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Chapter 82: Treasure Hunter
🕑 Added 2025-07-04 09:42:49 +0000 UTCVivi spent the next six hours clearing the first level of the dungeon.
Progress slowed down after she switched to her two-runed katana. The sword was strong, but it wasnât a total cheat of utter destruction like Abyss Destroyer. The katana couldnât snap the skeletonsâ swords, and it couldnât kill the heavier skeletons in one hit.
But the katana didnât poison Vivi with extended use, and it was still a two-runed sword. The blade was more than sharp enough to kill the skeletons if Vivi landed a vital hit.
With the katana, Vivi was forced to fight each skeleton fairly. She had to strategically fight them one-on-one, and she had to make sure not to fall into traps while she dueled them.
The easiest opponents were still the mace skeletons. Vivi was more than fast enough to avoid their clumsy attacks. Her katana could kill in one blow as long as she avoided their thick shoulders. With the mace skeletonsâ slow speed, she could easily decide where to aim.
Every other type of skeleton gave Vivi trouble. The sword skeletons had good stances and their swings carried serious power if she allowed them to hit at the right angle. Their technique with the sword was much better than Viviâs. They knew when to parry, when to block, and they knew how to press their advantage whenever they got her on the defensive.
Luckily, Shadow Swipe totally confused the skeletonsâ perceptions. By weaving the skill between its two modes, Vivi was able to trick the skeletons into defending before hiding her sword and launching a sneak attack.
The assassin skeletons gave her by far the most trouble. Their speed made them difficult to see, let alone keep up with. They could avoid attacks seemingly faster than Vivi could swing. If she tried to chase, theyâd avoid her and counterattack. If she tried to run, they would chase and stab her in the back. If she tried to defend, theyâd throw daggers from the shadows that Vivi couldnât react to.
Luciusâs shield was strong enough to block their daggers, though he dimmed out over three hundred wisps with each blow he had to block. And blocking didnât mean winning. Vivi was locked into a fight with an assassin skeleton for over three minutes, struggling for her life.
The eventual winning strategy wasnât Viviâs proudest idea. She abandoned her sword entirely and slashed with Luciusâs claws all around herâblindly and like a maniac, hitting everything around her. She used Shadow Swipe negatively on the claws, hiding their aura, similarly to how sheâd fought the Reapersâ ambush.
It worked. Her wild slashes clouded the whole room with ether, her skin glowing like a hot ether root. After ten seconds of swinging the claws all around her, she managed to land a hit. This killed the assassin in one blow due to its lacking defense.
The fight dimmed out over two thousand wisps, and the kill awarded them with seven hundred back.
Vivi was out of breath. Theyâd killed over twenty-five skeletons now, lowering Viviâs debts all the way to 83,724. The pace at which she cleared the dungeon wasnât fast, but it was steady. Sheâd rested for a few minutes in between each fight to make sure she was fully recovered.
But even still⊠âWhy do I feel so tired?â Vivi asked. âWeâve been earning more ether than weâve dimmed out. Shouldnât that improve our endurance?â
âIt has improved endurance,â Lucius said. âYouâve been fighting for six hours, Vivi. Your muscles are starting to give up beneath all the ether. And our coating of ether is getting weaker too. Ether has weird effects if you abuse it too much.â
âAre you suggesting we should rest?â Vivi asked.
âThatâs probably a good idea. The next room is that hall with the big skeleton. The one with the boulder hands.â
Vivi was surprised. âArenât you going to push me to fight harder?â she asked. âYou were excited about clearing the first level today.â
âEh, whatever,â Lucius said. âItâs not worth it to abuse ether. We did that a lot with my old wielder and it left him with lasting problems. He could barely even walk without ether empowering his muscles.â
Vivi lifted her eyebrows.
âThe important thing is that we grow and keep hunting,â Lucius said. âWe need to remember that dungeons like these are usually reserved for large hunting groups with third elevation hunters. Itâs amazing that weâre hunting here at all.â
âWhoever created the dungeon made the skeletons stupid,â Vivi said. âThatâs the only reason we stand a chance.â
âIâm not complaining,â Lucius said. âLetâs head to sleep. We can make use of the time we spent resting.â
âWe can start channeling ether,â Vivi said.
âYes,â Lucius said. âYouâre far from other hunters when it comes to elevating your core. You havenât even started channeling. Youâve never even transferred ether. Itâs going to be tough to get you to the first elevation. But weâre finally maxed out. Itâs about time we get started.â
And I still need to practice runesmithing to catch up to Grandpa⊠Vivi thought. âThis is going to take a while, isnât it? We have a lot of work to do.â
âIf we keep our core at level zero, weâll never become strong,â Lucius said. âWeâll struggle against second elevation idiots forever.â
âI know,â Vivi said. She stretched, feeling the full extent of her exhausted muscles, and turned back to the shore. Before heading to sleep, she wanted to check up on Eem. The fiend had followed her into the dungeon for the first thirty minutes, but she eventually grew bored after Vivi told her to stay back for the umpteenth time. Eem had sulked when she left for the shoreline.
