《World Of Dungeons》 Born from Aether Darkness. Everything around me is black, stretching off into the infinite distance. In this endless abyss I float, alive yet not alive, a being waiting to be born. A warm feeling flows into my core and I begin to take shape, the surrounding darkness gathering together to make my body. So I¡¯m a human... ok then I can get behind this, the body seems pretty cool. What weapon would I like to use? Hmm, that¡¯s a tough one. Let¡¯s go with... a spear. Yeah, a spear would be nice. Darkness rushes towards my newly formed hand and takes shape. I grip the spear-shaft and give it a test swing. Distortions in the air (can it be called air? I¡¯m not sure) gently lap against my torso as darkness flows around the darkness of my spear. Yes, a spear was a good choice.If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. Please report it. A prick of white light appears in the distance, getting bigger as time passes. The light grows until it is all-encompassing and invades my mind, robbing feeling from my body. Then eventually that fades back to darkness, not the abyss-like darkness of before, but a veil-like black that promises something lurks behind it. Control over myself come back to me and I realise that I¡¯m lying down on something cold. I guess this is it then, I¡¯m here now, I¡¯ve been born. I open my eyes to a grey brick ceiling and breath in. Time to live I guess. Chapter 1 I get up and move around until I get used to my body and once I¡¯m done I sit down and look in front of me. Open Status A semi-transparent screen appears in front of me. Name: None Race: Human Level: 2 Titles: None HP: 120/120 Strength: 12 Constitution: 12 Agility: 12 Intelligence: 12 Skills: Basic Spearmanship Lv 1/10 Huh, level 2. That¡¯s pretty low but at least I''m not starting out at 0, that would suck. Well, time to do something. Wanting to test something, I get up and begin practicing my spearmanship, following the movements detailed in my mind. Moving like this feels natural, just like breathing but more intense. As I¡¯m practicing, I get my first look at the spear I was so satisfied with. The shaft is wooden and smooth whilst the tip is metal and shaped like an arrowhead. Inspecting it causes information to pop up in front of my eyes that somehow doesn''t obstruct my vision. Spear (Common) Required Lv 0 Durability 10/10 Attack 3-5 A spear given to aetherborn who choose the path of spearmanship That¡¯s convenient. Come to think of it, where am I? I look around and see nothing but grey brick walls, empty space, and two doorways opposite each other. The doorways have a thin layer of white mist obscuring my view of what¡¯s behind them and I somehow know that I won¡¯t be able to pass through them. Looks like I¡¯ll be in this room for a while. How long do I reckon? 30 days? That seems about right. I stop to think about why that number came to me and why it feels right. I continue practicing when I don¡¯t get an immediate answer, pushing the thought to the back of my mind. I¡¯m sure their are greater minds than me who have set their minds to it anyway, I¡¯ll just ask them if I happen to meet them. A few minutes pass with the only sound being my spear as it cuts and stabs through the air before I notice a faint outline appearing near me. It looks vaguely human and is in a lying position. A couple more minutes pass as the outline becomes more solid and defined, finally taking shape as a young man lying on the floor with a katana strapped to his waist. Once he is completely materialized his eyes snap open and he shoots up from his spot. ¡°W-what¡¯s going on? W-where am I?¡± He seems to talk to himself before looking around and seeing me practicing. ¡°Hello sir. Do you know what¡¯s happening?¡± That ones directed at me. I look over at him whilst continuing to practice. Human Lv 2 [Otherworlder] I wonder what that otherworlder title means. ¡°Sir?¡± Oh yeah, he¡¯s looking at me. What should I say? Hm, let¡¯s stick with the basic stuff for now. ¡°Yeah, we¡¯re in a dungeon waiting for invaders.¡± How did I know that? Oh well, just go with it. ¡°If we defend the dungeon for 30 days then we''ll be released and we can go out into the world.¡± The man sits down and tries to process what I just said. I just focus on following the movements in my head. A ding wakes me out of my trance.This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it. Basic Spearmanship is now Lv 2/10 More information on spearmanship flows into my mind, where to move, how to move, how to stab with more power or block attacks better. I pause my actions for a few moments to digest this new information before beginning again, my movements and attacks now being a slight bit more complex and efficient. "Sir, is there um... something like a status I can see?" The man speaks up again. "Just think open status." "Yeah, um... thanks." My practice continues for another few hours, only stopping when I get a prompt. Basic Spearmanship is now Lv 3/10 At some point the man had joined me, swinging his katana. Maybe its my higher skill level, but his swings look amature. However, I can tell that his swings had more power behind them than my stabs so I decide to ask him why, he seems nice enough. "Hey." "Sir?" "We''re both level 2 humans but your strength stat is higher than mine, do you know why that is?" "Well um, I have a title you see and um... it gives me +1 to all stats." "Otherworlder?" "Yeah, that''s it." "Cool." "Thanks." And silence returns. I go over to the wall and sit against it, resting my spear against my shoulder and closing my eyes. Time drags on and I slowly drift off to sleep. ... I wake a while later, feeling refreshed. I grab my spear, get up, and stretch. I notice the otherworlder guy slumped against the opposite wall, asleep. Quietly, as to not disturb the sleeping man, I once again practice my spearmanship. Time passes by quickly. By the time the man wakes up, I''ve gained another spearmanship level, more information than before flowing into my mind. It seems that the difference between levels increases as the levels get higher, but so does the effort needed to level the skill. After getting up the young man greets me. "Good morning sir." I don''t know why he keeps calling me sir, according to my estimates I should look younger than him, plus I was only born a few minutes before him? "Morning." He picks up his katana and unsheathes it before seeming to remember something. "I never caught your name." He says in a weird mix between a statement and a question. "My name, hm?" I say. Wait, what is my name? I have to decide by myself? Fine then, from now on I shall be called Aeron. "Aeron, that''s my name." Do you want to set your name as [Aeron]? A message appears in front of my with a ding and I mentally reply with a yes. The message disappears and I''m filled with a new sensation, a feeling of belonging, a sense of identity. This is my name, and no one can take it away from me. Whoa, where did that come from? Nevermind. I focus back on the man in front of me. "What about yours?" I ask. "Y¨±sha." He replies. "Well nice to meet youY¨±sha, I hope we can get along." "Me too." saysY¨±sha, "sorry about yesterday, I was a little confused." "Its ok. By the way, what''s that otherworlder title about?" "Ah, that! I think it''s something to do with me being from another world." "Yeah, that makes sense... wait, what!?" "Another world, you know, Earth?" "No, I don''t know, and what does soil have to do with this?" "Nevermind, it was lost in translation." "Oh ok." Silence falls once again and the only sound is the cutting and slashing if the air as we practice. I find solace in the almost rhythmic swings and thrusts of my spear, pushing all other thoughts away. I don''t need to think about other worlds or how the things I know got into my head, I