Two and a half week later, a pair of tired, dirty Adventurers walk into the city of Karlak. The pair of guards blink, recognising Daniel as he half-heartedly waves in greeting before paying the entrance fee. The two Adventurers trudge in, even Asin’s tail hanging low and waving disconsolately as they walk, ears pressed to the ground.

The only time the pair perk up is as they pass by a roadside food vendor, the smell of slowly rotating meat sparking a glimmer of interest. Daniel moves over, purchasing a half-dozen sticks from the lady and paying for it, handing the pieces over to Asin who scars her food down without a word.

At Maximillian’s shop, the armourer is stalking back and forth shouting at his apprentices. When he sees the pair, he opens his mouth to berate the pair for being so late and then stops, his eyes sweeping over their tired, drawn forms. Asin holds up the bag without a word which Maximillian grabs, hissing “One Day” before stalking away.

Daniel nods too, waiting for Max to check the contents before he walks off, too tired to explain. The last few weeks had been a hell of bad luck, bad planning and more bad luck. Having lost the Spider to the wolves, the pair had to discard the first sac. For the next few days, they had struggled to find more Querk Spider lairs. When they had finally collected all three sacs and were hurrying back, Daniel had slipped while crossing a log bridge into the water, spilling both himself and the pouch. By the time they had finally managed to fish the pouch out of the water, all three sacs had been compromised, forcing the pair to begin collecting again.

It was no surprise that a number of words had been said, none of which were friendly or nice after the incident. The rest of the quest had been completed in a tense, mostly silent atmosphere. If it had not been for Asin’s insistence on carrying the pouch, she would have left immediately upon entering the city. As it was, the pair had agreed to ignore one another’s existence for the next three days.

Daniel stumbles into the Spinning Top, waving to Elise. She comes over, grimacing and murmurs to him. He stares at her blankly for a time before he slowly exits, heading to the next inn down the road. His room had been given up for the week and because of that, Elisehad actually rented it out. She was now filled up and unable to accomadate him.

Groaning, he flops in his room, staring at the peeling paint and the water-stained ceiling. He exhales, breath flowing out with a huff and then he shuts his eyes, exhaustion finally claiming him. As he falls asleep, a last thought crosses his mind.

“I need a bath.”

Morning comes too early, early morning light coming through the cracked shutters and waking Daniel. He groans, rolling on his side and slowly stands, making his way downstairs for breakfast. Breakfast is surprisingly decent, the porridge filling and warm and the sides of bacon and mushroom heaven sent. Resolved to start becoming human again, Daniel heads upstairs to get his towel and a change of clothing from his bag. Today would be an errand day, one filled with taking care of the many small tasks that need completing after a couple of weeks in the wood. He had socks to darn, clothing and his body to wash, weapons to properly care for and more. Tonight… tonight he would see Khy’ra he promises himself.

A couple of days later, the pair meet up at Maximillian’s shop. Asin stands at the corner, offering her friend a slight smile with a cocked head. Words were said and tensions had grown, but he was her friend. Was he hers still? The return smile from Daniel and the cup of offered tea answers her questions and her tail relaxes, turning back to swinging idly.

Daniel does not notice, his attention caught by the ‘Closed’ sign. As they rap on the door, there is silence for minutes. A second knock has a harried apprentince open the door, glare at the pair and whisper at them, “Not now!”

Before Daniel can say another word, the door is closed and a bar dropped, shutting the pair out. Daniel grimaces, staring at Asin who stares back before she shrugs. Well… not now then.

“This is… nice,” Daniel says as he bends down, picking up the mana stone from the Ogre. Asin nods firmly, stretching herself out as they stare around the grassy plains of the seventh floor. It was nice to be back on the seventh floor.

