[Floor 2 Access 2/2]
[Floor 2 now open]
Information flashed across Rune's mind, clear and unmistakable.
He remained where he stood, chest rising and falling as the last remnants of pain faded.
Beneath him, the stone was cracked and scorched. Around him, the remains of the spider queen lay still.
His armor continued to repair itself, crystal filaments crawling back into place, weaving torn sections together with quiet precision.
Where skin had been burned or pierced, warmth spread as flesh closed, leaving behind only faint traces.
Sol and Luna walked toward him. They came to a stop at his sides. Both lowered their heads slightly. Rune reached out, resting a hand on each of them.
"We did it," he said quietly. "We actually did it." His voice wavered for just a moment before steadying.
"I could not have done this without you two."
The wolves began to fade.
Their forms loosened, edges dissolving into swirling clouds of element. Light and shadow peeled away from fur and bone, drifting inward as they flowed back into Rune's body. The energy settled deep within his chest, coiling near his heart.
They did not vanish.
He could still feel them there. Present. Aware. Resting, but ready.Alive.
[Element Power increasing… +13]
[Physical Power increasing… +17]
[Status Summary]
Name: Rune
Age: 22
Race: Human+
Element: Light
Element: Shadow
Element power: 71
Physical power: 71
Stored Money Value: 18,540
[Perks]
Memories of the World
One That Has Started to Remember
Perserverence
[Qualifications]
None
The notifications settled into Rune's mind.
Power spread through him in quiet waves, not explosive, but deep and grounding. Element stirred, fuller than before, responding to the growth with a steady presence.
At the same time, his body adjusted, muscle and bone reinforcing themselves as the increase in physical power took hold.
The potion's effects still lingered.
His flesh remained hardened, dense enough that the strain brought no pain, no tearing resistance as the change settled in. Instead, it felt natural, as if his body had been preparing for this moment and was simply accepting what it had earned.
Rune clenched his hands once, then released them.
"Time to collect all this ore. I'm a home owner now," Rune said to himself.
"And if I'm going to have a whole manor, I should probably own more than a single bench. Merits for furniture, merits for storage, merits for who knows what. I refuse to be the kind of idiot who lives in a palace and eats off the floor."
He took the time to gather the remaining ore and crystal webbing, packing it carefully into the leg pouches built into his armor.
William had added two of them, each with more space than anything Rune had used before. Practical. Efficient.
"I should check out the second floor before I leave. I am already here."
Rune made his way back toward the dungeon entrance, where the two paths started. Set into the floor was a marble slab shaped into a perfect circle, its surface smooth and unmarked at first glance.
Rune had passed this every time he had entered the dungeon prior, assuming it had something to do with going to the next floor. He slowed, studying it for a moment.
'That has to be it.'
He stepped onto the marble.
A wedge of the circle lit up beneath his feet, lines carving themselves into the stone with a soft glow. A symbol took shape within the illuminated section.
A solid square sat at its center. Beneath it were three blocked lines. On either side of the square rested smaller rectangles, all arranged as if the square itself were a keystone, bearing the weight of everything around it.
Rune's breath caught slightly.
"Cael," he murmured. "The god of Stone and Foundations."
He knew what the symbol was the moment he saw it.
Understanding rushed in.
Information about the dungeons and the meaning behind the mark unfolded in his mind with quiet clarity.
Every dungeon was structured the same way. 10 floors, each one tied to a god of the pantheon. Each floor ascended raised the difficulty, not just in strength, but in intent.
Trials, not obstacles.
His gaze lingered on the glowing wedge.
The final floor of each dungeon was different.
It did not belong to a god in the same way the others did. It existed to reveal the owner of the dungeon itself, and the qualification granted to those who endured every floor beneath it.
"Wait. This is too much information at once."
Unease settled in as he sorted through the information pressing at the edges of his thoughts.
"Both the dwarves and Treya talked about the old gods before. They always said there were eight." His jaw tightened. "But this knowledge is telling me there were ten."
The implication sat heavy.
"Two lost gods," he muttered. "Just more questions stacked on top of the pile."
Stone ground against stone on the wall in front of him.
Between the two branching paths of the first floor, the rock face slid upward, revealing a staircase carved directly into the dungeon itself. Cold air spilled down from above.
Rune looked at it for only a moment.
"I will sort out the mysteries later. Let's see the second floor."
He stepped forward and began the climb.
The ascent stretched on, longer than it had any right to be. Time blurred as he moved upward, steps echoing softly in the enclosed passage. By the time he reached the top, it felt like at least 15 minutes had passed.
A door stood before him.
It was intricately carved, every line deliberate, every groove precise. Frost coated its surface, creeping along the edges and pooling in the carvings, the air around it biting cold.
Rune stopped in front of it, breath fogging faintly as he took it in.
He placed his hands against the door, and a chill seeped into his palms.
More messages surfaced in his mind, stacking neatly one after another.
[Floor 2 of the Dungeon of Fate]
[Maze of Numbers Activating]
[Make your way through the maze, touching the numbered statues in sequence. Once all 4 are activated, reach the exit within the time limit.]
He pushed the door open, cold air rolling out to meet him as the second floor began to unfold.
"A maze. How am I supposed to get stronger, with a damned maze."