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A few days had passed since I resolved to be careful, and today, I decided to take my exploration to the 3rd floor, alone.
I know. I know what I promised to myself, so you bet I had considered it thoroughly before moving up.
To be frank, after hitting level 5, I had kind of outgrown the 2nd floor. The 2nd floor only had goblins appear in groups of two and, after my 1-vs-5 gauntlet, they're now a child's play.
I had also changed my fighting style, now I was using a shovel, smashing it against a goblin's group. This was guaranteed to get me at least one kill, and the second would be left half-dead so even that was a done deal. In the end, I deduced I should be fine on the deeper floor now.
Well, if there was one thing though, it was that ever since I changed my primary weapon from «Poison Dagger» to Shovel, I kind of felt my style had become even more bizarre.
"I really don't see that many fighting with shovels in the dungeon, though what was I even expecting. Come to think of it, so far I have either only encountered newbies who had just gotten off from training like me, clearly also lacking a proper weapon, or veterans strangely far too used to fighting with shovels."
I had often seen the veterans giving me "It shouldn't be not long before he, too, becomes a Shovel Warrior" eyes. Unfortunately for them, it was just temporary. But for now, it was an efficient goblin cleaner, so I wasn't really going to spend when I could manage it plenty.
"I wonder if «Friend Gacha» would drop me a long reach weapon with an ability like «Poison Dagger». You bet I will immediately cast said shovel if that happens."
I know that was a mere flight of fancy. I had yet to get anything of this caliber. ...I wonder if it's my greed sensor tipping it off?
"Well, I still have the option to purchase them. The bigger headache is I couldn't find anyone to be with me......"
So far, my partner hunting was a disappointment. And all because of my demerit that was dragging me down. I tried asking around, but they all distanced themselves the moment they heard my skill name.
"Somehow, it feels like this is becoming a sort of curse that turns away everyone at mere mention."
Sometimes, I would just not explain the effect of skill, but then the question turned to what it can do. And when they heard it wasn't related to combat, I immediately got a rejection. In other cases, few had even said my level could make up for my skill's shortcoming, but when they heard I was level 5, they also scowled and turned me down.
The last one was baffling to me. A party with an average of level 5 could easily explore till 5th floor of «Goblin Dungeon», so by requirement, I should've been qualified, but all I saw was scowl or contempt.
I really didn't get why, but regardless, all these ultimately led me to continue my solo exploration.
"I believe the 3rd floor has a new variety of goblins too. I must be careful."
The first time I stepped on the 3rd floor, I cautiously scanned the surroundings, comparing the changes I could feel from the 2nd floor. Even if I had spotted a goblin, I didn't immediately rush in, and continued to observe and take note of its ability.
In the end, I only managed to defeat one goblin due to a slow approach, but on the brighter side, I more or less knew what to expect now. And from the next day onward, I continued to simulate the "what if" scenario of getting trapped amidst a horde of goblins again, and what I could do to break through it.
"If I was in a party, I could've just purchased the information from the Union and called it a day. But alone, I think this sort of prudeness was important, right?"
I feel like since I had no one to talk with in the dungeon, the number of times I'd been monologuing had increased. Never mind, it was useless to worry about it. I should put my attention on hunting goblins for now.
I shook my head to cast away creeping pessimism, and set my eyes to search for goblins.
"I believe the 3rd floor has goblin soldiers as the main target. It would be great if I can find one unnoticed."
Unlike the first two floors, where goblins could barely have a wooden stick for weapons, the goblins on 3rd floors carried proper weapons ranging from sword, bow, or buckler, even if in tattered state.
They're collectively referred to as Goblin Soldiers.
"Last time, I really had bad luck to stumble on a group of three goblin soldiers. For now, I should just look for a group with one goblin soldier."
And of course, with an increase in floor, the goblins also appeared in groups of three, instead of two. The number of goblin soldiers was random however.
Occasionally, you could also stumble on a group entirely composed of three goblin soldiers. If I tried really hard, and made use of the items from «Friend Gacha», I felt I could win somehow. But I decided not to entertain that thought. I had already decided, and I wasn't going to force myself if it was beyond my reach.
"All things aside, goblins weren't as sparse here as the first two floors. Plus, there was one more extra goblin to deal with. Then again, soldiers were a pain to deal with, so technically, the 2nd floor was still the easiest one."
I did feel 3rd floor was too much effort, but I did notice soldiers awarded more experience than regular riff-raff, so I decided to grit through it.
With that thought, I continued my search for goblins and soon stumbled on a group of three goblins, but there was something different—they're carrying something abovehead.
I found them just as I had taken a turn on the corner, so I quickly hid behind the corner. Alright, they shouldn't have noticed me yet.
I discreetly peeked from the corner to scout the situation—they're all goblin soldiers, each carrying a sword that was currently fastened to their waist. However, what pulled my attention wasn't that. The three goblin soldiers were carrying a person, like festival volunteers pulling palanquin, making some odd happy noises.
It was the first time I had encountered such a situation.
There was still good distance between us, so I wasn't exactly sure, but I think it was a girl, not that it would've made any difference. Goblins were indiscriminate killers, attacking both males and females alike, and I had never heard of them trying to kidnap a woman for reproduction.
I thought maybe something else was going on, but nothing came to my mind. …Yeah, I couldn’t figure out whatever the heck was going on. Anyway, it wasn't time to contemplate what they're trying to accomplish either.
"I need to save her."
I invoked my «Friend Gacha», and a familiar looking smartphone appeared in my hand.