Underworld - Level Up or Die: A LitRPG Series Read online

  “Come!” commanded the familiar voice.

  The imp tugged open one of the two golden doors. A cushioned couch stretched along the length of every wall of the room. In the rear was a pearl throne. The Mistress sipped from a large golden goblet. Two other women dressed in skimpy silk sipped from their own goblets. At the feet of the three was a slain dark elf. His shirt was torn down the middle showing a wound that led to his heart. He was dead. There was no divergence from the lean muscular build you would expect from the race.

  As the Mistress laid eyes upon us, her finger flicked toward the imp, who fell to the ground entwined in something similar to the Bind spell the imp had captured me with before.

  “Fool!” she said with deadly grace.

  Before acknowledging me, she stood and addressed the ladies perched to either side of her.

  “Sisters. I beg your forgiveness, but I must ask that you leave me to settle some business.”

  “Oh, dearest,” answered one of the girls, “do share.” She licked her lips while eyeing me like a piece of meat.

  “Alas, I have parted with our traditions as you will recall. Besides, I regret that this matter will not be one of pleasure.”

  “Oh well. Do call us if you change your mind.”

  The ladies left through a side entrance, all the time teasing me with their eyes.

  Was I missing something? There was a male dark elf in the middle of the room dead. What exactly had the Head Mistress parted with exactly?

  I forced my eyes away from looking at anything inappropriate since the two ladies’ garments didn’t leave much to the imagination. Danger was at hand. It would not be wise to get distracted.

  The Mistress, her attention now on me, struck me as much more alluring even with her more modest purple silk gown.

  “You. Answer very carefully. If what you say doesn’t please me I will invite my sisters back to do to you as they like. I guarantee you will not survive.”

  My throat was dry, stomach in a knot, but this wasn’t the time to shy away.

  Bowing my head I swallowed where she couldn’t see to hopefully hide my fear as much as possible.

  “I caught someone in the act of betraying you.”

  She stared at me when I didn’t continue with my explanation. On the bright side, she hadn’t killed me yet.

  “An imp was leaving the base tonight when I was coming back from the hunt. He was looking over his shoulder so I followed him. In the room where lesser skeletons begin to appear, a Lich met him.”

  I gave her their conversation as close to word for word as possible.

  The mention of the silver earned me a moment out from under her heavy gaze. She didn’t look worried but calculating.

  “Can I see this silver?”

  “Yes, Mistress. I have also brought the traitor.”

  Taken off guard, she looked at me like she was seeing me for the first time. “You killed an imp? How?”

  Here I had to be careful. My natural snarkiness wanted to rub it in that the smelly Light Mage had put the smackdown on one of her minions who was nearly three times his level. Instead, I controlled myself.

  “When he left to head back to the base, I followed only after he left the room. When a skeleton came after me I ran to a side room. The imp must have heard and followed me. When he came in I let him cast Pain on me since I had built up a resistance from the time you had him teach it to me.”

  “Wait.” She stopped me. “He said I asked him to teach you and then he taught you by casting it on you? He lied to you. A bit of a cruel joke, I’m afraid. There is a much easier way to teach someone blue magic and it doesn’t involve pain.”

  “Good to know.” I exhaled, wanting to hit the dead imp in the face again even if I did break my hand.

  With the rise of her brow, I knew she wished me to proceed.

  “I then cast Pain on him—he seemed surprised that it worked. Next, I used a blue magic I learned called Decay. When I used Pain again it worked even better.”

  She nodded me on.

  “Then I snapped. I started to spam Heal while stabbing him with my short sword and bashing him with my mace until he died.”

  Taking it all in she hesitated a moment before asking, “Show me the silver and the imp.”

  The silver I took out first.

  She reached toward it with some kind of telekinesis. The money floated out of my grasp to her.

  The imp I grabbed by the wrist and lugged out of the magic window that was my inventory.

  She examined the coin and only glanced at the imp.