just need to practice, nothing more. I''ll leave the thinking to the thinkers and they can just leave the fighting to me. ... A week passes by like this, practicing my spearmanship, talking withY¨±sha, and sleeping. He once asked me about something called food but I had no idea what he was talking about. He then asked me about if we needed to drink water and I of course responded with ''we''re not fish!'' It seems like this other world he''s from was a lot different to this one. He seems to miss it but is excited about living life here as well. A strange contradiction if you ask me. We incorporated sparing into our daily routine at one point but stopped when my spear''s durability dropped by one. My basic spearmanship has reached Lv 8/10 but seems to be stuck there as it hasn''t increased for the past two days. Anyways, today something different is happening. The veil of mist blocking one of the doorways disappeared! This happened about a minute ago and we''re just about to investigate. And by ''we'' I mean ''me''.Y¨±sha was cautious and opted to stay back. I creep closer to the doorway, spear in hand, and ready myself for anything that could happen but before I can peer into the room beyond, two short humanoids walk through. I back away as they spot me and screech something unintelligible to each other before raising their scimitars and flailing them as they run towards me. Y¨±sha backs farther away, muttering something under his breath as he shivers in fear or revulsion, or possibly both, at the vile, little horrors. I barely have time to inspect one of them before they are upon me. Goblin Lv 4 [Scavenger] Does everyone except me have titles? I lament as I thrust my spear into one of the many openings that one of these... things leaves open. My spear easily brakes past its shoddy attempt of a block before piercing its shoulder. It opens its mouth and lets loose a scream so ghastly that I let go of my weapon and stumble backwards. Taking advantage of my moment if weakness, the uninjured goblin hacks at me with its blade and damn does it hurt. I lash out with a foot, catching the thing''s chin and sending it flying. I''m consumed by rage and pain as I fall atop it and begin raining down blow after blow upon its face until a cut to my back sends me sprawling to the ground. I roll to the side on instinct and hear the clash if metal on stone as a scimitar strikes where I was a second ago. Vision dulled by pain, I can barleysee anything but a green blur of what I assume is the goblin that struck me. I scramble backwards as the blur advances until my back hits a wall. I look over atY¨±sha for help but he is too busy trembling in a corner. "Coward." I manage to spit out at the huddle in the corner before shakily standing up. I look towards the advancing blur and blink away the flashing notification HP 63/120. This doesn''t seem too bad, I have over half my health left, its just the pain that''s dulling my senses so I''llhave to ignore the pain. I grit my teeth as a flash of rusted silver swings forth from the blur''s uninjured side and I charge straight past it into the goblin''s body. I tackle the blur right in its centre and we fly towards the other goblin who is just now getting to its feet. We roll on the floor, a tangled mess if limbs, weapons forgotten as we flail out our arms, hoping to hit our opponent(s). I manage to grab a hold of one little monster and shove it towards the other and they both start hitting each other, eyes closed in fear and pain and not recognizing the other as their ally. I have scratches and cuts all over my body from those damned sharp nails the little buggers seem to have. I see my spear within arms reach of me so I reach out and grab it and use it as a crutch to stand up. I hobble over to where the goblins are entangles, nothing but one large writhing blur to my eyes and I lift my spear up above my head with both hands and stab down. Again and again and again and again and again I stab sown, until there has long since been no movement from below me. I fall back panting, and let the slew of notifications wash over me. Basic Spearmanship has become Lv 9/10 You have learned Basic Fist Fighting Lv 1/10 You have learned Pain Resistance Lv 1/20 Basic Fist Fighting has become Lv 3/10 Pain Resistance has become Lv 2/20 You have killed a Lv 4 Goblin, + 200 exp You have killed a Lv 4 Goblin, +200 exp You have leveled up to Lv 3 I grin a victors grin at the two corpses before me as they return to the Aether and a wave of power flows through me as part if it flows into me. The rest of the motes of darkness either fade away into nothingness or gather together to make two items. I want to reach out and grab them but my body protests and I am forced to lean back and rest, smiling up at the same grey brick ceiling I woke up to just over a week ago. I won. I won. I WON! Chapter 2 I get up groggily, my head pounding but my wounds healed. I''m guessing I''ve been out for a while since the otherworlder is out of his corner and the dropped items are gone... where have they gone?! I shake my head clear of the pain and look around again, no items to be seen. My gaze lands on Y¨±sha who is swinging his katana with more focus than usual. "Y¨±sha?" He jumps at my voice. "Y-yes?" "Do you know where my dropped items are?" I out emphasis on my to get my point across. "N-no, I don''t." "Are you sure? You seem awfully nervous." "I''m not um... I''m just focusing on practice." "Riiight." This isn''t getting anywhere. I look towards the doorway and notice the veil is still gone. Might as well check that room before continuing my investigation. I walk through the doorway into a room exactly like the one I just left bar the three items lying scattered across the room and a wider doorway leading into it. Two of the items are swords given to aetherborn upon birth and the other is a ring that I assume to be drop from a dead human. Sword (Common) Required Lv 0 Durability 7/10 Attack 3-5 A sword given to aetherborn who choose the path of swordsmanship Interesting, its just like my spear but for swordsmen. Lesser Ring of Strength (Uncommon) Required Lv 2 Durability 5/5 Strength +1 A ring created for warrior apprentices to help in self-defense I slip the ring on my finger, enjoying the rush if power that flows through my body, and spend a moment in silence for my fellow dungeon guardians that died here. I go back into my original room, shoot a glare at the thieving coward I have to share it with, and check my status before resuming my daily routine of spear practice. Name: Aeron Race: Human Level: 3 Titles: None HP: 130/130 Strength: 13 (+1) Constitution: 13 Agility: 13 Intelligence: 13 Skills: Basic Spearmanship Lv 9/10 Basic Fist Fighting Lv 3/10 Pain Resistance Lv 2/20 As we practice I send the occasional glare over at Y¨±sha, trying to pressure him without crossing the line of fighting with my own race. In fact, why did I draw that line? Is this like the information in my head, an inbuilt instinct to protect the species? Is this what stopped me from continuing my interrogation earlier? Well, it doesn''t matter why I think that, I don''t like my thoughts being messed with so I''ll do the opposite and use a little violence. With that thought I go over to him and start yelling.This story is posted elsewhere by the author. Help them out by reading the authentic version. "WHERE ARE THEY? GIVE THEM TO ME NOW!" He shrinks back at my sudden outburst, shocked that I switch from calmly practicing to yelling in an instant. "WHERE DID YOU HIDE THEM?" He mutters something about not knowing but I grab him by the collar and push him up against the wall. "WHERE ARE THEY?" I raise my freehand and ball it into a fist. "W-wait! I''ll tell you." The threat of violence seems to have cracked him. I gesture for him to go on. See