Endless Path : Infinite Cosmos

Vahn awoke staring at a foreign ceiling. His limbs felt like lead and his breathing was labored. He felt the familiar cooling sensation of his 'Pain Tolerance (S)' skill which brought some clarity to his mind.Opening his inventory, Vahn pulled out a 'senzu bean'. Given the current state of his body, it would likely take a long period of time to recover and he wasn't willing to wait it out.After ingesting the 'senzu bean' he felt his body begin to warm up. The cooling sensation that had been permeating throughout his mind began to recede, allowing a powerful migraine to take its place.Vahn gripped his head and began to massage his temples in an effort to alleviate the pain. ("Sis, why doesn't my pain tolerance work on this migraine? It feels like my brain is about to split open.")(*...*)Hearing the 'silence' Vahn felt something was off. Sis had never ignored him before so he began to panic, throwing the pain of his head to the back of his mind."Sis? What's wrong, why are you not responding?" Due to his anxiety, he ended up asking the question out loud. The nearby nurse heard his exclamation and left to inform the Doctor what had happened.Seeing her exit, Vahn calmed down a bit and spoke in his mind. ("Please respond Sis. I can't bear the silence...")A mechanical sigh sounded. (*I'm here Vahn, I'm just a little upset and thought I should punish you a little.*)Vahn was ecstatic to hear her response but became confused after hearing the latter part of her words. ("Punish? What did I do wrong Sis?") He thought back to everything that happened today. No matter how hard he strained himself he was unable to reason why Sis would be mad at him.(*Of course you did something wrong! You almost died, and no matter how much I shouted to get your attention you just lay there bleeding out! Even when you finally woke up and I started to feel relieved, you continued to ignore my prompts and just went on a killing spree!*)Vahn was shocked hearing what she said. He did seem to recall that during the moment he was losing consciousness he thought someone was calling out to him. And after he woke up, the only thing he could think of was killing everything that opposed him...He realized his actions had caused Sis to worry about him.("I'm sorry Sis. I promise not to ignore you in the future. You are the most important companion in my life, and I didn't mean to make you worry so much.") Vahn apologized in earnest, but couldn't help but feel a warmth spreading in his heart due to her concern.(*Apology accepted Vahn...just make sure never to end up in that kind of situation again.*)Vahn balled both his hands into fists while nodding. A firm expression appeared on his face as a glow emitted from the depths of his eyes...Through the door came two people. Vahn recognized the first person as the elf he had seen before entering the dungeon. He wore a grim expression as he looked towards the location where Vahn was resting. The second person was an old lady with silver hair and grey eyes. She was dressed in white robes and had a powerful smell of medicine wafting from her body."Vahn Mason, I would think my advice when we spoke earlier was very straightforward. After everything I had said to prepare you for the dungeon, you return just a few hours later covered in blood? I am very disappointed with your lack of awareness." Nicholas looked at the boy who had a blank expression on his face and couldn't help but let out a sigh.Before he could continue his lecture, the old woman interrupted. "That's enough of that now Nicholas. The boy just woke up and is probably still confused according to the nurse. Let me take care of things from here."Surrendering to the gaze of the Doctor, Nicholas decided to excuse himself for the moment. He was able to confirm the boy had awoken and he could lecture him at a later date. He nodded at the Doctor before frowning in the direction of Vahn as he left the room.Vahn felt guilty under the gaze of Nicholas and hung his head.Seeing the expression and demeanor of the young man, the old lady couldn't help but chuckle. "It's good that you realize your error lad. Not everyone has the opportunity to listen to the lectures of others after making such a grave mistake."Vahn heard what she said and nodded in approval. He decided to do something to make it up to Nicholas in the future.Satisfied with the boys' response, the old woman introduced herself. "I'm the Doctor that had performed first aid when you were brought into the ward. Most of the folks around here call me Granny Marin, feel free to do the same."Hearing her word Vahn decided to thank her. "Thanks, Granny Marin. I'm grateful for your help and will do my best to repay this favor in the future..."Granny Marin waved her hand to dismiss his words. "We can talk about payment and stuff later. What I'm curious about is how you're even awake at this moment. With the state your body was in you should have been asleep for several days, not just a couple of hours."Vahn took a moment to come up with an explanation. His hesitation didn't escape Marin's eye as she began to squint slightly."I have a passive regeneration skill and when I woke up I drank a few potions to recover my health and stamina." Thinking she might inquire further, Vahn mumbled while raising his hand. In his palm, a transparent red potion appeared which shocked Granny Marin."Storage Magic? How rare...." She seemed to think for a while before shaking her head. "I won't ask any more questions then. The only things I need to know is how to best help my patients, and you don't seem to be in need of my skills."Vahn once again thanked her and accepted her advice to stay overnight just in case any complications appear.Left alone in the room Vahn decided to take the opportunity to review the skill he had obtained in the dungeon. It had been nagging at the back of his mind for a while, and he wanted to know exactly what it was. He couldn't ignore a skill that granted so much power.