Chapter 60: C60 – Partner

The morning of the next day, Alec, Garet, and Casma boarded a wagon owned by a merchant. Their destination was the capital city where the academy was located. 

"You two stay safe. I know I'm not there yet, but I hope I'll be able to take a job with you two again in the future."

Alec shook Dirk and Ava's hands with a vow. Dirk and Ava were Alec's goal. He wanted to reach and stay at their level. He would need more experience, but that would come with time. Regardless, these two people were worth knowing. Alec definitely couldn't be a stranger to them.

The three gave their goodbyes. After that, Dirk and Ava watched as their group members drove away. Now, it was just them. 

"...So, when do we get started?"

Ava asked as she glanced at Dirk. Just the two of them. It made her a bit excited. 

They had taken very few things from the luggage. For both of them, there was a single tent and blanket, two water bags, the loot bag, some changes of clothes, and a few other small necessities. These things fit in two small bags that they slung across their backs. The bags wouldn't get in the way much while fighting, so it was very ideal. 

With their ability to cook food and create water, the two of them could survive inside a dungeon indefinitely. They didn't even need pots or pans. Dirk could just form structures of hard stone with his earth magic. If they wanted an oven or pan, he could make it, though it would just be rock. 

"How about now? We have a week to kill 140 skinks and collect their grade 3 fire mana crystals. That's 20 a day. Think we can do it?"

Dirk glanced at her, the two seeing the fighting spirit in each other's eyes. Ava smiled.

"I think we can."

"Then let's go."

Saying that, Dirk turned and walked with Ava back to the dungeon. They entered with an unyielding confidence as if there was nothing that could stop them from achieving their goal. 

............

.......

"Behind!"

"Yup!"

*Splat!*

Within the dungeon, two people were currently facing off against 3 skinks. The sun was high in the sky, beaming down with energy sapping heat. The skinks these two people fought also spat their own flames, attempting to sear their prey alive. 

Unfortunately, these skinks were not the first these people had killed, and they would be far from the last. The duo passed between the three skinks as they flourished their weapons with coordinated but ruthless swings, mauling the skinks until they couldn't stand. 

Finally, after only a few minutes, these skinks dropped to the floor, quenching the parched ground beneath them with blood. 

Dirk bent down to harvest the mana crystals of his kills. After carving through their leathery muscles and bones, he pulled out a warm red mana crystal. 

As he walked to the other couple of skinks, Ava took a seat on one of the corpses, letting out a breath. 

"How many is that? 18?"

"19."

Dirk corrected her as he plucked the last mana crystal. He then tossed it into the loot bag hanging from his waist. Standing up, he scanned the landscape around them. 

It had been 3 days since they entered the dungeon alone. The first two days, Dirk and Ava made their way straight toward the furthest haven. Because they were able to move so fast, they had some time to kill after reaching the haven the group had previously struggled to approach, taking time to hunt some of the strong skinks. After that, they went on to hunt the entire third day, bringing them to now. 

In this day alone, they had killed and harvested 19 skinks. Hearing that number, Ava nodded. 

"We need at least 30 crystals a day to make the deadline. That first day, we could only hunt dune worms. That was a waste of time."

"Well, at least we have this area to ourselves. And nobody weighing us down."

Dirk spoke as he looked at Ava. 

He and she had made a great team. They were fluid in their cooperation with each other. Dirk could hold down multiple skinks and she could chop them into pieces. They made quick work of every enemy they ran into, and they ran into a lot. 

Neither of them got hurt, and with nobody to worry about, they could focus entirely on the fight. While Ava thought Dirk's words about being held back were harsh to their former partners, she couldn't help but agree. When it was just them, they had no problems. Their efficiency was unbelievably higher than before. 

Plus, Ava couldn't deny that she liked being alone with Dirk. This was especially so at night. 

Because Dirk had wanted to pack light and didn't believe in unnecessary accommodations, he had only taken one tent. This meant that for the past two nights, Ava had slept right by Dirk's side. The two got plenty comfortable, huddling under one blanket and getting cozy in each other's warmth. 

