Chapter 68 - dungeon 1
After that, I continued training with Astrid, focusing on improving my swordsmanship.
I slightly reduced the gravity around my body before pushing myself forward and charging toward Astrid.
The moment I reached her, I swung Eclipse with all my strength.
She calmly blocked the attack with her wooden sword.
Effortlessly.
I didn’t stop.
Again.
And again.
Each exchange flowed into the next without giving me a chance to rest.
Although I couldn’t land a single hit, I could clearly feel myself improving.
Throughout the entire spar, I kept Dimensional Awareness active, carefully tracking the gravity surrounding my body and the movement of my sword.
Every swing.
Every step.
Every mistake.
I memorized them all.
As the spar continued, I gradually let myself go.
There was no need to hold back.
I attacked with everything I had.
Swordsmanship.
Ice.
Darkness.
Even the applications of gravity I had just learned.
I continuously experimented, carefully observing how Astrid reacted to every attack I threw at her.
At first, my goal had simply been to improve.
But somewhere along the way...
It changed.
Now...
My goal was to make Astrid react to my attacks.
Even if it was only a little.
And one day...
I would land a clean hit against her.
That remained my ultimate goal.
The training went incredibly well.
Although I still failed to land a single strike...
I wasn’t disappointed.
If anything...
I was enjoying every second of it.
Fighting someone far stronger than me while being able to freely experiment with everything I had was an amazing learning experience.
After catching my breath, I opened my status window.
⸻
[STATUS WINDOW]
Name: Gray Starlight
Age: 8
Rank: F
Bloodline: [Unawakened]
Physique: [Unawakened]
Class: None
Talent: SS+
⸻
Attributes
Strength: F+
Agility: F
Endurance: F+
Mana: E-
Mana Capacity: E-
Will: E+
Intelligence: A
Charm: S
Luck: ??? (Random)
⸻
Affinities
• Ice Affinity
• Darkness Affinity
• Space Affinity
⸻
Skills
• Ice Control (F) (Passive)
• Darkness Control (F) (Passive)
• Space Control (F) (Passive)
• Gravity Control (F) (Passive)
• Devour (F) (Growth-Type)
• Space Storage (F) (Growth-Type)
• Dimensional Awareness (F) (Growth-Type • Semi-Passive)
⸻
Mastery
Apprentice Sword Mastery — 14%
Mana Apprentice — 7%
⸻
Bound Weapon
ECLIPSE (F)
Ability:
• Lifesteal
——
I immediately noticed the improvement reflected in my status window.
Tomorrow would be my very first time entering a dungeon.
Seeing how much I had grown over the past few days gave me a little more confidence.
Not enough to make me arrogant...
But enough to make me look forward to tomorrow with excitement.
Soon, Amy finished her own training and walked over.
She looked at my exhausted appearance before glancing at Astrid’s satisfied expression.
"What happened?"
Astrid smiled warmly.
"We trained."
"And I can clearly feel how much our little Gray has improved."
"He still has plenty of flaws, but he fixes them one by one."
"His talent for learning and adapting is truly remarkable."
"No one can deny that."
Then her expression became slightly more serious as she looked toward Amy.
"But tomorrow, make sure you protect him."
"He still doesn’t have any real experience outside the mansion."
Amy immediately puffed out her chest proudly.
"Hmph."
"You don’t have to tell me."
"I’ll make sure he’s completely safe under my watch."
Then she turned toward me with a mischievous smirk.
"And besides..."
"He has to obey every command his amazing big sister gives him inside the dungeon."
I looked at her.
Honestly...
I didn’t even have the energy to argue anymore.
I simply slumped back into my chair.
Seeing my reaction, Amy’s smile grew even wider.
"Oh?"
"You’ve already given up, little brother?"
"I was hoping you’d put up a better fight than this."
I knew she was provoking me on purpose.
Unfortunately...
It worked.
Before I realized it, the two of us were bickering all the way back to the kitchen.
Just like yesterday, Amy shamelessly used the dungeon as leverage to make me do little things for her.
I endured it.
After all...
Once tomorrow was over...
She wouldn’t be able to use that excuse against me anymore.
The thought alone made enduring her teasing much easier.
The rest of the day passed peacefully.
Amy and I spent hours playing games together while Astrid occasionally joined us.
Although I lost more often than I wanted to admit...
It was still a lot of fun.
Before I knew it, evening had arrived.
As always, the three of us gathered with Mom for dinner.
While we were eating, Mom looked at us with gentle but serious eyes.
"Be careful tomorrow."
"The dungeon is very different from training."
Amy and I nodded at the same time.
"We will."
After dinner, we spent a little more time chatting before everyone returned to their rooms.
Tomorrow...
Would be my first real adventure.
My first real battle.
My first encounter with monsters.
Just thinking about it made my heart race.
Eventually, I closed my eyes and slowly drifted into dreamland.
...
The next morning...
I woke up earlier than usual.
After taking a shower and putting on clothes suitable for combat, I neatly made my bed before heading toward the dining room.
As expected, Mom and Amy were already waiting for me.
"Good morning, Mom."
"Good morning, Amy."
"Good morning, Gray."
"Morning, little brother."
Today’s breakfast felt slightly different.
There was a quiet excitement in the air.
After all...
Today was finally the day.
Once breakfast was nearly finished, Mom looked at me.
"So, son..."
"Are you ready for your first real battle experience?"
I nodded without hesitation.
"Yes."
She smiled softly before reminding me one last time.
"Make sure you stay alert."
"Always keep your senses sharp."
"And don’t rely too much on Amy."
"She’ll protect you if necessary..."
"But you also need to learn how to protect yourself."
I nodded seriously.
"I understand."
Then Mom turned toward Amy.
"And you."
Amy immediately straightened her posture.
"Yes, Mom."
"Don’t go and defeat every monster yourself."
"Gray needs real combat experience."
"Only interfere if he’s genuinely in danger."
Amy nodded confidently.
"Leave it to me."
"I know."
After breakfast, we both stood up.
Mom gently hugged each of us before patting our heads.
"Come back safely."
"We will."
After saying our goodbyes, Amy and I left the mansion together.
Astrid was already waiting for us outside.
Without another word...
The three of us set off toward my very first dungeon.