It was exhilirating, having a fight like this.

Guns were awesome, and hand to hand combat was never my forté, but I did enjoy both equally. When you're given the physical capabilities to do superhuman feats, you take advantage of that. In a fight where there's no risk to my life and I can use my mind and body to it's full potential, I enjoy it the most. It keeps your mind sharp, and hones your instincts without any real dznger to yourself.

Before me was the three promising adventurers, bruised and battered after nearly half an hour of combat. I was hit a couple of times, but at most they left a tiny scratch or a small mark. I fought defensively, using counter attacks and waiting for an opportune moment to strike. Normally, a knife would be in the place of where I strike, but for this match, this was to be non-lethal. What were supposed to be instant kill shots are painful bruises.

Alexander's red hair was matted with dirt and dust, his face full of exhaustion. He had tried to double team me along with Zaza, while Luna kept their magical buffs going and waited for an moment to catch me off guard with her staff. Zaza was quite a durable warrior, and despite 30 minutes of rigorous combat, was only left slightly fatigued. Luna, while a very capable fighter on her own right, had reduced her mana pool to sliver of itself, and was most likely mentally exhausted from casting enhancing magic and fighting me at the same time.

The chemistry and teamwork was admirable, but not enough. I had roughed them up, leaving bruises and dislocated arms at the worst.

"It's clear you guys aren't going to beat me, so let's stop it here. Otherwise, you'll all get hurt even worse." I sat down and crossed my legs, yawning and stretching my arms above my head.

Zaza who boasted the highest CON I've seen on any human, was panting, "You-ha, you're one tough bastard aren't-cha?"

"Yes, I would like to think so."

Alexander's eyes were full of fiery determination and a slight amount of indiginance, but he closed his eyes, knowing this was a lost cause. Good. True fighters should know when to retreat, and I hope that this instilled a sense of knowing when to retreat into his head."

The Warless girl, took this as a sign of the end of the match and flopped onto the grass, panting and recovering from the intense fight.

"You guys were very impressive. But not good enough to even tire me." I lectured, letting them know of the gap between us. "Not only was I holding off of using most of my capabilities, I was making sure not to deal any permanent damage either. Even then, I mananged to leave you guys in the dust. You won't even survive the first room, at this rate."

"But, you're stronger than the monsters inside! You beat Nyarlothep when you were less than half my level. If we struggled against you, we'd have better chance than the weak"

"Ah, but level isn't always the best indicator of how strong they are." I pulled out the Colt from my back pocket. "Without this, I would've been dead in seconds against it. If I didn't have my weapons, I'd most likely lose against alot of the monsters inside in a straight fight, and even if I did win, I wouldn't come out unscathed."

That shut Alexander up, as he realized just how powerful Stone Cell beings were.

To instill just how dangerous monsters like Y'golonac are, I added, "The headless monster that tried to kill you just now? I had my gun on me and was this," I put about a millimetre of space between my thumb and pointing finger. "-close to dying, I was in a really tight spot."

Zaza whistled, "Damn."

Alexander grit his teeth. "Fine! But, don't think that I'll-"

I heard a whistle through the air, from behind me.

I turned and caught the offending item aimed at the back of my head. It was an arrow.

Poisoned Arrow - B Ranked Weapon

Deals piercing & poison damage

Description: A standard arrow, dipped in the liquid venom of a Demon Variant spider.

I narrowed my eyes. This came from the forest a couple kilometres from the dungeon. Who would do this?

I squinted, and I could make out a large band of people, wearing some red, and carrying ALOT of weapons a couple hundred metres away. I could see

"You three, go in the dungeon. NOW." They looked at me in a slight amount of concern, and looked at the direction I was looking at. It seems like these fucking bandits didn't get my message, did they?

(wow, an epic flashback for foreshadowing...) 4 days ago...

A bandit lay before Andrew, bloodied and bruised, missing a pinkie and thoroughly beaten. Next to him were the lifeless bodies of two other bandits, bleedng profusely from a slit throat, and the other from a bullet to the sternum.

"Now, if I see anymore of you little red cunts in here, I'll personally come find your camp, and shoot the dicks out of every last one of you. You hear that? Or am I gonna have to beat it into you?"

The poor bastard nodded profusely, shaking slightly as the ever so ruthless hitman shook him violently.

"Go to your boss and tell him to go choke on a goblin cock."

The bandit promptly got thrown outside.

Easily over a thousand people, and a large red flag with a crude drawing of a skull with with bones in the shape of a cross behind it. visible high above the vast army. Mainly swords and shields as weapons, with maces, spears and crossbows mixed in. A horn sounded as the bandits neared. They were shrinking the distance between us quite fast, considering the size of the horde.

I started running backwards, covering the trio's escape. They were far too slow, as they had just gone through the ringer against me. I fired aimlessly at the horde, hoping to take atleast a few down to slow their advance.

You have pierced an enemy in a lethal area! 16,032 damage dealt! -1 MP!

