Am I doing something wrong in Dragon Quest V? (Potential Spoilers)

I'm almost 13 hours into the game and I am at level 14. I've been reunited with Maria at the Chapel and she is supposed to help me with getting into the ancient place. Everytime I get there I keep dying on the first or second floor. Heck sometimes I die on the way there. I've leveled upa couple levels since getting Maria but it doesn't seem to do any good. Playing this game just seems like one long grind. Going to the haunted house was a toughy too. I've never played a DQ game before, and although the story seems good, the continuous dyingis a turn off, and I like JRPG's. Any tips from those who have played DQ V?

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I'm almost 13 hours into the game and I am at level 14. I've been reunited with Maria at the Chapel and she is supposed to help me with getting into the ancient place. Everytime I get there I keep dying on the first or second floor. Heck sometimes I die on the way there. I've leveled upa couple levels since getting Maria but it doesn't seem to do any good. Playing this game just seems like one long grind. Going to the haunted house was a toughy too. I've never played a DQ game before, and although the story seems good, the continuous dyingis a turn off, and I like JRPG's. Any tips from those who have played DQ V?

Josh5890