That should do it for skill training. Now, how to deal with Gaudartha?
Physical Immunity was our core skill against the rhino. While it wasn’t feasible for long dungeon expeditions, the Immunity skill could last an entire tournament match.
We didn’t know how much stronger Gaudartha would get after Awakening, but I could imagine him using his greataxe for defense as well as attack. What most frightened me was his general toughness. He had over a thousand HP, further bolstered by Fast Regeneration and Tough Hide. Trying to claim victory through chipping damage was a fool’s errand.
“We’ll use our trump card if it comes down to it,” said Fran.
Yeah. We didn’t get to use it against the Beast King, so it’ll come as a complete surprise. It should throw him off, at the very least.
“Hm!”
I think that’s enough training for today. Let’s head home so you can rest.
“Hang on. I wanna go see Lumina.”
Fran had gotten familiar with the old Black Cat during our stay in Bulbola. Lumina seemed fond of her, too. Their relationship was like a loving grandmother and granddaughter.
You’re right. We should check in with her while we’re here.
“Hm.”
We hopped over to the teleportation room Lumina had made for us. I had acquired a spell called Beacon after maxing out my Dimension Magic. It created a kind of landmark which allowed us to amplify a teleportation spell. For example, a Short Jump usually had the maximum distance of ten meters, but with Beacon it could go all the way up to thirty. Beacon would disappear after a few days, but you could extend its lifespan by charging it with mana. I was sure I could make my Beacon last an entire year if I spent all my mana casting it.
We’d asked Lumina if we could set up a Beacon in her dungeon. With the amplification it provided, we should be able to meet her from any part of the world using Dimension Gate, so we’d asked about it a few days ago.
“Hello again. Are you here to chat, or is there something on your mind?”
“We want to suggest something.”
You see…
I explained Beacon to Lumina, and asked if we could set the spell up to allow us to travel there quickly. She’d learned of my existence a few days ago, and Fran was quite happy about it, since it meant she had one fewer thing to hide.
“By all means. I’ve been wanting someone to set one up, but…”
But?
“Never mind. Give it a shot. It shouldn’t be dangerous.”
Lumina sounded like she had reservations, but I decided to cast the spell anyway, since she assured us it would be safe.
Beacon.
I placed a Beacon in a corner of the room. We should be able to teleport there from the outside now.
Okay, let’s go up one floor.
“Hm.”
We returned to the fourteenth floor to cast Dimension Gate, but it didn’t work. I spent the mana, but the spell fizzled into nothing. I felt Beacon respond, but we were still in the same spot. It should’ve worked. I was sure I’d fulfilled all the requirements. But no matter how many times I tried, something stopped me from opening a gate.
“No good?”
Yeah. It feels like there’s something blocking me.
Some kind of magic barrier, in all likelihood. The effect was similar to when we were trapped in Linford’s force field. We returned to Lumina, and she nodded with a knowing look.
“I guess you couldn’t break the Goddess’ protection.”
I understood immediately that some kind of barrier was to blame. Clearing dungeons was tough work, and D-Rank dungeons were known to claim more than their fair share of victims. There were monsters and traps that could kill even experienced adventurers on a bad day. Now, what was the easiest way to clear a dungeon? Learn all you can about it? Explore with a balanced party? Stock up on potions and other emergency provisions?
No. The easiest way was to clear the dungeon without setting foot in it. For example, teleporting immediately into the Core Room and destroying the core, opening a gate and blasting it with magic from the outside, and so on.
The strategy wasn’t unreasonable, either. You could technically teleport right there by maxing out Dimension Magic, or with the help of some other manatech. There were also the Godswords—weapons which surpassed all common sense. Lumina knew about one such weapon: Nuclear Sword Meltdown. The blade no longer existed, but the name was enough to convey its immense power.
A spell of protection was imbued in the dungeons to protect them from this sort of abuse. The dungeons were a gift from the gods for the training of man, and it was much better for everyone involved if you couldn’t cheat your way through. If the gods were in on it, no wonder the barrier was so absolute.
“You only need to prevent your mana from being disrupted, yes?”
“Hm.”
“Then hang on.”
Lumina retreated to her room. A few minutes later, we heard a rumbling as a cave formed in the wall in front of us. We peeked inside and found that it was a long passageway.
“I’m back. I’ve set up a room at the end of this hallway that allows you to teleport to it as long as you have Teacher with you.”
Lumina used her powers as a Dungeon Master to create a room just for us. Although the room was built in mere minutes, it was decorated with small details, showcasing the authority of her office.
“Thanks.”
“Likewise. As I said, I’ve been waiting for someone to come along and set this up for me.”
We tried Dimension Gate again and a portal immediately opened to the room Lumina had made. The inn where we were staying was quite near the dungeon, so we could quietly and easily visit her
