Realistic or Modern Dungeon Delver IC

[Gaius Danius Griinia]

Spoiler: Store

Red Shroud Antiques was a quiet little shop nestled between the cozy cafes and vintage bookstores of this quiet little district. One might assume it to be a passion project given how quiet the store seemed with the comparatively more popular stores around. Second-hand DVD's, old toys, wooden furniture and even freshly polished china dotted the shelves around this quaint little hole in the wall. Unexpectedly, this store would be receiving guests today. Unlike the rare trio of bargain hunting mothers or the elderly gentlemen seeking rare finds. A quintet of individuals with different appearances and backgrounds had all gathered here at the request of one whom they all shared the briefest but most important meeting with. Today would mark a change in not only the lives of those gathered but many lives aside from them. Upon entering the store, the five would find a young woman using a stylus to presumably do some light paperwork on a tablet. Noticing the group, she gave a simple smile before nodding her head. Although they were but E-Rank scrubs. The group would be able to tell that whoever this lady was; her presence was insane. If she were a Ranker, one of the chosen few who had achieved S-Rank... they would have believed it in a heartbeat.

"Oh you're here. The owner will see you now"

Spoiler: The Assistant

The green haired receptionist lady led the group into a back room where all of them would gaze upon the man who had made them the offer of all offers. Sleeping in his wheelchair and quietly snoring was the mysterious antique store owner. He was shaken a little by his emerald haired assistant before raising his head. His eyes were covered by a thick blindfold, making it hard to know where they were looking at any moment. Turning his head to see if all of his guests had gathered. The owner began to whisper something under his breath. Coffee was poured into a cup for the owner to begin sipping while he regained his bearings after such a long nap.

Spoiler: The Owner

"You stand before me today because the system that saved you... has failed you. Hunters all have the opportunity to rise the ranks regardless of what initial rank they awaken as. Not a single one of you could properly awaken. Nay, being a simple human would have been less demeaning. No doubt you were mocked by your awakened peers and looked down on by regular civilians. A struggle occurred within each of you that could not be overcome no matter WHAT you did"

Placing his cup down so it could be filled once more with coffee. The owner could sense the various emotions going through his guests minds. All understandable and all incredibly interesting. Motioning to his assistant to retrieve something from another room. She would return with five small black boxes. These boxes would be placed into the hands of the guests. Although simple in appearance, they were no doubt magical in origin.

"Once you open that box, you will receive something that will give you the opportunity to become a True Hunter. Nothing in this world is truly free... for such a method requires you to give something precious in exchange. You could lose the sight that guides you, the legs that hold you or even the memories that comprise you"

---

tian221
Bluffly
Ginko The Mushishi
mysteryxio
AtTheEndOfEverything

 

[Ginko The Mushishi]

​

𝓐𝓵𝓯𝓻𝓮𝓭 𝓦𝓲𝓷𝓼𝓵𝓸𝔀​

Location: Red Shroud Antiques
Interaction: tian221 Bluffly mysteryxio AtTheEndOfEverything
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The sullen son of a CEO was keen to keep his clothes from getting wet- he had already fought over a few quarters about two hours ago just so he could freshen up his laundry. The bent and quite overly resucitated cigarette stuck out from under his lips with a fervent desire to hang on until Al's next big break...Which usually meant finding a couple dollars to grab another pack of cigarettes. The man was in desperation as he crossed the threshold of the Antique store. He had to give it some credit, the place was a smash hit of bits and bobs that could probably sell to the next best sucker in town. Hell, if Al just couldn't stick it out being a low rank loser, he could beg to apply here...
The receptionist seemed like she enjoyed it here, but something was surely off about her. Al could sense some crazy sensation when he went near her, like his entire body was being squished by some invisible force. This was...Scary, even for him. He gulped but finally responded with the usual tone of a down-on-his-luck loser.
Which he was...
​

"Ah...Y-Yes. I am here to see your owner..."
"I guess that was easy, no need to check in or anything.." Al thought to himself.

Nevermind that now, as Al was quickly escorted to The Owner of the store.
The man in question: sure loved his coffee. Al counted how many times he drank and asked for another. His frown only seemed to grow larger when The owner spoke about their questionably low ranking - Even if they tried their hardest to succeed. Al learned the hard way he was just some shmuck who could never make it big, never see a day where he could actually be useful to others. He'd live and die a lonely loser that never amounted to anything. He'd die, never getting to show his father that he could make it without him...

