The illuminated walls of the dungeon shone with their typical blue glow, pouring out mana that spread through the cavernous first layer of the dungeon. Jennifer kept a dagger in her hand, less afraid after shaking off her initial hesitation.

Livian walked behind Jennifer, keeping pace as little orbs buzzed around him. Jennifer eyed the mage curiously, tracking the little threads of mana extending from him towards his spell. A strange kind of magical companion formed from a spell, more complex than most spells she’d had the chance to witness before.

"I hate this place," Rumina grumbled, kicking aside a slime that rolled towards her. Her voice echoed through the caverns, mixing with the sound of dripping water and the pitter-patter of whatever lurked in the shadows.

“What happened to your enthusiasm, Rumina? You’d insisted on accompanying me hadn’t you?” Jennifer asked, glancing at Rumina, partially as revenge for all the teasing before.

“I know! But I just didn’t think we'd have to walk around in silence, kicking slimes now and then,” Rumina said. “This isn't what I had in mind for our first quest,” she mumbled.

“I wouldn’t make so much noise,” Livian spoke up, his eyes darting around. “This is still a spawn area, so monsters might be lurking around somewhere.” The boy fumbled with his pouch, taking out a metallic cube with runes carved on each side of the face. The characters lit up with a blue glow as mana flowed through them, light coming out from the cube.

“That is?” Jennifer asked, her eyes fixated on the mysterious artifact.

“A light affinity detector. Or well, an artifact I worked on to serve as one. I think there’s something nearby but I’m not catching any mana imprints that’re strong enough yet. Still in this direction though,” Livian said, frowning as he returned to messing around with his device.

Jennifer nodded as she gripped her knife tighter, scanning the area around her as she took the lead. The last traces of light from the entrance soon faded, as only the illumination of the cavern walls and Livian’s two floating light orbs remained.

“Gah! Another slime. Why are there so many here?” Rumina said, frowning as she kicked a slime climbing her leg. She flicked her dagger at the monster, the enchanted blade piercing the slime’s membrane as its body collapsed into a gooey pile.

Jennifer bent down, sending a pulse of mana to the slime core. Livian walked closer, crouching next to her as he extended his cube closer.

A little symbol flickered on the top face of the cube for a brief moment.

“It’s here! Slimes eat all sorts of earth, and dirt and this one had traces of light mana. We’re on the right track!” Livian exclaimed, as he turned to look at Jennifer with a bright smile. He let out an embarrassed cough when he caught himself.

“Let’s speed up a bit then,” Jennifer said, standing. The trio picked up pace, walking further into through the cavernous walls.

“There has been a strance lack of monsters, don't you think? I would’ve thought the dungeon would be packed with them,” Rumina said, glancing around.

“We did get a lot of slimes. They are monsters too,” Jennifer said.

“Don’t remind me. Nastly goo balls,” Rumina groaned, as she continued walking ahead.

A tiny amount of mana gathered on her right hand as she used her [Enhanced Mana Sense] to scout a bit ahead. Her senses sharpened, a new set of instincts from her [Glass Mage] class helping her navigate and respond to her mana better. She let the mana dissipate, sending out a pulse. The wave dissipated within a few seconds, returning a blurry mana image of anything even slightly magical in her vicinity.

Was definitely a good idea to study about Adventuring and mages. This would’ve been a lifesaver with Irwys back in the dungeon.

The party made its way through the cavern, the caverns starting to expand further ahead. “I sense something,” Jennifer said, as she pushed her [Enhanced Mana Sense] to its limit. A large blur of mana sat further ahead, beyond which she could feel the higher mana saturation of the dungeon leaking in.

[Danger Sense] triggered a moment later as the clicks of many legs echoed through the caves. “A monster!” Jennifer shouted, her glass mana humming.

Laser beams of light shot ahead as Livian formed a flickering barrier of light in front of them. They stood in tense silence, hearts beating for a few moments as nothing moved within the dark cavern.

Jennifer glanced around, pushing all her skills to the best of her abilities as she scanned the cavern. A blur of mana slithered, just outside her senses as if masked by something and Jennifer glanced downwards.

