"Mmh." Isaac squinted his eyes. The room was immensely dark. He couldn't see anything or feel anything. After he took a step forward, a light appeared.
In the middle of the room, there was a stone table and chair. They were carved by a knife. The edges were very sharp and crude.
At the top of the table was a candle. The candle had a small fire flickering. The area around the table was enveloped in a yellowish hue.
Ding! Ding!
A holographic screen emerged from the darkness following the dinging noises and hovered above the table. While the screen sent a bluish light everywhere, the table was shrouded in a warm, honey-like, yellowish shade.
Isaac grabbed the stone chair's backrest and dragged it away from the table.
Screech!
While dragging, the familiar scratching marks appeared on the stone ground. Isaac used his sleeve and wiped the sweat away. He was starting to get very annoyed.
He had to do a lot of physical activities and was getting mentally very exhausted.
The chair was hefty and very difficult to move around. Soon, it was far enough from the table that it could be used to sit.
"Haahh…" Isaac slumped down on the chair and rested his arms on the armrests. He leaned on the hard stone backrest and stared into the empty space.
He stayed in that position for several minutes before the screen jerked him awake.
DING!
"Ah!" The sound was loud enough to rupture eardrums. However, Isaac only felt like someone was pinching his cheek with long nails.
[Regional Announcement: Player Wraith have achieved First Clear of Hidden Dungeon of Test— Recorded in Stronglord Hall of Fame of Heroes!]
…
[Regional Announcement: Player Wraith have achieved First Clear of Hidden Dungeon of Test— Recorded in Stronglord Hall of Fame of Heroes!]
The Players roaming the forest halted their steps. There was a mix of reactions. Jealousy, awe, surprise, and greed.
"Whaaa! This will be insane news!" A young journalist with a round head and beautiful blue eyes said with a thrilling look. She was wearing a ponytail with chestnut-colored hair. There was a camera hanging around her neck, and she was wearing an outfit made of leather and wool.
[Xue'er]
Clank!
Xue'er snapped a picture of the announcement and was sure that this would be a scoop. Player Wraith was already shown in a bad light because of the Colosseum incident.
Even though Arthur silenced the haters, they were still not over it. How could they? After witnessing someone growing their head back, who could stay calm after seeing it?
In the eyes of many, Wraith was immortal.
She grinned and downloaded that picture to her hard drive. The photos will be waiting on her laptop once she logged off. However, she still had more work to do.
"Hmm… Where could he be?" Her journalist senses tickled when she glanced in the direction of the north. A cheeky grin appeared on her face as she began moving forth.
"Player Wraith, I will get your interview!"
…
In the other part of the woods.
Marvin and his friends were gathered around a dark hole. The hole was wide enough for all of them to fit. But, the gap was pitch dark, and it was unknown how big the fall would be.
Lionel slowly lowered a rope made from a tree's bark into the hole. At first, they removed a long section of the bark and then peeled off long strips of fiber. Then, they connected all the peeled strips and had the finished version of a rope in their hands.
They had to count on Ins to do most of the work. He was a survival expert, after all.
Soon, the rope made from the tree reached the bottom. Lionel turned to look at his friends, who were loitering around.
"Alright, wish me luck." He said and prayed toward the sky.
"Go for it." Derek nonchalantly said while enjoying the clear weather.
"Don't die," Ins said while playing around with rocks on his palm.
Niko was leaning against a mountain wall. His eyes were closed, and he didn't bother replying to Lionel, who was lucky enough to win the rock, paper, and scissors.
Marvin waved his hand. Then, he continued looking at the messages Isaac sent. He had a sinking feeling in his stomach that something was wrong with the message.
"What's up?" Ins finally said after seeing Marvin's daydreaming demeanor.
"Hmm… I think Isaac's message was weird." Marvin pinched the bridge of his nose and closed his eyes. He repeated the messages Isaac sent inside his mind.
Ding! Ding!
Then, an announcement appeared in the sky.
[Regional Announcement: Player Wraith have achieved First Clear of Hidden Dungeon of Test. Recorded in Stronglord Hall of Fame of Heroes!]
"Hahahaha!" Ins let out a peal of laughter and patted Marvin's shoulders, "See, he is alright. That little fellow is a monster, a f*cking monster!"
Marvin's mouth curved upward, and he nodded, "Yeah, you are right."
Then, he saw Lionel climbing down slowly. His legs were wrapped around the rope while he moved his hands down and kept using that technique to climb down.
However, it was painfully slow.
"Hurry up!" Marvin shouted and tossed a rock at him.
"Ah!" Lionel's hands almost slipped after getting hit by a rock, "F*ck, I almost fell down!"
''Niko, cut the rope!'' Marvin shouted with a teasing smile. He stood up and began enjoying the show.
Lione's face became pale, "No… You wouldn't f*cking dare!"
Niko's eyes slammed open with a teasing glint seen on them, "Hehe…"
He unsheathed his dagger and stopped next to the rope.
"No… Niko!" Lionel screamed in horror.
"Hehe, bye!"
Crack!
The rope was cut in half, and Lionel began falling down with a cry of horror.
…
Tap! Tap!
Isaac tapped the table impatiently. He had been waiting for his rewards to show up. But, nothing happened after the announcement of his first clear.
Ding! Ding!
After a long wait, the notifications about his rewards appeared.
[Hidden Dungeon Completed!]
[50000 XP Earned!]
[LEVEL UP!]
[Level 41 -> Level 42]
[LEVEL UP!]
[Level 42 -> Level 43]
[LEVEL UP!]
[Level 43 -> Level 44]
[LEVEL UP!]
[Level 44 -> Level 45]
[Training Cube Acquired!]
[Training Cube: A cube-like item that allows you to have your own training space no matter where you are!]
[SKILL UPGRADE - Illusionary Shot -> Wraith's Shot]
[Wraith's Shot: Player Wraith's Unique Ability - With this, you can choose whether you want your bullets to be illusionary or not!]
[Upgrade to the Mosin-Nagant M/28-30 -> Stronger you become, the weapon shall be stronger!]
[Ring of Commitment x2]
[Ring of Commitment: A ring for newly wedded]
[Ring of Commitment Lv1: ???]
[Ring of Commitment Lv2: ???]
[Ring of Commitment Lv3: ???]
[Ring of Commitment Lv4: ???]
[Ring of Commitment Lv5: ???]
