New Enemy

The carriage was not that fast, but still faster than walking. Plus, they could just sit and relax while waiting to reach their destination.

Damon and his party laughed a lot at the forum posts, and after one hour of that, they reached the mine Alvin talked about.

The coachman stopped the carriage and said, "All right, this is the place. You can use that house over there."

There was a wooden cabin outside the mine, presumably for the workers who weren't there anymore.

They thanked the coachman for the help, and they all parted ways.

Damon went to that house and opened it, just to check what it had inside.

It was just like any normal house. The only essential thing players needed was the bed, which could be used to rest your character and get bonus EXP the next day.

The company added that so that people who did not play every day could get bonus EXP and a similar level to those who played every day.

The level was critical, but it was not everything in Bless. Good items made a huge difference, so it was not wise to rush and focus solely on leveling.

Damon and his party did that because the beginner village was packed with players, and everyone knew getting in the city first was important.

"Should we head to the mine now?" Damon asked, looking at the rest of his party.

They played for a few hours, but not that big of a deal.

"Yes. If we get tired, we can just return to his cabin and rest. It's the safe zone of this area." Shawn said.

After deciding, they went inside the mine just outside, near the wooden cabin.

It was dark inside, but the game at least gave them torches at the entrance.

"Why do I feel it will have gigantic spiders inside this place?" Rebecca said, gazing at the ground and walls of the cave.

Damon was the first to answer, "Because it probably will."

Henry and Shawn laughed after seeing how scared Rebecca was.

"Just wait until we are out of the game, my sweet brother Shawn. I'll beat you up." Shawn stopped laughing after that. His sister was not someone to joke with.

A few pickaxes and helmets were scattered on the mine's ground. There were even a few blankets and improvised beds.

The miners seemed to sleep inside that place, which did not look decent.

They kept going straight, not finding anything out of the ordinary. Well, that was until a wolf showed up.

It was the same wolf they faced in the forest.

[Blue Furred Wolf]

[Level 1]

"The same enemy we faced? This is easy." Rebecca said, already preparing her fireball.

Now that everyone was level 2, their attacks, defense, and healing were stronger.

It was even easier to deal with that wolf, and everyone killed it flawlessly.

They got the same EXP as before after killing the monster. It was not good, but better than nothing.

"Let's keep moving," Damon said, and the rest followed his command.

Time was precious when playing, and they could not waste that.

More wolves came as they kept going forward, and they dealt with them efficiently. But the more they went inside the mine, the fewer wolves appeared, until a point where no wolves appeared at all.

Damon sensed something was off, so he grabbed his talisman and cast a Weak Protection spell for all his party members, increasing their armor rating by 14 points.

The others sensed something was off, so they raised their weapons and prepared for the worst.

A monster appeared in front of them. It was not like the wolves they faced, but a spider covered in armor made of rocks.

[Rock Spider]

[Level: 3]

It had a higher level than the party. The only advantage they had was being four versus one.

"Everyone, formation!" Damon shouted, retreating a few steps and letting Henry take the front.

Rebecca feared spiders, but her brother came to comfort her.

"This is just a game, don't be scared. Plus, you can throw fireballs at the spider and burn it."

"Y-You are right. I'll burn that thing!"

The Rock Spider jumped and used its two fangs to attack Henry, who was at the front.

Henry blocked the attack but received 15 damage and had to retreat a few steps.

That only proved the creature they faced was not easy to deal with.

Damon channeled his power in the talisman, and a divine yellow light shone, healing Henry's HP by 19, returning him to full life.

"My bro," Henry said, giving a thumbs up.

Rebecca finished channeling her fireball, and it shot toward the Rock Spider.

A blast and the spider was sent flying. The party thought that was a good sign, but after reading the number, it did not feel like it.

[15 DMG]

It was less damage than Rebecca did to the wolves when she was level 1.

The spider had a good defense, and finishing it would take more than that.

Also, the total HP of that Rock Spider showed.

[HP: 115/130]

Damon was the leader, so he quickly said, "Don't worry, we can deal with it. Just keep the formation up. With me here, Henry will not even lose HP."

It was just words, but it increased the morale of the entire party. Rebecca, for example, who was feeling sad after dealing little damage, was already preparing her next fireball.

Henry had his shield up high, waiting for the next attack.

The spider jumped again, but Henry stood his ground this time, and after blocking the fangs, he slashed his sword.

It did not cut the spider due to the rock armor but still sent it flying.

[2 DMG]

The damage was pitiful, but it still helped in a way.

"Look beneath the spider. There's no armor there." Damon said.

"Henry, do the same thing again, but Shawn needs to be nearby this time to pierce his daggers there."

Like before, the spider jumped, and Henry sent it flying with his sword.

Shawn had already circled, and when the Rock Spider had its belly facing up, he jumped and attacked it with his daggers.

[120 DMG]

[Ding]

[Monster 1 level higher, 10% more EXP.]

[+ 15 EXP]