Frostfire Legacy

Chapter 61: Cutting Through The Forest (1)

The Dungeon's floors have a large area, and it only expands further the deeper the floor you reach. For example, the first floor had a total area of 10,000 square kilometers, with the second floor reaching 14,400 sq. km., increasing by almost 50% of the previous floor's total land area!

Of course, this isn't an exact number, and it also varies from every dungeon, but the first floor of the Dungeon of Orinfeld City is exactly 10,000 sq. km. in total. As such, unless you run from one end to another, it would take at least 20 hours of leisurely walking to reach the other end. That's not taking into consideration the monsters that would further delay them while on the way.

"Pack: check; food and water: check; bullets: check; I'm ready to go!"

Aster, doing a last check right before entering, nodded his head in satisfaction. Since he's the weakest link in their group, he was reduced to support for their attempt at reaching the second floor. In short: baggage carrier!

"Are you really sure you can carry all that, Star?" Cassy asked, a little worried, after seeing the large quantity of supplies before him. "I can carry one bag, at least, you know?"

"Stupid Rabbit, do you believe you can fight effectively while carrying a heavy pack?" But Kali's quip made her discard such thoughts immediately. "Well, I can at least protect you both, even when I'm the only one fighting, but we'll end up progressing at a snail's pace then."

A division of labor is necessary for an efficient conquest!

"Uuu..."

Cassy looked as if she wanted to offer help but was conflicted about leaving Kali to fight alone. However, Aster quickly relieved her of her doubts. "Don't worry about me, Cassy. I've found an interesting item in that dwarf's shop, so I should be able to carry all this."

He loosened his scarf, revealing a choker around his neck, showing red brilliance.

"This is called the Strength Collar, and it adds 5 strength to the wearer! Other than looking like a slave collar, it has no other downsides!" He explained.

That very collar ate up half of his money, though, but having his measly 5 strength doubled is a big thing, so he convinced himself that it was money well spent! Although he used up all his money, leaving only a three-digit balance on his card, he wiped his salty tears and forged on.

"..."

"..."

Cassy and Kali, however, stared at Aster with disgust. The collar's design was, after all, in bad taste. They didn't want to nitpick, though, as it's true that, looking at its performance, it was a good item. And thankfully, it's hidden under his scarf, so the two wouldn't be seeing it all the time.

Aster wore two backpacks, one in front of him and one on his back, before standing up. "Hup!" He exerted a little before standing up wobblily. "This... is doable." He exclaimed as he found his balance.

With him now carrying all their items, the three finally entered the dungeon entrance.

Their plan was simple: go straight from the entrance to the other end, as the portal to the next floor should be in a straight line from the first floor's entrance. Of course, this wasn't the norm for "all" floors, but the first three floors all had the same, simple placement.

As soon as they got on the first floor, Cassy and Kali rushed forward, taking care of the left and right sides, respectively. They weren't letting a single slime come close to Aster, who was jogging on the center path, heading straight as planned.

"... But it feels a bit weird, leaving all the battles to the two while I just rush through." He mused, feeling a little guilty and envious.

After all, he wouldn't be getting any experience without killing monsters!

Aster continued ahead, but Cassy and Kali were still faster than him, clearing a path 100 meters ahead of him at least. As such, it was a safe passage for Aster, completely devoid of any sort of risk.

For the loots, they already talked about it. They will leave gathering loot after entering the second floor, as it would only add to their burden if they collected loot on the way toward it.

For the first hour, they continued on jogging across the open fields, not entering the forests on either side. This was, of course, to lower the risk they had to face.

However, such a situation wouldn't continue for long. "It's here! The barrier forest!" Aster exclaimed, feeling a little nervous.

The forest was dubbed the Barrier Forest, as it was blocking the path leading to the other end. In short, they couldn't just stay on grasslands for the entire duration of their travel and were required to pass through the forest!

"Just as planned! Weakling, stay there for a minute. Cassy, stay beside him. I'll go and scout the enemies around first." Kali exclaimed before rushing ahead of the other two.

Cassy moved beside Aster, wiping the sweat off her forehead. "That was quite a workout!"

"Good work." Aster smiled, passing her a bottle of water to drink. "Here, take a break while waiting."

"Thanks! I'm parched~!"

They have been running for an hour, but they're not even a tenth of the way to the other side just yet. They have a long journey ahead of them.

*KIEEEEE!*

Soon after, faint screams of agony, presumably from dying goblins, echoed from within the forest. The two were looking at each other, smiling wryly.

"As expected, it wasn't just scouting."

"Well, it's K we're talking about. She'd not let monsters roam around freely~!"

"You got a point..."

Five minutes passed quickly, and soon, Kali returned with sweat covering her forehead, her white hair sticking close to her face.

"I'm done. The path ahead should be safe for now." She exclaimed. "We'll rest for another 5 minutes before heading in. Prepare yourselves."

"Okay~!"

"Got it. Here, take this."

Aster passed her a bottle of water too, letting her replenish her fluids. However, just as he passed the water to her, he noticed something was different from Kali. He couldn't explain what it was that was different.

"Wait, K., did you level up?" But Cassy seemed to be sharper and noticed it immediately.

"I did. I'm now level 4, and I even learned a new skill." Kali muttered without much fanfare.

"..."

"..."

As expected, she was way ahead of the two!

---

Kali's Current Status:

[

Name: Kali Norma

Age: 19

Race: Catkin

Purity: 26%

Level: 4

Party Members: Aster Mistral, Cassandra Bright (Empty) (Empty) (Empty) (Empty) (Empty)

]

[

Strength: 12

Dexterity: 19

Constitution: 12

Intelligence: 7

Wisdom: 6

Charisma: 8

Luck: 0

]