OW: ABH - CH 46 - The Power of a Good Punch

A/N: Once again, I'm late lmao. But it's here!!!

Chapter Forty-Six

The Power of a Good Punch

Rise of Winter, Week 5, Day 7

In the end, Freddie received no answers. No matter how intensely she examined the System Notice, she couldn’t parse the difference between stowed experience and general experience, or why her Status had frozen at Level 12 99.99% until the boss fight. None of her lessons had gone over the intricate workings of Dungeons, and Tiltham hadn’t said anything regarding experience application in the brief moments she’d spent prepping Freddie for their excursion. 

There was nothing to it. She had no way to determine what had happened, no way to know the cause of it all. Thus, all she could do was close her eyes and rest. She ignored the still shining pillar of light and turned toward the cavern wall. 

Before exhaustion took her, Freddie whispered, “[Nemoan Protectorate].”

Behind her closed eyes, the lands of Nemo unfurled—plains and mountains and areas she’d heard of but never seen. Within her mind’s eye, she saw the blinking red dot that she knew was her grandfather. He grew closer with every breath. There was no way for Freddie to know the time outside the dungeon, as there were no suns to keep track of, no moon to tell her night was descending, and no empty night sky lining the horizon. 

Ogon was silent as Freddie drifted off to sleep, but she could feel his warmth as he hovered close to her. Freddie trusted him not to touch her without her [Imbue Flame] Skill running, lest he burn her. She let the warmth comfort her, like the hearth of the Nemo estate. 

Between one moment and the next, Freddie found herself opening her eyes. Stretching her arms, Freddie released a yawn. 

“You’re up!” Ogon cheered, zipping around her, his beak opening and closing. 

Freddie stilled, her arms stuck mid-stretch as she eyed the spirit. “Hey, Ogon?”

“Yes, at your service,” Ogon chirped, his wings flaring. 

Wings. Beak. Legs. Freddie listed all the things she could see. 

“You’re a bird?” She said, uncertainty bleeding into her tone. 

“I am a fire spirit,” Ogon snapped, landing on Freddie’s shoulder just as she cast [Imbue Flame].

Embers fell as Ogon ruffled his feathers made of flame, landing on her shirt and burning holes in the silver cloth. He was bigger. Not big—he was still exceptionally tiny. Ogon had gone from the size of Freddie’s nail, barely more than a candle flame, to the size of her thumb. And he truly looked like a bird, narrow wings that shone white and orange, and legs that seemed to be made of ash. As he shifted his talons into the fabric of Freddie’s shirt, the fabric did not catch alight. 

“Of course,” Freddie said, slow and measured, “but you have to admit: you look like a bird.”

“I do?” Ogon tilted his head, trying to peer down at himself. Then he spread his wings and took off from Freddie’s shoulder. “Do I look handsome?”

“Yeah, you do. A very small, handsome bird.” Freddie smiled as she looked at Ogon soaring around the cavern. 

“Small, but mighty!” Ogon yelled as he dodged a stalactite in his path. 

Freddie laughed as she let her gaze trail the spirit. Grabbing her pillow she put it back into her bag and slung it over her shoulder. 

“Hey, Mr. Mighty, let’s get going before the dungeon creates more goblins,” she called, and Ogon dropped down to fly next to Freddie. She eyed the way he spread his wings. “Do you need to do that?”

“Do what?” He asked, his voice lilting lightly. 

Freddie lifted her arms in an imitation of flapping wings. “That.”

Ogon, with his new ash-like eyes and beak, finally had a face. And though Freddie was sure she was seeing things, the spirit smiled. “No.”

Snorting, Freddie straightened her clothes and took a sip of a cleaning potion. The soft tingle spread through her and she shivered. I hate that feeling.

Looking at the pillar, the golden System Notice reappeared. 

[Congratulations! You have bested Dungeon M283’s First Floor — The Starlight Bakery!]

[Please claim your rewards.]

[The First Floor will reset in: 2 hours, 17 minutes, and 2 seconds. Descend to claim further rewards.]

