----------------------------------------------------------
Name: Markus Blackwell
Age: 10
Class: Void Apprentice
Affinities: Space (L), Time (L)(Sealed), Fate (EX)
Health: 5,000/5,000
Mana: 21,000/21,000
Level: 21
Strength: 50
Agility: 50
Constitution: 50
Intelligence: 200
Available free attributes: 110
Active Skills:
Spatial Slash
Spatial Bubble
Passive Skills:
Body refinement (Tier 3)
Void Perception
Dimensional Inventory (100 x 100 sqm)
Fate's Eye
Equipment:
Valerian Academy Student Badge
Aurelian Royal Family Crest
Dimensional Storage Ring (Tier 3)
Dimensional Storage Ring (Tier 1)
----------------------------------------------------------
The dungeon's claustrophobic walls receded, and the group stepped into a subterranean hollow.
It was a vast circular clearing, illuminated by crystal formations pulsing with an ethereal glow from the ceiling above.
Several trees stood by a crystal lake, its liquid glimmering in reflection of the crystals above.
"Is this a mana oasis?" Candy whispered, starstruck by the rare phenomenon in front of her.
Markus stepped forward; his Fate's Eye detected no anomalies around.
Two jade flasks appeared in his palm as he collected a sample of Oasis essence for experimentation, a second sample to submit to the academy's mission hall.
The motley crew were standing around the lake, visually distressed, as they did not bring any empty flasks for this mission.
Markus happily hummed, collecting samples of the flora around him.
Storing them in alchemical boxes in his infinite dimensional inventory.
(Grandma would love to get her hands on these herbs)
At the opposite end of the oasis, a fork in the road appeared.
"Let's split up to cover more ground, we don't have much time left," Maximus decided, "I'll go with Flint and Candy, Markus and Varus will take the second passageway."
"Candy, stay safe and be careful," Markus said.
Candy nodded in response, turning to join Maximus, pioneering ahead.
(I guess it's more prudent to assign my free attributes now.)
(My Void skills ignore physical defense, but my body is still that of a ten-year-old.)
(If I get caught in a Tier-3 area-of-effect spell, my 50 Constitution won't save me.)
----------------------------------------------------------
Name: Markus Blackwell
Strength: 50 +30
Agility: 50 +30
Constitution: 50 + 30
Intelligence: 200
Available free attributes: 20
----------------------------------------------------------
He tapped the holographic screen. He didn't dump it all into a singular attribute.
He balanced out his strength, constitution, and agility.
Instead, he felt his muscle fibers knit, and his bones densify as he balanced his physical foundation, preparing his "vessel" for the raw power of the higher Void laws.
(Looks good, Varus won't see me coming)
"I'll lead the way, since you're a ranged dealer," Markus turned his back on Varus and stepped into the 2nd passageway.
Markus heard rattling sounds coming from the darkness, his fate eyes painted a red silhouette.
A dozen scorpions emerged from the dark.
[Level: 30] Abyss Crawler x11
[Level: 33] Alpha Abyss Crawler
**
Varus leaped backwards, firing 2 bomb arrows, trapping Markus with the scorpions, while sealing the passageway.
"That should do it, there's no way a first year could survive a horde of level 30+ beasts," Varus smirked.
It seemed as if the bounty on Markus's death would be his to collect.
**
[Spatial bubble]
Markus weaved a protective domain of vacuum around him, as he began his assault on the incoming cluster of scorpions.
[Spatial blade] x30
Markus swung his hands, sending a relentless barrage of spatial blades forward, cleaving through the living and the dead.
[Level up] x 8
(That solo experience is definitely worth it)
Markus dusted his hands and flicked his wrist, sending the loot into his inventory.
(A level 30 scorpion venom, grandma would love to play with those.)
**
"Where is he? The boy Markus?" A trio of assassins questioned Varus.
Their arrival was a tad too late.
[Assassin 1: Level 30]
[Assassin 2: Level 31]
[Lead Assassin: Level 36]
"He's trapped behind those rocks, along with a cluster of 12 level 30 scorpions," Varus proudly declared.
"We have to collect his body as proof," the lead assassin said. Setting bomb charges around the fallen debris.
"Step back, and BREACH."
BOOOOM
The blast tore through the passageway, revealing a sea of scorpion's blue blood painted all over the cave walls.
Markus, leaning against the cave, looked towards them, leg propped up against a boulder.
"What took you guys so long?" Markus tilted his head in confusion.
His fate eyes revealed a bloodthirsty black aura around the 4 individuals.
"SHIT HE'S AN ANOMALY, RUN!!!" the lead assassin screamed, turning tail before the others could react.
"Stay, since you came for me, this dungeon shall be your burial grounds," Markus grinned in contempt.
[Spatial blade] x 15
Markus waved his hands, cutting through the 4 who came for his head.
