The familiar cold, moldy, wet air of the dungeon entered Frenley's lungs. He looked around the badly lit dungeon room. His eyes then focus on the shard of light in front of him, just like he expected. He was back in the dream and alive. His sword hung from his waist, his pouch contained his three potions, and on his left hand was the effigy. He patted himself down, no wounds, no blood. No evidence that he was killed the night before. With soft movement, he pushes his long hair to the side.
“My hair is noticeably longer in the dream.. I really need to see myself in a mirror and see what else has changed.”
‘Welcome back, dreamer.’
“Ah, yes, hello to you, too, sexy southern milf.”
Frenley stood up and started walking to the boss's room. There were questions floating in Fren's mind, and thankfully, there was a voice that could answer them.
“Hey, whenever I die, do I wake up again in the real world and have to wait a whole day before being able to come here again?”
‘No, your dreaming will end once your mind gives up or 8 hours have passed. If you die but don't give up, you will appear again at the last rest site.’
“Understandable, how do I level up?”
‘By defeating bosses. There are three types of bosses. Random, Side, and Main. Killing a main boss will always grant two levels. A side boss will reward one level, but the number of side bosses you need to defeat for a level increase by one for every two side bosses you defeat.’
Fren stops two steps away from the boss room, pulling his sword out as he looks at the flaming wall in front of him.
‘Random bosses will award one level, but the number you need to defeat for the level increase by one for each win. Leveling can only be done in the Lunarist.’
“What is Lunarist?”
‘It is the common area for all dreamers, unlocked once you defeat this boss.’
That sentence caused Fren to take a pause.
“For all dreamers? I am not the only one?”
‘No, you are not, there is a total of a million new dreamers as of now.’
“Damn..wait, you said new dreamers. How many dreamers are in total?”
‘A million’
Fren didn't say anything as he began placing the pieces together.
“We aren't the first ones.”
‘And won't be the last, that is if you can't defeat the Sun King.’
“Well, I will try my best..So, tell me what type of boss is this one?”
‘Main as you need to kill it to progress.’
“Well, ain't that nice, time to earn me two levels.”
‘Good luck, sugar.’
“Thank you, dear.”
Fren stepped through the flame wall and came face to face with the hand monster once more. The beast turned to face him once more, its four hind legs twitching with strength. Muscles harden as Fren gets into position, and he notices that the boss is in top shape just as he is. The beast rushes forward, and Fren waits for the right moment to dodge to the side. He casts the season coating on his sword and rushes the beast as it crashes into the wall.
Rock falls onto the arena once more, and Fren slashes at the beast's side, leaving behind a frozen and burning wound. The beast turns around, one of its arms stretched out as it tries to hit Fren on the side. The man tries to block the attack with his sword, but sadly, swords weren't made to block the arm of a beast beyond imagination.
As flesh meets sword, the force of the strike transfers to Fren's arms and hands. Bruising the muscle and causing him to fly to the side. Fren crashes against the floor a couple of times, and he looks up just in time for the beast's second charge. He rolls to the side, away from the charge. Dodging by a hair's breadth. Fren stands up as the beast hits the wall once more. His arms were shaking as he held the sword.
But he held his position, slowly taking steps back, as he waited. The beast soon stopped being stunned and turned around to do its third charge. Fren held his position as the beast came towards him. He tried to ignore his fear and his beating heart as he dodged for a second or two before the beast reached him. Trying not to lose time, he runs towards the beast and delivers a strike to its backside. But this time it was a normal wound, for the spell on his sword had ended.
Fren takes two steps backward to avoid a kick from the beast's hind legs. Then, with a quick dodge to the side as the beast charges once more. Fren didn't wait around, as he ran after the beast, casting his spell once more on his sword. Once the beast hit the wall again, bigger and bigger rocks fell onto the ground. Fren attacked one of the beast's hind legs; his sword dug deep into the flesh of the hind leg. Causing a roar to escape the beast's mouth. He pulled his sword back and then delivered another strike at the beast's leg, cutting right through it and letting red blood paint the arena.
The beast screams as it turns around, arms wide in an attempt to strike Fren. But such a move won't work on him again. Two steps back was all he needed for the beast attack to miss and for its rage to reach higher levels. The beast stood up on its two arms. Now standing up like a human, its front leg hand turning into low arm hands. One of its lower arms grabs what was once a hind leg. Pulling it straight out of the socket.
The beast wielded the arm like a sword. Blood no longer spills from its wounds. The top of the beast opened up into a large mouth, as multiple arms came out. Holding the beast's teeth.
