Welcome, Crawler. Welcome to Level One.

The words both popped up in a text box in front of him and were spoken by an enthusiastic disembodied voice.

“Huh, new voice.” Ben remarked. Darryl took his word for it, he couldn’t really remember the other voice that well. “Oh, and a timer. For how long we get to stay on the first floor, I suppose.”

Darryl frowned. He didn’t see a timer, just a notification in the corner of his eye that said ‘Five days’.

“Oh, cool! You’ve got an information box yourself.” Ben said. “Not much to it yet, Mr. Darryl D.”

Darryl looked around to see Ben’s info box only for Ben to, of course, move with him on account of getting a piggyback ride. “Er, uhm… I’ll just look at yours later.”

Darryl took another step forward and more text popped up.

You have been designated Crawler Number 12,985,917. You have been assigned the Crawler Name “Darryl D.”

You are assigned the race of Human. You are currently level 1. You may choose a new race and class as soon as you descend to the third floor. Your stat points have been assigned based on your current physical and mental profile. See the stat menu for more details.

New achievement! Cutting it close.

Wow, you managed to enter the dungeon at the last minute. Not five minutes, not even 61 seconds. Less than a minute. You know you would’ve died had you still been on the stairs a minute from now, right?

Reward: You received a Silver Adventurer box!

New Achievement! Late to the party.

You’re not amongst the first hundred. Not amongst the first thousand crawlers. You're not even one of the first ten million crawlers.

Reward: Nothing. You should’ve gotten here earlier if you wanted hand-outs. Oh, and I can assure you the first crawlers got very good rewards.

New achievement! Empty pockets.

You didn’t bring any supplies. None. You know you still gotta eat, right?

Reward: You’ve received a Bronze Adventurer Box!

New Achievement! Premature breakdown.

Even without wearing mascara, it’s obvious you’ve been crying a lot. And you’ve been doing so before even entering the dungeon. Why did you think this place would be a good fit for a wimp like you?

Reward: Nothing. I just wanted to point out how pathetic you look.

New Achievement! Premature bloodlust.

You’ve got blood on your hands, and what looks like guts. Both of which were already on you before you even entered the dungeon. You know you’re supposed to turn into a homicidal sociopath after entering the dungeon, right?

Reward: You received a Bronze Killer Box, and the next achievement!

New Achievement! Ahead of the game.

So, it appears you already killed something or someone before I started monitoring you. I have no clue how impressive, or more likely pathetic, your first kill was.

Reward: I’m not going to count this one, which means your first dungeon kill will still be an achievement. Be fucking grateful for me being so magnanimous.

New Achievement! Kind companion.

You entered the dungeon along with someone who is significantly disabled. Bold, or stupid. I wager it’s the latter.

Reward: You received a Bronze Samaritan Box!

New Achievement! Very kind companion.

You entered the dungeon accompanied only by someone significantly disabled. Slim pickings, huh?

Reward: You received a Silver Samaritan Box! You’re going to need it, you sod.

New Achievement! A Tale Untold.

I don’t like admitting it, but the combination of oddities of your entrance spins an odd tale that makes me curious. What the hell happened up there? No really, tell me.

Reward: You got a Golden Adventurer Box!

New Achievement! Hierarchy established.

You’re letting another crawler ride you like a horse. Not much for self-esteem, huh?

Reward: A bit of kibble for the loyal steed. You received a Bronze Mount Box!

New achievement! Unarmed combat.

So. You just gonna waltz right into something called a “World Dungeon” and you’re not even going to bring a weapon? You’re either braver than you look, or you’re just an idiot. Good luck with that, Van Damme.

Reward: You’ve received a Bronze Weapon Box!

New Achievement! Ten in a row!

You managed to get ten achievements in one go, this one not included. If you’re already on the second floor, then . If you just entered the dungeon, then I’m not impressed.

Reward: Nothing. Either the previous ten achievements gave you something good, or you just performed an elaborate series of pointless activities to get this achievement.

Ben chuckled. “Oh wow, we only had less than a minute le-”

Hello, Crawlers! The dungeon is now sealed. We have a diverse group joining us this season, and we are very happy to have you here. We had just under 13 million human crawlers make it through the gates and into the dungeon. We are already down to under 10 million. A quick note, the entrances to the second floor will not open up until the introductory episode of Dungeon Crawler World tunnels, which will be in approximately 30 of your hours. Once that happens, the entrances to the second level will populate. There will be no lag time for the appearance of additional levels. On behalf of the Borant Corporation I wanted to thank you for volunteering, and I wish you all good luck and a happy crawl.

New Achievement! Fashionably late.

You’re one of the last hundred crawlers to enter. I take back my previous comment, have a consolatory reward box. Out of pity, not because you did something worth commending.

Reward: You got a Silver Adventurer Box.

“I like easy rewards, but these achievements are a bit much, don’t you think? I hope they already patched these things popping out during combat blocking my view.” Ben said.

“Let’s get you patched up before we worry about other patches, okay?” Darryl said.

Ben chuckled at that. Which was odd, Darryl hadn’t intended to make a joke.

“Alright, which way to go?” Darryl said as they reached the crossroads.

“I don’t know. This place doesn’t seem to be very linear.” Ben remarked. “Oh! There’s a door there.”

Darryl turned and saw what Ben was pointing at. It was the kind of ordinary door you’d expect in someone’s house, unmarked and unremarkable. There was nothing written on it, but there was another one of those odd blips that didn’t look entirely real.