Hopefully she isnât too unhappy.
Entering the shore, Vivi expected to be greeted with dissatisfaction from Eem. She had left the fiend alone, after all. Instead, she saw Eem further up, near the water, kneeling by the sand. Vivi walked over, wondering what the fiend was doing. Eem was focused; she didnât even see Vivi coming.
âEem?â Vivi asked. She picked Eem up. âThe sharks will eat you if youâre too close to the water. What are you doing?â She sniffed the fiendâs hair. Eem smelled like metal. Her fingers were turning grey.
âIvwi!â Eem said with a grin on her face. She pointed at a hole sheâd been digging in the sand.
Beneath the sand, something rough but shiny formed the ground. Vivi knelt down to observe it more carefully. The ore clearly had impurities, but colorful spots were visible within. âYou found a metal?â Vivi asked.
Eem jumped up and down, excited. âEmmwiumm!â she said. âEmiwiuumm!â
âEmiwium?â Vivi asked. âYou mean, enirium?â
Eem nodded three times. âEmiwium!â she said while pointing at the metal.
Vivi gave the fiend a smile, uncertain on how to react. âEem, where have you heard of enirium?â
âWhatâs⊠enrum?â Lucius asked.
Enirium. Itâs a mythical metal, Vivi thought. As in, it probably doesnât exist. Legends say that enirium is the strongest metal, while also conducting the most ether. Itâs supposedly the absolute perfect metal for runeswords. Itâs a heavenly pale white by appearance, but itâs also known to change colors. Or so the legends say, at least. The only time you see it on the market is when scammers try to sell painted white obsidian as enirium.
âOooh,â Lucius said, tail wagging. âDid Eem find it?â
I doubt it, Vivi thought. Iâm not sure what metal she found. Iâm not a miner. But it looks like a rare metal nonetheless. It might be adamantite. We would need someone to mine and process it.
âGood job, Eem,â Vivi said with a grin. She patted the fiend in the head. âHow did you find this?â
âMiweww,â Eem said, mimicking a pickaxe swing. She jumped up and down.
âA treasure hunter is what you are,â Vivi said. âCan you smell metals underground or something?â
She tried to lift Eem, but the little fiend ran off. Vivi sighed but decided to play with Eem for a little bit. She chased, poking Eem in the cheek whenever she caught her.
By the latter half of the playtime, Viviâs muscles were getting tired to the point she needed ether just to keep up. She was hungry as well.
Vivi stopped the chase and moved into the lake. She caught a large fish for Eem to munch on and a few smaller ones for herself. She cleaned them and ate them cold before lying down underneath a small sapling.
With her body utterly exhausted, she fell asleep in seconds even without Luciusâs help.
*
Vivi woke up to the sound of rainfall.
It was a light drizzle, far from the downpours Vivi was used to. But she could still feel water droplets tapping against her face. The earth wasnât muddy yet, but a pleasant scent of petrichor filled the air.
Vivi opened her eyes and sprung up to sit. âItâs raining!â
Light rain clouds floated in Paradise. The air was still clear with light clouds, and the sun shone weakly, but there was rain. Vivi grinned wide and held out her arms. âItâs really raining!â
Lucius floated beside her with a dissatisfied expression. âWell, thatâs annoying.â
âItâs raining, Lucius!â Vivi repeated. âCan you believe it!â
âRain will get in the way of training,â Lucius said.
Vivi watched the sky in awe. She almost wanted to cry.
âWhat?â Lucius asked. âWhy do you look like that? This is awful weather for practice.â
âThis is amazing weather by Fellwaterâs standards,â Vivi said. âThe clouds are light. We wonât see a downpour.â
âDo you know what rain in Paradise means?â Lucius asked.
âWhat?â
âIt means that a funeral is being held,â Lucius said. âOne of the hunters has died. A more influential hunter. A rainfall wouldnât be arranged for some newbie.â
âOh,â Vivi said. Her smile fell for a second.
She looked at the clouds, letting rain droplets flow down her face and neck. âIf Andre dies, do you think weâll get more rain?â
Lucius blinked at her. âReally? Some rain is what gets you excited to kill him?â
âThat was a joke,â Vivi said. âBut the rain is pleasant.â
âYouâre a weirdo, Vivi,â Lucius said.
âYouâre even more of a weirdo for choosing me.â
Lucius rolled his eyes. âWhatever. Letâs get to practice.â
He flew upright and crossed his paws, as if he was some genius mentor. âFirst lesson. When channeling ether, we require full concentration. You canât be distracted by silly things like rain.â
Vivi put up the hood of her raincoat. âDone.â
âAnd the second lessonâŠâ Lucius put his paw on his cheek, thinking, and said, âWell, I donât know. Letâs just start channeling.â
