VIP Chapter 139: A New Dungeon
Shuna’s words were true. The original work was a story about a betrayal to the enemy’s side. If the dungeon was a blank slate, appearing as nothing more than a dungeon meant to be cleared, how could the story progress? This was something revealed to the “readers” outside the story from the very beginning.
Adventurers outside the dungeon were playing a combat game of clearing and climbing. However, the creatures inside the dungeon were playing a tower defense game against waves of adventurers.
Still, the “great secret of the world” that the Empress revealed to the protagonist when they defected was something Shuna had guessed with almost casual accuracy, which was a bit much.
Therefore! Will decided not to tell her the truth. It would be too easy for her to discover such a monumental secret so casually. If she wanted to know, she could find out herself.
“How is that possible? You’re overthinking it. If something like that were true, your high position would be glaringly obvious, and would the Adventurer’s Guild even let you in?”
“That makes sense. I was just rambling.”
This fabricated counterargument seemed to convince Shuna.
“But, Will, I’ve been thinking about something.”
“Hm?”
“I cleared that dungeon about a month ago. If a town has no new dungeons and has been without one for a month, theoretically speaking, the Adventurer’s Guild shouldn’t have this many people, right?”
“That’s true.”
Will scanned the surroundings. The air was filled with the fragrance of grilled fish, mingled with the aroma of newly opened beer. This place was larger than the Adventurer’s Guild in Nov, and while not as absurdly crowded, almost every table was occupied. It would be difficult for the Adventurer’s Guild to achieve this in a town with “no dungeons.” Unless…
“It looks like a new dungeon has appeared here recently!” Shuna’s eyes sparkled as she said this.
“It’s not impossible. Places where dungeons have appeared before are more likely to spawn new ones.”
The appearance of dungeons was a field of study in itself, a more profound aspect of geography in this world. However, this was a generally accepted theorem. Unfortunately, the author of the original work chose not to explain this phenomenon! *Heh, it just spawns randomly, what are you gonna do about it?*
As Will and Shuna were deducing this based on the information they had just gathered…
“Ah? It seems you two are quite interested in our new dungeon? If you’re curious, you can give it a try. This dungeon has quite a lot of Fire attribute materials…” A waiter from the Adventurer’s Guild, sensing a business opportunity, immediately approached them. He even handed them a promotional poster.
“They’re quite wealthy, even having promotional posters for dungeons?” Shuna took the poster without a word. It was predominantly red, fitting the general impression of “Fire attribute,” and depicted a large amount of lava, giving it a very fiery appearance. Shuna even stopped eating her fish to look at the poster.
“Hmm, the poster is very flashy, but it doesn’t give much information. This dungeon only goes up to 30 floors. In terms of depth, it is indeed new.”
When a dungeon is discovered, it starts with 20 floors. After about one to two months of not being cleared, it usually adds 10 floors, reaching 30. In about half a year, it would reach 60 to 70 floors, but its growth after that becomes vague. Some very powerful dungeons might reach 100 floors in half a year, while slightly weaker ones might remain at this stage for a long time. According to the standards of three years ago, 60-70 floors was already an extreme level. However, that’s not the case now; 60-70 floors is likely just the capacity of a mid-tier dungeon.
“A dungeon that has been around for a month and reached 30 floors is quite remarkable. Although it might not be challenging enough for you.”
“Its name is ‘Rock Fire Iron Wall.’ A defense-type… huh? Its rating is only B3, which is actually quite average, mid-tier.”
“B3. What about you?”
“Hmm… I took a rating exam a few days ago, and I got S rank recognition.”
Just as he expected! Will had guessed that Shuna’s level would be A rank or higher – after all, the three “losers” in his household could easily reach the threshold of S rank after training, so someone as talented as Shuna would do so with ease. As long as she had an S rank, she could easily solo dungeons by attaching herself to any team. Will even felt like recruiting her for his own team.
“So, what did you get tested for? You seem capable of anything.”
“Let me think, what did I test for… S rank Swordsman? S rank Mage? And S rank Priest…? Anyway, I basically went through every class.”
“It was fun to take the tests, wasn’t it?”
“It was really fun!”
“One would have been enough.”
“Didn’t you say that logistics need to be comprehensive?”
“Are you blaming me again?” Will said, snatching the poster from Shuna’s hand. It indeed lacked information, but it was beautifully illustrated, making it a perfect travel poster. However… a dungeon with “Fire” in its name…
“What a shame,” Will sighed.
“Why the sudden sigh? Do you also think the poster is poorly made?”
“If it were the same type of dungeon as last time, perhaps we could hope to encounter the same monsters and obtain that reinforcement… the Green Ghost Stone? But with such a big difference, it’s unlikely to meet that expectation.”
“Oh, I thought you weren’t bothered by that anymore.” Shuna stopped and began to ponder. “That makes some sense. But if the material comes from outside, then it has nothing to do with what’s inside the dungeon.” Shuna had been trying to drag Will into dungeons.
“Hmm… But, after all, the pattern of material production is just based on years of experience. It’s possible we’ve encountered a special situation.” Will, however, was leaning towards the idea of “it’s better not to get involved if it’s not necessary.”
Will didn’t notice their conflicting perspectives, but Shuna, after hearing his words, narrowed her eyes and looked at him, contemplating for a moment.
“Never mind that, I’ll eat more. It really tastes good.” Will picked up his fork. Then he noticed… while they were earnestly discussing academic matters about dungeons… Shuna had already finished all the grilled fish! Only fish bones were left on the rack – how did this person manage to eat all the meat, leaving behind such clean, empty bones?
“Where’s my fish? Where’s that big fish?”
“Hehe, because it was so delicious. Let’s get another one!”
“It’s okay, I’m pretty full too. I’ve been trying to eat less for dinner lately.” In fact, ever since he formed his adventuring team, Will had been diligently planning a healthier diet. He was also determined to make some sacrifices in entertainment for his health (though he hadn’t stopped staying up late).
“What’s the big deal? You had such a tough time on the train today! Besides, you’re paying.” Shuna waved, and the Adventurer’s Guild waiter brought another plump grilled fish.
“So, it’s just a matter of me paying, is it!” But… as Shuna said… He was already skipping school with a delinquent girl, so there was no need to act like a good student here. He was indeed here to indulge. Eat heartily!
