Nevertheless, hunger was the best spice for any food, for it felt delectable in his new wolf mouth. The dungeons were definitely changing. Unlike the natural cave from when he arrived here, now it felt like he was inside a castle’s corridor. It felt more appropriate to call this place a corridor instead of a cave.
James continued his journey. The day was still young. After about an hour, he found another group of goblins. The path was wider now, so the goblins could surround him. This time, there were three goblins and two of those lesser wolves.
With his newfound confidence, he dual-wielded his axe and sword. When he smiled, sharp rows of canine teeth were on full display. The monsters in the dungeon usually didn’t have any sentience. Whenever they saw an enemy, it was their natural instinct to engage and eliminate them. Like robots, they would try even if their chance of succeeding was zero.
That’s what happened in this case. The wolf lunged at James only to be stabbed by the crude bronze sword of the previous goblins. When another goblin charged, its knife couldn’t even penetrate the leather armor James was wearing. James smiled when he saw that the armor he had gotten from the treasure chest was working.
After killing the goblin and wolf pair, James went on the offensive and charged toward the remaining goblins and wolf. His armor was scratched on the shoulder due to its fangs. With new armor, James could afford to take on more risks.
[You have leveled up to Level 5! Coins Received: 10]
[Shop has been unlocked!]
The result was worth it. A notification popped up, informing him that he had leveled up to level 5. Along with it, the question of James’ remaining stats and coins was also answered.
“What is a shop?” James asked while he scanned his surroundings for any more enemies. The system answered his query, and a blue screen appeared before his eyes. The question that had been plaguing James’s mind was finally answered. He finally knew how to use the coins in his status screen.
[Shop is where you can upgrade your skills and weapons.
Upgrading your Axe into a War Axe will cost you 100 coins. Will you accept?]
“Is that all? Can I buy more things, such as swords, skills, and armor?”
James was stupefied. He thought he would be able to purchase things like food, clothes, soap, and power banks. Power banks for his smartphone might be too much to ask for, but the fact that he could only buy upgrades was devastating. It turned out he could only upgrade whatever he had in his belongings. He couldn’t even upgrade the bronze sword he had swiped from goblins.
[Advanced Shop will be unlocked at level 10.]
“...Alright. I will upgrade my axe.” James sighed, knowing the system would not answer him further.
James immediately upgraded his axe. Other gamers might criticize him for being stupid, saying things like he should save his coins for future uses. However, James lived in the present. After his dead mother was denied healthcare by his insurance company and his government stole his savings due to some taxes, he didn’t believe in saving or insurance. After being fired from a supposedly stable job, he no longer believed in the future. So, he decided to use his coins now. He decided to invest in the present.
“You only live once,” he said. Light enveloped his fireman axe, and now his axe had a longer blade and pikes at the back and the tip. Instead of swinging like a madman, he could now use it for stabbing.
The weight also changed. Even though it had more steel and was overall an inch longer than his previous axe, it was lighter and more balanced. James felt it could also be used for throwing. James smiled and hung his axe on his belt. He now looked for another monster to test this new axe on. His coins had now decreased to 30.
James lived in the present. If he had the coins, he would use them. He now had proper weapons. And he made the right choice, for his enemies would only get harder from now on.
At the end of the corridor, a wooden door, like that of the back door of a fantasy castle, stood shut. James was about to open it, but he stopped himself. This world was not a game, but he understood that some game logic might apply here. The door might lead him to some boss monster.
And so, he cautiously opened the door and took a peek inside. His expectations were betrayed. Even though there was a huge underground castle hall, there was no boss monster, only numerous goblins lounging on the floor. Jail doors were strewn here and there, displaying skeletons of humans. James wondered whether those skeletons were real, but the answer came moments later when a scream was heard.
“NOO!!!!” Another group of goblins squeaked manically as they dragged a bound woman and the corpse of a man. James had read that sort of book. He thought they were going to rape the woman. However, that did not seem to be the case here. The woman was still fully clothed, wearing jeans and a white t-shirt that had been dirtied. She did have bruises here and there.
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The goblins threw her in a cell and closed the door, then returned to their comrades, who were dining and feasting on the corpse without abandon. None approached the woman to do any lewd things to her.
“This is not that kind of game, huh? Full survival mode here.” James muttered. A tinge of disappointment was shown on his face.
James dreamed of being a knight in shining armor. However, he also knew how harsh reality was. There were over fifty goblins with ten wolves there. While most of them only had knives, five goblins, which James could only describe as goblin soldiers or knights, were fully armed. They wore helmets, shields, and either swords or spears. All of them were made of leather. Their gear was shabby, so calling them knights might be overestimating things.
James instinctively knew those five were at a higher level than the rest of the goblins. He hesitated. In the end, he chose to open the door. He needed to settle his priorities. Saving that woman was nigh impossible without alerting this horde, and time was not on his side. If he dilly-dallied, the goblins might go for the woman next.
