Shen Seiji, who goes by Seiji, has always been a happy-go-lucky sort of man. He was written that way, and despite attaining enlightenment to his situation as a fictional character, saw no need to change himself. His personality had softened many vicious blows that life had sent his way.

Despite being a Sword Saint in his former world, he had been reduced to a mere Swordsman in this one. That did not discourage him though. He worked hard, using his memories of his previous sword attainments, to develop his sword once again. The stats system at first confused him, but he persevered. Recently he had attained level 25, the first significant benchmark in levelling. Once he reached level 100 he would have an opportunity to rank up and head for the land beyond this one.

As a reward for reaching the benchmark, he had been assigned an easy, but honorable quest. Seiji stands in front of the Dungeon’s massive doors, prepared to embark on his quest. He is to lead two other Dungeon Veterans through the first few levels of the Dungeon, while teaching and acclimating two newbies.

The Dungeon would only allow them to enter at the highest level the least of the party had obtained. In this case, level one. Seiji thought this was a bit regretful, because it is generally a waste of time. The equipment drops in level one are usually trash and the creatures are so weak that the newbies could easily crush it by themselves.

‘Oh well,’ Seiji thinks. ‘Even a Lion must use its full strength to hunt a rabbit.’

The party enters the Dungeon and the first thing Seiji notices is a difference in lighting and atmosphere. The normal yellow and orange torches flickering in the tunnel had changed. A steadier, but more ominous red flame tinged with a hint of darkness had taken their place. Regardless of the torches, the mood in the Dungeon feels off.

Seiji, a man with a positive outlook, is no fool despite seeing the lighter side of things. Well aware of how things can turn badly seemingly without notice, he was immediately on guard. He would have not survived this long if he ignored blatant warning signs.

He signaled for the veterans to be ready and take formation. Just in case of a disaster, he decided that the newbies should be sheltered and not on the front lines. Seiji and the Elven Light Mage stand behind the hulking Barbarian that is their front-line fighter.

An arrow comes flying in from the darkness. The Barbarian doesn’t even bother to dodge or block in, knowing the damage it can do is negligible. The arrow is tipped with a strange fire, however. Despite the arrow not being able to pierce the Barbarian’s skin, the fire sticks to it like glue. The Barbarian tries to pat it out, but it only spreads. A clattering group of Skeleton Warriors charges from the darkness, distracting the Barbarian from the fire.

The Barbarian decides that since he isn’t taking any damage, the fire can wait. Oddly enough, the skeletons that charge him are wrapped from head to toe in the same dark fire. An odd sight to see, but in the end, they are quickly dispatched by the Barbarian The flames splattering like blood, staining his axe and the area around him. Even more flames landed on his body, but it does not worry him. In fact, he feels even more powerful than ever.

Seiji, however, is very worried. That flame is something he has never seen before, and he is getting a bad feeling from it. He hovers a hand over a patch of burning dirt, trying to feel how hot it is. There is no heat. What Seiji feels instead is that the flame is radiating emotion. Rage. The flames burn with rage and other negative emotions he can’t quite put his finger on.

A sickening crunch distracts his from his examination of the strange new element of the Dungeon’s first floor. Seiji turns toward the sound just in time to glimpse the Barbarian rip his axe from the lifeless corpse of the Light Mage. Teeth bared, his skin dancing with black flame, and emanating pure rage, the barbarian is a fearsome foe. The newbies are no match for his ferocity. Before Seiji can even register what is happening, his entire party had been slaughtered by their Vanguard.

The ever-positive Seiji faces the raging Barbarian, sword in hand. His trust betrayed, Seiji felt a burning desire to avenge his fallen comrades, despite barely knowing them. An epic battle of skill and fury unfolds, but an encounter much subtler soon came upon Seiji. Despite winning against the traitorous Barbarian, Seiji’s rage did not fade. In fact, it grew. Splotches of black flame, resisting attempts to be extinguished, burn on his skin.

