by Arthur Stone
Having collected the loot, Ros decided against going back to sleep. The way he felt, he must have slept no less than four hours. Sure, that wasn’t much, but it would keep him from nodding off on his feet. It was time to move on—but first he would sit and wait for his HP bar to regenerate fully. This took a while with his Stamina, even given the considerable bonus from his accessories.
Sitting there like that was boring as hell, and Ros decided to peruse his character info in order to ascertain his progress to date. It appeared that he’d earned fifty-four primary and ten secondary stat points, having also unlocked eleven auxiliary stats and raised some of them considerably. A far cry from what he’d had in the beginning—indeed, he had become much stronger.
It was a pity that his mining saga ended so abruptly and on such a sour note. And just as he had managed to optimize his character’s growth process and was beginning to enjoy himself. He would have gotten even stronger by the time his contract expired.
So, what would he do next? If Greedie was right, the river had to surface somewhere, so he would leave the cave sooner or later. In the worst-case scenario, he could wait for his bind point to expire and kill himself so as to respawn at some distance from the mine. What would he do then? Better equipment couldn’t hurt—after that, he could find a well-paying job or a place such as this one where he’d be able to make money by himself.
Good equipment was expensive. It would be nice if he could scrape up some seed capital by the time he left the caves. He could invest it all into himself and have a much more functional character. He needn’t hurry, but stuff his bag with as much loot and as many trophies and amethysts as it could carry.
He recalled the cartographer’s notebook with maps he’d picked up. What if he could make sense of it and try to estimate the distance to the exit?
Ros had no complaints about his visual memory, but no matter how intently he peered at the pencil-sketched map, he failed to make heads or tails of it. There were rivers or creeks of some sort that ran through the caverns sketched in the book, but he could not identify the river he was following presently as one of them.
He studied the last page carefully, and then closed the notebook.
“Congratulations! You have unlocked an auxiliary stat: Cartography. It comes with two more auxiliary stats as a bonus: Far Sight and Visual Memory. Now you can memorize the terrain you see. Memorized terrain will appear on your personal map. If you want to draw map scrolls by yourself, you need to learn Calligraphy, an auxiliary skill. Use the game interface to access your personal virtual map.”
That was unexpected! He had just received three auxiliary stats from out of nowhere. But was it really from out of nowhere? He did study the cartographer’s notebook, after all. But wait, he had leafed through it before without any stat gains… Could it be that he had needed to study it carefully and actively try to understand it? Apparently so.
The map accessed from the game’s interface hit him like a punch in the face. No vague squiggles or zigzags that could only look like a cave to someone with a very vivid imagination. What he saw was a perfectly understandable color map with clear annotations and scale.
Ros did not see a full map of the underground. There were bits and pieces here and there, surrounded by darkness. They were connected by a “track” that reached across the darkness—it must have been the late cartographers’ itinerary. Ros was following the same route—which wasn’t surprising, considering where he had found the skeletons. Players left no bones behind—he saw as much yesterday when Greedie got himself killed by his pet. So, those must have been unfortunate NPCs who had approached the place of their demise following the same river bank as Ros, but in the opposite direction.
And there was the exit. A mark at the base of the waterfall indicated that the path leading upward was too narrow and steep for horses. The path ran northeast into unknown terrain obscured by darkness. There was a tiny village, followed by a much larger settlement, and, finally, Arbenne, where he saw Digits hunt frogs on his very first day.
He appeared to be seeing just the expedition’s itinerary and not what its members had observed in life. If he could even refer to their existence as “life” given that they were NPCs… But it made no difference to him. What did was the fact that he could now find his bearings in space: the map clearly indicated his current location as a red dot. This “navigation device” should get him to the city without any problems—once there, he’d surely find his way around.
The task looked simple from here: he would need to move downstream, dispatching packs of omruses along the way. By the time he reached the city, he should no longer be a weird noob with bungled stats, but a tough mofo that any employer would be delighted to recruit for a plush job.
