Jake walked down the dark tunnel. There was no light to speak of—it was total darkness. Normally, it wouldn’t pose much of a problem for him, as he had nearly perfect night vision. However, the darkness in the tunnel seemed to possess a supernatural quality, hindering his ability to see deeply into it. Because of that, he moved slowly, staring intently into the void ahead, unable to see anything more than a few feet in front of him.
He continued to walk down the corridor until he reached the end. There, he saw an opening with steps leading deeper down. He began to descend them, moving in a slow and careful manner. His vision was limited to a few feet, so he had no idea where the stairs were leading.
It was a surprisingly long descent, likely taking him a full minute to reach the bottom of the steps, where he found himself in yet another dark tunnel. With no alternative routes, he pressed onward through the corridor, wondering where this path would ultimately lead him.
Contrary to his expectations, this tunnel was much shorter than the previous one, and he soon reached its end. He slowed down as he approached the end of the corridor. The tunnel terminated at a wall, leaving him with no way to move further. Confusion washed over him. What was he supposed to do next?
His mental question was quickly answered as a magical portal materialized at the end of the corridor. It was human-sized and oval in shape, emitting a bluish light that illuminated the first half of the tunnel. However, the portal didn’t reveal where it was leading, appearing as a solid blue glow.
As Jake took a step closer to the portal, lines of text began to materialize in his mind.
Class: Ex-Human Morphus (Evolution Stage 2)
Preparing rewards for the player. Please hold on. It may take a few moments.
Rewards have been generated. You may enter the Maze of Torment now. Good luck!
[Dismiss] [View details]
Jake couldn’t help but feel a wave of excitement wash over him. Even though the Skeleton Key had unlocked the dungeon door, he had been uncertain about whether he would be permitted to enter the actual dungeon. Even if access was granted, there was a possibility that he might not receive any rewards, as they could have been intended for regular survivors. However, those doubts had just been dissipated. He had just received confirmation that he not only could enter the dungeon but would also be eligible for rewards designed specifically for him. It was really great news.
Eager to learn more about what to expect, he requested to see additional details. Immediately, new lines of text began to appear before him.
Goal: Complete each floor and defeat the final boss.
Jake carefully read the information and then thought it over for a moment. A couple of details caught his attention more than the rest.
First, the rewards for completing each floor of the dungeon were abilities—four Epic ones and one Legendary one. New abilities, especially ones of such rarity, were always a good thing. Additionally, the abilities he could earn were themed specifically to this dungeon and couldn’t be obtained anywhere else. He was genuinely intrigued about what kind of abilities he could acquire in the Maze of Torment.
Second, once he entered the dungeon, exiting wouldn’t be easy. He could only leave the dungeon after finishing his current floor or by completely clearing it. The fact that he would have the option to exit after completing each floor likely indicated that the dungeon was quite difficult and dangerous, with difficulty ramping up on every subsequent level.
At least, the dungeon wasn’t time-sensitive, so he would have as long as he needed to finish a floor. He couldn’t help but wonder how much mana it would take to complete the dungeon and if there would be mana consumables available to replenish his reserves. Based on his past experiences, he knew that he could burn through his mana extremely quickly in tough and prolonged battles. He currently had over 164,000 MP at his disposal, which was nearly the maximum amount of mana he could hold at once. He certainly hoped it would be enough to finish the dungeon or that there would be mana consumables he could use to restore his mana. He definitely didn’t want to leave the dungeon without fully clearing it and earning all the rewards it had to offer.
If he chose to leave the dungeon after completing a floor, he wouldn’t be able to return to finish the remaining levels. Additionally, once he had entered the dungeon, no one else would ever be able to gain access because, as it turned out, all dungeons created by the System were one-use only. So he now understood why Miller, one of Los Demonios’ leaders, had been so keen on obtaining a Skeleton Key and keeping it secure afterward.
Miller had been aware that he could earn incredible rewards in the dungeon that wouldn’t be obtainable otherwise. Jake assumed that survivors were granted useful, rare resources in dungeons along with powerful weapons. This was likely why Miller didn’t want regular survivors to get their hands on them and potentially use them against the gang.
Survivors could earn Skeleton Keys to open dungeons by completing extremely difficult missions, and Miller had made sure that he obtained a Skeleton Key before the area upgrade took place when all the mutants were relatively weak. Had he initiated the mission after the upgrade, it would have been much harder for him and his team to secure the Skeleton Key.
However, even though Miller had obtained the Skeleton Key before the area upgrade, he planned to use it to open the dungeon door only after the upgrade to secure higher-level rewards for its completion. But his meticulously crafted plan fell apart when Jake seized the hard-earned Skeleton Key from the very heart of his base.
Jake pushed the system text from his mind and gave the magical portal before him one more look. He steeled himself for whatever might be waiting inside, then stepped through the portal, which promptly flickered out of existence behind him.