Dark: Fearless Pioneer (Dark LitRPG book 1)

by Arthur Stone

  Once he was a hundred yards further, he noticed an angular mystery looming in the dark. Clutching his battle ax, he directed his light at it—just an abandoned mining cart. Some of its boards had been knocked out, but it was half filled with rocks that he immediately identified as copper ore.

  There were at least one hundred and fifty pieces inside. A very good find.

  He thought about dragging it outside right away, but there was no sense hurrying.

  A hundred paces more, he encountered an intersection of two tunnels. The cart tracks continued running off to the right, without a turn or an intersection. Meaning that these particular tunnels had not been excavated by the miners for transportation purposes. They had possibly been mining ore in this very spot.

  He set down the lamp on a convenient rock ledge.

  Turning to the left, and taking a few steps, he drew his pickax and slammed it into the wall. A small rock fell off, and he picked it up. No ore. Trash. Perhaps the miners had only been searching here, not mining some discovered vein. He would need to keep looking until he found some promising information panel or system message. Then, he would roll up his sleeves and get to work, and hopefully Luck would smile on him eventually. If nothing was found, he would discard all of the work in that area and move to another.

  What sort of information was he looking for? The forum didn’t say precisely, but it was clear that players whose Perception was close to the level of the resource being mined had no trouble finding it. He just needed to look around for anything that stood out. The colorful streaks of some vein, places where they intersected or grew larger, and strange-looking fractures in the rock.

  Dark had seen four such places in the lamp-lit areas already. It wasn’t apparent which was the most promising, so he squinted at the nearest one.

  You have discovered a low-level ore source. +1 Perception progress point.

  He thanked the message for appearing. Finding ore sources, as it turned out, gave Perception progress points. That wasn’t his easiest skill to level up, so he was glad at the realization.

  Now he could get his hands dirty.

  One hit, two, three... it took seventeen hits total. His pick ax knocked free an unusually large rock.

  A new message accompanied it.

  Mined 1 Copper Ore. This is a widespread, low-level resource. Location sensation level: 50%. Personal sensation level: 100%. +8 progress points received.

  Progress points distributed.

  +2 Hammers progress points.

  +1 Athletics progress point.

  +5 Ore Master progress points.

  Congratulations! You have mined your first mineral resource! You receive a bonus +1 to any skill. Keep working hard and you’ll be rewarded.

  Only one thing in the message surprised Dark: the sensation levels. If he remembered his dialog with Kim correctly, this 50% was the highest possible number for a location and was rarely found in X. He could turn it into a special resort where customers could come and experience the maximum allowable levels of pleasure.

  Clients of ordinary races. As an Ethrian, he lived by different rules.

  Nothing else was a surprise. He moved from one site to the next, bringing his lamp along. Quickly he tapped each of the ore features he saw. His bag was rapidly filling up with loot, and his craft skills were growing—a little was even overflowing into his base skills. After allowing for time spent transporting the materials, a couple of days would likely be enough not only to restore his supply of raw materials but even double the original amount. The rocks that fell usually did not fall alone. Two or three would fall out at once. Once, there were even four in a single go.

  Fully immersed in his calculations, he noticed the threat embarrassingly late. His leg flared up in pain and a warning message was displayed.

  Mine Rat deals you 11 damage.

  He yelped and whirled. It looked like his old friend was back. The only other such rat he had seen was on his first day in the area. Its eyes sparkled madly, and it went in for another bite. But Dark was naked and barefoot back then in the tower—now the tables had turned. His level was higher now, and he had more experience, plus an entirely different set of equipment.

  Activating Onslaught of Light at maximum strength on the rat, he swung with his pickax.

  You deal 56 damage to Mine Rat.

  The rodent had no chance with that big of a level difference. That was even without Onslaught of Light, which shone with the purity of unadulterated light as it drained dozens of hit points from the rodent.

  Rolling onto its back, the beast spread its paws wide. Victory.

  Dark crouched over the vanquished enemy and examined its paws. They matched the prints he had seen between the cart track rails. So rats inhabited the mine. Not that he should be surprised. They were called “Mine Rats” after all.

  That added an element of risk to collecting ore. I’ll keep more of an eye out from now on. After all, this location had maximum sensation. A rat bite hurt like hell.

  But depending on his luck and the nature of the fights, he could get rat hides of varying conditions from them. One hide wasn’t worth anything, but if he got enough of them, he could process them into various kinds of items and improve his Leatherworking.

  * * *

  The final hit crunched into the rock, and another message of riches appeared.

  Too many riches, in fact.

  3 pieces of copper ore mined. This is a widespread, low-level resource. +1 low quality crystal obtained. Location sensation level: 50%. Personal sensation level: 100%. +39 progress points received.

  Progress points distributed.

  +11 Hammers progress points.

  +2 Athletics progress points.

  +14 Ore Master progress points.

  +9 Knowledge of Stones and Gems progress points.

  Congratulations! You have mined your first gem! You receive a bonus +1 to any skill. Keep working hard and you’ll be rewarded.

  Dark did not bend down to pick up the loot. He just raised his palm to the place where he had moments ago been pounding with his pickax. The standard loot window popped up, and he dragged everything it displayed into his bag.

