However, the punch was only enough to put a dent in the Stone Bear's defence and scorch the surrounding area. Even with Elias's strength, the Bear's defences were terrifying enough to withstand a direct punch from him.
"ROAARR!!" Before the Stone Bear could recover, Elias struck the same spot on its skull with another fist.
BAMM!! BAMM!!
Just like with the dagger, he continued striking the same spot on the Stone Bear's skin with his sunlight-covered fists until he finally penetrated its defences.
Suddenly, jagged, sharp pillars burst from the ground, piercing toward the sky and attempting to impale Elias. But Elias was prepared. He quickly cast [Light Step Boost], enhancing his speed and vanishing into a blur.
The moment the skill finished casting, he reappeared before the Stone Bear in a streak of afterimages, striking its head once more.
This time, he sent it plummeting into the ground.
[Cruel Flare]
Without giving the Stone Bear any time to react, Elias enveloped it in a scorching dome of sunlight, burning its defences and its open wound.
Hundreds of fists rained down—
Sunlight charred the stone-like hide of the Stone Bear, hardening and cracking it apart with each punch—
Under the process of artificial sedimentation and weathering, the Stone Bear's skin softened—
BANNGG!!
Elias's fist punched straight into its skull, causing it to burst open in gory brain matter and blood, killing the Stone Bear instantly.
The Stone Bear let out one last "Roar" before it breathed its final breath and collapsed dead.
A white orb rolled out from its corpse.
[You've killed Stone Bear. +1,586]
[Obtained Stone Bear Cuirass.]
"Sure enough, there's no weapon more powerful than my fist," Elias muttered under his heavy breathing as he looked at his bloody hands.
Elias picked up the white orb.
[Radiant Heal.]
A faint golden brilliance shone around Elias, overlapping with the golden hue surrounding him, enhancing their brightness until they glowed even stronger.
The injuries on his fists and the strain in his muscles disappeared, returning him to his peak capabilities.
Elias deactivated his [Solar Ascension] form. Then he crushed the white orb in his hand.
The orb scattered into countless lights that transformed into a deep brown cuirass with two arm guards, covered in intricate designs, appearing in Elias's grasp.
[Stone Bear Cuirass: A chest piece crafted from the hide of a Stone Bear. Despite its rough appearance, the inner layer is tough yet flexible, granting surprising protection without overly hindering movement. +50 Constitution. +20 Strength.
Passive: Gain +5 Constitution for 5 seconds whenever you take damage.(Can stack up to 3 times. Max +25 Constitution.)]
Suddenly, a surge of mana exploded at the edge of the earth spikes, crushing them with sheer pressure, reducing them to dust and scattering them into the distance. The immense mana whipped against Elias like a lash, forcing him to slide backwards briefly before he regained his footing.
A large, wide, square-shaped blue gate appeared a distance away from Elias.
"Congratulations. You've defeated a formidable foe, which is usually impossible for any normal person to accomplish at your current level," Queen Anna appeared beside Elias and said.
"Are all the monsters in the dungeon going to be as powerful as this?" Elias voiced the question that had been on his mind ever since he laid eyes on the beast.
The Stone Bear was so powerful that it made the other monsters he had faced before feel like child's play. In fact, when compared to the Black Claw Crow, which was Level 15, Elias was certain the Stone Bear could defeat and eliminate it if given the chance.
Yet such a monster was only Level 14, a level lower. No matter how Elias looked at it, it made no sense.
"No," Queen Anna shook her head, "they are even more powerful than the monster you just faced. After this encounter, you should be well aware of the dangers that await you in the dungeon. Do you still want to enter it?"
Elias nodded.
CRASH!! CRASH!
Sounds of chaos echoed from the corners of the building.
"It seems your battle has drawn the attention of various other creatures," Queen Anna said.
Elias quickly wore the Stone Bear Cuirass over his head, stretching it as though it were elastic. The moment he placed it on, the cuirass hardened around his body.
━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━
Health: 213
Mana: 40
Strength: 72(20)
Constitution: 35 (+50)
Agility: 37 (+12)
[Stats Points: 0]
━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━
Elias could immediately feel its effects. He couldn't wait to obtain a Class to see the improvements that Queen Anna had spoken about.
