Okinawa Dungeon—-Floor Three Thousand One:
Han and Omariro landed inside a mining cave.
〈Rule: Don't make a sound.〉
Han moved his mouth to speak, but Omariro held up his hand, shushing him. Up ahead was a treasure of precious jade ore, and a young hunter group was mining it.
Omariro walked over to them, using hand gestures. One of the boys pointed to a pit with a cage over it, making a cutthroat gesture.
Omariro gave a nod.
"Are they communicating?" Han wondered. "A form of sign language, maybe? Maybe my cube can decipher."
Omariro turned to Han, who quietly summoned his cube.
[Boy use cube. Smart.]
He pointed to the top of the cavern, where a totem resided in mid-air. [Totem. Make no sound. Consequence fatal.]
Han motioned to the mining group, a confused look on his face.
[Greedy youths. Leave them.]
Han quietly followed as Omariro crept over to a decrepit ladder. The old man poked it, and it creaked slightly.
〈Warning! Sound Level: *Moderate-High*〉
[Trap. Come, boy.]
Han tip-toed over to Omariro, who took his hand and jumped into the air. They landed on a ledge, the sound minimal.
〈Sound Level: *Minor.*〉
Ropes hung from the ceiling, leading to the next platform. Omariro took one. [Grip firm.]
Han put away his cube and grabbed one of the ropes with both hands, scanning the chasm below.
"Just like on the first floor…"
Following Omariro's lead, they swung to the next platform, which led to a staircase of floating steps that led up to the totem. Han walked forward, but Omariro stopped him, picking up a piece of rock and gently tossing it.
Omariro pointed to Han's pocket, and Han pulled back out his cube.
[Stairs unsafe. Only few hold weight. Use cube. Find path.]
Han concentrated, holding out his cube and pressing one of its buttons.
[Scan Complete. *2nd*, *5th*, and *9th* stairs are structurally stable.]
Han made those numbers with his fingers. Omariro nodded. [Good. Tread carefully. No haste.]
Omariro leapt into the air, landing on the second stair. He repeated the same process, reaching the top.
"Dude, he makes this look easy," Han lamented. "Okay. Time to put on my gym legs. Nerd-style."
Han used all his strength to reach the second step, pulling himself up. With the fifth step out of reach, Han took a deep breath.
"Based on the first step, I have about 0.5 seconds until the structure collapses. That's doable. Just needa jump like hell."
He prepared himself, and then he hopped on the weakened steps, using one foot at a time to spring himself up. Just as the final step collapsed under his feet, Omariro grabbed his arm, pulling him up.
〈Sound Level: *Moderate.*〉
[Careful, boy.]
The totem floated a small distance away. The only obstacle left was a narrow bridge, which repeatedly teleported the position from left to right.
[Test. You solve.]
Han paid close attention to the bridge, making a mental note in his head. "Every three seconds it teleports. Judging by the distance, it'll take twenty seconds to reach that totem…"
Han made the numbers three and twenty with his fingers to Omariro.
[Retrieve.]
Han waited for the time to line up, then he sprinted across the left bridge. "3…2…1…!"
He jumped to the right, and the bridge reformed under his feet. Repeating the pattern, he finally managed to reach the totem, grabbing it.
〈Totem Seal Acquired. Level 3,002 Clearance Enabled.〉
[Boy did well.]
Han returned to Omariro, but down below, one of the miners dropped his pickaxe on his foot, crying out in pain.
"Ow, shit! I broke my toe!"
His colleagues quickly whirled around on him, and one slapped him. "Idiot! What part of shut the hell up did you not understand?"
"All of you, STOP TALKING!" another hissed.
Omariro landed on the ground with Han, pressing a finger to his lips with a stern look. The kids ignored him, wrestling with each other and bickering.
〈Rule Broken. Enforcing Penalty.〉
"Fools!" Omariro chastised.
Rumbling could be heard coming from the pit below. The group watched in fear as a massive zombie-like hand burst from the pit, with a massive eyeball in the center of its palm.
〈Enemy: All-Hearing Hand.〉
The Hand emitted a burst of energy, knocking everyone but Omariro to the floor.
〈Enemy Effect: All sound feeds the All-Hearing Hand's *Sound Gauge.* Once full, the All-Hearing Hand will unleash *Devour.*〉
Han got up. "Sir! The gate hasn't opened!"
Omariro held up a hand. "Low voice. Enemy controls gate."
