Chapter 21: Dog Beam

The Hidden Dungeon Only I Can Enter — LNCrawler · All chapters

Chapter 21:
Dog Beam

I WAS GETTING THE HANG OF this whole diving thing, so after catching my breath, I went back in. I collected some more fish as I went—even a creepy one with a strangely human face. The bonefish, and some things that look like sea snakes, got in my way now and again, but they weren’t too much trouble.

I was more concerned about how I’d handle any stronger monsters lurking down here. There was no way I could use Lightning Strike or Holy Flame under water, after all. Stone Bullet was still an option, but the water would probably slow it down quite a lot. I didn’t have a lot of options.

“Let’s try going deeper.”

The deeper I went, the darker it got. By the time I was a hundred feet down, it was almost pitch-black but, thanks to my Night Vision, I could see the bottom. There were a lot of rocks and seaweed down there—A-Grade red kombu and B-Grade blue wakame. They both had different properties—and nutritional value—so I harvested as much of them as I could. Once I’d stuffed them into my Pocket Dimension, I prepared to head back.

What’s that…?

A huge school of tiny fish swam past. I had a bad feeling about this, so I hid myself behind a rock and it was just as well I did. A moment later, a giant shark swam by. I didn’t stand a chance against something like that, so I hurried to find the stairs back up.

Before I could find them, I discovered a giant octopus. It was a monster, apparently called a King Octopus. It was Level 48 and had two skills: Suction Cup and Octopus Ink. I was much more powerful, but then again, I couldn’t use most of my skills down here, so it was probably best to avoid it. I was just about to go around when I noticed something strange—some kind of button in the middle of a reef, and what looked like a metal hatch set into the seabed.

Did it lead down to the tenth floor? I needed to find out. I waited to see if the octopus would move on, but it stayed exactly where it was, so I tried to avoid it instead. If it chased me, maybe I could dodge around it and find a way to press the button—but the creature didn’t react. It just stared at me. Maybe I wasn’t enough of a threat to provoke it?

I got that weird unsettling feeling again, so I turned around, then I quickly hid behind a rock. That shark was coming back again. It wasn’t a monster, just a regular shark, but it was still dangerous.

Oh.

As I watched, the shark and King Octopus attacked each other.

Yeah! Fight! Fight! I was cheering them on, but quickly lost track as the octopus spewed out a cloud of ink. It took a few minutes for the water to clear again. When it did, I got a shock.

It caught the shark?!

That shark was tangled in the octopus’s tentacles. It was probably already dead. Once those suckers got a hold of something, it was done for. It was already eating the shark. There was no way I could get past the octopus without defeating it, so I started thinking of what I could do.

Octopus Killer (Grade C) – 500 LP

Octopus Killer (Grade B) – 800 LP

Octopus Killer (Grade A) – 1,500 LP

Octopus Killer (Grade S) – 2,500 LP

I wanted the S-Grade version, but what to Bestow it on? My only real option was the spear. The spear had high affinity with the skill, so it only cost an extra 200 LP. I went ahead and powered it up.

There, a perfect octopus-killing weapon.

I swam around behind the octopus. It was alert, even while chowing down on the shark. If it used its ink attack, I’d have to retreat fast. I inched forward slowly…very slowly…until the octopus stretched out one of its tentacles.

Take that!

I stabbed the tentacle with my harpoon and the monster reacted violently, thrashing around and letting go of the shark. I must have dealt it some serious damage. I guess that’s an S-Grade skill for you. It was tempting to go all-out, but better to be prudent.

Whoomph!

The King Octopus unleashed its ink attack, and I quickly swam away. As I’d suspected, it didn’t chase me very far. When it gave up, I crept toward it again, but I was starting to run out of air. I needed to finish this quickly.

Several tentacles shot out at once, and I attacked with my harpoon. The monster flailed and squirmed about, but this time I got closer and thrust my harpoon straight through its head. And, just like that, it was over.

I swam down to the metal sheet, quickly pushed the button and, just as I’d expected, the hatch opened up to reveal a room. The water rushed in and sucked me right down with it.

“Ahh…”

I smacked hard into the floor. Above me, the hatch slammed shut again and the water stopped pouring in. I guess it had to, or the whole tenth floor would flood.

I was surrounded by the dungeon’s familiar-looking hallways again. One of them stretched out straight in front and took a right a short way ahead. The walls down here looked like metal—smooth and clean. I couldn’t see any enemies, so I took off my clothes and wrung them out while I caught my breath. Then I waited until I could use Dungeon Elevator again.