"Are you coming along?" He turned to Queen Anna and asked.
"Are you worried you won't be able to handle the dungeon without my support?" Queen Anna asked, her eyes glinting. "If you wanted my support, you could have asked directly. There's no reason to beat around the bush. But since you're so eager and desperate, this Queen will be coming along with you."
'I didn't say that.' However, Elias didn't utter those words out loud. Even if he couldn't admit it directly because he was still wary of Queen Anna following him and found her claim of finding him interesting absurd, he felt much safer with her presence.
As foolish as it felt to enter a dungeon with an unknown figure of immense power, it was still better than entering alone when he wasn't certain of the unprecedented dangers he would face within.
"Alright. Let's leave immediately, then," Elias responded with a nod. He still had 11 minutes left of [Solar Ascension] and didn't want to waste his time dealing with the incoming zombies and monsters.
He walked toward the dungeon.
"Wait a minute."
Elias halted and turned to look at Queen Anna in confusion.
"Ahem! I can't follow you into the dungeon as I am right now," Queen Anna cleared her throat and said.
Elias frowned. Could it be that the dungeon was much more dangerous than he'd anticipated?
Before he could ask a question, Queen Anna took out a red-colored gem necklace from thin air and tossed it to Elias. "Put this around your neck."
Elias caught the necklace and inspected it. It resembled a ruby, yet it was far more beautiful, radiating a soothing aura. Both the intricacy of the necklace and the gem were unlike anything that could be found on Earth. Elias was certain the necklace would have sold for millions, perhaps even billions, if the world hadn't fallen into the apocalypse.
After briefly hesitating, Elias wore the necklace around his neck.
Queen Anna instantly shone with a bright light, vanishing into a streak that shot into the ruby gem around Elias's neck.
"I'll follow you into the dungeon through this necklace. It's invisible, so you don't have to worry about anyone seeing it," Queen Anna's voice resonated beside Elias's ear as though she were still standing next to him.
"Is there something within the dungeon that you're afraid of?" Elias asked, his brows furrowing as he walked toward the gate.
"Humph! Afraid? I'm only in this situation because if I'm spotted beside you, 'you' will be in trouble. Normally, I would've waited for you outside the dungeon, but this is the first time I've witnessed an awakener of your capabilities, without reaching Level 20 or awakening a Class, challenge a dungeon. For others, it might be a death sentence, but for you, there's no way I'll miss something this interesting."
"Who are they?" Elias asked. Despite the question, he didn't slow his steps. He crossed through the blue gate, entering the dungeon.
"Why ask such a troublesome question? Since you're challenging a dungeon, you'll surely meet them soon," Queen Anna responded.
"Do us a favour and don't speak. I'll establish a temporary mental connection so we can communicate with each other, so don't resist." Then, she fell silent.
Elias no longer spoke either. He felt a tug in his mind and instinctively resisted, but remembering Queen Anna's words, he halted his resistance.
Suddenly, he sensed Queen Anna's presence as if she were right beside him. He realised the connection had been established.
The noise of the hordes of zombies and monsters behind him faded into silence. Around him was a darkness so deep it felt as though his eyes were closed.
Then a bright holographic text appeared before him.
[Special Dungeon Loading... Connecting to Server... Complete.]
[Mode: Multiplayer Player Mode]
[Awakener Information Loading... Searching... Complete.]
[Awakener Detected...]
[Awakener Name: Elias Miles... Level: 13... Location: Earth.]
[Select Nickname]
Elias frowned as he read the status screen that had appeared before him.
"Don't speak," Queen Anna's voice rang, as though sensing Elias was about to instinctively call out. "It seems you're very unlucky and lucky at the same time. This is a Special Dungeon; not only is it extremely dangerous, but it's also very rare."
"A Special Dungeon doesn't follow ordinary dungeon rules. So you should prepare for the unexpected. Whatever happens, your life is in your own hands."
"Your core attributes and information are protected by the Akashic Records. Unless you choose to reveal them, no one else will know them."