Chapter 97: The First Dungeon (3)

The dungeons near starting points were constantly swarmed by players, mostly newbies.

It wasn't just because The Legend Enigma Online was the most popular game in the world, but also because high-level players would come here with their second or even third characters to level up them.

They knew tricks and the dungeons' secrets, so it was like a walk in the park for them.

The first dungeons, however, had a peculiar nickname in the community—the lawless zone.

Newbies would taste the world without NPCs and their rules—it was only them and the monsters there. For that reason, many players would expose their real selves or do things they would never do outside the dungeon or in real life.

It wasn't too much to say that dungeons turned players into monsters.

Although Jake hadn't heard this much about the dungeons, he had enough experience from other games to know that he could be targeted just because of his class, companions, or just because he was alone.

He was the easiest player to kill and have fun with, at least in the appearance.

"If your cooldown gets triggered, we'll deal with our enemies first. I'll then head alone to the dungeon and mine whatever I can in this one-hour interval," Jake told his summons.

They nodded at him.

Jake decided not to hide them.

It was the first significant journey outside the capital, so Jake wanted to bond with his companions. He also liked having them on himself while they were still so little.

He couldn't waste their precious low-level time.

At last, he was in the forest's cradle. It was a dangerous zone, so Jake had taken out his previous monkey boss's set and put it on, leaving only his face bare. It was because Aaron told him that the design of the Joker Mask had turned out so well that it'd gather too much attention.

Jake wanted to check the dungeon's situation before drawing any eyes to himself—at least, he tried to avoid as much attention as possible.

Wielding his new bow, Jake went deeper into the forest.

This place was famous, so without Mary and Robert's help, Jake wasn't that much bothered by monsters. A few of them had growled at him and threatened to kill him, but Jake's Soldier Form was enough to put them down.

"Yeah, I heard beast tamers have it too difficult."

Jake chuckled, "I was lucky to meet them in the neighboring provinces. Yeah, beast taming is difficult, but it's so rewarding once a bond is created."

He didn't want to explain his summoning skills, and beast tamer subclass was a convenient excuse to avoid his secrets being laid bare to others.

That was when the female player cast a dazzling smile at him.

She said, "Join us! I'd love to clear a dungeon with your doggo! Pretty please! It will be so much fun!"

It would have been difficult for any other man to refuse this girl. She was so cute and also well-endowed for her age, which she didn't seem to really understand. Her natural actions were dangerous to the opposite gender of her age.

Meaning her teammates must have been either used to it or enjoyed it wholeheartedly.

Jake smiled and shook his head, "I'm gonna mine in the dungeon. I'll slow down anyone, so I don't want to team up with others. Thanks for the offer, though!"

"Pleaseeeee~~"

The girl didn't give up. She made puppy eyes and brought herself closer to Jake. It was quite a view that even Jake couldn't help but get interested in.

Alas, it wasn't enough to convince him.

He smiled and took a step back.

Which was enough to break the girl's sweet appearance.

She stomped on the ground with an angry face and pouted, "Fine! Okay! Hmph! Have fun mining all alone! Hmph! Boring loner!"

She turned around and left the group.

Her party ran after her.

Jake stared ahead with squinted eyes and thought aloud, "A spoiled girl, huh. Not everyone's gonna give in to your whims just because you have a lot to breathe with."

Jake sneered and changed his direction.