Following the path winding through a copse of trees, found Jarrod idly scratching along the back of his hamstring, where there was no longer any cloth of his trousers, and instead a scab had begun forming and itching. He had spent the last half-hour ensuring his steps were true and he was not lost or distracted, as he reviewed all of his new notifications and checked out his loot.

First up was his new dagger.

Unknown stone bladed dagger [Common++]

This dagger is made of an unknown stone like material, that is exceedingly sharp. It has a high chance of snapping part of the blade off when used in a stab attack. This will result in additional damage, ongoing bleeding damage and an increased risk of infection.

This affect can occur another 17 times.

Upon a successful attack will add between 3 and 7 damage to a strike.

Hmm, not a bad backup weapon, can add some damage and some ongoing effect-based damage as well. That’s handy all told.

Next up were his very first achievements! He had a quick look at them, none really standing out but all useful to have.

Slayer of Monsters [1] [Common]

This basic achievement is awarded to all Awakened who successfully show an ability to slay any monster, in any manner possible.

Higher tiers are available depending upon the quantity as well as quality of monsters slain.

+1 achievement point

+1 DMG against all monster types slain for this achievement [Goblin kind]

Lucky Strike [Uncommon]

You have secured a critical hit in combat. A critical hit can never be planned for, but if you manage to land one at just the right time, you can turn a losing combat to a won combat with a single swing.

+5 achievement points

1.5x multiplier for all critical hit damage

One-shot [Longsword]

You have managed to kill an enemy of equal or higher level with a single mighty blow from a longsword. This takes a combination of skill, luck and being in the right place at the right time.

+10 achievement points

+1 to skill level with longswords

Well, that was certainly helpful. Even if they all gave only minor advantages, they were certainly advantages he had not had previously, especially if he was starting to generate some skills. Opening up his Status and then his Skills tab he had a quick scan through what he now had.

Longsword Proficiency [Tier 1] [Level 2 + 1] [Common]

This skill allows you to use longswords with a basic proficiency. You know which end is the pointy end to stab other’s with, and which end is the not-pointy end to hold.

You now have knowledge of some basic attacks, blocks and counters.

Further practice will enable more combinations as well as providing a damage boost whilst using longswords.

Lucky Fighter [Rare]

Not everyone is as lucky as you. This luck may not always manifest it in positive ways for you, but in negative ways for your opponents.

Be ready to take opportunities as they arise for you, as it is unlikely, they will ever arise for anyone else.

Never ignore your luck, that itch at the back of your head, you should always do what it tells you too.

Rounding the final tree, Jarrod saw what could only be described as a natural monstrosity, which he assumed was the entranceway to the dungeon. An arch made out of twisting tree limbs wound around each other sat in between two of the biggest oaks he had ever seen. The strangest element was it looked more like a cave entrance than anything else with shadows growing deeper in the middle of his view and not a drop of sunlight coming through from behind the archway, even where it should be. The other element that really gave it away was the massive, frankly obscene obelisk stood outside of the entrance to the dungeon. The one thing that all dungeons had was this – it was assumed they were placed there by the system, as a means to let all Awakened know the status of the dungeon. It had a soft glow about it, denoting whether the dungeon was unoccupied, had a part of Awakened in, or was ready and close to an outbreak / overflow. The one cardinal rule was whatever happened inside a dungeon did not affect anything outside of the dungeon. Secondly if an Awakened entered, there would only be a 5-minute window for anyone else to enter the dungeon before no one else could enter until it was either completed, the Awakened all died or they abandoned the dungeon. That however was it, there was no other information available to Awakened without specialised skills from outside the dungeons. The only way of testing was to get someone who was Wood/Stone tier to try and enter dungeons, as the system wouldn’t let you enter a dungeon you weren’t suitably ranked for and, it would let you know how far away you were from being able to attempt to complete the dungeon.

Shrugging his shoulders to straighten out his clothes and taking a moment to make sure all of his equipment was settled Jarrod found a hand tree-stump and sat down for a quick bite of his rations. If he was going to do this, he wanted to be sensible, methodical and not take any stupid risks. He might have fantasies of being famous, but to be able to enjoy that he had to be alive! He took the time to make sure all of his armour was fully tightened and strapped up, his weapons secured, his waterskin filled after taking a drink, and having a bit to eat. Waiting for the food to settle in his stomach his mind started to wander a little.

Right, what do I know about this dungeon then? Well, it’s all 2nd hand info, but that has all been repeated from multiple sources, and even the details have stayed the same, so it can’t be anything too different right? Seven separate clearings, working through what the system calls a minor goblin settlement. 2 goblins each in the first 4 clearings, 2 in the second along with a pair of traps and in the final clearing 1 spellcasting goblin, 1 archer and a big brute acting as a guard. Everyone said they gained a level before that final clearing, and that was in groups of 2, 3 or 4, going solo I might even get two. I can take it slow and steady, and knowing what to expect should help massively, if it gets too hard, I can always abandon the dungeon and try again in 7 days’ time, when the system will let me back in.

Rolling his shoulders and steeling himself he stood up and strode rapidly forward, not hesitating he stepped through the arch into what still looked and felt like a cave entrance. As light started to fail him, he continued walking forwards, just as light totally failed (which frankly should have been impossible with what must’ve totalled about 30 steps) he looked over his shoulder and couldn’t even see the clearing he was in a minute ago. As he turned again to face forward, he saw a light directly ahead, and there clear as day before him was a fairly large clearing, with a ramshackle hut pushed up against the trunk of a tree about 70 metres away to his right. Taking a step forward he had a message flash across his vision from the system

“Welcome challenger to the Goblin’s Grotto. You have selected to try the elite tier challenge; your challenge and the rewards will be of respective difficulty.

