Classless Ascension

In the middle of the dogs' war encampment stood a red tent. There was currently an important meeting ongoing inside, but it was suddenly interrupted by thundering cheers and a man intruding.

The first thing that Josh noticed upon entering was the war table in the middle surrounded by the various village chiefs. All were staring at the bones on the table. They seemed to be meaningfully placed to represent the enemies' movements.

The air was extremely heavy, the situation looked dire, and they all appeared so worried! Their tails were literally between their legs, they were frowning, and some could be seen biting their claws stressed. But that all changed when they noticed Josh.

"L-leader! You're back!" Old Napolitan cried out.

"Son! You're alive! I thought something had happened to you!" Old Bernard seemed about to hug him.

"Leader!!!!"

"This is great! We're saved!"

Josh questioned them, perplexed: "Weren't any worried that I had abandoned you all?"

But that only sent them rolling on the ground laughing. Apparently, they had never doubted him.

"Nice joke! There is no way that a man with the courage to hunt scaly devils would get scared by some worm riding monkeys!" Old Husky laughed out loud.

Worm riding monkeys?! Was there any link between this and the other Floors? If this was true, this could be highly problematic. The monkeys on Floor 1 had shown an advanced security system; their technology would be dangerous! As for the worms, they had been so high level!

"What's the exact situation?" Josh inquired, on guard.

Old Napolitan pointed at the various bones on the table: "The six little ones each represent a 100 monkeys troop, and the five large ones each represent a unit of 10 riding monkeys. They are all armed to the teeth and very strong."

"How did you get all this information?"

"We sent scouts. We dogs have better senses than them, so we've been aware of their movements for a while now." This was good news as a lack of Information could easily lose wars.

"What about the technological level? Do they have anything dangerous or unknown on them? It could be as simple as weird sticks or balls." Josh carefully asked.

Perhaps this wasn't a challenge that could be cleared with force in the first place. For instance, if they were armed with plasma guns, they could all bombard his position simultaneously.

There was no way he could resist 600+ shooters! Well, maybe if he could use energy shields to close the gap somehow.

It would be even worse if they could use weapons of mass destruction. They could possibly annihilate them all with the single press of a button. This fight had the potential to be even more challenging than the battle against Gene Corp.

Old Napolitan looked extremely grim as he slowly answered: "They have full body combinations that are as hard as bone and as light as leather. They also have deadly metallic spears that are as sharp as our claws!"

"….." Josh remained speechless for a second.

The others took his silence for an agreement of how problematic this would be as they looked downward, sullen.

"That's it? No plasma guns? No atomic bombs? No flying spaceships?" Josh tentatively asked.

"Placemagum? Atomicbum? Flying space what?" A perplexed dog asked in utter confusion.

"As expected of the leader! He knows so much!"

"With him leading us, we are invincible!"

"The monkeys will regret ever attacking us!"

On the side, there was the husky girl nodding. She seemed to agree with all these insane statements.

That's when he understood. For them, the expression 'armed to the teeth' just meant armed period. This was to be expected from a race that fought using their sharp claws and wore their fur as clothes. He sighed.

"What about their level?"

"?!?" *Confused Doggos*

"How do they compare to you guys in a 1 v 1 fight?" Josh reformulated.

"We are stronger than them, but their equipment is just too good. It's insane!" One grumbled with hate.

Josh instantly lost all tension as he began chuckling. No technology and weak monkeys most likely also meant relatively weak giant worms. So much for an unwinnable war!

He was now convinced that he could clear this hurdle by himself. He wouldn't even need an army! Other Climbers may have struggled with being outnumbered, but that didn't worry him one bit. More weak enemies just meant more unfortunate meat shields.

Josh relaxedly exited the tent and had a surprise waiting for him. The dog army looked like a proper army. They were grouped in an orderly 20 x 20 formation and had been patiently waiting for him. He appreciatingly nodded at such an incredible display but knew they were not combat-ready.

One of them moved forward, thumping his chest in assurance. "Leader, we will obey your orders. We are ready for this war! Just say the word!"

"Are you sure you're ready?" Josh suspiciously asked.

"Yes, leader!"

All of them showed courage, trying their best to look the part. Josh suddenly took out a speedy lizard bone and threw it right in their midst while shouting: "Catch!" Instantly their formation collapsed as they fell over each other like dominoes.

"Are you sure you're ready?" Josh reiterated.

The dogs could only blush in embarrassment as they scratched their heads awkwardly. This wasn't the display of strength they had tried showing.

"I-I'm sorry we—"

"Don't worry about it. Anyway, you guys stay here. I'll be right back after taking care of the monkeys." Josh casually began walking away.

"A-alone?! Against the 600+ of them?!" Their spokesperson shouted, flabbergasted.

"Yep, later." Josh waved at the stunned dogs.

They could only look at his back that was becoming smaller and smaller. They had all resolved themselves to die. Now, they wouldn't even have to fight?!

What?! They couldn't understand why this was happening. He was going to take care of a literal army?! How?! This was beyond the mortal realm!

Eventually, he disappeared along with the daughter of Old Husky. For some reason, she had been carrying a huge backpack made with sheepskin. Of course, barely any of them had even noticed.

They could only look at each other at a loss. That's when one of them said something to explain the situation perfectly:

"As expected of the leader!"

They all nodded in agreement...

Creator's Thought

A good rule of thumb is to always expect the worst. For example, as soon as I heard about the monkeys I began picturing how to deal with them if they had advanced technological weapons. It was a bit silly in retrospect but I don't regret it. After all, one cannot regret dying like a dumbass in retrospect.