“It’s in the ground!” Jennifer shouted to Livian as she conjured a pair of mana bolts, immediately shooting them at the ground.

Light beams followed behind her own attack, hitting the moving creature from above as it rose. Dark pincers poked through the ground as a massive Centipede made its way out, as it hissed, flaring its mandibles at them.

By Elphion’s unholy name, that’s a large one.

The beast was a dark purple bordering black, with red spots covering its chitinous body. It clicked at them, mandibles with dark acid that slid down in fat globules. Its legs scuttled as it pulled itself free of the ground.

The many legged monstrosity turned its dark eyes towards the two of them then let out a sharp screech as it shot across the broken dungeon floor.

Jennifer quickly used Agile wind to jump away from the beast, a cluster of glass-tinged mana bolts striking the monster head on. Livian fumbled for a second as he retreated alongside her, beams of light shooting at the creature as it continued to dash towards them.

“Stay back, Livian!” Jennifer shouted, a pulse of glass mana pouring through her. Twin Blades of glass formed above her hand as the wind howled at Jennifer’s ears.

“[Hidden Strike],” Rumina intoned, her dagger flying out as it struck the massive centipede, clanging against its chitin as it cut through the monster, striking under its head.

Jennifer fired Glass Blades at the centipede. Her head snapped towards Livian in surprise as she felt him charging his light beam. The cube floated in front of Livian’s hands as a charged beam collided with her spell.

The two spell matrices collided, links and threads of mana snapping across both. Within a moment, the spells collapsed into one another, two large blades of light hitting the centipede head on. The creature screeched as its chitin cracked, green blood pouring out.

Jennifer stopped her retreat, watching the twitching insect as its insides leaked from its cracked shell. Another beam of light hit the beast, vapourizing its insides while tearing the monster’s long body into two.

Blood pounded in Jennifer’s ears as she stared at the burning flesh of the centipede. A moment later, she glanced up, checking on her team.

“Are you guys alright?” Jennifer asked, glancing around.

“Yeah,” Rumina muttered, recalling her blade to her hand. “That… was a big one.”

“A Veripede, although I've never heard of one this big. At best they get as long as a short person… this was a giant.”

A soft beep chimed making Jennifer jump as she prepared for another monster.

“It’s the device,” Livian said, as he pulled out the cubic box. His eyes widened in surprise. “There’s some light affinity monsters nearby, a whole bunch of them!”

Livian glanced around in excitement, and Jennifer nodded. The three of them ran ahead, leaving the corpse to slowly be reabsorbed by the dungeon.

The dungeon cavern soon shimmered, crystals growing out of its surfaces, glowing with a dim light. Strange plants made of transparent glowing crystals covered the caverns around them as the walls started to widen, expanding into a wide open expanse dominated by the crystalline plants.

“I never knew something so beautiful was in the first layer…” Jennifer muttered as she stared at the bizarre landscape in front of her.

The bright crystal filled area was filled to the brim with light affinity mana, rays of rainbow colored light refracting off the crystals to form a dazzling sight. A large crystalline tree stood at the center of the area with more than a dozen fruit, blue orbs of light hanging from its branches.

Jennifer called for the system prompt as it displayed the area's name for her.

The Great Dungeon of Lienmont

Location: First Layer

Cavern of Light Crystals

Light-Crystal Affinity Biome.

“It’s an affinity biome. They’re rare outside, but in dungeons you can find quite a few of them,” Livian replied, putting away his cube as he stood next to Jennifer. “This one is still quite a bit larger than I’d expected it to be. I’m going to set down a bait to try to trap the creature. Can you two keep an eye out for any monsters?” Livian asked.

“Yup, it’s why we’re here,” Rumina responded with a smile.

Livian dipped his head, then turned around and got to work. He set down the cube on the ground, taking out a scroll from his pocket and set it next to him carefully. A slight application of mana had the cube glow, its runes dancing across the surface. Livian took a small shining mana core, setting it onto the cube. He held it there, remaining motionless as the runes transferred from the cube to the core.

In a few minutes, the core was prepared and Livian set the completed, now extremely complex, mana orb near the scroll. The next step that followed was even more complicated and Jennifer had to strain her senses to get a good grasp of what was going on.

