"Let's enter already," Lana said. "I know that you are itching to clear this dungeon and confirm if this weird rumor about people disappearing is true or not."
"You have to be more careful with this kind of thing, Lana," Louise said. "Still… now that we are here, I suppose saying that is useless."
"I want to clear this dungeon right now… but I don't know if we will get the rewards of two missions by doing this," Jake said. "We might as well just be causing problems to ourselves by messing with the game's system if we succeed."
"You are such a worrywart, don't mind the small stuff, and let's go," Lana said.
Jake wasn't really worried. He was just considering if that wouldn't cause problems for him later. He thought that was probably the definition of being worried … Regardless, if something happens, they can always try again… probably. Complaining to a game master was also an option. However, they might lose their game accounts because of those bugged skills.
"Heck… let's go," Jake decided when he began to hear the footsteps of another group of wolves approaching.
The dungeon corridor was like eight meters tall and three wide, so only a single wolf could pass at a time. Jake had no idea why the system created the dungeon-like, but it sure looked like the best place to hunt them was exactly inside the dungeon. In any case, the interior was insanely well-illuminated due to the crystals, but thanks to that, or for another reason, things were even colder inside. To the point where even Jake was starting to tremble.
"Why… this… all over… again…" Lana protested.
"I have a bad feeling about this cold…" Louise said. "Maybe we should wait a little longer before challenging the boss, Jake. Just until the Cold Resistance levels up a few times, or we increase our willpower."
"That is fine. We can wait in front of the boss' room," Jake said.
Jake had played too many games to understand that things were cold inside the dungeon because of the boss. The creature probably will use some really devastating ice attacks… considering that even its minions could free Jake's legs after a couple of seconds. He was waiting for a lot more coming from the boss.
After just twenty minutes, they found the last room of the dungeon. It was weird that the place didn't have bifurcations, only a single straight path, but Jake wouldn't complain since it was convenient. The dungeon didn't look different in any part either, just rough walls made of crystal, the ceiling filled with stalactites, and a very slippery ground. The last room of the dungeon was sealed with a door made of ice, and from the small breach between both parts, a lot of cold air was coming from it. After a while, the door was opened, and some snow wolves appeared, but Jake didn't have the chance to see the boss since a thick mist was inside, blocking the visibility.
"Shit…" Jake said and then began to massacre the monsters.
Since they had some time to prepare, Jake quickly finished them by using Mna Blades several times. Once the fight was over, he sat down and began to meditate…
"Might as well do something useful and recover mana while I wait for the battle," Jake said.
It wasn't much, but all mana being recovered for free was welcome. While Jake was doing that, the girls checked the potions they had in their pockets. Jake frowned when he saw that they had many health potions, even though they had sold several of them before.
In the end, Jake saw himself getting impatient since he wanted to face the boss as soon as possible and then confirm if those rumors about players disappearing were true or not. Usually, he wouldn't care about others all that much, but something inside Jake made him feel deeply interested in that mystery, and he didn't know what it was…
"Why the long face?" Lana asked.
"You should use your time well instead of asking useless things," Jake replied. "At this point in time, I thought you would know that this is my default expression."
"Putting that aside… something about all this makes me feel really interested," Lana said.
"I feel the same way… I can't explain why, though," Louise said. "It isn't like I had an interest in this kind of thing before."
So… Jake wasn't the only one who felt a bit interested in all that. Unlike Jake, Lana and Louise were people who would avoid this kind of rumor, so things looked even weirder than usual. Still, while they were thinking that, another group of wolves appeared, and after defeating them, they found a blue ice want and decided to accept that as a sign of good luck.
Frozen Impact
Intelligence + 04, Ice Punch (0%), master this weapon to permanently obtain the skill and status.
Durability: 10/10
Ice Punch: it grants you the power to fire a fist made of ice and then cause damage equal to your intelligence + 05% per level.
Cost: 10/l0 mana
Jake tossed the item to Louise. It was a useless item to him, after all. Still, the new spell would be useless against the next enemy, even on her hands.
"Well, it is time," Jake said. "We have only half an hour before the mission ends."
"What will be our strategy?" Lana asked.
"How can I come up with a strategy when I can't even see my opponent?" Jake asked. "Focus on doing the same as usual, and we will pull it off."
Those three walked toward the door, and once they touched it, it opened before them. The cold wind began to leave the massive room that seemed more like a prison made of crystal. After a while, they also found the prisoner of that place… a massive wolf that had silver fur. It wasn't much bigger than the ordinary wolves, but the silver fur also looked sturdier. Not to mention, the creature had some scary-looking long claws and fangs. The boss was supposed to be an ancient wolf, but it also looked like a sabertooth tiger.