As he got close enough still staring at the blip, a box unfolded and simply showed the word “Bathroom”.

New Achievement! You discovered and read an official dungeon sign. Wow. You can read. Whoopie.

Reward: All official dungeon signage will now be highlighted and easier to spot. Nearby guilds will appear on your minimap.

Darryl opened the door and looked at the basic setup of a toilet with a sink and a roll of toilet paper.

“That’s nice.” Ben said. “This whole world dungeon feels a bit simple and easy right now, but if the alternative means wandering around blindly before the game even starts then I won’t complain. Where’s the minimap, though?”

Darryl frowned at that. Not so much the question as the remark that this was a ‘game’.

“Anyway, let’s just keep going. I don’t particularly need to go, and I think that we’d only make it worse if we’d try to improvise a splint with just toilet paper.” Ben said.

Darryl shrugged and complied, continuing further down the hallway they walked into. Just a couple of steps later he stopped walking again as the next odd sight appeared.

“Is that a sheep?” Ben asked.

“Yes.” Darryl answered.

“What’s it doing here?”

Darryl pondered on the question for a bit. “Might have wandered in.”

“How would it have gotten through the door?”

“It actually opened real easy. For me, at least.”

“Yeah, but I don’t think animals normally head-butt doors to see if they open.”

“Then how do you suppose it got in?”

Ben was silent for a moment. “Alright, head-butting sheep it is.” He said with a tone that suggested he had a smile on his face.

As Darryl slowly neared the sheep, three more appeared from around the corner.

“A herd of head-butting sheep?” Darryl wondered.

“Don’t be ridiculous. Just one of them had to head-butt the door for the rest to get through.” Ben lectured. “But actually, I don't think they entered themselves. I don’t recall any sheep pens near where we live. Animals probably can’t even enter this place as players anyway.”

“Then how did they get here?” Darryl wondered genuinely.

“They’re probably early-stage mobs.” Ben said.

“English?”

“Not a gamer?”

Darryl shook his head no. “I’ve played some, but no multiplayer or ones where you need to know the lingo or anything.”

“Ah. Well, they’re enemies, pretty much.” Ben explained. “The aliens must be using real animals as mobs for the first floors or something. They really made this dungeon super-easy for us, or maybe the aliens are used to more dangerous wildlife on other planets. Oh man, reclaiming our planet is going to be super-easy if they were expecting us to still be troubled by our usual wildlife.”

“No, I guess they are just giving us an easy start.” Ben said after a moment. “Like they said, there’s only one Gate leading to the last floor, and there’s probably only one person allowed to leave the dungeon alive to become the king. We’re probably going to be our own greatest enemy or something. Kinda lame, I never liked pvp games. Especially those new battle royale ones.”

Darryl kept silent.

“Darryl… You’re not one of those ‘gamers’ that plays Fortnite, right?” Ben said with an edge to his voice, which disappeared immediately when he jolted backwards. “Holy shit, I got an achievement for dissing Fortnite? Seriously? Alright, this game’s cool!”

“Uhm…” Darryl said. “No. I’m not sure what Fortnite is.”

“I envy your ignorance, lucky one.” Ben said in a smug imitation of a wise sage.

“Anyway. The sheep?” Darryl redirected the conversation back to the problem at hand.

“Probably a lowly mob. Look, their status even says so.”

Darryl looked at the sheep, seeing Ben’s claim confirmed.

Sheep. Lvl 0

Baa…

“Level zero, huh? Lame. Even we started at lvl1. Guess they’re not going to give us much exp.”

Darryl winced at that. “Are you sure? I mean, I eat meat too, but killing animals with our own hands just for some experience seems kinda cruel. Especially considering we’ve got no weapons to give them a quick death.”

“Well, yeah. But it’s part of the game. Cruel or not, I think we’ll have to do it to progress and survive.” Ben said, though his previously carefree enthusiasm had noticeably deflated at the thought. Then he murmured at a softer tone: “Even when they address those issues in the Isekai, killing something yourself still doesn’t feel that real or significant.”

“Actually, how about we use those sheep to get you around faster?” Darryl said. “Their wool seems soft enough to act as a pillow, and they are probably big enough to carry you between the four of them.”

Darryl walked towards the sheep and turned around. He then crouched down, plopping Ben onto the back of the nearest sheep.

“Well, I’m not too sure that we can use them as mounts, but they do make for somewhat comfortable seats.” Ben remarked as Darryl turned to face him.

Crawler # 13,385,919. “Thomas J. Bennet”

Level 1.

Race: Human.

Class: Not yet assigned.

“Hey, the words say your name is actually Thomas.” Darryl remarked.

“Yeah, I know. My name is Thomas, but my life has been a series of being in groups and classes with other Toms and Thomas, so I go by Ben amongst friends.” Ben said, looking away sourly before looking Darryl back in the eye. “Hey? Come on, man, it can’t be that shocking. Overacting like that isn’t even funny, man.”

Darryl didn’t hear Ben's words, instead staring aghast at the sheep that Ben was sitting on. Or well, sheep. It was quickly transforming into something more dangerous with fangs and claws.

Woolf mutt. Lvl3

As the smallest and least intimidating of the wolves in sheep clothing, these mutts are the most convincing in their disguise. Especially if you don’t know these buggers exist. I don’t blame you for being fooled by them the first time. The second time is on you though, if you get a second time…