  A giggle leaped from her lips. “You are quite fortunate. This imp could have used numerous spells that would have immediately killed you.”

  Pulling out a clear ball that fit in the palm of her hand, she spoke into it.

  “Our secret is out. A lich was informed of our plans by an imp in our employ. The lich was last seen in the realm of the lesser skeletons.”

  “Very well. I will go after the lich. What of the imp?” responded the same voice of the wrinkly old man.

  “Dead already. Go! I’ll catch you up on everything later.”

  “I’m on my way.”

  After depositing the glass ball, the Mistress smiled at me sweetly. “Well, aren’t you a pleasant surprise.”

  With the wave of her hand the imp she had bound made it to his feet.

  “You have done well.” She tossed the bag of 30 silver and he greedily caught it.

  I mourned the loss of so much coin.

  “Thank you, Head Mistress.”

  “Leave us now.”

  The imp was quick to fly away, leaving me alone.

  “Come in.”

  With a tug from her telekinesis, the door shut behind me.

  “You also must be rewarded, but first…”

  With a word, energy fell upon me which set my skin tingling.

  “You stink, so I will take the liberty of cleaning you. Put the imp back in your inventory. They are disgusting.”

  I did as she said and the tingle reached my hands after the task was finished. Even my clothing was good as new.

  Suddenly, I found myself in a room alone with the most attractive woman I had ever known.

  The stern dangerous face that had been there moments before was gone, replaced with a soft and inviting one.

  “What would you have for your reward? Money? Power? Pleasure?”

  Before my imagination could take over, I spoke my request. It almost surprised me. “Your wisdom.”

  The answer seemed to please her for she sat down and looked at me with a raised brow.

  “I would ask for you to reward me in the way you think would be the wisest for me to grow as strong as possible, as fast as possible.”

  “Interesting. That was not something I expected to hear.” After a moment’s thought, she agreed. “Very well. Come here and show me your status screen.”

  I made my way around the dead dark elf and boldly got closer to her than I felt comfortable with. Everything about her was enticing. The closer I stood the worse her magnetism grew.

  The allure was suddenly gone as if she had dismissed a spell that had been causing an unnatural pull.

  “Thank you,” I said, acknowledging she had done something to lessen the attraction.

  She winked in response.

  “Status,” I commanded.

  My high wisdom and 175 points to spend became visible to her.

  “Oh, my. You have chosen well. Wisdom is the best choice over Intelligence at your level. Next, you should get your intelligence to 100 for the bonus. It’s worth the points. These bonuses only come in multiples of 10, as in 100, 1000, 10000. After getting intelligence to 100, stick to wisdom. The path of wisdom far exceeds the path of intelligence in the long run. Now show me your spells and skills.”

  This time she didn’t mock me when seeing my Heal spell. Many of my blue magic spells were fairly high. With Pain at Intermediate level 11 and Decay 83, it must have looked to her like I
was indeed focusing mainly on blue magic.

  “Hrmm. So you want to get stronger as quickly as possible. Since our goals align this will be my reward to you. May I ask why you have chosen to ask my opinion instead of something more tangible?”

  Shrugging, I decided to tell her the truth. “I am too weak now to guarantee my survival. Also, if other forces attack you, all of the others will likely become casualties as well. We are too low of a level to help you right now. I need to get stronger as quickly as possible to protect myself, and them, and to help you.”

  She acknowledged this with a nod. “All of what you say is true.”

  She started shaking her head, mostly to herself but smirking at the same time. “I have a spell in mind that is nearly perfect for a blue mage. There is a creature that is not powerful in strength or martial prowess but instead possesses one of the most powerful forms of invisibility that exists. This skill is incredibly rare. The Slithe is unknown to most because of its unique ability to stay hidden even to those with the magic to see through invisibility.

