Mason interrupts the conversation, disrupting my current thought.
“Yeah,” I reply to the man, “let’s head off.”
“Sorry Verde, I have to head off now. I will meet you in Grenton.”
“Okay! I will wait here for you!”
She seems to be rather energetic, I wonder if something happened?
With Fen grabbing me by the arm, she start trotting off to catch up to the other two with me in tow. They both see her clinging to my arm, and with shy expressions, deliberately look the other way.
I have long since stopped caring about this type of behaviour from her. After all, I have had to put up with her somehow climbing into my sleeping bag overnight. Fortunately I still have the one that Prince Charming lent me, but I do really need to buy one of my own. And one for Fen.
Even once we caught up to the other two she continued to cling to my arm. Walking out of the boss room, I could feel something soft pressing against the limb in the wolf girl’s clutch.
“Fen,” I furrow my brow as I think of the best words to use, “Do you know what a bra is?”
“A… Bra..?” She tilts her head, genuinely puzzled.
“I thought that may be the case…” A sigh escapes my lips. I am not going to even try explaining to her what a bra is. That kind of discussion is well out of my expertise.
Come to think of it. Can you even buy bra’s in this game? Don’t people in medieval fantasy worlds usually wrap up their chests in bandages and such? I never really considered this, players are automatically given standard undergarments anyway.