On his way to the 15th Floor, Roland wore his Salamander Wool cloak to protect his clothes from Hellhound fire. He moved like a gale, clearing out Almiraj and Hellhounds with his wind-enhanced blade.
His goal today was to test himself against Minotaurs and Zaruchards (Manticore-like beasts) on the 15th Floor. He finally reached the level—a massive cave system with 20-meter high ceilings and jagged rock formations.
ROAAR—!
The walls cracked, and five Minotaurs emerged. These ox-headed giants were the strongest of the middle floors, their roars capable of paralyzing Level 1 adventurers with fear. But to Roland, they were just targets. He danced through their ranks, his blade severing limbs and heads with surgical precision.
As he was harvesting the horns, the ceiling gave way. Four Zaruchards pounced. "Are you kidding me? Is the Dungeon targeting me today?" Roland complained as he rolled away from a worm-like monster emerging from the ground.
He summoned an ice shield to block a claw swipe and countered with a flaming blade. "Fire! Draw!" He swung a massive arc of fire, incinerating the beasts and leaving a four-meter-long scorched mark on the ground.
As he sat down to rest, the ground shook violently. The floor beneath him—a ten-meter radius—collapsed. He had fallen into a vertical hole. As he tried to use wind magic to fly out, a massive boulder fell from above, sealing the hole. "Son of a...!" he cursed, diving toward the bottom and rolling into a side tunnel just as the rock slammed shut behind him.
Following a faint light, he emerged into a titanic, circular cavern. The walls shimmered like crystal—the Wall of Lamentation. He realized he had fallen into the 17th Floor, the lair of the Floor Boss: Goliath.
The only way out was forward, through the 17th Floor to the 18th—the safe zone known for its breathtaking crystal forests and starlit ceilings. Roland started walking, assuming the Goliath had already been defeated by someone else recently.
CRACK!
The crystal wall shattered. A massive, grey-skinned giant with protruding fangs lunged out.
ROOOAAARR—!
"Are you serious? You just had to spawn now? The malice of this Dungeon is no joke!" Roland's mind felt like it was short-circuiting.
The Goliath stood over ten meters tall, its muscles bulging and eyes glowing crimson. This was a monster with the strength of a Level 4. Roland leaped to the left just as a fist smashed the ground where he had been standing.
He didn't hesitate. He formed a dozen ice spears and slammed them into the giant's head to daze it, then followed up with a massive fireball.
BOOM!
The Goliath's stiff black hair reeked of charred flesh. Its face was cratered with blast marks, and thick blood trickled from the wounds. With a primal roar, it swung a massive horizontal fist, carving a trench into the Wall of Lamentation.
Roland blinked into the air, instantly switching to Swift Master. Hovering amidst the gales, he began gathering wind until a massive tornado swirled around him. Sensing danger, the Goliath's crimson eyes darted around; it grabbed a jagged boulder and hurled it at the airborne boy.
Ignoring the projectile, Roland continued to concentrate. The rapidly spinning vortex acted as a shield, grinding the boulder into dust before it could touch him. He slammed his hand into the heart of the storm, a magic circle flashing beneath his feet. The ten-meter-wide tornado surged forward, grinding toward the Goliath.
Instinctively sensing its end, the giant crossed its arms to protect its vital head. Its body was shredded by the gales, leaving it a gory mess of exposed bone and splattered plasma. A standard Goliath lacked the self-regeneration and magic breath of a "revered" enhanced species; it relied solely on brute force and a paralyzing roar. Against Roland, it was helpless.
Roland's shoulder-length hair began to lengthen. The metallic tang of blood filled the air. His eyes turned a piercing crimson as he gazed at the dying giant. When the Goliath's fading eyes met Roland's, its breath hitched. In a final, desperate burst of life, it lunged forward to crush him.
"Heh."
An involuntary chuckle escaped his lips. Roland simply raised a hand and closed his fist.
The blood pooling on the ground and clinging to the Goliath's skin obeyed his command. With a violent thwack, crimson crystalline spears erupted from the giant's own blood, skewering it from the inside out. A massive blood-stake drove through its chest, pinning its arm in mid-air.
As its magic stone fell, the Goliath's titan-sized corpse dissolved into ash. The remaining blood was absorbed by Roland's Abyssal Eye, converting into raw power.
[Personal Info]
System Level: 30
Having reached Level 30, his power ascended to a new tier. Roland finally felt confident enough to switch to the Dimension Walker class. As he did, his appearance shifted once more. A torrent of knowledge regarding dimensional energy flooded his mind, and a device known as a "Beyond This World" (Dimensional Distortion Device) appeared on his person.
In this form, his senses changed drastically. He felt things "moving," "flowing," and "crawling" in the spaces between reality. He even felt a gaze—cold and direct—staring back at him. Seeing strange, eldritch entities scurrying across the Wall of Lamentation, he realized they had noticed his gaze and vanished with shriek.
Roland silently switched back to Elemental Bomber. His head spun with vertigo; the Goliath hadn't managed to scratch him, yet the sheer weight of this new class nearly broke his mental defenses.
As he moved to collect the drop, a screen materialized: [System Update: All Mage powers activated. Conditions met. System update beginning. Estimated time: 3 days.]
"An update? This thing can update?" Roland stared at the fading screen. He'd have to wait three days to see what changed. He stowed the one-meter-tall Goliath magic stone in his Backpack and headed toward the 18th Floor—the Under Resort.
It was a breathtaking sight: marshes to the north, forests to the east, and a serene lakeside to the west. In the center lay Rivira, a town where the prices were daylight robbery, yet essential for any adventurer. Roland spent some time by a stream, washing the dust of the 17th Floor from his gear and hair.