You hit the ground hard, but you get back up. You will not give up. You know that if you can just land one good hit, you can defeat her. You charge forward again.

Gothmog is no easy foe. She dodges and a ball of dark necromantic power forms in her right palm. You are forced to sidestep to avoid being hit in the face with her magic, but you take the opportunity to swing your sword with all your might, the blade biting into Gothmog's necrotic flesh. The necromancer screams in pain and fury, lashing out with dark magic again. It hits you with great force on the left side of your body, but you grit your teeth and ignore the pain, moving in for the kill.

Your sword swings true, decapitating the evil sorceress. As her body disintegrates into dust, you know you have won.

Unfortunately, as her body disappears, so does the treasure. The gold and jewels must have been an illusion cast by Gothmog to distract adventurers.

Still, dungeons normally have some treasure inside. You look all around the room, looking for anything that might be hiding something valuable. You tap on the walls, feeling for hidden compartments. After a thorough search, you come up empty-handed.

When you sit down on the floor in front of the catafalque to rest, there is the faint sound of a click. You quickly spring up and back away from that area of the floor, but it’s not a trap. Instead, the section of the floor lowers itself down, revealing a stone staircase leading down into the unknown.

As you walk down the hidden stone stairway, you can't help but feel a sense of trepidation. Each step feels like it could be your last as the ancient stones creak and groan under your weight. The stairway seems to go on forever, descending into the darkness below. You can't help but wonder what lies at the bottom of this seemingly endless pit.

Finally, after what feels like hours, you reach the bottom of the stairway. You find yourself in a dark and musty cave. The only light comes from a small opening in the ceiling far above you. You can hear the sound of water dripping somewhere in the distance.

As you start to explore your surroundings, you see something glinting in the darkness. You move closer and find that it is a sword. The sword is covered in dust and looks like it hasn't been touched in centuries. You can't help but wonder who it belonged to and how it ended up in this forgotten place.

The moment that you touch the sword, you hear a voice in your head.

[Congratulations, adventurer! You’ve defeated the dungeon boss and found the hidden treasure.]

[Ascalon is now yours.]

You know what this means. This sword is now bound to you and will appear the next time you enter a dungeon.

“Examine sword,” you say out loud.

The mental voice says:

[What sword? I don’t see “sword” here.]

You forgot this is a named sword, so you can’t use a generic term for it.

“Examine Ascalon,” you say.

[Ascalon is a legendary longsword of great antiquity and renown. It is said to be a dragon-slaying sword. Ascalon is said to possess great power, and to this day remains razor-sharp. It is also said that the sword is unbreakable and will always return to its owner's hand, no matter how far it is thrown.]

Reading between the lines, it seems that Ascalon has no magical powers except for being unbreakable, perpetually sharp, and bound to its owner. You already know that you won’t be allowed to take this out of the dungeon because it’s a “legendary” weapon, so you don’t bother asking about it. You wipe the dust off the sword with the hem of your shirt and swing it around. It’s well-balanced and feels right in your hand.

Now that it’s all over, you feel both tired and happy. It feels like ages since you first set foot in this dank, dark place, and though the journey was fraught with danger at every turn, you’re glad you stuck it out to the end. You can’t wait to post about this in the internet adventurer forums.

You feel like you've accomplished something great, but you know that you've only just scratched the surface of what's possible. You feel like you're off to a good start as an adventurer.

After a few minutes, the voice in your head says:

[Your adventure is complete. Reward: 10 gold coins. Please step through the Portal to return to the place you came from.]

A glowing oval of light materializes in front of you. At the center is a black void that seems to be full of stars. Ten gold coins fountain out from the center of the Portal. You catch the coins and put your reward in a pocket.

You step through the Portal.

Adventure Complete!

LinMeili

• Thank you for reading!
• It was difficult for me to write in present tense second person, but it was worth it for the action scenes.
• Please let me know if there are any errors.

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Nomad Healer on Amazon

Description:

Monty was dead until he wasn't.

His body was no longer his own, having been shoved into a dying priest in the heart of a totally different world of magic and death. The priest had been protecting a caravan—a duty Monty now inherited—and he was faced with bandits and worse, all while keeping up the facade of his stolen identity. Luckily, the priest had been capable of miraculous [Light] magic, and now so was Monty. He could heal... and he could kill.

And he would, without hesitation.

He'd rather not die again.

About the Series: Experience a [System] world with levels, classes, loot, skills, and magic. Follow Monty as he explores the world of Atla, doing his best to keep his people alive through the countless challenges ahead.