Jorin had a lot to say.

Most of it was irrelevant and much I simply didn’t believe. According to the fighter, Saben and Sigmar had already lost half of their gang to final death.

If Jorin was to be believed, other than the two dozen fighters in the safe zone cavern, only ten more gang members remained. He even claimed Bornholm and all his people were alive and unharmed—which was preposterous. The dwarf, I was sure, would never side with the gang.

I compelled Jorin to run into the wall twice more after that, but sadly his tale didn’t change and eventually I was forced to concede it wouldn’t—not unless I took more drastic measures. Which I wasn’t prepared to do. Despite my determination to eke out what information I could from the thug, I had already gone as far as I was willing to.

I had to be satisfied with what I had.

I rose to my feet and looked down at my captive. “Thank you, Jorin,” I said gravely. “You’ve been a great help.”

He jerked his head upwards towards me. “Are you going to let me go now?”

I shook my head. “No,” I said softly and sliced open his throat.

~~~

I stayed with the fighter, until he gasped his last breath. I wasn’t pleased by what I had done, but I thought my actions were warranted.

A necessary evil.

I swallowed back bile at the thought. Such justifications were a slippery slope, I knew, and I had to be careful with how far down this path I went, or I could lose my way entirely. Putting the fighter out of my mind, I turned my attention to other matters.

A few more Game messages had opened in my mind. Some of my skills had advanced and I had gained another level. I didn’t have to think too hard about deciding how to spend my new attribute point.

Your Dexterity has increased to rank 11. Current modifiers: -5 ranks in Dexterity. Dexterity skills and abilities limited to rank 6.

After seeing to the changes, I pulled up my player profile.

Player Profile (Basic): Michael

Level: 21. Rank: 2. Current Health: 80%.

Stamina: 70%. Mana: 100%. Psi: 90%.

Species: Human. Lives Remaining: 2.

Marks: Wolf-friend, Lesser Shadow, Lesser Light.

Classes: Nightstalker Rank 1, Psionic Rank 1.

Class point: 1 available.

Attributes (0 points available)

Strength: 2. Constitution: 5. Dexterity: 11. Perception: 8. Mind: 5. Magic: 0. and Faith: 0.

Traits

Undead familiar, Wolven, Beast tongue, Metamind, Marked, Nocturnal.

Skills (1 slot available)

Dexterity: Dodging: 27. Sneaking: 39. Shortswords: 35. Two weapon fighting: 31. Thieving: 1.

Constitution: Light armor: 20.

Mind: Chi: 9. Meditation: 24. Telekinesis: 10. Telepathy: 15.

Perception: Insight: 26.

Abilities

Crippling blow, minor backstab, simple charm, stunning slap, basic analyze, one-step.

Known Key Points

Sector 14,913 exit portal and safe zone.

Equipped

2 basic steel shortswords (+10% damage each).

slotted-potion belt (empty).

basic leather armor set (+15% damage reduction, -5 Dexterity).

With my progression seen to, I rose to my feet and searched Markus and Jorin’s corpses. Other than their weapons and armor, both thugs carried little upon them, and I moved on to the heap of equipment they had been guarding.

The pile turned out to be the very gear our party had lost in this chamber. The items looked like they had been dumped here for sorting later. Morin and Tantor’s equipment had been basic, consisting of items looted from the goblin complex, and I didn’t bother recovering any of it. Decalthiya’s armor was too heavy to lug away and I left it behind too.

Which left only my own gear.

I spotted my backpack buried underneath Decalthiya’s armor. Pulling it free, I peered inside anxiously.

A relieved smile lit my face when I saw everything was exactly as I had left it. After popping a ration cube in my mouth and quenching my thirst with water, I filled my belt slots with my healing potions. Then, I searched out my remaining gear.

It didn’t take me long to find my fighter’s sash and thief’s cloak, and I equipped both. My money pouch, though, was nowhere to be found.

I grimaced at the thought of my lost coins. I hadn’t been carrying much, but still—

I paused. Something else occurred to me. Neither Markus, nor any of the other gang members I’d just killed, had had any money on them either. I frowned. So where is all the money that the gang looted? I had questioned Jorin repeatedly about the gang’s treasure trove, but he’d insisted that the gang had none. I still wasn’t sure if I believed him though.

Straightening, I scanned the chamber. The only furnishings in the cavern were the bed and table on the left side. It didn’t take me long to examine both, but I came up empty.

I pursed my lips. The only other spots to hide something were behind the spiderwebs, but considering the volume of silk in the chamber, searching them would be a mammoth task, and not something I time for.

Returning to the center of the chamber, I turned a slow circuit and scrutinized the walls. Nothing stood out to me though. Oh well, I thought, it would’ve been nice to find the gang’s stash. I was sure they had one, but it didn’t look like I was going to find it now.

Still, for the sake of thoroughness, I tried one more time. Walking along the perimeter of the room, I paused after every step to run my gaze along the webs enveloping the walls. Half-way through, I began to regret my decision. This is useless. I have what I came for, and its time I got—

You have found an anomaly! Your insight has increased to level 27.

