Kae

Dungeon Diver CH316

I hold the glossy black blade tight in my grip.

My demonic blade, or better known as the midnight dagger doesn't have the same properties as my elemental attacks. So, in switching energy sources the safety of my long-range strikes will have to be sacrificed in order to test out my next move.

This is one of my two trump cards, the other being the Red Hydra’s buff, but I want to save that for when I’m sure I can take this man out.

Using something that saps my strength and ...

Dungeon Diver CH315

In a brief moment of shock, my stealth skill is lifted, and I’m completely visible on the open top floor of the observatory, facing off against a black-armored knight with unique magic swirling around his body.

If I had more time to analyze and compare, I’d like to see if the energy coming out of the sonar has similar properties to the knight’s armor. At a quick glance, they feel and look awfully similar.

However, I don’t have the time to run tests.

The static rumbli...

Dungeon Diver CH314

I walk across the room, passing the buzzing machine with crates of mana crystals by its side.

The wooden boxes filled with pink gems glisten in the morning light.

As I get closer to the stairway that leads down to the first floor, the muffled tones of two men having a conversation hit my ears. The first voice I recognize is the Sector 4 leader that I ran away from previously. He has a happy tone to his words today.

“So what do you think about them? They’re the real deal,...

Dungeon Diver CH313

The five of us set off in the morning, leaving Chester behind.

It’s still dark out, but hints of day creep up on the horizon as we venture off into the desert toward the abandoned town and observatory I’ve been keeping an eye on for days.

Our movements are a bit slower than my usual pace because we’re not all air-stepping through the sky.

This may slow us down some, but it’s also a bit more of a stealthy approach.

My perception skills are on full blast our enti...

Dungeon Diver CH312

The red aura around me dissipates, and in turn, my entire body feels like it just went through hours of intense training.

My mana bar is far from depleted, but my mouth feels dry, and my head starts to ache.

I stumble in my steps for a moment, and my eyes threaten to shut, but I catch myself before falling and keep walking straight ahead.

I wince at the sharp pain that flows through my legs, but activate my self-regeneration skill to try and heal my sore muscles as best I ca...

Dungeon Diver CH311

I hear my system notifications ringing in my head.

[Soul Bond: Complete]

[New Buff: Red Hydra’s Rage]

[Body Double Attribute Transfer: Success]

Everyone is frozen in place.

Everyone but Abby. She concentrates on me with total focus and continues to pulse with green light.

My gaze follows her eyes, and I look down at my own body to see the dark red plumes of energy still swirling all around me. My veins glow bright red, and the thick clouds of residue cont...

Dungeon Diver CH310

The sensation of boiling water trickling down my skin is almost soothing compared to the searing hot waves of energy that begin to enter my chest next.

I can sense the nerves and anticipation from the people watching around me, but out of anyone, I’m the most calm one here. Even without the fact that we all desperately need a power-up, I would have attempted this bond myself if there was only one stone.

My intuition on energy signatures is pretty refined from past battles. Despi...

Dungeon Diver CH309

After my statement, there’s some hesitation from my teammates. They look at me wide-eyed from every corner of the room.

I reply.

“You heard me, I’ll test it out first to see if it’s safe. I’m the one who brought them here, it’d be rude not to absorb my gem first. If everything goes well, we’ll know it's safe for you to try too.”

The expressions on their faces are a mixture of concern and curiosity, but mostly concern as I shut the case on the table and motion...

Dungeon Diver CH308

The late-night city streets are dark, calm, and quiet.

After going back to the same Shielded Dungeon entrance and paying the 10 bronze fee to get inside, I step into the E-Class portal to teleport back to the Vice City Labyrinth's 21st floor. Chester waits near the outer rim of the Dungeon Square as I do.

It’s been a few hours since we left for the auction house, so I should be right on time.

The moment I teleport back onto the marble white pillar standing high above the g...

Dungeon Diver CH307

As my gaze lifts from the outstretched hand before me, up to the shimmering silver mask of the man I was bidding against all night, I immediately go on high alert.

Activating my perception skills, I come to see his status is still blocked to me for some reason. It is only showing those odd “???Access Denied” messages next to every spot where items, skills, and buffs are meant to be. His tone while greeting me isn't hostile, and it would not be logical to pull anything too nefarious ...

