When we arrive on the 5th floor of the dungeon, I once again notice a large drop in the number of people diving.
"Do most people stick to the top 3 floors?"
"Yeah, most people do dungeon-diving on the side. So they only go a few times a week at most. They don't dive deep either."
Got it, I guess that means that another reason items from deeper are worth so much more is that they are increasingly scarce. Not that dungeon-diving is really going to be a source of income for us, pirate bounties are far higher. Dungeons are a tool to level consistently.
We don't need to wait at all to enter the chambers, as there is always one free on the 5th floor.
The layout and chambers are identical, however, the monster which is introduced on this floor is not.
From the black mist, a grotesque silhouette lurches forward. Its glossy, obsidian carapace catches the faintest glint of crystal light with unnatural sheen. The creature's massive form skitters forward on segmented legs, each ending in hooked, chitinous claws that scrape against the stone floor.
Its body gleams like polished armor, but pulses subtly, as though something vile stirs just beneath the surface.
Mandibles, jagged and serrated, twitch hungrily as it raises its horned head, and from its abdomen, the slick gleam of stinger ports shimmer ominously.
The air fills with a sour musk and the sharp whir of pressurized venom ready to launch. A low chittering hum escapes its throat.
The air thickens with the acrid haze of mist as the gleaming carapace beetle screeches, stingers arcing forward in a volley of deadly precision. But I am already moving.
My stance is low and steady, falchion angled like a coiled serpent. One stinger fires, whistling through the air. but it misses me, I sidestep with fluid grace. Another is parried mid-flight with a ringing clash as obsidian-steel meets chitin.
My first slash is deliberate: a crescent arc across one of the beetle's front legs, severing it at the joint. The creature staggers, its bulk surprisingly fast, lunging with gaping mandibles, but I spin. My blade meets the inside joint of the mandible, where the armor thins. A precise thrust.
A false retreat draws the beetle forward, exposing its undercarriage. With a sweeping horizontal cut, the falchion bites deep into soft tissue. The beast screams, a harsh, alien sound, but finds no target.
The final stroke comes in silence: I surge forward beneath an arcing claw, rising in one fluid motion. My falchion cleaves upwards, splitting the creature's head down the center, bisecting it with surgical force.
The beetle collapses in a twitching heap.
[Slain - Stinger beetle lvl 5 - 21EXP]
This time, the creature was a mild challenge. The hard carapace makes killing it a little complicated, and the stinger it shoots out is the real threat.
As we continue exploring this floor, I soon realise that the gnoll and the beetle make a great team. The gnoll will charge with its battle axe ready to strike, and while you are trying to dodge, the beetle shoots a stinger at you.
In cases like this, I have to rely on Kaelin to back me up, luckily, her new revolvers can easily penetrate the exoskeleton of the horrid beetle.
There are no drops other than crystals, but completing this floor doesn't take long at all.
I can tell from the increase in experience required to reach the next level that each level requires 30% more than the last. This is fine all the way up until level 10, but after that, the required experience increases drastically.
Either way, getting to level 6 here is very fast. I required 285 experience, so I only need to do 3 runs through the chambers to once again level up. The attribute points I receive, I use to increase [Strength] [Vitality] and [Agility], but the skill points I am saving, as Kaelin informs me they are used to evolve your class at level 10.
My new status:
[Name: Leon Maxwell]
[Race: Sky Sovereign]
[Level: 6 XP 5/371]
[Primary Class: Fighter lvl 6]
[Secondary Class
-Sky Captain lvl 6
- Resident lvl 1 ]
[HP: 230/230]
[MP: 130/130]
[Strength: 24 (+2)]
[Vitality: 23]
[Agility: 23]
[Intelligence: 13]
[Wisdom: 13]
[Unused Skill Points: 10]
[Unused Attribute Points: 0]
The next level up will require 371 EXP points. Most likely, that will be around 20 kills on floor 6, but I am in no rush right now. In truth, I much prefer the idea of leveling with ship battles, especially considering that bounties can be collected from sinking pirates.
Actually, now that I think about it, next time I might just capture one of the pirate ships without sinking it, maybe I can claim ownership of it and sell it at the next port town for cash. Honestly, I am impressed with myself, I am a good idea machine today!
We spend almost until evening on the 6th floor, only managing to collect crystals, and no drops. My level doesn't go up from what is most likely my final time in this town's dungeon.
Considering that the ship fitters told me they will probably finish tomorrow, a day earlier than they estimated, we will probably spend the day preparing the ship and then setting out first thing the next.
We sell our crystals and are awarded a whopping 55 GP for our half day's labour, such a rewarding task!
So as not to deplete the stores of the ship, we once again go on a shopping trip to buy food for dinner. We visit many of the same places as last night, and I am not disappointed by the selection.
Just as we are arriving back at the docks, I notice that we are being followed by 3 people. From what I can tell, they have been following us since we left the dungeon, and I can probably guess who they are. The scum!
I decide that it is best to confront them here and now before we get to the ship. I don't want them to see where we are anchored.
"Wait here a moment," I order Kaelin.
She looks at me with understanding eyes, she obviously knew we were being followed due to her foxkin sense of smell, but she chose to say nothing.
I turn on my feet, and start walking directly to where the group of 3 are 'hiding', if you can call it that, and I come across the two scum from the dungeon, and a third larger character.
"I will give you one chance to leave. If you disappear now, I will forget this ever happened, but if you continue following me, I will draw my blade, slice you up, and throw your bodies off the edge of the island so that your families will never be able to give you a proper funeral. What will it be?"
The two scum from the dungeon take off running, but the third man shows some backbone. "Just leave the island and take her with you. She isn't welcome here!"
"Don't worry, I am more than happy to take that wonderful being off your hands! The people here have done nothing but scorn her and try to break her, but that girl has an unbreakable spirit.
The fact she can still smile and laugh despite enduring pricks like you shows me she is worth a hundred of you scumbags. So, fuck off back to where you came from, before I carry out my threat. If I see you anywhere near us again, I won't hesitate to decapitate all 3 of you!"