Chapter 19: The City Outskirts

Chapter 19: The City Outskirts

Most people were now inside the [City Ruins] rift, fighting their way through the level 5 area.

"WATCH OUT!"

"HELP ME OUT HERE!"

People could only form parties of 5 inside the rift, and after doing so, they would be allowed to share experience points between each other as long as they participated in the kill, making it safer to level up.

No one could really know what the hell was happening further inside the rift, so everyone just focused on themselves.

"Where is that Stark fucker?" Daniel entered the rift 45 minutes after Stark, rushing his way through the level 5 area and reaching the level 10 one with his squad.

"We saw him enter the rift at the beginning, so he should be here..." one of Daniel's companions spoke, a spear in his hand as he was also part of the warrior class.

"HAHAHA~ That fucker got lucky yesterday, and now he is probably already dead!" Daniel nodded, as for him (and probably most people), it was impossible for Stark to get past the first area, "He probably became one of those monsters!"

"-728! -827!" he eliminated a monster that came his way, then looked around him, noticing all the other people that were fighting.

Lana on the otherhand was also in the level 10 area, currently extremely close to Daniel's group as they were right next to her.

'So annoying...' she groaned while shooting two arrows to kill a monster nearby.

Instinctively, Daniel looked to his right as he saw the high amount of damage being dealt by Lana, and noticed her blonde-hair, beautiful face, and spectacular body.

Nobody knew it, but Daniel had a massive obsession over Lana, always trying to please her and approach her, but she would always reject him.

After all, Lana was used to such attempts from men who thought they had a chance with her.

"Hey Lana-" he tried to approach her, but sensing his presence, Lana immediately began running, acting like she spotted another monster, "Oh... well i'm sure she'll succumb at one point or another!"

"Of course she will, any girl would dream of being with you, the Pridel family name is extremely famous after all," one of Daniel's companions reassured him, making him grin.

And it was at this exact moment that Stark defeated the mini-boss.

Suddenly, everyone stopped, a golden panel appearing in front of them.

[The mini-boss 'Feathered Scourge' was defeated by REDACTED, you can now advance further inside the dungeon!]

Daniel, Lana, and everyone else that were inside the dungeon read the text with shocked eyes.

'Holy shit!' Stark smiled, his HP was extremely low, and his journey since the beginning was a giant 'NO HIT' challenge since even one attack would kill him.

And now...

"Can I actually absorb some damage now?" he wondered, eager to use that new ability of his, but also knowing that he couldn't take any risks, "Welp... i'll see when the time is right."

He took a step forward, and now was in the final area of the rift.

[Entered level 15 area, "City Outskirts"]

The atmosphere switched completely, it was already dark and twisted in the 'Advanced District', but the last area was on another level.

The buildings were replaced by shaby old houses, menacing eyes could be seen from every broken window, and the air was thick with tension.

[The Black Sun has noticed and acknowledged you, it will now try everything in its power to stop you, classifier, good luck]

The panel was dark, mimicking the sinister darkness of the empty streets.

[Current Level: Lv9]

[Experience: 12810/75000]

'If this is a beginner level dungeon, I wonder just how bad the higher level ones are, people in this world must have a thick skull...' he said that, but in the end still began walking through the dark outskirts of the [City Ruins].

As he navigated the desolate streets, Stark's acute perception picked up on subtle movements in the shadows.

Yet even noticing all these creatures and eyes on him, nothing came out of a corner to stop him or attack him... for now.

And right after taking another step... another unexpected panel came interrupting Stark in his journey.

[Black Sun Curse: 90%]

[WARNING! GET TO A BONFIRE BEFORE IT IS TOO LATE! THE DARKNESS IS CONSUMING YOU]

'...' Stark sighed, the curse percentage had gone up so fast he didn't even take the time to check, and now he was at great risk of being turned into one of these... things.

Going backward was not a solid option either since he would probably be infected before it happened.

So his only choice... was to keep going forward, speedrunning his way through the monsters that would try to kill him.