“Now, the real question is how do I descend?” Freddie mused to herself, reaching out with her pointer finger to touch the golden screen embedded in the light. 

[Would you like to descend to the Second Floor?]

“Well, that was easy.” Freddie’s mouth was pressed into a frown as she read the question. “No name for the second floor?”

Between one moment and the next, the screen shifted.

[Would you like to descend to the Second Floor — The Shining Caverns?]

Freddie blinked. 

“I don’t like that.” She stated, her voice flat. 

As soon as the words left her mouth, the cavern shuddered and the first notice shifted as well. 

[The First Floor will reset in: 0 hours, 0 minutes, and 3 seconds. Descend to claim further rewards.]

[Do you wish to descend?]

“Wait, why did it change?” Freddie furrowed her brows. 

[2 seconds]

[Do you wish to descend?]

“Crap, Ogon, to my shoulder!” The spirit immediately landed, the remnants of [Imbue Flame] still flowing through Freddie. 

[1 second]

[Do you wish to descend?]

“YES,” Freddie screeched, and the pillar opened to reveal a staircase. She jolted forward right as the golden notice began to shift once again. She caught a glimpse of what it said as the pillar of light closed behind her. 

[0 seconds]

[The First Floor is—

As the notice disappeared, Freddie let out a strangled breath. 

“What in the Divine was that?” She grumbled. “It was like the dungeon could hear me.”

“Maybe it could,” Ogon chirped, helpfully. 

Freddie ignored the spirit, looking around the area she now found herself in. 

Unlike in the first floor, where the walls were a mix of crude stones and dirt, the room—floors, ceiling, and all—were made of an opaque crystal. Freddie could see the light of Ogon reflecting off every surface, casting multi-colored beams of light. In the center of the space, was another golden System Notice. 

[You have entered the Second Floor of Dungeon M283. Please greet The Welcoming Committee.]

[NOTICE: This exit has been sealed. Please defeat Dungeon M283 in order to leave the dungeon.]

Looking around, Freddie waited for a door to open, or a trap to go off, or a monster to appear. Instead, she heard the crackling of Ogon’s flames and the sizzle as embers hit her shirt. Nothing moved, nothing changed, there was just the foggy reflection of Freddie and Ogon in the four walls. 

[Inspect]

[REDACT—

[Fryst Crystal, Tier 2, Epic]

[A Crystal formed within Dungeon M283, used for structural integrity and crafting. Developed to be a replacement for stone. Capable of storing Light mana.]

[Crafted By: Dungeon M283]

Freddie furrowed her brow and ran her hand along the crystal wall. It wasn’t quite flat, but the ridges weren’t jagged. Its planes were flat for a span before they tilted in, then back out. The light from Ogon seemed to be caught within those areas of the crystal and sinking into it. 

“Ogon,” Freddie said slowly, “does your mana contain Light affinity?”

Ogon turned to peer up at her. “I am of the Flame. The great Hearth was my home before I found your fire.”

Nodding, Freddie balled her fist and knocked on the crystal. As a dense thung came from the crystal, she frowned. 

“Why did it sound like—” Freddie was cut off as a lump of crystal knocked into her stomach and threw her backward.

Stumbling and gripping her abdomen, Freddie tightened her jaw, fighting down the angry screech working its way out of her. Pushed to the center of the cavern, Freddie was forced to watch as a humanoid shape emerged from the crystal walls. Its body was roughly shaped, without defined fingers or toes, and where its elbows and knees jutted out, there were shards of opaque crystals reflecting the light. Its skin was crystal clear—so clear that Freddie could see the swirling blue and white Mana Pearl at its center. 

[Inspect]

[Fryst Golem, Tier 1, Level 11]

[A common golem made out of Fryst. Due to the nature of the materials used to produce the golem, the creature is resistant to many mana attacks. Capable of simple strategy.]

“Ogon,” Freddie warned, even as she fueled [Regenerate] and the bruise dissipated, “don’t hold back.”

