Chapter 69 - dungeon 2
Once we met up with Astrid, she looked at both of us before asking,
"So, are you two ready for the dungeon?"
"It seems Seraphina has already given you plenty of advice, so I won’t repeat everything."
She paused for a moment before her expression became serious.
"I only have one thing to say."
"Be careful."
"And never underestimate your enemy."
"On the battlefield, a single mistake is enough to cost you your life."
Amy and I nodded seriously.
She was right.
We were still weak.
Even Amy wasn’t strong enough to carelessly rush through a dungeon. She wouldn’t die easily, but she could still suffer serious injuries if she became overconfident.
As for me...
If I became careless...
I would die.
Seeing our serious expressions, Astrid nodded in satisfaction before leading us toward the carriage.
The three of us climbed inside, and soon the carriage began moving toward the nearest F-Rank Dungeon.
In this world, dungeons had entry restrictions.
Someone who was too powerful couldn’t enter a lower-ranked dungeon. The maximum difference allowed was one major rank.
That meant Amy, who had already reached E-Rank, could still enter an F-Rank Dungeon.
Although...
She was actually much stronger than her current rank suggested.
Amy had deliberately held back her advancement because she wanted to build the strongest foundation possible before ranking up.
During the journey, I quietly looked outside the carriage window.
The bustling streets slowly disappeared behind us.
Large buildings gradually gave way to open fields.
Eventually, forests replaced the fields, and the scenery became quieter.
I watched everything with curiosity.
This was one of the few times I had ever left the mansion.
Before long...
The carriage finally came to a stop.
"We’re here," Astrid said.
She stepped out first.
Amy followed her.
Then I climbed out after them.
Several guards stationed outside the dungeon immediately noticed Astrid and respectfully approached us.
"Lady Astrid."
"Are you here to enter the dungeon?"
Astrid nodded.
"We rented the dungeon earlier."
"Please open the entrance."
The guards immediately stepped aside without asking any further questions.
Although this dungeon didn’t belong to the Starlight Family...
Astrid had already rented it for today because she believed this was the most suitable dungeon for our training.
Following the guards, I finally saw it.
A small portal floated in the middle of a stone platform.
Soft blue light rippled across its surface like calm water.
Just standing near it made me feel a strange fluctuation in the surrounding mana.
"So..."
"This is a dungeon..."
I unconsciously muttered.
Astrid walked over to us one last time.
She looked directly at me.
"Gray."
"This will be your first time killing a monster."
"You need to prepare yourself mentally."
"They’re nothing more than mindless beasts."
"They won’t hesitate to kill you."
"So don’t hesitate either."
Then she looked toward Amy.
"And Amy..."
"Protect your brother until he gets used to fighting."
Amy nodded immediately.
The playful smile she always wore around family completely disappeared.
Only seriousness remained.
This...
Was the Amy everyone outside our family knew.
Cold.
Calm.
Reliable.
After making one final inspection of our equipment, Astrid stepped back.
"You may enter."
"And..."
"Be careful."
We both nodded.
Without another word, Amy stepped into the blue portal.
I followed immediately behind her.
The moment I crossed through it...
The world around me changed.
A cool breeze brushed against my face.
The smell of damp earth and wet stone filled the air.
The surroundings were much darker than outside, with only faint blue crystals embedded in the cave walls providing enough light to see.
Water slowly dripped from the ceiling.
Every sound echoed throughout the cave.
Even my own footsteps sounded unusually loud.
Instinctively, I tightened my grip around Eclipse.
Perhaps noticing my nervousness, Amy gently placed a hand on my shoulder.
"Calm down, Gray."
"Don’t think too much."
"Just think of the monsters as moving training dummies."
I took a slow breath before nodding.
"...Okay."
Her calm voice immediately eased some of my tension.
With Amy beside me, I felt much safer.
Thanks to my Dimensional Awareness, the darkness barely affected my vision.
I could clearly sense the surrounding space.
It almost felt as though the cave itself had become part of my perception.
Amy seemed unaffected by the darkness as well.
She probably had her own way of seeing in places like this.
We carefully moved deeper into the dungeon.
As we walked, Amy reminded me,
"Stay alert."
"Some dungeons contain traps."
I nodded seriously.
"I understand."
Only a few minutes later...
My perception detected movement.
Four presences.
"Wolves," I whispered.
Amy looked in the same direction.
Then she quietly said,
"Perfect."
"This will be your first hunt."
"I’ll stay beside you, but I won’t interfere."
She looked directly into my eyes.
"I’ll only step in if your life is truly in danger."
"I won’t save you just because you get a small injury."
I nodded.
I knew exactly why she was doing this.
She wasn’t abandoning me.
She was giving me the chance to grow.
There were four wolves.
All of them were F-Rank.
Without hesitation, I raised my hand.
Several Ice Spears instantly formed around me.
Using my perception, I carefully aimed at two of the wolves standing farther back.
"Shoot."
The Ice Spears shot forward.
The wolves reacted quickly, but they couldn’t completely avoid the attack.
