35: Falling Into Despair... Or Hope?

Falling Into Despair... Or Hope?

The fall lasted a lot longer than Neve thought it would.

She spent at least half a minute just falling through the air. The water that had been by her feet before was stretched out into lines of liquid around her, almost like wires lowering her to her destination. Her staff was still in her hands, just barely missing the rocks.

If it wasn't for {Candlelight}, Neve might have believed that at some point she'd already died and that she was currently being swallowed by the abyss. Instead, she could see the rock walls around her, forming the hole she was currently descending through.

[Well...] She thought. [This is not good.]

That was the extent to which she could use those half-decent analytical skills of hers, as she was well and truly powerless to stop this fall. She turned her head, not wanting to try moving her body for fear of slamming into the rocks.

She tried to get a good view of where exactly she was falling into, but {Candlelight} wasn't quite *that* potent.

[Uh... What are the chances that I'm not actually falling right now, and this is all just the product of an elaborate Illusion-type spell?]

If that was the case, all Neve could do was wait it out.

Once she broke past the 1-minute mark, that hope left her mind.

This was when the first change appeared.

The rocks in this pit were suddenly swapped for a grey, almost blue, stone.

[Huh?]

Gone were the jagged edges that Neve feared would take her head off if she came too close to the walls. Now, she was falling through what looked like an actual man-made hole.

The second change was noticeable once {Candlelight} faded, and Neve realized that there was still a source of light, illuminating her surroundings from below.

[Um... What is this? Seriously, what is happening?] 

A message then finally appeared that explained the situation.

{The Halls of the Luminous}

{Recommended Level: 60}

Activity Points Gained: 500

Activity Points: 1690

"..."

Suddenly, it almost felt like she was being cradled by invisible hands as she fell. She pictured angels delivering her to hell personally.

[Oh.]

Neve exhaled deeply.

[This again. I'm fucked.]

The intricately carved stone eventually opened up. Neve's eyes widened and she turned her head once again, finding that she was falling into an entire underground city.

Towers lit with blue beacons, high buildings that rivaled anything in Starlight City limited only by the ceiling above, beautiful grey streets leading up to a massive church-like structure, and many, many small homes with narrow roads cutting between them. All of it wrapped in a sheet of rocks.

[... This is a dungeon?]

Because the space around her had widened, Neve turned her body. She was in the process of falling into a giant lake.

[Just on the off chance that I somehow live through this, I should probably put my staff away.]

She did just that, spotting something within the lake that glowed brightly, almost like the moon had been submerged beneath it.

[So, I heard that if you fall from a high enough distance, falling into water is actually the same as falling on concrete. Am I gonna be alright?]

Her answer came as she landed in the lake and found that its surface swallowed her whole.

It didn't feel like water at all. Whatever liquid she was in had a squishy, slimy texture to it.

Neve's body glowed white as she swam to the surface.

Gasping for air, she found the shore leading to the city to the right and swam toward it. As she reached the shore, she got out of the water and found that...

She was completely dry.

The pieces of water that were in her hair and stuck to her clothes fell to the dirt like clay sliding off her body, leaving no trace behind.

[What the hell?] She asked as she looked back at the lake she'd just come out from. [What was that stuff?]

Just as the questions were mounting, Tamira appeared before her.

"Well," the snake said, grinning. "I was right. You are certainly making things entertaining for once."

Shaking her head, Neve looked up at the city ahead.

"Uh, Tamira..."

"Yes?"

"What the fuck is this?"

"Hehehe, isn't it clear? You fell into a new area."

"But... Okay, okay," she set that aside, reminding herself that there could be enemies nearby. She needed to get her bearings fast. "You got any tips for me? I assume you came for a reason."

"Indeed. First things first, this is no typical dungeon you just fell into. Most dungeons, including the punishment dungeon you were sent to and the one you were making your way through before this pleasant little moment we're having, follow a very basic structure. You begin at Point A, and you make your way to Point B, going from one checkpoint to another before then, and fighting a boss once you eventually reach your destination. This, however, is the Hall of the Luminous. That is not how things work here. It would be more accurate to call this place an 'arena' than a dungeon."

"You mean I *don't* have to go over to that big church, palace, whatever in the distance that practically screams 'boss fight'?"

"Oh, yes, you do. But, rather, what I am saying is all of your fights will be taking place there. You will not be in any danger outside of that place."

"What?"

Now, Neve truly had no idea what was going on. 

"As I was saying, here, things work differently. Let me explain. Over the course of the first four expeditions or so, we noticed something," she stated, floating around Neve. "While the groups of 100 players generally consisted of people who'd been working hard, there were also always a high number of low-level players thrown in. We hadn't expected this ourselves, to be honest. We could not understand why people who were clearly not prepared threw their lives aside like that. But, we knew we needed to account for it in the future. So, we came up with places like these. The Hall of the Luminous is one of a few different dungeons designed specifically to help players increase in power."

