Chapter 223
Clearing a Class 4 dungeon would normally take just barely enough days to avoid a stampede—that's the standard in this world.
Doing it in a single day should have been impossible.
Yet our single party achieved it.
People might call it a monumental feat, but to us, it’s just another day.
And since we weren’t particularly proud of it, we opened the silver treasure chest, secured some decent drops, and stepped out of the dungeon.
"An excellent training session. And proof that you’ve properly acquired your Jobs here."
Claudia, smiling as she welcomed us, had been sitting quietly in a flower field. Once she confirmed our exit, she slowly stood and walked toward me, showing me her status as part of her report.
**Claudia – Class 3 / Level 1 Job: Heaven-Splitting Martial Artist Title: Seeker Base Stats: HP 244 / MP 160 BP 0 EXBP 0 Skills: 7 / Skill Slots: 9 Combat Divine Arts – Class 10 / Level 100 Healing Magic – Class 10 / Level 100 Aerial Step – Class 10 / Level 100 Lightning Step – Class 10 / Level 100 Collapsing Fist – Class 10 / Level 100 Collapsing Kick – Class 10 / Level 100 Heal – Class 10 / Level 100**
I could see she had acquired a Job and title crucial for martial combat.
As the one who ordered the speedrun, I had expected her to clear it faster than us and wait, but doing it with time to spare—despite losing her trump-card attack skill and weakened stats—was proof of her incredible player skill.
"...I knew you could do it, but was it difficult?"
Even if I provided knowledge and a strategy, execution depends on personal skill.
In terms of combat, she was on par with or even surpassed me within this party. To her, this level of challenge must have been trivial.
"No. The path of hardship was filled with struggles compared to what I’ve experienced before. But becoming stronger means accumulating those experiences within oneself. This dungeon was highly challenging and meaningful." "Ah, right."
No, that’s not it.
Claudia has something of a gamer’s mentality.
To put it simply, imagine a rhythm game where the difficulty spikes the further you progress. Most people would give up when it becomes unbeatable.
But Claudia would say that if there’s a way to clear it, no matter how hard, overcoming it is proof of improvement.
In other words, she’s saying, "This is too easy—I want a harder stage."
I understand that mindset, so I nodded and decided not to press further.
"Besides, compared to my movements at the same level before, my body is far more capable now. It’s weaker than my previous level, but not to the point of being unable to fight. There are plenty of ways to manage." "True." "Liberta, don’t just nod. Normal people would get stronger before fighting if they’ve weakened!"
But if you have the stats to whittle down an opponent, a gamer would just keep chipping away.
Hearing Claudia’s logic, I reflexively agreed.
"Well, yeah, but..."
That common sense only applies to gamers like us—it’s not universal.
Nell’s interjection made me wryly smile. Following common sense wouldn’t make you stronger. Acknowledging my own absurdity, I scratched my head and turned to the others.
"Ahem! Anyway, now we’ve all officially acquired our Jobs and are ready to move forward. From here, we’ll level up while gathering equipment and skills."
I coughed, glossing over things to shift the topic.
Up to this point, it’s like we’ve just finished prepping ingredients in cooking.
How we grow stronger from here varies by person, so there’s no need for detailed explanations now.
Besides, weapons, armor, and skills aren’t things you can obtain overnight.
Gathering rare materials by the dozens or hundreds, only to groan, "Not enough!"—sometimes even going mad—is a gamer’s routine.
"But if the live show fails, we won’t be able to use this place anymore. Since we plan to grow stronger here up to Class 7, let’s use our last dungeon generation for equipment strengthening and ensuring the live’s success." "So that’s the 'Stardust Caterpillar' monster you mentioned earlier?" "Yeah. This dungeon’s a bit special—the monsters evolve inside." "Evolve?"
Getting stronger and gathering materials are inseparable.
Thanks to Nell’s insane luck, we’ve managed well so far, but the grind never ends.