You have pierced an enemy. 2,649 damage dealt! -1 MP!

You missed! -1 MP!

You have pierced an enemy. 1,821 damage dealt! -1 MP!

You have pierced an enemy in a lethal area! 20,552 damage dealt! -1 MP!

"How the hell did you piss off the Scarlet Cross bandits?! What the fuck! We're gonna die!" Alexander was sprinting, carrying a exhausted Luna on his arms. Behind him was Zaza, who was lagging behind. due ti him not being as fast. However, his crazy stamina allowed him to keep up without much trouble.

"I-uh, told them to suck a dick when they kept trying to rob me? What'd you want me to do?"

"TELL US WHEN THIS SHIT HAPPENS!"

"We can talk later! Just go inside the fucking dungeon now!" We were very close, only abut a hundred metres away from the entrance. There, I could think of a plan on what to do. I doubt that these guys would be stupid enough to just go inside all at once. I can ward them off with my rifle from inside.

I had fired off a couple more rounds just to make sure, and I turned tail and ran. I had resorted to carrying the big warrior over my shoulder, as he was really starting to slow down. Zaza may have been over 300 pounds of muscle and metal, but it felt just like a big, considerably heavy bundle of clothes I was carrying over my shoulder. This did two things, we were going to clear more distance faster, and since he was well armored from head to toe, I could use him as shield from the dozens of arrows raining down upon us.

"Cover your face, Zaza! Those arrows are poisoned!"

"OH, shit!" He put his forearms, which were guarded with half inch thick iron above his face, and I could hear a loud clang. His shield would've been a better alternative, however, it was rather hard to pull out the shield from his back while I'm carrying him. The blonde warrior was spouting curses as I could see a few arrows bouncing off harmlessly onto the ground. In front of me was Alexander carrying Luna, who had managed to dodge the few arrows that sailed towards him and the exhausted mage.

"Keep running! Don't stop until you reach my room!"

We entered the passage within, sprinting through and entering my room. I dropped Zaza on the ground, as I was somewhat tired after all that. 400 CON did not give me infinite stamina. I only had 5 or so minutes until those bandits started marching through.

I dashed to the doors leading deeper into the dungeon. I opened the middle one, and shouted as loud as I could.

"HEY! Anybody here?!"

I could hear the sound of footsteps echoing, closer to my location. The light behind me slowly revealed the slug monster I had fed bandits to a week ago. I had thrown the carcasses of the other two bandits two days ago, and I didn't bother to look who had eaten it. By the time I came back from training outside, the corpses were gone.

Level 498 Eldritch Abomination, Thratu

It stood an intimidating 8 feet tall, with the head of a snail, two small tentacles sprouting on the top of it's head, with the hulking figure similar to that of a gorilla. Massive biceps with eevn larger forearms, it's hands look like it could crush me with ease. He stood not too far away, clearly visible to the trio behind me.

"What's up bossman!" It said in a cheery voice. "You got more people for me? Those three are looking like a snack!"

"No they're not, but there's some fresh guys you can eat soon. BUT, I need to talk to your boss. Like, NOW." He shrugged, and remained silent for a few seconds, staying fairly still. Behind me, I could feel their stares burning into my back. They probably haven't seen any monsters this cordial with other humans.

In a small pop, there was a great blue ball of power right on top of my kitchen table. This startled the trio greatly, with Alexander letting out a squeak of fear. They inched closer to the exit, ready to flee if the entity turns out to be hostile.

"I suppose that you calling me out here is something related to the large group of humans approaching the dungeon?" It said in a metallic voice.

Not questioning how it knew, I pressed through.

"I was wondering if you could cooperate with me, and not killl these three while I go off and find a way to kill the humans outside."

It stilled for a moment, pondering over what I said.

"The only reason I didn't overrun with you hordes of monsters, is the fear of the Goddess smiting me to ashes, and the fact that eliminating you would come at a too high of a cost. Normally, I'd never house a human willingly without trying to kill them." The dungeon core had a point. "Especially when those humans stated that they'd conquer me eventually."

I glared at Alexander.

"So, what's in it for me?"

I sighed. "I'll do anything you want, that isn't too extreme."

"Hmm, no. Make it two favours."

"Fine." I didn't have time to be making demands. "Now, I need a couple of your guys to defend the entrance and act as my support, and to block any of them getting in."

I went to my bed, and told Zaza to move out of the way. I reached underneath, where my rifle lay. I haven't put this baby to the test yet, this would be an educational experience. Let's see if people still die from a well placed bullet like they do on Earth.

"Hey, you three. Give me all your mana potions. Some of your health potions, too."

Meanwhile, the bandits began to take position a good dozen feet around the entrance.The bigger ones stood at the forefront, with the most durable armor they could afford. After the lone survivor claimed that the human who lived in the dungeon had a variant of bow that fired tiny arrows at great speeds, the leader saw fit to equip his warriors that could take the force of even the swiftest of arrows. Behind the line of steel, were mages and archers, standing vigilant and ready to strike down anything that comes out of the dungeon.