A spell circle formed of pure light floated around Livian’s hands, the scroll on the ground mimicking the spell circle as the two resonated with mana.

Jennifer was worried that the resonance would attract the attention of the light attuned creatures nearby, but all she noticed were blurs of light zipping around through the various crystals, paying little to no attention to his work on this end of the cavern.

“I’m going to start now. Try to stay back, or else it might scare away whatever comes in to take a look,” Livian whispered in a quiet voice as he crouched. Jennifer took a few steps away, putting herself out of sight. Mostly. She wasn't going to distance herself too far until they left the dungeon.

Livian set the orb in the field of crystalline plants, and moved back, carefully stepping around the crystals to avoid causing a disturbance. A few moments later, he joined Jennifer near the entrance, and they began the wait.

A few minutes passed, none of the creatures moving close to the bait. Jennifer turned to Livian with a questioning look.

Did he mess up somehow?

She didn’t ask the question, seeing the frown on his face as they continued to wait for a while longer.

Jenn glanced over at Rumina, who stood around looking somewhat bored as she kept a look out for creatures. The red head noticed Jenn’s glance, turning towards her with an inquisitive look.

Jenn shook her head, returning her sight to Livian’s work. She used the opportunity to study light magic, likely one of the few opportunities for her to closely examine something like that. Time flew past, as the crystals dimmed and glowed with a steady rhythm. Without the light of the sun, Jennifer lost her sense of time, a strange unease filling her heart.

To her relief, a small golden-red bird, with a fluffy chest plume of golden light and wings of crystalline shards flew through the area as it examined the bait.

Jennifer lightly whistled towards Livian, sending him a pulse of mana as she quietly pointed him towards the bird.

Livian’s eyes brightened upon seeing the creature. A smile decorated his face as his eyes shone, reflecting the light filled biome in front of them and Jennifer felt a smile rise on her face as well.

They watched patiently, as the bird slowly pecked at the mana core a few times before it grabbed the whole thing in its beak and swallowed it in one go.

A moment later, a spell circle formed beneath the bird, as the creature froze in place. Livian let out a whoop of excitement as he rushed ahead, muttering some kind of chant as his mana flexed, extending forward towards the creature. Jennifer took out her knife, keeping a few mana bolts ready as she followed behind Livian, maintaining her distance so she didn't disturb his spell.

A few minutes of spell-crafting later, Jennifer sensed a pulse of light mana and a thin bond solidified, joining Livian to the bird.

The bird flew towards Livian, settling on his shoulders as the boy gently petted the critter. Jennifer smiled at his success as the Light mage returned a smile of his own.

“That’s such a cute little bird,” Rumina said, her hands twitching as if to reach out and snatch the bird for herself.

“I’m glad you got a nice little partner there. What will you call it?” Jenn said, eyeing the bird as it preened its feathers. Its eyes met hers with little semblance of intelligence, although she was sure if Livian continued to grow then the creature would become far more intelligent.

“I’m not sure of the name yet. It’s a light crested falcon, a young one, so I’ll have to come up with a suitable name,” Livina said, as the bird on his arm chittered.

Jennifer looked at the bird with a longing look, an odd instinct rising in her. She really wanted to pet the bird.

Livian laughed as he looked at the two girl’s expressions. “You can pet him, if he allows you to. And it’s a he, I can feel it.”

Rumina squealed in delight, moving in closer as she touched the little bird, Jennifer walked in closer, soon joining in as she touched the soft feathers, feeling the light mana tingle her fingers. The little bird chirped, before shaking its head and jumping away.

“I think that’s enough for now, he’s getting a bit anxious. I still can’t feel his sensations too well, but that one is clear,” Livian said, as Rumina walked away, smiling happily.

“Thank you, Jennifer, and Rumina. I wouldn’t have been able to come this far without your help. If you have anything you want, don’t hesitate to ask. I’ll help anyway I can,” Livian said, as he let the bird sit on his hand.

“Can you take me out for dinner- Ouch,” Rumina broke mid-sentence as Jenn elbowed her. The red head returned a glare towards her direction. “That hurt.”