['Will of the Emperor']Rank: Innate (SSS) *Innate skills cannot be identified. Attempts to do so will result in a backlash.*[Passive]: Transcend all limitations and boundaries. Increases growth based on the conviction of the wielder and their followers.[Active]: Only those who stand above the ranks of all creatures are privy to the 'Will of the Emperor'!-Creates a domain that suppresses those much weaker than the user. Has a moderate influence on those that are stronger.Reading the description Vahn was gobsmacked. He quickly checked his stats to see if they had changed.==========================================================Name: Vahn MasonAge: 14Race: Human, *sealed*Parameters: Danmachi-Level:1[+](0)-Power: D604 -&gt; A893-Endurance: E529 -&gt; B714-Dexterity: D620 -&gt; B799-Agility: E589 -&gt; A811-Magic: G326 -&gt; SS1124-Total: 4241 (A/N: Since people wanted me to include this.)Soul Strength: Tier 2 (Hero Soul)Karma:704==========================================================All of his stats experienced a qualitative improvement, especially his Magic which had broken through to SS. If others were to see his parameters they would be shocked! Other than Bell who had yet to begin his journey, he was likely the only Level 1 in the City to break through the S rank in magic. They would probably faint if they knew he didn't even know how to cast any spells...Vahn continued to stare blankly at his parameters before noticing an abnormality. His soul strength, which had been Tier 1 ever since he obtained 'The Path' had actually increased to Tier 2! After thinking for a while, he suspected this was the reason for the abnormal growth of his magic.As if to confirm his theory, the migraine which he had been ignoring for so long reared its ugly head. The mental strain of overdrafting his 'source' energy, or mana, had burdened his mind resulting in his current suffering.He had experienced a milder version of the same situation when he experimented with his bow several weeks ago. After trying to test the capacity of the bow to determine its limits, he ended up going too far and almost passed out on the archery range. It took nearly two hours before he was able to recover and continue the test.Vahn continued to browse through his various stats and functions. Once he turned to his inventory he couldn't help but release a sigh. He was in a unique state of mind when he was slaughtering his way through the second floor. Because of that, he didn't pick up a single core or drop-item after leaving the first floor.("Looks like I'll be going back to roasted meat until I can earn some Valis.") Lamenting at his current lack of funds, Vahn was suddenly struck by a brilliant idea.("Sis, the shop allows me to exchange for pretty much any kind of item from every world, right? Can I exchange OP for Valis?") Vahn began to get excited at the prospect of earning easy money. With the system he might not even have to go to the guild and exchange his items in the future.(*It is possible Vahn, but you should know there are negative consequences for doing so. The exchange rate remains the same for all levels of currency due to the common nature of the material, but you would accumulate a corresponding amount of negative Karma depending on its real-world value.*)Vahn was devastated. Though he wanted to be able to earn money easily, he didn't want to do it at the expense of earning negative karma. He had learned previously that the higher value someone's negative karma, the more likely terrible events would happen in the future. There was even the possibility of inviting retribution from the worlds 'Laws' if it got too high.("Why does creating money generate negative karma, Sis?") Given Vahns lack of common sense when it came to money, he was unable to comprehend how it was considered a bad thing. (A/N: He didn't buy anything in his previous life. You can literally count the stuff he has purchased on both hands!)(*It is a result of the nature of money as a balancing factor within society. A currency has to be strictly regulated by the governing body of every country or it can destabilize the economy and cause adverse effects on all levels of society. If you were to arbitrarily create funds and introduce them into the market, it could cause serious consequences for business and citizens in the future. This is one of the reasons it is considered against the law to create currency, and thus the reason why it generates negative karma when doing so.*) (A/N: I am not an economics guru.)Though he wasn't sure he understood, he could see that creating money was bad. He tried thinking about it from various angles, but couldn't rationalize how something that seemed so important to maintain order was regulated by others. How did they know when to make more money? And what stopped them from giving themselves as much money as they wanted?He shook his head and lay back in his bed. The only thing that really mattered was that he had to earn money on his own, or exchange for items within the system to sell later. Since he was even able to purchase monster cores and drop items from the system, he could accept missions at the Guild and simply exchange for the required resources...Thinking he had found a loop-hole to circumvent the problem Vahn began to fall asleep wearing a smile on his face...(*Exchanging for items within the system to complete missions would also give negative karma...*)Vahn blacked out after hearing Sis burst his bubble.

