laulau20

Chapter 93: Medium Dungeon

Added 2025-07-03 21:16:45 +0000 UTC

Now that Kouki had returned, the guild wasted no time picking him up and flying him to Europe. Once again, reporters swarmed him like locusts. The guild had told James that the mission was classified, but somehow, the journalists had already gotten wind of it.

“Mr. James, I think it would be good for your reputation if you accepted some interviews,” Silas suggested as they flew on a private plane out of the USA.

“And why should I care about my reputation?” James shrugged. He had money now, He no longer care about how people see him. If he care, he would have turned himself into a monster.

“Well, I heard you’re planning to open your own PMC and dungeon raiding company. Don’t you think it would be better to have a good reputation than not?” Silas reasoned.

“I’ll let Ryan handle that,” James replied, unconcerned.

The guild meeting wasn’t held in the US, but in the UK—right next to the nuclear reactor tied to the dungeon in question. When James arrived at the site, an invisible barrier blocked his path and a window appeared before him.

[Dungeon Name: LD 552]
[Dungeon Level: Medium]
[Survivor: 0/10]
[Would you like to enter? Y/N]

As always, the system gave no helpful context. James didn’t know how hard this dungeon would be. He didn’t know how high the enemies’ levels would be. He didn’t even know what kinds of weapon skills they might use. It was all a gamble. The system merely labeled it “Medium,” which meant harder than anything he’d faced before—but how much harder? No clue.

Kouki had yet to arrive, so James took a stroll around the complex. A few minutes later, a helicopter touched down nearby, and Kouki stepped out.

“Ugh… You guys are too diligent. I just finished a raid...” Kouki groaned.

“Kouki, we need to do this. It’s for humanity’s survival,” said his secretary—a stunning beauty who, James was sure, had been picked specifically for her seductive voice and sexy figure.

Kouki was still a teenager. James couldn’t help but feel a bit disgusted at how blatantly the guild tried to manipulate him. Sure, the guild worked for humanity’s survival, and they did their best to coerce survivors into raiding dungeons to free the world from their grip. But Kouki, being a teenager who had survived several dungeons, had now become Japan’s golden idol.

“As soon as you guys are ready. I’m also calling Sanders, Kaina, Muto, HouYi, Dehlia, Henoch, and Hain. They’ll be joining us on the raid,” Andrew said, listing names James didn’t recognize.

This time, James wasn’t burdened with unknown rookies. It wasn’t a gamble. Andrew had handpicked these survivors, each selected for a specific role.

Kaina and Sanders were assigned to scouting duty. Then there were specialists—someone who could locate treasure chests, another who could track life forms, one with a powerful shield-block skill, and another with shop access similar to Anderson’s. That person could access more items than a typical survivor. The last one had a modding ability—he could purchase mechanical body parts from the shop, similar to James’ golem arm. Naturally, only he could equip them. According to the report, he was a solid damage dealer.

“Our main damage dealers will be Kouki, Hain, and you, James,” Andrew said.

“You’re a healer?” James asked as he skimmed through the files. This was the first time he’d learned anything about Andrew’s powers. His unique skill, Temperance, redistributed damage among allies.

“Yes. I picked up life magic. With my skill, I can register allies and distribute the damage. The damage they take can be spread out,” Andrew explained. “If someone loses a heart, I can repair it in four minutes without using potions. Normally, a person would bleed out before then, but with my skill, I can keep them alive—though it comes at the cost of others’ vitality. My horse, Pegasus, can also cast healing spells.”

“I see. First time hearing about your ability.”

“I need your consent to activate my ability. Will you join Temperance?” Andrew asked.

[You have been asked by Survivor Andrew to be registered under his unique skill: Temperance. Temperance can redistribute damage from anyone on the list to another.]

“Can I sign out anytime?”

[Yes.]

“Yes, of course, James,” Andrew also confirmed.

“…Alright,” James nodded. If it had been anyone else, he wouldn’t have accepted. But James knew Andrew—he was his former boss, and James had a good impression of him. He owed him. Most importantly, he was curious to see how far Andrew had come.

“Alright. That’s it for the meeting. We depart in two days,” Andrew announced.

