Chapter Three: Spear in Hand

“Welcome, Player Yushin. To your first [Dungeon].”

The voice came straight from the piano key white light in the middle of the room. It flickered constantly.

“This is a [Dungeon Gate]. Inside lies a door to other worlds or places. The reason it is called Dungeon is that it is always a limited space. No matter how big, always a confined space. Remember that well.”

The voice stops. After a while, Yushin realizes it waited for his response. He nods.

“There are many types of Dungeons inside gates. Some of them are short. Some long and wide. Some are as big as other worlds. Some are small as this room you are in. In fact, this space is a confined space, but not a dungeon. The true dungeon always lies through the gate.”

The light flashed and a display appeared in the air. It reads:

DUNGEON INFO

THE WINDY WILDERNESS

TYPE ONE:

RANDOM

TYPE TWO:

QUEST

TYPE THREE:

LIMITED

DURATION:

TEMPORARY

MASTER:

NONE

AVAILABILITY

PRIVATE (YUSHIN) - 47:45:56

HARDCORE

NO

QUALITY

COMMON

PARTY SIZE

1 (SOLO)

LIMITATION

ONE PLAYER

“As you can see, Dungeons have several types and characteristics. This one is “Random”, “Quest” and “Limited”. It means the content inside is not predetermined and instead generated randomly. It is a quest based dungeon, which means there are one or more quests for players to fulfill. A limited dungeon will disappear after its completion or 48h in game time. A permanent dungeon will continue to exist. Permanent dungeons are fixed or mobile.”

“Can dungeons and gates be destroyed?” Yushin asked.

“Yes. As for how that is for you to find out. Obtain every info stated here through [Analyze Dungeon Gates]. Skill level and other factors will improve the data you get.”

Seeing as Yushin didn’t ask any more questions, the light continued:

“This dungeon has no master. It spawned by natural means. Some dungeons can be conquered. Others will disappear. Conquering a dungeon also gives you its domain. There is no limit on the number of dungeons one can have. Relinquishing and trading ownership rights is also possible. Dungeons are a source of power and wealth. Remember that well.”

Yushin nodded again.

“You can see this dungeon’s availability is set for you, making it a private dungeon. That means you are the first one to find or create it. From the moment you do, it’s generally 48h until the dungeon rights expire. Tougher and rarer dungeons may have longer duration. Dying anywhere will relinquish the rights and turn it into a PUBLIC dungeon. Anyone can join a public dungeon.”

‘So dying has this penalty. That is pretty harsh. I can see people camping dungeons for kills… sounds fun.’

“This is not a hardcore dungeon. Dying in a hardcore dungeon will make you lose your rights and also every piece of carried equipment. Including bags and space rings. Death penalties are doubled. Just do not die on hardcore dungeons. Really.”

‘Did it start to change the speech or am I imagining things?’ Yushin pondered. “What are the death penalties?

“You will find out inside the dungeon.”

‘...What.’

“Dungeons can be Common, Uncommon, Rare, Super Rare, Mystical, Heavenly and Godly. Rarer dungeons give better rewards and opportunities. They are also much harder than common ones. Whether to brave it or not is up to your skills.”

“The last info I will give you on this topic is about party size and limitation of Dungeons. Solo means one can only enter alone, even if it’s public. Sizes go up until unlimited. About the limitation, it represents the number of players that can go in a dungeon at a certain time. This dungeon will only have one player to go in. If you leave a public dungeon, someone can go instead. In that case, you will not be able to go back in until that person leaves.”

“There is much more to learn about Dungeons and Dungeon Gates. Not all dungeons are inside Dungeon Gates. Dungeons inside gates are [Magic Dungeons], while those in the open world are [Field Dungeons]. Exploring the world will yield many secrets. Dungeon Gates are also used to link places. Find that out on your own.”

“I understand.”

“Now, go on and brave your first dungeon. You will learn about combat. Then the real Tales of the Heroic Kingdoms will start. Touch the gate and choose to enter.”

Yushin went closer to the gate and touched it. A small prompt appears:

[Do you want to go inside the Dungeon? Dying will result in the loss of Right. Going in and out of the dungeon is allowed at any time.]

“Yes.”

The bright light expanded and formed a real door. Yushin went inside, the door closed and a new area appeared in front of him. All happened very quickly.

The ground was bloody red, the sky pure dark blue like open sea. No stars nor moon could in sight. It definitely was not the same world he was in before.

“Hehe, surprised??” - That simple and infantile voice asked. It sounded like a young child.

Startled, Yushin turned around only to see a small, ethereal form fluctuating near him. It had no fixed form, or mouth or eyes, yet the sound still resounded clearly.

Yushin bowed slight - “...You are?”

“Your [Help Light]!!”

‘...Help Light…? Info: Help Light.’ - Yet no display came this time. He tried again with no success.

“Hehehehe, It’s useless! I said I’m your help! I’m your [Living info]!”

“...You kinda lost me there, buddy…”

“Geez, slow, aren’t ya!? I’m the keeper of your logs and info! Every time you get new information it’s added to your command, right? Well, when you are in a solo dungeon I am summoned from that.”

“So you are some kind of help A.I. for solo dungeons.”

“Yes! Well, that’s all you know, right? hehehehe… By the way, I’m still nameless. Gimme a name.”

“...Can you attack?”

“Nope!”

“...Can you scout ahead or use any kind of skills?”

“...Nope…”

“So you can only talk?”

‘Yes! hehehe”

“I am calling you [Noisy] then.”

“Eeeh, nooo… please have mercy, master…”

“How about [Data]? Simple and clear.”

“I like it!”

