Unlimited Power 02 - The Ranger's Domain
Chapter 291 - Ghosts

                    Although they had to fly for a while to reach the dungeon, Lucas mentioned, thanks to that, Ryan had the chance to see several camps along the way, and all of them were in front of some sort of dungeon. Ryan used Appraisal to check their classes, but he didn't replace anything new.

"Your crossbow looks pretty powerful, Ryan, "Lucas said while looking at the weapon full of interest. "Did you get it by clearing a dungeon in which you got one of those powerful classes?"

"No, I obtained this when I killed a dragon that attacked me," Ryan replied.

          The secret to lie well was to tell half-truths. Ryan didn't lie, but he also didn't tell Lucas that he obtained the crossbows when he killed someone like him.

          Regardless, despite the fact that those guys were trying to kill some humans a few minutes ago, the survivors that fought alongside Lucas greeted him and barely frowned while looking at Ryan. Weirdly enough, they seemed pretty used to visitors.

  "By killing a dragon, huh," Lucas said. "You are quite insane; most people would trust to run at first sight instead of fighting."

"I tried, but the monster did not let me escape," Ryan added. "It also looks like you got an interesting skill. Not only can you transform into a dragon, but your status also skyrocketed in that form."

"You probably don't know this, but some people make contracts with dragons to obtain their power and cooperation," Lucas said. "Considering your statuses, it surprises me that none of them tried to negotiate with you."

"Yeah, I don't think most of them would negotiate with their lunch," Ryan said.

"Not all dragons are like that, you know," Lucas said. "They are beings just like us, but since their power is too great, most of them just sees us as insects."

              Things were starting to get weird. If Lucas really were planning something, he wouldn't tell Ryan those things. Unless he was talking with his dragon and the monster was telling everything that Ryan knew. Come to think of it, Ryan didn't know the limits of the dragons' mind-reading skills. Could they read just his mind, or could they access old memories? If the second option was the correct one, Ryan was wasting his time by pretending that he didn't know certain things.

"Well, there is an exception to every rule," Ryan said. "Regardless, can you tell me a few things about this dungeon?"

"Sure," Lucas smiled. "Since the dungeon appeared, my friends and I managed to clear it before the dungeon breaks, so the level of difficulty of the place is reasonable, and it can even be compared to weaker dungeons. However, the monsters are a bit troublesome with their set of skills and nature of their bodies… they are ghosts."

"I can imagine… physical attacks don't work on them, right?" Ryan asked.

"Yes, although your crossbow can probably work on them, I wouldn't bet too much on the poisonous effect," Lucas said. "They specialize in cursing their targets and poisoning them as well. Hence, they have high resistance against negative effects such as curse and poison."

            Curses… Ryan could imagine how troublesome those could be. It looked kind of scary to be cursed by a ghost, even though it was evident that the negative effect would disappear over time. Ryan had Purification, but the skill was at a low-level since he was a ranged fighter.

"Well, you don't need to worry too much about it," Lucas smiled confidently. "I can clear the dungeon by myself just fine, and with your help, I bet it will be a cinch."

                                Lucas's behavior made Ryan even more suspicious, but he couldn't feel any malice coming from him weirdly enough. He was either a really nice guy despite the fact that he was fighting against other humans, or he was a maniac who was very good at fooling others with his actions and calm demeanor.

                                              Regardless, Ryan discovered that Lucas camps had at least one thousand survivors thanks to the long trip. Although everyone treated him like the leader, he wasn't the type to give orders often, and people feel comfortable at cracking jokes when he appeared and patted their back. It was truly weird…

                                              In any case, after a few hours, they finally reached the dungeon Lucas had mentioned, and it was pretty close to the destroyed capital of the country. Although only six ghosts were spawning every ten minutes, four groups of six survivors were guarding the entrance.

"Hey, guys," Lucas said while wavering his hands at the survivors around. "I came today again to do your job."

            The survivors laughed when they heard that. While Lucas was greeting his friends, Ryan looked around and saw some workshops where the survivors repaired their gear, some tents in which they used to sleep, and some boxes filled with a strange semi-transparent slimy liquid.

"Those are the bodies of the ghosts. They become like that once they die," Lucas explained. "We call it ectoplasm, and fortunately, we can use it to attack and make monsters suffer from the same negative effects the ghosts can cause."

"Really?" Ryan frowned. "That is convenient."

"At the same time, the liquid can cause negative effects if we touch them recklessly," Lucas said. "It is really unpleasant, but if you want to increase your resistance against it, you will have to endure it."

            While Ryan was interested in that, he wouldn't do it while unknown individuals surrounded him. Call him paranoid, but Ryan will never trust someone that easily again. Those who were overly friendly… especially those, he will make sure to keep several steps away from them.

"If you have some tracking skills that work in a wide area, I would advise you to keep it active," Lucas said. "Ghosts can't leave the dungeon until they reach the entrance, but they can hide in the walls and the ground. To avoid any unpleasant surprises, those skills are absolutely necessary."

Class: Hunter Lv 63 (+ 02 UP / Elementalist Lv 55 (+ 02 UP)/ Monk Lv 16 (--)

Race: Night Demon /Reptilian/ Ice Fox (--)

Rank: 249th 

Health: 834 /834 (3,19/s)

Mana: 1661/1661 (3,19/s)

Stamina: 1296/1296 (3,19/s)

Strength: 31 (+166) (+130)

Dexterity: 1450 (+1095) (+82)

Speed: 85 (+499) (+48) 

Intelligence: 81 (+513) (+3)

Endurance: 28 (+131) (+130)

Control: 06 (+521) (+10)

Mentality: 08 (+36) (+30)

Luck: 74 (+15)

Recovery: 700 (+991) (+330) 

Willpower: 30 (+36)

Coins: 1.296.588

Status: 00

Skill List

Offensive Physical Skills: Power Shot Lv 81 (+ 04 UP), 

Passive Physical Skills: Eagle Eyes Lv 63 (+ 03 UP), Concentration Lv 63 (+ 05 UP), Archery Lv 63 (+ 05 UP), Accuracy Lv 63 (+ 05 UP), Stealth Lv 46 (+ 04 UP), Awareness Lv 11 (+ 10 UP), Support Lv 01

Spells: Summon Warg Lv 21 (+ 20 UP), Seal Lv 01, Fire Enchantment Lv 01, Ice Enchantment Lv 01, 

Support Skills: Acid Resistance Lv 11 (+ 10 UP), 

Classes:

Combat: Sage Lv 54 (+ 02 UP), Archer Lv 55 (+ 03 UP), Summoner Lv 32 (+ 03 UP), Combat Archer Lv 37 (+ 03 UP), Sorcerer Lv 24 (+ 03 UP), Sniper Lv 29 (+ 04 UP), Weapons Master Lv 09 (+ 03 UP), Sentinel Lv 05 (+ 03 UP), Enchanter Lv 01, 

Non-Combatant: 

Race: Centaur