Questing had been necessary, even important. They had learnt more of the world, fought in a new dungeon, met new Adventurers and would eventually get Daniel his first full set of custom armor. It had been important, but the Dungeon was so much less frustrating. Even the sixth floor and the caverns seemed nostalgic now, difficult but at least they were always progressing. Questing was important, but for now, for now Daniel was happy to be a real Adventurer, delving into dungeons and facing the monsters that Ba’al would release on the world if it could.

“Next?” Daniel points with his mace before letting it rest on his shoulder, eyes crinkling in humor as Asin finishes stretching and nods. She absently scratches at a bare spot, fur ripped off from the fight. Catching his gaze, she sends him a mild glare before giving up and sticking out her tongue at him before she scampers ahead. Even the loss of her fur would not make her sad today - they were back, doing what they should be doing.

It is three days later when the pair finally find the door to Maximillian’s workshop open. Inside, only a single tired apprentice sits at the counter, barely able to keep his head from drooping. Spotting the pair, he gestures them deeper into the shop to the actual smithy portion without getting up from his seat. It was painful being at the bottom of the ladder the apprentince thought to himself as he forced a smile on his face for the next customer.

Behind, Daniel is practically bouncing forwards. He stops when he spots Max who is holding a breastplate to his chest, stroking it gently and buffing the silver inlaid runes. Even to their untrained eyes, the pair can see the difference and care in craftsmanship between the work before them and their own gear. After a time in which Max continues to be oblivious to the pair, Daniel clears his throat.

“Oh, it’s you boy!” Max says as he looks up, eyes deep set and red rimmed. He sets the breastplate down reverently, waving Daniel to the side. “Right, let’s get you fitted.”

A few minutes later, Daniel is fully outfitted in his armour and forced to do a series of calisthenics. Max asks questions, checking on fit though occasionally Daniel has to clear his throat to bring the armourer’s attention back to him. After having dressed and undressed a number of times, Max is finally happy with the fit, having adjusted the gorget to his liking. “Good… good. That’s it.”

Daniel nods slowly, rotating his hips and torso and then gently bouncing up and down. He grins, the armor barely making any noise, so well was it fitted. He nods firmly to Max, offering his hand. “Thank you!”

“You’re welcome,” Max shakes his hand and then glances to the side where the enchanted bracers lie. “You know, I could buy those off you and resell them for you. I won’t even take a commission.”

Daniel opens his mouth and then shuts it, staring at his first magical item ever. He reaches out, letting armored fingers glide across it before he slowly nods. That was the life of an Adventurer wasn’t it? Taking what was useful, discarding what was not. He wanted, no, he needed to progress.

Max calls out without hesitation to his apprentince, making the youngster take the bracers away for cleaning. Obviously, a little work needed to be done before he would dare show that work in his store!

Turning to Asin, he grins at her. “I have a little something for you too.” Reaching behind, he pulls out a small, thin metal gorget with a separate plate piece that hangs down the front which he hands to her. It is not wide at all and curves slightly down in the front and back to allow greater movement. As Asin takes it, her eyes widen at how light the piece is. Seeing her reaction, Max smirks. “I had some extra steel.”

Asin takes the piece, quickly buckling it on and adjusting the leather straps to ensure it sits properly. Max looks it over and nods after a moment, more than pleased with the fit. As Asin fingers the collar, wondering at the cost of getting such a piece enchanted by Tharuk, she can only add. “Thank you.”

“You’re welcome.” He smiles again, his hand unconsciously resting on the breastplate next to him. “Now, get out!”

The pair quickly exit, understanding how mercurial Max could get especially after spending the last few days with little rest. A shared glance is all the pair need before they begin to trot quickly to the Dungeon. Time to try out their new toys!

“Let’s go big boy!” grinning, Daniel hefts his shield and mace as he runs forward. They had been extremely lucky, having literally stumbled upon the Ogre Champion a bare two hours after making their way down to the seventh level. Chest and Champion in their sight, the pair immediately charge the creature before them.