Seiji’s positivity holds the mind consuming rage at bay, but just barely. Desperate to get to level 10 so he can teleport out of the Dungeon and find help, Seiji fights his way through the first floor. Each successive kill spreads more black flame on his body, but still he continues deeper into the Dungeon.

***

Achievement Unlocked: That’s Mine Now- Gain influence over a level of the Dungeon. Adaptability +1

You have successfully used Source to alter a level of the Dungeon. Floor Master rights obtained. Congratulations. You will be granted full customization rights when you are recognized as a Floor Master by the Dungeon Master.

Creatures under your influence have killed four Awakened! Experience gained! Calculating….

Level up!

Level up!

Level up!

Congratulations! The creature under your influence, Shen Seiji, has established himself as the strongest on your level. Granting Shen Seiji status as Floor Champion…

Warning! Your Floor Champion is invading Floors not under your control! Such actions may cause hostility in fellow Floor Masters.

Message Incoming from Dungeon Master to all Floor Masters: A new Floor Master has risen from amongst the Awakened. I task you to test his mettle and the capabilities of those who follow him. All constraints will be removed, full force is allowed.

Floor Master Charles von Vordaray has granted your Champion safe passage through his floor.

Incoming message from Floor Master Charles von Vordaray to you: Of all my children, you are the first to show such grand ambitions, Snowflake! Your black fire is quite inventive and very malicious! I am proud of you son, but be careful. The von Vordaray family has many enemies, and you have painted a target on your back. However, with the prowess of your fire you may be able to come to rule the first 10 floors if you are clever. Don’t worry about the family, our power is not limited to this tiny little Dungeon floor.

“What the actual fuck is even happening right now?!” I exclaim in duress. “Can’t a man take a shit in peace?! Can someone please explain what is happening?!”

‘Your wish, Snowflake, is my command.’ The rich and smooth disembodied voice forces it’s way past my mental defenses and spells out the situation in a longwinded, but epic sort of way. ‘Infusing the first floor of the Dungeon with flames made of negative emotions has paid dividends for our hero. A flame that burns on negative emotion and Source, found its perfect atmosphere in the Undead Dungeon. Necromancy is wrought with negative emotion and Dungeons are notoriously thick with Source. The combination provided the ideal place for the flame to grow.’

‘The unwitting Undead populating the first floor were the first victims to our hero’s villainous plot. When they respawned in the Dungeon Floor they call home, they were assaulted by Snowflake’s dark flames. The wore away their defenses and then became one with them. The next victims were our hero’s supposed comrades, his fellow Awakened. A flame which both causes negative emotion and feeds on it is a self-fulfilling prophecy. Only the strongest among them could bear Snowflake’s influence, the rest were slaughtered.’

‘Now, our hero’s Champion challenges the floor above the ones in which the flame was born. He carries his torch of dark flame, spreading hatred and malice where ever he goes. The flames do not consume flesh, but rationality. The once noble creatures of this Dungeon are being turned into mindless killing machines. Machines under the control of our hero.’

‘But the battle is just beginning. The Dungeon Master has taken exception to such cruel methods, and has demanded that Snowflake prove himself. The Floor Masters, powerful beings one and all, have been released from their shackles with a singular objective. Hunt down the usurper. The game is afoot.’

“Why am I the bad guy in this?” I grumble out loud. No one is nearby to hear me talking to thin air. I had wanted some privacy for… some personal stuff. “I had no idea this would happen! I am just as much a victim here. I mean, come on! You were there the entire time.”

‘Was I, Snowflake?’ Mr. Narrator responds in a confrontational tone. ‘How would you even know? You barely ever listen to me, even though I go through so much work to narrate your life. Ungrateful much?’

Okay. I think I see the issue here. I’ve definitely been neglecting the poor guy. But still! All he does is just say what I’m doing? How am I supposed to pay attention to that all day? Ugh. This a problem for another time. I’m pretty sure that being hunted by unconstrained Floor Masters is not a good thing. Especially if they are all as powerful as Charles.

