In a dimly lit section of the dungeon's first floor, a man stood poised with a short sword in hand. He wore a plain white t-shirt and long, flexible pants designed for ease of movement. Before him, a boar with a vibrant, crystal-like horn protruding from its forehead pawed at the ground, ready to charge.
As the boar charged, the man remained perfectly calm, standing his ground with quiet confidence. Muscles relaxed, eyes sharp—he watched its every movement. The creature barreled forward, its hooves pounding against the stone floor, the crystal horn on its head gleaming in the dim light.
At the last possible moment, the man shifted his weight and stepped aside with effortless grace. The boar's charge missed by inches. With a swift flick of his wrist, his short sword sliced along the boar’s flank, leaving a shallow but precise wound that shimmered with a faint trace of energy.
The boar let out a guttural snort, enraged by the pain and humiliation. Its hooves scraped against the ground as it turned sharply, kicking up dirt and dust. Without hesitation, it charged again, faster and wilder than before.
But once again, the man moved with fluid precision, dodging the reckless charge as though he were merely dancing out of the way. Another quick strike followed—clean, efficient, and controlled—drawing a second shallow cut across the beast’s side.
The boar let out a furious roar, stomping the ground with such force that cracks splintered beneath its hooves. Its crystal horn began to glow brighter, shifting from vibrant hues to a deep, ominous red. Energy pulsed from it in waves, and the light cast a sinister glow across the dungeon floor.
The man simply smiled at the sight.
With a burst of speed, the enraged boar charged once more—faster and more aggressive than ever before. But the man’s smile didn’t waver. He stood his ground, calmly raising his sword, waiting for the perfect moment to strike.
As the beast closed in, he moved. In a single, fluid motion, he sidestepped the charge and drove his blade straight into the boar’s chest—piercing its heart with deadly precision. He let go of the hilt, allowing the momentum to carry the boar forward with the sword still embedded in its body.
The creature staggered a few steps before its strength gave out. With a heavy crash, it collapsed onto the ground—and in the next breath, its body dissolved into a swirl of black mist, leaving behind only the glowing red crystal horn and the short sword on the ground.
The man let out a quiet sigh, then stepped forward to retrieve his sword and the glowing red crystal. He wiped the blade clean before sheathing it, then walked over to a nearby rock where he had stashed his bag. After opening it, he carefully placed the crystal horn inside, joining the four blue ones already collected.
Ray
Level: 6
STR: 12
VIT: 8
AGI: 9
MGC: 5
"Finally. Level six," he muttered, a small hint of satisfaction in his voice as he glanced at the floating status screen in front of him. It had been five days since his last level-up—five days of grinding and near-constant hunting.
Ray pulled out his phone from his bag and checked the time. The screen lit up, displaying 5:07 PM. He frowned slightly, then zipped the bag shut.
"Guess that’s enough for today."
With that, he slung the bag over his shoulder and began making his way toward the dungeon’s exit. The air was still thick with the musty scent of earth and faint traces of monster magic, but it felt quieter now—like the floor was taking a breath between battles.
On his way out, he came across two men struggling against a crystal-horned boar. The fight was clumsy, uncoordinated. One of the men managed to drive a knife into the boar’s side, and the creature let out a strangled sound before dissolving into black mist—leaving nothing behind.
"You stabbed it too deep!" the other guy snapped, his voice laced with frustration.
"Sorry! I panicked when it suddenly changed direction..." the one who landed the killing blow said, clearly dejected.
Ray glanced at them briefly, but didn’t say a word. Without getting involved, he walked past them in silence, minding his own business.
Inside the dungeon, when you kill the monster, they will drop the colourful crystal that attached on their bodies, when they enraged, the crystal colour will change, and the monster strength will be enhanced depends on the colour.
When a monster’s crystal horn changes color, it signifies a dramatic shift in its abilities.
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A blue crystal—the most common one—enhances the monster's speed exponentially, making them faster and harder to track.
A green crystal increases their durability, allowing them to endure far more damage than usual.
A yellow crystal boosts both strength and stamina, turning them into relentless powerhouses.
Red crystals are rare—monsters with red horns become stronger, faster, and significantly harder to kill.
But the rarest of them all is the purple crystal. Monsters with a purple horn become nearly unstoppable, gaining a temporary state of invincibility for thirty minutes, during which their strength and speed increase by up to five times.
Crystals are sometimes dropped when a monster is defeated while not enraged, but it's uncommon. Most of the time, the crystal vanishes along with the monster's body, and even if it drops, its value tends to be lower. However, if the monster becomes enraged—triggered by stress, damage, or certain environmental conditions—it will always drop its crystal upon defeat.
On the first floor of the dungeon, only one type of monster roamed—boars with crystal horns. It was the most accessible area, which meant it was also the most crowded. Countless adventurers came here daily, hoping to grind levels or earn a few coins. Because of that, finding a boar that wasn’t already being hunted by someone else was a challenge in itself.
And even if you managed to land the finishing blow, there was no guarantee the crystal would drop—unless the boar had gone into an enraged state. Miss that opportunity, and all your effort would go to waste. In a place like this, timing and luck were just as important as skill.
As Ray made his way toward the exit, he glanced around at the empty corners and the occasional distant clash of metal. The floor was quieting down.
'The first floor’s always like this', he thought.
'Only boars here—and with so many people hunting, finding one that’s not already being engaged is like winning the lottery.'
He adjusted the strap of his bag on his shoulder.
'And even if you do find one, if it doesn't get enraged, there’s a good chance the crystal won’t drop. Miss that, and you’ve just wasted time and stamina for nothing.'
