The forest beyond the Academy grounds stretched out like a living sea of green, dense and humming with life.
A morning mist clung to the underbrush, veiling the land in cool silver light as birds chirped warily from high branches.
Luka moved silently through it all.
Serene followed close behind, her steps practiced and precise, though she carried a picnic basket in one hand like this was a countryside outing instead of a monster hunt.
"You know," she said casually as they ducked under a low branch, "most students would use their break to rest. Maybe visit a spa. Or sleep. Or eat sothing that wasn't cooked over a fire."
Luka, crouched beside a mossy rock, drew his dagger across the neck of a bloated forest crawler without even glancing back.
The monster gurgled once before collapsing into the leaves with a wet hiss.
A faint light drifted from its corpse, seeping into Luka's arm.
His EXP bar ticked up with a soft chi.
"I am resting," Luka replied, wiping the blade clean on a fern. "Just... efficiently."
Serene looked at the monster's twitching body and sniffed. "Your definition of 'rest' is fundantally broken."
"No monsters, no progress. No progress, no edge. Besides," he said, standing and stretching his arms with a pop of his shoulders, "if I stay in the city too long, soone might rope into another parade."
"You do have a tendency to attract attention." She tilted her head. "Well, unwanted attention."
"Exactly."
They moved deeper into the forest.
The trees here grew twisted and tall, their roots coiling like sleeping serpents across the trail.
Birds and insects went quiet as they stepped into a natural clearing ringed with ancient stones and tall mushrooms that glowed faintly blue in the shadows.
"Mini-boss up ahead," Luka said, pointing toward a dense thicket where the ambient magic swirled unnaturally.
Serene set down the basket with a graceful sigh and drew a giant shield from her back. "Finally. I was starting to feel like I was on a date with a forest map."
"I did promise you exercise," Luka said mildly.
"You promised 'companionship and fresh air,'" she shot back. "You didn't say it would involve acid spiders and angry plant golems."
As if on cue, the thicket shivered—and exploded.
A beast twice the size of a horse lumbered out, its body a tangle of moss, bark, and dripping sli. Its many eyes blinked independently, and thorny vines thrashed from its back like whips.
"Ah," Serene said flatly. "The forest heartworm. How charming."
Luka had already vanished.
The creature roared and swung a massive tendril where he had been standing—but Luka reappeared behind it in a blink, slashing deep into the base of its vine-limbs.
It howled, twisting, but a needle of light whistled through the air as Serene took a couple steps forward.
"I hate this part," she muttered as the monster screeched and spasd, trying to crush both of them at once with sheer mass.
They danced around it.
The beast was strong, but slow. And soon, it bled luminous green ichor from half a dozen wounds.
It tried to retreat. Luka didn't let it.
With a low jump and a flash of steel, he drove his dagger into its skull. The creature convulsed, slumped—and collapsed with a tree-shaking crash.
Silence returned.
EXP trickled in.
Serene dusted herself off. "So, lunch?"
Luka looked at the clearing now sared with monster gore. "Maybe over there," he pointed. "Less worm juice."
They moved to a sunlit rock overlooking a tranquil stream, the air fresh and calm again.
Serene pulled out neatly wrapped sandwiches and a thermos of lemon tea from the basket.
"You're disturbingly prepared," Luka noted.
"I know you," she said with narrowed eyes. "I knew if I didn't pack this, we'd be eating dried rations by a cave."
They ate in comfortable silence, interrupted only by the occasional soft grunt of distant wildlife.
After a while, Luka leaned back against the rock and closed his eyes, letting the forest sounds settle over him. "This… isn't too bad."
"You sound surprised."
"I thought I hated breaks," he admitted. "But if they're like this—no nobles, no students, no Arthur…"
Serene sipped her tea. "And no elves."
"Exactly."
A faint rustle ca from a nearby bush. Luka's hand darted to his dagger—but a mont later, Snow the baby dragon tumbled out of the leaves, yawning and sneezing tiny sparks.
"Sleepy idiot," Luka said fondly, watching it crawl into Serene's lap.
"He's been following us all day. I pretended not to notice." She stroked his soft white scales. "He needs the fresh air too."
They rested a little longer. Then, as the sun began to tilt past its noon peak, Luka stood, stretching.
"More grinding?" Serene asked, though she was already retying her braid.
"Just a couple more zones. I want to level up a little more before I go back."
"You're already ahead of most the upperclassn."
"Doesn't an I stop."
She nodded, not arguing. She didn't need to.
As they walked deeper into the trees once again, Luka checked his gear, adjusted his cloak, and glanced back once.
Serene followed.
Snow scampered behind them, tail swishing happily.
Suddenly--
Luka paused mid-step.
Serene stopped beside him. "What is it?"
He didn't answer right away. His eyes scanned the ground, then the surrounding trees. There was a strange scent in the air—old stone, stale magic, and sothing darker.
He knelt near a mossy patch and brushed the greenery aside.
Beneath it lay a shattered stone disk, etched with worn-out runes.
