The Lesser Tree of Life glowed a brilliant green and a fountain of healing energy gushed from the ground next to him. He stared at it, but it made no other movements. Its peacefulness compelled Caesar to ignore it and continue onward. A dark cavern appeared in the wall behind the tree, and dozens of trees surrounded the opening. He walked inside it with his party, keeping an eye on both the Lesser Tree of Life and the trees nearest him.

The cavern smelled of damp moss and mushrooms. As he walked, his feet kept colliding into something hard. He brushed aside the soil and found white bones. A sense of foreboding arose once he arrived at the end. Inside the cloak of darkness hung a gigantic, red, scaled bird.

Demon Shrike – Level 25

[Rarity]: Epic

Malice glinted in its eyes as it strained to open its beak. Run! He tried to lunge backward, but only got so far before it emitted a sharp screech that instantly shattered all his party’s barriers. His ears bled. He glimpsed cracks appearing over his Bone Elemental’s body as he tumbled to the floor. Large jaws closed around his torso, dragging him out.

The healing spring rushed into his head but merely trickled into the Bone Elemental. He stood up, took a deep breath, and bowed to the tree. It continued to wave its branches.

This experience had sobered his feelings of glory and invincibility. If the shrike hadn’t been chained down by a forest of entangling vines, it would have ended his journey. He also suspected the death of the tree would unleash the demon, similar to how the four horror elementals were able to leave after the Starry Forest’s boss had been slain.

I can’t face epics yet. Not with brute force alone.

As he left, another thought flickered into his mind: if he could use his Doppelganger’s abilities to evade exile. But the moment of weakness flashed in his mind again and again as he walked down the mountain. Doubt about his abilities to teach her overtook his mind, and fear of an enemy too strong to face yet forced him onwards into exile. He remembered the oppression within university and realized he had no chance to reach rank three without the backing of a noble house.

It’s not worth it, he thought. Whatever contest the nobles houses had, he wanted none of it. But I’ll be back.

A silent Alta trailed behind, followed by two serpentine creatures and a hippo. He glanced back in the direction he came from and wandered the other way.

--------

Snow fell as the seasons changed to winter. Caesar and Alta found a shoddy hole in the ground dug by some giant creature to survive. He rotated his summons every once in a while, letting them play while he conversed with her. The skeleton mage sat by the fire, trying to make sense of the Ritualism spellbook. All five of its free stat points went into its Spirit, bringing it to fourteen and enabling it to learn the spell school.

Rank two entities ate less, and rank three entities could forgo the need altogether. Some still hunted for sport, though.

Such as his Bone Elemental. Although his summons did not require food, it still preferred hunting animals around the area when the snow lightened. Wolves, foxes, and deer provided a good menu when he realized his supplies were dwindling. Natural herbs Alta had discovered around the area gave the meat a cold, spicy taste.

Max, the Tomb Hippo, and its Mummified Serpent enjoyed their time sleeping and guarding the area. Even the hippo wanted to eat, and it ate a lot, leaving no leftovers when done. Occasionally, a rank one predator would come sniffing around the area, having smelled fresh food. It helped replenish their reserves.

-----------

When spring came, Caesar continued moving away from the mountain and encountered a circle of grass hidden deep in a particularly thick patch of woods. In the middle grew a lone flower, with three dull blue orbs in its center. He plucked them and the flower wilted.

[Item]: Winterspring Fruit – Rank 1

[Rarity]: Uncommon

[Effects]: A material imbued with life, or a catalyst for rank 0 individuals.

Rain fell, and Caesar’s group enjoyed comfort under the Tomb Hippo’s barriers. Their pace remained the same. The party discovered the territories of four more rank two creatures and confronted them. Most were easy, but one posed a problem.