Vahn had gone to sleep early the previous day, so he had awoken at 2 AM. Since he was unable to make much progress yesterday, he wanted to immediately head back into the dungeon. He might have been able to slaughter his way through the 2nd floor, but since he wasn't in full control at the time he wanted to better understand the uses of [Will of the Emperor].He checked out of the ward and they issued him a bill for 20,000V, which he would have to repay within 30 days. Though it was more money than he had ever possessed, he wasn't too worried about being able to earn enough. 20,000V was considerably less than the 1,000,000OP required for his quest after all...The medical ward was located within the first floor of Babel and was run in cooperation with the Guild. They took care of any adventurers that were rescued and even sold potions and items to aid continued progression into the dungeon. This also meant that the ward was located relatively close to the entrance of the 1st upper floor, so Vahn didn't have to travel far after leaving.As he passed the registration booths near the entrance, a familiar face caught his attention. He noticed Nicholas staring directly at him with an intimidating expression. Since Nicholas seemed to be dealing with another adventurer, and he also wanted to avoid a lecture, Vahn gave a slight bow before continuing down the stairs. He could feel a gaze on his back as a chill crept down his spine which caused him to shudder a bit.Vahn made his way through the corridor that had been registered as 'The Beginner's Road' on his map and continued along his previously explored path. He wanted to try his hand at dealing with the 2nd floor, so he put off mapping the rest of the dungeon until later. As he descended the stairs, he discovered the barrier barring his entrance to the third floor had vanished. Resisting his urge to investigate, Vahn following his original intention and entered the door to the second floor.He noticed that the spawn rate of monsters on this floor was marginally higher than that of the previous level. Due to the fact paths began to diverge after passing the main corridor, there were very few situations where those venturing into the dungeon crossed paths. This meant there were plenty of monsters and Vahn would have to fight them alone.He equipped his sword into his main-hand equipment slot and mentally activated [Will of the Emperor]. He felt a surge of energy swell from his abdomen and extend to every part of his body. A cooling sensation similar to when he was using [Pain Tolerance] spread in his mind and he could feel the presence of an invisible force extending around him. He was vaguely aware that this was his 'Domain', and any kobolds nearby seemed to hesitate to approach within 20m.As none of the monsters seemed willing to approach, Vahn took the opportunity to check and see if any of his parameters changed while the skill was active. Unfortunately, they had all remained the same, but Vahn was able to discover that the cone displaying his line of sight in the minimap had now grown into a full circle.The circle spread out for 21.8m from his position, and Vahn became aware that any creatures within the radius had their location indicated on the map. As long as the skill was active he would be able to track monsters, even if they were behind him. Due to the spiritual nature of the domain, it could even pass through solid objects allowing him to see rudimentary details of corridors beyond walls. (A/N: It doesn't let him 'map' things like his minimap, but more like the vague way his larger map does things. He would still have to look at things closely to enhance the details...at least for now~)Vahn walked towards the closest kobold and began to channel mana into the blade. He was surprised to notice that the runes began to glow instantly, but wasn't sure if it was due to his greater magic capacity or a byproduct of [Will of the Emperor].The sword became light in his hand and he charged towards the kobold who seemed reluctant to fight back. It got on all fours and tried to lunge at Vahn in a manner similar to his first encounter. Unlike then, Vahn was now able to easily keep track of the movements of the monster due to the increase in his attributes. He was easily able to intercept its path and bisect the kobold at the waist.With the fall of their brethren as a catalyst, the remaining four kobolds began to charge at Vahn. Even without looking at the minimap he was able to vaguely feel their presence.Without retreating, Vahn began trying to use his footwork to maneuver around the charging kobolds. He noticed they were able to make single rapid turns, but couldn't handle simultaneous changes in direction. Using a combination of his agility and low sweeping strikes, Vahn was able to dispatch three of the remaining four kobolds.The final kobold seemed to succumb to the pressure of facing Vahn alone and fell to its knees trembling. It put its head to the ground and tried to hide its eyes using its malformed paws.Vahn realized that when the others had fallen his domain seemed to focus entirely on the last kobold. Unable to withstand the pressure caused by the difference in strength, it decided to submit instead of fighting.Vahn was able to vaguely feel that the kobold was trying to establish a connection with him through [Will of the