The Legendary Dungeon Master

Chapter 8: Chapter 8: Dungeon Master Blessing Activated

Arin stood in the dark tunnel. The monster was approaching. It was enormous. Its eyes glowed red. Arin couldn’t see the whole monster, only its head. Arin tightened his grip on his sword. ”What are you?”

The monster growled. Arin took a step back. The monster took a step forward.

BOOM!

The ground shook. Arin’s heart was beating loudly. He had escaped one powerful monster, and now there was another one in front of him. ”Why are all the monsters down here so powerful?”

The monster opened its mouth and growled. Then it charged at Arin. Arin jumped out of the way.

BOOM!

The monster slammed into the wall. The wall cracked open. Arin looked at the damage and said, ”Yeah... I’m not fighting that.” He turned around and ran. The monster was right behind him, destroying everything in its path.

BOOM!

BOOM!

BOOM!

”Why does everything down here want to kill me?!” Arin turned a corner and saw that the tunnel ended in a dead end. There was a wall blocking his way. He turned around and saw that the monster was approaching. Arin ran to the wall and pushed it. Nothing happened.

”Open up!” Arin pushed the wall again. The monster was getting closer. Arin looked around and saw that there were no other exits. ”Come on!” Arin pushed the wall again. The monster entered the tunnel. Arin raised his sword. His hands were shaking.

He knew he was no match for the monster. The monster was right in front of him. Arin closed his eyes. Suddenly, a mark on his right hand began to glow. Arin opened his eyes. ”What?” A black mark was glowing on his hand.

The Dungeon Master’s Mark was glowing. A blue window appeared above Arin’s head.

[Dungeon Master’s Mark Activating.]

Arin looked shocked. ”What?” Another window appeared.

[Conditions fulfilled.]

[Dungeon Master’s Blessing activating.]

Arin’s eyes widened. ”The blessing?” The monster was right in front of him. Its claw came down at him. Arin raised his sword and blocked it.

BOOM!

Arin was thrown back, but he didn’t hit the wall. He was floating in the air. Arin was confused. ”What just happened?” The monster attacked again. Arin moved out of the way. This time, he dodged the attack.

The monster’s claw missed him. Arin was stunned. ”Did I...?” The monster attacked again. Arin moved, and he dodged the attack again. Another attack came, and he dodged it again. Arin looked at the monster. ”I can predict it.” A blue glow surrounded his eyes.

[Dungeon Master’s Blessing.]

[Effect: Dungeon Perception.]

[Host can sense the structure of the current dungeon area.]

Arin was shocked. ”Sense the dungeon?” Arin closed his eyes and focused. He could feel the walls, the floor, the tunnels, and the rooms around him. It was like the dungeon had become a map in his mind. Arin opened his eyes. ”There.” Arin pointed to a spot on the wall. The monster was right in front of him. It charged at him. Arin ran to the wall. ”Please work...”

Arin reached the wall and pushed it. A crack appeared in the wall. Arin pushed harder. The wall pushed back. Arin pushed again, and the wall opened up. Arin’s eyes widened. ”No way...” The monster was right behind him.

It roared. Arin jumped into the opening in the wall. The monster tried to follow him, but the opening was too small. It hit the wall.

BOOM!

Arin was running down the passage. He could sense the dungeon. He knew where the tunnels and rooms were. He also sensed something else. Something big and powerful was down below. Arin slowed down. ”There’s something down there.” The System appeared again.

[Dungeon Master’s Blessing active.]

[Current effect: Dungeon Perception.]

[Blessing duration: 10 minutes.]

Arin looked at the message.

”Only ten minutes?”

[Warning: Blessing will deactivate when duration ends.]

Arin sighed. ”Of course, it will.” Arin looked ahead. The passage continued to go deeper underground. He could try to climb back up, but he didn’t know if the monster was still waiting for him. Besides, he would have to climb up alone. Arin saw a blue glow deeper in the passage. He walked toward it. The closer he got, the stronger the glow became.

Soon, Arin entered a room and stopped.

In the center of the room, there was a large structure made of stone. It looked like a crystal, but it was much bigger than anything he had seen before. It was glowing blue. Arin was amazed. ”What is that?” The System appeared again.

[Dungeon Core detected.]

Arin’s eyes widened. ”A Dungeon Core?” Arin walked up to the core. It pulsed again, and Arin’s Dungeon Master’s Mark began to glow. Arin looked at his hand. The black mark on his hand was glowing. Another message appeared.

[Dungeon Master’s Blessing: Resonance detected.]

Arin frowned. ”Resonance?” The core pulsed again. The whole room shook. Arin took a step back. ”Okay, what is happening?” The System didn’t respond.

[Dungeon Master’s Blessing reacting to Dungeon Core.]

[Temporary effect upgraded.]

[Dungeon Perception → Dungeon Sense.]

Arin’s eyes widened. Suddenly, everything became clear in his mind. He could see the tunnels and rooms. He could see the monsters. He could see the walls. He could even see the monster that was chasing him.

It was far away. Arin’s expression changed. There was something else. Something big and powerful. It was far below him. Arin felt it. His body tensed. ”What is that?” It was so big that he couldn’t even imagine it. The System displayed one final message.

[Warning.]

[Dungeon Sense has detected an unknown entity.]

[Distance: Unknown.]

Arin looked at the message. The Dungeon Core pulsed again. The whole dungeon shook. Arin took a step back. ”This dungeon...” Arin looked around. ”...is much bigger than I thought.” Then, the timer appeared.

[Remaining Duration: 03:12]

Arin’s eyes widened.

”Three minutes. Not a long time.”

He turned and ran.