MMORPG: Rise of the Peerless Pumpkinmancer

A man and wolf spawned in a cave with bones and fur balls all over the place.

[Entered Dimensional Dungeon Wolf Den!]

[Difficulty = Normal]

The two seriously checked their surroundings as they darted outside. What about the earlier incident with the snooping lady? They had instantly forgotten it.

“Hurry up and reach the river.” Jack ushered Wolfgang along.

In the distance, the wolf howls were resounding rhythmically, akin to harbingers of doom. They would only have a few minutes to reach a safe spot.

The two began running alongside the splashing water, the little wolf eyeing this dangerous area warily. It vividly remembered how it had earlier been devoured in a few seconds. The fishes in there were so odd. How could they be so small yet so deadly?!

— Howl! —

— Howl! —

— Howl! —

— Howl! —

“Keep running. We should stumble upon something soon.” Jack reassured his partner.

About a minute later, they finally noticed something noteworthy. In the water, there were a few boulders that stuck out. They were half-submerged and seemed highly slippery, with the stream turning into a deadly-looking torrent.

Jack stopped, aligning himself with it-.

“We’ll be crossing here.”

“Woo?!” (No way!)

This river was bad news. They were better off just running! Maybe they’d have a chance then.

The current was roaring, akin to a terrifyingly hungry dragon. There were also the deadly fishes hiding in it for sure! Even if they survived the water, the piranhas would devour them entirely.

The little wolf shivered as it implored jack to forget it.

“Woo-woo!” (Begging)

He sighed slightly before resting his hand on the soft fur, transmitting his warmth. He then picked the little guy up, resting it on his head.

“It’s gonna be alright. Hold on tight.”

“Woo!” (Uneasy)

“Who do you think your master is? Do you take me for someone that a little puddle will defeat?” He grandly declared.

“Woo!” (Energetic)

His furry companion stopped trembling and even began looking around excitedly. It suddenly realized that the rapids were not that scary. As long as it was with its master, then everything would be fine!

Jack’s expression turned solemn. This thing wouldn’t be that easy to cross. If he remembered correctly, the piranhas in this river were as deadly as shy. If they saw a group, they would leave it alone. They would only attack isolated targets.

The thing was that Jack was pretty sure his pet didn’t count as a party member in such an instance. This would be harsh very harsh.

He took a deep breath as he began stretching. In the back, he could hear death approaching.

— Howl! —

— Howl! —

— Howl! —

The wolves were here! The gray monsters rushed forward as soon as they noticed the vulnerable human. He would make the perfect meal! After all, not often did his kind wander here.

Yet, it was as if Jack had neither heard nor seen them. He was still stretching, looking like a middle-aged lady talking in the middle of the supermarket aisle: entirely oblivious to the rest of the world.

The bloodthirsty predators rejoiced. What an easy prey! They even raced one another to see which one would manage to sink their fangs into the idiot’s soft flesh first.

But just as they were about to reach him, he suddenly jumped toward the river, landing on a rock. He then exerted a colossal effort to balance his body, resisting the rapid current.

Would the wolves give up while they were so close? Hell no! The few at the forefront pounced, landing on the rocks right behind the human.

Jack chuckled to himself while whispering:

“— Ta-da! A wolf joined your party— Kinda….”

As long as the creatures tried to devour him, they would cause enough ruckus to keep the piranhas away. As for the danger, the wolves themselves posed, it was minimal as they struggled to keep their footing.

They were used to forest and mountainous terrain. They were way out of their element in the shallow but turbulent water! They realized it too.

They did try their best until the middle of the river. That’s when they reluctantly gave up, turning back with disappointed growls. Damn slippery human!

This was actually bad news for Jack. As soon as they left, the piranhas came over! They had been lurking, hiding below the water surface all this time, just waiting for an opportunity!

It soon became a freaking chomping fest!

— Chomp! Chomp! Chomp! —

— Chomp! Chomp! Chomp! —

— Chomp! Chomp! Chomp! —

Their sharp teeth were even bigger than their bodies. What kind of BS was this?! He now had to fend off an entire wave of them!

He got his shield and sword out as he began blocking and parrying, making sure not to fall. Every hit threatened to push him into an abyss with only doom awaiting.

-0

-0

-0

-….

His performance was exemplary, but even then there was a limit to how many hits he could block.

On this unstable footing, he couldn’t avoid the enemies either. As he got bitten over and over, he felt pangs of pain invade his body. He was like dog food in a dog bowl— aka not too hard to hunt.

-1

-1

-1

-…

His HP was quickly getting drained. This was a goddamn continuous and endless attack!

His brain kept screaming at him to protect his vitals. Years of evolution had ingrained in his being that this was the best course of action. This was true, even with the lowered pain. But he knew this was a trap!

Jack didn’t have time for that. Not at all! If he stopped moving, this would be his end. That’s why he kept progressing, one step at a time, even as he felt himself losing pieces of his flesh. The piranhas were really enjoying themselves!

His blood flowed in the torrent only to disappear instantly. This in turn excited the creatures even more as they became even more zealous-. At this moment, there was no way that they would ever give up on this feast.

As Jack’s HP was getting lower and lower, he was very tempted to down a potion. But he repressed that idea too. If he stopped swinging his Cluckinator, they would use the opportunity to overwhelm him completely, even pushing him into the rapids.

How horrible of an end would that be? Fucking very! Just as he was about to die, he finally took his last step, reaching the shore. He hurriedly shook himself akin to a wet dog, sending piranhas flying all over the place.

Now out of the water, they could only splash around, sending water droplets all over, gasping for air. That’s when the little wolf jumped down from its safe spot. It was time for revenge!

“Woo!” (Angry!)

Then began a one-sided massacre. Wolf VS beached piranhas. The fishes despaired as they tried biting back, but they couldn’t do so. This was divine retribution for their misdeeds!

Jack slightly smiled as he observed the scene. This had sure been a pain. Good thing that he had made use of the wolves, or he would never have survived to the other side. Other than that his experience and body control had played a huge role.

But even after this victory, he didn’t dare to be reckless. He carefully observed his surroundings. As he heard tons of wolves howling in the distance, he knew that this was just the beginning…

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[A/N] Hype! PRIV Mass Release Time! ??

Day 1: Skeletal Chicken Tier (1/6) ???

Creator’s Thought

Using your environment is an art. This is how one handles stuff like that without a party. Then again, this could possibly be even more annoying with a party. The piranhas would attack the last player to cross. Dying meant either running the dungeon with one less player or restarting completely (wolves at spawn).