Titan Bear – Level 26

[Rarity]: Rare

Its sheer size and power made a mockery of his party. No attacks made it through its earthen armor, all attempts made weaker by its resistances. It trampled trees in its wake, uncaring about these obstacles he had used to great effect before. Caesar suspected Mind attacks would fare much better, but he had none, having fused his Ever-Shifting Faces. He made a mental note to mark anything with Mind attacks and left the Mummified Snake behind to cover their escape.

The other three creatures gave just enough experience for him and Alta to level up.

[Notice]: Congratulations! Your Doppelganger (Alta) has leveled up to Level 22! +2 Free Stat Points

[Notice]: Congratulations! You have leveled up to Level 23! +2 Free Stat Points

He raised his Agility by two points, while Alta received an extra point in both Strength and Agility.

-----------

Summer came, and the group still wandered, having found no signs of civilization or another dungeon. But the distance they traveled improved vastly in calmer weather, and he found himself hopeful again for new horizons, even as the mountain disappeared behind him.

Nature flourished. His party found plenty of rank two animals searching for food. He himself discovered plenty of odd fruits growing in various secretive places, giving Max an extra point in Magic. None were in his mother's journal, but he held onto hope, smiling at his newest find. The rank zero Passionberry Bush grew in the middle of some barren fields. These tangy fruits gave his wolf another point in Magic as well, and if he chose to pluck them, served as a stimulant for the mind.

[Notice]: Congratulations! Your Tomb Hippopotamus has leveled up to Level 22! +2 Free Stat Points

He had his hippo hunt down enough monsters to level up, put the two free points into Magic, and hurried before another winter came.

Unfortunately, they did not succeed. Instead, they stayed in a cave to keep themselves safe from the more severe snowstorms and blizzards that struck the location. Other than the abnormally heavy weather, the rest of the season passed in mediocrity, except for one happy moment when the mage succeeded his studies.

It successfully learned the new basic spell Ritual of Replenishment. Caesar looked down at the symbols it drew. From what he could tell, they looked like a drop of blood, a tree, and a sphere.

“Are these spell schools?”

It nodded. He supposed these represented Blood Magic, Druidism, and Arcane Magic – skills to be used in tandem with the ritual to apply its effects better. But with the knowledge contained in the book, it could also point out possible materials aligned with those spell schools.

Ritual of Replenishment

[Effects]: A ritual spell that consumes materials to enhance a specific regeneration rate of the target for 24 hours depending on which reagent was consumed.

[Rarity]: Rare

[Memorization Cost]: 6

[Mana Cost]: 100 Max Mana

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Caesar continued his journey when the first rains fell. After an unknown length of time, his spine tingled once his Bone Elemental became tense. It retreated and hid, a sign that it heard footsteps. Alta applied her Masquerade and changed his appearance to look more aged, tanned, and muscular. She herself shapeshifted to a male form as he unsummoned the Tomb Hippo and readied himself for confrontation.

A group of peasants led by a stern woman and elderly man appeared in the distance. They carried pitchforks and sickles while children shied away behind their parents. Only the elderly man unsheathed a sword.

“Who are you two?” he shouted.

Caesar and Alta put their hands up and stepped a little closer. A boy tripped and fell. Their mother grabbed him and whispered harsh words into his ear. As he drew closer, he noted tattered rags they wore as clothes, nicks on their blades, and the lack of footwear on most of the able-bodied adults.

“We’re just wanderers. I should ask, who are you?”

“There’s bandits ahead. You should turn back or head another way.”

This caught Caesar’s interest. A war was sure to provide many opportunities to explore dungeons under new management. He nodded at the refugees and took a wide berth around them. Their eyes lingered as he walked away.

---------

He stepped on grasslands and inhaled. The snow had finally disappeared, replaced with visible soil and a light breeze. Alta unsheathed her khopesh and equipped her shield as the sound of hooves thundered in the distance. He smiled at the group of lightly-armored riders, commanding them to stop.

A woman with bright red hair ordered, “Squad One, to me! Squad Two, kill the girl!”

In one practiced motion, all except one drew their weapons and continued charging. They split into two groups, but into four and six instead of the expected five and five.