Daniel skids to a stop just outside of the Ogre Champion’s range, dodging the blow that swings down in front of him and digs a divot into the ground. Behind, Asin throws a series of knives that multiply, cutting into the Champion and distracting it. Daniel darts in immediately to the left, swinging his mace into the creature’s side and feeling a bone crack as Perin’s Blow catches it. However, even as the monster is lifted off the ground, it backhands Daniel, the club smashing into the Adventurer’s side.

The club cracks into his body hard, throwing him off his feet and forcing Daniel to recover. He grins, elation running through him as he realises that he is barely hurt - that blow itself should have seriously bruised, if not broken his ribs. More confident than ever now, Daniel darts back in as Asin throws another knife filled with blue energy, the Piercing Shot drilling into the Ogre’s eye.

As the creature rears back in pain, clutching at its ruined orb Daniel crashes into the monster with his shield, triggering a Shield Bash with another blow that he drives into its short ribs. The monster leans over, allowing Daniel to lash out with a pair of Skill enhanced blows even as Asin closes and hamstrings the Champion. Crashing to the ground, crippled and in pain, the monster is quickly dispatched.

Asin and Daniel stare at the blue lights as they slowly dissipate, shaking their heads in amusement. It seemed strange that such a simple change would make such a difference, but with less concern about getting hurt, Daniel found himself being more aggressive. This took the pressure off Asin who was then able to focus on dealing damage and distracting the Champion. It was a knock-on effect that made it possible for what was a difficult fight before to become so much simpler.

On retrieving her knives, Asin moves to retrieve their mana stones before getting a confirming nod from Daniel. Time to head for the eight floor then.

Three hours later, Daniel pants as he stands above the pair of fallen Ogre corpses. The eight floor had much the same geography as the seventh - wide open lands with glowing blue cavern walls. However, the Ogres came in pairs at least and sometimes as many as four at a time. Fights were more difficult as the Ogres often grouped up, attacking Daniel in a desperate attempt to overwhelm him. Often, Daniel would be forced to stay on the defense, pulling the monsters with him while Asin finished one, relieving the pressure sufficiently for Daniel to fight back.

Rotating his shoulder, he forces his breathing to slow down, trying to calm down his heart. This last group had managed to take his feet off him and he had spent a good few minutes curled up, being beaten on by the enormous monsters. His new armour and careful positioning had allowed him to survive, though he ached all across his body. Rubbing at the bruise on his face, he focuses on casting a Minor Heal, his body stitching itself together as Asin finishes collecting the stones. Healed, he finally pays attention to his new notification.

Level Up!

Adventurer Level 7

You have gained 5 attribute points

Finally! He had managed to get past the level he has almost achieved and was finally climbing. He might not reach Level 10 before the end of the Dungeon, but at the least he was on the way. There was a lot of work left and he certainly felt that they needed to spend more time working this level, but soon, soon, they’d be done!

Name: Daniel Lai

Class: Level 7 Adventurer (0%)

Sub-classes: Level 7 (Miner) (14%)

Human (Male)

Statistics

Life: 243

Stamina: 243

Mana: 177

Attributes

Strength: 22

Agility: 20

Constitution: 28

Intelligence: 17

Willpower: 18

Luck: 13

Skills

Unarmed Combat: Level 3 (38/100)

Clubs: Level 9 (74/100)

Archery: Level 2 (48/100_

Shield: Level 8 (24/100)

Dodge: Level 6 (09/100)

Combat Sense: Level 6 (17/100)

Perception: Level 6 (27/100)

Mining: Level 7 (78/100)

Healing: Level 8 (98/100)

Herb Lore: Level 3 (31/100)

Stealth: Level 2 (14/100)

Cooking: Level 3 (29/100)

Singing: Level 2 (14/100)

Skill Proficiencies

Double Strike

Shield Bash

Perin’s Blow

Mapping (II)

Spells

Minor Healing (I)

Gifts

Martyr’s Touch - The caster may heal oneself or others by touch and concentration, sacrificing a portion of his life to do so. Cost varies depending on the extent of the injuries healed.