Volume 1

Chapter 2: First Dungeon

PART 1

We are in a forest, surrounded by trees.

Chirping of birds, and shafts of sunlight were coming through the leaves.

I could see a small cave entrance in the distance.

A little far from the cave entrance there was a log cabin. If I'm correct, it must have been build for us adventurers. Not like monsters will build it. Unless there are intelligent monsters.

"We finally arrived."

Keith crouched down on floor because of straining legs.

I'm a little tired because I have been walking for ever.

Taylor started double checking equipment and tools.

There was a spray that reduces scent, chalk for marking our way, etc. These are tools for dungeon exploring.

This party sure is experienced.

"All right."

Taylor confirmed with a nod.

He started spraying everyone, even me. The more cautious, the better.

I was looking at the entrance. I could only see a little further, until darkness shrouded the whole cave ahead. There are 2 torches hooked on both sides of the entrance, on the wall.

On close inspection. The cave goes straight, not downwards.

"Should we rest before heading in?"

Asked Taylor.

Others looked at each other.

"I'm perfectly fine even without it."

Said Lynn.

"I am good too."

"No problem here either."

Answered me and Keith.

"If that's so, then let's head in."

With a nod, we entered.

We were moving carefully. Sticking to the wall.

All of us had their weapons out.

I was the first one to enter.

A thief's job in dungeon exploring is to look out for monsters and traps.

I have to stay in front of them and lead the group. With my enemy detection and trap detection, I can find monsters and traps.

Keith was walking beside me.

Keith said he has far sight. A skill that makes one able to look kilometers far as well as move in darkness with ease. It's great for spotting what enemy is heading our way.

I can't quite see much in this darkness but Keith can. We can't use a light source, it will attract unwanted attention.

Taylor said this region is explored and not as much dangerous because adventurers have already wiped out most of the monsters here.

But unfortunately, monsters are still here and spawning, but not at fast rate.

Taylor said that spelunkers explored the dungeon again because monsters were still spawning. Suspecting they might have missed something.

Monsters spawn because of the owner of the dungeon and live through their Arcana. Arcana comes from a powerful monster, something like a boss. [1]

Previous adventurer's didn't find anyone like that, but since monsters are still spawning, people explored the dungeon again and so new region was found inside.

As I was pondering, something pinged in my brain as if alerting me.

It was enemy detection.

Enemy detection is like a radar. If a enemy comes in detection range, it will alert my brain.

"Monsters approaching. They are more than one."

I alerted the others.

We stopped in our tracks.

"We haven't entered deep enough. Monster at this level should be piece of cake."

Said Keith, with confidence. He had already readied his bow and was aiming at the direction of the enemy.

There is no place to hide, so fighting is the only option.

Since, enemies were approaching, we needed a light source to see them, otherwise we'll be killed.

Keith alone won't be able to kill all of them with his arrows, I'm assuming.

"Yeah, they won't be much problem."

Said Lynn.

"Don't be so hasty Keith. They may be goblins or zombies, but they are more than one."

Taylor was the only one being cautious.

Others seem very confident, which is good too. They are not reckless, but over confident.

Taylor started a tool that would light the cave for us.

"They are just goblins."

Said Keith who could see quite far.

"Goblins, couldn't be a summon. They must have entered the cave from outside."

Taylor said observantly.

"It's better if you stay behind us, Kazuma."

Suggested Lynn.

As you wish, I have no problem.

Keith moved with me. He stood beside Lynn. Taylor was in front of us now.

I'm looking forward to see Lynn's magic, if she'll really use it. Its unlikely. The noise will attract monsters, furthermore, we are standing in a close, small area.

But just in case, Lynn, had her wand out.

"Kekekekeke!"

A weird laughter from the goblins. They were near us and the battle was about to commence.

PART 2

I must say, it was quite anti-climatic. I have lost all the fear I had for goblins of this world.

Keith and Taylor defeated most of the goblins.

I killed the few who slipped past them.

It was quite the experience, cutting through flesh. I'm not gonna get used to it for sure. It's... weird.

Lynn was saying stuff about protecting me, but since she couldn't use magic, I had to protect her.

Goblins were stupid. Sure they had weapons and they were fast, but it wasn't hard fighting them.

I disarmed some goblins with steal. They don't have much other than weapons, so disarming them is a easy.

"Thank you, Kazuma. I was nearly dead there."

Lynn showed her heart felt gratitude, embarrassingly.

"It's okay. You could use magic, but you held back for us."

I replied humbly with a smile.

"You disarmed a lot of goblins. That helped us too, thank you."

Said Taylor earnestly.

"Yeah, thanks and sorry. I was kind of underestimating you."

Keith is scratching his head in awkwardness.

"Me too..."

Lynn spoke.

"Again, it's no problem."

We moved on.

Seeing this battle, I'm quite confident that we'll make it out alive and without scratches, but can't be too confident.

"Since it's a small and straight cave, there isn't much place to hide. We'll have to face most of the battles. And since that's the case, I will keep the lantern out until we need to get rid of it."

Explained Taylor.