As this is an elite tier challenge, the ability to escape from the dungeon is disabled. You will succeed or you will die.”

“Oh no no no no no. No, I don’t want this, I wanted a basic challenge. Give me the basic dungeon you shit. I don’t want to die here – elite!? Elite!?”

Turning around he no longer saw the archway he had entered through, nothing but an impenetrable wall of thorny vines. The system didn’t deign to respond to him and wouldn’t answer his queries.

“Well, fuck.”

Stopping, taking a long slow look around the clearing Jarrod saw nothing out of the ordinary, no goblins, no traps, no enemies or anything. Very carefully he shook loose his longsword and gripped it loosely in his hands, dropping his backpack to give him a slightly greater range of movement and flexibility.

Taking a careful step forward, he repeated the entire process, but again nothing happened. In fact, from everything he had been told this first clearing looked exactly how it should, apart from the fact there was a hut in it and no old firepit in the middle. Therefore, it made sense in his mind to focus most of his energy on the hut. After all, that was the anomaly. Taking another step forward, still triggered nothing. Taking a third step however, taking a third step that caused nothing to trigger. The tension was ratcheting up now inside his head, he felt on a hair trigger, any movement at all would cause an instant lash, and that in the end is probably what saved him from taking a much more serious injury. He heard something, whether it was in the wind, or a small twig being stepped on he would argue over in his head for years to come but whatever it was he had just enough warning to drop to the floor as a trio of arrows pierced the air where his head had just been moments before. Rolling onto his back and getting his legs underneath him, Jarrod stood, standing facing 3 of the evil little green skins. They must have appeared almost out of the thorny underbrush directly, standing around 25-30 feet away from him and angled off to one side, away from where the entrance arch had previously been. All three of them holding bows which appeared to be of much finer quality than those he saw outside, the arrows tipped with steel instead of stone, the fletching much finer and the wood not cracked.

Remembering to identify the creatures this time, he got the same hit on all three; [Goblin Marksman] [Level ??].

“Oh shit. Shit on it!” Jarrod didn’t even take a breath before charging directly at all three of them. He didn’t see a side blade on either the one in the middle or the one standing slightly to its left, so he angled himself to end up between them, taking a firm grip on his longsword with some rudimentary understanding of how to use it now he made it the 20-30 feet before they had drawn a second arrow and with a mighty downward diagonal slash the goblin to the left almost had its right arm shorn off at the shoulder.

Weak spot hit! You have dealt 31 damage to Goblin Marksman. Goblin Marksman has been lost the use of its left arm.

Unfortunately, in return he had left himself wide open to the goblin that was in the middle who clocked him solidly across the head with the butt of his bow, whilst the third had drawn a steel side-blade and was trying to angle around his friends to be able to get a clear stabbing angle at Jarrod.

-9HP, you managed to evade the worst of the blow and have not been stunned

Jarrod kicked the first goblin off his sword, wrenching it free from the little blighter’s shoulder, leaving a spray of crimson through the air. Re-adjusting his grip on the sword he took a heavy downward slash towards the middle goblin’s head. It managed to react in time to get its bow up, which promptly exploded into a thousand small splinters and would be no good to anyone for anything. The goblin had managed to avoid the worst of the blow, taking the rest of the hit on its armour, but it now had no weapon. Just as Jarrod was re-adjusting to take a swing at the final goblin, he felt a white-hot pain in his lower back. The armour hadn’t stopped the strike from the third goblin, and it had sunk in to just near Jarrod’s kidney.

-46 HP.

You have been poisoned.

Jarrod was down to less than 20 HP. Two of the goblins may be totally out of the fight and unable to help, but that third one had nearly just killed Jarrod in a single strike. Planting his feet, he tried something his skill-guide had called a feint, trying to get the goblin to over-extend and leave its guard open. He struck towards the goblins right shoulder, trying to get it to defend against that blow. It almost looked like the goblin was going to ignore him entirely, but when it looked him in the eyes Jarrod really tried to sell it with his eyes. The goblin almost took the bait, he half adjusted his guard, bringing his blade up to try and block a fake blow, but he didn’t follow through and tried to bring the blade back to neutral. The goblin was just a fraction too slow however, and Jarrod managed to get his blade with full power in under the goblins guard, skewering him through the chest.

Critical Hit! You have dealt 74 damage to Goblin Marksman. The Goblin Marksmen is dead.

-4 HP from poison

-7 HP

Jarrod was down to as little as less than 10 HP now and really starting to panic. The second blow had come from the goblin on the middle, not from either of the main parts of the bow that was remaining, but the little bugger had used its teeth. It had bitten Jarrod on the inside of his forearm, trying to tear out a chunk of his flesh. Turning he struck out again at the Goblin and landed a very solid hit knocking the bastard to the ground, unmoving.

You hit the Goblin Marksman dealing 24 damage. The Goblin Marksman fails its save and is unconscious.

Turning Jarrod see’s that the third Goblin has bled out from where its arm used to attach to its shoulder. Great, survived that first combat in a dungeon, technically, but now I get to die to poison. Fantastic.

-4 HP from poison

He could take 2 more poison hits before being at risk of death, with no idea how to cure it without knowing what its cause was! He had no idea what to do, casting around he saw something. Something new, a small brown satchel that had been attached to the blade wielding goblins belt had spilled open when it collapsed, and he saw a pair of corks poking out of the top of the bag. Corks! That means potions, or antidotes or something right?

-4HP from poison

Without pausing for thought, without taking time to look over the two bottles, time he literally didn’t have, he grabbed the one that was slightly closer, ripped the cork out with his teeth and got most of the fluid down his throat as darkness claimed him, and he collapsed to the floor as well.

-4HP from poison

Your HP has fallen below 0, you are dying.

Potion o….