[You have defeated Sewer Frog – Level 3]
[You received Cor and experience points]
[You have defeated…]
[You received Frog Leg Meat – Common Item]
The notifications popped up one after another in front of his eyes, so quickly that Ren didn't even bother to glance at them properly anymore.
He pulled his sword out from the corpse of a fallen monster, flesh slimy, skin slick, and blood oozing in streams of red pixels. The stench of rot filled the air, blending with the dungeon's ancient mustiness.
The group had just finished clearing a wave of chaos… A swarm of Sewer Frogs had screeched wildly, surging out from the narrow hallway ahead like a gray flood.
At least ten of them. And they had no strategy..just charged recklessly at anything in their way.
To Ren, these creatures no longer posed any real threat.
One clean slash through the abdomen, right at the soft spot where muscle hadn't fully developed was enough to bring them down.
No need for skills, no need for much dodging. Each strike was clean, simple, more like cleaning up than actual combat.
The amount of HP he had lost in that battle was negligible, just a few scratches.
But what bothered Ren wasn't the damage. It was something else: the paralysis effect. A few surprise licks from the frogs' long tongues had slowed his movements for a moment.
Thankfully, the level difference between him and the monsters made the debuff last only a few seconds. Not dangerous. But annoying enough to tick him off.
Ren exhaled quietly, returning his sword to rest as he watched the monster corpses slowly vanish into shimmering fragments.
He felt... confident. And... maybe even a little pleased. Pleased that he had overcome something that once terrified him. Pleased that he could now move forward without being held back by the invisible fear of entering a dungeon for the first time.
But at the same time... there was also a strange sense of emptiness.
These monsters had once been his nightmare. And now, they were nothing more than walking XP sacks.
What had once nearly cost him his life now offered nothing but a few meager experience points and pieces of meat no one even wanted.
[Current EXP: 922/1800]
Roughly 1,000 experience left to reach level 10.
Not a distant number. But at this pace… Ren knew he would have to kill dozens more of them. And he was already growing bored.
Not because he was tired.But because he felt like he was going nowhere.
Because it felt like... no matter how many more monsters he killed, this world wouldn't change.
'Am I going insane...? How could a world like this ever change from the foolish thoughts and delusions of a nobody like me?'
Ren let out a dry laugh, a brittle, quiet sound, like he was mocking himself. He shook his head, trying to shake off the useless thoughts that clung to his mind.
Then his eyes shifted.Cold and sharp as a blade, they turned toward Copper's group.
They weren't strong. Not by the standards of the frontliners Ren used to fight alongside. But surprisingly... they worked together very well. Coordinated, careful, and full of trust.
And at the center of that team... was him.
Copper.
He was giving commands calmly, without raising his voice or barking orders. Each instruction came at the right time, clear, and everyone followed without hesitation.
He... seemed different than before.
The cold, arrogant air that had once flickered in his eyes, especially when he was still hanging around Tarek's gang, seemed to have faded.
No longer directing with a commanding attitude, but earning trust through action.
Ren squinted, observing more closely.
Copper's sword movements were still as fluid as ever, precise, measured down to the centimeter.
The blade traced a crescent arc as thin as silk, and the air hissed softly just before a burst of red pixels exploded.
One, two, then three Sewer Frogs were cut down in a single slash.
No skill had been activated. It was pure swordsmanship...but Ren had to admit… the man was skilled.
'I can't gauge his strength right now…' Ren thought, eyes never leaving Copper's slightest movements.
Judging by how he moved, how he protected the weaker players, how he handled stray monsters without assistance, he didn't look like a low-level player.
'And the others with him…'
Ren glanced at the rest of the team. They moved a bit clumsily, some still visibly unsure when handling the frogs that jumped out from narrow corners.
'Probably around level 5 to 7…'
He silently assessed. No one particularly stood out, but it was clear the group was being led well.
Perhaps... that was exactly why they still maintained their enthusiasm and trust in Copper.
Sensing the needle-like gaze on his back, Copper turned his head slightly, catching Ren quietly observing him.
A flicker of surprise passed through his eyes, then was quickly replaced by a faint smile and a casual nod, so calm that no one could tell what he was really thinking.
He turned away, continuing to give instructions to his group as if nothing had happened.
Ren froze for a beat. Maybe it was because his stare had been too blatant, or maybe… he had simply grown so used to being on the sidelines that he'd forgotten what it felt like to be noticed.
