It had been a week since the event involving the kid with phantom-like powers. Two weeks had passed since Hazel and the other humans returned to the city. During that time, the SFC — a special group of people with powers — had become very popular. Their main job i to help control other power-users who just want to show off and cause problems with their abilities.
Even though Hazel sometimes went out with the others, things had been incredibly boring for him. He just wasn't used to this kind of quiet life. It was, quite literally, the very first time he had ever experienced a life like this, with nothing much to do since the apocalypse.
Finally, Hazel couldn't take the boredom anymore. He decided it was time to visit a dungeon for the very first time. Wearing his regular clothes, he headed to the Dungeon Drop-Out. This was a busy place where all dungeon explorers went to check out how hard different dungeons were to clear before they decided which one to enter.
When Hazel arrived and stepped inside, he saw many other people with special powers. Most of them seemed weak to him, judging by the 'aura,' they gave off. Because of this, Hazel chose not to talk to anyone.
Hazel then walked over to the receptionist's desk and asked to see a list of the dungeons nearby, along with their difficulty levels.
The difficulty levels for dungeons were rated with numbers, from 1 to 10. A Level 10 dungeon was the easiest, filled with the weakest monsters. But a Level 1 dungeon? That was the most challenging, full of the strongest and most dangerous monsters.
After hearing this quick explanation, Hazel made up his mind. "Please give me the location of the Level 1 dungeon," he told the receptionist.
"Okay, sir, here are the dungeon locations," the receptionist replied. She pulled out a map and pointed to the exact spot where the Level 1 dungeons are.
"Okay, good, thanks," Hazel said simply.
"Is this your first time, sir?" the receptionist asked, looking at him curiously.
"Yes, it is," Hazel confirmed.
"Then you'll need to register first, sir," the receptionist explained.
"Alright, what do I need to do?" Hazel asked, ready to get it over with.
"Just write your name here, sign here, and please fill in the rest of your information," she said, sliding a form across the counter.
A moment later, the receptionist looked at the screen and announced, "Mister Hazel Willow, you are allowed to enter a Level 1 dungeon."
"How do you know who is allowed to enter, and who isn't?" Hazel asked, a hint of surprise in his voice.
"Well, the computers already have all that information," she replied. "The details aren't very specific, but the computer always knows. And it wasn't set up by humans, probably by the god."
"Oh, okay," Hazel said, digesting the answer.
"Alright, sir, you've been successfully registered," the receptionist said with a smile. She then handed him a special entry card for the dungeon.
On the card, Hazel saw some writing, including a clear statement: 'Permission to enter any dungeon.'
Hazel was just about to leave when the receptionist called out, "Sir!" Hazel turned back, and she asked, "Where are your teammates? You all need to sign in together to enter a dungeon."
"Sorry," Hazel replied calmly. "I'm going alone."
His answer shocked everyone in the room who had overheard their conversation, especially since he was planning to go into a Level 1 dungeon by himself.
"Sorry, sir, you can't do that!" the receptionist said, still wide-eyed from shock at his declaration.
"I'll be fine," Hazel insisted.
"Sorry, sir, but that's against the rules," the receptionist firmly replied.
"Hmm, I already signed, didn't I?" Hazel asked, a strange look on his face.
"Yes, sir, all you need now is for your teammates to sign too," the receptionist confirmed.
"Okay then, bye!" Hazel said. Before anyone could react, he simply vanished into thin air.
In a flash, Hazel reappeared. He was now standing right in front of a giant, glowing doorway — a dimension dungeon — that was rated Level 1.
He tried to walk in, but he couldn't. Instead, he just found himself back outside, standing behind the dungeon entrance. Hazel was confused, as this was his first time ever trying to enter a dungeon. So, he went to a nearby dungeon where other adventurers were preparing to enter. He watched carefully and quickly understood: the entry card had to be placed into the dungeon's glowing portal before anyone could step inside.
Hazel went back to the dungeon he plans on entering, followed the steps, and this time, he successfully entered.
The moment he stepped inside, Hazel was absolutely amazed. It was clearly another world, a different dimension entirely! All around him was blazing lava and flickering fire, a sight he had never witnessed before.
Hazel looked around. At first, there were no monsters in sight. But the instant he moved from where he was standing and took just one step, enormous, lizard-like monsters suddenly exploded out of the fiery lava! They rushed straight for Hazel. Immediately, Hazel summoned his deadly scythe, and the battle began.
Hazel cut through the lizards as easily as slicing butter. He defeated them without any trouble and kept moving forward. He continued to meet more monsters, but he took them down with ease. Finally, he reached what felt like the boss room.
Hazel stepped into a huge room. There was a giant stone gate on one side, and as he walked further in, he saw an enormous dragon soundly sleeping, curled up on the ground.
The room inside was even more amazing than he expected. It was more than ten times the size of the dragon, even with the dragon's huge, powerful body taking up so much space.
Hazel stared at the sleeping dragon and wondered what to do. He didn't want to disturb it, so he decided to wait until it woke up naturally. While he waited, Hazel began to explore the enormous dragon's castle.
The castle itself was absolutely stunning, even more beautiful inside than it looked from the outside.
There were many ancient artifacts and gleaming treasures scattered all around, but none of these precious items really interested Hazel. However, when he spotted a room with a magnificent golden door, he couldn't help but feel incredibly curious about what might be hidden behind that door. He tried to open it, but then a message popped up from the system window.
The message read: [The guardian of this door has not been defeated. The door will not open.]
"So, I have to defeat or kill the dragon first," Hazel said aloud, understanding.
"I've faced huge monsters during the end of the world, but never a dragon," Hazel thought to himself. "Still, it shouldn't take me very long." With that, he headed back to where the dragon was.
Hazel soon returned to the dragon's room. As he entered, he saw that the dragon was now awake and seemed to be waiting for him.
The enormous dragon was indeed awake now, its eyes fixed directly on Hazel.
"Wow," the dragon rumbled, its voice deep. "You are the very first human to enter my home while I was sleeping and not take anything."
"I don't need gold, i have enough nor those artifacts," Hazel replied, "they aren't useful to me. But I definitely want to know what's hidden behind that golden door."
"Fine then," the dragon said, a low growl in its voice. "I suppose you know what you need to do if you want to enter that room?"
"Yes, I do," Hazel confirmed, his voice steady. "Defeat you."
"Are you truly that confident?" the dragon asked, a hint of challenge in its tone.
"Do you honestly believe you can defeat me?" the dragon pressed, its gaze piercing.
"I don't know," Hazel said with a slight smirk. "Let's find out, shall we?" As he spoke, he quickly summoned his scythe.
"Don't disappoint me, human," the dragon warned, and With a mighty roar, it launched a heavy punch with its powerful claws directly at Hazel.