That made Neve pull back.

She'd heard of these kinds of areas before. 

"It's... a farming zone?"

"You could say that," Tamira replied. "Though, correct me if I am wrong but 'farming' normally carries connotations of being easy, no? Your fights here will be proper battles, though. If you think of it as simple farming, you may not last long."

"Oh. Um, alright, I think I'm starting to get it. How exactly does this 'dungeon' work?" Neve asked. She was curious. "What's the end goal? What am I meant to do?"

"Should you choose to tackle this 'dungeon', you will make your way to the temple you can see from here. It is the arena. There, you will face waves of enemies. The recommended level is kind of a lie, by the way. 60 is the recommended level for the last set of fights. Before that, your enemies will begin at level 1 and gradually become stronger."

"Wait, you're just telling me that? Upfront?"

Neve was shocked.0

"Only because I like you~" Tamira answered with a mischievous tone. "As I was saying, you will face waves of enemies. Multiple battles meant specifically to test your combat prowess. You will be given time to rest after every 5 waves. Once you clear wave 25, you will be free to go. You will not be able to leave the city until then. Do you understand so far?"

Neve caught something in this explanation that she found to be rather curious.

"Should I choose? Wait, I don't have to do this dungeon?"

"If you want," Tamira answered, "I can teleport you outside to the Final Challenge, or back in that room you fell into this place through, right now and, no, you will not have to complete this dungeon." Neve was, of course, happy to hear that. Perhaps because she'd predicted that response, Tamira continued. "However, you will *not* be able to enter the Hall of the Luminous again. If you try to fall through the same hole, it will spit you right back out. This dungeon, Neve, is a one-time offer."

[Ah... I get it,] she thought. 

Essentially, this was both an opportunity and a massive risk. And, shockingly, it was her choice whether to take it on or not. 

"Good. Now, there are three main benefits that come from this dungeon. The first, and the most straightforward, while you are in here, you will earn 2 times EXP and WS Tokens per kill."

Neve's eyes bulged out of their sockets.

[That's insane!]

"As I said, this place was designed to try to help players become stronger. That is the entire point," she told her. "The second benefit is that this city sells techniques, weapons, armor, and spells that are completely unique to it, which you can purchase with the WS Tokens you gain here. The items you can buy and acquire from here are unable to be purchased or acquired anywhere else. Of course, that does not mean they are all powerful, just unique."

[That's... not as good. I'm a Healer, so, I'm not gonna be able to use most of it. That said, I could get something for Erin. Or, I could buy some stuff and, if I ever make it back outside the Final Challenge, sell it to random players for a profit. That would be nice, I guess.]

"Finally, the third benefit comes in the form of the end rewards from beating the gauntlet. You will be given... Well, I won't spoil it. It's okay to save some things to surprise you, no?"

Neve rolled her eyes.

"Consider what you wish to do, Neve. Completing this gauntlet will take some time. Unless you happen to be the most talented player to have ever existed, I would expect all 25 battles to take at least a week or two to complete. Maybe more, maybe less, depending on your pace. And, understand, these are going to be dangerous fights. Each and every single one, after a certain point, will be as dangerous as any situation you've been in so far. As I said before, this is completely optional. However, you will *never* be given the chance to enter this place again. Think about it."

Then, Tamira disappeared, leaving Neve with an important choice to make.

This, obviously, shared some similarities to the punishment dungeon. Such as the fact that she would not be able to leave once she accepted.

But, it was different from the punishment dungeon in a few key ways. Firstly, not every fight would be one that Neve was under-leveled for. As Tamira had said, enemies would start off weak and slowly become stronger. But, it was also different in that Neve would likely face off against multiple enemies who were stronger than her.

There was no running past everything and fighting one boss to finish the dungeon as she'd done in Roha. She would be forced to fight several times.

As scary as that was, the undeniable fact was that Neve was in desperate need of power.

She wouldn't be able to take down Thomas and his followers without a sizeable gap in strength between them. There were probably going to be challenges in the future that she wouldn't be able to tackle without better stats.

Additionally, she wanted to rely less on Erin.

That fight where she got silenced was still fresh in her mind. She didn't want anything like that to happen again. Or, to end up being as bad.

So, moments like these were ones she'd need to take advantage of.

[... It's terrifying,] she thought, shuddering as she made up her mind. [But, if I want my revenge, if I want a real chance at succeeding, I don't have a choice.]

"Tamira."

"Yes?"

"I'll do it." Neve looked up at the snake, nodding. "I'll take on the dungeon."

"Very well," she replied, spinning in the air. "There is more to this city than meets the eye, Neve. I recommend you get familiar with this place before you begin your trials. You're going to be here for a while, after all."

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