  The crystal that dropped was the first object of his study. It was low in quality, yes, but its description still pointed out it was suitable for applications like jewelry. So, it would help him grind another craft skill that he had been unable to naturally work on thus far.

  This mine held not just copper but also gems, albeit gems with low value. And in small quantities.

  Daylight did not penetrate far into the mine, and at this point, he could not see it at all. Thankfully, the settings screen always displayed the current time in game, so he knew the sun would set in a couple of hours.

  He had no more space for ore, so he had planned to carry what he had to the exit immediately, but plans change.

  Now, Dark wanted a few more gems. Perhaps then he’d not only boost his Jewelry skill but also get something useful from the work.

  Every single point and bonus was worth its weight in sweat.

  Chapter 34

  Unfound Treasures

  Total stat levels: 33.

  Character level: 5

  Mastery level: 0.

  By the time Dark emerged, the twilight was thick. He tensed at a mysterious flood of sound, then relaxed as he saw the outside. The game had apparently decided to punish him for his excessive work ethic. Getting three crystals had cost him much more time than he had planned, and during his time in the mine, the weather had worsened. Yes, the sky had grown clouded and sent a few showers before, but this time, it was pouring madly, with violent gusts of wind and brilliant sparks of lightning. They gave enough visibility to see that the ground was covered in rushing water. All flowing towards the waterwheel river.

  Dark declined to go out. If he fell in the water, it might take him all the way down the hill. At that altitude, it was likely that everything was flooded.

  Suddenly his leg flared up in pain
.

  It was a familiar feeling.

  Kicking away the rat which had crept up behind him without a sound, he grabbed his pickax and slammed it into the rodent’s head a couple of times. Then he came to his senses and rolled, to position himself behind it. From that angle, he’d be likely to score a critical hit. Plus, he’d get some experience to Acrobatics. He could use better Acrobatics, it was still pretty low.

  The move was a success, but the subsequent attacks were not. He missed as the rat scurried to turn. A blow on the creature’s head stunned it for a couple of seconds. Dark hit again, this time scoring a critical.

  Yet as soon as the victory message appeared, another tailed beast emerged from the darkness. He scared it back with a pickax swing just in front of its nose and then hit it with Onslaught of Light. Level 5 was his as of today, and his skill had reached his character level already. It now dealt 3 damage for each 1 Mana. Dark had set the default damage speed to 6 per second. He could focus on dodging and the Mine Rat would die in thirty seconds or so, or at least be so close to death that one successful pickax swing would finish it off.

  His Intellect of 3, plus the bonus +1 granted by the ring from the tower chest, gave him a total of 150 maximum Mana. That meant 450 hit points of damage.

  Simple math.

  But his cast was interrupted by another rat jumping out of the darkness before the second rat had died. Dark had to fight them both off as he used the rest of his Mana for healing.

  Once one was dealt with, he relaxed, as the other would be easy. Until two more appeared from the depths of the mine, and behind them a third.

  By this point, Dark’s Health was at three-quarters, and his Mana was at 0. Simple math again: There was no chance he could defeat four of them.

  Plus, more might arrive any moment.

  I’m in trouble. Dark rushed for the exit, but then paused.

  Why run away? He would be knee-deep in the cold water, fighting back the rats as he went, hoping to reach the tower and lock the door in time.

  That was not a very tempting option. Instead, he would probably fall halfway, screaming underwater and drowning as the rats set upon his flailing, freezing flesh.

  Turning and raising his pickax with a fierce yell, he rushed at the half-dead rat.

  He had to take at least one of them with him in time.

  Whispering his gratitude that he had bound his respawn point to the tower, he swung.

  * * *

  After his resurrection, his vision returned to normal quickly, but still he could see nothing. A flash of lightning revealed the room, then vanished, making visibility even worse with its reminiscences in his retinas. He felt around and located the nearby candles.

  The lightning came again, and Dark let his eyes adjust.

  Once the thunder had died down, he heard a familiar sound. Someone knocking at the door.

  Halfway down the stairs, Dark called out: “Is that you, Evil?”

  “Foolish mortal! Who else visits you at night?”

  “I thought the weather was rather opposed to conversation today.”

  “I’m inclined to agree. If I suddenly fall silent, you’ll know that I’ve been washed away by a flood of filthy fluid. There are storms that are stronger than even the Ancient Evil, and this may be one.”

  After a moment’s hesitation, Dark open the door, backed away from the spray that immediately attacked his face, and invited the phantom in with a cordial gesture. “Come on in, before I change my mind.”

  “You’re inviting me in? Finally?” The being sounded overjoyed.

  “I’m about to change my mind with that spray. Come on!”

  “My dream has come true!” The cloud of darkness rushed in.

  Dark grunted as he closed the door. “How? It seems like you no longer dream of executing me.”

  “You’re right. I now have a deep interest in your survival. But my old relationship with you still survives, in faint echoes. My dream to see how you have settled in remains. By the way, I didn’t notice you come back. It was a surprise to see the light come on in your window! How could I have missed it?”