One thing he didn’t want to do was part ways with the invincible leprus. The guards were unlikely to let his pet through—Shoto had made it clear to him that NPCs tended to get extremely agitated at the sight of such creatures.
He wondered if there might be a way to keep his pet.
Chapter 24
It took Ros another day to reach the exit from the caves, and he had to fight another cave shadowcrawler. The battle had cost him an ear, which had then taken about an hour and a half to grow back, and resulted in the emergence of another auxiliary stat called Regeneration. He’d also vanquished three packs of omruses, though only three of them had been of the mature variety. His Attack had grown by three points, his Stamina by two, and he had finally managed to get Accuracy, Intellect, and Summoning raised to the desired value of twenty. He rushed through the caves as quickly as he could, paying almost no attention to the geodes of amethyst. The quality of the gems found here was rather low, so he’d just waste his time and the space in his bag. Nor should he disregard the possibility of pursuit. Indeed, the pursuing party might deploy a player with high Perception, which made it easier to pick up and follow a track.
All this ceaseless running had also raised his Vigor by another point.
He heard the waterfall about an hour before reaching the spot where the river broke through to the surface. The ceiling of the cave was black with bats—another sign that the exit must be somewhere close. These creatures wouldn’t be too far from it.
Finally, he saw it.
Ros was standing on a small crag, blinking from the unbearably bright sunlight. He had grown unaccustomed to it after all his time underground. To his right was the river, with a few more creeks from the main cavern’s side tunnels flowing into it, that plunged down abruptly from the height of a skyscraper with a roar. An impenetrable cloud of pulverized droplets hung below, hiding the nearest environs from sight. He could see a plain with a few hills upon it, covered in thick woods. Just the way it was drawn on the map of the deceased NPCs.
Ros decided there was a better way of getting down than jumping into the waterfall, and started looking for the path that was supposed to be inaccessible to horses. He saw something resembling a way down, and decided to take it slow and steady—even an ape could break a leg there, let alone a horse. There may have been a landslide since, or the cartographer had gravely underestimated the situation.
Having wandered along the bank, Ros found a barely noticeable crack in the wall of the cave overgrown with moss. It led to a narrow passage that was very damp, with the same slippery moss growing everywhere. He saw such passages all over the place, and there was nothing unusual or interesting about them. According to the map, however, the passage had been studied by the cartographer, and designated by a narrow line ending with a horseshoe-like symbol and the legend “Wormhole.”
Ros had no idea what kind of worms may have made a hole here. They shouldn’t be too scary, though. The cartographer had fallen to the claws and teeth of the omruses, while Ros had been dispatching them piecemeal and wholesale without any trouble. So, the mysterious invertebrates shouldn’t be all that intimidating. Either way he should take a look, as this was the only alternative to the path. And it might offer a more comfortable de
scent.
The passage got so narrow at times that the broad-shouldered leprus barely managed to squeeze through. Ros was beginning to fear he might have to leave the pet and continue the exploration on his own, but then the passage widened, and a hundred steps down the broad corridor Ros found an exit leading to a large cavern whose walls and ceiling were covered in damp fluorescent moss, while the floor remained perfectly dry and unnaturally level.
Then again, saying the walls were fully covered in moss would be too hasty an observation: in one spot, instead of moss there stood an arch some ten feet tall by ten feet wide. Beyond it lay a shroud of impenetrable fog, its surface scintillating with ripples and sparks.
Ros had never seen anything like it, so he decided to study the arch closer.