Dungeon Diver CH306

A long black sword with an identical dark glossy shine to my newest dagger floats around the woman as she brings it to center stage before resting it on the red velvet display table.

I immediately recognize it as having a Demonic Origin.

The announcer speaks over the whispers of the crowd.

“This is an item confirmed to have come from within the Abyss.”

At these words, all chatter ceases.

“Found near the border of Sector 3 and Sector 4 by a group of mercenar...

Dungeon Diver CH305

I scan the crimson gems with every one of my perception skills as they float around the gorgeous woman until each of them rests gently on the display table at center stage.

[Red Hydra’s Soulstone Fragment] x7

They don't bear the usual ‘Essence Fragment’ or ‘Essence Shard’ labeling, but ‘Soulstone Fragment’ instead. These are definitely much different than the magic stones I’ve seen before.

Clearly, in my appraisal skill’s text boxes, two more readings catch...

Dungeon Diver CH304

He bid 25 gold… for an item only halfway into the auction. This mystery buyer is already making himself known.

As I calculated before, the bundle of stones is nearly 8 million MP, so it's over 90% off the market price. If I were to buy this much in potion form, even with the Dark Continent price discount, it’d take all of my 263 gold. Still, I’m trying to get as many of these essence stones as possible for the lowest price.

A bid of 25 gold for 8 million MP is pushing my lim...

Dungeon Diver CH303

The minimum amount needed on hand to be eligible for a premium buyers' booth is 25 gold coins. In comparison to my stash, it isn't much, but to the average citizen, it’s quite a lot.

Even well-off level D Class hunters would be lucky to make even 5 gold a year. Most of the population could only dream of surpassing this rank, and that's back in the Vice Region. The salaries of upper-middle-class families hardly breach 10 gold coins. With average meals costing just a few bronze, and a r...

Dungeon Diver CH302

After Arie and Fisher head off to the Black Market to keep an eye out for the guards, I walk with Chester, Maria, and Abby to the above-ground dungeon hub while carrying the gold coin stash in my item storage. We all wear red robes to stay anonymous.

Chester heads off to a local market to buy a few items for the auction that he says we’ll need, while the three of us remaining walk through the thick crowds of low-level hunters who are finishing up their daily dungeon dives.

Most ...

Dungeon Diver CH301

Chester looks at me with a confused expression, not exactly catching on to why I’m asking about the auction. He replies anyway.

“Well, anything really. There are a few of them every month, but I’ve heard this one is supposed to be one of the most interesting ones in a while.”

I raise an eyebrow.

“Why’s that?”

“Well, with the recent surges, not only was Solara hit hard. One of the prospectors at the old den told me that the Sector 2 Labyrinth had a colla...

Dungeon Diver CH300

Whoever this is, they’re definitely the leader.

They have the [IC] branding all over their gear, along with that shielding artifact that every one of their lackeys had on.

With Demonic Energy, I’m sure I could take him out, but not questioning him and killing the man on the spot would do more harm than good. I’d have to use mana to subdue him properly, and his level and gear’s stats are much higher than mine.

The idea of breaking through the ceiling and rushing down ...

Dungeon Diver CH299

Up in the observatory, I sense the mana readings of two humans.

Although I’m a great distance away, I still instinctually hide with stealth and drop down closer to the desert floor for cover after the events that unfolded just over an hour ago in the Abyss.

To my surprise, the two readings are both between levels 300 and 330.

My gaze tightens, and I start to drift closer again. One has a swordsmanship skill, and the other has an extreme speed buff skill of 35%. These are f...

Dungeon Diver CH298

The purple worm’s body lies on the desert floor, and it doesn't move forward at all.

Other than its mouth opening and closing with rows of teeth churning and grinding against each other and the Demonic Essence leaking out, the monstrosity stays eerily still.

The creature has made its way entirely out of the black Abyss, showing off its full body’s length of just over 200 meters. Black refined energy oozes out from between its scales, floating up into the air and dissolving whi...

Dungeon Diver CH297

I can't believe my eyes…

“Impossible…”

I've never seen a creature this size, and have most definitely never faced one this powerful either. If my estimate is correct, the monster before me has the raw stats of a level 900.

It's a ranked-up version of whatever the tiny insects were that I just fought… This creature is on a whole different level.

The entire village of two dozen homes is swallowed into the open maw of this beast without a hint of restraint.