  “You see, the creature’s ability is not even considered magical in nature, so except for the most powerful invisibility seeing spells and items, almost nothing will work. Only blue mages can learn it because of this. It will make studying creatures to learn blue magic much easier, even those of the highest level. Killing something when it’s not expecting you also becomes much easier. You will still need to take care. It will not mask the sound you make or smell. Some predators are sensitive enough to these senses that invisibility is nearly worthless. Here.”

  With a finger to my forehead, she muttered something in an ancient tongue. The knowledge of the spell filled my mind in an instant.

  “There is one last thing you will need to become a mage assassin. Few spells are element neutral even in the realm of blue magic. That means few creatures have any resistance to them if you happen to learn one. Most elemental spells will be more powerful than this one, but it is nearly the perfect backup spell if you find yourself unable to harm your opponent.”

  Again my mind was filled with knowledge. A damage spell called Alpha Bolt.

  “You have benefitted me, so I have repaid my debt. Use these gifts wisely and we will both grow more powerful. If you please me I will reward you again. Now, leave me to my snack.” She smiled wickedly while licking her lips.

  “Of course.” I bowed, my lowered head once again hiding a gulp. “A final question, if I may?”

  “Yes?” she said as if I might be starting to get on her nerves.

  “Should I warn the others that we might be attacked?”

  For a moment she didn’t follow my meaning. When understanding registered she replied with a considering frown. “Do tell them your tale if you so desire. Perhaps warning them of coming danger will produce better results with their training.”

  With a final bow of my head, I turned to leave without another word.

  The door opened before me at her command and shut behind me when I left. The stairs were easy enough to find.

  As I headed down, I was overcome with fright. Minutes later I shook off the terror that held me huddling against the wall.

  The spells the Mistress gave me were powerful in their own right, but it was obvious that they were just a few out of a multitude she possessed. She was more than a monster.

  I healed myself, which made me feel a bit better.

  As I entered the dining room I determined it was necessary to become powerful as quickly as possible with the gifts she gave me, but that wasn’t enough. Even though I preferred hunting with the others I couldn’t let them hold me back. First, I would tell them what I learned, but time was against me. That meant sleep was also my enemy.

  ***

  Leaving the merchants I was feeling much better. The elite zombie I had fought earlier had dropped 20% increased speed boots. I sold them and instead purchased a sturdier pair of shoes similar to mine that increased sound concealment by 30%.

  The imp’s rings had been +50 to strength and +400 to HP. They seemed extremely powerful, but when examining everything else on the market, they were little more than average. I was only impressed because I was a newbie. At least they sold well. I got a full set of magic smokey gray leather armor that added +25 to cold and fire resistance in total. A matching leather cap added +200 to HP and leather gloves +20 to Dexterity. Not to mention the armor rating it added, or the fact it was cold in the labyrinth and this would help me stay warm.

  I was able to get so much for the two rings simply because rings were on the rarer side.

  Finally, the dagger was actually the most costly item the imp had owned. It was a perfect assassin’s weapon with Lesser Frostbite cast when thrust into an opponent. This caused a rapid freeze to the area around the wound making it harder for the target to move. As you could expect, I kept this.

  The last thing I purchased was a large bundle of identity scrolls and a few pounds of beef jerky! The scrolls allowed me to identify items myself without having to come back to town. They would come in handy. The beef jerky would help me stay sane. This left me with 1 silver and 33 copper.

  If I had my way, I wouldn’t be back in town except to sell and buy a good meal or two for the next couple of days. That of course mostly depended on how powerful my heal spell really was when it came to relieving my exhaustion. If it really could replace sleep, then I might have a chance to become much more powerful before the Mistress’s enemies attacked. So far it seemed to be working. It was already 3:00 AM and still my exhaustion hadn’t caught up with me.

  As I set off, I pulled up my status screen. Without hesitation, I raised my intelligence up to 100 and got my Wisdom to 233. The bonus she promised was proven true with the pop-up of a trigger window.