As usual, James brought his halberd, sword and shield, and bow. For this expedition, however, he decided to travel light. He left most of his gear behind, including his raptor and wings. The raptor was useless without a rider; all it could really do was carry equipment. Besides, Kouki had his dragon, and Andrew had his Pegasus—both could fly.

“Alright. We brought five dungeon cores. Last time I was here, we only needed four, but there’s no harm in bringing extras,” Andrew said.

James looked at the team. All of them wore guild uniforms—except Hain, Andrew, and Kouki. That meant the others were likely non-combat specialists.

“Alright! Let’s go!” Kouki shouted as he mounted his white dragon. His black-plated armor gleamed under the sun, and his red cape fluttered in the wind. Unlike James, who wore mismatched gear, Kouki seemed to have found a full set. Andrew, too—his blue armor paired with a white mantle made him look like a paladin or noble knight.

James had to wonder if he’d missed a lot of treasure chests. After all, he’d only ever gotten one complete set: the leather armor set. Kouki and Andrew’s equipment seemed much more powerful.

Everyone in the group was human—except for Hain and James. Hain looked like a Terminator: a human head attached to a robotic body. His right arm was metallic, while his left was a flamethrower. A turret sat mounted on his shoulder, ready to fire at approaching enemies. And two extra hands on his waist held a sword and shield.

Andrew nodded, then raised his palm into the air. “Yes,” he said.

White light enveloped the group. James was transported to the familiar waiting room. The sight made him relax—until he noticed one notable difference.

Above each person’s head was a floating blue cursor.

“What’s that?” Kouki asked.

“The blue cursor represents us. Green means non-hostile, and red means hostile,” Andrew explained. “Watch your attitude—try to be polite. If we act rudely, the green cursor might turn red. Try not to make enemies, especially in villages and towns. There are knights and guardians protecting these places, and they’re powerful. If we antagonize them, we probably won’t survive.”

“I see… No more hack and slash. It’s an open world with friendly NPCs now,” Kouki said with a grin.

A few moments later, as the loading screen reached 100%, a blinding light enveloped the group once more.

They were teleported into the center of a medieval town—this time, a human town. Not an orc village or a Nirvok settlement. Humans bustled around, carrying wooden baskets filled with groceries. Andrew put on his most refined noble smile and greeted a nearby townsfolk. James, meanwhile, took in the scenery. He’d explored many dungeons before, but human towns were usually abandoned or ruined.

“Greetings, may I see—”

“Monsters!! AAHH!!” a woman shrieked the moment she locked eyes with James.

In the previous dungeons, the NPCs were lackluster—barely reactive, offering the bare minimum interaction. Most ignored James altogether. But this time, they instantly saw him as a threat.

“Huh? Wait a minute. Lady, this one is a friend—a companion. He might look—”

“Guards!! There are monsters in town!” she screamed, fleeing. The rest of the townspeople scattered in panic, shouting for help.

“Talking my ass,” James muttered, reaching for the halberd slung across his back.

Andrew stood frozen, mouth agape at the unexpected reaction. Several guards in cloaks and plate armor charged toward James, swords and shields at the ready.

“No, no, wait! We mustn’t antagonize them…” Andrew panicked. “We can talk this out! Without their support, we won’t make it past the fifth floor!”

“I didn’t do anything. They attacked on their own,” James replied flatly.

“Stay away, monsters!” the soldiers shouted, pointing their swords at James and Hain. The group instinctively made way for the guards to reach them. They were here as support, not fighters. The five guards ignored all the survivors—except Hain and James.

“Die!” one guard drew his sword. His sword glowed golden. James responded with his own. Activating his two-hit skill, V-Strike, he slashed at the guard. The two weapon skills clashed in midair. The guard held his ground—it had been a long time since anyone had parried James’ weapon skill.

But James wasn’t done. Flames surged from his body as he cast an ice spell on the ground, making it slippery under the knight’s boots. Predictably, the knight slipped. His sword dimmed and let out a spark of golden light—signaling the cancellation of his weapon skill.

Just as James raised his axe to deliver the finishing blow, he caught a flash of golden light from the corner of his vision—another knight lunging at him. He’d forgotten they were surrounded by five. He redirected the second hit of V-Strike toward the oncoming attacker.

