The tree had a door at the base, and James entered it. Again, he had to climb a set of stairs before arriving in a room with a single golden portal.
“I wonder what boss that brat had to face here,” James muttered. The room was empty, more like an arena. James surmised that Kouki had to duel a fairly large boss monster.
“What should we do, boss?”
“Let’s go to the portal,” James said while touching the portal. This was the first time James had gone to a cleared floor. Apart from the slain boss, there was nothing extraordinary about it. The team was brought to a waiting room.
“Cold!” Sanders exclaimed as a white field spanned before their very eyes. James realized he had sunk a foot into the snow he was standing on. As he lit himself aflame, he realized he was not standing on the ground but on an iceberg.
“Well, this is an ice world, I guess.” James and Kaina took out their Dark Night Cloaks and gave them to the newbies.
“You guys okay?”
“The armor did something. My body isn’t too cold, but my feet and hands are freezing,” Anderson said. Sanders nodded. James could see that his armor also provided some resistance.
“Let’s go.” James noticed a golden arrow pop up in his view. This floor had also been cleared by Kouki’s team.
“Hostiles at 2 o’clock! Something is approaching us.” Soldier C said. “Evan! Did you get visual confirmation?”
James was quite amazed at Soldier C's useful skill. But when he looked in the direction, there was nothing there. Nevertheless, he believed him. After taking a deep breath, he spewed fire from his mouth in that general direction. The snow melted, revealing a white snake.
“Contact! Prepare your sword skill!” Sanders said. The snake flopped around for a bit before lying motionless.
[Congratulations. You have earned 10 coins.]
“Snakes… System, what did it get?” James asked.
[Would you like to modify your body? Y/N]
**[Available parts:
Snow Serpent's Fang (Very Weak Frostbite) [Mouth Slot]]**
“Frostbite? What’s that?”
[Frostbite is a status effect that inflicts weakness to ice or cold damage. Moreover, it reduces Strength and Dexterity while also dealing minor health damage. It can be stacked—ten stacks of Very Weak Frostbite will be upgraded to Weak Frostbite, another ten stacks of Weak Frostbite will be upgraded to Medium Frostbite, and so on. It has a 5-minute duration and will reset when another stack is applied.]
“Whoa. That sounds incredibly powerful!” James said. He wanted to swap his current fang with it. However, the words "Very Weak" discouraged him.
“Tch. I bet the boss was a giant snow serpent. But Kouki must have killed it and sold the corpse already, just like on the first floor,” James muttered.
“Boss, anything with this snake?”
“Yeah, it’s poisonous. You won’t die immediately, but you must not get bitten multiple times in quick succession,” James warned.
Sanders called the team and briefed them on the danger.
“We will rely on Charles’ detection skill and Boss James' fire-breathing skill to deal with these snakes. Boss James said we must not get bitten multiple times. Well, not getting bitten at all would be better. So, watch your steps.” Anderson said.
As the group traversed the dungeon, the ice split apart in the distance, creating several floating ice blocks. Those blocks were just the right distance for James to hop across. A massive circular iceberg sat at the end of the jumping platform.
“Do you think what I think needs to be done here?”
“Yes.” Anderson nodded.
“No.” James denied.
Raising his hand, he activated his water magic, creating an ice bridge that connected the platforms.
“That works too,” Anderson nodded. The group then walked across the bridge.
“Careful! Something is below us,” Soldier C warned.
“Hostile below us. Watch your six. If they come, hit it with your weapon skill immediately. Cover the greenhorn,” Sanders commanded.
Of course, James didn’t listen to any of it. He gazed at the black water, lost in thought.
The dungeon, however, didn’t let ignorance go unpunished. A shadow made a splash in the water, and a horned seal leaped toward James. Instinctively, James swung his axe while raising his buckler in defense. Just because he was daydreaming didn’t mean he wasn’t alert.
The seal had nothing of value except for its fat, so James didn’t bother using his Chimera skill on it.