  Novice Mana Manipulation Understood

  You can now charge a spell to cause greater damage.

  The amount of mana per point of Intelligence has doubled.

  All spells cost 20% less mana to cast.

  All spells are 20% more powerful when cast.

  Intermediate Meditation

  Mana regeneration rate slowly ramps up the longer you meditate reaching a maximum of 10 times current regeneration rate after 5 minutes of meditation.

  If you continue meditating after you have reached maximum mana, you will be able to store mana through meditation of up to double your current maximum mana.

  Warning. Meditation can be dangerous because it requires your complete concentration.

  Note: The first minute of meditation is the normal regeneration rate.

  So I left the base with my newly acquired gear, a new MP of 2k and the ability to put more mana into a spell to make it more powerful. With just my increased Wisdom I was now able to regenerate 2.33 MP a second or 8,388 MP in an hour. Now that I could cast invisibility I would be able to take advantage of Meditation. Instead of 2.33 MP a second I’d be regenerating 23.3, or approximately 83,880 MP an hour minus the ramp up time. I could also double my maximum mana to 4k.

  I cast Invisibility for the first time and walked right past the skeletons, an invisible blur.

  Chapter 8 – Stress Relief

  As I neared the exit of the first room filled with Decaying Skeletons, I stopped short. After being kidnapped, tortured, and face to face with an immeasurably powerful succubus queen who would likely eat me if the mood ever took her, my nerves had reached their limit.

  Pulling out my mace, I didn’t bother trying to soften my footsteps as I marched up behind the closest Decaying Skeleton. I could have uncast Invisibility, but I thought I might as well leave it running until my movement caused it to fail. I wasn't a fan of overly micromanaging spells in games and I wouldn't start here.

  Choking the worn leather grip of the mace with both hands, I teed off on the undead creature. There was a loud pop as its lower spine separated from its frame and scattered against the floor.

  Clenching my jaw, I leveled the steel ball upon its skull now lying against the stone floor. Bone dust
and fragments exploded out as it crumbled from the blow.

  I noticed my arms had become almost entirely visible the faster I moved. The rest of my body had done the same, but, to my surprise, my Invisibility spell didn’t fail. As I slowed, my ethereal state slowly returned over a few seconds. My jaw dropped. This spell was far more powerful than I could have hoped for. There were no countdown timers or having to hide before casting invisibility again.

  There were few situations I could imagine where this spell wouldn't come in handy. As a basher, fading in and out of invisibility was an amazing advantage. As a spell caster, I could throw a spell and become invisible a few seconds later. As a rogue... Muahahahaha!

  After a deep breath, I stomped toward the next skeleton, catching it on the side of the skull. The bone cracked, but without being braced against the floor the bone's natural durability won out. It took another swing to the head before it burst like a dust-filled firework.

  One after another I pounded on the weak creatures. My nerves worked themselves out through the physical exertion. In less than five minutes the room was clear. Without the imp to hit in the face, these decaying-bones-of-stress-relief were a welcome substitute. They didn’t cast nasty spells either.

  I allowed the room to fill two more times. After I had finished clearing it the last time I was drenched with sweat and leaning against the cold stone wall to catch my breath.

  Normally, I would have rebuked myself for wasting time in a gaming situation. This was something I had needed though and this wasn't a game. With a clear mind, I cast Heal on myself, fully recovering from my exhaustion. Such an amazing spell.

  Before I began my serious power leveling, it was time to test my new spells. If this had been a game, then I would have just figured it out as I went. I couldn’t afford to do that here. If I misjudged things just once it would mean a gruesome, painful and lonely death. There was no one to impress, so I would take no chances.

  A few rooms deeper I was second-guessing sneaking up on the lowbie zombie right in front of me. The worst part of its rotten smell was that it reminded me of fast food. Since I would probably never have a magnificent, grease-dripping, I-don't-know-what's-in-the-meat burger again, I wanted to remember them fondly.