〈Sound Gauge: 15% Full.〉
Omariro pointed to the gate underneath the Hand. "We slay enemy."
He formed his blade. "Now."
Okinawa Dungeon—-Floor Two-Thousand Fifty-Two:
Zaria, Rika, and Yūto walked the streets of the festival, where cheerful masked Yokai men and women were dancing and singing.
"Save spot?" Zaria wondered. "Sounds like a video game. But the vibe I'm getting is party."
"Seriously?" Yūto groaned. "What do you think a save spot is? A menu? You enter the save floor, then you can jump in and out as you please. Plus they've got all kinds of distractions for you brainless little shits to enjoy."
"Real original, you scrawny-ass has-been."
"Watch your mouth, woman!"
"But how do we get to the next floor?" Rika questioned. "And what's the Rule this time?"
"Save spots don't have rules," Yūto clarified. "They're like lounges. For people like you."
"Excuse me?"
As more yokai danced around them, Yūto noticed a pair of familiar faces shopping in a plaza down the block. "Guys!"
Airi and Rio turned around.
Yūto ran up to them. "Don't know how you got here, and really don't care! Quick, let's ditch before these girls catch up!"
"Glad to see you alive too," Airi scoffed. "We've been waiting here forever."
"Lucky bastards. Get to shop on in a comfortable festival while I'm sentenced to life with psychopaths."
Rio noticed Zaria and Rika. "Hey, it's those girls again."
"That's ZARIA to you," Zaria corrected. "Knew the rest of the goon squad would appear eventually."
"Trading us out already, 'captain,'" Airi remarked. "How ruthless."
Yūto gave a salute to the girls. "Peace out, losers!"
He waited, but nothing happened. "Airi?"
"What?"
"You're supposed to do the thing! The sigil magic!"
"Can't. Spent 'em."
"Y—you did what now?"
Airi pointed to a nearby shop, where a bubbly female Yokai was waving. "The Sigil Shop. I should be around Level 2,700 now."
"Ditto for me," Rio yawned. "Give or take a few dozen."
Yūto's eyes bulged.
"Relax. I got you one too."
Airi handed him a glowing orange sigil. "Here, you crybaby."
Yūto snatched it from her. "Appreciate it."
〈Level-Up Sigil: +1,000 Levels.〉
Yūto squeezed the sigil, and its energy absorbed into his body. He felt his chin. "Did it work? I look different?"
"Nope," Airi scoffed. "Let's get off this lame ass floor. Rio?"
Rio grabbed his teammates' arms. "Uh-huh."
Zaria and Rika watched as they disappeared. Zaria exhaled loudly. "Meh, at least he's gone."
"What did they just do?" Rika questioned. "How'd they all jump levels like that?"
Zaria pointed to the shop. "The little shop over there. Heard they're scattered across dungeons. Never seen one in real life, though."
"Should we check it out?"
"Doesn't matter to me."
They both walked over to the shopkeeper, who greeted them warmly. "Hey! Humans here to buy?"
Rika's ears perked up. "What's for sale?"
"What's the currency," Zaria interrupted. "Is what you should be asking."
Rika rolled her eyes. "Ma'am?"
The vendor pressed a button on the counter, and tons of sigils floated in the air. "Take your pick. Whatever fancies your tastes, hehe!"
"Whoa!" Rika gasped. "You've got hundreds!"
"Try pressing one to see what it does!" the vendor suggested.
Rika pressed a reddish-green sigil.
〈Sigil Ability: Shockwave. Description: Releases a powerful shockwave that does double damage to *Boss Enemies.*〉
"That's kinda lit," Zaria admitted. "What about this one?"
She tapped a yellow sigil.
〈Sigil Ability: Solar Flash. Description: Burns all enemies in the vicinity with *Solar Damage.*〉
"Are these permanent?" Rika asked.
The vendor shook her head. "The permanent ones are here."
She waved her hand, and the sigils rotated, with larger sigils taking their places. "These are the Modifier Sigils. What you just saw were Ability Sigils."
"What do they do?"
"Touch one. Find out."
Zaria shrugged and pressed the nearest sigil.
〈Tōshi Sigil: Enhancement. Description: Unlocks *Secondary Skill.* Limited to Jugen-Tōshi only.〉
"Secondary Skill?"
The vendor nodded. "All classes have three skills they can unlock. Just a matter of reaching that level."