My clothes still weren’t dry, so I just left my shirt off and pressed on. Was I turning into a nudist now? I followed the hall to the end. Around the corner, a strange stone dog stood in the middle of the corridor. Its mouth was wide open, and I had a strange feeling about it. Time for my old friend Discerning Eye!

Name: Stone Dog

Level: 200

Skills: Red Particle Beam

“A monster?”

It wasn’t moving, but particles of red light swirled around its mouth. Before it could fire off its beam attack, I hurried back the way I’d come. I was so sure I would make it, but I absolutely did not. A thin beam of red light shot after me at incredible speed. I dove to the floor, barely managing to dodge. The beam scoured down the metal walls. There was no way I wanted to be on the receiving end of that!

It was only a matter of time until the creature attacked again, so I crawled along the floor until I reached the bend in the hall. I had escaped…somehow. Unfortunately, the sole of my shoe wasn’t so lucky.

“It’s melted. How terrifying.”

That beam really was something. It wasn’t exactly rapid fire, but the shots came often enough. There was no way I could get past without armor or a shield of some sort. Seemed like this was the end of the line for now. I used my Dungeon Elevator to return to my master, and she howled with delight when she saw me.

“Give me a break. My clothes got soaked!”

Admittedly, it wasn’t a good look, standing there half-naked. My clothes were still all wet and gross, but I put them back on anyway.

“Because I’m down to 3,000 LP and, unlike a certain legendary adventurer, I don’t have an endless supply.”

<Oh, right. That reminds me! I thought of some ways to get you a ton of LP!>

“Well, that’s unusually considerate of you.”

<Careful, don’t cut yourself with that sharp tongue of yours. Well, I guess some of the ideas were a little silly, like touching butts together or doing a bridal carry/kiss combo. It probably sounds stupid. Ah ha ha ha!>

I mean, considering my pretty girl rice ball idea, it didn’t sound that stupid. And I’d received a ton of LP from that, so I should at least hear her out.

“Why don’t you tell me?”

<Oh, you’re interested enough to take out a notebook? Are you really planning on trying them?>

“It’s just for reference, that’s all.”

<You’re a closet perv, I knew it. Fine then, I’ll tell you.>

It turned out that my imagination could never compete with my master’s. She went on to describe all sorts of ways to fool around that I never would have thought of. I took care to write them all down.

“I think this will be useful. I’ll be back.”

<I’ll come up with some even more salacious ideas in the meantime. Bye!>

By the time I got back into town, it was already dark. I soaked up the majestic night sky and hurried to the armorer’s on my way home. There was something I needed to do.

Of course, weapons shops carried armor and shields, but the stuff you could get from a specialist was…well, special. I went to the best shield shop in town and set about checking out their stock. The prices varied wildly, from tens of thousands to hundreds of millions of rels. The best ones came with several skills attached. There were shields that could reflect magic and others that could restore your stamina with a touch. I inspected them all carefully.

“Anything I can help you with?” asked the bearded shopkeeper.

“Perhaps,” I said. “I’m interested in a shield.”

“I would recommend this one.”

It was small, round, and bronze. I examined it, but the cost was five million rels and it didn’t even come with any skills. Was he trying to scam me? Maybe he had me pegged for someone too young and inexperienced to know better. Time to nip that idea in the bud.

“I don’t think I need that.”

“Really? It’s the work of the master blacksmith, Nothton.”

“So a famous person made it, huh? Still, five million is a lot for something with no skills on it.”

“Oh, so you have a Discerning Eye for Items, sir?”

“I do,” I replied matter-of-factly.

The shopkeeper’s expression changed drastically. Suddenly, he looked overjoyed.

“Would you be interested in working for me?” he asked. “Part-time would be fine.”

“Unfortunately, my plate is pretty full right now. I’m guessing you’re looking for an appraiser?”

“Yeah. My last one ran off with most of my cash… You know, I have a number of items that I’m desperate to have appraised. If you could spare even an hour, I’d be really grateful.”

Grateful enough to cut me a deal on that shield? It was worth a try, at least.

“I’ve got some things to do,” I said. “But if you don’t mind waiting, I can help out.”

“Absolutely, please come by whenever you have time. I’ll be waiting.”

I was a fellow shopkeeper now, so I felt bad for him. I guess there really were some awful people out there who’d steal all your money. It made me realize how lucky I was to be surrounded by such kind people. Although I guess they were all a bit…odd, in their own way.