Amelia woke up with the biggest headache. Her health points were down to the last quarter, and she had trouble remembering what had happened during the previous two weeks. The last thing she remembered was leaving for floor 30, her newest deployment. This was a massive jump from guarding the slaves on the 5th floor, where she was used to. She would be a part of the scouting patrols, ensuring that no monsters beyond the 30th floor came up and caught them off guard.

  It was an honorable position and was precisely the kind of thing that rounded out a resume for the council. Her father was a titled Duke, but unfortunately, his longevity would see him outlive all of his current heirs. It wouldn't be for another 2000 years until her father was willing to give over the reins to an offspring. Amelia was okay with her lot in life; she was treated well and lived a privileged life. Nothing would stand in her way of becoming someone important on her own merit.

  "Good, you're awake. I was worried that I put you in a coma." A disgusting human man said his golden hair was long and unkempt. His chiseled jawline suggested a regal upbringing, which was juxtaposed with his homeless appearance and the horrid smell of one who hadn't showered in weeks. "Check your notifications. You'll tell me everything you know about your camp, area patrols, class, and skills." Amelia wanted to tell this presumptuous Earthbound to go and fuck himself. She looked at her notifications and saw the new status effect (Bound); she was now enslaved. She felt a sharp pain in her head, and when she opened her mouth, the only thing to come out was the information that he requested.

  "The Camp is ahead 2 miles, we have 25 level 90 soldiers stationed, and 10 are patrolling at any given time. We usually split into two groups and circle to check the parameters for monsters. We rotate every eight hours, with five people being able to take a day off to recover. " The pain that she had was subsiding. "I am a hunter, and have mostly bow-related skills like true shot, speedy hands, and reload." She wanted to stop telling the man, but the more she looked into the man's eyes, the more it felt right to tell him everything.

  "Good, that wasn't so hard. I have used my skill, Exodus. Our fates are intertwined. If I die, then you die. I will release you someday, but I need you to return to your unit like nothing has happened. When night falls, you will gather everything you would if you were diving the dungeon: a month's worth of supplies for three people and a tent. Come back to this location when all of that is done." She wanted to question it, but as soon as the human commanded it, it was like someone else was controlling her body, and she was just along for the ride.

  "Why are you wearing my brother's armor?" A semblance of free will slipping out.

  "I borrowed it from the barracks a little while ago. You only need to know that it serves your master well." The Earthbound let out a sadistic smile and waved her off with his left hand, implying that she should leave.

  "Dane, you don't have to go full antihero just because you have a real slave now," Ada said as Amelia walked into the forest. Ada channeled a healing spell that closed up the massive gash in the back of the elf's head.

  "I suppose not, but you have a lot of courage suggesting you aren't a real slave," Dane said with a playful smile.

  "You'd better watch what you say, I still haven't decided if I'm gonna kill you in your sleep," Ada said before turning away and walking towards a stream that they found while hauling the body of the unconscious elf. Guess I am back to sleeping with one eye open Dane thought.

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  Dane went off to find materials that would make a decent shelter; sleep was a must, as they would head for the 31st floor when Amelia met back up with them. The ground was soft beneath his feet, sinking in with every step, the soil loose from being so close to the water. There were a lot of pine needles spread on the floor. He selected one of the larger trees in the area and, using the flat of the pickaxe, he hacked away at larger branches of the evergreens that sprawled out, being careful not to take too much and risk an investigation if a scouting team saw it. He assembled the framework of the makeshift hut using dead sticks he found lying on the ground, and after it resembled a shitty teepee/a frame, he covered the walls with fresh branches he cut from the trees. It wasn't the best shelter, but it would keep a little rain out and the beating sun off of him as he tried to get some much-needed shut-eye.

  When Dane woke, Ada was shaking his shoulder. "I think something is coming," Ada said in an almost inaudible whisper. It took Dane a couple of seconds to snap out of the grogy sleep-deprived state, but he listened for whatever had startled his companion so much. It sounded like the crunching of pine needles, but the sound was too frequent for anything bipedal. There was an animal out there. Well, not an animal, all the animals were gone. When Mana came into the world, it turned all the Animals into nuclear winter caricatures of their old selves. Whatever was out there was a monster that they would have to kill. Dane grabbed his pickaxe and gun and walked out of the hut.

  Dane's danger sense alerted him that something was coming from his right. He rolled to the left and felt the wind rush over his head. He quickly turned on mana sight and saw the silhouette of what looked like a bear. It was massive, at least 20 feet in height.

  Moogu, Rank E, LVL ???, HP ???

  Dane shuddered, every part of his body trembling at the force pressing down on him. Sweat began to pool up at the nape of his neck. He could still move, but everything inside him told him that he needed to submit to the beast before him.

  "Stab your leg, he is using level suppression on you!" Ada shouted, but her words were lost on the entranced man. She swung as hard as she could, an open hand smack that could be heard for miles. It didn't work; Dane was still frozen stiff. The massive bear claw was hurdling towards the pair, whistling as it sliced through the air.

  The arm was not furry and had a silver shine, reflecting the moonlight; a jagged scar ran where the monster met the machine. Dane and Ada took a direct hit, and Dane slightly cushioned the blow for Ada, but not by much. It would have been an instant kill shot if they hadn't placed so many free points into the Constitution stat. Both of their HPs dipped into the single digits. His left arm was numb, and just by looking at the floppy limb, he knew that it was crushed. Gritting his teeth, he summoned a portal around the monster's neck; the greater the distance from him, the faster his Mana would run out, snapping the portal shut and beheading the bear. Just as his final point of MP ticked away, the bear dipped low to the ground, narrowly avoiding the portal and only losing half of its snout.

  Status Effect: Mana Starved (3 days)

  Dane watched the noseless bear slowly walk towards Ada. He was powerless to do anything. He had grown too complacent. Whenever he faced an overwhelming foe, he would cheese them by snapping a portal shut on their neck. It hadn't even occurred to him that higher-level enemies might not fall for his simple ploy. It was over; he got them killed. Ada was strong, but she couldn't handle an E-rank monster by herself.

  "Dane, don't give up." A faint voice in his head said. Dia's familiar voice was almost enough to bring tears to his eyes. He couldn't be sure if he were imagining it in his moment of need, but he needed to try something.

  He was out of Mana and couldn't move. The only thing he could still use was his Meteorite skill, which was powered by cosmic energy from his surroundings and augmented his body. He felt the ambient energy rush into him like he was an airless vacuum chamber whose seal had broken as he activated the skill. His MP greedily accepted the cosmic energy, and he was met with a notification.

  New skill acquired: Mana Syphon, you can now gather Mana from your surroundings as long as it is a compatible mana type.

  Remembering what Ada had said after the Tunnel King fight, Dane looked at the golden gravity chains that held the monster to the ground and started to syphon.