instincts? This is a way better way to handle the situation. Y¨±sha finally finds what he''s looking for and pulls out a pouch that I inspect. Small Spacial Pouch (Rare) Durability 25/25 Item slots: 5 A pouch with a small pocket dimension woven into the fabric I let out a whistle at the effect. I guess this is how he hid the goblin''s weapons and drops from me. I grab it from him and try to check inside. Items stored Scimitar (Common) Scimitar (Common) Lesser Ring of Agility (Uncommon) All I have to do to retrieve or store an item is will it to happen, this is very handy. As for the ring that dropped, the required level to wear it is Lv 4 and it gives +2 agility. So that means that the higher the level of an item the higher stats it has. I throw the cowering man to the ground and go back to the other room to store the swords from the previous inhabitants, filling the last two slots of my spacial pocket. You never know what can be useful later on. My gaze sweeps the room again for anything I might have missed earlier but there is nothing. I think I''ll stay in this room from now on, away from the thief.I resume my practice facing the doorway to prevent the otherworlder from entering my room, and after a day of practice I place my spacial pouch in my pocket and sleep in the same position as usual, sat against the wall with my spear resting on my shoulder. ... I awake to the screeching of more goblins. I open my eyes to see three Lv 4 goblins stood in a semicircle around me, seemingly arguing about who''s going to attack first. I don''t know though because I can''t speak whatever abomination of a language they do. One of them notices that my eyes are open and goes to tell the others. I take advantage of this delay to stand up and ready myself for battle. Seeing me up and ready, one goblin growls a menacing-sounding something at the other two and they look sheepish for a moment, if that contortion of their facial features could be called sheepishness. They take their stances and I inwardly feel ashamed that I let myself get sneaked up on by such shoddy fighters. What if it weren''t these idiots and instead a goblin who didn''t wake me up before attacking? Or worse, a race that''s more strength focus that could end me whilst I sleep?Anyways, I''ll come up with countermeasures later, now is the time to fight. The three goblins advance at once, more coordinated than the last ones I fought, and swing their scimitars in sync. I block the centre one and lash out with a kick on my right, the blow sending that goblin sprawling. I brace as a blade slashes along my side, right where I was hitlast time. I wince but don''t let the pain distract me as I hook the centre goblin''s weapon with my spear and draw a circle in the air with my spear tip, causing the scimitar to fly out of its hands. I then thrust forwards and the spear sinks into the creature''s torso, but not far enough as it''s still kicking and screaming on the end of it. I charge forwards, pushing the goblin along, and a silver flash passes through the space I occupied just moments ago. I continue forwards until I ram the goblin into a wall, my spear finally sinking in enough to cease its movements. I watch as the life begins to fade out of its eyes but it doesn''t happen fast enough as the two other monstrosities are approaching behind me and I can''t get this damned thing off my spear! I spin around, using the almost-corpse on my spearas a weapon in its own right, sending the other goblins flying. These things sure are weak for their level, or I''m just strong, or both. No, focus on the battle! Don''t get distracted! My momentarily lapse of concentration is enough for a thrown scimitar to pierce my stomach, dropping me to my knees as my spear clatter to the ground. Pain Resistance is now Lv 3/20 The welcome ding of a notification sounds in my ear and I gain a slight relief from the pain assulting my senses. That relief quickly turns back to agony as another blade bites deep into my shoulder. Not thinking straight, I grab a hold of both weapons, preventing their wielders fro, pulling them out. I shakily get to my feet, resisting the urge to give in to the pain as the two monsters attempt to tug the blades out of me. I let go of the weapon in my shoulder and reach out to grab a goblin''s head with a bloody hand. I then precede to smash the things head into the wall next to me until it stops struggling, just like its friend did a while ago. A smile curls itself on my lips at the death if another goblin but I wipe it off as I resist the foreign influence trying to make me enjoy the kill. Dammit, now''s not the time for an identity crisis! I try to ignore everything but the goblin in front of me as it gives up on wresting its weapon from my grasp and strikes at me with its claws. Cuts open along my left arm as it rakes its hand across my skin. I send a hook with my right, but my poorly formed fist causes my wrist to jar. The little green monstrosity then latches onto my arm with its teeth and I have to bite back a scream. My mind is consumed by rage but with both my arms disabled and my legs refusing to listen to me, I only have one limb left to attack with. I mimic the thing in front of me and lock my teeth around its neck, crunching down. Warm blood fills my mouth as I ravage its windpipe as much as I can. It tries to yell, shout, claw, bite, anything, but nothing can save it from its fate. With a snap, I bite straight through and the goblin enters a final dying frenzy as it lashes out with everything it has, drawing more lines of blood across my body, before it becomes still. A few seconds later, the weight pressing down on me grows lighter as the things body begins to dissipate. I learned my lesson from last time, without listening to the chorus of notifications ringing in my ear, I gather the two items formed from the dissipating motes of light and huddle over them as my consciousness slips and my vision fades to black. ... The first thing I see when I wake up is the undismissed notifications from my last fight. They cover my whole vision yet do not get in the way of my view of anything else. Basic Fist Fighting has become Lv 6/10 Pain Resistance has become Lv 5/20 You have killed a Lv 4 Goblin, +150 exp You have killed a Lv 4 Goblin, +150 exp You have killed a Lv 4 Goblin, +150 exp For successfully defending against 5 invaders by yourself, you have earned the title [Dungeon Defender] [Dungeon Defender] is a title given to those who have defended their species'' dungeons from invaders. The more invaders one defends against, the more stats this title gives. Current stat bonuses: +1 Constitution Your body has adapted to perform part of the dungeon''s regeneration on its own: You have learned HP Regeneration Lv 1/10 Including the items Igot, that last fight had a pretty decent payoff. Not enough to make up for almost getting killed, but enough to make me happy with my progress. Its those last three notifications that really intrigue me though because now I know that to gain titles I have to earn them and that my body can adapt to external factors and makes me get stronger and gain skills. Still, the exp I got per goblin went down. Is it because I''m a higher level now? Yeah, that seems about right. That last thought was different from the other information I''ve been given before, it was more like the knowledge I gain from levelling up skills, a more instinctual understanding rather than a force fed one. So I wonder what makes the difference? I ponder it for a while before giving up. "I already said I wouldn''t focus on things I can''t understand." I say to myself. "So I''ll focus on things I can, like training." And so that''s what I do. I swap the swords in my spacial pouch for the items that dropped, pick up my spear (it''s now on 4 durability) and practice