'Plop Plop Plop Plop'
[Level up]
[Level up]
----------------------------------------------------------
Name: Markus Blackwell
Age: 10
Class: Void Apprentice
Affinities: Space (L), Time (L)(Sealed), Fate (EX)
Health: 5,000/5,000
Mana: 18,000/21,000
Level: 30 (+1 Locked)
Strength: 80
Agility: 80
Constitution: 80
Intelligence: 200
Available free attributes: 70 (+5 Locked)
Active Skills:
Spatial Slash
Spatial Bubble
Passive Skills:
Body refinement (Tier 3)
Void Perception
Dimensional Inventory (100 x 100 sqm)
Fate's Eye
Equipment:
Valerian Academy Student Badge
Aurelian Royal Family Crest
Dimensional Storage Ring (Tier 3)
Dimensional Storage Ring (Tier 1)
----------------------------------------------------------
"Wait… Hold on… I can level up by killing other humans?" Markus murmured to himself.
(Am I human?)
Markus shoved that thought to the back of his head.
(Let's not think too deeply into this now, it's not the time nor place for it)
----------------------------------------------------------
Name: Markus Blackwell
Strength: 100
Agility: 100
Constitution: 100
Intelligence: 200
Available free attributes: 10
----------------------------------------------------------
(I should be able to overpower a peak tier 2 dungeon boss)
Markus gathered the remains of the assassins and cut open a scorpion venom sac over them.
"Pssssssssss"
Their bodies and equipment disintegrated, leaving their dimensional ring.
With a wave of his hand, he threw his spoils into his inventory, planning to sort through them later.
As Markus moved deeper, the crystal formations on the walls began to pulse in sync with his heartbeat.
To Markus, it was a rhythm. The 'Temple Key' in his inventory was no longer cold; it was radiating a faint warmth that suggested the 'Dungeon Boss' wasn't the only thing waiting for them in the dark.
**
"Clang, Clang, Boom"
An intense battle came into view as Markus reached the end of his passageway.
----------------------------------------------------------
Fire and Ice Twin-headed Ogre
Level: 39
Health: 90,200/110,000
Mana: 7,200/8,000
Strength: 250
Agility: 60
Constitution: 350
Intelligence:30
Active Skills:
Flame Strike
Ice Strike
Passive Skills:
Berserk (At 30% Max Health)
Equipment
Two-Handed Club
----------------------------------------------------------
Flint, struck by the twin-headed ogre, ricocheted past Markus, whistling through displaced air.
He hit the far cavern wall, and the stone fractured under the force, carving a jagged pit into its walls.
Maximus looked back, checking on Flint's condition, surprised that he saw Markus standing beside him.
"MARKUS, WHERE'S VARUS? WASN'T HE WITH YOU?", Maximus bellowed, raising his two-handed greatsword to parry the ogre's strike.
"Varus died to a horde of scorpions ambushing us. I survived due to my defensive skills; he wasn't so lucky." Markus focused on the ogre ahead, relieved that Candy was still alive.
[Spatial Bubble]
Markus closed his eyes, raising his hands in front of him, condensing layers of spatial blade upon another.
[Void Severance]
Markus eyes shot open as he swung his left arm at the ogre, preoccupied with Maximus.
The ogre's battle intuition alerted him to a fatal strike.
It utilized its momentum, striking Maximus, pushing him aside.
The void opened up, cleaving his shoulder, taking his right arm with it.
The ability void severance looked like a rip in a painting, a distortion in the space that made the light bend around it.
The ogre's health bar plummeted,
Health: 32,000/110,000
"AHHHH… RAAAAAAWRRR!!!" Both heads shrieked.
The stump where its arm once was bled purple, soaking the ground it stood upon.
[Passive Triggered: BERSERK]
The Ogre's blue skin turned red, enraged, losing all cognitive functions.
The air around it began to boil.
Markus looked down at his left arm; the feedback from stacking spatial blades into void severance was intense.
His 100 constitution was the only thing keeping his bones from shattering under the spatial pressure.
"Maximus, Candy, trust me, after the ogre swings, throw your strongest spells on its right leg, destabilize it and let it fall," Markus commanded.
The Ogre raised its left arm, swinging down its massive club towards Maximus.
[Flame Strike]
[Water bomb]
The ogre's right leg lifted off the ground from the combined assault of Maximus and Candy.
It lost its balance, its centre of gravity thrown askew.
Its strike aimed at Maximus's head veered off course.
(Boom)
The ground underneath the ogre cratered, its massive body crashing into the soil.
[Void Severance]
Markus sent his charged-up spell at the ogre's twin heads.
**
Fire and Ice Twin-headed Ogre
Health: 0/110,000
[Level Up]
Barely escaping the clutches of death, Maximus and Candy slumped onto the ground.
Exhausted physically and mentally, they uncorked a set of health and mana potions to replenish their strength.
"Where's the exit portal? Candy asked, looking around the boss room.
A stone formation crumbled within the cavern, revealing an intricate midnight-black door.
Markus felt an instinctual pull towards the door.
The intricately carved obsidian key that Headmistress Elena gave him reacted strongly.
A resonance echoed between the door and the key.
The Key to the Temple of Space has finally found its lock.
As the obsidian key slid into the ancient lock, the silence in the cavern became absolute. The light from the mana crystals didn't just dim—it was sucked into the keyhole.
[Clack]
The sound wasn't mechanical; it sounded like the heartbeat of a sleeping god finally waking up.
The purple swirling portal behind the door didn't smell like the musty dungeon.
It smelled of ozone, cold starlight, and the infinite reaches of the vacuum.