Gamers of the Underworld

A black cauldron was hung above a Diamond Seam stove with magical flames. The underground water in the cauldron emitted hot air, but it was still some time from boiling.

Mufasa dragged pieces of Spider Meat to the middle of the Carpenter Workshop and used the underground water obtained from the sides to clean the meat.

His cousin, Simba, was smoking a piece of red hot Diamond Seam. The red smoke rings came out from his beard and dispersed into the air. He looked at Mufasa and said, “Without those noisy Goblins, the world is perfect.”

“Aren’t those Goblins coming back? They are quite diligent, and Lord Sherlock likes them.” Mufasa dragged the Spider Meat into the cauldron, and the meat was stained with dust. Mufasa was aware, but he wasn’t bothered since clay would be put on the meat anyway.

Simba puffed out the smoke rings as he said, “Do you know what day it was when we were given the two days’ leave?”

“What day was it?”

“Payday! A bunch of capable but noisy, insolent, greedy Goblins who did what pleased them. Go figure it out.”

Simba puffed out a ring of smoke and kept quiet.

Mufasa became frightened the more he thought about it. It was his first time working in a Dungeon, and he heard Simba say that Eternal Kingdom wasn’t the same as other Dungeons!

The wounded acted like they were intact, the Goblins babbled nonsense, and the Devil Lord was rich and inhumane. Summoning Goblins was like eating clay dumplings. He could even have a deep relationship with the Spirit World since he could claim the Goblin’s souls. The Dungeon Lord, who had a mysterious background, was a powerful Devil, and the Dungeon only used worthless metal coins that were common in the Surface World.

Mufasa didn’t have much work experience and had only been to a few Dungeons, but he knew Eternal Kingdom was different from the rest.

All of it originated from the Dungeon Lord who sat behind the table in the Dungeon Core Main Hall, thinking of how to inflict pain and suffering on the world—Sherlock!

When the weak were faced with the strong, the weak would be in awe of the strong.

Mufasa was in awe of the rich and powerful Dungeon Lord Sherlock. Though Sherlock was young, a Devil’s appearance could be deceiving. Who would know the real Sherlock? He could be a Devil who was tens of thousands of years old!

“Lord Sherlock is a cruel, cold-blooded, unscrupulous Devil Lord with a bright future. As long as we work hard for Lord Sherlock, talk less and do more—unlike the chattering Goblins—once Eternal Kingdom is fully developed, we can become famous Blackiron Dwarves. Perhaps in a few months, I will have a group of students calling me Teacher.”

Simba smiled and said with nostalgia, “To be honest, after being bothered by the chattering Goblins for a month, I’m not used to the sudden silence. Every day, someone would ask me about hidden missions and hidden equipment. Now, there’s no one asking, I’m…”

Before Simba finished talking, a green figure, whose head had green words above it, walked unsteadily over and said, “Blacksmith! Is there a hidden mission?”

“Get lost!”

…

NotWearingPants opened his eyes in the Living Quarters and sat up slowly.

[Congratulations NotWearingPants, Close Combat (Short Sword and Shield) Weapon Level was increased to Level 2. You are qualified with your current Reputation Points. Please proceed to the Dungeon Core Main Hall’s Mission Panel to obtain the latest Instance Dungeon Guided Mission]

NotWearingPants was taken aback. He moved his fingers and opened the small bag at his chest to take a look at the shiny bronze coins and a few silver coins. He heaved a sigh of relief.

More Goblins woke up, and their reactions were similar to NotWearingPants.

“What! Why are you putting your feet on my crotch?”

Sylvanas pushed Peasant’s feet away violently and looked at her side.

“Brother Arthur! Are you online? Where are you? Let’s form a team and talk about exploring the Instance Dungeon.”

As Sylvanas’ voice faded, hoarse voices started shouting.

“Selling silver! Sword on sale! +3 Sword! Those who want to join the Skills Training but don’t have money, come over!”

“D*mn, what a comedy.”

“Are you making a comedy or doing business? Forming expedition! Those who want to increase your Weapon Level, look over here!”

“Gosh! My Short Bow is at Level 2? Anyone with Level 2 and above? Let’s form an expedition to the Instance Dungeon! We’ll sell the loot for a fortune!”

“Form your own expedition. We’re not taking Archers!”

“How do I increase my Weapon Level? Why am I at Level 1?”

“What? Our tools were taken away! They remedied the BUG that fast?”

“The new updates indicated that we have to pay for multiple stories and basements? What’s going to happen to our dreams?”

NotWearingPants shook his head. The other gamers were still hollering while he felt hungry and weak. Because his sensation of pain was nullified, he didn’t feel stomach pain.

The wall that had the word “Dream” was filled with diagrams. However, they weren’t important, as there were additional words—”Work Hard”.

Was this an Easter Egg? No, this was a prank by the game producers!

“S*it! The dog planners!” NotWearingPants shouted out his first online words.

…

Arthur woke up and moved his body. He used all his effort to move the Goblins on top of him. Then he discovered that his right arm was broken…

Arthur squirmed out with difficulty from the Goblin pile. During this period, Goblins gradually woke up. He landed on the ground with a loud thud. He discovered that the Goblins at the bottom were crushed to death.

Without breath, the gamers would have to wait for revival after going online. What was this about? Perhaps the gamers didn’t go offline in time, resulting in lost data?

Arthur stood up and examined his distorted arm and other parts of his body. After ensuring there were no other injuries, he was dumbstruck.

Weapon Level 3 only?

Arthur shook his head and felt weak all over. He sat down and took out the Spider Meat rolls from his backpack. As he chewed on his food, the Goblins behind him started to move.

“My head’s broken? And it’s bleeding?”

“Why is my hand not moving?”

“Gosh, why is my leg broken?”

“Oh, my money’s gone?”

“Why is my sword broken?”

“Oh no, I should have gone offline in time.”

Raintea ran to the flowerbed in a panic and tripped over the path that was being paved. She quickly got up and kept running.

Arthur lifted his head to observe, but he kept quiet. He heard faint noises from the Living Quarters. He finished his food quickly and wiped his mouth before he made his way to the Mission Panel that was in front of the Dungeon Core Main Hall.

More and more gamers moved towards the Mission Panel.