my spearmanship, my mindclear of any thoughts other than training. Chapter 3 Two weeks pass by uneventfully. I only have to defend the dungeon for 7 more days and then I''m free to leave. I want to leave sooner, but at the same time I want to get through this bottleneck I''m facing with my spearmanship before doing so. I''ve been stuck at Lv 9 for weeks now, even as I''ve been devoting most of my time towards training it. The little time that I spent training other skills however, did yield some results. My basic fist fighting''s skill level has gone up by one, whilst pain resistance has increased by two, causing both of them to sit at Lv 7 but no matter what I tried HP Regeneration has remained at Lv 1. I''m also wearing the two items that dropped off the goblins during my last fight: a leather chestplate and some boots. The chestplate is only a common item but it offers some measure of protection and resized to fit me when I put it on. The boots are uncommon and grant me a boost whilst wearing them. So I''m pretty satisfied with these items. Leather Chestplate (Common) Required Lv 0 Durability 10/10 Defence +3 Lightweight leather armour that protects the torso Boots of Dashing (Uncommon) Required Lv 2 Durability 15/15 While the wearer is moving in a straight line, +5% movement speed A pair of traveller''s boots made for those who are in a hurry Also, my spear is now only on 3 durability. I hope its enough to last me through another fight. And somehow my Lesser Ring of Strength lost a point of its durability during the goblin fight as well. Luckily, its not likely to lose anymore durability anytime soon. Anyways, today something different is happening. The veil in my room''s larger doorway is rippling and I think its something entering the dungeon. I''ve not actually seen anything enter the dungeon before, because the first time I was in the other room and the second time I was asleep, so I''m not sure if that''s the case. I stand a few meters away from the doorway, spear raised and ready for battle, just in case something hostile does come through. My assumption is proven to be correct when the rippling intensifies and three silver-furred wolves prowl into the room. They spread out and two of them try to flank me as I inspect them. Silver Wolf Lv 4 These creatures mark the first enemies I''ve come to face that don''t have a title, and I was starting to think I was incompetent for not having one at Lv 2. Thankfully that''s not the case. I charge the centre wolf, not allowing them time to get into position, and the bonus movement speed of my boots takes effect. My spear aims at the wolf''s forehead, but with a quick jerk of its head it avoids the brunt of the attack, my spear skimming off its shoulder. The right wolf leaps at me and I twist to avoid it before jumping back to dodge the centre wolf''s counter attack. The left wolf takes this chance to leap at my side and attempt to bite down on my hip. I block it with a brutal smash to its lower jaw using the butt of my spear. I jump and leap and twist around the room for a few minutes, sending the occasional counter jab with my spear, until one of the wolves manages to catch the shaft in its mouth and snap it with its powerful jaw. Overcome by rage, I tackle that wolf to the ground, my chestplate protesting against the assault of the other two wolves. I straddle the wolf I''m on, raining down blow after blow for a few seconds before grasping either side of its head with my hands and twisting. A sickening snap echoes around the room as my armour finally gives way to the two beasts attacking me, letting claws rake down my sides. My anger and pain resistance allows me to continue on as I uppercut one of the wolves before turning to the other and punching it in the temple. With both wolves stunned, I get off the dissipating corpse I''m on and pound the left wolf''s head repeatedly, only stopping when I turn around to fend off the other beast. Once that wolf falls, I turn to the other one and within a few minutes the battle is over and I review the notifications from the fight. Pain Resistance has become Lv 8/20 This story has been taken without authorization. Report any sightings. Basic Fist Fighting has become Lv 9/10 You have killed a Lv 4 Silver Wolf, +180 exp You have killed a Lv 4 Silver Wolf, +180 exp You have killed a Lv 4 Silver Wolf, +180 exp You have levelled up to Lv 4 I grin as some of the dissipating motes of light flow into me and I''m strengthened in body and mind, no longer angry over the loss of my spear as I look down at my new one. The whole weapon is made of a smooth, silver material and elegant wolf engravings adorn the shaft. The spear is the only drop from this fight, but I''m more than happy it is. Silver Wolf Spear (Rare) Required Lv 4 Durability30/30 Attack 16-18 Strength +2, Constitution +1, Agility +1 +10% attack speed A spear that embodies the elegance and savagery of the Silver Wolves I discard my tattered armour, leaving my shirt as the clothes I had on birth always seem to repair themselves, and slip on the Lesser Ring of Agility I got a while ago. Feeling stronger than I ever have before, I go about my dally routine. My wounds slowly begin to heal under the joint efforts of the dungeon and my HP Regeneration skill. Later on in the day, three more wolves enter, seemingly enraged. With the boosts to my stats and skills, it was relatively easy to deal with them this time. However, probably due to my level up, the Silver Wolves only gave 120 exp each. These wolves dropped two items: some hide, and a pair of claws. Both are listed as materials that can be used in crafting. Star Wolf Hide (Uncommon) Lv 4 Material Hide from a Star Wolf, can be used in crafting Star Wolf Claws (Uncommon) Lv 4 Material Claws from a Star Wolf, can be used in crafting I''m not really sure what use these will be to me, but their rarities and levels are higher than the swords I have in my spacial pouchso I put the hide into the pouch''s empty space and replace the sword with the lowest duarability with the claws. Anyways, the drops aren''t the only thing that I got out of this fight. My [Dungeon Defender] title increased the amount of stats it gives me from +1 constitution to +2 constitution. Also, my HP Regeneration skill levelled up to Lv 2, increasingly my survivability. It seems that the skill only gains experience when used in combat, which would mean I have to get injured whilst fighting someone for it to level up and I''m not doing that purposefully so I guess it''ll just have to level up when it does naturally. I don''t know why, but no wolves have entered the dungeon since. Oh well, less risk for me, so back to training it is! ... A few more days pass. There are now only 3 days until I''m released from this dungeon. Sure, its been nice to me with the title and the relatively safe living environment (compared to what I think outside is like), but I don''t want to stay in this place for the rest of my life, however long that may be. I want to explore the world outside, see the sights, fight more opponents, become stronger but most of these are denied to me if I stay in this dungeon. Today, as I''m practicing my spearmanship, I notice something different. Its a feeling I can''t quite grasp, as if its just out of my reach, and I know that if I stop the feeling will disapear. This is a natural knowledge, one like the knowledge that comes with skill progression but different at the same time. It''s as if a hand is guiding me towards it instead of me instinctively knowing or having information forced into my head. I try to reach out for that feeling, holdit withinmy grasp, as I allow my movements to flow the way the hand guides them to. A yearningemotion wells up within me, as if my very soul wishes to reach out and grab that feeling so that I may