Igris sheathed his sword, leaving the bloody clearing behind, and finally arrived at the Greenshade boundary.
Before him stood a massive, naturally formed cavern. The entrance was shaped exactly like the terrifying, open jaws of a colossal Tyrannosaurus Rex.
Hundreds of surviving students from the Academy were gathered outside the dungeon, frantically shouting over each other.
"Any frontline fighter with an E-Grade defensive Talent or above is needed! We have a healer!"
"F-Grade crowd control Talent needed! Please, we just need one more to meet the entry requirement!"
"Looking for a ranged attacker! Must have an Iron-tier bow!"
The plaza was deafening. But that wasn't all.
Amidst the sea of Marlin Academy camouflage jackets, there was another distinct group. They wore sleek, brown combat suits emblazoned with the logo of a pentagon housing a single star.
Students from the neighboring Penta-Star Fortress had also chosen the Greenshade boundary as their hunting ground.
"Well, well, well. If it isn't the trash from Marlin Academy," a mocking voice cut through the noise.
A young man stepped out from the Penta-Star crowd. He was a Vampire—devastatingly handsome, with dark hair, glowing crimson eyes, and pale, flawless skin.
His name was Dawson, and his face was twisted in an extremely arrogant smirk as he looked down at the Marlin students with utter contempt.
The Marlin students were instantly riled up.
"Who the fuck are you calling trash?!"
A buff, hulking student from Marlin Academy jumped three meters into the air, landing heavily in front of Dawson. The ground trembled beneath his boots, kicking up a cloud of dust. He cracked his knuckles, glaring at the Vampire.
"Isn't that George? I heard he awakened a D-Rank 'Steel Muscles' Talent!" someone whispered in the crowd.
"Damn! That means in a physical brawl, he's basically an unstoppable tank!"
"Physical Talents might be basic, but they make my blood boil. I wish I had one!"
"Don't be stupid," another student hissed.
"Dawson is no ordinary person either. He awakened a C-Rank 'Blood Domain' Talent. George is outmatched."
Dawson laughed out loud, a cold, mocking sound. "Hahahaha! A pathetic D-Rank musclehead actually dares to challenge me?"
His laughing face suddenly turned ice-cold, his crimson eyes flashing with lethal intent.
"Where the fuck are your C-Ranks? Tell them to get their asses out here, or get out of my way."
Igris simply glanced at the scene, utterly uninterested in teenage academy politics, and kept walking toward the dungeon entrance.
"Wait. Where is your team?" a voice called out as he approached the portal.
Igris paused and glanced at the speaker. "I don't have one."
The young man who asked immediately smiled brightly. "Why don't you join my team? We're missing a fifth. Even if you only have an F-Rank, we'll accept you!"
"Yes, yes! We should all stick together. Haha," another boy chuckled nervously.
Igris glanced at the team of four. From their timid postures and lack of proper weapons, he could instantly tell they were the outcasts—the students with the weakest, most useless Talents who had barely survived the Crucible. Three of them were wearing thick, cracked glasses.
Igris didn't even get the chance to reply before one of the geeks pushed his glasses up his nose and gasped. "Wait... I recognize you. Aren't you the guy who rolled a NULL Talent?!"
"Shit! It is him," another whispered, his eyes widening.
The guy who had just invited Igris quickly scratched his head, looking incredibly awkward. "Uh... on second thought, we might wait for someone else..."
Igris ignored them completely and continued walking toward the T-Rex jaws.
As the surrounding crowds realized someone was actually entering a dungeon completely solo, their eyes narrowed in shock, which quickly turned to mocking laughter.
"Isn't that the Null Talent guy?"
"Haha! He actually wants to kill himself!"
"Well, I'd probably commit suicide too if I realized I had a Null Talent."
"At least his near can feed the starving monsters in the dungeon!"
Igris tuned out the mockery, stepping straight into the abyssal mouth of the dungeon.
[ You have entered: Green Lizard Dungeon. ]
[ Difficulty: Easy ]
[ Maximum Monster Level: 5 ]
Slowly, his eyes adapted to the dim lighting. He frowned when he saw his surroundings. He was in a massive, prehistoric forest. The trees were tens of meters high, the grass was taller than an average adult human, and even the tree branches were as thick as the trunks of ancient oaks on Earth.