Jenn ignored her friend, turning towards Livian and his curious bird familiar. “Can you dematerialise it? Since it’s Light affinity and all?”

“Not yet, it’s still Iron rank. I’ll be able to do that once it grows to Bronze. But for that I’ll need to be at Tier 3 or higher myself, so it’ll be a while,” Livian replied, stroking the bird again.

Jennifer hummed to herself, before she turned around. “We should move out, best not to stay for too long.”

“Actually, I’m tempted to check out the tree. I’m sensing a really strong light affinity from there and…” Livian’s voice died down at Jennifer’s glare.

“I concur! I want to check the tree out too! Maybe I can find a pet for myself too,” Rumina exclaimed with a grin.

“Rumina, monsters are not pets. The guild can imprison you if you bring out monsters into the city without properly bonding with them.” Jennifer said.

“I know! I was kidding Jenn. But there’s no harm in exploring a bit more is there? It’s such a pretty place too,” Rumina said, her eyes shining.

Jennifer sighed. “Fine, but I want to be out of here before long. Something has been bothering me.”

Rumina exclaimed happily and Livian smiled as the trio walked towards the center of the area. The fields of crystals passed by, as the tree grew larger and larger the closer they walked.

“Do you feel this?” Livian asked, turning towards Jennifer. “There’s an affinity core here. It’s the source of this biome.”

Jennifer’s eyes widened in surprise as she turned towards the tree. She extended her senses, feeling at the concentrated bundle of light mana burning at the center of the tree.

“That tree is growing on an affinity core- I’ve never seen something like this before. This could be such a big discovery,” Livian exclaimed, turning towards Jenn in excitement.

“What’s special about this tree? If you forgot, I don’t speak magic like you two do,” Rumina said, glancing at Jenn.

“It’s a source of affinity magic, and can be used to craft really strong artifacts in the hands of the right [Enchanter]. You could probably sell a core like this for… I don’t know. 20 gold coins or more at least,” Jennifer said, as Rumina gasped.

“Twenty gold?” Rumina exclaimed, and with a sudden burst of energy, walked towards the three. “I’m sorry, pretty light tree, but I love money more than I love you.”

Jennifer laughed at her friend's antics patting her shoulder, as Rumina pretended to drive over the loss of a dear friend. “Slow down Rumina, we need to—” she froze as a presence touched her mind.

“D-Did you hear that? ” Jennifer asked, spinning in surprise as she searched for the voice. “I heard a voice.”

A barrage of emotions hit Jenn, ringing in her mind. She paused, her eyes widening in surprise. Telepathy? A [Mind Mage]? But the voice sounds so young.

She turned towards her friends, both of whom met her gaze with confusion and surprise mixed in their expressions.

Jennifer felt her Mark pulse, reacting to the presence of another. She turned, staring at the direction she felt the Mark, tendrils of something reaching into her own mind, brushing against it briefly.

The thoughts were cut short as Jennifer pulled upon her own Mark's presence, deflecting the message being sent to her mind.

A sudden sense of alarm filled her chest, her [Detect Danger] activating as a blur leapt from the shadows. Jennifer ran, tackling Rumina to the side.

A giant snake leapt where her friend had been moments ago, crashing into the tree. its green scales shimmered with a green glow as the monster spread opened its fanged mouth, letting out a threatening hiss as it bounced off the wall where they'd been standing.

Jennifer rolled through the crystalline plans, hugging Rumina close. She coughed from the muck entering her mouth, as the two of them hurried to their feet. Her eyes widened as she regarded the giant hissing serpent, and felt the poison aura spreading around her, originating from the monster.

What in Sera’s name is a Bronze rank magic-beast doing in the first layer?!

Jennifer scrambled away on her back as the snake slithered its fangs bared with venom dripping down their lethal surface.

“Stay back!” she shouted.

“Don’t attack!” Jennifer screamed, but it was futile. She watched as a beam of light flew through the air, hitting near the giant snake’s head. A blast resonated through the tunnel as the beast turned its eyes towards Livian.