The only problem that Ava found was that Dirk fell asleep far too fast. As soon as his head hit the pillow, he was out. While he could be awoken with the slightest touch or sound, Ava never bothered him. Still, just their being so close to each other made her giddy. 

All Ava's problems seemed distant as she hunted inside the dungeon with Dirk. They quickly moved from group to group, killing every skink they saw. With nobody to bother them, they were like ghosts as they drifted around the depths of the dungeon.

When one got deep enough, there were truly more skinks than one knew what to do with. Sometimes, the duo would get into back-to-back fights, fighting for a dozen minutes at a time. One time, they had fought for an hour straight as skinks continued to pile on top of them. That battle had truly drawn a river of blood, alongside bountiful harvests of course. 

While individual fights weren't tiring, sequential ones were. The fatigue built up through the hours, and by the end of the day, Ava and Dirk were pushing themselves forward with sheer willpower. After all, they had to use anima and mana to fight these skinks, not just their bodily energy. Using techniques and magic consumed far more energy. 

But neither complained. If anything, they loved it. It was so much more exciting than training repetitively in the comfort of their home. They could let out their carnal instinct for bloodshed while honing their skill. During these times, Ava couldn't be happier. 

She was incredibly glad that she and Dirk got over their little spat. Ava appreciated everything she had ever done with Dirk. It was his training and effort that brought her to this point. She couldn't imagine the life she would have led if she had never said yes to him at school. The decision to begin training with him and his mother was the best choice she had ever made. Now, the fruits of her hard work were paying off more than she ever expected it would. 

"Alright, let's keep going."

After resting for a bit, Dirk began walking off further into the depths of the dungeon. Ava's eyes gazed at his back before she stood and pranced over to him, bumping him with her shoulder. 

Like that, the two waited for more prey to find them, neither fearful with the support of the one next to them. 

.........

....

Meanwhile, as Dirk and Ava fought in the dungeon, Alec was getting settled back into the academy. 

After arriving at the capital city, Garet and Casma went to the academy's hospital to get checked up. After finding that Casma would be fine, they left and returned to their parent's residences. While Casma wouldn't be permanently disabled, they needed to ensure that she wouldn't be mentally or physically incapable of progressing far in the future. After all, Casma's success was the success of the family. Garet's family interests were also aligned with her success since it was almost settled that they would be getting married in the future. 

So when Casma returned to her parents, they were stunned silly. Their daughter's first dungeon dive ended so poorly. After hearing the story though, they didn't know what to say. 

Casma had been lethally wounded, but it had been Dirk Strider that saved her life. While Garet was resentful toward Dirk, Casma had come to appreciate that heartless teenager. She didn't conceal that it had been his quick thinking that allowed her to be where she was now. If it weren't for his very presence, she would be nothing but food for a bunch of monsters. 

Such an attitude surprised Garet. Casma had been subject to what was essentially torture. She almost bled to death, then her flesh was seared shut. Then she was forced to move a few dozen miles while weak and sick, basically being dragged the whole way. Dirk was the ruthless monster that forced her through that, and Garet was sure to highlight the pain he put Casma through. But Casma shut him down. 

Sure the experience was beyond dreadful. Casma would take every measure to never go through something like that again. But after the pain subsided and she looked back, she realized just how lucky she was. Instead of making her feeble, the experience hardened her mind. If she could get through that, then she could get through anything else. She was a bit proud of herself for pushing through everything. Once she healed and got back on her feet, she would be stronger than ever. 

Casma's parents also realized how lucky she was. After hearing the story and settling matters, Casma's father personally paid a visit to the Strider household. It was here that he met Dirk's mother and left her a gift, a thank you for Dirk saving Casma's life. The gift was 2 blue crystal shards. 

There were three levels of currency. Silver, gold, and crystal. These crystal chards were a unit of crystal currency. And each crystal was worth 1000 gold coins. 