"The Stardust Caterpillar stays in the shallow layers, but in the middle layers, it changes into a monster called the Rise Cocoon." "Normally, dungeons have only one type of monster. Unless merged with another dungeon, that’s the rule. But the academy taught me there are exceptions. This monster is one of them, right?" "Exactly."
Monsters that evolve mid-dungeon are often insect-types.
And among insect monsters, the most valuable drops are thread-based items.
"This time, we’re after the Starlight Silk’s source—the Stardust Thread—produced by this exception."
There are also slightly unusual dungeon types.
"Starlight Silk is an item only dropped by the second-stage Rise Cocoon. Weaving Stardust Thread produces this special fabric, which shimmers like a sky full of stars. Its durability and enchantment potential make it one of the best cloth materials."
In games, the rarer the monster’s spawn conditions, the rarer the drop.
The Stardust Caterpillar is no exception.
"How strong is it?" "In terms of material class alone, it’s about Class 4."
Ingrid asked if we were after it for strength, but I shook my head. Stardust Thread is Class 4—weaker than the Swamp Dragon’s materials.
"But this material evolves, right?" "Evolves? You mean strengthens?" "Not quite. Technically, it’s 'complete metamorphosis,' but I just call it evolution. The Stardust Caterpillar is Class 3. As a chrysalis, it becomes the Rise Cocoon at Class 4. Then, upon becoming a Starlight Butterfly, it reaches Class 5. This staged trait is crucial—it applies to dropped items too. Items with this property are called 'Metamorph Items.'"
Material synthesis is common in games.
Base materials are combined and transformed through repeated synthesis.
In FBO, equipment can generally only be enhanced after creation. Materials can also be enchanted with attributes or skills.
But some monster materials can surpass their class limits.
The condition? The monster must have a complete metamorphosis trait.
"Stardust Thread has this trait. As thread, it’s Class 4, but when woven into cloth, it remains Class 4. However, through alchemy, it can be synthesized into Class 6 Lunar Light Silk."
Turning stardust into moonlight is grand, but Metamorph Items can also regress—making them troublesome.
Using stronger materials doesn’t guarantee better results.
What matters is compatibility and following the stages—larva to pupa to adult.
"And evolving Lunar Light Silk further turns it into Solar Light Silk, a Class 7 material."
Most Metamorph Items evolve only once. Starlight Silk’s three-stage evolution is exceptionally rare.
You could call it the base material’s "evolution limit."
If you try to evolve it further, the item vanishes.
The biggest caution when evolving? Material cost.
"Too much is as bad as too little."
Even with compatible materials, excessive cost can make the item disappear before reaching its limit.
"Luckily, the high-ranking dark spirit provided an alchemy bench and might even help with the process. We got lucky."
The Stardust Caterpillar is a rare monster that only appears during the once-every-17-years meteor shower.
Its spawn area is tiny, and the window is short, making it obscure. By the time it was discovered, it was already considered low-value.
But if you’ve fought a monster before, you can generate its dungeon in the Spirit World’s bubble dungeons, ignoring natural cycles.
Of course, reaching the Spirit World requires clearing a certain Grand Quest on the western continent—by then, the Spirit World becomes trivial.
Getting here during mid-tier classes is nothing but luck.
Naturally, some players are idol-types or spirit mages.
But no one knew you could enter the Spirit World like this.
"Why are you looking at me?" "When I said 'lucky,' I meant Nell." "Not me—Amina’s the one."
Everyone looked at Nell when I mentioned luck, but this time, Amina was the MVP.
Her genuine bond with the spirits made this opportunity possible.
At Nell’s remark, I smiled wryly and nodded, ruffling Amina’s head.
"You’re right. Thanks to Amina, we’re here and can attempt this now. Thank you." "Hehehe, hearing that makes me happy."
A miracle? Or coincidence?
Either way, it doesn’t matter.
For today, we’ll head back and return tomorrow.
But when we returned to the house lent by the Spirit King...
"Wh-what is this?!" "The place is swarming with spirits."
The area around our lodging was inexplicably surrounded by spirits.