Skill Forge: Broken Extra Character

"Have you found it yet?" the cloaked figure, previously seen during the incident with Marcella, demanded. His voice echoed through the dimly lit, abandoned underground labyrinth they were navigating.

The maze of crumbling stone walls and flickering torches gave the place an eerie, desolate feeling. Dust hung in the air, and the distant drip of water added to the labyrinth's ominous atmosphere.

The people around him, clearly his subordinates, appeared tired and frustrated. Their dark, worn clothing and downcast expressions spoke of the relentless search that had yielded no results.

"Apologies, sir, but it's just taking more time than it should," one of the subordinates responded, his voice tinged with exhaustion.

"Well, hurry up," the figure snapped, his impatience evident. "I can't imagine that old man doesn't know about us yet, but he's still keeping quiet. I want to end this before he changes his mind." As he spoke, he flipped a pendant in his hand, opening and closing it with an anxious rhythm.

"Perhaps we could enlist some students to our cause, by force if we have to. That way, we can utilize them to search openly for us," a voice suggested from the shadows.

The cloaked figure shook his head firmly. "We can't do that. The main reason the old man still hasn't paid attention to us is probably because we haven't done anything to the students. If we involve them, we're all goners."

"I, Vin, forbid you from bringing the students into this," the figure declared with authority, addressing his subordinates. 'For now, anyways,' he thought, knowing that doing otherwise could jeopardize their plans.

"For now, we'll just have to increase our efforts in finding the Dream Hound," Vin said with an urgent tone, his mind racing with anticipation. 'It won't be long now.'

*****

"You ready?" Jett asked as he watched Freya step onto the teleportation platform. His gaze was fixed on the device, not giving away his own mixed feelings about bringing her along.

In an instant, they were transported to a location just outside the academy. The teleportation platform's bright flash gave way to a stark, quiet landscape. The area was deserted, with overgrown grass and cracked pathways stretching out in every direction. There were no signs of life, no distant chatter: just an unsettling calm.

As they began their trek, an awkward silence settled between them. The emptiness of the surroundings seemed to amplify the tension.

The landscape they traversed was bleak and abandoned, with dilapidated structures and overgrown foliage hinting at a past that was long forgotten.

Freya, feeling the weight of the silence, decided to break it. "You still haven't told me where we're going," she said, her voice carrying a note of frustration.

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Jett's response was curt. "You'll know when we get there." He kept his eyes fixed ahead, avoiding any direct gaze with her.

Freya's frustration grew. "That's very reassuring," she said, sarcastically. She continued walking beside him, her mind racing with unanswered questions and growing unease.

"You really don't have to be like that," Jett sighed, clearly irritated by her attitude.

"I'm just saying," Freya pressed, her tone firm. "You ask a girl to follow you to some special place, and now she's walking with you in the middle of nowhere with no idea about where we're going—no name, no explanation. It's a bit much."

Jett shot her a look of annoyance, his patience wearing thin. "We can always turn back now. It's not like I don't have anything better to do."

Freya's irritation flared. 'Rude… after bringing me all the way here?' she thought, feeling slighted. "Then why bother taking me in the first place?" she asked, her voice sharp with a mix of confusion and hurt.

Jett's silence was all the answer she needed. The path ahead was still empty and silent.

"You really want to know?" Jett asked, his tone a mix of challenge and amusement.

"Obviously," Freya replied with a smirk. "Unless maybe you're taking me out on a date, in which case I'd say you have a very weird taste."

"Oh please," Jett retorted with a smirk of his own. "I wouldn't go on a date with you even if it meant getting sent back to level one. I'd rather mop a beach."

"What did you say?" Freya's annoyance flared, her cheeks reddening. "You better start thinking about which beach to mop very soon."

"Yeah, sure," Jett said, rolling his eyes and changing the subject. "Can we go now? I think we're almost there."

"Whatever," Freya murmured, though her annoyance was quickly overshadowed by curiosity and concern about their destination. The conversation had done little to ease her apprehension about where Jett was leading her.

After a while, they finally arrived at their destination. Freya's eyes widened in disbelief. "A dungeon? That's the special place?" she asked, her voice tinged with utter disappointment. 'How is a dungeon special?'

Jett glanced at her with a hint of contempt. "You want to turn back?"

Freya sighed, her frustration giving way to resignation. "No, let's keep going." They'd come all this way, and she was determined to see what Jett had in mind, even if it meant facing something she felt woefully unprepared for.

She knew that if it came to fighting monsters, she would be more of a liability than an asset, but her curiosity got the best of her.

At the entrance of the dungeon stood two guards, their presence adding a layer of formality to the otherwise foreboding atmosphere.

They wore dark, reinforced armor that gleamed faintly under the dim light filtering through the dungeon's entrance. Their stern expressions and watchful eyes conveyed the seriousness of their duty, making the entrance seem even more intimidating.