The spirit flew forward, unfurling its wings and sending off a shower of sparks. As Ogon rained heat down, on the golem, its crystal skin remained unchanged. Not scorched with ash or glowing from the heat. Freddie bit the inside of her cheek, focusing in on the battle before her. 

[Fire Conjuration] and [Fire Manipulation] would likely do nothing to the monster before her—and the damned thing had no blood for [Blood of Fire]. [Sparkler] wasn’t offensive, nor was [Bright as a Flickering Flame].

That leaves…

“[Fist of the Flame Monk]”

Freddie felt the style shift her stance, causing her knees to loosen and her shoulders to relax. Without a space of hesitation, the Skill tugged on the magma of her mana, sending it shooting through her body in its entirety. No cell was saved from the fire in her soul. 

“Ogon, keep it distracted,” Freddie commanded, and began fueling [Running].

The golem before her lumbered too slowly to require [Quick Fight]. As she watched the Fryst Golem swing at Ogon, aggressive and with a sense of control, Freddie adjusted that thought and let the Skill fill her mind as Ogon circled the golem’s wrist—shooting more sparks at the shining thing. 

[Quick Fight]

“Let’s not underestimate a dungeon monster and get killed,” she grumbled. 

“Freddie!” Ogon screeched. “It’s not doing anything!”

“I know,” she shouted back, “but keep it up! I’m coming in.”

Shaking out her shoulders, Freddie took off, darting into range of the golem. Its focus seemed to be on the mass of sparks circling its arm—thus, once Freddie was within a few feet, she ducked down and let [Fist of the Flame Monk] guide her to hitting the monster.

A vibrant red form mimicked the shape of a fist landing directly on the golem’s hip. Freddie leaned into the attack, twisting her hips and pushing what little weight she had to enhance the blow. That was something she learned in elsewhere. The force of a blow had more to do with the torque of her body than it had to do with the strength of her forearm. And, while she couldn’t create muscle, she could create torque. A snap of her legs, a twist of her hips, they flowed into her fist as it turned, and she landed a hook right onto the golem’s hip. 

As her fist met crystal, a loud crack resounded, and Freddie felt the shards of the golem’s hip invade her fist as she withdrew. The golem didn’t make a sound, didn’t scream or grunt or make any sort of noise, but Freddie watched the crystal skin shudder, and the blank face of the golem turned to Freddie with an unnatural speed. A speed more indicative of a higher Tier monster. 

“Oh, crap,” Freddie realized as the golem brought down its elbow on top of her.

It’s Dexterity-based.

Freddie decided the only reasonable choice to this news was to lift her arms up and abandon her guard. She herself had quite a bit of Dexterity, so she wasn’t worried about falling behind the monster. It was the opposite. If Freddie moved too fast, she couldn’t predict how fast the golem would be able to dodge or twist. It meant range was her enemy. If Freddie knew how fast the golem could move, it would be a different story—but while she had always had a sixth sense in fights, this was different.

This was a calculation. 

Level 11, a [Common] Class, means it has roughly a maximum of what? 60 Dex? Freddie’s thoughts were rushing as the golem’s elbow met her palms. She gripped its crystal skin and absorbed the force of the blow, sending [Regenerate] to the bone she felt snap at the center of her hand. No. No, it has to have Strength and Endurance. That means it can at maximum have—

She was too slow in her math, and the golem began lifting her up off the ground. Freddie didn’t let go. Instead, she tightened her core muscles and swung her legs forward, wrapping around the golem’s shoulder. As the opaque crystal of the thing’s elbow dug into her stomach, Freddie didn’t pay it any mind. 

Tightening her grip and twisting her legs into position, Freddie pulled her back out and down—toward her legs. The shards of crystal exploded out of the golem, and Freddie began falling to the ground. 

Whipping herself around, she let go of the crystal limb and landed on her back, the breath getting knocked out of her. 

20. 20 Dexterity isn’t enough. 

Freddie’s face contorted, and a harsh laugh escaped her as she found the will to take a lungful of air. 

“Weak,” she hissed, maneuvering up off the ground. “You’re weak. So weak, I don’t even need my flames.”