Eden of the Eclipse

14 - Evil Developers

Descending from the forest above, the two girls climbed down a ladder that had been dug from an earthly wall as the visibility of the space declined. Lucy looked below and watched as Worm landed safely, then did the same.

[You have entered the 2-man dungeon 'Acron's Goblin Outpost'.]

There was no feeling of entering a 'private instance' that belonged to only them, but Lucy supposed it likely was still so based on the message. Simply put, the developers had made the transition between the over-world and the dungeon a seamless experience for all those within the party.

The first thing each of them did was summon their Traveler's Book and look for the new achievement they had gained.

[Pioneer]
—congratulations, you are amongst the first to find a dungeon. It's a significant achievement worth noting.
*When entering a dungeon for the first time, your exp gain is increased by 100%.

"Oh this is good," Lucy's eyes shined in delight.

"Mhmm." Worm nodded.

"Alright," Lucy said, wishing the book away and drawing her sword, "Now let's get to this."

Worm did the same. Her blade a clean bronze as the two looked at the tunnel before them. The place was long and underground. There were small ores glowing orange along the walls and roofs as dirt fell. Yet, the visibility was still quite low.

"Goblins must be able to see better than us at night huh. . ." Lucy said, taking a careful step forward.

A click rung.

She blinked her eyes and looked down.

"Huh?"

There was a slab.

A whoosh echoed within the underground space as an arrow passed through a socket in the wall and struck her abdomen, sending her a tinge of pain. Her vision blurred for a moment then steadied before her health bar took on a hazy green around it.

Lucy hurriedly pulled the arrow out.

"Poison," Worm muttered beside her as she stared at its tip oozing with the color green. "This dungeon has traps. What's the damage overtime rate?"

Lucy threw the arrow on the floor and stomped on it, breaking it in half.

"Looks like a percent every 5 seconds," She gnashed her teeth. "These darn developers!"

Worm frowned.

The tunnel was wide enough for the two girls to pace side by side. This time, they took more careful steps, looking beneath and around them as they walked. Lucy found that the poison wore off after a minute.

"<Small Heal>," Worm waved her hand and a light fell upon her.

Her health climbed back up to 98%. Evidently, the girl's healing skill could only regain 10%.

"How long till you can cast it again?" Lucy asked, squinting through the tunnel.

"Thirty seconds." Worm replied. "I also have a barrier skill that lasts for ten and cools-down for a minute."

It was not a long time, relatively speaking. Yet, if they were within a battle, both skills could save a life in conjunction.

Lucy nodded and stood before an expanding hole.

The two stepped within.

". . ."

". . ."

They entered a wide space and a group of goblins seated upon wooden, terribly manufactured, bunk-beds stared at them in confusion for a moment. There were three of them.