experience it. The feeling materilizes in my mind as a glowing orb that dances around, my spear''s movements chasing it relentlessly. Every now and again my spear almost reaches the orb causing a sense of immense understanding to begin to build up inside me, but then its gone as the light spins away from the spear tip. Its almost as if the light can escape from me any time it wishes and is playing a game, seeing if it can dodge the movements of my weapon, but if that''s the case then why? Nevermind, just focus on following the guiding hand and chasing the light, that''s all I can do. On some level I''m aware that I''m improving, in terms of footwork, spear technique, efficiency, and the amount of my strength I can bring out in a strike. I know how much I''m improving, yet at the same time I finally get a sense of how far there is for me to improve. What I''ve learned so far only amounts to a short walk on an road that streches far beyond the horizon and I''m excited to see what''s at the end, even if I won''t get there anytime soon, no matter how fast I travel. All of a sudden, a ball of light splits off from the main body, forming a new orb that continues to dance and spin around me. The new, smaller ball of light moves slower than its parent but has a fainter glow. It feels like I''ve been presented with a choice on how to advance. I can either chase after the unreachable goal of the stronger light and hope to gain more understanding on spearmanship or I can go after the smaller orb and try to completely understand the part that split off from the whole. I know that both options will help me tread down the endless path of spearmanship so I''m torn on which one to choose. Both lights begin to float away, as if urging me to take a choice or make do with neither, but both options are so tempting! On one hand, I can gain a better grasp of spearmanship as a whole whilst on the other hand, I can understand a single concept of spearmanship in detail. What to choose? What to choose? The lights get father and father away, beginning to fade as I make my choice and leap forwards, my spear catching up to the slower if the two lights and it being absorbed into me. The larger orb fades completely as I''m left to meditate on the new understanding I''ve gained. After a long while, I open my eyes and am immediately greeted with blinking notifications. I read them all one by one, gaining a better understanding of what happened. Basic Spearmanship has become Lv 10/10, entering a state of enlightenment Basic Spearmanship Lv 10/10 has become Intermediate Spearmanship Lv 0/10 Intermediate Spearmanship has become Lv 3/10 You have learned PiercingIntent Lv 1/10 The state of enlightenment must have been that trance I was in whilst the glowing orbs must have been intent. Since I entered it at Lv 10/10 does that mean that will always happen when a skill reaches maximum level or only certain skills? This question will be answered in time so I push it to the back of my mind and focus on the new skill I learned. What I have at the moment consists of a very weak understanding of piercing intent. Intent is doing something with a purpose, in my case: piercing through the enemy, and if you are able to understand and utilise an intent, you can apply that intent to your actions and they will carry the property of your intent. I focus my intent into my spear, determined to test my new skill out, before I notice something and stop. The veil of mist, its gone! Chapter 4 Finally, I can leave this place. The freedom I¡¯ve dreamed about is finally within reach. But if the veil is gone, does that mean I was in a trance for three days? That¡¯s weird, I don¡¯t feel tired at all I feel refreshed, almost as if I¡¯ve just woken up from a good rest. The sound of footsteps wakes me from my thoughts and I turn around to see a large, well-built man, with a broad sword strapped across his back, approach from deeper in the dungeon. Human Lv 4 [Dungeon Boss] So a thing like dungeon boss is a title, must be nice getting one on birth, just like an otherworlder. Speaking of otherworlders, the coward follows behind the dungeon boss with two others. The larger man smiles and greets me. ¡±Hello there friend. We are on our way out of the dungeon, care to join us?¡± I almost laugh at his words, he treats it like I¡¯m going to stay here if I don¡¯t follow him. Well, let¡¯s go along with it for now. ¡°Sure.¡± I walk outside with the other 4, noticing something as I exit the dungeon. The thoughts implanted in my mind are gone! I test this out by focusing violent intentions on the others around me, realising with glee that there is nothing holding me back from attacking if I really wanted to enact them. I look around and see nothing but a wasteland, dead trees and a few Lv 0 birds flying around. A silver moon hangs in the sky, its light reflecting off my spear and making it glow slightly. I turn back to the dungeon, an pair of marble pillars with a swirling portal in between, and try to identify it. To my suprise, it works. Dungeon Lv 1-4 Current species: Human Spawns: 6-8 medium creatures Maximum entry limit: 3 This information tells me why enemies generally came in threes whilst I was in the dungeon, and also explains why they were always Lv 4, as its the maximum Lv at which anyone is allowed to enter the dungeon. The size mentioned when dictating the spawn rate also suggests that different sizes of creature are spawned in different amounts. Done inspecting the surroundings, I set off in a direction I can faintly see smoke in. After a few moments of walking, the large man calls out to me. "Wouldn''t it be better to stick together?" To which I reply. "Sure, you guys can. I''ll be going this way though." I hear a couple mumbles from the others but ignore them and continue walking. Eventually, I reach my destination. A small campfire burns and around it lies several goblins, one sat up and seeminglykeeping watch. Something that strikes me as odd is that I''m not as revulsed by the, as I was in the dungeon, that feeling was probably the dungeons way of making sure that I defended it from invaders. The goblins levels are between Lv 2 and Lv 5 and the one keeping guard is Lv 4. I approach slowly and silently, my previous encounters with goblins telling me that they are hostile toward humans. I hope that the darkness hides me but it turns out that hope is unfounded as the goblin on watch spots me when I get within 15 meters of the campsite. It jumps up and prepares to screech something but I''ve already closed most of the distance, the effect of my boots having helped at lot. I focus on piercing through the nightwatch goblin, wanting to test out my new skill, and leap towards it. Part of a startled shriek leaves its mouth before there is a sphltas my spear pierces its throat and a ding as notifications chime in my ear.This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report. Piercing Intent has become Lv 2/10 You have killed a Lv 4 Goblin, +100 exp Thankfully none of the other goblins heard the scuffle and remain sleeping as the dead goblin fades into nothingness. Unfortunately, this guard didn''t drop any items. I turn to the other goblins, an evil smile stretched across my face. Your kind sneaked up on me when I was sleeping before so now I''m returning the favour, just don''t expect me to make the same mistakes you did. The cold night air is filled with soft piercing noises as 5 more lives flicker out like candles. You killed a Lv 2 Goblin, +0 exp You killed a Lv 3 Goblin, +50 exp You killed a Lv 3 Goblin, +50 exp You killed a Lv 4 Goblin, +100 exp You killed a Lv 4 Goblin, +100 exp You killed a Lv 5 Goblin, +175 exp Only two of the goblin''s dropped any loot, a Lv 4 and the Lv 5. The Lv 4 dropped another Lesser Ring of Agility which the effects of, to my dismay, cannot