Completion Reward

"So, the protagonist's luck has always been pretty good!"

Shawn slowly backed away, soon slipping around a corner and hiding.

The light in the mine was poor, and kobolds had bad eyesight. The Shaman Witch Doctor wouldn't spot him.

The aged Kobold Shaman Witch Doctor shuffled into the mine, taking a long time to get there. He came within two meters of Shawn.

Hearing the faint footsteps, Shawn bent over, crouched low, dug his feet into the ground, gripped his dagger with both hands, and suddenly sprang into action.

"Shhk!"

The dagger plunged straight into the Kobold Shaman Witch Doctor's throat, killing him in one blow.

The aged Shaman Witch Doctor's cloudy eyes widened in disbelief.

He was old, with only a few years left—perhaps he'd soon be meeting the God of Kobolds—but that didn't mean he wanted to die right then. After a lifetime of struggle, he had finally become someone important. He still wanted to enjoy the feeling of being above everyone else, and the graceful bodies of female kobolds.

But none of that would ever happen.

All his dreams had gone up in smoke.

The old Shaman Witch Doctor lowered his hand. His staff struck the ground with a dull thud, but no one paid it any mind. With the last of his strength, he closed his eyes.

At least he wouldn't die with them open.

So even if you were a legendary mage, you could still be killed with one strike by some no-name rogue.

A fallen tiger was bullied by dogs; a distracted Shaman was worth less than a chicken!

Shawn had struck so quickly that the Kobold Shaman Witch Doctor hadn't even managed to cry out before dying. The two burly kobolds were still brawling over the roasted meat, completely unaware of what had happened.

Shawn let out a sigh of relief.

Mages had low health and poor defenses. Even a legendary mage could be assassinated by an ordinary rogue. He felt the thrill of "taking the enemy general's head amid ten thousand troops," even though this had been a one-on-one fight. But that thrill vanished the next moment.

The point of fighting was to get loot. Shawn needed to check what he'd won. Without a reward, the battle would have been far less worthwhile.

He casually picked up the staff in the Shaman Witch Doctor's hand, and a hint of delight appeared on his face.

"Kobold Shaman Wizard Staff, white quality, common equipment, spell power +1."

The description was simple, and the stats weren't impressive, but it was a staff, after all.

As Blizzard's favorite child, the mage was a prestigious profession in Azeroth. Every mage, even a mere apprentice, was admired and sought after. Becoming a mage was almost everyone's dream. And as an essential piece of equipment for mages, staffs were naturally valuable.

According to some "well-informed" drifter at Saldean Farm, he'd once befriended a mage apprentice and had the good fortune to become his follower. The apprentice had told him that even the most ordinary staff cost at least ten gold coins.

And they were hard to find at any price.

Ten gold coins would be enough to keep Shawn fed for a year.

Although this was a Shaman Witch Doctor's staff, a mage could use it too.

With his eyes gleaming, Shawn looked at the robe on the Kobold Shaman Witch Doctor and reached out with grabby hands.

"Just as I thought!"

Delight appeared on Shawn's face again.

Then he set about stripping off the robe.

"Dalaran Apprentice Robe, white quality, common equipment. Armor +1, magic resistance +1, spell power +1."

Shawn's mouth formed an O, and he furrowed his brow slightly.

He wondered how he'd managed a move with a difficulty rating of at least 4.0.

"Dalaran?"

Dalaran was a powerful magical kingdom, home to more mages than anywhere else in Azeroth. Once one of the seven great human kingdoms, Dalaran's influence was unrivaled. Even Stormwind City and Lordaeron couldn't outshine it.

The fact that a Dalaran apprentice robe had appeared here meant that a Dalaran mage apprentice had probably died in this place.

The question was, where exactly was he?

Dalaran had been founded at least 2,700 years ago. So where on the timeline was the point he'd been transported to?

The Portal of Time and Space could only stay open for one hour. Most of that time had already passed, and Shawn didn't want to risk challenging the two burly kobolds, so he chose to use the Town Portal Scroll and return to the Dungeon Spawn Point.

The Portal of Time and Space connected two points in time and space, requiring two coordinates: one for time, and one for location.

Both time and space had a certain margin of error. The margin for time was one hour, while the margin for space was the small area around the spawn point.

He could only leave the dungeon if he returned to the spawn point within one hour.

If he missed the time or the location, Shawn would be stranded in this timeline.

Time travel required caution. Danger lurked everywhere!

Although he hadn't gathered ten points' worth of supplies on this trip, he had obtained a staff and a robe. It had been a bountiful haul.

Shawn put the loot into the Spatial Pouch and chose to leave.

At the very moment Shawn departed, far away on the continent of Kalimdor, a huge Bronze Dragon opened its eyes in the mysterious Caverns of Time.

The Timeless One, Nozdormu, the Bronze Dragon Aspect.

One of the leaders of the five Dragon Aspects, and the most mysterious of the Bronze Dragon Aspects.

Time and space flowed through the meridians of his house-sized dragon eyes. Nozdormu's gaze crossed the barriers between eras, following the traces left by the time traveler to track Shawn.

He stared into the chaotic vortex of time, his wise gaze sweeping across countless parallel realities.

Even the slightest disturbance in the timeline could lead to unforeseen consequences.

One day, he would find that detestable time traveler!

After a dizzying spin, Shawn opened his eyes. His own room greeted him.

Shawn immediately looked at the cup of hot water on the table. Steam rose from it. He touched it with his hand; it was scalding hot.

"Did I return at the exact moment I entered the Portal of Time and Space? Did it lock onto the time I went in? That's great news."

In other words, from the outside, every trip Shawn made through the Portal of Time and Space took only an instant. That meant no one would notice anything unusual.

Shawn smiled, then realized there was another surprise.

The six-slot Spatial Pouch was still there, and so was the loot he'd put inside. In other words, the Spatial Pouch wasn't restricted by time or by the dungeon. It could exist anywhere!

Shawn had gotten a spatial item for free. This was wonderful news!

Then Shawn checked the staff and robe in his hands again. Their stats were unchanged from when he'd been in the dungeon, and both items worked just fine.

"Ding!"

Suddenly, another message entered Shawn's mind.

"Congratulations, Commander! You have successfully killed the Kobold Shaman Witch Doctor and cleared [Kobold Den]. Overall rating: C. Claim your completion reward?"