Chapter 3: Level One
Sword in hand, Simon opened and closed the door several times to ensure he hadn’t lost his only way back before stepping outside. Once he was sure this door would stick around, he began looking for the dungeon he was meant to defeat. There wasn’t much out there, though. He didn’t see an evil castle, any ruins, or even a suspicious-looking cave.
All he saw was a scene out of a postcard or computer wallpaper. There was a flower-speckled meadow cut through by a brook, a picture-perfect forest, and some distant mountains. There weren’t even any wandering monsters or anything. Other than his cabin and the trail, nothing here had ever been touched by man.
Simon sighed in disappointment, wondering why a divine being would bother to put a dungeon a mile or two down a path from him when she could just as easily have put it right there, at the edge of the forest or something.
He wouldn’t let this setback ruin his day, though. He’d find the damn thing and then show Helades how baseless her worries were. At least it was bright and sunny, and after a while, he’d walked far enough from the cabin that he couldn’t see it, but he still couldn’t find the damn dungeon.
He passed the time trying to figure out how this game was supposed to work without much to show for it. He’d tried ‘Status,’ ‘Profile,’ ‘Character Sheet,’ ‘Character,’ Statistics,’ and ‘Skills’ without any pop-up or interface. In retrospect, he should have asked the mirror for help before he left, but that problem could be fixed when he returned.
At least he decided not to wear armor on this initial expedition. He couldn’t imagine how hot it would be to wear all that boiled leather in direct sunlight like this. He doubted he’d need it anyway. Low-level enemies were usually stuff like zombies. They were easy enough to dodge. He was certain he’d find something better than that starter armor in the first five floors anyway.
After another mile passed, though, he still didn’t see anything. He’d come far enough that the meadow was gone, and trees were crowding uncomfortably close on both sides of the path. Simon knew that time was passing because the sun was slowly moving across the sky, and eventually, he had shade again.
He was grateful for that because he was starting to get thirsty, but it also made him wonder how many more hours it would be until sunset. When was he supposed to turn back if he didn’t find what he was looking for? That thought weighed on him as the forest grew darker, but he set it aside when another bend in the path revealed more grassland opening up before him.
Simon decided to give it another hour, and if he still didn’t find anything, he’d ask the mirror since the function ‘Map’ didn’t do anything either. It turned out he didn’t need an hour, though, because, a few minutes later, he could see a small building in the distance. It wasn’t much, but it might be a mausoleum or the entrance to a crypt. That would suit him fine. Tombs were always good reasons to have dozens of levels of treasures and traps. His smile brightened, and his steps quickened. However, when he finally got closer, the shape resolved into nothing but another cabin.