First Dungeon
A familiar warmth enveloped Aster. Moments later, he opened his eyes.
Mistvale.
Yet...
It no longer resembled the village he had left behind. The streets had become noticeably wider. Several new stone buildings stood where empty lots had once been.
Merchant stalls lined the roads.
A large banking hall had been constructed near the auction house. Rows of player-owned shops, still vacant, stretched toward the marketplace.
New signboards decorated the village.
Guild Registration Office
Player Market
Dungeon Administration
Regional Transport Bureau
Even the Adventurers' Association had expanded, with additional wings attached to the original building.
The update had transformed Mistvale from a beginner village into a thriving frontier town.
Aster quietly observed the changes.
"So these are the new establishments..."
He had no immediate interest in any of them. There was only one thing he wanted.
Strength.
Before leaving, however, he opened the newly updated ranking interface. The previous Global Ranking had disappeared. In its place appeared a new heading.
━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━
Mistvale Regional Rankings
━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━
Rank 1 Bladeking
Lvl 15 [3%]
Rank 2 Lunaris
Lvl 14 [88%]
Rank 3 Cole
Lvl 14 [60%]
Rank 4 Stormfang
Lvl 14 [41%]
Rank 5 IronAegis
Lvl 14 [15%]
Rank 6 ShadowCrow
Lvl 13 [94%]
Rank 7 FrostNova
Lvl 13 [80%]
Rank 8 WildHunter
Lvl 13 [59%]
Rank 9 CrimsonEdge
Lvl 13 [34%]
Rank 10 SoulReaper
Lvl 13 [20%]
━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━
Aster scanned the names.
"...Cole."
He smiled faintly.
She had progressed quickly. Joining a party had clearly accelerated her growth.
One name, however, was missing.
Valerius.
The former number one player had disappeared entirely. Aster wasn't surprised because of the update.
Aster had never bothered to check.
He closed the rankings. His own name was absent. Not because he lacked the qualifications.
But because, after his level enters the rankings, players had been given a option.
Public Rankings
Visible / Hidden
Without hesitation, Aster had selected Hidden
The fewer people who knew of him, the better.
He then opened the world map. Immediately, several unfamiliar symbols appeared.
Blue portals.
Golden towers.
Crossed swords.
The legend explained their meanings.
* Blue Gate — Dungeon Entrance
* Golden Fortress — Regional Dungeon
* Silver Market — Player Marketplace
* Guild Banner — Guild Office
Every hunting map now displayed at least one dungeon entrance. Aster's eyes settled upon one icon. The dungeon located within the hunting grounds he had explored countless times before.
---
Ashenwood Highlands
Recommended Level: 11 –15
Dungeon Available
Wolfscar Cavern
Difficulty:
* Normal ✔
* Elite 🔒
* Hard 🔒
* Hell 🔒
* Hero 🔒
Clear Normal Difficulty to unlock Elite.
---
Aster nodded.
"Let's start here."
Without wasting another moment, he left Mistvale.
---
The familiar forest greeted him once again. Monsters still roamed between the trees.
Yet...
A faint blue light now shimmered deeper within the woods. Following the marker on his map, Aster soon arrived before a massive stone gateway covered in ancient runes.
Unlike the hidden dungeon he had discovered before, this entrance stood openly, waiting for challengers.
Above it floated glowing words.
---
Wolfscar Cavern
Party Size:
1–5 Players
Recommended Level:
10–15
---
At the center of the gate floated a crystal.
As Aster approached, a system panel appeared.
---
Select Difficulty
► Normal
Elite (Locked)
Hard (Locked)
Hell (Locked)
Hero (Locked)
---
Another message appeared beneath it.
Current Party Members
1 / 5
Proceed?
Yes / No
---
Aster pressed Yes without hesitation. He had no intention of waiting for a party. His greatest advantage had always been fighting alone.
A beam of blue light descended from the gateway. The surrounding world distorted. The forest disappeared.
A calm mechanical voice echoed through the empty space.
Entering Dungeon...
Difficulty: Normal
Party Members: One
Objective: Eliminate the Dungeon Boss.
Dungeon rewards will be distributed based on individual performance.
The blue light slowly faded. Aster opened his eyes. The scent of damp earth and old stone filled the air.
He found himself standing inside a vast cavern whose ceiling stretched dozens of meters overhead. Jagged stalactites hung like the fangs of enormous beasts, while faint blue crystals embedded in the walls illuminated the darkness with an eerie glow.
The ground was uneven, scarred by countless claw marks that had never faded despite the passing of time.
A cold wind occasionally swept through the tunnels. Along the walls were enormous scratches, some nearly two meters long.
Whatever had left them was no ordinary monster.
A system panel quietly appeared.
---
Wolfscar Cavern
Difficulty: Normal
Recommended Level: 11–15
Completion Requirement:
* Defeat the Dungeon Boss.
Dungeon Bonus
* Increased Coin Drops
* Increased Material Drops
* Chance to obtain Dungeon Equipment
---
Due to your title Hidden Blazer,
Minor Status Immunity (Dungeon Only)
* Grants Minor Poison Immunity.
