Chapter 100 - Ace

…

In a place far away from where Julius was, there lingered a person inside a dungeon who just sat on the ground as he ate something. The person who was eating was a large man that looked to be in his late 30s. He was eating a large ball like object about the size of his palm. The glass object continued to glow the colour red as it continued to be consumed by the human.

…

The human was consuming a monster core.

"How long has it been since I ate real food?" the human asked himself as he stared at all of its scars.

"I've spent the past 10 years in this place yet there's no end to the monsters which I have to face. They constantly attack me without even giving me a single break. I haven't even slept a full night since I got to this place. I used to think that dungeons had an end to them but for this one… I don't think I'll ever be able to get out of this hell," the human thought to himself.

"I seriously need to stop talking to myself. I think I might be going insane. I mean it would only make sense, I've been here for 10 years. Who wouldn't go insane after this many days of constant battle. Honestly, maybe it's time to end things. I wanted to see the guild at least one more time. I'll miss you guys, I had fun with you guys while that short time lasted, I truly wish I got to spend more time with you guys," said the human as he heard a noise.

[Year 10 | Month 8 | Day 17: Complete]

[Year 10 | Month 8 | Day 18: Start]

"Well at least this noise tells me how much time I've spent in this hell hole. This is the day my struggles end. I give up!" the human yelled out.

…

As he said those words, a large creature resembling that of a mage in a black cloak appeared from nothingness until it presented itself right in front of the human.

"Just get it over with! I'm done fighting, I already know that this place has no end. I've lost myself during these part years. I'm sure that my guild has also moved on as well. I have nothing to live for anymore.

*Clap* *Clap*

*Clap* *Clap* *Clap* *Clap* *Clap* *Clap* *Clap* *Clap*

"Good job human, you've managed to last this long. Thank you for all the years you've wasted here. You can leave now. Now that you've lost the will to fight us, we have no need for you any longer. Goodbye," said the mage as it along with the entire dungeon began to disappear.

…

"Is it finally over?" the human asked as he got on his knees while he cried tears of joy.

"I can finally go home," said the human as he got back up on his knees before finally taking his first step in the outside world after 10 long years. After taking his first step, the human felt as if he had taken a hundred steps .

"Wow, when did I get this fast? I feel so light. I'm pretty sure I remember where the kingdom was. At this speed, it shouldn't take me a lot of time before I make it back to the kingdom and… I'll be able to see the guild once again. They've probably grown up so much. Some probably got married and others had children. Even though I wish I had the opportunity to experience all those things for myself, I would be glad if I get to see the guild members alone," the human thought to himself as he sprinted in the direction where he thought the kingdom was located.

After only a half an hour of straight running, the human had finally made it to the front door of the guild which he called home, the 'battling barbarians' guild.

One he walked inside the guild, the first thing he noticed was that there were a lot less members than he remembered.

"I'm home!" the human yelled out as he was given strange looks all around.

"Who are you?! Are you looking to start trouble in the middle of the night?" one of the guild members who were on the first floor asked the human which had just walked through the guild doors.

"What? No, I'm a member of this guild!" the human argued.

"I've been in this guild for 8 years and I have never seen you a day in my life. Get out of here you poser for you get disciplined," the guild member argued.

"Can you idiots stop all that yelling?! Julius just passed out! He can't rest while you idiots are yelling!" Ozel yelled as he came down the stairs to scold whoever was yelling at that time of night.

"Sorry guild master, there's just this beast who came in here without permission and starting claiming that he was a member of this guild," said the guild member which had stopped the human who had escaped from the dungeon with his life.

…

"Steven?…" Ozel asked as his voice chocked from the shock.

"Ozel!" the human yelled out as he rushed to embrace the guild master.

"Do you know him guild master?" the guild member who had stopped Steven asked.

"You morons! He's the lost ace card of the battling barbarians guild, Steven Basil!" Ozel yelled as he hugged Steven.

"Where did you go you moron?! All of the higher echelon have been worried sick about you. Any chance they get, they spend it looking for you!" Ozel yelled at Steven.

"You won't believe the hell I've went through for the past 10 years. I've spend every single one of those days stuck in an endless dungeon which presented new monsters every single day. Fighting became drilled into me. It has become an instinct for me by this point. I had not choice but to fight them however after all this time with no end in sight, I finally gave up. I accepted my fate and allowed myself to be killed.. However instead of getting killed, once my will to fight was gone, I was allowed to be free once again," Stevan explained.