Return to Level 0

Chapter 8 HammerTime

Hefting his new weapon onto his shoulder, Luck readied himself for a fight with his boney opponents. All around him was the black and grimey soil of the dungeon known as the Pit of the Dead which was a mid level dungeon that was only attempted by large groups of people.

At the minimum, 2 parties consisting of 12 people would be required to clear this dungeon but Luck decided to do it on his own. He was confident that he could clear this on his own as he had done this dungeon so many times from his future memories.

This dungeon had a high drop rate for magic crystals and for basic materials for crafting. Since he used to have the [Supporter] class, he would come to this dungeon with his company's in game party to prepare for any upcoming raids.

But he was never given any assistance and was forced to do it on his own as his coworkers complained that they had better things to do than to help a weakling with his chores.

This cruel treatment made Luck develop a self-sufficient personality and it seemed to have carried over to his current self.

His attention now focused on the horde of skeletons that began to march at him in a sluggish pace, Luck cracked a smile and waved hello as if he were greeting an old friend.

“It's good to see that you are all so energetic today. Let’s have a good fight and don’t try to bore me today.”

The skeletons actually took offense to his words and began to pick up their pace as they raised their broken swords and axes in annoyance at Luck’s taunt.

They let out a deathly screech that sounded like a haunted ghost and Luck laughed wryly to himself.

“That’s more like it! Hiyah!”

Charging forward, Luck moved to attack the horde’s right flank. Bringing his weapon down, he slammed it down upon the first skeleton’s head. It was immediately pulverized into bits of bone which made Luck smile in satisfaction.

“I guess hammers are still effective against you guys. I wonder? Should I get a second one?”

As he mused the idea of wielding two hammers like a certain pair of Italian brothers, Luck swung the warhammer he bought from the Exchange shop.

In preparation for today, his strategy was to use a warhammer as his main mode of attack against the enemies of this dungeon. Skeletal enemies had a weakness to weapons that cause blunt force trauma and would be wholly unaffected by the slashing of swords.

You could cut off their arms, legs, and head, but the body would still move even if it had a single sizable limb left. Skeletons were a very resilient monster but that was if players didn’t know how to kill them quickly.

With a wide and wild swing, Luck sent a group of 5 bunched up skeletons flying. They flew with incredible speed and shattered as they hit the hard dirt ground.

This was thanks to the weight of his warhammer and his years of experience in handling the weapon from his memories.

Warhammer

Rarity: Common

Description: An iron weapon used to apply blunt force trauma to enemies. It is extremely heavy but those that are able to wield it will be able to dish out swings with enormous momentum and destructive might. Warning, this weapon is not for the elderly as it will break their backs. Lift with your legs man! Your LEGS!

From the corner of his eye, Luck saw the chat feed of his viewers from his stream. It had actually crept over 10 viewers and some were in awestruck wonder of how it was possible for him to swing such a heavy weapon so fast without losing his grip. 

The viewer's point of perspective could either be of a first person, third person, or free camera mode. 

The scale of Luck’s destructive power was on display and many commented on this.

Comments like, “Cheater” “Hacker” and “Fake” popped up in his bottom right corner view. Glancing over, he scoffed in contempt and he gave a snarky response.

“Just be glad I’m using it on the skeletons and not you. For now, just watch and learn, you noobs!”

Flexing both of his arms, he swung the warhammer thrice and made skeleton after skeleton into piles of crushed bones in seconds.

While his ability to wield the weapon efficiently was in part a result of his future memories, this was not entirely the case.

For those who were of a keen eye, they would have noticed the ring on Luck’s finger that glowed red from time to time.

This was one of Luck's original creations from his future self, the [Strengthening Ring].

Strengthening Ring

Rarity: Rare

Description: An original item created by [error_input_playername_not_Found]. This item allows for the strengthening of one’s strength stat in order to overcome the obstacles one should face. Consumes mana for use and emits a red light when activated.

Cost: 1 mana per minute 

Effect: Strength stat will increase by 10 (Max)

Cooldown: None

With this ring, Luck would be able to double his strength stat for 1000 minutes utilizing his entire mana pool which was going to be vital for his plan to clear this dungeon. With the right weapon and the right strategy, he began to make quick work of the monsters.

