The next day is a blur of inactivity, with the only interesting event being Monty gaining an ability from reading the entire Gardener's Encyclopedia. I could do the same if I wanted, but it would take me a week, so I spend the day prepping for our next dungeon expedition, putting together a proper kit.

  The compound bow, while useful in my one-on-one with the wendigo, doesn't offer much beyond that, so I retire it to the corner along with other weapons. Next is my revolver. While my weapon-handling skill provides a baseline for using various weapons, I've grown accustomed to the single-action revolver. Now that I have a double-action revolver, it actually feels off, so I return it to the armory and keep the single-action as my sidearm.

  Then there's the BAR. I like it, but even with my thirty percent weight reduction, it's heavy. I decide to leave it behind for now and take the MP5 instead. The rest of my pack is filled with essentials—disinfectant, bandages, MREs, and a canteen. With my kit ready, I check on the hydroponics progress.

  With only a couple of hours left before completion, I head to Monty’s room. He looks up from his book as I take a seat by his desk. Holding up the upgrade token, I ask, “Remember this?”

  Monty sits up in bed, getting a good look at the coin before saying, “Not a clue. Is it something I left lying around?”

  “What? No. It's the upgrade token. Remember, the one we got for killing the orc boss?”

  Monty thinks for a moment before nodding. “Oh yeah, that thing. Completely forgot about it. Wanna use it on something?”

  “That’s what I’m here for. What should we use it on?”

  Monty ponders for a moment before asking, “Would you let me use it on the LeMat?”

  I hand him the coin and say, “Sure. I’m curious to see what it’ll turn into.”

  Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.

  As he places the coin onto his revolver, a message appears from the dungeon:

  We glance at the dungeon screen and then back at the revolver, which has transformed into a monstrous weapon. It is no longer a black powder revolver but a .357 Magnum with an extra slot for a .410 shotgun shell. While the previous version looked cool, this one seems ripped straight from a steampunk movie, with numerous brass components. Its handling has also significantly improved, featuring a better grip and proper iron sights instead of the previous single-piece nub at the barrel’s end.

  With the upgrade token taken care of, it's time to eat and wait for the hydroponics to finish. As we head to the kitchen to prepare today’s meal, I consider going on a solo dungeon run while Monty stays behind to set up the hydroponics. Monty doesn’t seem to mind, but I don’t like missing out on whatever’s out there.

  So I ask him, “When Freja and Micha? head back to their base, do you mind if I go out by myself? Sitting around for two days without much to do here has me feeling uneasy.”

  Monty shrugs. “I don’t mind, as long as you’re being careful. And I mean really careful. Not the kind where you come back looking like shit while dragging the head of a dragon behind you.”

  I think for a moment before asking, “Do you think there will be a dragon boss?”

  He gives me a look. “The dungeon told us it pulls from our legends and myths. It would be stupid not to have one. Don’t you want to see what modern weapons can do to a dragon? Will they be useless, or will it be easy?”

  “If it really takes from our legends, there must be some interesting things deeper in the dungeon.”

  Monty chuckles. “That might be right. But I am curious—what would a unicorn taste like?”

  As I bring the food to the table, I reply, “Definitely not good. Have you ever had horse meat? It’s awful. I’m more curious about what dragon meat would taste like.”

  Our discussion about which magical creature we’d eat is interrupted by Micha?, who comments, “You know, the boars on this floor are actually pretty tasty.”

  We flinch, not having noticed them enter, but the surprise quickly fades as we sit at the table and listen to stories of the mystical creatures the two soldiers have eaten.

  Freja asks Micha?, “Remember the lizardman chieftain? The one that looked like an alligator?”

  “The one Orion cooked up? Yeah, that’s something I won’t be forgetting anytime soon.”

  Micha? turns to us and explains, “We once came across this big lizardman chieftain. He was a pain in the ass, but we managed to bring him down. Just as we were about to leave, Orion—this big Cajun guy—said it would be a waste not to eat him. So, after he butchered it, we ate nothing but alligator meat for the next few days. It was good for the first two, but after that, we all got food poisoning. Good times.”