James decided to act. It was a stupid decision, but he found no other choice but to engage the goblins directly. When he opened the door, the partying goblins looked at him. No remarks or jokes came from his mouth. He simply threw down his bag and readied his war axe and the short sword the previous goblin had. He came here not just to survive. He came here to challenge himself, to be better than before. He couldn’t achieve that by just hiding in the corner like a rat. He now had power. He came here to change. His skill allowed him to evolve. That fact gave him courage.
“AAAH!!! Come here! Come here and get me!” He expelled the fear in his heart and roared. The roar was not merely to taunt the goblins; it was to expel the fear that had been plaguing his heart. His wolf mouth let out a howl that reverberated across the room. The goblins were stunned for a moment, but they began to squeak, laughing in disdain, showing their teeth as if they were mocking him. He agreed, the old him would probably laugh at this idiotic behavior. But man could do stupid things if he had a purpose. He wanted to change; this time, in this new world, he wanted to prevail. He had been given the opportunity—how could he waste it?
The monsters gleefully leaped at the insolent survivor, ready to serve themselves another corpse. James met them head-on, even when he was alone. These monsters were nothing compared to the dread of being fired, of being more useless than he had ever felt. There were no tricks and tactics. It was a pure battle of strength and guts. His new axe felt like a part of himself. It cut through the green monsters like a hot knife through butter.
“Two down. More to go.” James didn’t bother counting the goblins after hitting ten. One thing he knew, there were a lot of them. And he would kill them all or die trying.
Unlike before, this was a wide room. The goblins easily surrounded him. James thought he was strong, and he did get stronger. His stats incrementally increased his strength. Right now, he could lift a goblin with one hand or crush their head with a punch. Whenever he swung his axe, a goblin would die even when they tried to block his strike with their tiny knives.
But he was getting overconfident. The string of victories he achieved yesterday had made him blind. His decision was not wrong—he had to get through this room to pass. There was no other way. The system had designed this dungeon floor to be simple: go through a corridor and fight monsters.
However, he should have waited until there were fewer goblins. He thought his leather armor would protect him from goblin knives. But after the tenth kill, a goblin managed to sneak up on him and stab him in his unprotected thigh and arm.
“ARGH!” Pain assaulted him as he dropped to his knees. Using his new mouth, James bit the monster on its shoulder and threw it away, earning him another kill as the green monster’s neck bent in the wrong direction. When pain assaulted him, he finally realized the gravity of his situation.
Fear began to creep into him, but he pushed it away. This is nothing, he assured himself. He tried to stand up; adrenaline worked wonders, for the pain in his thigh seemed lessened. In the corner of his vision, he saw the locked-up woman using the chance, while the goblins were busy with him, to sneak out of the jail cell.
The goblins were stupid, and this room did not belong to them. They didn’t have the keys for any cells or doors in this dungeon, so the goblins only closed and latched the jail cell doors. The woman managed to sneak out safely and ran upstairs to another door, leaving James alone.
The goblins didn’t realize the woman had run away, but James did. James thought the woman would at least have the heart to support him. But no, just like normal humans, she prioritized her own life. James was the same before. He didn’t care whether his coworker was fired as long as he survived. His heart broke a little when he knew he was abandoned.
Now was not the time for introspection. James knew he was fighting a losing battle and needed to escape. He needed to find a better ground to fight them. This wide room was not ideal; there were too many blind spots where the goblins could surround him. With another swing, another goblin died.
These goblins are learning, he thought. The way they surrounded him, the way they taunted him—it spoke of their rudimentary but efficient cooperation against James.
Could I make it? James wondered. That’s when the goblin soldiers marched forward. They kicked their fellow goblins aside. James didn’t need to learn the goblins' language to understand that they were mocking their fellow goblins. Hatred suddenly surged because that green monster reminded him of his boss.
Whenever he made a mistake or whenever he was inadequate for the task, these kinds of bosses always reprimanded him. In fact, these goblins were more honest. His boss tried to smooth things over on the surface, but James knew that they mocked him viciously behind his back.
The fear that had crept into him was replaced by anger. Anger and wrath at the haughty goblin soldiers before him.
[Name: James
Age: 35
Sex: male
Levels: 5
Coins: 30
Stats:
STR: 43 (up 3)
Dex: 33 (up 3)
Magic: 0
Mana: 0
Skills:
Beginner Axe mastery level 2 (up 1)
Unique Skill:
Chimera:
- Goblin stomach (Iron guts) (stomach slot)
- Lesser Mana core (Fire spell, Magic+10, Mana +50) (Extra slot 1)
- Lesser Wolf fang (Str+5) (mouth slot)
Equipment:
- Leather armor
- War axe]