be stacked with the other. I wear it anyway so that I don''t have to use a slot in my spacial pouch. The other item that dropped is luckilyanother piece of chest armour. Goblin Scavenger''s Leather Chestplate (Rare) Required Lv 5 Durability 45/45 +25 defence,+3 agility, +2 constitution A leather chestplate designed to allow freedom of movement whilst still protecting a scavenger from harm I try to donn the armour but it wont resize to fit me, probably because I''m not the required Lv, so I''m forced to replace a weapon in my spacial pouch with it. Realising that I''ve not checked my status in a while I whisper in my mind Open Status. Name: Aeron Race: Human Level: 4 Titles: [Dungeon Defender] HP: 170/170 Strength: 14 (+3) Constitution: 16 (+1) Agility: 14 (+3) Intelligence: 14 Skills: Intermediate Spearmanship Lv 3/10 -Piercing Intent Lv 2/10 Basic Fist Fighting Lv 9/10 Pain Resistance Lv 8/20 HP Recovery Lv 2/10 Ilook at my status and realise how much I''ve grown from my Lv 2 self who only possessed a single basic skill. It''s strange to think that ten of the me from 30 days ago couldn''t match up to what the me of today and that in another 30 days I could be even stronger. It''s strange, but it''s also thrilling to watch my own growth. I sit myself next to the campfire and take an inventory of everything I have on me, but as I do so I get a stupid idea that just might work. If there is a pain resistance then couldn''t their be a fire resistance? So I transfer all my rings to my right hand and reach out into the fire with my left hand and stop reaching futher in when the damage from the fire levels out with the HP I recover from my regeneration skill. I grit my teeth as my hand is burned and healed in a seemingly never ending cycle, my pain resistance skill helping out immensely. I begin to wonder if there really is a fire resistance skill until a few hours later when a notification appears in front of me. You have learned Fire Resistance Lv 1/20 I reach futher into the fire since some of the damage I take from the flames is negated and once again sit there with my hand I the fire. Thankfully this worked, and I didn''t just waste time burning myself for nothing. Many more hours pass, some of them with me asleep and my arm in the fire, and I no longer feel like I''m progressing in terms of my resistance. It has reached Lv 3 and allows me to negate a decent amount of the damage from the campfire, which is beginning to dwindle as the sun rises on the horizon. Feeling well enough rested and satisfied by my latest skill gains, I get up and head in the opposite direction of the dungeon, hoping to find an end to this wasteland. ... I''ve already been walking for just over two days without encountering anything but birds and dead trees. I''ve been hearing howls in the distance for the past day now but I''ve not caught sight of any wolves yet and the howls have been getting more distant in the latter half of the day. I just keep on walking until I''m tired, at which point I go to sleep with my spear in hand. Eventually, I find a huge, circularcrater in the ground, several thousand meters in diameter and many hundereds deep at the centre, with signs of life in some of the caves dug out of the sides of the crater. At the centre of the crater stands two large pillars with statues of what looks to be warriors with swords drawn at the top, a dungeon,whichradiates a heavy mental pressure to the surroundings. I can feel it from the outer rim of the crater so I dread to imagine what it would feel like up close. Some movement from one of the nearer caves catches my eye and I turn to look as a human-like figure exits the cave. It looks like a human woman, but the savage aura around her and her red eyes suggest otherwise. Another reason I doubt she is human is hersharpteeth that flashin the sunlight. She is wearing practicle and unrestrictive armour and carriesa broadsword at least twice as large as the one the dungeon boss from earlier had. Ripped muscles cover her entire body and scars crisscross her skin. I think she spots me because she raises her head in my direction and shouts something. Two more women appear out of the cave and follow the first woman''s gaze to me. Then, all three of them start to sprint towards me, drawing massive weapons as they do so. I inspectone of them when they get close enough and what I see is enough to send me immediately running in the opposite direction. Savage Lv 9 [Mad Warrior] Chapter 5 I sprint away, myagility speeding up the movements of mybody, as the three warrior women use their strength to bound forwards in explosive strides. Even with the bonus from his boots, myspeed falls behind the savages'' and they slowly close the gap between us. I know I won''t be able to outlast them as their constitution stat is likely to be higher than mine, so I look around for something that could help me. No creatures in sight and nowhere to hide... great. It won''t be long before they catch up so I do the logical thing and turn around, ready to fight. Why waste stamina running away when they''re going to catch you anyways? I ready my spearand focus my all on thetip, willing the power to pierce into existence. My vision narrows to just my spear and the charging enemies, my thoughts dedicated to either waiting for the right moment to strike or funnelling my intent into my spear. It begins to glow with a dimlight which seems very faint compared to the sunlight all around, but it''s there. Then, the first woman gets within range, leaping forwards and swinging her huge sword from over her head. I let loose a strike which carries all of my strength and a beastal roar rips forth from my throat. PIERCE! And pierce it does, right through her chest. The fatal strike from overhead loses its strength and the greatsword clatters to the ground next to me. Elation fills me, which fades into exhaustion as all strength leaves my body. And then two strong arms wrap around my body and I look up to see the woman I thought was dead with a feral gleam in her eye. Pain wracks my body as they begin to squeeze, the other two women stopping and seeming to enjoy watching the life squeezed out of me. My HP begins to visibly drop, only slowed by my HP Regeneration which fights against the damage. Just over half my HP is gone when a welcome ding sounds inside my head, distracting me from my impending death. HP Regeneration has become Lv 3/10 The pain doesn''t subside at all, but the burden on my body gets easier as I effectively loose 1 less HP per second. I am still rendered unable to struggle by the woman''s death hug but strength does seem to be leaving her arms. I flail, trying to accomplish something, but nothing comes of it. I attempt to stay calm, but the pain continues to assault my senses. Another ding rings out, accompanied by a slight relief from the pain, but I hastily blink this one away as my HP drains near its end. HP 29/170... 25/170... 