- Some time passed. I'm not sure how much exactly.

It feels like we walked for half an hour or more.

"Didn't the cave get wider?"

I asked curiously.

"It did. We should be close to our target."

Confirmed Taylor.

We didn't encounter anyone strong after those goblins.

There were 1 or 4 at most monsters.

Gremlins, and zombies.

Gremlins were faster than goblins.

And I couldn't tell a difference between a dead corpse and a zombie.

As for traps, I did not detect anything.

We were walking forward carefully.

There was light source now, so we could see vividly and move forward without problems.

I suddenly sensed a bunch of enemies.

Ahead of us was a pit.

"Enemies ahead."

I warned others.

"There is a pit ahead."

Informed Keith.

I'm assuming monsters are inside the pit.

We moved forward carefully.

Taylor gave the lantern to me. He moved ahead with his shield and sword out.

"That's a lot of them..."

Taylor spoke, a bit terrified.

A load of zombies and skeletons are inside the pit.

There is no way for them climb the pit alone, that's why we didn't encounter a lot monsters.

How did the explorers get past them?

There must be at least 20 or so.

Zombies, and skeletons combined.

The zombies were unarmed but skeletons had weapons and even armor.

"We can attack them from here. They won't be able to do anything!"

Exclaimed Keith.

Why are you yelling?

Before I could even say that, Keith fired his arrow.

The arrow hit the zombie in the head perfectly.

The sounds attracted attention of other monsters.

"Dammit Keith, since it has come to this. Lynn, I'm counting on you!"

Exclaimed Taylor, gesturing Lynn to attack.

"Leave it to me!"

Spoke Lynn, with confidence and beaming smile.

Lynn started chanting something. Must be chanting to use the spell.

On the other hand, with all the monsters alert. They were moving towards us.

I am not sure if they can climb... They are climbing!

"Shit! The zombies are climbing the wall!"

Shouted Taylor as he raised his shield.

"Agh!"

Yelped Keith in pain.

Huh?

"What happened?"

I shouted.

He was shot by arrow. The damage is not fatal. It a little more than scratch.

"There are skeleton archers! Lynn, cast shield spell!"

Shouted Taylor. He asked Lynn to cast a shield spell.

Lynn wasn't finished with her first spell, and sudden yelp from Keith broke her concentration.

"O-okay, got it! Keith are you okay?"

She asked worriedly.

"I'm fine! It's just an scratch."

Keith replied.

Lynn went back to chanting the spell.

Zombies were brainless, just like the ones from my world. They were moving towards the wall and climbing it. They didn't care if other zombies were in their way. They just climb over them, and so most of them were on our level already.

Keith can't fight at close range and was busy with skeleton archers.

Taylor was overwhelmed with 10s of zombies.

Lynn was nearly finished with her chant.

I suppose it's time for 'Gates'.

"Gates of Althea."

I incanted.

The area was wide enough to summon a bunch of portals.

Portals were summoned in a orderly manner. Neatly assigned beside each other, forming a wall.

I summoned them above us. They'll only hit the monsters inside the pit. Mostly likely, all of them will be wiped out.

The lances, spears, swords etc, shot out of the portals.

Some hit the ground, but since there are a bunch of monsters, most of the weapons pierced through the monsters.

One shot to the skeletons and they broke apart.

The zombies were as good as brainless humans. They die when their vitals are hit.

The others were shocked.

Lynn stopped her chanting. There was no need for that anyway. The skeleton archers are dead.

I didn't get to see magic though...

Keith wasn't firing anymore.

Taylor was shocked but couldn't bother. The zombies who climbed above were still overwhelming him.

"K-Kazuma... what was that?"

"Yeah, what was it?"

Asked Keith and Lynn, equally shocked.

"That later, let's help Taylor first."

I replied.

PART 3

"Kazuma, that was amazing!"

"Yeah, what was that?! Where did those weapons come from? Not to mention they wiped all those monsters in the pit in an instant!"

Exclaimed Taylor and Keith. Keith was especially amazed for some reason.

That's right. Be amazed by my power!

Be amazed, and tell it to others. Spread the rumors. The more influence, the better.

I smirked.

"You really saved us, Kazuma! I couldn't even cast a single spell, I was scared and lost focus..."

Lynn said dejectedly. She must be feeling inferior and useless.

"Ah, well. Don't be sad... I just happened to have that ability."

I replied.

"Yeah Lynn. Don't worry about that. We have been in such situation many times. You help us a lot, we just had Kazuma with his ability this time."

Replied Taylor, reassuring Lynn.

"That's right! Good thing we brought Kazuma with us! I think we'll complete this quest with no problems now!"

Exclaimed Keith, still excited and amazed.

Taylor eyed Keith with irritated expressions.

"Who's fault is it we got into that mess, Keith."

Taylor said, with a hint of anger and furrowed brows, but his voice was quite calm.

"Ah, well. Sorry... I thought I could wipe them out with my arrows, but the zombies climbed up..."

Spoke Keith apologetically. Smiling wryly.

"More importantly, weren't you hit by an arrow?"