The boy cursed and dived as the snake lurched, slamming into the wall where he'd stood. The impact caused cracks to form on the old tree sending, as the various light creatures swarmed out and began to run.

Jennifer ran ahead, sending two mana bolts towards the disoriented beast, trying to give Livian time to create some distance.

She felt the presence of the other Mark flare once more, a strange pulse making its way through the dungeon. The beast hissed, its eyes flickering as it slammed into the side walls, as if disoriented.

“We need to run!” Jennifer shouted, as she channeled her mana into Agile Wing, the spell quickly boosting her. Her team followed behind as they all began to rush out of the cavern of light.

A sickly aura of green spread through the area, prickling her skin as nausea began to build in her chest as it gave chase.

Livian ran just nearby panting as magic flowed through him. His bird familiar flew nearby, screeching and throwing beams of light.

The snake spat, thick streams of poison floating through the air and Jennifer pulled up her guard spell on instinct.

“[Lunestone: Guard],” she intoned, extending the guard outwards.

The snake crashed into her spell. Jenn stumbled back from the sharp drop in her mana from the impact. Dizziness assailed her from the exertion as the world began to spin for a moment. Jennifer bit her lips, as she regained control over herself. She dissolved the guard a moment later, rushing ahead.

The crystalline caverns receded as the trio rushed into the dungeon caverns once more. Spells of glass and light, alongside Rumina’s knife strikes, struck at the beast as it continued to give chase.

“What do we do?!” Livian shouted, shooting another beam of light at the snake, the creature hissing angrily.

“I don’t know!” Jenn shouted back, her heart pounding in fear. Was this how she was going to die this time around?

The Mark whispered in her mind, as she felt it pull at her. Jenn gulped, her mind going through the possibilities of a trap.

I’m dead in either case.

“Follow me!” Jenn shouted, turning a sharp left.

The beast lunged fangs bared as it hissed toward her, its tail striking out with the crack of a whip and Jenn leapt, closing her eyes for her imminent death. A dagger cut through the strike, piercing the tail of the snake as another deflected the strike just enough to miss Jenn’s head.

Rumina grabbed Jenn’s hand, pulling her up from the ground. “Run!” she shouted, as Jenn followed, soon taking the lead.

Her Mark thrummed as a new sensation reached her eyes. Jennifer saw a new strand of silver fate extend from her hand, outwards and towards the direction of the unfamiliar [Mind Mage] Mark.

She had little time to contemplate over the change, as the snake shot towards them with renewed vigor and the three continued to dash through the dungeon.

Another turn in front had Jenn sensing Mark's presence stronger than ever in her mind.

The snake hissed, coiling itself for another lunge when a wave passed over them all, striking against the snake. She turned to see the snake biting at unseen shadows, its eyes glazed over.

Jennifer nodded in gratitude as she hurried with all her strength, Agile Wind howling in her ears. The path ahead soon came to a stop with a collapsed section of rubble ahead.

“Elphion damn me, the path is blocked!” Rumina shouted, turning around with her blade drawn, her chest heaving from exertion.

“There is a gap, we can blast it with spells and crawl through,” Jennifer said, turning towards Livian who nodded.

Mana rumbled as the two mages poured out their spells. Jennifer prepared a glass blade, changing it with two more, before shooting the spell. Pillars of light shot right beside her spell, the mana swirling in a frenzy.

Her blades cut through the rock, the light beams blasting through the gaps as a narrow section opened up.

“Hurry!” Jenn shouted, rushing ahead. Rumina dove into the gap, quickly making it to the other side. Jennifer followed behind, pressing herself against the jagged rocks as she walked across.

Livian followed the last behind, a scream escaping his mouth as the snake opened its mouth, trying to squeeze in, but failing.

Jennifer felt her heart thundering, her body aching as blood pounded in her ears. That had been close. She hauled the fallen Livian up, gulping as she watched the serpent slamming against the rubble trying to break in.

“Jenn…” Rumina called out, a nervous hint to her voice.

Jennifer turned around and froze at the sight in front of them.

“Just what in Elphion’s twisted name is this?” Rumina mumbled, staring wide eyed at the massive cavern section.

