Chapter 37 – The Gleam of Sapphire.

The air inside the Sapphire Serpent Dungeon (Level 18-20) felt as though made of crystal and static electricity.

The walls of the subterranean cave were formed of immense blocks of translucent sapphire emitting an intense bluish glow, reflecting off the squad's armor.

Diana handed over two silver coins at the guild gate to secure the high-level expedition license for the Arcane Greed Faction.

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[DUNGEON LICENSE PAYMENT]

- Sapphire Caverns Permit: -2 Silver Coins (200 Bronze).

[TEMPORARY POCKET BALANCE: 53 SILVER COINS (5,300 Bronze)]

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"Standard combat formation." Diana declared, her voice echoing clearly off the crystal walls. "Kael on the vanguard, Aurelia-Elysia covering with barriers, Rhea on stealth infiltration. We clear this dungeon before noon."

Diana activated her [Aura of Arcane Domain]. The silver-blue light expanded from her body, boosting Aurelia-Elysia's Magic Damage and granting additional movement speed to Rhea and Kael.

Kael advanced with his Volcanic Steel Shield in front, the black metal with reddish grooves framed by the dungeon's blue light.

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First and Second Floors - Clearing the Sapphires

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The first engagement began in the hall of crystal mirrors.

A horde of ten Blue Crystal Guardians (Level 18) and four Sapphire Hydras (Level 19) emerged from the stone walls.

Kael slammed his steel shield into the ground. IRON TAUNT! The shield's red aura drew the impact of all four hydras at once.

The hydras' bites slammed against the volcanic shield. The shield's passive reflected 15% of direct physical damage back to the monsters' heads, while Aurelia-Elysia cast two instant [Protection Barriers] onto Kael's shoulders.

Rhea turned into a silvery streak.

PHANTOM STEP!

With Agility 46, Rhea materialized directly above the first hydra's neck, driving her Corrosive Crystal Daggers into the monster's spine. The elemental poison melted the sapphire scales in seconds.

Diana extended her left hand.

ARCANE STORM ORB!

An electric sphere exploded in the center of the crystal guardians, stunning them all for 3 seconds. Without missing the window of advantage, Diana fired a charged [Greed's Flame] combined with an Ice Lance, scorching the magic structure of the stunned monsters.

The squad's advance was overwhelming. In under forty minutes, the first two floors were completely cleared.

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Boss Chamber - The Ancestral Sapphire Serpent

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The dungeon's final chamber was a grand dome of blue crystal surrounded by subterranean waterfalls.

In the center of the dome, coiled atop a pedestal of pure sapphire, rose the Ancestral Sapphire Serpent (Level 20 - Dungeon Boss). The monster was ten meters long, with jewel-bright scales and a crown of sharp crystals atop its head.

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[FINAL BOSS DETECTED!]

[Ancestral Sapphire Serpent - Level 20]

HP: 680 / 680 | Main Stat: Mana Magic Beam / Crystal Speed

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The Level 20 Serpent roared, opening its jaws and firing a compressed beam of blue mana straight at the party.

"KAEL, BLOCK!" Diana ordered.

Kael drove his Volcanic Shield into the crystal floor, activating [Unshakeable Stance]. The magic beam spell struck the steel shield, splashing blue and red sparks across the hall, but Kael absorbed the impact without retreating a single step.

Diana activated [Command Eye].

Her magic vision highlighted the imperfect crack in the serpent's crystal crown.

"RHEA, WEAK POINT ON THE CROWN!" Diana yelled.

Diana used [Arcane Teleportation], blinking 8 meters to the right and launching a Storm Orb at the serpent's snout, stunning the boss for 3 seconds.

Rhea didn't waste a second. PHANTOM STEP! The wolf girl appeared midair directly above the serpent's head and drove both corrosive crystal daggers into the crown's weak point.

CRUNCH! CRITICAL DAMAGE: 260!

Diana finished the fight by channeling all her MP into a double charged Arcane Arrow.

BOOM!

The Level 20 Sapphire Serpent exploded into a rain of sparkling crystals and light particles.

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The moment the Level 20 Boss turned to dust, a surge of golden notifications flooded the squad's screens.

Diana reached the coveted Level 20!

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[EVOLUTION MILESTONE ACHIEVED!]

-DIANA REACHED LEVEL 20!

- RHEA REACHED LEVEL 18!

- KAEL REACHED LEVEL 17!

- AURELIA-ELYSIA REACHED LEVEL 17!

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With Level 20 achieved, Diana's class interface emitted a pulse of gleaming black gold, unlocking her Second Official Class Skill:

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[NEW CLASS SKILL UNLOCKED!]

- [Commander's Loot - Level 1]: Class Passive / Active. The Commander of Greed's aura forces reality to yield the maximum value from the slain. Increases rare item drop rate and coin amount collected for the entire squad by +30%.

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The passive skill [Commander's Loot] activated that very second over the Boss's remains.

The corpse of the Sapphire Serpent, which normally would yield only a few silver coins, glowed with an intense golden hue and dropped an unbelievable haul: Seventeen Gleaming Silver Coins and a Pure Sapphire Core of Level 20!

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The squad sat down on the cleared chamber's sapphire blocks to allocate their gained attribute points.

Diana instructed Kael and Aurelia-Elysia's distribution with mathematical precision (5 free points per level up), while Rhea picked hers and Diana applied her own Level 20 distribution:

- Kael (Level 17): +3 in Vitality (27 -> 30 VIT), +2 in Strength (19 -> 21 STR). (Kael's HP reached an incredible 300 HP POINTS!)

- Aurelia-Elysia (Level 17): +3 in Intelligence (26 -> 29 INT), +2 in Wisdom (18 -> 20 WIS). (Aurelia's MP reached 230 MP POINTS!)

- Rhea (Level 18): +3 in Agility (43 -> 46 AGI +3 Gear = 49 AGI!), +2 in Strength (20 -> 22 STR).

- Diana (Level 20 - Commander of Greed): 5 Free Points + Class Passives (+3 INT, +2 PER, +1 WIS) -> +3 Free Intelligence (54 + 3 + 3 = 60 INT!), +2 Vitality (22 -> 24 VIT). (HP: 240 / 240 | MP: 300 / 300!)

Intelligence 60 for Diana. Three hundred MP points in her pool.

Agility 49 for Rhea. Three hundred HP points for Kael.

With seventeen silver coins added to the vault by the new [Commander's Loot], the faction's net worth hit the exact mark of Seventy Silver Coins the precise equivalent of Seven Pure Gold Coins.

Diana stashed the Level 20 Pure Sapphire Core in her pouch, inspecting the crystal's blue reflections.

She looked at Rhea, who was testing her Agility 49 reflexes atop a sapphire block, and at Kael and Aurelia-Elysia chatting excitedly about their new milestones of 300 HP and 230 MP.

There were no cold summaries or repetitive lists in Diana's mind at that moment.

There was only the physical, living sensation of true power circulating through her veins. Level 20 was claimed. The mark of Arcane Greed was feared and respected in the citadel. And the portal to the Third Circle of Hell was growing ever closer.

Final Notes:

Not much to say here, so... hummmm, what's your favorite food??? (Stupid question, I know)