The rest were at the back, resting. A good half of the horde was a distance away setting up camps. These bandits were the less specialized who were ill suited for fighting in scenarios like this. The leader realized this, and had set up camp far away. Nearly a thousand would be capable of taking down those adventurers and the human who lived in the dungeon, no matter how high level they are. Even the king wouldn't last so long against an organzed horde of bandits that average level 75.

"Boss, how do we know if they won't just stay there until we go away?" A random lackey asked, to provide foreshadowing for the readers.

Oops, fourth wall break. Sorry about that.

Level 122 Human, Ivan Thornwell

"Heh, dungeons are treacherous. They lure adevnturers with the promise of treasure, riches and power they can't comprehend and are brought to their knees by the treacherous nature of dungeons."

Ivan Thornwell was a former adventurer turned bandit, one of the strongest in the nation. However, greed caused him to slaughter his adventurer party, for a legendary weapon they had acquired during an expedition and fled the kingdom with his brother, Hugo Thornwell. Since then, the formidable ranger had used his ruthless personality, cunning, awesome power and silver tongue to build an army that kingdoms hesitate to apprehend. Not only did he train his recruits, but instill a sense of loyalty into a crew of degenerates and scum, which allowed him to have such a great following.

"The Stone Cell is an endless stone maze, one of the most inhospitable places in the world-"

"Damn, this place is great." Zaza whistled as he looked around. He had taken his armor off, nursing the injuries he received against the fight with Andrew. "This bed is insanely soft. What's it made out of?"

"I don't know. Queztalcoatl made it for me. In fact, she made this whole room."

There was a pause in everything. Thratu and Y'golonac had stilled as they absorbed what the hitman just said. Alexander and Luna were looking at him with an expression of disbelief.

"YOU GOT THE GODDESS TO MAKE YOU A HOU-"

"-hosting the most bloodthirsty and violent creatures known to Durandal-"

"Would you like some tea, young one?"

Alexander stared at the teacup in the Eldritch Abomination's hands, unsure of whether to run or scream. He opted to nod and silently take the cup from the monster. The swordsman stared at the tea, which was the colour of a maple leaf in autumn. He stared at Andrew, silently asking if this was okay to drink, but Andrew didn't notice the pointed look, or chsoe to ignore it. The monster was expectant, waiting to see it's reaction.

"..! Hey! This is really good!"

The monster seemed to look bashful, scrunching it's shoulders and waving off the compliment. "You make me blush, young lady. Ohohoho."

The red haired boy sputtered. "I'm a guy! I have an Adam's apple! I have a peni-"

"-Aaaannnddd. I'm gonna stop you right there." Zaza muffled the young genius as he ranted on, offended about his masculinity being questioned. The 11 foot tall abomination apologized earnestly.

"-that entices adventurers with the greatest of treasures, only to turn around and reveal nothing but pain and despair-"

"Hey, is it true you guys keep the legendary equipment of the adventurers you've slain as treasure?" Zaza asked Thratu, who stood in front of the entrance that led outside. Having accepted the fact that these monsters weren't going to eat them and could communicate in English, he decided to try and converse with them.

The abomination shook it's snail head. "Nah, if we kill someone, we eat the, armor and all. The only treasure we have here are books."

"Hah?! Armor and all? How on earh do you digest that/ How do you even chew?"

"Nah, it's really not that hard. Watch." The giant took hold of the corner of the stone wall with giant gorilla-like forearms and snapped of a piece with ease. It tossed the stone into it's gaping maw, a huge slit that spanned from its left breast to right breast. Full of jagged teeth, it crushed the stone like a human would a biscuit. The warrior looked on in horror, wondering what would happen if he stuck his arm in there.

Andrew looked up from cleaning his rifle, hearing the sound of stone breaking over the noise of the television.

"HEY! Did you just eat my fucking wall?!" He looked livid, unhappy that his home was desecrated because the monster felt hungry and ate the wall.

"Boss, wa-wait, I did it as a demonstr-GAH!"

"and completely hostile to anything that enters it. From the moment they entered the Stone Cell, they'd be bombarded with monsters and death, and their only hope of survival would be to go out."

"How are we gonna confim if they're dead or not?"

"Well, if they don't come out in a day, I'll send 10 men in at a time to see if they're still there."

"Alright, Snailhead, you stay here in the room, and make sure noone eats them. Headless, you;re coming with me. Stay a couple of metres near the entrance to cover me if I need to retreat."

Andrew had equipped his gear, covering his torso and joints. His rifle slung over his shoulder, handgun in his hip holster, along with 5 bottles of mana restoring potions. He pointed at the three adventurers, who all stripped down to their clothes as they watched the television, fascinated with the technology.

"You three, focus on recuperating as fast as possible."

"Alright, good luck, Andrew. We'll be waiting for you." Zaza waved.

"I don't need luck. I'm plenty good myself.