Chapter 89: Second Proof (Third Floor)

“It’s safe,” James called to his henchmen from the portal. As the men rushed back through, James quickly went to the place where his radar pointed. But as expected, it led him to a cliff.

“Sir… should we do that parachute thingies again?” one soldier asked as he peered over the edge.

“Yeah, we should,” James nodded. He had a sense that this was not the correct way to proceed on this floor.

A dungeon shouldn’t give an impossible challenge to the survivors. So James thought hard about how a normal survivor would beat this challenge. This dungeon was like a game—the system akin to how a game developer runs their game.

But James had done this stunt before on the fifth floor, and it had worked fine. So, the system encouraged some level of creativity.

“Well, we should try it, at the very least. Tie one end of the rope to a tree and don’t forget to pull me up if something happens,” James said to his soldiers.

“Yes, sir!” James thanked these soldiers. They might not help much in combat, but dungeons weren’t all about fighting lately. Sometimes, they had traps like this.

As the group prepared the parachute James was going to ride, he asked an idle soldier for suggestions.

“Say, how do you normally cross these kinds of a cliff without magic?”

“Eh? Erm… I’m not sure, sir.”

“This is just a random question. I’m looking for other options in case this one fails. You know, maybe we have some unique skills that let a person fly or something?”

“Well, we usually have grappling hooks attached to a gun. Maybe something like a harpoon gun. It would be easier for us to cross that way, sir. And faster as well.”

“I see,” James nodded. Now that he had a few other options, James felt relieved, knowing he wasn’t the only one who could cross this dungeon. Dungeons shouldn’t play favorites. If it looked like they did, there might be a deadly trap behind it. If the plan failed and there was no backup, he would be stranded. It was always good to have a backup.

James had never thought about this before. He had no leeway. Now that he had power and had grown used to it, it was time to analyze things.

The kite project began. James then rode the kite he had made. Using his wind magic, the kite ascended, lifting his bulky body along with it. As he crossed the cliff, the wind from below propelled him higher. The kite swayed, sending James’ heart into a flutter.

Thanks to his recent wind core, he stabilized himself and landed safely on the other side of the cliff. The strong wind disrupted his balance, but it ultimately helped him reach the other side. Once he landed, James tied the rope attached to him to a tree, and the soldiers began traversing the rope.

Despite the nearly fifty meters of distance on a thin, shaking rope with no safety gear, none of the soldiers failed to cross. Let alone fifty meters—James doubted he could even do ten when he was still in his old body.

After everyone landed, James continued onward, leaving his raptor behind once again. If it were Kouki’s dragon, it might have been able to fly him here easily. James sighed at how the grass looked greener on the other side.

Following the radar, the group ventured into the wilderness beyond the cliff.

“Legless lizard!!” a soldier shouted, releasing an arrow at a snake. James immediately drew his bow but held off on firing, as the soldiers seemed to manage just fine.

“Legless lizard? Why don’t you just call them snakes, nerd,” one soldier commented, referring to the soldier who had earlier informed James that the snakes they’d encountered before weren’t fighting—they were mating.

“Um… snakes have different tooth structures. And their eyes don’t blink,” the nerdy soldier defended himself.

“Alright. Whatever,” the soldiers chuckled as they dismantled the legless lizard.

“But the others from before were snakes, right?” James asked the nerdy soldier.

“Yes, they should be. They had fangs,” the soldier replied.

“But no poison,” James clarified.

“Not all snakes have poison. Anaconda and python are famous examples. Um… is something the matter?”

“Nah. I’m just wondering why these dungeons have two different animal species here.”

A giant underground gate soon blocked their path. Several runic engravings were etched into the border of the square gate. James knew boss monsters lay within this kind of area. But his sense of danger faded when he remembered how disappointing the previous dragonkin soldier was. That soldier wasn’t very strong.

James shook his head, reminding himself that a single weapon skill could still take his life. That dragonkin only looked easy because James had counters to its flame breath and weapon skills.

James braced himself and opened the door to the catacombs. The stone path twisted like a winding maze. Though the path was wide, James frowned when the tip of his halberd clanked against the ceiling.

The soldiers all took a few steps back as James took the lead, readying their melee weapons. As the group reached a square altar, they saw a long snake with arms slithering at its center. Its eyes locked onto James and the others. With a spear in hand, it glared at James and his henchmen.

James was expecting another one-on-one challenge, like with the dragonkin—but this snake was devious rather than prideful. It quickly leapt away into a small hole in the altar room, likely meant for ventilation.

“A lamia,” the nerd soldier said, shooting his bow—but the arrow struck only empty air. The snake slithered too fast.

“It escaped?” the soldier asked. James glanced at the radar. The proof he needed to open the gate on the second floor was moving away, its motion matching the lamia’s retreat. James smirked as he saw the humanoid snake turn back in their direction.

“It’s coming back from the left. Careful now!” James warned as he watched the proof blip on the radar rapidly closing in.

But the lamia didn’t emerge from the wall to their left. The blip kept drawing closer. Then James realized his mistake. The lamia wasn’t coming from the side—it was coming from below.

“Watch out!”

“ARGH!!!” A golden flash erupted—a spear skill—lashing upward from the floor bricks and skewering the nerd soldier right through the heart. As the others stumbled back in panic, James lunged forward, intending to bisect the snake in a single slash with his already drawn sword. A golden glow radiated from his blade as an invisible force propelled him forward.

The snake hissed and rapidly retracted into the hole. James’ vorpal lunge hit nothing but air, leaving the corpse of his ally discarded like a ragdoll.

“Fuck! Watch out!” James cursed. As he feared, this enemy and its tactics were entirely new. He raced to think of a countermeasure to the snake’s cowardly hit-and-run attacks.