Casma's father had actually paid 2000 gold for saving Casma's life. After Dirk's mother got an explanation for everything, she was surprised. After seeing Casma's father off, she immediately went and found Alec, who told her the entire story. 

The story shocked Cecilia. It wasn't hard to see what happened, but she didn't know where Dirk could have learned the medical knowledge required to make the judgments he did. After she let Alec go, Cecilia pondered for a while with a frown. 

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After eventually shaking her head, Cecilia disappeared with the decision to just wait until Dirk returned. 

............

.......

*Splat!*

"...Huff, that's 30."

Ava let out a labored breath after burying her axe in the head of a skink. Dirk also swiftly killed off his prey with a knife to its eye socket. There were 13 bodies around them, and the sun was getting low. 

4 more days had passed. This was now the 7th day that the two had entered the dungeon alone. They never once left. Their food consisted of cooked skink meat which they ate in the morning and night. At first, it had been a bit tough to eat. But over time, the two learned to enjoy it. The only thing Dirk made a mental note of was to bring seasoning on his next trip. 

Dirk had a faint smile on his face as he plucked out all the mana crystals. In his vision, he could see a counter with the number 142 on it. This was the number of mana crystals they had collected, and the number was tracked by Dirk's AI. 

They had finally hunted enough. Now, their job was complete. 

"We're done."

Dirk spoke, a little excitement in his voice. Hearing him, Ava was also excited. 

"Finally! I didn't think we'd actually do it, by ourselves no less. It's been what, three weeks since we've left home? I've never been gone for so long in my entire life."

"Mm."

Dirk nodded in agreement. He had spent this entire life within the confines of the capital city, a place of peace, safety, and prosperity. Now, not only had he left, but he had done so for three weeks straight. He had no guide or parent with him. Their livelihoods depended on them alone in this place. 

While he was perfectly fine with this, for Ava this was a huge adventure. Everything was new and she had to mature a little in order to keep her bearings. Luckily, with Dirk here things became much easier. He was never fazed by anything. 

"Well, it looks like we can finally leave. We can start making our way back now. Let's sleep early and leave early in the morning. We can be on a wagon home in two days."

Dirk spoke as he hoisted his bag. However, Ava seemed to think of something else. 

"Hey, what if we went to the king's hall?"

"King's hall?"

Hearing her, Dirk was surprised. 

The king's hall was basically the boss room for each dungeon. In the lesser dungeons like the one they were in, the most powerful of a species would form a king's hall. One could fight the king, and if it was killed, then the victors would be awarded precious loot. 

However, there were two things that caused Dirk to frown. One, the king was an enemy that surpassed all others in a dungeon. Two, once someone entered the king's hall, they couldn't leave until either they or the king died. 

It was a life or death battle, and worse yet, they couldn't evaluate the power of the king until they entered personally. While it wouldn't outstrip the power level of the dungeon by far, it was still a significant jump. 

So far, Dirk and Ava had fought skinks that were at the higher end of the Rank 3 level. These Rank 3 skinks were large, strong, and fast. As for the king, it would most likely be a Rank 4 skink. Not only that, but it would likely be able to use Tier 3 magic. 

Dirk was Rank 3 himself, and at the peak of Rank 3 no less. He could slaughter the skinks they had been fighting all day, even by himself. However, he had never fought a Rank 4 enemy before, and over time, Dirk had felt the difference between power levels in this world. 

The robbers he had killed had Rank 2 strength. Despite that, Dirk had slaughtered them like they were nothing. They simply couldn't resist his strength. He could break their bones with his hands! Even back on Earth, no ordinary person could do such a thing. He had already surpassed his self from Earth, in terms of personal strength at least. 

Dirk was wary about fighting those above him, but at the same time, he wanted a challenge. 

He thought about it for a long while, weighing his odds. Slowly, he nodded. 

"If you're confident, then we'll do it. But this is an all in battle. You can't be indecisive."