He sighed again, more thoughtful this time. That red crystal made today worth it at least.
After he exit, a thick wall with tower is visible from the distance. Not far from the entrance, cafes and restaurants can be seen, there's also shop that sells survival and camping tools, this place looks like small metropolis city. A lot of people is here, and most of them carrying weapons, like short sword, hunting knives, bow gun, etc. you can actually use firearms in the dungeon, but you need a licence to own one and it's highly regulated.
As Ray stepped out of the dungeon entrance, the first thing he saw was the thick outer wall rising in the distance, crowned with watchtowers that kept an ever-watchful eye on the area. The sun was beginning to dip lower in the sky, casting long shadows across the busy outpost that sprawled just beyond the entrance.
Not far from the gate, rows of cafés and restaurants lined the streets, their signs glowing with warm lights and mouthwatering smells wafting through the air. People gathered at outdoor tables, chatting about their hunts or checking their gear. Nearby, specialized shops sold survival kits, camping tools, dungeon maps, and first aid kits—everything a hunter might need.
The place had the vibe of a small metropolis built entirely around dungeon life. People bustled through the streets, many of them carrying weapons slung across their backs or strapped to their belts—short swords, hunting knives, collapsible bows, crossbows, even modified spears. You could use firearms in the dungeon too, but only if you had a proper license. Getting one wasn’t easy, firearm use was heavily regulated, and for good reason.
Ray walked past them all, blending into the crowd of battle-worn hunters like just another face in the hunt.
After walking some distance through the bustling streets, Ray finally arrived at the Dungeon Explorer Guild. The moment he stepped inside, a wave of cool air from the air conditioner washed over him, instantly refreshing after the heat and noise outside.
The lobby was crowded—adventurers of all kinds filled the queue chairs, some chatting quietly, others dozing off, checking their gear, or playing with their smartphone. Most of them were waiting to exchange the crystals they had collected.
Ray made his way to the ticket machine near the entrance and tapped the screen.
"926..."
He glanced at the printed ticket in his hand, then looked up at the display board above the receptionist counter.
"Now serving: 885"
He let out a quiet sigh and headed over to an empty seat, ready for a long wait.
Ray sat down and leaned back in his chair, pulling out his smartphone to kill time. He opened the Dungeon Explorer app—a must-have tool for adventurers. The interface loaded quickly, showing a clean dashboard with icons for dungeon maps, monster databases, guides, advice forums, and party recruitment threads. It even had live chatrooms where hunters discussed everything from gear builds to recent boss spawns.
He tapped his profile picture in the top-left corner and selected the Status tab.
---
Ray
Level: 5
STR: 10
VIT: 6
AGI: 7
MGC: 4
STR Growth Rate: 2.00
VIT Growth Rate: 1.34
AGI Growth Rate: 1.50
MGC Growth Rate: 0.84
---
Ray casually edited his level, updating it from 5 to 6, and the rest of the stats auto-adjusted to match his real-time growth. The app wasn’t just for show—it helped adventurers track their progress and compare builds with others. Each stat or growth rate could be edited manually, especially useful when logging progress after a big run.
But it came with strict rules.
Falsifying data to look more impressive—especially growth stats—was a bannable offense. Guild moderators actively monitored the database, and getting caught with fake numbers could get your account flagged or suspended.
Ray glanced at the updated numbers and gave absolutely no reaction.
He leaned back in his seat, eyes drifting toward nothing in particular as he waited for his number to be called. The room buzzed with quiet conversations and the occasional clack of gear being adjusted. The display above the reception counter blinked slowly—"Now Serving: 891."
Ray sighed softly.
Time crawled. He passed the time browsing through the Dungeon Explorer app, checking out a few new threads and updated guides. Out of boredom, he tapped into the Status tab and began adjusting his level manually, just to see how his stats would scale in the future.
Level 10... Level 15... Level 20.
His stats jumped with each simulated level, the growth rates doing their work. It was nothing official—just a way to kill time and daydream a little.
Even after all that, the number on the display had only climbed to 897.
He stood up for a moment to stretch, then sat back down.
905.
911.
914.
Still a long way to go.
Then, just as 915 lit up on the display, the guild doors swung open with a loud clack, and a familiar, overly energetic voice boomed across the hall.
"Finally! We’re now inside the guild!"
A man strutted in, grinning wide, followed closely by someone holding a camera, filming his every step. Behind them trailed a few more assistants and a small cluster of curious onlookers. His presence immediately turned heads.
Ray looked up, already knowing who it was before even seeing his face. The guy was hard to miss—one of the more well-known dungeon streamers with a reputation for being loud, dramatic, and always on.
"Huff... the air conditioner sure feels nice on my skin—!" the streamer declared theatrically, fanning himself as though he’d just emerged from a desert. He started rambling non-stop, narrating every thought that popped into his head like a running commentary on life itself.
"947! Aaand... it's still on 915," he said, pointing to the screen.
The camera zoomed in on the display as he added with a laugh, "Guess I’ll be queuing like everyone else today. Like a good boy!"
Ray blinked slowly, unimpressed. So he’s actually waiting in line this time, he thought. Normally, the guy would just buy someone’s ticket and jump ahead.
He returned to his phone, tuning out the streamer's voice as it echoed through the hall like background noise.
The numbers on the display slowly ticked upward—916, 919, 923...
Then, without warning, someone dropped into the seat next to him with a burst of energy that felt completely out of place in the drowsy waiting area.
Ray didn’t even need to look. He already knew.
It was the streamer.