I froze as the Game message popped into my mind. At the edge of my vision, I’d noticed an oddity. The thing that had attracted my attention was not something within in the webs as I’d expected, but was instead a curiously-straight groove cut in the floor less than a yard from me.

Bending down on my haunches, I inspected the spot in question more closely. The groove was definitely not natural. With a gentle hand, I brushed away the concealing dirt and uncovered three more straight-cut edges.

A hidden compartment had been set into the rock beneath. Sitting back, I scrutinized my find again, but nothing else triggered my insight.

Is it trapped?

I couldn’t tell, and I didn’t have the time necessary for a more careful and thorough examination. I bit my lip, wondering if I should open the compartment.

I have to.

I drew my shortsword and readied a full healing potion in my left hand. If I did trigger a trap, I would down the potion immediately. I knew opening the compartment was risky, but I needed to see what the gang kept in it. It could make all the difference between the success and failure of my mission.

Without further delay, I wedged my blade between one of the grooves and levered up the covering rock plate. It came free easily. Gripping the healing flask tightly in my left hand, I waited for a reaction.

The seconds ticked by slowly. Nothing.

I exhaled and felt my pulse returned to normal. The compartment wasn’t trapped, only hidden. Reaching inside, I retrieved a handful of items.

You have acquired 3 full healing potions, 3 moderate healing potions, and 3 minor healing potions.

You have acquired a coin pouch containing 91 golds, 4 silvers, and 9 coppers.

You have acquired a rank 1 shortsword, +1. This item increases the damage you deal by: 15% and has been enchanted to increase the wielder’s shortsword skill by +1 rank (10 skill points). This item requires a minimum Dexterity of 4 to wield.

You have acquired a rank 1 priest’s robe. This item decreases the faith-based damage you sustain by: 10%. This item requires a minimum Faith of 4 to equip.

You have acquired a master Class stone. This stone contains the path of: a blood siphon. It confers a player with four skills: dark magic, light resistance, scimitars, and leech. This Class also permanently boosts your Faith attribute by: +2, your Strength by: +2, and your Magic attribute by: +2. This is a Dark Class.

I couldn’t believe it. I had found the very item I needed to escape the dungeon, but I left its examination for last. I turned my attention to the rest of my new possessions.

There were no skillbooks or ability tomes, which was no surprise really. Those, I assumed the gang had found ready use for. In fact, given the items in evidence, it appeared the compartment was Saben’s stash of backup gear.

I was rich too, and assuming I could make it back to the safe zone without dying, I would not want for more skills or abilities. The enchanted blade was of the most immediate use, and without hesitation, I replaced one of my basic swords with it. Then, I downed two of the minor healing potions and restored myself to full health. Finally, I inspected the Class stone.

It was the only item that didn’t belong. Saben already had a master Class of his own, so he didn’t have need for it. What I couldn’t figure out though, was why he hadn’t given it to one of his elites.

“Wow, what stone is that?” Gnat asked.

I glanced at the familiar. He likely knew what it was already. “You know what it is, don’t you?”

Gnat ducked his head sheepishly. “It holds the blood siphon Class.”

“Tell me about it.”

“It is a lucky find indeed,” Gnat said, “and comes equipped with the leech and light resistance skills.”

I had been wondering about the skills myself. I hadn’t come across them before. “What do you know of them?”

The bat snickered. “Only that they are amongst the rarest skills in the Game. Both are master tier skills.”

My brows drew down. “What do they do?”

“Light resistance increases your resistance to life spells, and leech allows you to siphon any form of energy—including health—from your foe with each hit.”

My eyes widened. “Really?”

“Really,” Gnat said with a chuckle. “Most players would kill to get their hands on the Class.”

My gaze slid back to the marble in my hand. The desire to absorb the Class was nearly unbearable. The leech skill alone would make the Class worthwhile.

It was the perfect Class. Almost.

I couldn’t ignore the fact that it was force-aligned. I had bought myself some time through my Pact with the Master, but I wasn’t ready to commit myself yet. I would not be the Master’s puppet, nor the Dark’s if I could help it. I still held out hope of finding another way of escaping the dungeon. Reluctantly, I dropped the item into my backpack.

Gnat was watching me closely. “You aren’t going to assume the Class?” he asked, surprise lacing his voice.

“Maybe later.” I glanced at him. “You will report this to the Master?”

The skeletal bat nodded. “I must. Although, it will make no difference. The Master is constrained by the Pact from acting against you. Besides, he would likely award you with a similar Class once you swear allegiance to him.” He hesitated. “You should claim the Class, Michael, but you shouldn’t try using it to escape the dungeon.”

I shrugged noncommittally. “I’ll deal with the stone later. For now, I have work to do. How much time do I have remaining on the Master’s deadline?” I asked, changing the subject.

“Eleven hours, fifteen minutes.”

“Then, there is no more time to lose. Let’s go find Bornholm.”