“Ok, then your name is [NoisyData]. Let’s move on!”

“Ehh, master~!!”

Not paying any attention to the complaining ethereal form, Yushin moved on. The ground was uneven but steady. He was about to keep going when a display popped up:

NEW QUEST

Clear out the dungeon.

P.S.: Simple, isn’t it?

“Hehehehe, so it’s a [Mob Clear] type of dungeon. Defeat everything inside and you’re done, master!”

“...I see. Can you stop with the master thing? Call me directly.”

“Roger. Let’s go, punk!!”

‘...Why is the A. I. in this game so weird…’

The layout was straight and without detours. Yushin walked and walked, but no sign of monsters. His tracking skill didn’t work either.

‘Am I doing something wrong?’ He looked puzzled.

“Did you expect them to be out in the open?” NoisyData laughed.

“...You could’ve spoken earlier if you knew something, you know.”

“Hehehe, don’t give the fish… teach fishing!!!”

“...So they are not in the open. There are no signs of living things moving on the surface, so, either the sky or underground.” However, the sky was clear too.

“Indeed, this is not a common world! They are [deep dwellers]. Your search skills suck, so I’ll help out this time. Here.” NoisyData pointed to an open spot. There was nothing special, only empty red ground. Nearing the spot, he felt the ground was soft and pierced it with spear. An entrance opened but took everything around him down. Including Yushin, who managed to land on his feet.

“Hehehe, like a cat!!!”

“...Do you have a mute button?”

‘Um, no… I’ll shut up…’

This time he looked around for clues but didn’t need to. The sound was getting louder and louder. There were a lot of enemies, but they sounded spread. His crash made a lot of noise.

Spear in hand, his eyes wandered around searching for strategic places to use. He was in a closed space, about four meters wide. The only way was forward, so he had no worries about attacks from the back. There was also above, but since there wasn’t any activity on the surface it was highly unlikely. Not being able to run, Yushin decided to hide in the shadows as much as possible.

The first to come are two mid-sized figures carrying small sword and shield. Covered only by scrap clothing and no armor. They had hundreds of small, sharp teeth with a white glow and pointy ears. Faintly reminded him of fantasy goblins with a darker outlook. As soon as they came in the space Yushin was, their eyes locked into him. Darkness is nothing to them.

The first one opened mouth to scream. Yushin was no newbie at gaming. He knows that is a battle cry to summon many other goblin-like enemies. Dashing forward, elegantly, spear pierced towards the enemy’s throat.

CLANG!

[PARRY!]

The other one was not caught unaware. He didn’t even use shield. He lunged forward, sword in hand, and parried the advance. Deflecting Yushin’s blow with ease. That was no easy duo!

A surprised Yushin. Not only he acted quite fast but had good reach and surprise element. And was still deflected. That was the ‘Parry’ action. The goblin-like had a shield and still parried, showing confidence in his abilities. Seemed like those two were fairly high ranking and not common cannon fodder. Or so he would like to think because he was not ready to face many enemies of that caliber right away…

Combat felt very natural. There was no delay from thought to action. His movement speed, precision, and power were all influenced by stats. Having real life training would help here.

The other foe chose not to scream and instead glared and rushed at Yushin, trying to slash him. Seems he wasn’t considered a big threat. He was a bit open after the attack earlier and chose to step back.

It was not fast enough. The sword cuts lightly on his chest. Tales has no pain system giving neuro feedback to the user. But there is still a tingling sensation of discomfort when receiving damage.

‘Damn! They’re tough!’

Yushin steadied himself and held his spear with both hands. It wasn’t the best choice of weapon for that situation, but it would have to do. A spear master would not complain about space and instead, use his whole body as a weapon. There were many techniques for shortening spear attacks, but how far could he go in a VRMMO?

The goblin-like on the right kept going forward. He was quite confident the other one had his back. This time Yushin didn’t begin but waited for the attack. The sword came from above the enemy’s head, about straight down to him. He was not caught unaware.

Without attacking, Yushin quickly spun towards the left, preventing his enemy's shield use and making the other one react a bit slower. As long as he couldn’t get there in time a blow would land, and it did. [Strong Kick] followed after the spin, hitting sideways and throwing the goblin-like in pain to the side. The damage wasn’t as good as he thought. That thing still managed to bring back his arm and block.

He didn’t even get to finish the attack. The other sword is already coming to him. Instinctively raising his spear, he clashed the tip towards the blade, deflecting the blow.

CLANG!

[PARRY!]

“...!”

Now Yushin understood parrying was more complex than blocking by a wide margin. By blocking you would soak as much damage as possible on the weapon or shield. Parrying would deflect the upcoming blow and keep the momentum or make an opening on the enemy’s stance. Parrying had a timing window. If it clashed too soon or too late it wouldn’t work. It took a lot of skill to parry consistently, as attacks varied in speed, strength, and timing.

Now he had an opening to exploit, and he wasn’t going to lose it.

[Spear Thrust!]

The goblin-like couldn’t raise shield in time, and the skill hit him straight in the chest. It wasn’t the most complex of techniques, only a straight thrust with a lot of power behind.

The spear opened a hole in the enemy, but Yushin is careful not to leave it stuck. He didn’t know if that is a true possibility, but how could he risk it? Seeing the enemy wasn’t dead yet, he aimed for the throat, but the attack had no time to reach.

The other foe had already recovered and rushed back, lunging at him with a [Shield Charge]. The damage wasn’t great, but it tossed him back a few meters. The goblin-like lets out a huge cry. It is something that chills Yushin’s spine down to the bone.

It is not a battle cry.

It is in mourning.

His companion is at death’s door already. With that cry, the others would come...