In the end, the dungeon boss was slain.

Slicing off its head with Heatbringer, Darien watched as his sword engulfed the body of the Goblin Warlock in a whopping pillar of fire.

[You slayed a Rank 1 Dungeon BOSS!]

[You get 360 XP!]

[You get 350 XP!] x4

[You get 1010 XP!]

[Knight Rank: Intermediate 10050/15000]

[Congratulations! You have successfully cleared Rank 1 Dungeon: Novice Depths.]

After the notification, the entire BOSS chamber shook, the walls trembling until a magical door appeared.

It was proof that the whole dungeon challenge had been conquered, and the aspirants had earned passage into the First Zone of the Primordial World.

Standing alone, Darien concealed his weapon before stepping toward the BOSS's loot, hoping what he wanted would actually be there.

[You can retrieve:]

[Mana Pebble (Uncommon)x2 Return Pebble (Common)x10 Goblin Ritual Staff (Uncommon) Warped Charm (Uncommon) Skill Book (1-star) Life Core (Lv.1) Warlock's Eye (Uncommon) Silver Fragments (Common) x7 Dungeon Chest (Uncommon)]

Darien was happy at the end of the listing. What he had wanted had indeed dropped.

Yes, the monster's Life Core had dropped, but it wasn't only the Life Core he was interested in.

The last item on the list was: Dungeon Chest, a reward rarer than a Life Core.

Dungeon Chests were a mixed blessing.

They gave warriors the chance to attempt a harder dungeon instance, one that promised far greater rewards, both tangible and intangible.

According to the General Library, every dungeon contained a hidden subtier known as a subdungeon. And every subdungeon was always more dangerous than the main dungeon itself.

The risks were just as high as the rewards, which was why many thought twice before entering a subdungeon—some who did never returned.

The only way to enter a subdungeon was by using a Legendary-ranked Dungeon Key, and this key could only be found inside a Dungeon Chest from the main dungeon's BOSS loot.

That was exactly what Darien had before him.

But not everyone could easily get a Dungeon Chest, even after defeating the BOSS.

A Dungeon Chest only appeared when the dungeon was cleared impressively, meaning minimal injuries, efficient teamwork, and no losses.

If the run was sloppy, filled with mistakes or deaths, the chest would not drop, even if the BOSS was slain.

Looking back on his run, Darien couldn't deny it had been nothing less than impressive.

He retrieved only the Life Core and the Dungeon Chest.

Opening the Uncommon Dungeon Chest….

[Dungeon Key (Legendary), Energy Core (Lv.2)x3, Skill Scroll]

'Wow… a Skill Scroll.'

He thought as he held up the glowing parchment in his hand, his eyes narrowing, studying the magical letters.

Skill Scrolls were rare, magical treasures that instantly evolved a single skill to its next tier once the warrior absorbed the scroll.

Fortunately, it wasn't random; the warrior could choose which skill he'd like to evolve to the next tier.

Acquiring one was thrilling for Darien because he saw Skill Scrolls as his only medium, for now, to evolve his skills, since he had no self-evolution ability.

Having a Skill Scroll now meant he had to make a smart choice on which skill to advance, since these items were notoriously hard to find.

His thoughts weighed briefly between 10x SP Multiplier and 100x XP, but in the end, Darien chose the former.

He placed his hand on the scroll, and it dissolved into light, ending with a shiver that coursed through his body.

[Congratulations!]

[10x SP Multiplier (3-star) → 100x SP Multiplier (4-star)]

Darien's eyes widened at the glowing notification, a grin spreading across his face.

He was filled with excitement at the thought of what <100x SP Multiplier> held for him.

Immediately, he summoned the skill's description, eager to see how the skill's nature had altered.

[Skill: 100x SP Multiplier]

[Type: Passive/ Special]

[Level: (4-star)]

[Description: A passive-type skill that multiplies all future-acquired Skill Points by 100]

'Wow. Now, this is more like it!' he exclaimed, excited.

<10x SP Multiplier> had already been a game-changer for him. With it, he had been able to amass Skill Points far faster than if he hadn't made the skill.

A 100x multiplier would be something else now!

Now, Darien didn't think he'd be lacking Skill Points in any manner. Slaying a Rank 2 being or monster would mean 20,000 SP. Slaying a Rank 3? 80,000 SP!

The silver-haired warrior chuckled to himself. His juvenile mind was still vivid. Becoming extremely powerful was all he had ever dreamt of.

'I need to get access to high-ranked dungeons as soon as possible. In the meantime, the First Zone of the Primordial World must be equally formidable with powerful monsters.'

He collected the Energy Cores from the Dungeon Chest and, lastly, picked up the Legendary Dungeon Key.

~~~~~~~~

Outside the BOSS chamber, Ayn and the rest noticed the magical door had changed color, a sign that the BOSS had been defeated.

Each of them was amazed and also relieved that Darien was successful, so they stepped inside to see him and the aftermath of his victory.

'This bastard… actually did it. Unreal… he slayed a whole Rank 1 Boss alone. What kind of monster is he turning into?'

Darien turned at the sound of their footsteps, spotting the four of them entering the ruined chamber.

Calmly, he gestured at the loot and then to the shimmering magical gateway leading into the Primordial World.

"So, how did I do?" he asked his party.

All responded with words of awe.

"Incredible!"

"You're the man!"

"Boss-slayer!"

All except one—Ayn.

"Took you a little longer than I expected."

Darien chuckled at that, shaking his head. He didn't know why, but since their journey to the Underbelly, Ayn had been acting a little bit strange to him.

Darien believed this could be slight jealousy or envy of his powers, so he didn't register this as a threat at all.

"The boss was a bit unpredictable, so I took my time. But I didn't touch any of the loot, as we agreed. Plenty here for everyone."

Darien motioned toward the glowing drops still scattered across the stone floor.

Of course, he said nothing about the Dungeon Chest, even though it was technically supposed to be theirs by their agreement.

The superficial loot was enough for them, and the Dungeon Chest wouldn't have dropped at all if not for him, so Darien believed it was his by right.

"Damn, Darien… I honestly thought we'd walk in here and find you half-dead, but instead, you're standing tall," Jakob said with a long sigh of relief. "Look at all these items! We cleared our Ascendant test!"

The others nodded in agreement, satisfied with the experience they gained from Novice Depths.

They were confident that such a pace would place them in the top five percent of this year's set.

"Alright then, let's gather the loot and leave the dungeon. We have about an hour before the magical door closes."

Holding the Dungeon Key, Darien watched his party mates get to work, gathering loot to begin determining in what ratio it'd be shared.

His mind was a battlefield of a dilemma, wondering whether he would be quick enough to clear the subdungeon before the magical door closed.

If he wasn't, then he'd be stuck in Novice Depths.

'How tough can a Rank 1 subdungeon be?' Darien thought to himself, mocking what he hadn't encountered yet.

Sometimes, belittling things was the only way to boost one's confidence.

Making up his mind, he turned toward the goblin village, calling out to his party mates behind.

"Don't wait on me—keep gathering the loot and sort it out as planned. I'll be right back."

"What do you mean—"

Jakob wanted to protest, but Darien had already glided away through the magical door, back into the goblin village.

He left them completely bewildered and stunned about what to do next. Ayn was the first to make a fuss about it.

"Be right back? Back where? Where's he going?"

"Does he know a hidden spot in the dungeon?"

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