“Necklace of Stealth.” “Boots of Swiftness.” “Flying Lamp.” “10 potions.” “An emerald mana crystal.” “Enchanted Steel Sword.” “Bow of an Ancient Race.” “Shield made of Unknown materials.” “Quick Thought Amulet.” “Earth Charm Earring.”

“Hahahaha, this is what dungeon exploring is all about, the loot and the treasure!!!!”

Fifi loudly laughs to herself after counting all of the loot we had found these past two days. Even I couldn’t hold back my joy after realizing how much treasures we have actually found. Unlike the dirt area where we rarely found any valuable treasures, in this area we were incredibly lucky.

A day has passed since we killed that red-scaled lizardman, Gul’sa Quan, and a lot has changed. The biggest change was the strength of our team. Gorou with Gul’sa Quan’s greatsword, Ken with the Enchanted Steel Sword, and I with the cursed spear were still the vanguard, but with our new equipment, our strength increased drastically. Gul’sa Quan’s greatsword was big enough that Gorou could use it as a shield but it was even deadlier as a weapon. Most monsters couldn’t even stand one blow from the greatsword but the only problem was that the weight was still too heavy for Gorou to completely control. 

There is a short delay in his attacks but Ken and I are there to support him. Ken’s Enchanted Steel Sword wasn’t that much different from his regular steel sword but it was a lot sharper and stronger. Unlike his regular sword, the Enchanted Steel Sword could cut through the skin of the lizardmen without any support.

For me, I gained strength but also lost strength. With the cursed spear, it was hard getting use to not being able to use magic in the middle of a battle. I realize that I depend heavily on my magic to finish off the monsters. Although I can’t use magic, the spear was a strong weapon and somewhat made up for that flaw. Its blade was sharp and could pierce through the lizardmen’s scales while its shaft was strong and flexible. With the spear’s range, I could swipe at the enemy’s legs or stab them from afar, unlike the sword. If Gorou or Ken was in trouble the extra range also made it easier to support them.

Right behind the vanguard are William and Rachel. Our ammunition ran out when we fought Gul’sa Quan so William and Rachel have to play a more accurate role in the frontlines. William is equipped with a shield made from unknown materials and Ken’s old steel sword, while Rachel was equipped with the Boots of Swiftness which increases her movement speed. While the vanguard is fighting, William’s job is to protect Rachel as she drains the energy of our enemies. Although it’s only the two of them, Rachel’s ability was critical to the team and made many fights a lot easier.

In the rear are CZ, Mako, Jill, and Gareth. CZ was given the Necklace of Stealth which gives her the ability to become semi-transparent. The ability also applies to her eyeball so scouting and stunning become even more efficient. Due to the Necklace’s ability, the times when the enemies notice the eyeball has lowered so it allows CZ to actively use her eyeball in the middle of a battle.

Jill was given the Earth Charm Earring which makes her earth magic more effective and Mako was given the Quick Thought Earring which increases her ability to think. Fifi’s description for the Quick Thought Earring is somewhat vague but I can tell that Mako’s ability to control the battlefield has improved. Her ability to think faster made it so she could save us from injuries and attack enemies with perfect timing.

 

Gareth was given the Bow of an Ancient Race and it shows that he is a skilled sharpshooter no matter the weapon. He was able to pierce through the monsters’ weak points with his arrows which made it easier for the vanguard to clean up the battlefield.

Our strength has improved drastically and those that were hesitant to kill have become used to killing monsters. Our gear has improved but with the Passive Experience everyone has gained, their bodies have become stronger and their ability to handle tough situations has improved. Even a group of 5 lizardmen wouldn’t even be a problem for us at this point.

“Fifi, did you come up with the names for these items?”

“Yup, I sure did. Good names aren’t they.”

Well, I guess they are good names since they describe what the items do. I continue with my dinner as I think of our battles today. Ever since Tigurka taught me, I’ve constantly been trying to gain Active Experience whenever I can.

My control of the spear is still inadequate. It’s difficult to judge how far I need to attack to do the utmost damage and another problem is how to deal with enemies when they get to close to me. I’m also not sure if my stance with the spear is even correct. I’ve asked the others but none of them have any experience using a spear so it is up to me to figure out how to use it.

“We only have enough rations to last us until the end of tomorrow.”

William makes a sudden announcement and we all sigh. We already knew that food was a problem but it felt worse directly hearing that we are running out of food. Originally, William brought enough rations to last us two weeks but during the fall, half of the rations were destroyed. What’s worse was that yesterday, more of the rations were eaten by rodents in the middle of the night. Tomorrow was going to be our fourth day stuck in the Consal dungeon but we are running out of food already.

“Why don’t you guys just eat the monsters?”

“Wait, we can eat them, Fifi?”

“Well, why not?”

Fifi snacks on her crackers as all of us start to think about her proposal. It seems like none of us had ever thought of eating a monster. This wasn’t our first time having a food shortage but back in Ostempal no one had even thought of eating a zombie. But the situation is different, some of the monsters we’ve seen in the dungeon were rats, bugs, lizardmen, and hyenas. After entering the stone gate we’ve also seen other types of monsters like bats, undead creatures, and moving rocks. Out of all those monsters, I guess you can eat some of them.

“Are they safe to eat, Fifi?”

“As long as you cook them well, they should be fine.”

“Ok.”

Hearing confirmation from Fifi, a few of us left the room we were hiding in and brought back a lizardman we had killed earlier. This was the closest monster we had recently killed. William decided that we should get used to eating monsters before we run out of rations. Gorou, William, and I began cutting the lizardman up as we all had some experience in dissecting animals. Over an open fire, we began to cook the lizardman.

