NOVEL NEXT B2 – Lesson 46: “Everyone Loves Small Chests.”
Alpha’s first ‘dungeon’ was called simply the ‘Boot Camp.’
What it had to do with either, the goblin hunters didn’t know. Yet the name was whispered with both reverence and fear in the shadows of the hunter’s lodge. It was a place of power and a place of nightmares.
It was where they had gained the tools and training they needed to save their homes and family.
But it was also a place of perpetual torture and horrors beyond anything they had ever experienced before. A place that didn’t even have the decency to let them die.
In that place, completing missions would award them merits, which the hunters could use to purchase various equipment and tools. This equipment could then be used to complete even harder missions, and so on.
If you completed your training, you could even take this equipment out of the dungeon.
The hunter’s armor was a prime example of this, and it was one of the first pieces of equipment the goblins learned to buy. Otherwise, death in even the simplest mission came swiftly and suddenly.
The Dragon’s Garden, however, operated on an entirely different principle than the Boot Camp.
Instead of a loop formed from completing missions, earning merits, buying equipment, and completing more missions, the Dragon’s Garden was built around one thing.
Loot.
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Robert approached the circular stone platform, stopping just at the edge. This was already the third such platform they had encountered since beginning the dungeon, and the process was becoming familiar. Once the rest of his team had arrived next to him, Robert held out his arm with the metal bangle. As he did, the bangle transformed into a living dragon, released its tail, and stood, staring at the platform.
Its eyes flashed a blood-red color, and a strange twisting formation — like interlocking gears moving around a center point — appeared on the stone platform, glowing the same dark red. The small dragon then slithered up Robert’s arm and once more became nothing more than an inanimate bangle. He lowered his arm and turned his attention back to the platform.
The lights flashed brightly, then vanished. A feminine voice spoke from the platform.
//No enemies detected. Wave Cleared//
//Calculating…//
//Clear Time - 15:23 [NEW RECORD!]
Wave Rank - C
Wave Size - C
Final Evaluation - B+ //
The group cheered, and Robert grinned.
They still weren’t clear on what the evaluations meant overall. Not even Antchaser’s people had figured it out, according to the goblin, but it was obvious that a higher score would only result in better rewards. The exact meaning and methods for obtaining the best rewards would come with time as more adventurers delved into the dungeon and learned its secrets. For now, they were the scouts, here to do a job. The rewards were just the cream on the cake.
The next moment, the middle of the stone platform slid away, and a pedestal rose. On the pedestal sat a small wooden chest.
“Awww, it’s smaller than the last one…” Maggy complained.
“Just because it’s smaller doesn’t mean it’s any worse. We did get a better evaluation this time, after all,” Robert responded with a chuckle, walking forward. The last challenge they’d cleared had rewarded a large kite shield of unknown make. At first glance, it had appeared rather bland for a dungeon reward.
But closer inspection had shown the shield anything but. Not only was it crafted from Deep — if mundane — materials, the quality of its craftsmanship was astounding. It might not have been very useful to them as it was, but if they could get it to an Array Master or Enchanter back in Halirosa, it could be turned into something even the more powerful sects and clans would bid tooth and nail for.
That had spurred the expedition leaders on further. What other secrets did it hold if the dungeon offered that kind of reward so early on?
Robert stopped in front of the chest and grinned, then slowly lifted the lid.
A golden light spilled out as he did, and a chiming, rising music played with no discernible source. No one knew what the purpose of either was, but it gave the event an air of excitement.
When the chest lid was finally open, the light pouring out flashed once, then vanished while the music stopped.
The team’s excitement slowly dwindled as Robert stood there for a moment, frowning down into the chest.
“Is… is it bad?” Maggy asked, not quite able to hide the slight shake in her voice.
“I’m… not sure…” came Robert’s response. He reached into the chest and pulled out half a dozen small clay… coins?
Maggy and Garrelt frowned, though Antchaser’s eyes widened in surprise.
“Sir!” he whispered into his comms, “Are you sure it’s a good idea to show the Adventurers that?!”
“It’ll be fine. I know what I’m doing, don’t worry. We need something big to keep their attention. Besides, they still need testing.”
Antchaser sighed.
“Oh? Do you perchance know what these are?” Robert asked, noticing the goblin’s reaction.
Antchaser flinched but put on his best smile.
“Yes, sir. I just wasn’t expecting to see them this early. The dungeon must really be… spoiling us.”
That got Robert’s attention, and the man flashed a bright smile. “Well, don’t keep us in suspense, lad. What are they?” he asked.
Antchaser didn’t answer immediately, instead reaching into his pouch as he walked closer. From his pouch he withdrew a few clay coins identical to the ones in Robert’s hand.
