Ascending Endlessly: I Copy Skills

The train to the C-Rank dungeon was quieter than the D-Rank one. Everyone here was a grizzled veteran, having certainly suffered more than the comparably lackadaisical D-Rankers. In C-Rank, death was much more common than D-Rank. In fact, it was to such a degree that there weren't even many of them left.

The hunters that had gained their powers during the Day of Awakening were the only ones that ever did. A second Day of Awakening is something humanity has prayed for for years- after all, eventually, we'll run out of hunters. There were still more than enough to maintain the dungeon populations, but that wouldn't last forever.

If we couldn't purge The Gloam from earth, we would ultimately become consumed by it. Still, it went to show how skilled the remaining hunters were. Those who were still alive were those who had gone through endless trials, facing innumerable deadly battles and coming out alive. That was why, within this train car full of C-Rank hunters, the tension in the air was palpable.

These people were much more like me than the D-Rank hunters. While D-Ranks could get by with a couple decent skills, the C and B-Ranks had to use everything in their arsenal strategically, carefully planning every dungeon expedition. 

Of course, the A and S-ranks tended to be a lot cockier. Still, it felt good to be around people with a similar mindset. 

After about two hours, the train came to a stop. We had arrived at our destination. The train doors locked in place with a wall outside, creating an airtight seal, before opening. The train station here was kitted out with purifiers and airlocks to ensure that none of the narcotic gas outside could enter. And the dungeon I was about to attack was kept in this little station.

It was called Maura's Mystic Mansion, named by and after the person who had discovered it. I followed the small crowd of hunters through the station towards the back, where an ornate wooden door was standing alone.

The train conductor walked through the group and opened the door, ushering parties of hunters in one by one. I was one of the last to enter. As I got closer, I could see through the doorway. Inside was a massive hall, with two sets of spiral stairs on either side. This was the first room of the dungeon.

I walked through the barrier that separated reality from this illusory world, and with a couple of hunters following in tow, the door closed behind us, sealing us inside.

From C-Rank up, dungeons stopped following the laws of physics. Tiny spaces, like that single doorway, could be significantly larger on the inside. This was one such instance. I did, of course, do my research on this C-Rank dungeon before entering. 

It was primarily occupied by a monster called a 'ghoul'. A humanoid with explosive speed, but low physical strength. They are stealthy and hide in the darkness, clinging to the ceiling, finding nooks, and wherever else they can set up an ambush. They don't work in groups- however, if they smell blood, they will likely look for its source, meaning that if you don't finish a fight quickly you're liable to get swarmed by a large number of them.

Most of the ghouls only possess close combat skills, so I could try to maintain some range and barrage them before finishing them with a larger,A mana-heavy attack. Okay. Having gone over all of the information in my head, I was ready to start the hunt. The other C-Rank parties had already gone off in different directions while I was thinking. They were efficient.

Despite having read about it, it was still incredible to see in-person. The mansion was truly massive, especially for a C-Rank dungeon. Moreover, it was beautiful. I've seen very few dungeons with such a pleasant aesthetic.

Gold trimming, red velvet carpets and drapes, and ornately carved wood structures surrounded me as I soaked it all in. I started to make my way up out of the foyer and through two double doors at the top of the stairs, stepping through into the true beginning of the dungeon. There was one other thing I'd have to keep in mind. One of the properties of Maura's Mystic Mansion was its rearranging rooms. 

Seemingly with no warning, you could sometimes walk out of one room and find yourself in an entirely new location. I would have to keep this in mind. I sharpened my resolve as I started walking through the halls of the mansion. Most of the parties were probably scattered throughout already due to its shifting halls.

It was certainly more of a caricature of a mansion than a real one. Everything was far too large, and there were an absurd number of rooms with ceilings several stories high. The longer I walked around, the eerier it got. Until eventually, in one of the bedrooms, I felt a cold wind at my neck. I had been circulating mana from one of my batteries in preparation for this moment.

