WHUUSH!
The doors swung open, and an ominous pressure leaked out almost immediately.
The contestants were instantly soaked in the miasma-like aura, the stale air causing their noses to twitch and their bodies to tremble.
Regardless of how they felt, though... they had to advance.
Since Dungeon Trap wasn’t a battle between competitors, there was no need for anyone to be aggressive towards the other.
But that didn’t mean they had to be friendly either.
Many people would believe that the best way to win was cooperation, but that couldn’t be further from the truth.
’Making the mistake of trusting someone in this place will be the contestant’s downfall!’
They entered the Dungeon with this thought in his mind, as well as a resolute desire to win—no matter what!
BAM!
The gates locked tight behind him, leaving him and the rest of the contestants in a vast hall of concrete and metal.
There were several dimly lit lanterns on the ceilings and walls, providing just enough illumination so that the slaves could see the paths ahead.
’All of us, a total of sixty now, are in the same place. But, anytime now...’ Just as Rey had this thought, the walls began to shake, and several door-like mechanisms began to appear all around.
Within seconds, over ten doors appeared in front of the prepared audience.
’Now we have to choose our paths.’
Some people would be lucky from the start and pick a safe option, while others wouldn’t be so fortunate and end up in a danger zone.
It all depended on luck.
But, the situation wasn’t so hopeless.
There were all kinds of mechanisms in the Dungeon that one could exploit to escape dangerous situations safely.
’There are even Potions hidden in chests, and all kinds of Artifacts buried inside walls.’
Ray remembered everything Logan told him.
He wasn’t scared.
"You have a total of three hours to reach the exit from this starting position." The announcer’s voice echoed in the hall, startling a few people. "Your time starts now!"
With the clock now hanging over their heads, many slaves began to move in a panic.
They selected their doors and moved right ahead. Among the panicky slaves were veterans who didn’t flinch but advanced after careful consideration.
Before long, the only one remaining in the hall was Rey.
He still hadn’t chosen a door.
’Hmm...’
His eyes narrowed as he began to look all over the room. It was the starting room, a place with four walls and lanterns illuminating it.
Nothing special at all.
But Rey wasn’t so convinced that this place could be so simple.
’It wouldn’t hurt to investigate a little...’ With this thought in mind, Rey began to walk around the room, touching walls and spreading his senses through the use of Ether.
He intentionally held off on doing this until everyone had left since he didn’t want to be caught.
If he gave others this idea, someone could find something before him.
He couldn’t allow that to happen.
While he was still rummaging through the room, he heard the voice of the announcer once again.
"Contestant: Mad Dancer has been eliminated. Fifty-nine contestants remain. Time left: 2 hours and 43 minutes."
Rey sighed.
"I better hurry..."
The burden of time was slowly wearing on his mind, but he had to remind himself that he was bound to die if he didn’t have something special helping him.
His current set of equipment was unreliable.
He also wasn’t a very lucky person, so he didn’t expect to choose the best door available.
Even if he was lucky once, could he maintain such a streak throughout the nine floors? The answer was clearly "No"
"I need a strong offensive weapon... else I won’t last long here!"
Just then, he felt something.
It was right beneath his feet, a few meters deep. His Ether coiled around the special object shaped like a chest.
’Good!’
Rey pressed his hand against the ground and amplified the amount of Ether within the ground.
"Inverse Technique #7: Inside Out."
The ground suddenly unraveled, and the chest appeared right in front of him.
"Huu..."
Although he was relieved to see the object intact, he still had a cautious expression when approaching it.
For all he knew, this could be a trap.
Thankfully... it wasn’t!
"Looks like my luck isn’t so bad." Rey grinned as he found a longsword, a shield, and a few Potions within the chest.
They were all radiating with dense energy.
He had hit the jackpot.
’My intuition was spot on in the end. With these, I should be able to manage whatever comes my way.’
A new sense of confidence surged through him, and he arose from his position before finally choosing a door.
Upon walking through it, the entrance closed and he found himself in a narrow passage.
A certain silhouette stood at the end of the passage—a grotesque creature of large mass and uneven proportions.
’A Chaps Dweller so early, huh?’ Rey smiled to himself. ’Just my luck.’
He had only seen such a beast in the Chaos Dweller Pit. The one back then was a Tier 8 Chaos Dweller, but he had no way of knowing this one’s level until he approached.
’Only one way to find out...’
WHOOSH!!!
He charged forward, refusing to waste any more time by being sluggish.
Once the Chaos Dweller noticed this, it also started moving towards him, letting out a loud, unpleasant screech.
Within seconds, they closed their distance.
"Skriii!"
The creature was twice Rey’s size, and it lifted its claws in an attempt to slash him.
But Rey wouldn’t allow it.
He immediately threw his Shield Artifact towards the head of the beast before whispering words and brandishing his blade.
"Inverse Technique #9 and #8: Minor Flipped Axis."
He immediately switched places with the shield and dug his blade into the neck of the Chaps Dweller, infusing as much energy into it as he could.
Then—
BOOOM!!!
The creature exploded, turning into chunks of smelly meat.
Within just a few seconds, Rey had won.
"It was Tier 8... same as the one in the Chaos Dweller Pit." He murmured, picking up his shield before advancing.
When he first arrived in this world, he didn’t have the strength to face such a beast.
All he could do was run.
But now... defeating one was extremely easy.
This was a testament to his growth.
His power.
But Rey wasn’t satisfied.
He couldn’t be.
’This is just the beginning. My enemy is a God. Until I can reach such impossible heights, I will never stop!’
*******
"Hehehe! As you can see, Cursed Boy has activated the secret mechanism that brings in a special guest!"
The announcer’s voice boomed in the special theater where all the spectators gathered.
No participant in the Dungeon could hear him speak since he intentionally isolated his voice from the Dungeon.
"We will now release the Tier 7 Chaos Dweller and let it roam the Dungeon for its prey! Looks like a great bloodshed is about to occur!" His words caused many to cheer in excitement.
Only one person had a look of worry, almost despair as he watched everything unfold.
It was Augustus.
’You foolish brat! Why did you take out the chest? Do you have any idea what you’ve just done?!’