"...A seal?" Serene murmured, crouching beside him.
Luka nodded once, slowly. "Broken. Recently."
Snow sniffed the air, then growled low in his throat, backing away and curling his tail protectively around himself.
"Definitely sothing nearby," Luka said, standing and following a barely visible trail of disturbed roots and faded footprints. "Co on."
They moved cautiously, following the faint signs deeper into the forest until the trees opened into a hollow. The air grew still and heavy, and nestled in the center of the glade was a hill of jagged rock. At its base, partially obscured by vines and debris, yawned a dark stone entrance frad by crumbled pillars.
Serene stared at it, then at Luka. "That's a dungeon."
"Yeah."
"It's unmarked. Not even listed on the Guild Registry or academy maps."
"Which ans it's either new…" Luka's eyes narrowed, "…or soone didn't want it found."
He stepped forward and placed his hand near the edge of the stone entrance. A faint thrum of arcane energy vibrated through his fingers—ancient and layered, but… weakening.
Serene unsheathed a dagger. "There's movent inside. I can feel it."
Luka glanced at her. "You sure you're up for this?"
She gave him a dry look. "Please. This is our vacation, rember?"
Snow whined but followed as they entered the tunnel. The stone corridor inside was cold and narrow, sloping downward at an angle. Strange root-like veins glowed faintly in the walls, pulsating with violet energy.
They passed ancient markings—elven script, twisted into sothing darker. And then they heard it: the clatter of bones, the scrape of steel against stone.
"Undead," Luka muttered.
As they rounded a corner, three skeletal warriors shambled toward them, eyes flickering blue within their sockets. Rusted armor hung from their fras, and their swords were jagged but sharp.
Luka vanished in a flash.
The first skeleton turned—only for its skull to be shattered from behind. The second raised its blade, but Serene's shield pushed into its body before it could swing.
The third managed a weak lunge.
Snow, now hovering with tiny wings, let out a puff of fire.
The skeleton staggered back, and Luka finished it with a clean decapitation.
"They're slow," Serene said.
"Basic undead. This must be the outer floor."
"Still think this is just a vacation?"
"I think this is the best vacation I've had all year."
They pressed forward, descending deeper.
The dungeon opened into an ancient underground temple filled with broken altars, toppled statues, and shattered stained glass windows—strange, given they were underground.
The light ca from clusters of floating orbs embedded in the walls, each one flickering like a trapped soul.
Luka examined one, frowning. "They're runed to keep the dead bound here. This place isn't just a ruin—it was a containnt site."
"So who broke the seal?" Serene asked.
As if in response, a chilling shriek echoed through the halls. The temperature dropped. Frost ford on the stone underfoot.
It erged from the far end of the temple—a tall, humanoid figure wrapped in rotted ceremonial robes, its face hidden behind a cracked golden mask.
In one hand it held a gnarled staff pulsing with dark energy. Its body radiated a cold that clawed into the lungs.
[UNNAD LICH]Level: ???Status: Sealed (Weakening)
Luka read the status window as it flickered briefly into view. His brows furrowed.
"I don't like that question mark."
"Should we pull back?"
Luka was already drawing his dagger. "Too late. It's seen us."
The Lich raised its staff—and the ground erupted.
Shadows coalesced into half-ford wraiths. Ice spikes jutted from the floor, and a bone-chilling wind howled through the chamber.
Luka dashed forward.
The wraiths lunged for him—but Serene moved in tandem, blocking them with her shield.
Snow ducked and weaved around spells, hurling fireballs to lt the frost before it spread too far.
The Lich let out another cry, and chains of magic spiraled from its staff.
One wrapped around Luka's arm, frost spreading fast.
He growled and slamd a hidden vial into it—breaking the spell's hold with a flash of red light.
He leapt onto a crumbled altar and launched himself from it, dagger glowing faintly blue with mana.
In a single, fluid motion, he landed on the Lich's chest, dodged the retaliatory swipe of the staff, and drove his blade deep into the mask's eye socket.
There was a burst of black smoke. The Lich shrieked—and then exploded into ash and bone fragnts.
Silence fell again.
Luka landed lightly, panting just once.
"Level up?" Serene asked.
He nodded.
Snow chirped victoriously and started chewing on a glowing bone.
A small chest appeared in the Lich's place, materializing from thin air. Luka opened it to reveal an orb of pale blue light—flickering and pulsing.
[Lesser Soul Core – Undead Type]Rarity: EpicEffect: Enhances resistance to necrotic magic and improves stealth in dark environnts.
"Nice," Luka said, pocketing it.
They took a mont to catch their breath.
Serene leaned against a pillar, brushing her hair back. "So... you were saying sothing about peaceful days off?"
Luka gave her a half-smirk. "I said quiet days. Not boring ones."
Snow flopped over dramatically, tongue out.
The dungeon walls groaned softly as the sealed energy dissipated.
Luka looked around one last ti. "We should report this when we get back."
"Will you?" Serene asked.
He shrugged. "Eventually."
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