Smashing the tombstones as he went, he continued to chip away at the horde of skeletal horrors.

They howled everytime he destroyed a grave which worked to his favor as it helped to group them up.

After bashing his way through a group of 20 skeletons, he pulled out a potion from the toolbelt at his waist and drank it down in the window of opportunity he had created. Throwing the emptied bottle at a skeleton, it smashed into the monster’s skull and barreled through to kill the next monster behind it.

Luck’s body glowed red for a moment and he grinned in excitement. What he had drunk was a strength potion, he had waited for the right moment and he saw that all the tombstones and graves were destroyed. Wanting to end the fight quickly, he used his stock of items to speed up the process.

Strength Potion

Rarity: Uncommon

Description: A crimson red potion that increases the overall power and might of one's body. Effects are temporary and can not overlap with other strength potions. Drinking with other potions of similar effect will cause mana poisoning. 

Effect: 50% increase of Overall Strength

Duration: 10 Minutes

While an uninformed player would accuse him of wasting time on breaking those tombstones, the more educated player knew better and would understand why Luck did what he did.

These skeletons were weak but had an enormous advantage in numbers since they could spawn from the tombstones endlessly. This was why a group of 12 players was needed since more manpower was needed to overcome the outnumbered odds.

Usually one group of six would fight the horde while covering the other as they destroyed the tombstones and graves. This was the ordinary way to clear this dungeon and there were no loopholes because the system AI would always consider that the dungeon was not truly “cleared” if even a single tombstone was left.

With his strength further boosted, Luck began to crack some more skulls.

Wanting to have a bit of fun, Luck charged head long at the horde of monsters and threw his warhammer like a spear at the heart of the group. It barreled through numerous skeletons and opened a path that Luck ran clear through. Skeletons began to encroach on him from his flanks but with his fists he smacked away any attempts at his life.

His metal armor and greaves made for good defense and doubled as blunt weapons. While he snaked through the horde, he elbowed skeleton after skeleton and delivered a heavy handed double armored lariat with his outstretched arms.

Buffed by his ring and potion, Luck had the strength to break bone with his bare hands.

With the momentum of his charge and his constant evading, he closed the distance to his weapon and used his temporary strength to deftly pick up the warhammer from the ground and began to spin around with it like a top. 

Kicking up bits of dirt and bone, Luck caused the wind to swirl around him as he mowed through the surrounding skeletons.

He laughed like a kid having fun since he was truly enjoying the fight. The satisfaction of all the bones breaking would sound horrific to some, but Luck was more amused by it since he was no longer that weak [Supporter] from the past.

After having his fun, he finally got a bit more serious. With the horde not dispersed into smaller groups he began to use his weapon skills.

These were a subset of skills that was not shown in the main status screen but was located in the equipment menu. There he could select skills available to his weapon of choice.

Weapons skills could be either created through training or bought through the use of Proficiency points. These were awarded through combat and could be used to upgrade and unlock weapon skills. With his slime hunt yesterday, Luck was able to obtain 3 points which allowed him to learn 3, level 1 weapon skills.

Jumping up, Luck brought down the hammer as he shouted.

“[Power Smash]!”

From the center of where he struck the ground, the hammer let out a shockwave that rattled and broke the surrounding skeleton’s bones into dust.

The other groups of skeletons were not idle and began to surround Luck from all sides. Accounting for this ahead of time, Luck then brought up his weapon and slammed the head of his hammer into the ground.

“[Earth Shaker]!”

The ground around Luck began to quake which stunned some of the skeletons which made them subsequently bump into each other. Using the cc he had created, he used the 3rd skill he obtained in the time he had now bought himself.

“[Psyche Up]!”

A purple mist emitted from Luck’s body and he could feel his muscles store up power which he could unleash in his next attack.

Pounding the head of his hammer into the ground again, Luck let out another [Power Smash] but the overall AOE range was greatly increased. 

This was unfortunate for the remaining skeletons as they were able to get their balance after a few seconds, but before they could even take a step, a wave of energy rattled them and they fell apart like the end of a game of jenga.