I decided to lay low for a while. Let the goblins believe that they solved their problem. They need to relax. I want them to reduce the size of their patrols again. I have been exploring a lot of winding side tunnels, and I think I found the entrance. Daylight shines into the cave shafts, illuminating metallic rails on the ground. Wagons full of ore can be pushed along them. Interesting invention. Two lookouts guard the entrance, more preoccupied with what may come in from the outside than what may be behind them. The first one dies in a second. His hammer falls through the air. I try to catch it, but I stumble on a stone, and it slips through my fingers. The hammerhead impacts on the rails. A high-pitched ring pierces through my sensitive ears. The world blurs, the penumbra a whirlwind of colors. The other goblin whirls around, a dancing smudge in my vision. I step back instinctively. Something arcs before my face, through my left shoulder, leaving behind stinging throbs of pain. I step back again, still a bit dizzy. My vision clears just in time to parry and deflect another spear strike into the ceiling. The goblin looks at me, then at his stuck weapon. I thrust forward. His complaints die in his throat. That was dumb. I may be faster now. I may have been lucky until now, but an error will still cost me.


    I drink my fill and wait for my flesh to knit back together. Should I wait for the night to fall before exploring outside? I don′t know. Something feels wrong.


    Is it the light? What is wrong with the light?


    I step closer and hold my hand into the sun.


    I feel. I feel nothing.


    “What is happening?”


    It feels warm, like holding my fingers close to a candle, not the irritating burn it should feel like. I step outside. The rays of the sun bathe me in their warm embrace.


    No!


    That can not be the sun. It must be a fake.


    But it seems so real. I can see the blue sky over me. Clouds slowly drift towards another mountain range in the distance. I should feel something now. The older a vampire gets, the less the sunlight affects them and the longer they can hold out under it. But it still should tickle, then prickle, and slowly ramp up until you agonize. Nothing is happening here.


    It can′t be a sun. It must be a lamp, imitating one. The sky must be fake. Is this all just another giant cave? Someone is trying to deceive us, to deceive me. I shudder.


    How rich do you need to be to paint a false sky on the ceiling for no reason, just to make fun of us? Are they hiding somewhere, watching us stumble around?


    Well, there is nothing I can do about it right now.


    Even with a fake sun, I still don′t like it out here in the light. It feels wrong. It might instill bad habits.  I turn around to go back into the welcoming darkness, but the cave is gone. I blink. There is only a smooth stonewall. I poke at it, solid stone. How?Support the creativity of authors by visiting Royal Road for this novel and more.


    *Milestone achieved!


    Rejoice! You have escaped from the goblin mines.


    What rejoice! No. No! Let me go back! There are still shamans left to kill!


    *Achievement unlocked:


    Early bird: You are the first User of your tutorial at impossible difficulty to escape your initial dungeon.


    Agility +4, Strength + 2


    Achievement unlocked:


    Last-survivor: You are the only User of your tutorial who survived your initial quest.


    All stats +1


    Error.


    User has not finished his initial quest in time. Safe zones have been locked.


    User can not choose a class.


    Purging User.


    Error.


    User is the first to finish his initial quest.


    User is the last surviving participant in this difficulty.


    User can not be purged.


    Searching for a solution…


    Solution found.


    Choose a class:


    Error.


    User is still at level zero.


    User can not choose a class.


    Analyzing combat logs…


    Multiple slain enemies were found.


    User remains at level zero because he has diverted incoming experience into his bloodline.


    Rebalancing tutorial.


    Generating new questline…


    *Quest received!


    -Reach level 10, enter a city, and speak with the Captain of the Guard, a registrar of the Adventurers Guild, or a member of the Thieves Guild to learn how to unlock your first class.


    -Alternatively, enhance your bloodline to an S grade to get a Unique, personalized class. Currently: 1,7%.


    Yeah, whatever. How do I get back to the caves?


    I wander through a maze of stonewalls and boulders. There is no other entrance, only solid granite. I punch the stone in frustration. Some of it crumbles under my fist. There is a visible dent in the wall. It feels more fragile than it should be. Or Am I stronger? How was it again?


    Status.


    *Status:


    Name: Ka′ain


    Race: Human (Undead)


    Age: 13827 years


    Bloodline: Ancient Vampire (A) 1,7%


    Achievements: Early bird, Survivor


    Level: 0


    Class: None


    Cultivation: None


    Attributes:


    Strength:34


    Agility: 56


    Dexterity: 43


    Endurance: 26


    Vitality: 63


    Perception: 54


    Intelligence: 22


    Willpower: 65


    Traits:


    Universal Tongue


    Skills:


    Identify Lvl 2


    Unarmed fighting Lvl 48


    Daggers Lvl 27


    Dodge Lvl 11*


    Yeah, those numbers went up. But what do I do now? Where should I go? I need to find another source of food somewhere.


    *Optional side quest received:


    Find shelter before the storm rolls in.


    What storm?


    I look up. Black clouds cover the horizon to the south. Flashes of Lightning pierce the sky. I count to ten before the thunder washes over me, drowning my senses in the noise. That looks dangerous. The human remnants of my brain feel threatened by it. But the Vampire in me feels welcome. Bad weather makes good hunting conditions. But where are the people to hunt? Where are the roads, the villages?


    I start wandering into the green plains.