The guards' presence suggested that the dungeon was not just any ordinary place, but something of significant importance: or danger.

Freya took a deep breath, trying to steady her nerves as she followed Jett past the guards and into the dungeon's shadowy depths.

"We don't grant first years passage to this area. Please leave," one of the guards said, their red uniform marking them as upperclassmen.

Freya's face flushed with frustration. "You guys should have kept someone on standby from the beginning. We had to walk all the way just to be turned back?"

"Just show them your rank," Jett suggested, shaking his head. He pondered to himself, 'Now that I think about it, is there any real need to stay low on the rankings anymore? Clarence already found me out, and it's not like I can stay at my current rank forever. But there are still eyes I don't want noticing me just yet.'

Jett had stubbornly remained at rank 599,993 for a while.

His reasoning was strategic; while keeping a low profile had its advantages, it also helped him avoid unwanted attention from powerful figures and competitors. But with his identity already exposed to Clarence, the need to remain under the radar had diminished quite a bit.

Freya reluctantly revealed her rank, and the guards' expressions shifted from stern to astonished. After paying the amount of points needed to enter, the guards quickly stepped aside to let them through, having recognized her surprising status.

As they walked further into the dungeon, it became clear that Freya had unintentionally been climbing the ranks. Despite her initial reluctance to engage in combat, she had found herself in frequent duels with upperclassmen who viewed her as easy prey.

However, they all underestimated her, and Freya's cheat skill: usable only once a day, had turned the tide in her favor each time. Her rank had been rising steadily, and her victories were becoming a source of both admiration and envy among her peers.

The dungeon loomed before them, dark and intimidating despite the mana stones embedded in the walls that provided some illumination.

The light from these stones was dim and flickering, casting eerie shadows that danced across the dungeon's rough-hewn walls. Freya's [Light] skill added a bit more brightness, but the dungeon's oppressive atmosphere remained.

The air was cool and damp, filled with the scent of earth and the faint smell of dark magic. The stone floor was uneven, and the narrow corridors seemed to twist and turn unpredictably.

Freya glanced around, her nerves on edge. The dungeon felt alive with an ancient, mysterious energy that was both captivating and unsettling. Despite the light provided by her skill, the dark corners and deep recesses of the dungeon gave her an uneasy feeling, as if hidden dangers lurked just out of sight.

Jett moved with a confident stride, seemingly unaffected by the oppressive gloom. He glanced back at Freya. "Ready?" he asked.

Freya took a deep breath, trying to steady her nerves. "Yeah, let's go. I'm ready."

With that, they ventured deeper into the dungeon, with the shadows closing in around them.

"So now what?" Freya asked, her voice tinged with uncertainty as she followed Jett deeper into the dungeon.

"What next? Right, you'll be hunting some monsters today," Jett replied casually.

Freya's steps faltered, and she came to a halt, her expression one of disbelief. "That's an awfully bad joke, Jett. Stop fooling around."

"Think what you want, just don't fall behind," Jett said with a shrug, continuing forward and leaving Freya momentarily behind.

Feeling a surge of anxiety at the thought of being alone in the dark, intimidating dungeon, Freya quickly caught up with him. "So you want me to help you hunt monsters or what?" she asked, her voice quivering slightly.

"You'll be hunting today, not me," Jett smirked with a light and teasing tone.

Freya's mind raced, 'He's bluffing. He has to be.' Despite her doubts, she walked right next to him.

"I can assure you this is not a bluff," Jett said, noticing her apprehension. "I won't be doing anything in here, so don't let your thoughts get the better of you."

Freya leaned in closer, whispering, "Keep it down. So, you can even read minds?"

"Of course not," Jett replied, not bothering to lower his voice. "Your thoughts were just that obvious to predict. I don't have any offensive skills and can't even use spells, so what good would I be in a fight? That's what you're thinking right now."

As they ventured deeper, the oppressive atmosphere of the dungeon seemed to thicken. The air grew cooler and the silence more pronounced, save for the faint echoes of their footsteps.

Both Jett and Freya could sense a growing presence around them: subtle rustlings and shifts in the darkness that hinted at the approach of lurking monsters.

The faint hum of mana stones provided minimal illumination, their flickering light casting long, shifting shadows that seemed to close in on them with each step.

Freya's senses were on high alert her breathing grew shallow. The anticipation of an imminent encounter with the unknown made her pulse quicken.

She could almost feel the eyes of unseen creatures watching them from the darkness, and every small sound seemed amplified in the tense silence.

Jett, sensing her mounting unease, glanced at her with a smirk that masked his own vigilance. "Stay sharp," he advised, his tone more serious now. "We're getting close."

With the sound of their footsteps echoing through the dungeon's cavernous passages, Freya steeled herself, preparing for whatever might emerge from the shadows.

The monsters drew closer, the dungeon seemed to hold its breath, waiting for the confrontation to begin.

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But she can't use attack skill...?