21/170 Pain Res- I shut my eyes as a primal fear grips me. Am I going to die? I barely started my life and its already going to be over. There''s so much more I want to see, to do, to experience. It can''t end here. The pain gets less, is this what dying feels like? Wait, less pain? I check my HP once again and see it falling at a slower and slower rate as the strength in the woman''s arms begins to slip. I look up and see her feral eyes have far less life in them and that blood flows down her torso where my spear is still embedded. I begin to see hope again as the damage from the crushing becomes equal to my regeneration, then lesser, and my injuries begin to slowly heal. The woman seems to barely hang on to life through sheer willpower alone, her arms still attempting to crush me as if she''s determined to drag me with her. Her expression is one of pure madness and rage and I can''t bring myself to look at it. After a short while her arms slip away and light fades from her eyes. Her body slumps over mine and I struggle to keep myself upright until her body dissipates into motes if aether and a new strength surges into my body. You have killed a Lv 9 Savage, +1140 exp You have levelled up to Lv 5 For freeing a fellow warrior from the throes of madness and staying in their embrace until their death, you have earned the title [Merciful Killer]A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation. [Merciful Killer] is a title granted to those who release their fellow warriors from their suffering. The more warriors you free from madness, the more stat bonuses this title gives. Current stat bonuses: +2 strength I breathe a sigh of relief and then almost laugh at the irony of it all. The slayer tried to kill me no matter what but ended up helping strengthen me. Confusion clouds the faces of the two other savages but they both leap forwards to attack anyway. I snap out of my thoughts and jump to the side with the energy restored from my level up. With my increased stats, I grab the orb that dropped on the savage¡¯s death and sprint away, using my strength in each stride to widen the distance between myself and my enemies. I know I won¡¯t be able to escape as my level up only restored 1 constitutions worth of stamina so I stop when I¡¯m a decent distance away and take the Goblin Scavenger¡¯s Leather Armour from my pouch and equip it. My stats soar once again and some more of my stamina and health recovers. I get ready to clash once again with the two warrior women. I once again check my HP. HP 95/200 Yup, I''m feeling pretty confident about this. The two savages get within range and leap forwards once again. Having seen this attack multiple times, I easily sidestep the attacks and lash out with my spear towards one of their vital spots. My strike slightly cuts my target¡¯s throat, causing a trickle of blood to run down her neck but doing no serious damage. She retaliates with a sweeping strike which I backstep to avoid before ducking under the second woman¡¯s attack. My spear lashes out once again, hitting the second savage¡¯sknee and causing it to buckle. I withdraw my weapon and then thrust towards the downed woman¡¯s neck, the spear tip glowing with intent. My strike rips through the skin of her neck and damages the airway but I¡¯m unable to withdraw my spear before a greatsword crashes into my armour and sends me flying. My HP, which had returned to about half, drops once again to dangerous levels. I turn in the air to land on my feet but I skid back a few meters and lose my balance. I get back up again and I''mmet by another blow, this one from overhead. I manage to lean to the side so that the blade misses my head and instead cleaves half way into my shoulder through the armour there. Pain Resistance has become Lv 10/20 The slight clarity brought by my pain tolerance rising allows me to think through my next actions. Am I really going to do this? I guess I am. I purposely fall backwards, keeping the greatsword embedded in my left shoulder. The weaponless savage leaps at my fallen figure, executing its signature downwards cleave with its bare hands this time. I raise my spear and angle it towards the falling woman, supporting it with my one functional arm. She comes down hard onto my spear, it pierces through her stomach and keeps going until her body is stuck halfway down the spear shaft. Her hands slam down into the space next to my head as I tilt it as far to the side as I can. The warrior spasms for a few moments before falling still and the edges of her body begin to fade away. I curse at my earlier confidence as the savage completely fades away and I lie there exhausted. I can''t fall asleep here, so close to that crater, so I push myself up after I''ve stabilised and slidethe greatsword out of my shoulder. Damn, that still hurts like hell, even with the pain resistance. I look around and notice the notifications in my vision that I don''t remember appearing. Piercing Intent has become Lv 3/10 You have killed a Lv 9 Savage, +1020 exp Intermediate Spearmanship has become Lv 4/10 You have killed a Lv 9 Savage, +1020 exp After dismissing the notifications, I collect the loot from the battle. I leave the greatswords where they are and end up with three identical orbs. Each of them has the same information when identified but when I held was holding them and they happened to touch, they fused into a slightly larger orb. Orb of Madness (Unique) An orb dropped when one of the fallen race of Savages are slain by a [Merciful Killer]. It contains an essence of madness and can be absorbed when enough orbs are fused. Orbs Fused: 3/50 I stare at the information in front of me as my mind tries to process all the new things presented to it. First of all, what is a unique item? I''ve never seen one before and no one is around to help me and I''m sure none of the others from the dungeon will know either. Second, apparently racesor members of a race, I''m not sure which, can fall and become something like these mindless savages. Third, what the hell is essence? And why can it be absorbed? Urgh, I wish I could just train andworkthese thoughts out but my body is in no shape to do so despite most of my injuries healing. I glance around and pain shoots through my skull, reminding me that I can''t afford to fight again so soon. I think I remember some shelter from on my way here, but my blurred vision prevents me from gettng my barings. I use the crater to orient myself and begin a lomg, trudging walk of putting one foot in front of the other whilst trying to ignore the agony of my woundssealing themselves and bones cracking back into place. It takes all I have to stop myself from collapsing, weariness pressing down on my shoulders the whole way, but I eventually reach my destination. I lay down, hidden from easy sight and look up at the now starry sky. Twomoons hang in the sky tonight, a red one joining the silver, as has happened every night I''ve seen so far apart from when I exited the dungeon. Yet another mystery of this world that I''ll probably never know the answer to. I pat my pockets to make sure my pouch and orb are still there, and go to sleep smiling about the progress I made today whilst trying to forget the multiple near-death experiences I was faced with. Chapter 6 I''ve spent the last 16 days clearing out various caves around that crater. Each cave contained three savages and all of them were at Lv 9. It was time well spent as my [Merciful Killer] title provided more boosts to my strength at 10 kills, 25 kills and 50 kills so it provides me with a total of +8 strength. I have also levelled up twice, bringing me to Lv 7. Also, my Intermediate Spearmanship has levelled up twice and my pain resistance thrice. But the main cause of my excitement is the head sized orb in front of me. It was created through fusing 50 smaller orbs from each of the Savage''s I killed. I did kill another Savage after collecting the 50 orbs but nothing at all dropped, it just gave me exp. The orb glows with a deep red which mesmerises me threatens to draw me in. Even as I open up the orb''s information I can''t bring myself to read it as my eyes ignore the text and are drawn to the pulsating orb. I muster up my willpower and tear my gaze away, looking in the complete opposite direction. I resist the urge to look back to the orb and read its information. True Essence of Madness (True Unique) An orb which, when absorbed, is able to turn the user into a variant of their race So nothing about that attraction towards it that I can''t seem to shake? That seems fairly important information, the fact that its immensely hard to not be entranced by it. Anyways, I need to decide what to do with it