Caesar summoned his black crown and a behemoth rose to kill.

He lunged at the toughest-looking fighter headed toward him with his halberd’s hook, who tried to evade, but failed. Another strike felled him. An aura of fear jolted every horse on the field, confirming their weakness. And yet, the other three riders still barely managed to maneuver around Caesar. Warhorses? They continued charging into the waiting jaws of Bone Elemental. Its presence caused the horses to freeze up, turning the bandits into easy prey.

Five more rushed to drown in a Dark Wave, while the sixth swerved into Alta’s blade. After ripping open his horse, she engaged in a duel with the bandit. Fire cloaked his blade. Caesar and his Bone Elemental stalked over behind the man, staring a hole into his back as he struggled to gain an advantage. His wide eyes caused him to miss a blow; his trembling hands could not stop a cut. Flames poured forward and engulfed Alta, who grew tired of the battle, revealing her horrific visage. She moved her blade faster for the kill.

The corpses contained no information or loot at all, not even a potion or two. He wagered they were sent to hunt down the fleeing villagers. To fit in with the presumably larger force, he had Alta disguise as the bandit lady and took back the shield. Her khopesh shimmered and flattened, morphing into a mimicry of an enchanted sword. looked at the Bone Elemental and saw bones blackened from soot, but overall unharmed. A plan began to form in his head. The hippo feasted well.

The Bone Elemental slithered ahead to scout for any other parties of men. Alta disguised it to look more like a living snake instead of the dead. She then hacked off a massive chunk from the snake and strode forward as Caesar watched her go.

“Wait.” He ran up to her again and handed over his Damage Resistance potion.

Eventually, after her silhouette had disappeared well over the horizon, he tried to soothe one of the frightened horses.

--------------

Alta’s POV

Alta came across a burning village with bandits patrolling around the road. Fields of wheat burned while others ransacked houses. She heaved the meat onto her shoulders as he recalled the Bone Elemental and followed her down the hill. A few bandits led by a muscular man confronted her.

“Stop! What happened?”

She explained how her team met with trouble from a Fire Resistant snake who ambushed their party. It obviously caused catastrophic losses. The man chuckled.

“More for us then, huh?” He left, and the duo went into the bandit camp.

Alta spoke with the toughest bandit doing nothing except watching the others. She guessed correctly – he was their leader. Brown hair and a muscular build made him look quite average, but his attitude gave him away. After reporting, she sat down with him and rested until dusk. I hope this works.

The bandits gathered for a campfire. There were twenty of them, including Alta. The leader stood at the head of the group. Two bandits with more authority, presumably captains, than the rest of the rabble glared at her with a mix of pity, fury, and disappointment. Her eyes refused to budge. She guessed that two of the slain men from before were in their team.

The next day, the group packed up to continue traveling. Each bandit owned their own horse, and a few extras followed along. During the trip, the leader rode alongside her and they chatted merrily.

Forests rose and fell as the group galloped across the plains. Mountains lingered in the background. They stopped near a forest with trees that towered into the skies, twice as large as normal, and dismounted.

“There’s a camp through these trees here. We’ll sneak in once it gets real dark.”

The rank two bandit captains rushed in and began the massacre, their teams trailing behind. She secured a few kills to help her lord heal his Bone Elemental. Some of the enemies fled.

After the battle had finished, one of the rank two bandits lay dead. But another had joined the group, apparently recruited from the camp as a turncoat.

The bandit leader raised his fist toward the dead bandit and held the position for a few seconds. The other bandits followed suit. Alta mimicked the ritual perfectly, then pilfered what she could from the corpses. She pocketed a rank two Common healing potion and a rank two Uncommon strength potion.

A bright green portal with specks of brown swirled in the middle of the field. This camp was built to guard the place, but the spy allowed the bandits to infiltrate. These might not be simple bandits. Are they soldiers?

Dungeon Detected!

Forest From Before

[Type]: Domain

[Level]: High Rank 2