Chapter 26: A Dungeon Cleared, A Duel Declared

“Shall we go?”

The world still seemed worth living in.

With the help of a taxi driver named Kunmal, Revan was able to easily reach the dungeon entrance.

The dungeon’s name was ‘Dog Hole’.

It was called Dog Hole because the monsters predominantly found inside were low-rank Gnolls.

The entry level restriction of 20 had long been met.

Having finished shopping, Revan entered the dungeon in top condition.

[‘Dungeon, Dog Hole’ — Do you wish to enter?]

A clear question.

Because Dog Hole was an instance dungeon, unlike the open field outside, there was no chance of running into other players.

In other words, Revan could fight with all his might and flair without worrying about anyone’s eyes.

Revan answered the system’s prompt affirmatively.

[Entering dungeon.]

As soon as he entered, the surrounding scenery shifted.

‘Come to think of it, Dog Hole is my first dungeon.’

It wasn’t his first dungeon experience overall.

Revan was a veteran player.

But as a War Mage, this was his first dungeon after only hunting in open fields until now.

So he wasn’t particularly excited or nervous. Revan wasn’t one to put much meaning into things.

Upon entering the instance, a small mini-map appeared in the corner of his vision.

This mini-map was an exploration-type map of the dungeon, only revealing areas Revan had personally scouted.

After finishing preparations for hunting, Revan stepped over the white line marking the safe zone and began proper dungeon exploration.

‘If I remember correctly, the boss room in Dog Hole is straight ahead without any detours.’

Revan’s quest was to clear the dungeon alone.

So there was no need to comb through every nook and cranny hunting all the Gnolls.

Once he stepped outside the safe zone and walked a bit, low-rank Gnolls soon caught his scent and began approaching, sniffing the air.

Kieeeeh...

Kirk, kirk—

Gnolls appeared.

Gnolls were monsters that resembled humanoid dogs. Their fur was shaggy, and they drooled constantly.

Above their heads was a name tag reading ‘Low-rank Gnoll’, with level 21 displayed.

Their sharp-looking teeth made Revan think a bite would hurt quite a bit.

He suddenly recalled the first time he’d encountered Gnolls.

‘Good old memories.’

Back then, Revan had formed a party at the dungeon entrance to take on Dog Hole, but since there weren’t enough tanks, he had to handle the Gnolls all by himself.

Not a fond memory.

Gnolls were canine monsters.

Most people were intimidated when facing large dogs in real life.

So how much more threatening would Gnolls look in Warlord, a virtual reality world identical to real life?

Revan remembered the immense mental pressure he’d felt when first facing Gnolls.

‘That was back then.’

At least it was then.

But Revan had since faced monsters far more fearsome than Gnolls by the truckload.

So Gnolls, once terrifying, now felt less threatening than neighborhood mutts.

Enough reminiscing.

Revan clenched the club strapped to his wrist.

“Choo-choo.”

Woof woof woof!!

Just like dogs.

The Gnolls got excited by Revan’s “choo-choo” and charged at him like mad.

Revan didn’t move from his spot.

Like a batter staring down an incoming ball, he calmly watched the Gnolls until they entered his swing range.

Smack!!

The moment the Gnolls stepped into range, he mercilessly swung his club.

Kaaang!

Kiiing!

Because his weapon was a club, the sounds resembled dogs being beaten during a summer dog culling.

Yet Revan felt no pity.

Lack of sympathy was something that naturally developed from playing Warlord for so long.

He didn’t hesitate to finish off the fallen Gnolls with more club swings.

[Low-rank Gnoll has been hunted.]

[Low-rank Gnoll has been hunted.]

[Low-rank Gnoll has been hunted.]

Gnolls that once were difficult to kill alone were now easily dispatched three at a time.

Perhaps that’s why an unintentional smile appeared on Revan’s lips.

“Item loot.”

[Gnoll’s Hide acquired.]

[Gnoll’s Broken Fang acquired.]

Revan brushed the blood off his club and collected the loot.

Delighted by this unexpected easy farming, he pushed forward like a runaway demolition vehicle.

---

[Gnoll Soldier hunted successfully.]

[Gnoll Soldier solo kill achieved.]

[Boss monster hunted without any damage taken.]

[Dungeon solo clear achieved.]

[Achievement unlocked: ‘Solo Gnoll Soldier Slayer’.]

[Achievement unlocked: ‘First Solo Clear’.]

[Experience gained.]

[Quest ‘Solo Dungeon Run’ completed.]

[Quest rewards granted.]

[Experience gained.]

[Level up.]

[Rubix’s Growth Cube acquired.]

[Rubix’s Skill Cube Fragments x3 acquired.]

[Empty Cube Frame acquired.]

Revan charged straight into the boss room like a demolition tank.

Up to that point, he hadn’t been hit even once.

He never expected not to take a single hit even from the boss monster, the Gnoll Soldier.

In fact, more than the number of hits—

‘Why is it so weak?’