“Hero, you have discovered a Second World wormhole. It is one of the many places where the forces of Chaos resident in the First World have found a way through. This dungeon is their rightful domain. Hero, should you enter it, the door leading back to your own world will close. It will only open in the event of your demise, or if all the creatures of Chaos that guard their territory perish. The forces of Chaos won’t think twice about sending reinforcements after the final guardian falls, so you shouldn’t linger too long after your victory. Once you cross the threshold that leads to the domain of Chaos, the passage will close within a minute. No further entry will be possible, and the only ways out will be teleport scrolls, special skills, or rebirth at a bind point. The exit will also open if you defeat the army of Chaos. You will not be able to bind anywhere on Chaos-controlled territory! If you enter the domain of Chaos, you will receive the title of a Wormhole Pathbreaker. The Wormhole Pathbreaker is rewarded with a higher chance of receiving valuable items during the first exploration run. Be warned! The territory that lies beyond the veil of mist is dangerous and controlled by the forces of Chaos. We strongly recommend to explore it with a group of strong allies. Recommended level of allies: forty-five or higher. Recommended number of allies: ten or more.”
Ros sat down on the dry floor and started thinking. He realized he’d just stumbled across one of the dungeons where high-level players hunted for valuable items, just like Pup had told him. The latter had also said that the caves and the mines were explored many times by players looking for such dungeons, but to no avail.
It appeared they hadn’t been diligent enough in their search. Beyond the wall of mist awaited strong monsters and bosses, as well as death, glory, and wealth. Such dungeons were usually completed by teams of players with good teamwork. There was no point for a loner to go in—you’d get swallowed up in a single gulp.
Ros had no friends. Should he look for assistance in the city? But the instance he revealed the location of the dungeon, they would try to get rid of him. And he could hardly blame them—what would be the point of taking a level zero player along? No, he wouldn’t get anything for his discovery. All he could hope for was to sell the information, desperately hoping no one would rip him off.
Yes, there was a chance of finding some serious loot there. A dungeon that had never been explored by anyone. He’d become a pathbreaker; according to the description, his bonus would be a higher chance of finding valuable items that other players would probably want to buy for mind-boggling sums of money.
Still, he was a level zero noob on his own. He didn’t even have any armor, and his only weapons were a simple skinning knife, a pickaxe, and a rather underwhelming pike.
But what did he have to lose, after all? He could come in and scout the situation. If he saw he didn’t stand a chance even with the leprus, he could just sit quietly near the entrance. There should be a mob-free area inside the dungeon—he remembered hearing something to that effect from Pup. Or was it someone else… But who else could it be? Oh, of course! His classmates—the ones who had gotten heavily into games back in the day. They would spend hours discussing their treasure-hunting raids—sometimes he wouldn’t understand even half of what was being said due to the specific slang and unfamiliar terminology used. They had been playing a different game, of course, but Second World was a compilation that included elements of dozens, even hundreds of previous projects. As the ads stated, the game inherited the best of everything that had preceded it.
He hoped that the concept of a safe zone near the entrance was inherited as well.
In the worst-case scenario, he’d wait there until his bind point expired, then kill himself and respawn at the village altar. It shouldn’t be hard to reach the town from there.
But what if there were vicious mobs waiting right behind the veil of fog? Well, in that case he’d unleash the leprus upon them, and, should things look hopeless, he’d slip out before the dungeon became sealed—supposedly, he’d have sixty seconds for that. Losing the leprus would certainly sting, but he’d have to leave his pet anyway upon reaching inhabited areas.
There were pros as well as cons…
Ros stood there staring at the veil of mist, imagining piles of treasure, bosses, and mobs with extremely valuable loot. He’d never forgive himself if he let a chance like this pass him by without at least trying to sneak a peek.
Or should he forget about it for the time being? He could contact his attorney and remove the lock for a month, level up a little, and then come back. But what good would that do? He would no longer have the leprus. Where else could he hope to find such a mighty helper? Sure, he could try teaming up with other players, but what if someone else discovered the dungeon in the meantime?
No. This had to happen now. He could always come back later if he failed, possibly even with a few reliable friends. He’d try to find some, anyway. Even though he was a loner by nature, trusty allies were too powerful a commodity in this game.
