Ding!

  Even the soul crushing sound of the fry machine wasn’t getting Ian down today. Sure, working at a fast-food place wasn’t where he had pictured himself at the age of 24, but it wasn’t like he had much of a choice. Public opinion could be a harsh mistress when rumors going viral quickly became ‘common knowledge’—even if said rumors contained very little in the way of factual information.

  Lost in thought, he moved with a trained precision as he deftly pulled the fries from the oil to rest as he prepped all of the containers. His shift was nearly over, but he took pride in doing the job right…even if it was mindlessly preparing fries in the back where the patrons couldn’t see him. He always kept a clean and organized working space to make sure the next worker was set up for success. His co-workers even liked him, or at least they liked the him they worked with on a day to day basis. He was just happy they didn’t go out of their way to threaten or assault him like so many people on the streets had over the past year.

  Checking the negative spiral his thoughts were starting to take, he pulled himself back to the present and put a smile on his face. This was his last shift of the week, and he felt this weekend would be the one to finally turn his luck around.

  With his mind back in the right head-space, he hummed a little tune as he put the fries into their containers before placing them on the conveyor as the next batch began to cook.

  “You seem to be in a good mood today,” came Jen’s voice from the hallway. “Got a hot date this weekend?”

  Ian looked over at his manager. She was probably a year older than him and had been one of the few people to give him a chance when he was at his lowest. She was pretty, probably around 5’ 6” if he was comparing her eye level against his 5’ 11” frame. She had blue eyes and black hair, and even managed to maintain an athletic build that was becoming increasingly uncommon amongst people outside of the adventuring circuit—especially for those who worked in fast food. Even he had to work on staying fit now that he was eating more than the single meal the restaurant provided their staff every day.

  “Ha! Like there is a woman alive who is going to date me at this point,” Ian replied with a smirk before his face soured. “Not sure I could trust anyone enough to be romantically involved anyways.”

  Jen just sighed as she watched him work from the doorway. After a few seconds, she stepped into the room and shut the door. The sudden change caused Ian to glance at her for a second before another ding prompted him to pull the fries from the oil.

  “Ian,” she said from behind him. “You need to stop letting what Avra did to you drive your life. She may be one of the top rising stars in the lower rankings right now, but as a woman, what she did to you was absolutely horrific.”

  Ian closed his eyes for a second and centered himself before he turned to his boss. He looked at her for a moment before looking over at the closed door.

  “She and the others like her might as well be the new gods of this world,” Ian said quietly. “Everyone knows what happens if you speak out against anything they do. You even shut the door to make sure the others wouldn’t hear you say anything against her. Not that I blame you because the regional manager would probably fire you if any of them discovered who I am.

  “I know for a fact that I never wanted anything but the best for Beth—well Avra now I guess. I had set up a dungeon dive and got all the starting gear because it was something she said she always wanted to try. Instead of a fun adventure that brought us closer, it led to her literally sacrificing our relationship and my future to the social media gods, all so she could have a good coming out drama story of her overcoming imaginary hardships.”

  Ian leaned over and put his hands against the top of the frying machine, “I know you never asked, but it was all just one giant lie. I never cheated on her with anyone—never even entertained the idea. Making her smile was all I ever wanted, and I definitely never hurt her in any way. I wouldn’t have even been capable of laying a finger on her. She was my everything.

  “I also never tried to make her quit adventuring. She loved it too much for me to ever want her to stop. I even told her that I would step back and help her in any way I could, as we both knew it was too dangerous for me to keep diving with her.

  “Instead, her clan helped her set me up when she joined. She invited me to a fancy dinner that I had to go get a suit for, and instead of celebrating, she literally told everyone I had cheated on her, stole from her, physically abused her, and tried to get her to give up on her dream of becoming a world class adventurer because I was ‘jealous’ of her success.”

  Ian stood up back up and looked over at Jen before continuing, “I was attacked by her rabid fan boys and nearly beaten to death—not once, but three times. I lost my internship, and—please don’t take this as me belittling this job I am incredibly thankful for having,” Ian said, holding up his hands and taking a breath. “But I am working at a fast-food restaurant because I can’t get a job with any company that worries about public opinion. I have an magi-tech engineering degree and over a dozen certifications. But none of that matters because the AI they use to sort potential on-boarding flags my name and civilian identification number in their systems.

