"Are you sure this is the dungeon?" Alex tightened his newly bought armour plate on his chest. They had heard that the dungeon they were currently standing in front of was a fairly dangerous one. There had been several reports regarding groups of adventurers going in and not coming out ever again. Some assumed that the monsters in the dungeon enslaved the adventurers but all of it became hearsay when a group of experienced adventurers returned safely with a chest full of dungeon dollars.
"Yes, this is the dungeon. I promised that group of experienced adventurers a percentage of our spoils and performed a blood binding contract. They cannot possibly lie about the location of this rural dungeon." Betty, the group leader, checked her quiver to see if there was a sufficient amount of arrows in it.
"Usually most dungeons will provide physical treasures such as weapons or gold coins. Overall though, this is a better deal since dungeon dollars are more valuable than gold coins. If we are able to get roughly the same amount of dungeon dollars as those adventurers, we will be able to live comfortably for 3 months or so after deducting the profit cut we need to give to them." Charles juggled with his knife, displaying quite a lot of finesse.
"Still, I do not like the rumours about people going missing upon entering this dungeon. Even those experienced adventurers did not give many details on what to expect." Daisy spoke as she held onto her cross pendant.
"I believe those rumours were spread to scare people away from this dungeon. Therefore, they would be able to have a better loot run than the others. I have seen enough people spreading bad rumours, and trust me, they spread like wildfire. Besides, we have been through a number of dungeons together. I do not think we should worry that much." Betty counted the number of red healing potions she had as she spoke.
"Then, what are we waiting for? Let's go into the dungeon now before it gets too late. Also, rumours are always based on the truth, no matter how exaggerated, so I suggest just clearing one floor for now." Alex picked up his large triangular shield and placed at the back of his armour plate.
"Before we go in, let me say a prayer so we can return safely." Daisy the priest gathered everyone and said a few words before enlightening everyone with her spell of Blessing Guidance. Blessing Guidance empowered the adventurers with a small increase in defence and attack.
"Alright, let's get going before Alex complains again." Betty gestured and everyone picked up their gear, prepared to go into the dungeon.
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"Before I leave the Dungeon Maker, there are a few things I would like to clarify. Do these adventurers have cultivation grades?" Jin started to stuff miscellaneous items into his storage watch. He even created a reinforced plastic fibre tactical mask with an anti-reflective and anti-glare glass plane, which would prevent his face to be seen by the adventurers.
"They have levels attached to them…The closest I can relate is indeed to a roleplaying game. They gain experience points and whenever an adventurer levels up, they will be able to 'boost their stats', so to speak, or use more destructive magical abilities." Yun took a seat and started to monitor the movement of the adventurers.
"How strong are these adventurers that are entering the dungeon since you say they are based on levels?" Jin checked his equipment one more time.
"Probably a Grade 2 or 3 equivalent. Nothing you cannot handle. Remember though, they might fall in battle but they will not die until you destroy their heart completely. Stabbing through it works too." Yun reinforced her statement.
Jin gulped his saliva back down his throat, not in anticipation but in fear. In this personal dungeon of his, there were currently three pathways to take when they reached the first floor of the dungeon. Each pathway to lead to a different monster ecosystem, or more accurately speaking, Jin's monsters' abodes.
"All these items I made from the Dungeon Maker, can I use them not just for this personal dungeon but in other parallel worlds too?" Jin wanted to know since he could practically make anything in the Dungeon Maker if it was within creation limits.
"You can use anything for your personal dungeon that has been created by the Dungeon Maker but restrictions apply for all items you want to bring to all other worlds unless it has been approved by the System to allow you to take it out. For example, the coupon booklet is good to go." Yun reaffirmed Jin.
"I am ready now, where do I go to intervene?" Jin asked trembling while holding onto Bam.
"They seemed to be entering the level where the Zither Mistress and the Great White Snake lives. I will teleport you there when you are ready." Yun replied but she noticed that he was giving the thumbs up gesture to her. So, she teleported him immediately to Zither Mistress's level.
Yun then snapped her fingers and her pyjamas instantly transformed into a buttoned shirt and shorts as she sat down and stared at the screens in the Dungeon Maker.
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"Wow, this dungeon is really big." Charles had the highest perception among the whole party. It was a common trait for a thief to have when they reached level three. Charles scanned the surroundings of the dungeon and noticed that there were no traps, no small minions and also no sense of danger. It felt more like a home than a dungeon area, which was particularly odd to him.
"I do not sense any danger and that itself makes this dungeon more dangerous than others." Charles strained his visual senses and hearing ability until he saw a little girl resting under a tree from afar. Charles took a look at the surroundings and noticed that for a cave looking dungeon, the area was very brightly lit as if there was sunlight coming in from above ground. However, he could not find any crevices at the top of the dungeon floor nor any artificial lighting around to illuminate the area. He even felt that the fire torches they were carrying were completely useless ever since they entered the first floor of the dungeon.
"A kid, with a large snake," Charles whispered back to the group and the entire group halted their movement.
"How far are they away from us? The direction?" Betty took out her bow from its scabbard and an arrow from her quiver. Daisy took her magical staff out and extended the length of the staff. She was a healer but she also knew how to fight back if it was necessary. Lastly, Alex unbuckled his shield from his back and placed it in front of him.
"Here, this way. I cannot determine how far they are. Perhaps a 100metres?" Charles was making a wild guess, which annoyed Betty. "Approximately 250 metres away." Betty rolled her eyes the moment she found the target that Charles was talking about.
"What do you think it is?" Alex, who was still kneeling with one leg on the ground, asked Betty.
"Probably some sort of oriental snake demon I guess." Betty took a closer look and saw that the little girl had not noticed their presence yet. She nocked her arrow and aimed at the little girl.
"So, what's the plan?" Alex looked at the rest of the party.
"If it is just a snake demon, we can take it down within 10 minutes. I have prepared a level 3 spell of Smiting Evil, which is effective against demons." Daisy took the initiative to speak.
"Alright, so I will stand on guard. Alex and Charles. You two move forward slowly and as quiet as possible in the tall grass. Especially you Alex. Your armour plating makes too much noise. Once both of you feel that you are at a comfortable distance away from the two targets, hold your position until my power arrow spell is ready to fire." Betty spoke.
"After the enemy gets injured, Alex will charge in immediately while Charles takes the long way for a good execution, using your Backstab ability. When they are noticeably exhausted, Daisy, you will fire your smite evil spell and we will get the spoils for this dungeo-"
It was at this point when Betty was talking halfway with her focus towards the little girl and the white snake that she heard a large explosive noise coming from a small hill on their right.