29 Chapter 29: Tiers (1/1)

Wilhelm stared incredulously at the expanding eggs, they were splitting down the middle and releasing all sorts of strange creatures at a ludicrous celerity. Their bodies were covered in slime, and they convulsed on the ground as they awkwardly crawled toward the stream of water. Strange noises escaped from their tiny mouths, squealing into the air, causing Wilhelm to cover his ears and take a step back.

The eggs had produced hundreds of these small, grimy looking monsters. Even when they opened their eyes and surveyed their terrain, it didn't take them long to find the water source. After all, most newborns required nutrition to live, especially the larger monsters that resided within the dungeon.

The gremlins temporarily ignored Wilhelm, so he stepped into the shadows and decided to observe for the time being. He could try and kill all of the striplings for free experience, but he decided to wait a little longer. There was no telling what would happen if the monsters' mother somehow returned.

The abnormalities fought both tooth and nail to be the first ones to arrive at the water, even opting to attack their own kin in the process. Cries full of anguish and pain erupted from the monsters as they fought each other to a standstill. Wilhelm was forced to retreat a few more steps back, covering his ears in the process.

He had already hydrated himself, so there was no longer a point to dally inside of the dangerous grotto. Thus, with a flap of his loincloth, he sauntered toward the exit and crept away, concealing his presence. He estimated that the small creatures would supply him with very minimal experience, so there was no real point to kill them. The egg that he had destroyed earlier did not even cause the system to ring.

His tall figure reached the exit with relative ease, to which he squeezed past the small crack. He inwardly noted his current location and decided to mark a path toward it, that is if he ever decided to return due to dehydration. His main goal had already been accomplished, so now, he just wanted to find a suitable home and secure more experience.

As his lean figure passed through the tight passage, he could hear a loud roar from behind him. It was not at all similar to the noise generated from the hatchlings, so it was an entirely new creature. That, or it was the mother, which was quite unlikely due to the fact that the cry was filled with rage and killing intent. Wilhelm squinted his eyes and quickened the pace that he moved at, shooting out of the rocks and landing back in the broad cavern.

Without much thought, he breathed a sigh of relief and dusted off his body, ridding himself of the grime that attached itself to him. The small gusts of wind plastered his loincloth to his back as he scrubbed, not caring at all about the chilly breeze. As a matter of fact, in the past, Wilhelm used to possess a small case of OCD—he detested dirty things. Naturally, it was drilled out of him as time passed, but he still preferred cleanliness.

He continued cleaning himself for another ten minutes or so, only opting to take a break after his body looked somewhat presentable. The breeze had gradually died down, leaving the eerie and humid cave relatively tranquil. Wilhelm straightened his back and stretched his limbs, glancing both left and right. He was in an affable mood today, especially since a few of his theories had been proven to be correct.

First of all, the dungeon was not at all like the ones in video games back on earth. It was practically alive; most of the creatures had minds of their own, and even breeding seemed to be possible. The only strange thing was the lack of stronger monsters on the bottom floors—why would they not hunt weaker beasts for food?

Wilhelm was an intelligent man, and he also knew that there was a reason humans were brought to the world. If things went as he expected, then most of the first one percent of humanity will die before the next batch. Even he, a highly trained man back on earth, had only lived due to sheer luck.

Besides, the chances of other humans stumbling across dungeons was likely. Granted, Wilhelm assumed that there were plenty of easier ones, but on the flip side, there were also those that were harder. Many things needed to be tested, whether or not multiple people could enter a dungeon at the same time, or if the barriers were capable of being destroyed.

With a stroke of his beard, Wilhelm temporarily halted his contemplation and continued walking through the cave. He could predict and estimate the future all he wanted, but his main priority was escaping his current situation. He would be a liar if he said that he wasn't affected by the loneliness—it was slowly eating away at his soul.

…

Unfortunately, many of Wilhelm's premonitions were correct. Even though humanity was quick to adapt, the holy land was much more unforgiving in comparison to Earth. Not only was the weather rather hazardous and random, but all sorts of monsters would also come out of their domains to hunt the weak humans.

The world was full of abnormalities; the creatures that lived on it acted in completely unexpected ways. Humans that had achieved higher levels or classes tried to fight back, but they were unable to kill the stronger beasts. Thus, tiers, locations, and other information about dangerous monstered spread like wildfire.

A rather simplistic and crude listing was set up for the monsters. Judging by their strength and achievements, they were listed from F to A, with A being the strongest. At the moment, humans were only capable of barely dealing with F-level monsters, let alone the creatures they had yet to discover. Various intelligent figures estimated that a few S-class monsters ran amok at the core of the world, but no one dared to try and prove this theory correct.

Naturally, Wilhelm was unaware of all the happenings on the surface. He was busy trying to survive in the dungeon. However, when he eventually escaped, if he escapes, it's undoubtedly going to be an exciting event.