“Listen,” I try to smooth things over. “The narration thing isn’t really working out for me. Maybe we can try something else? Could you give me advice perhaps?”

‘Sure,’ the smooth voice rumbles curtly. ‘Here is some advice. Run.’

“Thanks a lot,” I snip, pulling up my pants.

I begin sprinting toward my party, to tell them the news. We had just finished conquering the eighth level. The Floor Champion, Great Bear had put up a harrowing fight. The Great Bear’s nigh impenetrable defense and bone crushing attacks are legendary. Honey made me tank the fight with Ra’hel’s support. According to her the trio of experienced Awakened would be ‘hard pressed to hold back against such a fearsome foe.’ A convenient excuse if you ask me.

I check my stats as I race along. Knowing what condition I’m in is probably important for the upcoming flight for our lives.

Name: Snowflake von Vordaray *(Bodyrk)

Race: Monster Variant

Title: *Snowflake

Class: Spellspear

Subclass: None

Job: Floor Master (Pending)

Level: 14 (+8)

Health: 274.5/274.5

Energy: 147.5/147.5

Strength: 27 (+16)

Stamina: 29 (+16)

Dexterity: 35.5 (+20)

Intelligence: 34.5 (+20)

Wisdom: 24.5 (+1.5)

*Adaptability: 7 (+1)

My new stats make me happy for a second. After that second finished, context came crashing into my happiness like a wrecking ball. In order to conquer this entire Dungeon, a level of 100 is the minimum requirement. This expedition of the first 10 floors is basically just a jump start for newbies. You are not truly considered to be among the powerful around here until you can break past the level 75 bottleneck. Even then, titans in the upper 90’s still roam the Dungeon. A long road ahead for me, no doubt.

I crash into the clearing where we had finished our epic battle not too long ago, gasping for air. Quinn lights up as she catches sight of me. On quick feet, she gracefully dashes over to me, blonde hair flowing in the wind of her wake and green eyes sparkling with mischief.

“There you are, naughty boy,” She purrs, springing into my arms. I am significantly taller than her now, and I can tell that she loves it. “I thought you had run off for some fun without me. I was very upset.”

Quinn rains kisses on my face, our relationship no secret to the rest of the group. Normally I would be ecstatic to play along with her teasing and little games, but we have bigger fish to fry right now. I lock my lips with her, stealing a quick kiss before I ruin the mood. Gotta take a win when you can.

“I’ve got bad news,” I announce, while setting Quinn back on her feet. “I just got a notification that the Dungeon Master has decided to test us. It said something about releasing restrictions on creatures. I’m not sure what the means, but I think we should leave.”

“I’ve got a creature I’d like to release restrictions on,” Mordai winks at Ra’hel. Ra’hel responds with a flirting glance and some very sensual hip movements. Ever since her tail had gotten skinnier she had gotten a lot flirtier. She gives sends a lot of dirty looks (the good kind) my way nowadays. I’m not interested, but the attention is nice

Honey, unlike those two, takes me seriously immediately. Instead of grilling me on what I know and how I found out, she takes my words at face value and rushes everyone to get ready to challenge the next level. We have to beat the tenth floor to get out of here. The faster the better. When I ask her why she doesn’t question me about the notifications Honey says something I wasn’t prepared for.

“Snowflake,” she lays a hand on my arm, now too short to reach my shoulder. “I know I can be a hardass sometimes, but I consider you a friend. I trust my friends. Now stop asking stupid questions and let’s go.”

And so, we went. Down the stairs and through the doors leading to the next level. What greeted us was a maze. Unlike most mazes, this one didn’t have monsters hiding in it. Instead they were eagerly waiting for us at the entrance. Their leader, a massive Minotaur with white fur, his scarred body standing at least 12 feet tall, spoke.

“A Vondaray brat, eh?” He sneered. “I’ll rip you to shreds and send your dismembered body to your father!”