Ros discarded his last doubts and took a step into the fog.
Chapter 25
There were no aggressive mobs waiting for fresh meat behind the veil of mist. Ros found himself in a similar hall, minus the moss on the walls. He exhaled with relief, and sad in a low voice:
“Looks like we’re still alive, Gorgeous.”
The pet did not respond, but he did look worried—a premonition, perhaps? And not just any random premonition, but sensing real trouble ahead.
“Attention! The dungeon has been locked! You can no longer receive reinforcements! You receive the title of a Chaos Source Pathbreaker. Title bonus: +2 to Cartography. When you join a guild, a party, or a raid group, all the members of the respective guild, party, or raid group receive half the bonus for the duration of your stay. Achievement earned: Chaos Source Pathbreaker. Achievement bonus: +1 to Perception, +1 to Arcane Knowledge, +1 to Essence of Things. Bonus effect: permanent. Achievement unlocked: 2x Chaos Source Pathbreaker. Discover another Chaos Source to complete the achievement. Bonus: 5 points to random secondary stats.”
“Not too shabby…”
The dungeon looked more like a mine than a natural cave. The hall looked like the end of a mine tunnel—or maybe its beginning. There was even an upturned mine cart without wheels near one of the walls.
Ros set off toward adventure, stepping softly and almost instantly noticing an unmoving light in the distance. He slowed down even more, and was soon able to make out the details, hissing constantly at the clumsy leprus.
This was indeed a mine. A torch was burning on one of the walls where the main tunnel crossed the first sideways gallery. A strange creature was pacing back and forth underneath—it had a humanoid body and the head of a cricket with glowing red eyes. The creature was clad in a short black cape, and wielding something resembling a halberd.
“Unknown creature, Chaos spawn. Aggression: unknown. Sociality: unknown. Level: unknown. Skills: unknown. Stats: unknown”.
That was unexpected. The grasshopper-like creature was nothing short of a total mystery. The information was displayed in red lettering, but it was obvious that the mob would be formidable—this was a Chaos dungeon, after all.
“Gorgeous, stun the thing first, and then strangle.�
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The leprus lunged forward.
The “grasshopper” didn’t seem surprised by the appearance of an aggressive stranger in a dungeon no one had any access to for centuries. Getting a better grip on its halberd, the mob tried to meet the leprus with a chopping swing, but froze, immobilized by the Stun wave. The leprus grabbed the creature by the neck. Ros heard a revolting cracking sound as he drew closer—some part of the fiend’s anatomy must have broken, but it still refused to die, slashing at the leprus with the curved horn-like spikes growing on its wrists. Ros saw that the pet’s HP scale flickered a little, but did not shrink nonetheless. He threw his pike first, then grabbed the pickaxe, approached the mob from behind, and dealt it a hard blow on the back of the head, followed by another and yet another.
The leprus released his grip, and the creature fell, stretching out in agony. The cape drew upwards, revealing a body segmented in an unseemly way, like that of an insect.
“You kill the Thylbit Guard. XP received: 1224. Points left until the next level: no data. Attention: you need to unlock your account to be able to raise your level. Attention! You have found a creature that has not yet been added to the world bestiary! You receive a reward: the Monster Specialist auxiliary stat is unlocked! You can receive the reward for discovering a new creature at the Academy of Magic. Achievement unlocked: Monster Researcher. Discover five monsters that have not yet been added to the world bestiary to complete the achievement. Achievement bonus: random.”
Ros decided to leave the halberd alone. It was too large and too unwieldy, and would occupy several slots in the bag. Besides, it was a common item that couldn’t have been worth much. The only thing he took was the cape—even though it did not grant any bonuses, he would use it as a blanket or a sheet at night. The thylbit didn’t have anything else, but Ros had no time for disappointments—he heard someone running toward him along the gallery on the left, approaching the main tunnel, and it sounded like there was more than one creature.