He held one up so that the other three could see it.
“The dungeon called them ‘MUD’ and as for what they are? Well, to put it simply, they’re a type of spiritual tablet,” Antchaser said as he twirled the MUD through his fingers so that they could see the partial array.
“Ridiculous,” Maggy said, scoffing and folding her arms. “I know tablets, and those aren’t tablets. Hell, the arrays on them don’t even look complete. What are you supposed to do? Piece them together like a child’s puzzle?” She chuckled to herself and shook her head.
Antchaser smirked in response. “That’s exactly what you do,” he said.
“Wh-what?!” Maggy sputtered.
“If I may?” Antchaser asked, holding his hand out to Robert.
“Interesting… go on,” Robert responded, handing him the coins from the chest.
Antchaser looked through them, then selected one before passing the rest back to Robert.
The goblin then knelt on the ground and arranged the MUD into a circle using four of his own, along with the one he took from Robert. The coins shook slightly, then suddenly snapped together, forming a ring. Antchaser then placed a small, lesser spirit stone from his pouch at the center.
The array lines carved into the MUD flashed to life as the array activated. Like air being pushed into a bubble, a translucent barrier formed in the center of the ring and rapidly expanded outward until it covered an area roughly five meters in diameter.
From the other side of the barrier, Maggy and Garrelt gawked.
Robert rubbed his chin and approached the barrier. Garrelt said something, though no sound made it past the barrier.
“An Isolation Barrier. Fascinating. And so quickly, too.” Robert said to himself. He then flashed several hand signs, and Garrelt nodded.
The scout leader withdrew his shortsword and struck the barrier. The blade bounced. Robert grinned, and Garrelt touched his blade, muttering an incantation. The edge of the shortsword lit up in a bright orange glow, and again, Garrelt struck out. This time, the barrier wobbled, sending out ripples across its surface. Even so, it held firm. Robert’s grin widened further.
“Good. Good! I doubt such a thing could withstand many such blows, but blocking even a single attack often means the difference between victory and defeat.” He then turned to Antchaser, “Surely that isn’t all they can do, however?”
“Of course not,” the goblin responded. Antchaser plucked up the spirit stone, and the barrier popped. He then quickly replaced two of the MUD with two new ones from his pouch and placed a fresh spirit stone in the center.
Again, the array flashed to life, but instead of a barrier, a ring of golden light expanded outward. As the golden light washed over them. Instantly, the minor injuries they had accumulated during the delve began to heal rapidly.
“A [Sunlit Ritual] recovery array, astounding,” Robert said in awe.
“HOOOOOOOOOW?!” Maggy rushed Antchaser and grabbed him by the shoulders before he could react.
“Tell me how you did it?!” she yelled as she shook Antchaser. The fervor in her eyes looked oddly familiar to him…
Garrelt, on the other hand, only laughed as he pulled the young woman away. “Calm down, girl. Let the man speak. We’re not gonna learn anything if you rattle his brain like that.”
Maggy whirled on him. “You don’t understand!” she said. “Never mind he built an isolation barrier in just a few moments. But even the most basic barrier is totally different than a recovery array! I could understand if it was two different tablets, but all he did was switch out a few coins! DO YOU HAVE ANY IDEA HOW INSANE THAT IS?!”
Garrelt sighed and patted Maggy’s shoulders. “Settle down. Yes, I know.”
“As do I,” Robert said, turning to Antchaser. “Care to explain, Mr. Antchaser?” he asked.
The goblin nodded. “As I was saying, Ms. Greenwood guessed it from the start. The MUD are what the dungeon calls ‘modular arrays.’ They’re designed to interlink in a way that any array can be quickly assembled in a short time-frame, as long as you have the appropriate MUD coins,” he said, gesturing to MUD. Robert noted how each held one or more seals — the arcane symbols that made up the language of arrays — with various connecting channels on each.
Robert palmed one of his free coins and stared at it. “And these can be reused?” he asked.
Antchaser nodded hesitantly. “To a limited degree. They’re no Jade Tablets, but they’re far more durable than your typical spiritual tablet. Through testing, we’ve estimated they can handle roughly three major arrays or ten minor arrays before they crumble.”
Robert raised a brow and stared at the clay coin more intently than before.
One reason people were willing to spend such an exorbitant price for spiritual tablets, despite being one-use items, was their speed and versatility. One didn’t need to be an array master, or even understand much about arrays in general, to activate a tablet. All you had to do was power the tablet, and it would do all the work for you.
But their price also made them emergency items.
These… MUD however…
The more he stared at the coin, the wider Robert’s grin became.