Dungeon Diver CH296

The sand beneath my feet shifts again, even more violently this time.

I’m frozen in place, feeling the presence of a Demonic Creature magnitudes stronger than the one I just faced.

I had to use all my tricks and mental power to stay ahead of a creature with a level lower than my own…

Lurking less than 500 meters away from me, I sense a monster stronger than anything I’ve ever faced in battle before, inside or outside of this Abyss.

“This would be a good time to...

Dungeon Diver CH295

I take another step into the town.

After the first ground-shaking roar, the air stays still, and silence fills the dark Abyss. The only movements I can sense are the white and purple flickering flames ahead of me.

Cautiously, I take more steps forward while gripping my dagger. The roofs of the small huts I walk past are torn off, and some are missing doors and walls. It’s difficult to tell if this destruction was man-made before evacuating, or if the monster that released its ba...

Dungeon Diver CH294

The tip of my blade pierces the black veil of darkness. The crimson eyes and dripping white fangs of the Demonic Wolf lunge toward me while my blade points right back.

It cuts clean through like butter.

Not only the blackness of the abyss but the wolf creature in front of me as well.

With little to no resistance at all, my dagger strikes the incoming wolf head on and it's cleaved in two before I even make another step.

Plumes of dark energy seep from my blade as it tea...

Dungeon Diver CH293

As the silver towers in Solara begin to fade from my line of sight, I take my new dagger out of item storage and begin twirling it through my fingers again.

It looks like it should be made of heavy metal or dense stone like obsidian, but this long blade can't be more than 100 grams. It's made of a foreign substance I’ve never felt before in high quantity.

With too many questions begging to be answered, I activate my Demonic Energy Manipulation skill and the world around me flash...

Dungeon Diver CH292

I take the black dagger from Chester’s hands disregarding the glowing crate of potions in his other and begin twirling it around my fingers to view the weapon from every possible angle.

It’s smooth and incredibly lightweight.

The old man starts to explain how the potions work based on a book he read about similar items years ago, but I drown out his words while staring down at this unique artifact.

The base of the grip fits tightly in my right hand, and the curved blade ...

Dungeon Diver CH291

The sun has already hit its high point in the sky and is beginning to fall down toward the horizon. While the sand is still scorching hot, the dry air is starting to cool off as the light rays aren't directly pointing at the top of my head anymore.

While walking back through the rolling dunes of the desert to the abandoned village the sensation I felt earlier keeps relying in the back of my mind. The pressure in my chest and the core overflowing with energy are all I can think about. 2023-10-15 23:00:03 +0000 UTC View Post

Dungeon Diver CH290

Three more Demonic Wolves slowly make their way toward me through the darkness. This time around I’m much more confident in my abilities and have a core full of Energy ready to coarse through my veins for a barrage of deadly attacks.

Once the first pair of red glowing eyes gets close enough, I let my attack fly without hesitating for a moment.

The thin blade of darkness cuts through the fog and ends in nearly the exact same fashion as its fallen foe before. The monster realizes ...

Dungeon Diver CH289

A pair of crimson eyes peer at me from within the Abyss. They’re filled with the anger and killing intent of a wild beast.

I jump backward at the sight of it.

My vision is completely black and white, making this bright red gaze stand out even more to me. I can’t sense any monsters nearby, but I begin to connect the dots while skidding to a halt on the desert sand a ways back from the black wall.

Expecting some horrific and bloodthirsty Demonic Creature to crawl out from ...

Dungeon Diver CH288

The next morning we all wake up at the crack of dawn. Falling asleep early in the day gives us more than enough time to fully recover.

After a quick breakfast made by Chester, we all leave to start our daily assignments and agree to meet back before the sun goes down.

My 4 teammates head southwest back into the more dense parts of town to scope out the markets and get in training while Chester waves us goodbye from his porch. I make my way further north, bringing some extra food a...

Dungeon Diver CH287

I whisper under my breath.

“No way… Of course…”

Chester smiles and points to one of the more precisely drawn maps on his notebook papers, happily eyeing me as he realizes I’m piecing together the puzzle on my own.

One of the papers has a ring separated into 4 sections labeled 1-4 and a black void in the center of it. He moves it out of the way and points more specifically to a detailed map of Sector 4 with detailed markings.

The drawings show the city of Sola...