I Became My Healer Elf Character - Chapter 15

Chapter 15: Traipsing into the Dungeon
There were two dungeons located in Amalin. One was North of the capital city. This one was of course named [Dungeon of Amelia]. The other one was to the East, and it was a bit further of a trek. This one was called [Dungeon of Foresight]. According to the guild, the monsters in this dungeon were better suited to reading people’s patterns. It made it especially difficult for newer adventurers to tackle.

Outside of that, the monsters weren’t as strong as in Amelia’s dungeon. The dungeon named after the goddess seemed more suited towards healing and vitality. But the monsters could also pack a punch on the lower floors. Speaking of which, no one knows how deep these dungeons actually go.

The furthest the guild has mapped for Amelia’s dungeon is down until the 67th floor. On floor 68 the monsters start becoming too hard for even Tier 7 adventurers. And the [Dungeon of Foresight] has even less floors mapped, going down until floor 61 right after the boss room. The traveler’s guide assumes this is because of less desire to map this dungeon.

More dangerous than the monsters there were the many traps. Anyone who wasn’t prepared could fall victim to mimics, spike traps, pressure plates, or fake rooms.

Once Hikari left the city, she went to an open spot in the woods, sensing no one nearby. “Kurayami, you should transform.”

“Yes, Master.” In an instant, there was a huge glint of magic resonating from Kurayami. Her wings unfurled to their largest size, covering almost the entire clearing, easily spanning wider than the width of most buildings. Her body transformed in the same motion, growing to the terrifying lizard.

Her neck was thick and elongated, covered with impossibly hard scales, and several horns rode down her spine, even covering the tail. Her head had become massive and pointed with rows of sharp canines. Her eyes saw another eyelid overlap the original, and they opened at an angle. The dragon’s entire body was black with a purple hue and sleek.

She gave off an elegant and postured aura, with a body free of scars. Kurayami had truly become the pride of the skies, but even with this massive frame, Hikari knew that the dragon wouldn’t be spotted. Even if they flew in the open, Kurayami being a ruler of darkness exceeded the prowess of any sensory classes.

Hikari leapt onto her dragon with a grace befitting a goddess. And as the dragon took to the skies, Hikari’s robes fluttered in the breeze.

As they flew higher, the ground shrunk below them, and the elf reveled in the freedom gained. She’d flown on planes in her past life, but the feeling of the open air brought her an indescribable tranquility.

They rapidly flew past trees and wilderness, towards distant rolling hills. She had learned the [Dungeon of Foresight] was located on the eastern road, heading towards the Kingdom of Simole. It was said in the traveler’s guide that past Simole scorching heat and barren land dominated.

The continent they found themselves in could be described by different regions. Towards the North were lush forests—the home of the elves and many beastmen. In the southern expanses it got progressively colder, and the entire continent below this one was covered in ice. Most of the continent was actually towards the East where the scorching heat gave way to a desert and beyond that was the [Continent of Drakes]. There was only one country West of Amalin, and it was rather small, sporting many tropical islands.

It was said there’s another Western continent, but the traveler’s book didn’t go into detail. Thinking about it this way, there were at least three continents that Hikari could confirm. Where they were currently located was simply called [Central Continent]. It was the home of the majority of this world’s denizens, not even considering other planes that wove between the fabrics of this world.

There was a confirmed Demon plane and a plane of Gods. The residents understood that elementals also came from somewhere, but they couldn’t be certain which plain they resided. Either they were summoned from the Demon plane, or they had their own.

There were no telling how many gods there were either. As for the traveler’s guide, it only gave the phrase “there could be as many gods as stars in the sky.”

Hikari found this conclusion unlikely. After all, any being considered stronger than a regular traveler by leagues could be considered a godlike being. To them, Senjosho might as well be a goddess.

Somewhere along the rolling hills making up the eastern road—right past a small dungeon city—the dungeon finally came into view.

It was a formation that appeared random from above. There was an entire stone shrine in the middle of one of the taller hills. Several stalls could be spotted on the road leading up to it. Some were selling weapons and armor. Some were selling potions, and a few of them were guild merchants, sporting the signature emblem of adventurers.

The entrance to the shrine was well maintained, and on some columns, the country’s insignia could be seen—adorning a pink banner. Even though it was still early in the day, several adventurer groups lined up to tackle the dungeon.

Hikari and her dragon landed towards the bottom of the hill, choosing to walk towards the entrance. Kurayami transformed back into what resembled a humanoid with a tail and horns. They got in line while listening to the market at the same time.

“Potions for sale! The cheapest you can get!”

“Weapons and armor! Many of them are straight out of this dungeon!”

On the other side an adventurer could be heard haggling with guild staff. “Come on, can’t you give me one of those rings for cheaper here? I came all this way!”

Overall, it gave Hikari a pleasant feeling, reminding her of the days spent holed up in her room playing [Gensuba]. In those games, markets were always decided by players and item rarities, but it was common for player guilds to put stalls next to dungeons. Players would come out with unique items and put them up for bidding, breathing life into the player economy.

“Is something wrong, Master?”

“No, I was just remembering something. By the way Kurayami, what was your world like before you came here?”

“You mean Gensuba? Master, you were there with me?” The dragon cutely tilted her head, placing a thoughtful finger on her cheek. “Are you referring to your domain?”

“My domain?” Hikari still refused to accept what she saw in her status screen. Even though all signs kept pointing towards it, she wished to deny it to the very end. Even if she could feel several contract signs coming from a different plane, she still didn’t want to face it. She quickly shook her head. “Never mind.”

Either way, it didn’t matter when they found themselves at the entrance. Right next to the dark shrine gateway was the final stand, checking people’s guild cards before they entered.

“Guild cards please,” the receptionist said.

Hikari presented her the two fourth tier guild cards.

The lady examined them. “Are you on a request from the guild?”

“Yes, does it matter?”

“It does. It makes it easier to keep track of requests internally. If you present the request now, you could even turn in the parts at the nearby guild stall. Let’s just say, there used to be problems with people taking dungeon requests. So please present it.”

Hikari nodded and took out the pinned request, placing it directly into the woman’s hands.

“Wimblo Trees, huh? We are currently short on parts from those monsters. Alright, everything is in order. You may proceed.”

With that, they finally traversed the dark dungeon entrance, descending the steps towards the first floor. As soon as they traveled across it, a tingle ran down Hikari’s spine.

“Master, this entire place is covered in a spatial magic, just like in [Gensuba].”

Hikari wondered if the reasoning the game gave was the same here. According to the game’s lore, dungeons were covered in spatial magic that expanded the space, making it bigger on the inside than the outside.

Though, Hikari didn’t think that was the reason she felt a tingle. It was a different feeling, as if this place was rejecting her. For some reason, she was able to recognize it. It was the feeling of encroaching on someone else’s domain, and the place was attempting to reject her. Is there a God of Dungeons? Or is this related to Amelia in some way?

The only way to find out was traipsing deeper in. Whether it was the nest of a god or not, Hikari’s curiousity wouldn’t let her relent all power to the unknown. If she was going to idle, she might as well stay in the capital city and never leave.

With that thought in mind she ventured down the last dungeon entrance steps. “Let’s see what this place has to offer.”