  “I didn’t come back on foot. Since I didn’t want to get my feet wet, I got myself killed by a pack of rats instead.”

  “Lazy!”

  “It was the best way out, believe me.”

  Dark sat on an oversized stool, pulled a plate of baked fish towards himself, and began enjoying a late dinner. Ancient Evil circled the first floor, rose to the second floor, and returned a minute later. “There’s a chest up there. Have you looked inside it?”

  “What do you think? Of course I have. I’m not as stupid as you think.”

  “Debatable. I would say something worse, but I’d rather not offend the owner of the house, or he might get upset and expel the Ancient Evil out into the rain.”

  “What’s wrong? Is there a false bottom in the chest I didn’t notice?”

  “No false bottom,” Ancient Evil answered as he once again floated in a circle around the perimeter of the floor. “Though I will not exclude the possibility of secret compartments.”

  “You saw a secret cache?” Dark put his fish down, excited by the promise of a prize.

  “If I did, I wouldn’t tell you,” Evil said with an ambiguous calming gesture of his vapors. “My objectives do not include looking for caches for losers. If you need loot, search for it yourself.”

  “But you’re interested in helping me.”

  “I’m interested in you gaining experience. That will help you grow, and the faster you grow, the sooner you will fulfill your dubious promise.”

  Dark wouldn’t give up. “With good items, I can grow faster.”

  “I don’t have indirect benefits included in my calculations. Our cooperation is only of a direct nature. And it is more than someone as gullible as you deserves.”

  “Gullible?”

  Evil sighed. “Ridiculous mortal. So you broke into a tower, slaughtered a rat, found a chest, and thought that was it? Did you check for anything more?”

  “Yes, I looked at everything. There wasn’t anything special about it.”

  “I see you have found a use for the dishes. In fact, you wolf that fish down so ravenously, I wonder if you’ve ever eaten before. There is some parchment on the shelf over there. Have you found a use for it?”

  “No. I need parchment to create recipes. But so far, I only have one reasonable way to do that, and I’ll need items that are Improved or better. I haven’t found those items yet, nor have I been able to make them. At Mastery Level 0, my chances are, frankly, miserable. And as soon as I get an item, I break it down into materials immediately, unless its level is higher. Three sheets of parchment and one writing set give me one attempt, or so I read on the forum. Some of the sheets here have writing on them. I don’t know if those will count.”

  “Did you try reading the writing?” Ancient Evil inquired.

  “How? I don’t understand the runes or whatever are on them.”

  “You mortals and your intellectual limitations! Go read the parchments.”

  “I don’t know the language!”

  “None of you know it, and yet you can read it all the same. Come on. Stop annoying the Ancient Evil with your stubbornness.”

  Dark stepped over and pulled out a scroll, unrolled it, and stared at it nonchalantly. He yawned.

  “Like I said, I don’t understand any of it.”

  “Read it, you worthless sack of warm blood. From the beginning to the end. Do not hurry. Look at each and every line and word. I know how stupid beings like you enjoy hurrying.”

  “What’s the point?”

  “Just do it. You’ll understand once you’re done.”

  Dark was starting to wonder what the Ancient Evil was getting at. He would suspect this was a lousy prank, but nothing about this being said “jokester.” More than likely he would indeed get some benefit from “reading” the ancient parchment.

  Once he reached the last character, Dark o
pened his mouth to complain again about the incomprehensibility of it all, but bit his tongue when a system message appeared.

  You have learned the recipe for Medium Elixir of Mana. Required equipment: Alchemical Table, with a stove, burner, or other source of open flame. Materials: Corked Flask. Ingredients: Clean Water, Indigo Wheat Leaf, Meadow Pueris Root, Hesh’Ell Wing.

  Note: You have learned your first alchemical recipe! Bonus +1 to any craft skill. Work on your alchemy! Elixirs are valuable for warriors, mages, and peaceful craftsmen alike.

  Note: You have discovered a long forgotten recipe for a magic potion. Bonus +1000 Knowledge progress points. You receive 250 distributable craft skill progress points.

  Note: You have discovered several properties of the plants Indigo Wheat and Meadow Pueris. Properties discovered: Elemental Magic Resist (Indigo Wheat), Mana Regeneration (Indigo Wheat), Stamina Regeneration (Indigo Wheat), Mana Regeneration (Meadow Pueris), Accuracy Buff (Meadow Pueris).

  Discovered 5 alchemical properties of low-level ingredients. Location sensation level: 40%. Personal sensation level: 90%. +5 progress points received.

  Progress points distributed.

  +5 Knowledge progress points.

  Note: You have discovered several properties of Hesh’ell Wing: Mana Regeneration and Speed Buff.

  Discovered 2 alchemical properties of 1 low-level ingredient. Location sensation level: 40%. Personal sensation level: 90%. +2 progress points received.

  Progress points distributed.

  +2 Knowledge progress points.

  Note: You have discovered two formerly unknown plants! No player in the history of the world of X has ever encountered Indigo Wheat or Meadow Pueris! You receive +500 Knowledge progress points. Bonus +2 levels to any skill. Congratulations! Keep discovering new things to unlock more generous rewards!