[Congratulations. You have earned 5 coins.]
“Carry this to the ice arena. You’ll butcher it. I’m going to scout the area for a bit,” James said.
Sanders saluted and ordered Soldier D to carry out the task.
When they arrived at the arena, Anderson drew his dagger and began the job while James scouted the surroundings. He was curious if there were any chests hidden underwater. He glanced at Soldier C. Since he remained silent, that meant there were no enemies nearby.
James then dipped his head into the water.
The tale has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.
[Frostbite magic effect: Weak. Applied every 10 seconds, lasting for 5 minutes. Stat decrease by 1%. You will lose consciousness in 10 minutes and die in an hour if the status effect persists.]
James immediately snapped his head out of the water. Even though he had only submerged for a second, he could feel his entire body chilled to the bone, his limbs shivering uncontrollably.
It didn’t make any sense. The system must have manipulated the water itself to inflict a frostbite status.
He then lit himself on fire, wondering if he could dispel the effect.
[Fire Mana detected. Your Fire Mana has overwhelmed the Frostbite Mana. The frostbite effect will be halted.]
“As expected. I can’t just rely on the system. I need to experiment with things myself,” James muttered.
There was still a slight chill, but his body had stopped shivering. Checking his status, he saw that the frostbite effect remained, but its impact was now nullified as the five-minute timer ticked down.
James wondered why the system didn’t simply dispel the frostbite—then he remembered that the frostbite effect could be stacked, unlike paralysis or the life-leeching poison he had encountered before.
“Hey! Soldier E,” James called out. “You have binocular eyes, right?”
“Sir! I am Private Evan, sir! Yes, sir! My skill allows me to see distant objects as if I were using binoculars, sir!” Soldier E saluted.
James nodded. “Come here for a sec. Bring one of the cloaks too.”
“Hm? What are you doing, James?” Kaina asked.
“I want to see if he can spot any treasure chests down there. Remember, you have to be quick. This water will inflict a frostbite status on you.”
The soldier gave James a funny look. James returned his stare.
“Come on, you’re not afraid of a little cold bath, are you? Watch your status and be quick,” James said.
“No, sir.” Soldier E obeyed and dipped his head into the water.
“Oi! Soldier C, keep an eye out for any nearby monsters. If you sense anything, call it out immediately,” James ordered.
As soon as he finished giving commands, Soldier E raised his face from the water.
“There are seven chests, sir!”
“Seven?” James was stunned at Soldier E’s report. He quickly drew an impromptu map on the ice ring, marking where the golden boxes were located. All of the chests were spread apart.
“Whoa! Seriously? Seven? There’s a bunch of chests down there! Did Kouki miss them? He’s going to be so jealous of us!” Sanders giggled.
Anderson stepped forward, offering his help.
“Um… shouldn’t we be focusing on helping the advance team?” Soldier A hesitated.
“Chests are extremely valuable, understand? Their worth can’t be measured by money—they could literally save your life. If you spot one, you open it. Carefully, though—many chests are booby-trapped.”
James straightened up. “I’m going first. Remember, don’t rush. Take one chest, then come out. There’s a new status ailment here that I’m unfamiliar with.”
James turned to Soldier E. “Hey, are you okay?”
“I’m still cold, sir! Even with the cloak, it’s not subsiding, sir!” Soldier E shivered violently.
James lit a flame before him, but the soldier kept shaking uncontrollably. Fortunately, as expected, the shivering stopped at the five-minute mark—the exact duration of the frostbite effect.
“Newbies can’t go in there. You need fire skills or magic to survive underwater.” James said.
He disrobed, revealing his tiger fur and the toned, muscular body of an orc. He lit himself aflame again to test his resistance. The frostbite effect had completely worn off, but he wanted to ensure his skill was ready before diving.
This time, he didn’t have his fish lungs, meaning he could drown. Even with his enhanced stats, he could only hold his breath for about four minutes at most. If he got attacked underwater, he wouldn’t be able to defend himself properly.
