Elias woke with a startled gasp. His entire body ached, but he gritted his teeth and pushed himself upright. He needed to assess his situation.
The clearing was only a dozen meters ahead, and thankfully, no monsters had attacked him while he was unconscious—but that was where the good news ended.
His face was swollen, and purple bruises marked his body where he’d been struck. Oh—and he was bleeding. Most of the wounds had already begun to clot, but blood still trickled from one just above his right eyebrow. To make matters worse, everything he owned was gone, except for the clothes on his back.
For some reason, that included his left boot.
“What kind of person steals a single boot!?” Elias hissed, his face flushed with outrage.
Now that he’d determined he wasn’t in immediate danger, Elias realized he’d started shaking at some point. Slowly, his overexcited muscles began to settle as the adrenaline, fear, and anger drained from his system, leaving behind only exhaustion and a deep, aching sadness.
The worst part of it all was how the incident had doused the excitement he’d felt over his first dungeon delve, leaving him disheartened. He’d looked forward to this day for years, eager to share it with his family when he got home. Now, that optimism felt like a cruel joke.
Elias began the slow walk back to the surface, trudging through the clearing with his head hung low, refusing to meet the eyes of any adventurers he passed. He dragged his feet through the tunnel, shoulders heavy with exhaustion and defeat.
He emerged from the stone pyramid to the unceasing droning of raindrops striking the ground. The drops stung as they hit his bruises, mingling with blood, sweat, and now-flowing tears as he walked along the massive roots of the bearded fig tree.
But the rain cleansed him too, washing away the grime and foliage clinging to his skin.
By the time he reached the edge of the Temple, Elias already felt lighter than before. He wasn’t exactly sure when his eyes had started tearing up, or when they’d stopped, but by now, his tears had run dry, leaving only the rain to moisten his face.
He stopped a single step from leaving the Hanging Vines Temple, the tips of his toes just brushing the concrete beyond the boundary. And he stood there for a long while, profoundly dejected, with only the rain and his injuries for company.
Thoughts of failure and hopelessness flooded Elias' mind, poisoning his dreams and dimming the excitement he once felt for adventure. Before he realized it, his hands had curled into fists and begun to shake—his frustration finally breaking through.
His breaths came faster and heavier as indignation surged, the trembling in his hands spreading through the rest of his body. Pressure built in his chest until it became overwhelming, and he drew in a deep breath—then released it into the falling rain with a scream of defiance.
Everything was supposed to be different now! I finally had the chance to improve my crappy attributes, to become stronger… and then something like this happens?!
No.
This is not how my very first dungeon delve ends. I refuse to accept this outcome. I’ve spent my entire life training for this, and nothing is going to stop me.
I’m going back into that dungeon to grind those monsters into dust and exp. I’m going to level my attributes. I will become stronger.
I’m going to reach the Beginner rank and unlock Skills of my own. I’ll surpass that bastard, find him, beat him to a pulp… and steal his damn boot!Support the author by searching for the original publication of this novel.
Mind made up, Elias turned and marched back the way he’d come, determined to kick some monster ass. He wouldn’t leave the dungeon until he’d raised both his Vitality and Strength by another level.
He even decided to level his Strength first, since it was now his lowest attribute at level 4, and raising it would make killing stronger monsters easier. He only needed 9,000 exp to level it, and he’d already accumulated a little over 4,000 since boosting his Vitality to level 5.
The first thing Elias did upon returning to the jungle was angrily yank off his remaining boot. He glared at it for several long seconds, resentment simmering in his eyes, before hurling it aside with all his strength.
Admittedly, it didn’t go very far—but somehow, the simple act made his spirit feel lighter, restoring a flicker of optimism. Then, barefoot, he set one foot in front of the other and headed deeper into the dungeon, walking in the opposite direction of where he’d thrown the boot.
Elias walked at a slower pace this time, stepping carefully to avoid sharp bits of wood and stone digging into his bare feet. On the bright side, his quieter movements let him spot a wild boar-like creature before it noticed him.
The monster had a pair of tusks protruding from its mouth and horns jutting from its head like a bison’s. Not one to waste the initiative, Elias positioned himself in front of a particularly thick tree and hurled a stone at the creature.
It squealed loudly and charged at Elias without hesitation, clearly intent on ramming him with both tusks and horns. Far from agile, the monster barreled through the underbrush, trampling everything in its path—drawing a smirk from Elias.
As the beast closed in, Elias jumped, grabbing a branch overhead and pulling himself up just in time. The boar shot through the space where he’d been moments earlier, slamming into the tree behind him, its tusks and horns embedding deep into the bark.
Elias dropped from the branch and began viciously kicking at the monster’s legs. It squealed in pain, thrashing as it struggled to free itself, but with each shattered limb, its fate was sealed.
Soon, it could only writhe on the ground pathetically, one tusk still lodged in the tree. Elias grabbed a stone twice the size of his fists and brought it down on the creature’s head, striking it again and again until it stopped moving.
 
You have gained 80 exp.
 
With his energy card gone, Elias picked up the energy crystal the monster had dropped and slipped it into his pocket.
He let out a sigh of relief as the beast’s blood, which practically covered him from head to toe, turned to ash and flaked off his skin. He already reeked of his own blood and sweat; he didn’t need monster gore adding to it.
He stared thoughtfully at the rock he’d used to bludgeon the monster, his brow furrowing as he slowly came to a decision.
The unranked zone of the dungeon was the ideal place for adventurers to practice delving in a relatively safe environment. It allowed them to hunt and kill monsters that were unlikely to be deadly, in terrain that wasn’t overly hostile. Here, they could test different moves and strategies with minimal risk—preparing themselves for the far more dangerous ranked zones. Because of that, it was important to fight in this zone using the same weapons they intended to rely on deeper in the dungeon.
As a pugilist, Elias was his weapon—but without Skills, making that combat style work was far more difficult. His fists weren’t as durable as a sword or spear, nor did they hit as hard. He was confident they eventually would, once he evolved his Skills to match his fighting style—sooner, if he managed to get his hands on a proper pugilist weapon. But none of that would help him now.
So, for this one night, he decided to make use of sticks and stones as his weapons, hoping to gain exp more quickly by taking on stronger monsters.
Stone in hand, Elias headed deeper into the jungle, where the monsters were more densely packed and higher in level. As a result, his exp gain nearly doubled, allowing him to level his Strength in short order. In turn, that made it easier to deal with the stronger monsters he faced, taking them down in fewer blows.
 
Congratulations! Your Strength is now level 5.
 
Gritting his teeth and pushing through the pain of his injuries, Elias kept hunting monsters well into the night, determined to raise his Vitality by another level before heading home. He knew full well that continuing his delve while tired, hungry, and emotionally drained was reckless—and even a little stupid—but his stubbornness never wavered.
By the time he finally killed the last monster he needed to level his Vitality, he was already dead on his feet. Thankfully, the level-up brought another wave of warmth radiating from the base of his spine, revitalizing him.
 
Congratulations! Your Vitality is now level 6.