Chapter 39: So Pitiful

Chapter 39: Chapter 39: So Pitiful

Seraphina Sinclair rested her chin on her hand, idly fiddling with the Sunflower.

At first glance, she didn’t look like she was participating in a dungeon run at all—more like she was on a picnic.

"Yummies... yummies... Why aren’t there any yummies? Waaah..."

Seraphina Sinclair slapped her forehead. She’d completely forgotten about that.

’But what does it mean, no yummies?’

She stood still and observed for a moment. After being burned to death, the Rotting Corpses turned directly into piles of charred ash, leaving no Supply Boxes or slime.

Seraphina Sinclair suspected the fire might have burned away the slime as well. She got up and crept closer, waiting for a Rotting Corpse to turn its back before deftly dispatching it with a single strike!

Unfortunately... there was still no slime.

The dead Rotting Corpse dissolved into motes of light and vanished, leaving nothing behind.

’It seems the monsters in this dungeon don’t drop either of those two items.’

Seraphina Sinclair was a little disappointed.

’After all, this godforsaken place is crawling with monsters. If they dropped slime, I could probably evolve the Sunflower this time, couldn’t I?’

’That reward is too good. Judging by the way the system seems to deliberately make things difficult, there’s no way it would let us survivors get an advantage so easily.’

’But speaking of rewards...’

’If experiencing death is the *reward* for failing the dungeon, then what’s the reward for actually clearing it?’

Seraphina Sinclair was incredibly curious.

She was in no hurry, resting her chin on her hand and admiring the twisted dance of the Rotting Corpses.

Although the Sunflower was a bit dejected, it clearly understood the situation. After complaining that one time, it didn’t say another word.

’Such a well-behaved child,’ Seraphina thought, pleased.

The second wave of Rotting Corpses was soon finished off.

A new screen popped up from the system.

[Congratulations! You have successfully defeated all monsters in the second wave!]

[Current Points: 250]

[Current Wave: 3]

[Current Monster Details: Rotting Corpse x30]

’The number just doubled.’

But to Seraphina Sinclair, the number didn’t make much of a difference.

She had a dozen or so runes left. Now that she was more practiced, dealing with a wave of Rotting Corpses only consumed one or two. She clearly had more than enough.

’Unless... unless these Rotting Corpses are endless. In that case, the runes I have really won’t be enough.’

’But this is just a beginner dungeon. That can’t be possible, can it?’

Seraphina Sinclair had been confident at first, but as the waves continued and her supply of runes dwindled, she began to panic.

’Next time I leave, I’m bringing rune paper and gasoline!’

’Yes.’

’Even if I run out of prepared runes, I can just draw new ones on the spot! Anything is better than being a helpless sitting duck!’

...

[Congratulations! You have successfully defeated all monsters in the ninth wave!]

[Current Points: 4450]

Seraphina Sinclair held her breath, her eyes glued to the line of text before her.

’Please don’t show the details for the next wave!’

’At this rate, this is never going to end!’

Thankfully, what popped up this time was a completely different message.

[Congratulations! You have successfully defended against all waves and cleared the beginner dungeon!]

[System Announcement: Congratulations on being the first player server-wide to clear the beginner dungeon! Do you wish to make a server-wide announcement?]

[System Announcement: Congratulations on being the fastest player server-wide to clear the beginner dungeon! You are the creator of the new best record! Do you wish to make a server-wide announcement?]

The sudden flood of new messages caught Seraphina Sinclair by surprise. She read each one carefully before she realized what was happening.

’I cleared it! And I was the first! I’m the new record holder, too! And I get to make two server-wide announcements!’

’Good!’

’Very good!’

’Today, it’s my turn to make a big splash!’

Seraphina Sinclair didn’t rush to accept. Everyone was still in their dungeons where even the regional channel was disabled. Who knew if a server-wide announcement would be affected?

’I’ll wait until I’m out.’

But before that, she needed to know what the reward for clearing the dungeon was.

She stared expectantly at the panel before her, waiting for the system to pop up with something new.

As if to answer her prayer, the system did display a new text panel. It was just that the message on it was...

[Current dungeon complete! Leave now?]

Seraphina Sinclair: "???"

’I was waiting so expectantly, and *this* is what the system tells me?’

’Where’s the reward?!’

’I’m waiting! This is urgent!’

Seraphina Sinclair frowned, her gaze sweeping across the dungeon. Other than the lingering ash from the Rotting Corpses, there was nothing.

’This can’t be the reward, can it? Who gives such a lame reward?’

Though Seraphina Sinclair voiced her disdain, her body was quite honest as she collected all the ashes.

’I can use it for fertilizer at home.’

’So it’s useful after all.’

She took another look around, and after confirming there was nothing else of use in the dungeon, she picked up the Sunflower and hesitantly clicked "Yes."

Seraphina Sinclair’s vision blurred instantly. This time, however, she didn’t reappear in a waiting space but was sent directly back to her mobile cabin.

She stood still and surveyed her surroundings for a moment, only putting the Sunflower down after confirming the mobile cabin was exactly as she had left it.

’So the dungeon run is officially over now.’

’So... where’s the reward?’

She frowned and opened the regional channel, only to find everyone else discussing what it felt like to die.

"I gotta say, being eaten bite by bite by a Rotting Corpse is pretty agonizing. Can I get a different death method next time? Everyone, I’d avoid that one if I were you!"

"Hahaha, you say that like we have a choice! Didn’t everyone die that way? At first, I saw the Sunflower basking in the sun and thought it was pretty chill, but who would’ve guessed! Ten Rotting Corpses right off the bat! I got instantly wrecked."

"Hehe, not me. The moment I saw what was happening, I just slit my own throat. The feeling of suffocating is also terrible, so I’d recommend avoiding that too!"

"Damn, the person above is hardcore!"

"So... everyone failed, right? I’m pretty curious what you get for clearing the dungeon."

"I actually managed to clear the first wave, but then the second wave had fifteen whole Rotting Corpses! I couldn’t really handle it. I got bitten but desperately managed to kill one of them. I thought it was over, but then a third wave came! Thirty of them! Thirty Rotting Corpses! Does anyone understand how I felt at that moment? I almost wished I’d just died back in the first wave."

"Whoa, this person is a real expert! They actually cleared two waves!"

"Ah, whatever. It wasn’t easy for any of us."

Aside from those comments, the survivors who had argued against entering the dungeon in the first place were now gloating.

"Hmph, what did I say before? That entering the dungeon was completely useless. You wouldn’t listen and insisted on going. Well, look at you now. Anyone who isn’t mentally tough is probably traumatized, huh?"

"What are you yapping about? There’s more than enough in this godforsaken place to traumatize someone. Besides, we don’t have to hand-crank for power today. We went in, got a big sun, and collected all our sunshine! Meanwhile, you probably still have to slowly crank that busted lamp of yours, right?"

"If that counts as a reward, you people are pretty pathetic."

"You died just to get that? That’s a little too sad. How about I donate some to you guys out of pity?"