CHAPTER 66 – DUNGEON OF PROBATION

Merc entered the Dungeon after gaining permission from the guard stationed outside.

She was relieved to see that nothing had changed on the first level since she had last been there. This signified that neither the Magic Beasts nor their strength had changed. The same could also be said for the traps1.

What is the Great Sage doing here if nothing has changed?

Merc kept searching, clueless of Astard’s purpose for being here.

The first floor of the Dungeon of Probation was rather large, and traversing from one end to the other while battling the Magic Beasts would take almost an hour. Because there were no obstructions and the floor was plain, one could see far away. However, Merc did not discover any signs of Astard on this floor when she looked about. Not only that, but there was no trace of any other humans being present.

I guess I’ll go down…

Merc hid her presence and made her way to the stairway in the center of the first floor without the Magic Beasts seeing her. She reached the second level after descending 40 to 50 steps2.

The second floor, like the first, was spacious and devoid of any obstacles. Unfortunately for Merc, it didn’t look like she’d be able to get by this time without fighting.

That was because three Magic Beasts were waiting for her at the bottom of the stairway.

All three were humanoid in appearance, with red skin and a horn protruding from their brows. The name given to these Magic Beasts was Gai.

When compared to humans, the Gai only reached the shoulder of a fully grown adult.

Their muscular arms and legs, on the other hand, indicated that they were fairly strong. They would be difficult to defeat if one was not well-trained. As a result, they were assigned the same Danger Ranking as a Dolm Gurin. A Green Grade.

This is annoying…

Merc had battled thousands of them in her previous life, and she now considered them to be nothing more than small fry.

But it was partly because of this that she became irritated, despite never having fought them in this life. Her blood was already beginning to boil with rage.

“Gyagyagya!”

“Gyogyo!”

Two of the Gai ran up the steps, unable to contain themselves any longer.

Merc, on the other hand, casually grabbed her wooden stick and thrust it into one of the Gai rushing at her from below.

“Gue!”

“Gaa!”

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The Gai was pushed back and started rolling down the steps, carrying its buddy with it as they plunged to the bottom. Both Gai were unable to get up due to the impact of falling from such a significant height and groveled on the floor.

There was one more Gai left.

“Guooo!”

“He doesn’t seem to be here as well… Guess I’ll have to go further down.”

“Gee?!”

Without even glancing at it, Merc swung her wooden stick at the last Gai who was charging at her3. She confirmed that Astard was not present after searching around the area, just as she had suspected. Merc made her way to the third floor stairway after dealing with all of the Gai who had discovered her.

Before reaching the stairway, she managed to incapacitate a total of ten Gai. The reason she didn’t kill them was because the Dungeon of Probation always had a set amount of Magic Beasts.

This meant that if a Magic Beast died, a new one would spawn soon after. As a result, wounding them to the point of death was more efficient.

The Gai’s wounds would naturally heal, but it would take some time before they were able to fight again. According to Merc’s recollections, it took longer for a Gai’s wounds to heal than it did for a new one to spawn.

In other words, if she injured them to the point of death rather than killing them, she would have to fight less4.

That’s why she didn’t murder them and instead chose to injure them. Nonetheless, such a feat was extremely difficult to do. Taking her wooden stick with her was an excellent decision.

“It’s just Gai here, as usual…”

Merc murmured as she reached the third floor and looked about, realizing that another group of Gai was waiting for her. The Dungeon of Probation was famous for only having Gai appear in it.

Gai had several archetypes. The Cha Gai, which belonged to the Blue Grade, and the Ruzo Gai (Large Gai), which belonged to the Red Grade, were the two types of Gai. It remained unclear what caused the emergence of these diverse archetypes. Regardless, the original Gai was the only archetype that appeared in the Dungeon of Probation.

Which is why this place was ideal for folks who had become used to fighting Blue Grade Magic Beasts or were still hesitant to take on tougher Magic Beasts.

Merc had also visited here countless times to learn how to fight and to grasp new tactics. She used this place to hone her skills and abilities, and developed into an adventurer who depended exclusively on her swords owing to her complete lack of talent for magic.

She had, of course, struggled with the Gai in the beginning, which she could now easily defeat, and she had also had to flee for her life on several occasions. When she reflected on her experiences, it was difficult for her to believe that she eventually became praised as the Sword Saint.

If the past me saw me now, what would he think of me?

Merc muttered to herself before busting out laughing. However, she quickly stopped her pleasant daydreaming. Merc moved on to the next floor after taking care of all of the Gai on the third floor.

Only half an hour had elapsed up to this point. This was, of course, the best time any new adventurer could aim for. Rather, it was perhaps one of the best times even those who had repeatedly challenged the Dungeon of Probation alone could aspire for.

I’m a bit shameless for calling myself a new adventurer aren’t I…

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As she proceeded to the fifth level’s stairway, Merc smirked at herself. It was then that she detected a presence on both sides of the stairway’s entrance.

This presence… It can’t be!

Merc couldn’t believe that such a presence was inside the Dungeon of Probation, which was slandered as a place for rookies5.

The Mana and pressure she sensed from this presence were far greater than those she would experience from ordinary Magic Beasts. They were even greater than those of the Yellow Grade Guran which she had just fought recently.

As she moved towards the stairway, Merc carefully concealed her presence. The fourth floor, however, was identical to the first owing to the construction of the Dungeon of Probation. Nothing was in the way of her vision of the wide flat floor.

Nothing could keep the two beasts from becoming aware of Merc’s presence.

The two Magic Beasts at either side of the stairway resembled a Gai. They were, however, twice as tall as Merc and unlike any of the Gai that Merc had encountered on the previous floors.

Robinxen: It must be like that nostalgia feeling of going back to a game and remembering the route through a level as you go. Robinxen: I’d be dead… Robinxen: Wait she’s still using the stick? Robinxen: I forgive the stick usage. Robinxen: The bosses got power ups?

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