Lynn asked.

"I told you, it was just a scratch."

Replied Keith.

"Well, anyways. Thanks again, Kazuma."

"Yeah. I owe you one."

Said Lynn and Taylor.

"No problem. Let's get going now."

I replied.

"Yes, about that. The region is just ahead, in the pit. There is a small entrance."

Said Taylor while reading a map.

We climbed down the pit.

On the left of the wall we climbed down, there was a slope. It was like a cave inside a cave.

"The Guild said this was hidden until the people found it."

But, looking closely, it was well built further.

We walked inside.

It was maybe built by the owner of this dungeon.

The path wasn't lit but it was well built.

It seemed like a never ending hallway of rocks.

The further we walked in, the wider it got.

Just where are we going?

Ahead of us was something like a small room in middle of hallway.

In middle of left side of the room, there was a chest.

"Treasure? Feels strange."

I asked.

I was feeling hostility from the chest. As if Enemy Detection was alerting me.

"No, that's not it. It must be a mimic."

Said Lynn.

Mimic? Like a fake chest that turns into monster?

Well, if they say so, I will stay away from it.

"Wanna see?"

Asked Keith with a smirk.

"Not really."

I replied.

Despite my reply, Keith still threw a rock at it.

The chest opened up and swallowed the rock. The chest had teeth.

I knew it. Seems like it can sense anything close to it.

Ignoring the mimic, we moved forward.

After several minutes of walking, we encountered our first trap.

"Wait, I feel something ahead."

It was somewhat like the feeling as enemy detection but not quite right.

"A trap. I can see it."

Said Keith, observing ahead.

He saw it with the help of his far sight skill. Quite useful, isn't it...

"How do we avoid it? Should I use my trap disarmament?"

I asked.

PART 4

We encountered many traps after entering the unexplored region.

There weren't many monsters other than a few bunch of undead. Which were taken care of easily.

After 20 or 30 minutes of walking, we encountered another room, this time it was an actual room at the right side of the never-ending hallway.

There is another chest in this room and it isn't showing hostility.

We have been walking all day, and most of us are tired.

Me, Lynn, and Keith. Taylor doesn't look at much tired.

If I'm correct, we have been walking in this dungeon for hours or more.

Now that we have encountered an actual chest, the purpose these guys came here for, we'll start leaving after taking all the valuables in it.

"Another chest, is it real Kazuma?"

Asked Taylor as he pointed towards the chest aligned by the wall in middle.

"Yeah. I don't feel any hostility from it."

I replied.

"Finally! A real chest."

Keith rejoiced.

"Can you not shout?"

Said Lynn but she was just as happy as Keith.

Taylor opened the chest and viewed its content.

Us three, curiously, got closer to inspect as well.

What we found was bunch of accessories made out of gold and other valuables in general. [2]

"Jackpot! This might not be as much loot at a chest at the end of the dungeon, but this will really sell for ton."

Said Taylor.

They started stuffing the treasure in sack that they brought for this purpose.

So boss room would have more treasure? We could also find a overpowered item or something there.

This feels like a game, a game where I can actually die. Maybe it's late to say that now.

"We found what we wanted. Let's leave. You all agree?"

Asked Taylor.

Why ask for our opinions?

"No problem."

I replied.

The others agreed too.

Hence, we started back tracking.

After Word:

Changed the story narrative to first person

Note, this story started at same time the canon Kazuma was teleported, but Kazuma had wasted his time in as labor in canon. I am not sure how long it lasted but I'm gonna assume a week or so.

[1] Not sure how correct that is. I did not want to copy and pasted from novel so I wrote it myself.

[2] Okay so. Those who might think chest in middle of dungeon is stupid. Note that Aqua found a empty chest in Keele's dungeon.

Reviews:

To Roffan, thank you for the feedback. Do you not like italic thoughts? If so, well not every person is a good reader. If I were to not use italics to separate narrative from thoughts, it might look like mess for some people. Moreover, I wanted to write battles in third person view. Also, I did not revise the chapter correctly, but I do think there aren't any missing periods or such. Note, my vocablury is bad.

To xEnderx2104, thank you too. I'm not sure what harem you are talking about. This isn't going to be that cringe, dense, typical anime harem. I'm gonna assume you have read KonoSuba novel, so you probably know Kazuma's harem. Megumin, Darkness and Iris, if I'm correct. Kazuma is more or less aware of his harem. Anyway, this isn't going to be the same. Here Kazuma isn't a hiki-neet, rather an manipulator.

To IgreBlue98, thanks for being first reviewer and looking forward for my work. Forced dialogues, huh. I'm not sure what that exactly suppose to mean. And, again if you aren't into something like Overlord, or Rezero( I guess), than you might not like what will happen in this story later on.

To mbinmohdyusoff, thanks for complementing the writing quality. I'm not sure what charm you are talking about.

Note, I already said this, but again. This isn't a happy go lucky story. Starting from Volume 2, it will change alot.

Accidently uploaded wrong document. I'm sure I uploaded this chapter the first time, but how the fuck that happened.