I activated the mana in my legs and torso, diving forward, landing on my hands, and rolling back while spinning towards the enemy which had attacked me. It was indeed a humanoid ghoul, on all fours with its hands and feet turned inwards. It had nine fingers on each hand and foot, peeling, pale skin, and an elongated head with a large, toothy mouth.

Blech. This thing made me wanna puke. It was truly disgusting. I drew my dagger, being as efficient as possible, even using mana to accelerate my hand to pull it from its sheath. This enemy was extremely fast- I would have to make every movement count. I immediately called forth several spell cards and batteries, which formed a circle and started rotating around me as I waited patiently for an attack.

I immediately started filling each card with mana, allowing them to be cast instantly as soon as I required. All of this happened within a fraction of a second as the ghoul tilted its head, sizing me up. I continued to wait. I wouldn't make the first move; it would be unwise to do so. I was better off countering with attacks it didn't expect.

Finally, after a little over a second had passed, the ghoul crouched lower to the ground. It was about to move. I hardened my stance, watching its every little motion. Finally, it lunged towards me, releasing the tension in its legs and arms like a spring.

I couldn't react to its fast speed, so the moment it made its charge, I released my prepared skills as I felt necessary. Quickly, I activated all five of my pulse cards. While one wouldn't do much to a C-Rank enemy who could protect itself with mana, five at once should do something.

I wanted to cast a couple more, but that was all I could do in the time it took for it to cross to my position. Fortunately, the pulse attack caused it to lose its balance in the air. It flew past me at a sharp angle and crashed into the wall, leaving an indent of splintered wood behind it as it tried to regain its balance. Before it could do anything else, I hit it with both of my flame pillars. They scorched the spot precisely where the ghoul was for several seconds before I saw a glint in the corner of my eye.

A figure was emerging through the fire.

I didn't have much time to react, so I twisted my body and let it slash at my arm, protecting it with mana as best as I could in the time I had.

"Agh!"

It left a deep gash as it landed behind me. I quickly cast my lesser healing card, which I'd already had prepared and activated Laceration. It didn't do much, but the bleeding was stopped and the wound had closed somewhat. Fortunately, it wasn't my knife arm.

Spinning on my heels, the ghoul was already lurching towards me once again, from an even shorter distance. However, I was ready. I could tell it was moving slower- the fire attack must have at least done some damage to its extremities.

I felt its claws stick into my shoulders as its mouth opened wide. Fuck, this thing didn't even use a skill yet…

Wait? I hadn't seen it use a skill, but I could sense a trace of mana behind me where I'd attacked it. I couldn't focus on that yet.

This was my moment. As it was about to bite into my skull, I poured as much mana as I could handle into my knife, the laceration skill applied over it as well. Disregarding the pain in my shoulders from the long, sharp fingers digging into them, I thrust my knife upwards and into the ghoul's chin.

It stopped moving and dropped to the ground. I panted hard. Fuck… That was intense. I would have never survived that without my mana battery. Even with all of my skills, if I didn't have access to the additional mana, I would've been incapable of moving fast enough to move out of the way of its attacks at all.

However, I was bleeding now. More ghouls would be coming, and quickly. I cast low heal once more, closing up the holes that the monster had bored into my shoulders. I wasn't in good condition. Honestly, I thought I would be able to do a lot better than this considering the sheer number of D-Rank skills I possessed, but it seemed I might even have to find a teammate. Fuck, that would be hard. 

But now, I had to move fast. I quickly collected the spell signature left behind by the ghoul. I didn't know what kind of skill it was, but it would hopefully be useful. I had fortunately not gone far from the entrance, so I should be able to get back relatively easily. Hopefully before more ghouls find me.

I stepped out of the door to the room I was in. Um…

Oh, no. No, no, no, no, no.

The hallways had shifted. I had no idea where the hell I was.