"How much does this cost?"
The vendor snapped her fingers, and a price list popped up.
Modifier Sigils:
Tier 1: 105 Sigils
Tier 2: 250 Sigils
Tier 3: 500 Sigils
Ability Sigils: 60 Sigils Each
Level-Up Sigils: 25 Sigils Each
"Oh…" Rika realized. "We don't have any more sigils."
"No? Then how'd you make it this far?"
"Luck."
"Luck will only get you so far," the vendor remarked. "Maybe it's best you turn back. Exit Gate is that way."
She pointed down to the center of the town, where a stone gate stood.
"No, uh, actually, we need to meet up with our party!" Rika clarified. "Is there anything we can use? Preferably for free?"
The vendor sighed. "Since it's your first time, I'll cut you a deal. Complete this commission for me and I'll reward you with four sigils of your choosing. Two per person."
"Okay…" Zaria said. "So what's the job?"
"My son, Touma Shirasu," she explained. "He was supposed to restock my sigils on the floor beneath us. He never returned, despite hours passing."
"So…you want us to find him."
"Yes. Please bring him home safe and sound, and I will reward you so."
Zaria nudged Rika. "We can do that, right?"
"Yeah, let's kick it."
The vendor bowed. "I thank you very much!"
An info bar popped up in front of them.
〈Commission: Find *Touma Shirasu.* Reward: *4x* Sigil.〉
The girls raced off, but Zaria backtracked. "Excuse me, uh, where's the floor gate?"
"Two blocks over. Under the Yokai Statue."
"Thanks!"
Underneath the statue was a floating totem. Rika reached out and touched it.
〈Totem Activated. Level 2,053 Clearance Enabled.〉
"Down in the dumps we go," Zaria commented.
"At least we get to pick out some killer sigils, right?" Rika pointed out.
"True."
The floor parted, and a staircase formed below. The girls descended, and the floor closed behind them.
Below—-
〈Rule: Tell No Lies.〉
They landed in a metal factory, on a narrow metal walkway hanging over a forge below.
"Tell no lies," Zaria thought. "Who am I going to lie to?"
A workshop stood at the end of the walkway.
"Gotta be the place," Zaria mused.
"Welp, quicker we get in, quicker we get out," Rika replied.
They headed for the workshop. The door was a gargantuan metal slab held tight by locks. The girls paused, and Zaria knocked on it.
"Yo-yo!" she greeted. "Anyone home?"
"Girl…please…"
"My bad. Couldn't help it."
The metal door slid open, and glowing blue eyes greeted them. "Ahh, guests! Come in, darlings!"
Zaria and Rika hesitated before stepping into the workshop. Once they did, the door slammed behind them.
Inside the workshop was a small forge, a conveyor belt, and a furnace. As Zaria took a closer look, she jumped back when a voice caught her off guard.
"Make yourselves at home! Tea? Coffee? Water?"
Attached to the ceiling was a mechanical arm, and at the base of that arm was a large computer screen, with a monitor that had glowing blue eyes and a blue smile.
"Oh! Forgot to introduce myself! Call me Sōshin Shikōki! I'd give you a warm handshake, but well…"
Rika and Zaria both looked at each other.
"You're a living computer?" Rika questioned. "I've heard of AI, but come on!"
Sōshin shifted to the other side of the room. "No, no! I'm human! Well, I used to be one. Then the Dungeon turned me into this for failing its rule!"
"Sheesh," Zaria muttered. "That sucks."
Rika punched her arm. "Ahem. We're sorry for your condition."
"It's fine! Being a supercomputer has its perks! Now, what are your names?"
"I'm Rika. This is Zaria. We're here to find a boy named Touma. Have you seen him?"
"Sure have! Stay right there, I'll take you to him!"
"Like, wait right here—?"
Suddenly, the floor opened below them, and the two girls fell through the hole.
"Hey, what the hell?"
Landing on a soft surface, they noticed laboratory equipment all around them, filled with test tubes and cryogenic pods. Sōshin appeared beside them.
"Now, meet my new friend!"
Up ahead was another computer, this one with a sad face.
"Help…me…"
Zaria quickly stood up. "Wait, is that the kid?"
"Correct! He came in not too long ago, so I made him my friend!"
The room began to shake, and mechanical arms wrapped around Zaria and Rika.
"And now…I'll do the same to you. Time to make you…"
The girls squirmed.
"…BETTER!"
——