Welcome to The Breeding Grounds, a level-one dungeon. Objective: kill as many enemies as you can within the time limit.

Why did Alan push me in? Brett sighed internally. If he had just told me it was time, I wouldn't have complained.

He had no combat training without guns and wasn't about to waste his one bullet here. So he wasn't likely to get any class related to something he already knew. Apparently, the loot is shit, and I don't even get any fucking experience for my nonexistent class! So why am I doing this again?

Pulling the knife out, he flexed the new spiked gloves and charged forward, immediately triggering the first wave. This time he only stopped to catch his breath between waves and declined all the class options after a quick look. The offers didn't slow down at all despite having rejected over 30 so far. This time he could plan better for the jumping and goo spraying varieties of insects, but he was also a lot more tired. At this point, he had been fighting for 4 hours with minimal breaks. 

By the end of the dungeon, his arms were heavy, and he struggled to grip the dagger handle with any force, as the tendons in his forearm felt like they had snapped. When his grip started to fail him he leaned on the spiked knuckles to keep punching.

 He sucked in as much air as he could, stumbling through the exit portal. Brett found a familiar pair still playing the same card game. Alan now had significantly more cards than Ravenous; he wasn't sure if that was a good thing or not.

This time he simply sank down next to Ravenous without invitation. To get rid of the glow, he pulled up the dungeon completion message. 

Congratulations on completing The Breeding Grounds. Completion score: B, number of enemies killed 659. Reward: Hardened Vambraces.

He caught the loot as it plopped into his lap and strapped them on. The gloves from before had been a nice addition. They kept his hands feeling clean and his grip steady despite all the sweating and insect fluids. The extra damage he could do with them was really useful too. 

Pulling his hat from his head, he ensured all the bug goo was off it. Only through some miracle did he manage to avoid getting it damaged as he brushed dust off its wide brim. He leaned his head against the wall and caught his breath while the others finished their card game. 

"Anything good?" Ravenous asked. 

"No classes that seemed interesting, though I have these now," he said, pointing to the leather guards strapped onto his forearms. Ravenous grunted, uninterested, but Alan did nod his approval. Brett assumed that he liked their dark color more than the actual armor.

“B ranking, solid improvement." That was all he said. Alan looked out at the sky just outside the cave. "Sadly, we don't have time for you to run it again if we want to get to the city tonight. Though a chest piece would be nice for you, if you managed to get an A ranking."

Alan got up and tucked his large stack of cards away somewhere. Ravenous made her much smaller stack disappear with a little snarl on her face. Brett assumed that meant that she was losing. She then climbed on his shoulder to perch. 

Emerging from the cave, Brett's legs wobbled, and he could feel his back ache as he properly stretched for the first time in too long. Alan gauged the distance to the city and the position of the sun.

"Come on," Alan called, starting off at a jog.

***

Once the gate was in sight, Alan slowed to a walk. Brett estimated that Alan was only a dozen yards ahead, and he focused on his back and pumped his arms to catch up. Focusing on breathing in deep lungfuls of air as he moved helped keep the tunnel of darkness surrounding his vision from tightening any further.

It had only taken Ravenous a few minutes of jogging to get tired of his sweating and jostling and abandoned ship. She leapt down and practically floated along the ground to catch up to Alan, climbing atop his shoulder instead.

Was that her natural ability, or did she put any points into her physical characteristics? She was in a pure magic class, so Brett didn't think she would, but maybe? With how everyone used physical weapons, maybe it was normal for everyone to improve their physical stats? He would have to ask about that when he got a chance. 

Once he caught up to where Alan had stopped running, he bent over double with his hands on his knees and sucked in lungfuls of air, fighting off nausea. After recovering slightly, Brett walked as quickly as his shaky legs could carry him. By the time he caught up with the quiet man, he had stopped panting but was still soaked with sweat. 

Alan gave Brett a small nod when he caught up. Apparently I did well? I am just glad to have not fallen on my face.

He still had the presence of mind to remember to ask a couple questions while he could. "How high do people level?"

Alan rubbed his chin. "Depends. Highest I've heard of is around 600. Though, the guy might have been lying."

Okay, that was interesting. Maybe the one stat point per level might not be as big of a deal as Brett had initially thought. People could get pretty strong - it would just take a lot of time and danger. He wanted to know so many things, but before we got to any of that, there was one other thing he needed to clear up. "How long are you going to be around in the city?"

That wasn't exactly the question he wanted to ask, but he wasn't sure how to ask what he should do next. He had started to make a plan before meeting them, but now he wasn't sure how much more that would be relevant if instead he could tag along with his new friends. Besides, he didn't have any money or know anyone. The guide system here could really have been improved.

"Not sure exactly. Irene and Bernard are doing some research at a private library here." Ravenous piped up from Alan's shoulder. "Neither of us are much for books, so we’re just trying to stay out of their way while they work."

"I bet it’ll be about a week," Alan commented. 

"Don't worry, though. We will be around long enough to get you set up and maybe even find a class." Ravenous reassured him.

That was kind of them, and would fix many of his problems. But he had to be a bit suspicious. "I really don't mean to be rude, but I need to know. Why are you helping me this much?"

Alan and Ravenous shared a look. "We’re paying it forward, so to speak. Someone helped each of us a little while after we first came here. Besides, it's pretty low effort. Not like we would be using our time more effectively. Nothing in this region is strong enough to train on, and we can get some practice in while you are in the dungeon."

"Well, I appreciate it more than I can say. If I ever get the chance to pay it back to you, I swear I will." Brett didn't like being in people's debt and hated asking for help even more. But this wasn't about him. It was about Cherry, and he would do much more for her than for himself.