  “You taking a chance on me and giving me a job has been the only bright point in my life since then,” Ian said with a bow of his head. “And I can’t thank you enough for being one of the only people willing to talk to me.” Ian paused to take a breath before finishing, “and I’m sorry for unloading my frustrations out on you.”

  “It’s actually kind of nice to see that you get frustrated,” Jen said with a gentle smile. “Sure, you can be a little standoffish at times, but you’ve never openly shown any anger at your current lot in life. I was honestly worried that you didn’t have any real feelings left after your ordeal, but I’m glad you’ve been opening up to me lately.

  “From the bag you brought in today, I take it you are still adventuring every weekend?”

  Ian was loading more fries onto the conveyor when he glanced over with a smile, “I am. Though this should be the big one…finally.”

  “Level 100?”

  “Level 100. It’s only taken me over two years instead of the normal two months.” Ian said with a self-depreciating laugh. “Plus, I have never really gotten any stronger as I leveled. The home scans you can buy still show my stats the exact same as when I started.”

  Jen crossed the room and stood next to him as he prepped more containers. He glanced over at her, and she smiled.

  “Maybe this weekend will be a turning point for you,” Jen said as she looked him in the eyes. “If anyone here has the karma built up for a fresh start, it’s you. But I need to get back to my office to get these numbers ran before I can leave. Your shift is going to be over in a few minutes, and I plan on leaving right after you.”

  Ian gave her a smile as she walked to the door. When she got there she turned around and said, “Also, for the record, even if they don’t know who you are, nobody here believes you could have done any of the types of things she claimed you did. You are a kind person, and probably too honest for your own good. So, you be careful and make sure to come back safe on Monday.”

  Stolen story; please report.

  Ian smiled as he went back to work. He only had to wait a few minutes before his replacement showed up.

  Grabbing his bag, he signed out before heading to the train station.

  *~*~*

  Ian slowly circled the basketball sized pile of ooze in front of him. Slimes had been a staple monster in many of the games he had played as a kid, and apparently the little creatures had an almost cult like following going way back to the times before access to the dungeon system was granted to Earth. Unlike the cute little monster that games portrayed them as, slimes were disgusting. Besides dissolving all types of organic compounds to include his fleshy skin, the smell wafting out of them made his stomach want to revolt every time he got near one.

  As the creature slid towards him, it made a rocking motion as the gelatinous mass of its body undulated back and forth. Ian aimed his spear as the mass came withing striking distance before expertly jabbing the long needle tip into the creature’s moving core. Instantly, the creature’s shape lost all cohesion and splashed to the floor in a puddle.

  The smell immediately began to dissipate as the ooze turned into normal, clean water. He had no idea why they did that, but he’d seen it happen thousands of times over his journeys through this dungeon. The smell going away was a strong enough incentive that he had spent hundreds, if not thousands of hours working on in spear work over the past two years. His effort had been well worth it as slimes made up the vast majority of monsters in the starting dungeon he was in. The monsters ranged from level 1 to level 5. However, they were all monsters that could easily be killed by a normal person. As long as they were being cautious, it was nearly impossible for someone to get killed in the first dungeon. Ian was sure it was possible, but had never heard of it happening.

  While the dungeon was extremely easy, it was an huge dungeon that took nearly eight full hours to reach the boss at a comfortable walking speed, and that was only if you knew the correct path. Normal adventurers would out level the dungeon long before they ever reached the boss room, and the bonus level they would receive wasn’t worth the trip for normal adventurers. The slimes didn’t drop any loot and ate anything that might have grown in the dungeon, meaning there was also no money to be made gathering ingredients.

  Most adventurers who visited this dungeon only did so once, spending the few hours they needed to out level it before moving on to more efficient and lucrative venues. Ian, however, had spent nearly every weekend for the past 18 months inside of this smelly dungeon. After his ex had publicly humiliated him and ruined his life, he had come here to escape everything when it was becoming too much to handle.

  After hours of killing the slimes and the small pill bug like monsters, his desperation had eventually led him to the boss room, which was home to a slime that was about three times the size of a normal one.

  The boss had been an easy kill just like every other monster in the starter dungeon. The thing that made it intimidating—its size—also made it easier than everything that came before it. Every aspect of the slime was larger, and that included the creature’s core. The large target moving slowly through the jelly mass made for an anti-climactic kill, which made the long walk to it even more frustrating to Ian.

