Yes, when playing the original game, most players devoted their attention to school life with the heroines and winning their hearts. Few were willing to abandon those pleasant days and spend every waking hour grinding in the dark, dangerous Dungeon.
But as the story progressed, whether to obtain crucial materials, complete specific quests, or simply tackle harder challenges, most players would eventually clear at least the first few floors of the Dungeon.
That was why Greg knew everything about the three Monsters before him: their attack patterns, skill windups, behavior, and even their less obvious weaknesses.
The foreknowledge he had gained through playing the game gave him an advantage no local adventurer could easily match.
The only problem was that he had very few attacks he could openly use right now-just the most basic water magic, Water Gun, and fire magic, Fireball Spell.
Their power was limited, and their range was short.
But he was not without hope.
He had Sylvia's light-element enhancement buff, along with his own talent, which was practically god-tier under the right circumstances:
[Dungeon Explorer: While inside the Dungeon, damage dealt to any being increases by twenty percent.]
That allowed even his basic spells to inflict considerable damage.
It would simply... take a little more time and effort, turning this into a battle of attrition that demanded greater skill and patience.
"Gah!"
The Spineback Lizard was the most frenzied of the freed Monsters. It kicked off with its hind legs and lunged again, a sickly green venomous gleam flashing on its foreclaws.
Greg neither dodged nor retreated until its claws were almost upon him. Only then did he shift his footing and turn his body the slightest fraction, narrowly avoiding the swipe. At the same time, the Water Gun already gathered in his left hand shot straight at a gap between slightly paler scales beneath its neck-a spot inevitably exposed during its lunge.
That was its relatively soft throat.
"Splat!"
The Water Gun struck. Though it failed to pierce the thick hide, the force of the water and the magic within it still made the Spineback Lizard hiss in pain and falter.
Almost as soon as he released the Water Gun, Greg swept his right hand back, sending a searing Fireball Spell roaring forth.
It did not target the nearby Spineback Lizard. Instead, it traced an arc toward the Mossrock Golem, which was charging in from the side with heavy steps and swinging stone fists.
The fireball struck squarely against a noticeably darker protrusion on the golem's chest, where a moss-covered core seemed to be embedded.
That was the central node through which it absorbed energy from the earth to sustain its movements-and one of its weaknesses.
"Boom!"
The fireball exploded. Scorching flames and the force of the blast abruptly checked the Mossrock Golem's charge. A patch of moss around its chest core burned black, giving off an acrid smell, and it let out a muffled roar of pain and rage.
Meanwhile, the most dangerous of them, the Shadow Devourer, had quietly slipped into the shadows behind Greg and to one side. Its form twisted and blurred as it prepared to launch an unseen ambush from the darkness.
But Greg seemed to have eyes in the back of his head. The instant he released the fireball, he spun sharply in the opposite direction and delivered a turning kick-not at the Shadow Devourer itself, but at a sharp stone beside his foot.
The stone whistled through the path where the Shadow Devourer was about to materialize. Though it dealt no real damage, it precisely interrupted the windup of its [Shadow Strike], forcing it to let out an angry screech and reform its body.
That fluid sequence of dodges, predictions, precise strikes, and interruptions not only stalled all three Monsters' attacks but also left the three onlookers and Sylvia staring in disbelief.
How... how did he seem to know so much about these Monsters?!
The doubts in Evan's and Leonard's minds began to waver, replaced by profound shock.
His almost prophetic anticipation of the Monsters' attack patterns and his precise strikes at their vital points could not possibly be explained by luck.
Sylvia's pink eyes shone even brighter as she watched, her admiration for Greg nearly overflowing.
Greg... he's incredible!
He's only using the most basic magic, yet he's fighting so beautifully!
He must have trained and observed things in the Dungeon so diligently to know these Monsters this well!
Just as I thought, he's been working hard all along without saying a word...
The battle that followed became a showcase of Greg's individual skill.
As though dancing on a knife's edge, he always used the smallest possible movements at the most perilous moments to evade the Monsters' lunging bites, claw strikes, venom sprays, and rending shadows.
Every counterattack, whether a Water Gun or a Fireball Spell, targeted a Monster's weakness or an opening in its skill activation with precision. Though each hit dealt little damage, their cumulative effect was considerable.
The three Monsters accumulated more and more wounds, and their injuries and the lingering weakening effects made their movements increasingly sluggish and clumsy.
As he fought, Greg could clearly feel himself growing more adept at using those two basic spells. His magic flowed more smoothly, and he constructed the spell models faster and more reliably.
Just then, two notifications suddenly popped up in his mind:
[Water Gun proficiency increased from LV2 to LV3.] [Fireball Spell proficiency increased from LV1 to LV2.]
My proficiency went up? Looks like that'll save me quite a bit of trouble!
Though proficiency in basic magic capped at LV5, the enhancements gained with each increase were still substantial.
The next time he cast Water Gun, it no longer fired a high-pressure stream of water. Instead, it released a denser, sharper water arrow, its edges faintly glowing with pale blue magic. Its speed and penetrating power had clearly increased, and it could even leave a wound when it struck the Spineback Lizard.
The Fireball Spell also grew a size larger, its color changing from dark red to a brighter orange-red, with churning flames faintly visible within.
When it struck the Mossrock Golem, both the explosion's power and the lingering burn effect were significantly stronger, making its rocky skin crackle under the heat.
The increased attack power, combined with his relentless strikes at their weaknesses, swiftly tipped the battle in his favor.
"Splat!"
The enhanced water arrow caught the Spineback Lizard just after a missed lunge, when its momentum was spent, and pierced its eye socket with precision.
The Spineback Lizard let out a piercing shriek of agony. Its massive body crashed to the ground, convulsing wildly.
"Boom!!"
Another, larger fireball slammed into the charred core on the Mossrock Golem's chest, blowing it apart this time.
The Mossrock Golem instantly froze. The stones covering its body quickly lost their luster, broke apart, and collapsed into a heap of ordinary rubble.
With its two companions gone, the remaining Shadow Devourer lost much of its ferocity and tried to flee into the shadows.
But Greg was already prepared. After having Sylvia fire a Holy Light Bullet, he closed in quickly and launched three water arrows in a triangular formation to cut off its retreat. As it tried to force its way through, one final enhanced fireball struck the center of its half-materialized body, which had become relatively vulnerable as it maintained its high speed.
"Awooo-!"
The Shadow Devourer let out a short, mournful cry. Its body twisted violently like a punctured bubble, broke apart, and finally dissolved into a cloud of black smoke, leaving only a small cluster of dull Shadow Crystals.
The battle was over.
All that remained in the cave was Greg's slightly ragged breathing and the stunned gazes of the four people nearby.
(Thanks for all the great reviews, everyone! The numbers look so much better now. Sob, sob!)
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