Dirk looked at Ava with a solemn face. Once they went in, there would be no coming out unless they succeeded. Just this fact alone worried Dirk. 

Ava naturally knew what fighting the king meant though. Hearing that he wasn't opposed, Ava was excited. 

"Yes! Dirk, we can do it. Besides, we gotta push ourselves if we want to get better. These kinds of battles will make us stronger!"

"I guess. We rest first though. Let's head back."

"Of course."

Ava was all smiles as she started walking back to the haven with Dirk. It only took an hour or so to arrive, and as they walked into the haven, they dragged the corpse of a skink with them. 

Right now, Dirk and Ava were the only ones in this haven. The other group that had been there was now long gone. The duo had the entire fortress to themselves. There weren't even any guards stationed here. Those would only be seen in the havens near the entrance of the dungeon. 

Dirk and Ava tossed their bags in the center of the open plot of land. Ava quickly got to setting up the tent while Dirk tossed the skink corpse to the side. He then bent down next to a certain rock formation nearby. This rock formation was the oven he had formed the day before. He hadn't gotten rid of it since there were no people here and he knew he would use it again.

Dirk lit a fire above his hand. Facing his palm to the oven opening, he used a certain spell and shot his flames into the oven. These flames burned much hotter than ordinary flames, easily reaching thousands of degrees. It wasn't long before the interior of the oven was scorching hot, and with the stone absorbing so much heat, the temperature would linger for a long while. This made it easy to cook without constant flame. 

After that, Dirk went and cut up the skink corpse. He cut out the thickest cut of meat from the skink around its abdomen and legs. Then, he cut them into strips before tossing them into the oven. The meat sizzled as the heat from the stone rapidly cooked it. Dirk was sure to occasionally heat up the oven with his flames too, keeping the temperature constant. 

After setting up the tent and making it as homely as it could get, Ava also went over and sat next to Dirk. It wasn't long before he pulled out these strips of meat and put them onto a clean stone plate. They were thoroughly cooked but still tender and juicy. While the taste was bland with no seasoning, they could only make do. 

The two dug in as Dirk tossed in plenty of meat for the both of them. After about an hour, the two were totally full. 

"Hm, that was pretty good. You've gotten better."

"Thanks."

"Mm. I'll take care of the corpse."

Ava smiled at him before suddenly standing up. She walked over to the skink corpse which had been half gutted before grabbing its tail and dragging it out of the haven. 

Once she exited, she activated the anima in her body and began swinging around her. After building enough momentum, she let go and flung the skink away. The corpse went flying through the air before landing about 90 meters away with a solid thud. 

"Yes..."

Ava cheered for herself before walking back in. All monster corpses would disappear naturally with time, so they didn't need to worry about burning trash or anything themselves. They could just toss it out in the open and the dungeon would decompose it itself. 

"Alright, be sure to get plenty of sleep tonight."

Dirk spoke as Ava trotted back to his side. 

"Wake up whenever you want. We'll only go to the king's hall when we're totally ready. We're also going to leave most of our auxiliary items here. We'll only bring in our gear to fight with. There can't be any distractions. Other than that, fighting skinks to reach the king's hall will serve as our warmup. Don't be nervous, but don't be relaxed. We just need to keep sharp and hope we'll be fine."

Dirk laid out his plans. He truly hated how one couldn't enter and exit the king's hall as they pleased. If they were to enter and immediately find that the skink was beyond their level, then they could only fight to their death. It could be seen as a path of no return. This was something Dirk absolutely despised. 

But he also wasn't a coward. He had gone through plenty of crisis battles where all seemed hopeless on Earth, and he had used his wits and daring to carve a path out. Because of this confidence, he was willing to take the risk. If he wanted to become something great in this world, he had to be willing to do such things.

Gone were the old rules. Dirk was finally taking a plunge into the deep end of this world. Not only that, but he had someone to fight with, a partner to face adversity alongside. 

 

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