James had fought enemies like this before. The landshark in the dungeon where he met Kaina, Sanders, and Anderson was a prime example. Back then, he had created a platform using ice magic, preventing the shark from diving or attacking from below. As it leapt out, James easily finished it with his axe skill.

But this was different. This snake could use spear skills. That old strategy wouldn’t work here.

“It’s heading from six o’clock,” the captain said, picking up James’ radar, which he had dropped earlier when trying to kill the snake after it skewered one of his soldiers.

James was reborn in the dungeon. Just from one encounter, he could tell—the lamia was saving the strongest for last. He looked around at the scattered soldiers, all gripping their weapons tightly, expecting another attack from below.

“Frans! Below you! No—it went past! Don!”

“Argh!!” Another golden meteor burst from the ground, skewering yet another soldier before retracting just as fast. This time, the lamia didn’t even show its body. Two men were already dead, and James had to stop it from killing again.

“Hey, you! Give me the radar!” James shouted. But before he even finished, the captain had already tossed it to him.

James dropped his shield and sword and switched to his halberd.

As the snake approached, James closed his eyes, relying entirely on his echolocation ear—an organ he had taken from the landshark. The sound it gave was shaky, only truly reliable when an ambush was near. But it was clear now: the snake was crawling in a tight space under the altar.

James opened his eyes again. The radar confirmed it—the lamia was targeting another soldier.

Golden motes of light shimmered from his halberd. James adjusted his stance so the creature would pass directly below him. He knew it wouldn’t attack him. Unlike the dragonkin, this snake was a coward.

“Power strike!” James roared as he slammed his halberd into the ground. If its spear could pierce through brick, then his halberd could too.

As expected, the weapon crashed through the floor, catching the snake underneath. Or so he thought. James had hit it, but the creature twisted away at the last moment. His halberd only crushed its lower half.

The snake slithered out from its cowardly hole, now missing a good chunk of its tail. It hissed, and when it opened its mouth, a long chameleon-like tongue lashed out, grabbing one of the soldiers. The soldier was yanked through the air—straight toward the pointed end of the snake’s spear.

“Shit!” James cursed, thinking he was about to lose another man—until a gunshot exploded. The bullet passed through the soldier’s side, hitting the snake right in the head. The shock disrupted the lamia’s aim, and the grabbed soldier crashed into its soft body instead of the spear.

“Good job. Damage report,” the captain ordered. The soldiers raillied to him with haste

“Two casualties, sir.”

James sighed. The losses were heavy. His eyes then drifted to the creature’s neck. There, hanging around it, was a medallion—the proof needed to open the vault on the eighth floor.

[Congratulations. You have defeated a Lamia Serpentine. You obtained 130 coins. Your Attacker class has been upgraded to Level 32.]

James didn’t level up, and the coins were noticeably fewer. He knew why and didn’t dwell on it. The system also offered the lamia’s body as a potential component for his Chimera skill.

It offered scale skin that improved little to no physical resistance. But since it was a downgrade compared to his current fur, James ignored it. The creature didn’t even have poison. It was weaker than the dragonkin, which had granted fire resistance and a fire-breathing lung. Yet despite that, this snake had caused far more damage. James was reminded again—stats and skills weren’t everything in the dungeon.

Scanning the area, he found an indentation on the altar that matched the medallion he had just taken from the snake.

The altar then opened, revealing two treasure chests waiting for him to claim.

Name: James
Age: 35
Sex: Male
Level: 51
Coins: 1400
Merit: 9

Stats:
STR: 160
DEX: 157
MAGIC: 116
MANA: 1080

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 32) (↑1)

• +10% Bonus Damage when Attacking

• +1 STR, +1 DEX per level

Shop (Level 2):

• Health Potion (100 coins)

• Hematonic Potion (50 coins)

• High Potion (300 coins)

• Antidote (50 coins)

• Poison Dart (10 coins/round)

• Bullets (10 coins/round)

• Grenades (50 coins/piece)

• Arrows (50 coins/dozen)

• Metal Pocket Arrows (100 coins/dozen)

• Sell Function / Repair Function

• Merit Shop: (10 Merit/Skill)

Unique Skill – Chimera (Level 2):

• Stomach Slot: Goblin Stomach (Iron Guts)

• Left Arm Slot: Minotaur Leader’s Left Arm (STR +25%)

• Right Eye Slot: Eyes of Mana (Mana Sense)

• Right Arm Slot: Golem Arm of Valhalla (STR +30%, Physical Resistance +30%, Negative Trait: Repairable, Mana -200)

• Leg Slot: Ratking’s Legs (STR +25%)

• Lung Slot: Flaming Tiger’s Fire Lung (Fire Breathing Skill, 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 Skill, 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: 10 meters)

• Extra Slot 1: Mana Core – Water (Ice Spear, Water Manipulation, Magic +60, Mana +1000)

• Extra Slot 2: Jumping Spider’s Spinneret (Thread Creation)

• Extra Slot 3: Kraken’s Arm Tentacle (5m Reach, STR -10%)

• Extra Slot 4: Mana Core – Wind (Wind Gust, Wind Wall, Magic +20, Mana +300)

Equipment:

• Dustmail

• Helm of Darkeye

• Gauntlet of the Forbidden Gorilla (details not listed—want to add effects?)

• Cloak of Dark Night

• Nirvok’s Golden Shield

• Black Sword of Yailaituh

• Cursed Bow of Yailaituh

• Halberd of Yailaituh

• Remington 700 CDL

• Mana Shot Ring

• Life Ring

• Mount: Gallus Deinochorus