In the sunken square between branching corridors, a few players sat slumped on the damp stone floor, sighing after the recent battle.
Level-up notifications flickered in the air as everyone took the chance to open their status menus and allocate attribute points.
Someone let out a soft chuckle after picking up a rare item, but that joy lasted barely a single breath.
After the brief rest, the group continued moving. Copper still led at the front, and Ren silently held the rear. No one spoke, only the echo of footsteps tapping lightly against the stone walls, dragging with it an eerie silence.
On the way, they passed a few other groups of players. These players looked tired, some slightly injured, retreating from the dungeon.
Something had happened, but no one asked. The two sides simply kept a respectful distance, exchanging polite nods… then passed each other in silence.
"Look, a treasure chest!" a player exclaimed suddenly.
The light from a magic lantern reflected off an old wooden chest tucked behind a corner wall.
It looked old, dusty, lying still as if forgotten for ages. And because of that… it looked too perfect to be real.
Whispers began spreading. This was the first chest they had seen since entering the dungeon. All previous ones had already been opened by someone else.
An eager player rushed forward, ready to open the lid. But instantly, an arm shot out, blocking him.
Copper.
He didn't speak at first. Just looked at the player, then at the chest. His gaze wasn't excited, it was… suspicious.
"We should leave this alone," he said, his voice calm and cold.
Some players frowned. A few were confused, others clearly disappointed.
Copper paid them no mind. He glanced around, then addressed the group.
"I understand. Everyone hopes luck will be on their side. Standing before a chest like this, even the most cautious person might waver. But… think carefully."
He paused for a moment, as if weighing his words. Then continued.
"This probably isn't the first time someone found this chest. Many groups have passed through here before us. But none of them touched it."
"Is it really possible… that no one noticed it? In a proper party, there's always at least one person with support-type skills. The two most basic skills that anyone can learn within the first few days are Search and Stealth Detection."
His voice lowered, slow and deliberate, like each drop sinking into the listener's mind.
"Support-type skills like Search grow more effective the more they're used. A player with this skill can easily detect traps, hidden items, or… chests that shouldn't exist, like this one."
He turned back to the chest, then concluded coldly:
"This thing… is too exposed, positioned in a perfect ambush spot. The fact that it hasn't been touched means every group before us...even experienced ones, chose to ignore it. What more reason do you need?"
No one responded.
Each person's gaze shifted gradually from curiosity to caution.
Ren stood at the rear, saying nothing. But deep inside, a chill crept down his spine.
Not because of the chest.
But because… those calm, rational warnings, that tone was unmistakably his.
Back then… it was that same voice, that same gaze, that same cold composure… that had led many people to their deaths...
The group continued on their way.
The path began to flatten out, becoming so clear and open it felt suspicious. There were no pounding footsteps, no growls, no glowing yellow eyes flashing from the darkness.
Only now and then, a lone Sewer Frog would slither out of a crack in the rock, then be taken down in a single breath, so effortlessly that no one even bothered to call out.
Ren walked slowly at the back, scanning around. He was starting to understand.
Most of the first floor of this dungeon no longer held any real danger.
It had been mercilessly farmed by hundreds, if not thousands of players passing through over the past two weeks.
Some had even drawn detailed maps, marking every monster spawn, every dangerous chest, every dead end, and every shortcut to the lower floors.
And they… sold those scraps of paper at the marketplace, as if selling a secret manual that anyone could copy, so long as they had the coin.
Even so, many player groups still lingered here, not daring to descend any further.
Maybe they were waiting for mini-bosses to respawn after a few days, monsters strong enough to be a challenge, but not quite a death sentence.
But the greater, more obvious reason was always the same: fear.
Caution wasn't a sign of weakness...but a lesson learned from watching too many people go down there and never come back.
Ren knew that far too well.
He had been one of them.
Their footsteps stretched across the cold stone floor, a trail of players moving in silent single file.
No one joked anymore or shouted with excitement like they had at the start. Maybe it was the fatigue from their earlier fight or maybe… it was the creeping chill now slowly working its way into their minds.
That distinct atmosphere of the deeper floors...where even magic light seemed to be strangled by the thick darkness.
Ren lifted his eyes to Copper's back.
'Where will you lead them this time?'
He didn't speak the words aloud.
Just let them echo quietly in his mind,amid the slowing rhythm of his heartbeat... like footsteps nearing a fork in the road...a place no one could yet predict.