Emperor]. He knew that if he desired it, the monster before him would become his subordinate and follow his will.The longer he continued contemplating the decision, the more he could see the kobold shake. He almost felt pity for the creature but denied the feeling since it had previously tried to kill him.No matter how much time passed, Vahn couldn't think of any benefit in accepting the kobold as a subordinate. It was one of the weakest monsters in the dungeon, and he had no way of caring for it if he wanted to take it outside.As if coming to a realization, the kobold sprawled out on the ground. Moments later it turned to dust, succumbing to the oppression generated by the domain.Picking up the magic core, Vahn couldn't help but feel a little guilty. Even if he didn't want to accept it, he could have let it go since it had surrendered. Sighing, he collected the remaining cores and continued deeper into the second floor.Along the way, he kept slaying every goblin and kobold as they appeared. Any group smaller than three was dealt with simply. The larger groups were more challenging, but as his experience with [Will of the Emperor] grew it became progressively easier to advance. He also noticed that if he focused all of his attention on a single monster it would become slightly stunned and temporarily unable to move. He could use the moment after they froze up as an opportunity to deal a lethal blow.Two hours later he had finally arrived at the stairs leading further into the dungeon. Before continuing downwards, he decided to rest for a while. Since he had been using [Will of the Emperor] for the entire duration, he consumed and mana recovery potion (100OP) and waited for his slight migraine to completely dissipate.During this brief period, he checked his spoils. He had obtained a total of 73 magic cores: 51 from kobolds and 22 from goblins. With an average value between 15-20 OP, he had netted a potential 1100 total OP. This, combined with the 'drop items' that were still being identified in the inventory would likely bring the value towards 1200-1300.Vahn was surprised knowing he had obtained over 1,000 origin points within a short two hour period. That was nearly a quarter of the total OP he had obtained (minus Quest) during his entire seven-month stay in the forest! At this rate, he would easily be able to obtain the 1M OP required to complete his current quest.After thinking for a moment, Vahn separated the cores into two equally sized piles within his inventory. He still needed to exchange some with the Guild to earn living expenses, and it was his intention to frequent the Hostess of Fertility whenever he had the time.Thinking of the food he had enjoyed previously, Vahn could feel phantom pangs of hunger and anticipation from his stomach. Taking some jerky from his inventory, Vahn had the thought of convincing Mama Mia to allow him to store some dishes. Though he knew that exposing his inventory was dangerous, he was very tempted by the idea...("If only storage magic was able to preserve items as well. I wouldn't have to try to think of a way to hide its existence so much!") That was the biggest difference between Vahn's inventory and known storage magic. His inventory had the ability to halt the time of objects and preserve them perfectly whereas storage magic slowed the decay but could not prevent it.After resting for twenty minutes Vahn's mana had completely recovered. He made his way towards the third floor and activated [Will of the Emperor] again. Though he was secretly worried about becoming too reliant on the skill, he wanted to become accustomed to its use as quickly as possible. Though it didn't enhance his parameters, the increased perception allowed him to rapidly improve his combat capabilities. The longer he fought, the easier it was to adapt his body to the various situations he'd find himself in during combat. He assumed that if he were to fight a group between 4-5 monsters he would be able to eliminate them easily, even without relying on the skill.The entrance of the third floor opened into a very wide area approximately 50m in diameter. Along the wall were around twenty tunnels that lead further into the dungeon. Vahn knew he would probably have to investigate several of them if he wanted to find the way to the next floor...but first, he had to deal with the situation in front of him.Since the room was much larger than normal it was occupied by a total of 19 kobolds. He knew it would be a tough fight, but he should be able to overcome the situation. That is if it was just kobolds he had to worry about. Among the kobolds, he could see three large lizards. They were 2-3m long and covered in a dense assortment of warts and scale-like protrusions. Vahn recognized them from the ecology book he had purchased previously. They were 'Dungeon Lizards' and were considered the strongest monster on the first four floors.Due to the size of the group, they did not seem to suffer any constraints from [Will of the Emperor]. Vahn decided it was best to retreat, but stopped after a realization hit him. "Damn, how can I forget something so obvious!"Mocking his own foolishness, Vahn swapped his sword for the magic bow he used to assassinate the goblin Chief. He knocked an arrow that had a strange protrusion on the end. Taking aim at the closest lizard, he let the arrow fly...