before I loose my control of my body. I want to absorb it and become this ''varient'' thing but the orb does have ''Madness'' in its name my prospect don''t seem so good if I do. Hmm, what to do? What to do? I feel a presence caress my mind, causing me to jolt backwards. What''s that? It''s their again, gently probing my defences. I look around to try and see what''s causing it and immediately regret doing so when my eyes fall on the orb again, causing me to be fixated on it once again. ''Doyou want power?'' A voice speaks gently into my mind. Of course,I answer, but why should I trust you? Despite my question, my body is already moving on its own, reaching out to lay my hands on the orb. I try and wrest back control but in doing so my mind comes into contact with the thing speaking to me. My mind immediately recoils backwards, trying to filter and block out everything it just came in contact with. Whether its an automatic or some sort of safety mechanism, I''m glad I wasn''t in contact with the other mind for only a moment because what I experienced when I mentally touched it can be summed up in three words. Pure. Unadulterated. Madness. It makes me shudder at just the thought of it. I thought I knew madness when I saw those mindless Savage''s, but if their level of crazy is a rippling puddle then what I just experienced is a chaotic ocean. Manic laughter begins to echo around my head as I lay my hands on the essence in front of me. I try to mount a last, desperate struggle against the thing controlling my body but it draws close and I retreat. I don''t want to experience that ever again. ''Too bad.'' The voice once again sounds out and through eyes that aren''t mine I see the orb turn into a mist and soak into my body. ''Sleep now child, leave everything to me.'' This time the voice sounds calming and sooths my panic. I want whatever''s happening to stop, I fight to stay awake but a part of me wants to just... lie down and rest and hope everything will be okay when I wake up. Eventually, the defeatist side of me wins and I give up the last strands of conscious and drift off into a dreamless oblivion. ... Somewhere, in a large hall, a man chained to a throne is laughing crazily. His eyes shine with a madness as deep as the abyss that can cause an observer to loose their mind. His powerful body contrasts with his currently feeble aura as the chains around him constrict to try and stop the convulsions of his laughter. Suddenly, the large double doors at the opposite end of the room burst open. A sound akin to an earthquake hitting shakes the room as a beautiful golden-haired woman storms in.This novel''s true home is a different platform. Support the author by finding it there. "WHAT HAVE YOU DONE BOY!?" She screams at the man on the throne, fearsome energy contained within her words but they don''t even faze the man. He halts his manic laughter and slowly raises his head to look at the woman, the deep abyss of madness now only a glint in his right eye. "Ah, Freya, my old friend! How have you been? It''s been so long since we last saw each other. How long ago was it, a decade?" The woman, Freya, bristles at this but manages to calm herself down. "You know full well it was a century ago, at least outside the hall it was, and we''ve never been friends. I don''t even want to know what twisted meaning that word holds for you." "Pleasant as always I see, and I don''t think I''ll answer your question. If you truly wish to know then go ask Chronos." "Chronos died an eon ago whilst sealing you, the only Chronosstill around today are the past versions of him that are still young and weak." "My dear Freya, I don''t know who told you thatbut I''m afraid you''ve been lied to." "In what way?" "Chronos didn''t die, he ascended." "WHAT!?" Freya''s expression becomes one of shock before morphing into one of suspicion. "Why are you telling me this?" "Simple, you''re the only company I''ve had in a long time, and I mean a looooong time. Also, I quite enjoy that aura of death and war you exude when around me." "That seriously can''t be it." "It''s not, I''m going to die soon." The man on the throne said that last bit so casually that you would think he was talking about what the weather might be that day. Freya just stands there, speechless for a minute. "How do you know?" "You and your simple questions, of course I know because I am going to kill myself." Freya is once again struck speechless at the casual response. ''Kill himself!?'' She thought to herself. ''Has his insanity finally tipped him over the edge?'' "Nothing of the sought my dear Freya." "You- just how did you? My thoughts?" The man ignored the stuttering woman and continued. "Do you remember how we first met?" At this, Freya becomes angry again. "Of course I do! You weakened and turned my precious Valkeries into mindless killers. They were no longer fit to dwell on the higher or even middle planes! The world made them mortals again! All my precious Valkeries!" She becomes more hysterical the more she talks, screaming at the motionless man. "Wrong." The single word cuts through all the woman''s pain and rage. She looks at the enthroned man in askance and he answers but lifting up an arm and pointing behind Freya, all the while straining against the chains that sought to bind him motionlessly. She turns around to the open doors to see a silhouette walking through them. "Someone call for a Godslayer?" ... I wake up with a start and shoot up from my position, clutching my spear for some semblance of safety. A part of me laughs at my actions when I look around and see nothing but wasteland in every direction. After making sure I''m safe, I turn my attention to the blinking notifications in front of me. You have absorbed the True Essence of Madness, changing Race from Human to Mad Human Your Race has become Mad Human: +2 Strength, +2 Constitution, -2 Intelligence +1 Strength per level, +1 Constitution per level, -1 Intelligence per level +5 HP per Constitution You have learned the skill Madness Lv 1/- You have earned the title [Champion of Madness] [Champion of Madness] is a title given to one chosen by the God of Madness to be his Champion in the Mortal Realm Will grant stats upon killing the Champions of other Gods Excited for the new changes in mystats, I open my status. Wait, aren''t I forgetting something? I feel like something is wrong, like I didn''t want this to happen or something but there''s no way that''s the case. Being stronger allows me to help others more. Why does that thought also feel wrong? There''s nothing wrong with helping people, right? Madness has become Lv 2/- See? Even my Justice skill has levelled up. It leveling up must show that I''m going to do such a good job living up to my role as the [Champion of Justice]. I can''t wait to use my newfound strength to punish evil doers and help those in need! Status Name: Aeron Race: Mad Human Level: 7 Titles: [Dungeon Defender] [Merciful Killer] [Champion of Madness] HP: 465/465 Strength: 34 (+3) Constitution: 28 (+3) Agility: 17 (+6) Intelligence: 8 Skills: Madness Lv 2/- Intermediate Spearmanship Lv 6/10 -Piercing Intent Lv 3/10 Basic Fist Fighting Lv 9/10 Pain Resistance Lv 13/20 Fire Resistance Lv 3/20 HP Recovery Lv 3/10 Well, time to find some people to help. Announcement! World of Dungeons will be on indefinite hiatus until I''m able to come up with, and write a decent plot from this point forwards. Thank you to everyone who''s stuck around with me this far. That being said, I''ll be writing a new book here on RoyalRoad and on Patreon.The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement. Its a kingdom building novel with game elements, where the main character must manage both of his realities in order to succeed. Feel free to check it out by following the links in the notes below.