  He had been an adventurer for nearly six months when he finally killed the boss, but it was the first time other than his initial dive that he had ever received a notification. He could still remember the shock and joy it had brought him during a time when he had needed it the most.

  Congratulations! You have defeated the boss of the Slime Caverns. You have been granted 1 bonus level and have advanced to level 2!

  That single notification had changed everything for Ian. With the chance of hitting level 100 now a possibility, it had given him a goal to push towards—a goal he had desperately needed. It had set him on the path the finally let him to reaching the final boss cavern while sitting at the exciting level of 99. It was the moment he had been waiting for, the moment his efforts would finally come to fruition.

  As he entered the familiar space, the painfully familiar stench of rotten eggs assaulted his senses. Even with the cloth he wrapped around his mouth and nose, this boss’s smell never got any easier to handle. He had only opened his mouth in this room before the boss was dead once, and he would never make that mistake again. His body let out an involuntary shiver at the memory.

  The large slime started sliding across the floor towards him, just like he had the other 98 times he had been in this cavern. Trying to maintain his shallow breathing, Ian walked across the room at a steady pace, watching the slime’s nucleus as it bounced back and forth with the slime’s wiggling. As he got in range, he struck out in a practiced motion scoring a direct hit with the needle tip of his spear.

  As he pulled it free, he quickly backed up as the creature sloshed out across a much larger portion of the floor than the others. It wasn’t dangerous now that it was dead, but experience let him know the trip back home in soaking wet shoes and socks wasn’t something he wanted to deal with. He also understood that the creature turned to water, but he couldn’t mentally escape the memory of the smell the creature put off.

  Before he could dwell on the thought, he saw the notification he had been waiting for so long to see, immediately followed by a second that made his eyes go wide as his heart nearly stopped.

  Congratulations! You have defeated the boss of the Slime Caverns. You have been granted 1 bonus level and have advanced to level 100! You have reached the max level for this dungeon and are no longer eligible to receive completion bonuses.

  Congratulations! You have overcome a Hard Mode Awakening Challenge. You have earned 100 levels with your experience modifier set to 1/10000th the normal rate with group experience and status gains disabled. Rewards will be processed upon dungeon exit.

  Ian blinked. He had never heard of an awakening challenge before, though many games he played had challenge modes to make it more interesting for the players who wished to replay stories they had already finished.

  Before he could continue his train of thought, a bright light interrupted him as the dungeon’s teleportation system kicked in. Whenever a boss was beaten, the party would automatically be teleported to the front of the dungeon, just a short distance away from the entrance. It was the only reason Ian could actually complete the dungeon as 16 hours of walking would have worn him down far too much.

  Ian blinked away the spots the light had left in his vision.

  “What is…” Ian began to mutter before quickly turning and sprinting towards the dungeon entrance. As he crossed the threshold, he appeared back outside in the cold night air and was immediately bombarded with notifications.

  Congratulations! You have unlocked skills! You may now spend Skill Points (SP) to purchase new skills to help augment your growth, as well as utilize skills that are granted by the system from reaching leveling milestones.

  Congratulations! You are the first human to complete a Hard Mode Awakening Challenge. All experience modifiers have been reset, and you have been granted a new skill commensurate with this achievement.

  New skill granted: Prestige Mode (Awakened). Allows the user to reset their player level to 1. They keep all earned skill points (SP) and half of their current statistic baseline. This skill can only be used at set milestones. Leveling past a milestone will cause the user to forfeit the chance to prestige until the next milestone is reached. Every level of prestige increases experience and SP gain by 100%. Charges can only be used once per milestone. The skill currently has 1 charge.

  New skill granted: Prestige Leader (Inherent). Dedicated party members will receive the same experience bonuses as the user.

  Congratulations! Your stat growth is no longer sealed, and your status is now being calculated and applied.

  Ian suddenly felt his body begin to warm as he read the last message. He had always been told that most people felt a small moment of discomfort if they leveled up too many times at once, but Ian was about to undergo 99 levels of stat growth in a single go. His body tensed as he began to spasm. His muscles and bones stretched before he heard things start to break. His entire nervous system cried out in pain as his body was pummeled in ways he hadn’t believed possible. He back arched as he screamed in a feeble attempt to push back the pain.

  After what felt like an eternity, his back muscled relaxed and he crashed down onto the pavement as blessed nothingness overtook him.