The Gnoll Soldier was far weaker than expected.

So weak that just one Thunder Strike and one Smash had taken it down.

Revan stared at the lifeless body of the Gnoll Soldier, feeling a sense of emptiness.

“I really am strong…”

He knew he was strong, but not to this extent.

After admiring his own power for a moment, Revan collected the loot from the Gnoll Soldier.

[Gnoll Soldier’s Greaves acquired.]

[Gnoll Soldier’s Eye Patch acquired.]

And the loot wasn’t bad.

Revan invested the bonus stat points into Strength and checked the items’ options.

[‘Solo Gnoll Soldier Slayer’]

- Condition: Achieved by solo killing boss monster Gnoll Soldier.

- Option: +5 to highest current stat.

[‘First Solo Clear’]

- Condition: Achieved by clearing the dungeon alone.

- Option: +2 to highest current stat.

[Gnoll Soldier’s Greaves]

- Grade: Rare, Boss.

- Requirement: Strength 20 or higher.

- Durability: 70/70

- Options:

Physical Defense +20.

Strength +5.

[Gnoll Soldier’s Eye Patch]

- Grade: Rare, Boss.

- Requirement: None.

- Durability: 15/15

- Options:

Wearing this eye patch does not restrict vision.

‘Not bad.’

Revan earned two achievement titles for soloing the boss again.

He also acquired two loot items.

Honestly, the items’ options weren’t that impressive, but he decided to equip the greaves due to the Strength bonus.

‘And this eye patch...’

Revan looked at the black eye patch the Gnoll had worn.

It had a rare option allowing unrestricted vision despite being an eye patch.

Such an item was usually—

‘For looks.’

‘Look-doll’—items that exist solely for fashion.

Unlike old online games, Warlord had no separate skins or cash shop items.

But the aesthetic desires of players remained as strong as ever, so Warlord created purely fashion items like the Gnoll’s eye patch.

This one was among them.

‘I’ll sell it at the auction house later.’

Though Revan wasn’t much into looks.

Maybe when he had spare time, but for now, he needed to focus on growth rather than wasting resources on appearances.

Having gathered his items, Revan walked out through the exit leading outside the dungeon.

Paht!

Climbing the stairs connecting to the outside, bright light shone down on Revan.

Exiting Dog Hole, he thought,

‘I should move to a different hunting ground.’

To level up faster, he needed to find a hunting spot at least 20 levels higher.

With that in mind, he took the last step and stepped outside.

But outside Dog Hole, a man tried to get Revan’s attention.

“Finally, you’ve appeared.”

At the man’s words, Revan looked around, then pointed at himself and asked,

“Me?”

“Yes. You.”

“Who...?”

“My name’s Max. A promising mage studying in the 4th year of the Central Mage Academy’s high school division.”

“Promising? Usually, people don’t say that about themselves.”

“Shut up, War Mage! I challenge you to a duel!”

“A duel? Wait, no way...”

“Heh, so now you’re getting it.”

Only then did Revan realize what this unexpected duel challenge was about.

‘So this is what a ‘welcoming quest’ means.’

He hadn’t expected a mage visitor to actually come looking for him.

Revan could only slap his forehead in surprise.

Revan said,

“Being a War Mage sure isn’t boring. By the way, mages seem surprisingly loyal.”

“Loyal?”

“Aren’t you here to avenge the taxi driver?”

“Nonsense! I’m not here for revenge! I’m here to restore the honor of our Mage Tower, which you caused to fall!”

“Isn’t that revenge?”

“Shut up!”

Flare!

Max interrupted Revan and ignited flames all over his body.

Woah.

A fire-element mage this time.

Revan finally saw Max’s level displayed.

[Max / Lv. 35]

NPCs normally showed their name and affinity towards players.

But hostile or combat-engaged NPCs like Max displayed their level instead.

This was because combat-engaged NPCs were considered ‘enemies’ rather than helpers.

‘Level 35, huh...’

Revan mulled over Max’s level quietly.

He hadn’t fought many mage NPCs before, mostly just Hudson, so he didn’t know how powerful mage NPCs were by level.

That made things tricky.

The level itself wasn’t too threatening, but dueling a mage was intimidating because of their unique traits.

‘Tch, I have to fight because of the quest, but the duel conditions are standard. This is tricky.’

Max said,

“War Mage! If you value honor, accept my duel now! If not, I’ll just kill you!”

“You’re going to kill me anyway, so stop with the threats... Fine, but let’s move somewhere else. Too many eyes here.”

Because of the threat, Revan had no choice but to accept Max’s duel.

He suggested moving because fighting here would likely attract a crowd.

But Max was stubborn.

“Shut up! How dare a War Mage like you order me around!”

“No, it’s not an order... Hah, this is crazy.”

Stubborn Max.

In the end, Revan had no choice but to settle it right here.

He took out an animal mask and said seriously,

“Don’t regret this.”