“Urgh…” James grunted as his halberd creaked under the impact, sliding him a few centimeters backward. But he held his ground, maintaining posture. A clean parry.

Knights didn’t work alone. Another moved in, lunging for James’ head—a deadly finisher.

James flicked his tongue to his back, snatching his golden shield. Anyone else might’ve thought the slash would break through—but this shield was an artifact. It repelled one weapon skill. A shockwave reverberated as steel clanged on gold. The attack was nullified.

“Die!” James fired a bolt from his new horn. Light surged from his forehead and struck the knight he was parrying—straight in the eye. The knight cried out and was thrown back by the blast.

“Argh!!” Hain didn’t fare as well, despite having extra hands. Two knights had engaged him, severing two of his four arms. James couldn’t even tell where they’d struck—blood and sparks flew.

“What the fuck are you doing? Help me!” James looked at Andrew, who stood frozen like a deer in headlights. These weren’t rookie survivors—they were supposed to know better.

Kouki stepped forward, drawing his sword to join the fray.

“N-No! We must not engage these knights!” Andrew said, flustered. “If we fight back, the fifth floor boss will get much harder! Delia! Smoke grenade! Hain! James! Run—get out of town!”

“ARGH!!” It was too late. A sword skill cleaved Hain across the stomach, nearly cutting him in half.

“Henoch! Grab Hain and flee! Now!” Andrew then ran. James didn’t know, but pegasus and Dragon had a weight limit. They could only take one person to fly.

A plume of smoke exploded across the square as Delia threw the grenade. In the chaos, the team made their retreat.

The threat of medium-level dungeons had just begun.

[Name: James]
Age: 35
Sex: Male
Level: 52
Coins: 1700
Merit: 10

Stats

STR: 162
DEX: 160
MAGIC: 119
MANA: 1100

Skills

Novice Axe Mastery Level 5 (Powerstrike, V-slash, Boomerang)
Novice Sword Mastery Level 1 (Hurricane, Vorpal Lunge)
Novice Bow Mastery Level 1 (Quickshot, Homing Shot)
Beginner Dagger Mastery Level 1

Magic

Mind Flay
Sense Alteration
Mana Sonar

Class

Attacker (Level 33) (↑1)

+1 STR, +1 DEX per level
+10% damage when attacking

Shop (Level 2)

Health Potion (100 coins)
Hematonic Potion (50 coins)
High Potion (300 coins)
Antidote (50 coins)
Bullets (10 coins/round)
Grenades / Flashbang (50 coins/piece)
Arrow (50 coins/dozen)
Metal Pocket Arrow (100 coins/dozen)
Poison Dart (10 coins/round)
Merit Shop (10 merit/skill)
Sell / Repair Function

Unique Skill–Chimera Level 2

Stomach Slot: Goblin Stomach (Iron Guts)
Left Arm Slot: Minotaur Leader’s Left Arm (STR +25%)
Right Arm Slot: Golem Arm of Valhalla (STR +30%, Physical Resistance +30%, Mana -200, Repairable)
Leg Slot: Ratking’s Legs (STR +25%)
Lung Slot: Flaming Tiger’s Fire Lung (Fire Breathing, Mana -100, Magic -10)
Heart Slot: Golem Core (Poison Resistance, Mana -250, Magic -10, Repairable)
Torso Slot: Orc’s Torso
Head Slot: Orc’s Head
Mouth Slot: Shadow Snake Fang (Intermediate Life Leeching)
Skin Slot: Flaming Tiger Lord’s Firefur (Fire Cloak, Fire Resistance, Physical Resistance +15%, Mana -100, Magic -10)
Tongue Slot: Elite Nirvok’s Tongue (2m Appendage, Medium Paralysis Poison)
Ear Slot: Land Shark’s Ear (Echolocation: 10m)
Right Eye Slot: Eyes of Mana (Mana Sense)
Extra Slot: Mana Core (Water Spells: Ice Spear, Water Manipulation, Magic +60, Mana +1000)
Extra Slot 2: Jumping Spider’s Spinneret (Thread Creation)
Extra Slot 3: Quetzalcoatl Horn (Lightning Shot: 20 Mana/shot)
Extra Slot 4: Mana Core (Wind Spells: Wind Gust, Wind Wall, Magic +20, Mana +300)