* Grants Minor Paralysis Immunity.
* Grants Minor Fear Immunity.
---
Aster slowly drew his twin blades.
"So this is a real dungeon..."
Unlike the hidden dungeon he had entered before, this place was carefully designed.
Several branching tunnels connected together before eventually leading toward the deepest chamber.
The further one advanced, the stronger the monsters became. He stepped forward.
---
The first section of the cavern was inhabited by ordinary monsters.
Lv.11 Ash Wolves
Grey-furred wolves that hunted in packs of three.
They possessed remarkable speed but little defense.
Aster swiftly eliminated them one after another.
The experience notification appeared.
+620 EXP
He frowned slightly.
"Less than before..."
He quickly understood why.
The dungeon monsters were several levels below him. The challenge bonus no longer applied. Although the experience had decreased, the rewards certainly had not.
The wolves dropped:
* Wolf Fang ×4
* Tough Hide ×2
* Silver Coin ×18
The coin reward alone exceeded what ordinary field monsters usually dropped. He quietly stored everything inside his inventory.
---
Further inside, the tunnels widened. The monsters changed.
Lv.12 Stonehide Boars
Covered in rock-like armor, they charged with terrifying force. Although difficult for ordinary players, they were no threat to Aster.
The poison from Venom Edge gradually ignored their defenses, allowing him to finish them efficiently.
More loot accumulated.
* Boar Tusk
* Reinforced Hide
* Iron Ore
* Silver Coin ×25
---
An hour passed. The air grew noticeably colder. Aster realized he was approaching the heart of the dungeon.
The narrow tunnels opened into enormous underground chambers connected by ancient stone bridges.
Here, the atmosphere changed completely. Large claw marks covered every wall. Broken weapons lay scattered across the floor. Old skeletons rested against the rocks. The monsters became far more dangerous.
---
Lv.14 Crimson Fang Wolves
Larger.
Faster and more intelligent. They hunted in coordinated packs. Mixed among them were...
---
Elite Monster
Ashfang Pack Leader
Level 14 Elite
Twice the size of ordinary wolves. Its silver fur shimmered beneath the crystal light. Its howl summoned nearby wolves into battle.
Even ordinary parties would struggle against one. Aster remained calm. The elite wolf lunged. He sidestepped with precise footwork.
A basic slash severed one foreleg. The elite stumbled. A second strike followed immediately.
The beast collapsed.
---
Elite Monster Defeated
Rewards:
* Silver Coin ×60
* Elite Beast Core
* Ashfang Pelt
* High-Quality Beast Bone
---
As he continued clearing the cavern, elite monsters appeared more frequently. Instead of one, sometimes two guarded the same chamber.
It became obvious. The closer he approached the boss room, the denser the monster population became.
The dungeon was intentionally designed to exhaust challengers before the final battle.
Several hours later, a familiar golden beam descended. Aster looked at the notification.
No level up.
He had gained only a modest amount of experience. He wasn't disappointed.
His goal today wasn't experience. It was the dungeon itself. The loot more than compensated for the slower leveling. His inventory gradually filled with valuable crafting materials.
* Wolf Fangs
* Beast Cores
* Reinforced Hides
* Iron Ore
* Venom Sacs
* Rare Herbs
* Dungeon Coins
Then...
An item dropped from the final elite monster guarding the deepest corridor. Aster bent down and picked it up. A blue notification appeared.
---
Equipment Obtained
Wolffang Longsword
Rank: Uncommon
Attack +38
Strength +8
Critical Chance +3%
Passive Effect:
Hunter's Instinct
Damage dealt to Beast-type monsters increased by 10%.
---
Aster examined the sword carefully.
"It'll do."
Although inferior to his rare weapons...
It was an excellent sword for ordinary combat and would further strengthen his swordsman style.
After storing the weapon, he continued forward. The monsters gradually disappeared. Silence replaced the sounds of battle. Only one enormous stone gate remained before him.
Ancient wolf carvings decorated its surface. Deep claw marks crossed the weathered stone.
Aster instinctively knew.
Beyond this gate...
Waited the ruler of Wolfscar Cavern.
He slowly placed both hands upon the heavy doors.
The stone groaned. Dust fell from above. The gate gradually opened. A massive circular arena appeared. Bones littered the ground.
At the center...
A gigantic silver wolf slowly rose from its resting place. Its crimson eyes opened. The pressure filling the chamber instantly intensified.
A system notification echoed throughout the dungeon.
---
Dungeon Boss
Fenris, Alpha of Wolfscar
Level: 15
Classification: Elite Dungeon Boss
Difficulty: Normal
Objective
Defeat the Alpha of Wolfscar Cavern.
---
Fenris released a thunderous howl. The entire cavern trembled.
Aster quietly drew the newly acquired Wolffang Longsword with his right hand. His eyes never left the colossal wolf.
A faint smile appeared beneath his cloak.
"The real battle..."
"...starts now."