His self-depracating tangent quickly ended when an unusual black box was placed within his hands. He liked the style of it, honestly. It looked beautifully crafted, but ominous as well... The owner spoke of a catch though, but just like in business there was always a catch to something. You had to give up something, and in return you'd recieve an equal or perhaps better offer than you imagined. Al thought long and hard, but eventually caved into the desire to actually, finally, be of worth to this world...

Alfred Winslow would open the box at the same time as his peers would. ​

 

[mysteryxio]

Bronx felt a mix of emotions as The Owner told him what would happen, what continuing on meant. He read a lot about the deals that The Owner offered. Part of him told him to put the box down and walk out. To never go back and tell no one what happened. But he was never good at listening to that part of him.

Bronx left yet another party after only a week of being together. The party he left were a bunch of newbies looking to make their mark, to claim fame and fortune. The group didn't know each other, getting together more out of them all being new. He decided to join them to teach them and having learned what they could, he left. The group talked often about how excited they were to go further. Bronx wouldn't admit it but...he felt kind of jealous of that. He managed to go so far in the dungeon. If he went further than what he was used to, he'd end up overwhelmed again. He didn't want to think about that and pushed the thought from his mind.

At the same time the need to go further remained. To explore and see if the stories he heard from others were true. No matter how much he trained he couldn't get past that gap, but never felt discouraged from it. However his impatience began getting the better of him. He thought maybe if he had new gear, that would help. He'd gone to different vendors looking over different gear, but nothing really stuck out to him, going absentmindedly from one place to another. When he looked up though, he found a green haired woman and a group of adventures beside him.

The woman at the front emanated a power that made him wonder what he'd gotten into. He didn't say anything when she spoke merely following her guidance. How...I mean I never made an appointment. He didn't bother to correct her. Afraid of what she'd do and curious to see what would happen next. Walking in and seeing the man in the wheelchair he wasn't sure what to think especially since he was sleeping in the chair. The Owner seemed to be the unassuming type of guy either with hidden immense power or the connections to those that had it. Bronx wondered how powerful he was if the green haired woman worked as an assistant for him, or maybe it was that she got more joy out of being in a place like this than in a dungeon.

A part of Bronx was amazed at what was happening. A few of his favorite anime had people who made Faustian like contracts for power. He never thought he'd actually get to meet one though. He had a million questions about the history and what he could do. He knew though that there'd be a lot of double talk, of him dancing around whatever questions asked when it came to the topic, and that was assuming that The Owner was even telling him the truth about it. "Th-thank you very much" he awkwardly spat out when given the box was given to him. He tried to hide the blush on his face. He tended to get embarrassed when he interacted with...certain types of women.

If he open it there'd be no going back. How much did he want to explore? How badly did he want the power to do that? He took a breathe. Then opened.

tian221
Bluffly
Ginko The Mushishi
AtTheEndOfEverything

 

[Bluffly]

Araysh Aziz

Location: red Shroud Antiques
Interactions: mysteryxio tian221 Ginko The Mushishi AtTheEndOfEverything Gaius Danius Griinia
Araysh stared in disbelief. He was losing followers at a constant rate and was getting dragged across the internet without an ounce of empathy. The young man had partnered with a few smaller content creators for a weak dungeon, and he assumed everything was kosher until a week later. Araysh had been receiving many messages calling him a terrible person, some expressing disappointment and others saying they weren't surprised. It was all so confusing for the influencer until he was finally sent the video of his raid team disparaging him. It was all so much for Araysh, but he was resilient.

Araysh, in his usual crop top & over shirt, stumbled through the antique shop for a diamond in the rough. He remembers when they were less fortunate, and after he had made his recovery, he and his mother would go to second-hand shops, thrift stores, and antique shops to look for deals and to find a treasure that others consider to be trash. Araysh gazed over the multiple freshly polished china, that his mother would absolutely adore. Before he could make a choice, a young woman interrupted his train of thought and brought him back to the original reason he was there, although her mere presence sent chills down his spine. The E-rank could tell she wasn't going to attack the group however if she did it would be like a dog playing with a chew toy<"Y-yes ma'am..."

The owner may be old, but Araysh could tell that he was even more powerful than the woman. If anything, his power was probably so great that they wouldn't be able to comprehend it as E-ranks, however, there was something telling Araysh that he should fear this man. Maybe it was the fact that he was an old man but he appeared around his parent's age or the fact that even with his eyes covered he was able to perfectly distinguish between each of them.

With the box in hand and the Owner's words lingering in his head, Araysh began to shake from fear.

I'll lose something...Would I lose my money? Fame? I may be on the decline right now I can bounce back...Anything for them!
Araysh released the breath that he hadn't noticed he was holding in, opening the box!