Vahn progressed further into the dungeon until he found a staircase leading deeper into the dungeon. After a brief hesitation, he decided to head down so he could test his new sword. He continued onwards until the staircase opened to another floor. Looking beyond the door he could see the staircase continued further on, but when he tried to pass he felt a resistance preventing him from passing.Sticking out his hand as a test, he was able to feel a membrane that became increasingly resistant based on how much pressure he applied. Out of curiosity, he even backed up and swung his sword to try and cut through the invisible barrier.Though it seemed to cut through easily at first, after progressing 30-40cm he felt a sudden rebounding force. Caught off guard, the sword was sent flying and Vahn felt a warm sensation coming from his now numb hand. Looking down he saw blood dripping from his the skin between his thumb and forefinger. The rebound had completely severed the soft flesh between the two fingers.("I didn't think that one through properly. But at least I was able to understand the limits of my sword a bit. It might have enhanced sharpness, but a strong enough resistive force can overwhelm the enchantment.")After treating his wound using a low-grade healing potion obtained from the system, Vahn continued into the 2nd floor of the dungeon.The 2nd floor was very similar to the 1st. The biggest difference was the sheer number of paths to explore. As he began exploring the floor Vahn finally encountered his first new monster. Standing around 130cm tall and covered in mangy greyish fur Vahn was able to identify the creature as a Kobold. It possessed the head of a dog and seemed to have a lazy expression as it shambled through down the corridor.Though he was momentarily overcome by the instinct to use his bow, Vahn quickly put the idea to the back of his mind. He got into what he thought was a proper stance and began to awkwardly step towards the Kobold.Noticing his presence, the Kobold looked towards the approaching human before breaking out into a mad sprint. It was much faster than a goblin and possessed the ability to run on all fours which increased its ability to make sudden changes in direction.Once it got in range Vahn tried swinging his sword into the kobolds path. As the sword traced an arc through the air, the Kobold used it's nimble movements to easily dodge under the path of the blade.Using the time he was off-balanced during the swing, the kobold leaped into his stomach and began to sink its sharp canines into the flesh of Vahns abdomen.Before he could respond to the sudden pain, the kobold began to jerk it's head side-to-side as it tried to tear the flesh from Vahn's stomach. In a panic, Vahn dropped his sword and tried to grab the head of the kobold to prevent it from moving. As a response the Kobold began to use the jagged claws on its hands to fiercely claw away, causing lacerations all over Vahns chest and arms.As the pain threshold continued to rise, Vahn felt the familiar cooling sensation spread through his mind as blood began to pool in the back of his throat. Mustering his strength he turned towards the wall and rammed his body, with the kobold between it, with the greatest force he could muster.The Kobold finally released it's jaw from Vahns abdomen only to change it's target to his left thigh. Feeling the fresh pain coming from his leg, Vahn used the remainder of his fading consciousness to equip the dagger he had stored in his inventory. He took the dagger and began to stab into the back of the kobold over and over until it finally turned to dust.Vahn collapsed, back to the wall, and looked at his stomach where he could see a deep black blood slowly oozing from what looked like his liver. He also saw the bright crimson blood which flowed like a tide from the torn blood vessels and arteries. Seeing the bright blood he began to have flashbacks to how he died in his previous...(*...!!!!*)As his consciousness began to fade he could hear a shouting from within his mind, but he couldn't hear it. He tried focusing on the voice, but the darkness encroaching on his vision seemed to hinder the message from getting through. The cold feeling that was in his mind began to spread to his entire body. He began to shiver and lose feeling in his legs.(*.....!!!!!*)"Whose...voice is that...Sis? I'm sorry, I can't...hear you." Vahn coughed up blood while trying to speak.His eyelids began to feel like lead weights as he struggled to keep them from closing. No matter how hard he tried, he just couldn't seem to keep them open. He knew that if he wasn't able to keep them open something terrible would happen, but he wasn't able to muster any strength...The darkness completely covered his vision and he finally let his eyes close fully.*Throb*........................*Throb*...................."..."*Throb*..................*Throb*...............Vahn could feel a powerful force trying to break through the darkness. He had already lost all feeling within his body, and couldn't form any coherent thoughts.*THROB*.................