“What in God's green Earth-”
Fren said in surprise, a surprise that cost him as the beast threw one of its teeth at his leg. Cutting it and digging it into his flesh. Frenley tried to get one of his healing flasks, but was instead met with an arm turn sword to his neck. His bone cracked as the muscle broke apart. Blood filled his throat and mouth; he thankfully did not have to suffer death by lack of oxygen. As a tooth turned into a knife penetrated his skull.
Fren woke up on the other side again, his heart beating like a war drum. Sweat covered his blue under robe. He stays sitting, hand grabbing his face as he tries to calm down. His mind was trying to catch up to the fact that he was still alive, and his body was trying to rewire itself from the fact that death was not permanent.
“Fuck…This is worse than when I woke up today.”
It took Fren five minutes to calm down, and then five more to analyze what went wrong.
“Bitch has a second phase, meaning I dealt enough damage for that to happen, or that phase only happens when I cut one of its legs off. Fuck fuck..then do I just have to attack it with the hit and run tactics?”
Fren continues to think of the best way to deal with this boss. This was not like a game where bosses could not deviate from what the developers made. The boss had an attack pattern, that much was clear. But it didn't mean that it would only do that. If he attacks from the side, the beast will turn around with an arm attack. Hit it from the back, and it kicks you. Stay close as it turns around, and it starts throwing punches like it's a boxing champion.
“Okay ..okay.. I got this.”
‘You got this, sugar.’
“..I swear your voice one of these days it's gonna make me hard mid fight.”
‘That is not my intention. I am but a reflection of your deepest desire.’
“You are getting really sassy with me for being an AI.”
‘I am not an AI.’
Fren stops in front of the boss's room once more as he prepares himself. He rolls his shoulders and cracks his neck. Sword in hand.
“So you are a blind woman, who is speaking like a southern milf because that is my deepest desire?”
‘You are half correct, but I am not a woman.’
“Huh?”
‘I have no gender, for such a thing is not needed for those blinded.’
“Sounds like you are in a cult.”
The voice didn't speak as Fren entered the boss's room for the third time. The fear factor of looking at this handmade creature has all but faded away from Fren’s system. The only thing left in him was disdain for the ugly thing and rage for dying twice against it. Fren got into position once more, as he looked at the beast testing its muscles.
“In the name of the moon.”
That seems to cause the beast to scream in rage as it rushes towards Fren. He did nothing fancy other than dodge out of the way and place magic on his sword. Once the beast crashed into the wall, rocks started to fall. He charged right at it, leaving behind a wound on its side. He dodges backward, just in time to make the beast's attack miss. Fren moved backward, eyes locked on the beast, and once he saw its muscles tense in preparation for a charge. He stops.
He dodged out of the way with two seconds to spare. Enough time to rush to the beast and land another ugly wound on its body. Another backward dodge to make the beast kick miss, but sadly, his dodge placed him in the spot of a falling rock. As it landed on his left shoulder. Sending a wave of pain across his left side. By pure instinct, Frenley rolled to the side. The quick action earned him the reward of not dying to the beast a third time.
But the man was too far away to capitalize on the beast's stun, Fren instead aimed his left hand at the beast. Shooting a season bolt at the beast's backside. At the same time, he recast season coating on his sword, drinking his only magic potion as he took a step back. His eyes are looking at the beast as it takes off on another crazy charge.
Fren rolls to the side, and once the beast passes his previous spot, he turns and runs at it. A crazy idea is forming in his mind. When the beast hit the wall, and rocks started to fall, Frenley was already behind it. He pushes his sword deep into the beast behind. Till the hilt hit flesh, and he could not push any more. The beast is ready to do its kick, but it's one second too late. Hand still on the sword, he pulls it off as he dodges out of the way. Drawing a large arc of blood from the beast and painting a crescent moon on the floor.
The beast screams in rage and pain as it turns to face Fren in hand-to-hand combat. Blood gushed out of the wound like a fountain. Frenley jumps backward, making the beast's fist hit empty air as he shoots his final spell at the beast's face. A season bolt hit the beast square in the face, if the front counted as a face. This causes the beast to stagger, and with quick thinking, Fren rushes forward and delivers a swipe at the beast's arm.
Severing it from the socket, and for more blood to spill out. The beast was slowing; Frenley easily dodged its counterattack. Fren delivers a straight sword strike at the top of the beast, the multi-colored blade digging into the flesh and spreading its elemental sickness on the beast's body. Sapping away at its remaining strength, and with the sword still on its flesh. The hand beast fell to the ground, and Fren did the same. With a tired sigh, he sat on his ass. Not caring if his robe got covered with any more blood.
‘You did well, sugar.’
“Thank you, darling..”
‘Sweet dreams.’
“Huh…”
Were Fren's last words as a supernatural darkness covered his eyes, and his mind slipped away.