“When I tug this rope, pull me up immediately. Understood?”
James created a sturdy rope using his spinneret and emptied his leather bag, preparing to carry whatever was inside the chests.
“Yes, sir!” the team responded in unison.
After taking several deep breaths, James leaped into the water.
The world turned blue, and muffled sounds echoed through the depths. James quickly snapped his gaze toward the first golden chest, targeting the furthest one first.
[System Notification]
[Frostbite stack increased to 2. You will lose consciousness in 2 minutes and die in 10 minutes.]
James felt the cold creeping into his bones, and it took every ounce of willpower not to shiver. The system cruelly reminded him of his impending demise.
"Damn it! That’s even less time than I thought!" James cursed internally.
He raced toward the chest, attaching a spiderweb line to it. Normally, he would swim at least six meters away before opening a chest to avoid potential traps, but with time running out, he barely made it three meters before lifting the lid.
The chest didn’t contain any nasty surprises.
James hurriedly scooped up a pile of coins and stashed them into his leather bag. Without hesitation, he tugged the rope three times.
A moment later, he felt a strong pull from his webbing. Within ten seconds, he was yanked back to the surface.
[Name: James]
Age: 35
Sex: Male
Level: 45
Coins: 127
Merit: 1
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STR: 145
-
DEX: 142
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MAGIC: 98
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MANA: 960
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Novice Axe Mastery Level 5 (Powerstrike, V-slash, Boomerang)
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Novice Sword Mastery Level 1 (Hurricane, Vorpal Lunge)
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Beginner Bow Mastery Level 7 (Quickshot)
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Beginner Dagger Mastery Level 1
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Mind Flay
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Sense Alteration
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Mana Sonar
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Attacker (Level 21) (10% bonus when attacking, STR & DEX +1 per level)
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Health Potion (100 Coins)
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Hematonic Potion (50 Coins)
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High Potion (300 Coins)
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Antidote (50 Coins)
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Sell Function Available
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Goblin Stomach (Iron Guts) (Stomach Slot)
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Mana Core (Water Spells: Ice Spear, Water Manipulation, Magic +60, Mana +1000) (Extra Slot)
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Minotaur Leader’s Left Arm (STR +25%) (Left Arm Slot)
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Eyes of Mana (Mana Sense) (Right Eye Slot)
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Golem Arm of Valhalla (STR +30%, Physical Resistance +30%, Negative Trait: Repairable, Mana -200) (Right Arm Slot)
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Ratking's Legs (STR +25%) (Leg Slot)
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Flaming Tiger’s Fire Lung (Fire Breathing Skill, Negative Trait: Mana -100, Magic -10) (Lung Slot)
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Golem Core (Poison Resistance, Negative Trait: Mana -250, Magic -10, Repairable) (Heart Slot)
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Orc’s Torso (Torso Slot)
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Orc’s Head (Head Slot)
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Shadow Snake Fang (Intermediate Life Leeching) (Mouth Slot)
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Jumping Spider’s Spinneret (Thread Creation) (Extra Slot 2)
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Flaming Tiger Lord’s Firefur (Fire Cloak Skill, Fire Resistance, Physical Resistance +15%, Negative Trait: Mana -100, Magic -10) (Skin Slot)
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Kraken’s Arm Tentacle (Reach: 5 meters, Negative Trait: STR -10%) (Extra Slot 3)
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Rock Crab Shell (Physical Resistance +90%) (Extra Slot 4)
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Land Shark's Ear (Echolocation: 10 meters) (Ear Slot)
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Leather Armor Set (+10 DEX)
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Dustmail
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Lightning War Axe
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Longsword
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Crossbow (×6)
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Mask of Identity
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Leather Bag
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Sphere of Fethusiane
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Cloak of Dark Night
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Dungeon Core (x1)
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Blue Gem (x5)