“Do we really have to eat this?”

“Even though it’s not a human, it still makes me uncomfortable that it looks humanoid.”

“I-I don’t think I can do this.”

“...”

“I understand all of your feelings but its better to get used to it sooner than later.”

Although William said that to calm everyone down, he was also hesitating to eat the lizardman. I understand their hesitation to a certain extent but I was more curious than afraid. Ever since I started living in Hope City, I discovered that there are so many kinds of food that I have never tasted before. Just thinking about what the lizardman would taste like made me drool.

“Jude, you’re really eating it?”

“Wow.”

“Does it taste good?”

I took a bite out of the lizardman’s thigh and began chewing. The meat was tough because the lizardmen’s body had a lot of muscles and there was a weird odor, but it wasn’t that bad. I took another bite and seeing that I wasn’t stopping, the others also begin eating the lizardman.

“Ugh.”

“It’s kind of gamey.”

“It’s not terrible.”

“Uhh, I think I’ll just eat my rations.”

“No running away, Ken.”

Some of them were hesitant but in the end, everyone had a taste of the lizardman. That was how the third night in the Consal dungeon ended and the fourth day quickly approached.

Everyone washed their faces with water from the leather pouch which Fifi decided to call Water Pouch. The Water Pouch still had a lot of water in it so we didn’t mind using it to wash our bodies after being covered in blood. It was a really convenient item to have inside of the dungeon.

We grab our gear and head out of the room as we follow Jill’s map. Just looking at her map, one can tell that the area with bricked paths was a lot larger than the dirt area. We’ve probably explored twice as much than we did in the dirt area but we still haven’t found a single trace of an exit. Maybe we were just lucky in finding the stone gate that led to this area.

“Wait, CZ says that she feels a breeze.”

“A breeze, which direction.”

We follow CZ’s eyeball as we were filled with anticipation. This was the first time CZ has ever said that she felt a breeze in this dungeon. The air in the dungeon was usually stale and stagnant so if there was a breeze then that means there is airflow somewhere.

“There’s light up ahead!”

Ken, was right, in the corridor up ahead there was a dim glow. The bricked area was the same as the dirt area in that aspect that there wasn’t any light. I usually use fire magic to light up the way but once we found the Flying Lamp, we’ve used that to light up our way. It conserves my mana because I only have to light the lamp once and it would last around an hour before I have to relight it.

Cautiously approaching the light we were finally able to see what lied before us. There were yellow crystals all around this dome-like cavern but that wasn’t the most surprising thing. In the middle of the cave was a village surrounded by a dense forest. Looking closer, it wasn’t a normal village, it was a lizardman village. Besides that, there was a pillar in the middle of the village that goes into the ceiling of the cave.

“We’ve found our exit.”

“Fifi, does that tower lead to the surface.”

“Yes.”

We all celebrate in joy except for William, he was staring at something else. Following his line of sight, I see 10 humans mining the wall. Every one of them was malnourished and had chains shackled to their feet. There was a lizardman with a whip standing behind them. The others realized the situation and looked to William on what action they should take.

“Kill the lizardman and save the hostages.”

“Yes, sir.”

|......| 

“Get back to work or I’ll eat you!”

“Gaahh!!”

“Are you alright, Joe?”

“I-I’m fine.”

“Just hold on, help will be coming.”

“Hehehe, what an idiot. What help!? I’ve stuck here for two months and where is that help you speak of.”

“They’re coming. They’re definitely coming.”

“You should just give up, kid. It’s easier to deal with if you just accept that help is never going to come.”

I might sound harsh but its the truth. That kid has only been here for a week so he doesn’t understand that it’s hopeless for all of us. Those goddamn lizardmen will never let us escape and no help is going to ever come.

Has it really been two months already? It was such a nice day that day. The sun was setting and the park was bathed in a golden color. My daughter was amazed at the sight and couldn’t keep her excitement down while my wife and I could only smile at her joy. But that day was ruined when the ground beneath us collapsed. I held on tightly to both of them but I knew the situation was bad.

I thought a sinkhole had appeared under us, but maybe that would have been better. By the time I woke up, my wife and daughter were already gone from my arms and the shackles were already around my legs. Looking around that dark room, I realized that I wasn’t alone, there were familiar faces all around me: Johnson, Frank, Gurkel, Tommy. They were other men that lived in our small town. 

We discussed the situation and realized that we had all gotten here in a similar way. We all fell down a strange hole, and as soon as we wanted to talk more, a strange creature appeared in front of us. The idea of being kidnapped appeared in all of our minds but never would we have thought that our kidnappers weren’t human.

They were cruel creatures who would continuously work us till exhaustion and rarely fed us any food. All of us had hope that someone would come to save us but as the weeks passed, our hope disappeared. More and more familiar faces appeared but out of the original 5 of us, I’m the only one left.

Johnson was literally worked to death, Frank had gone crazy so he was executed, Gurkel took his own life, and Tommy tried to escape. I don’t know if Tommy was able to escape or not, but I don’t have the same about of balls to attempt an escape. The only thing pushing me forward is that one day I might be able to see my wife and daughter’s faces again. But even that faint hope is starting to disappear as two months have already passed. Maybe I should just give up.

“What the…”

Hearing the lizardman exclaim in shock I turn around. I laugh at myself for understanding bits and pieces of the lizardman language. I was left in shock as the lizardman’s body was stuck in a weird gesture. What happened next was even more shocking. An arrow pierced through the lizardman’s eye and a man in a brown cloak appeared from the sky and stabbed the lizardman through the heart.

I’m too old to believe in heroes but that man with a red spear was the perfect image of a hero.