Green, brown, and various shades of transparent goo covered every imaginable surface as Hundreds moved about.

The whole room quivered and shivered like a single large organism, sending a similar shiver down Jenn's back. Acid dripped down the walls as the slimes shifted, eating through the dungeon walls.

“I...think we found a slime infestation,” Jennifer mumbled, staring in surprise. She took a step ahead, moving through the slimes covering the floor. “We need to find a place to hide. The snake's still following us.”

Jennifer focused on the mental link, forming a message.

“So many slimes, yuck. At least the snake can’t come in here.” Rumina said, before nervously checking the blocked path back.

Jennifer closed her eyes, trying to feel at Mark. There was a tendril of magic that reached her mind from the Mark, and she let it touch upon her, as a connection was formed.

Nervously, Jennifer manipulated her mana, focusing her thoughts onto the strand, as she projected them outwards with her magic.

Jennifer sent the message, feeling a bit dizzy at the telepathic communication.

The voice said, and Jennifer took a moment to parse the message.

He can sense me despite my veil? Because my Mark shines?

Jennifer turned around as a hiss resounded through the room. She felt the snake’s aura deepening, the poison-like aura making her shiver. “Keep your magic output low. Don’t use any skills,” Jennifer whispered to her team as she leaned onto the walls, peeking through the crack.

Jennifer sent, as she watched the snake turn back and forth, flicking its tongue, its eyes scanning as its head swiveled. It was using every sense at its disposal to root them out to devour them.

the Mark sent back, as images of a large snake chasing something through tight and dark tunnels came to her mind.

Jennifer leaned back as the image caused another throb to go through her head. The visual message felt unhuman, and the world seemed far far larger than what she was used to.

Is he... not human? He sounds like a child and yet I haven't heard him transmit a single word. Or does he not understand common and is using mind magic to compensate?

Rumina shifted, as she squeezed in below Jennifer. The girl crouched there, peeking out from the crack alongside Jennifer as she whispered. “What do we do now? Wait? What about the voice you heard? You said it came from another one of the Marks right?”

“I don’t know. The mark is nearby somewhere, he seems to be hiding. He’s been talking to me through telepathy. The snake must have followed him from within the dungeon.”

“Is it an adventurer? I wouldn’t think a random mind mage would be roaming the dungeon by themselves,” Rumina said.

Both of them froze as the snake flicked its tail near at the rocks like a whip, the rocks rumbling and rustling as it hissed angrily. It reared up, baring its fangs at the empty air as if it could frighten them out.

“That...doesn’t look good, we need to find a way to lose the snake and escape,” Rumina whispered as they moved away from the crack.

Jennifer closed her eyes once more, reaching out to the Mark.

Jennifer asked.

Jennifer felt her fear rising at the words. If the only way out was going through the snake…

Jennifer asked, as the snake struck the rubble of rocks once more, the rubble shifting.

The three of them moved further into the cavern, wading through the slimes to move away from the snake. It wouldn’t be long before the wall collapsed.

Jennifer paused midstep at the words. She looked around the dungeon, and then towards Livian and Rumina, fear and anxiety on their faces. She took a deep breath in.

Ideas and concepts floated through her mind, and slowly but surely, a smile started to tug at her lips. She hated loud noises,or any kind of explosion, as it always meant an enchantment gone wrong, but just this once, she looked forward to them.

“I have a plan,” Jennifer said. She took a closer look at the area, looking at the many slimes around.

“Livian, I’ll need your help to set off the acid slimes and then form a shield quickly,” Jenn said.

Livian looked around as realization dawned on him, his brows rising high on his face. “Jennifer, have you gone mad?! The explosion will bring this whole place down!”

“It’s the only way. We’re stuck with no way out. It’s either this or death after being mauled by that snake,” Jennifer snapped back as Livian stared at her, before glancing at the snake.

“This is stupid. I’m telling you this is stupid. Sera help me why I’m agreeing to this,” Livian said, and Jennifer nodded.

“We’ll be fine. I promise,” Jennifer said, trying to project confidence she struggled to feel.

And if we die. If… we die, then you won’t remember any of it.