*THROB*.................As the throbbing feeling began to increase in strength he started to see images. Accompanying each beat he could see the various memories he had accumulated in this world. He was sent back to the time when he first arrived in the 'record' of Danmachi. Though he was scared he resolved himself to live freely to honor his Mother's wishes...*THROB*.............*THROB*............He saw his six months of hard training, observing how he made the transition from an emaciated lab animal to a capable hunter that could even defeat a goblin tribe single-handedly...*THROB*...........*THROB*.......He began to recall all the people he had met after journeying to the City. The kind middle-aged man at the City gate...Gregory. The mature receptionist Fauna...the petite Millie who cautioned him for his own benefit...*THROB*...*THROB*.....He remembered the mother and daughter combo Milan and Tina. He still wanted to clear up the misunderstanding so Tina didn't fear him...He even remembered the phenomenal taste of the dish called 'Spaghetti' and the terrifying black-haired cat person Chloe...*THROB*....*THROB*....That's right...there are so many things I've experienced since coming to this world. The people, the places, and the food...I want to experience more. I don't want my journey to end here! NO, I REFUSE TO LET IT END!*THROB*...*THROB*...*THROB* *SHATTER*//Obtained Innate Skill: 'Will of the Emperor'//Vahn felt something snap in his mind as he tried desperately to resist the darkness. He grit his teeth so hard he could feel his molars crack. His fingernails cut into his palms as Vahn slowly opened his eyes. The cooling feeling originating from his mind seemed to encompass his body.Using his newfound awareness Vahn quickly opened his inventory and withdrew a 'senzu bean'. Feeling the small bean in his hand, he struggled to lift it to his mouth. He felt the darkness in his vision begin to return but forced it away using sheer willpower.Finally, he managed to put the 'senzu bean' into his mouth and madly devoured the life-giving essence within. He felt his wounds begin to heal rapidly and was even able to see the huge tear in his abdomen close up. It was almost as if time had been reversed, and after several breaths, Vahn was able to regain his strength.He lifted the nearby sword and turned towards his audience. "Sorry to keep you waiting. Shall we begin?"When he had begun to lose consciousness earlier, several goblins and kobolds had been spawned in the surrounding area. Though they wanted to charge at his limp body immediately, they were all forced back by an invisible pressure. It was unlike anything the monsters had experienced, and they felt a fundamental feeling of fear within their core. It was almost like the boy before they contained the soul of an Ancient Dragon.When the boy addressed them, the pressure suddenly increased as they looked into the deep aquamarine eyes. Within his pupils, they could see the silhouette of a fierce warrior shrouded in divine light. They could even vaguely see an illusion of a great army standing behind him...Without waiting any longer, Vahn charged at the monsters who stared in his direction in reverence and fear. He swung his sword in wide arcs, trailing a white light that carried a deadly momentum. The sword began to hum as it cut through each successive body. As if possessing a life of its own, it began to resonate with the aura of its new master.Vahn continued to slay monsters in a frenzy and seemed to trigger something within the dungeon itself. From the walls, floor, and even ceiling monsters continued to spawn to confront the mad tyrant wreaking havoc on the second floor.After several minutes Vahn had cut a path of destruction towards the third floor. Even the walls of the dungeon itself could not impede the path of his blade as he left dozens of marks to scar its surface.Arriving at the staircase leading down, Vahn decided to against continuing further and followed the staircase upwards. The power that had been coursing through his body since his awakening had begun to diminish and his instincts told him that once it faded he would most likely pass out.He sprinted upwards with his maximum speed and arrived at the entrance within twenty minutes. As he took several steps from the entrance, amidst the crowd of people entering and exiting the dungeon, Vahn collapsed into unconsciousness.Those in his surroundings immediately retreated for the boy who looked in terrible shape. There was blood covering every inch of his body, and they assumed he had most likely overestimated his own capabilities and suffered from his inexperience. One bolder adventurer decided to confirm if the boy was still alive and then flagged down the approaching Guild staff after he noticed the boy was still breathing.One of approaching staff members was the elf Vahn had seen earlier, Nicholas Grimm. Seeing the state of the boy he had just recently lectured about the dangers of the dungeon, he couldn't help but frown. Signaling the staff to escort him to the medical ward, he resolved to give the child a fierce lecture after he woke up.

Chapter 23: A Qualitative Change