The spears pierced into their legs, slowing them down.
The moment the first two wolves were injured...
The two healthy wolves immediately charged toward me.
Just as Astrid had taught me...
Predators wouldn’t wait for their injured companions.
They attacked the moment they saw an opening.
I immediately drew Eclipse.
Gravity Control activated.
The sword became almost weightless in my hands.
I sprinted forward instead of waiting for them.
The first wolf lunged at me with its jaws wide open.
I swung Eclipse.
The blade buried itself deep into the wolf’s skull...
But it stopped halfway.
For a split second...
It became stuck.
Without thinking—
I instinctively activated Gravity Control.
The gravity surrounding Eclipse instantly increased.
The sword suddenly became several times heavier.
With a sickening crack...
The blade forced its way through the wolf’s skull and cleanly severed its head.
Blood splashed across the ground.
The wolf’s body collapsed lifelessly before me.
For the briefest moment...
Everything became silent.
I had just killed my first monster.
There was no time to dwell on it.
The second wolf was already upon me.
It lunged toward my left side with frightening speed.
I twisted my body and tried to avoid it, but I was still too slow.
Its sharp claws tore across my arm.
"Argh!"
A burning pain shot through my arm as blood began flowing down my sleeve.
Ignoring the pain, I immediately swung Eclipse.
The blade sliced across the wolf’s body, leaving a deep wound.
The injured beast staggered backward with a painful whine.
At that very moment...
I felt something warm flowing into my body.
The blood remaining on Eclipse was absorbed by the blade before a faint crimson glow spread across it.
Then...
The wound on my arm began healing before my eyes.
The torn flesh slowly closed.
The bleeding stopped.
"...Amazing."
This was the first time I had truly experienced Eclipse’s Lifesteal ability.
It was far more effective than I had imagined.
There was no time to admire it.
The two wolves I had injured with my Ice Spears had finally caught up.
Although their movements were slower because of their injuries, they still charged without hesitation.
I quickly raised my hand.
Several more Ice Spears formed around me.
This time, I aimed at the wolf on the left.
"Shoot."
The spears shot through the air.
At the same time, I dashed toward the other wolf.
With Gravity Control reducing Eclipse’s weight, my sword moved much faster than before.
The wolf tried to dodge.
But thanks to my perception, I had already predicted its movement.
I adjusted my swing slightly.
Slash!
The blade cleanly cut across its neck.
The wolf collapsed instantly.
Almost simultaneously...
The Ice Spears pierced through the other wolf’s head.
Its body fell to the ground without another sound.
Now...
Only one wolf remained.
Amy smiled proudly from behind me.
"Good job, Gray."
"But don’t lower your guard."
"You relied too much on reacting."
"If you use your perception properly, you’ll be able to predict its movements before it attacks."
I nodded.
"...Right."
Immediately, I expanded my perception further.
The last wolf was already injured.
Its breathing had become uneven because of the wound in its leg.
Instead of rushing in immediately, I carefully observed it.
Its muscles tightened.
Its breathing changed.
Its eyes locked onto me.
Then...
It jumped.
This time...
I already knew where it was going.
I sidestepped before it even reached me.
The wolf’s attack completely missed.
Its body landed exactly where my perception had predicted.
Without wasting the opportunity...
I swung Eclipse.
Gravity Control activated for an instant.
The sword became heavier at the exact moment it struck.
Slash!
The wolf’s head separated from its body.
Silence filled the cave once again.
All four wolves lay motionless on the ground.
I slowly lowered Eclipse.
Blood dripped from the blade before gradually disappearing as the sword absorbed it.
I quietly looked around at the corpses.
Then...
I looked down at my own hands.
I had expected to feel terrible after taking a life.
Instead...
My mind remained surprisingly calm.
Perhaps it was because they were monsters.
Perhaps it was because I had prepared myself mentally.
Or perhaps...
Years of training had already made me ready for this moment.
Whatever the reason...
I didn’t regret what I had done.
Amy walked over and gently placed a hand on my shoulder.
"Good job."
"See?"
"It wasn’t as frightening as you imagined."
Then she smiled.
"So..."
"What do you think?"
I returned the smile.
"It was..."
"More exciting than I expected."
Amy nodded in satisfaction.
"Good."
Then she glanced toward the wolf corpses.
"So..."
"What are we doing with those?"
Without saying anything, I walked over to the bodies and touched them one by one.
Each corpse disappeared into my Space Storage.
Amy blinked.
"...Oh."
"I forgot you could do that."
I couldn’t help smiling.
"It saves us from carrying them."
Amy laughed softly.
"I guess it does."
After making sure everything had been collected, we looked deeper into the cave.
The dungeon stretched far beyond what we could currently see.
This...
Had only been the beginning.
Without another word, the two of us continued deeper into the dungeon.
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A/N :- this is the fist combat i write in this novel so i hope it’s not a too much disappointment
I hope you guys like tha Chapter and i really appreciate those who choose to send their power stone thanks for your support!