Volume 1 - CH 7

Act 1-7: Nightmarish Reality

I couldn’t leave this space unless I cleared the 『Game』. I knew what to do next so I started searching around the temple. Fortunately, I immediately found what I was looking for.

「This is a… dungeon, right?」

There was a huge gate inside the temple and a long passage made of so many blue stones that I got bored of seeing it. No matter how I looked at it, this place was clearly a dungeon. In short, my goal was to clear this dungeon.

Well, nothing would change if I sit like this doing nothing. There is no retreat, and the rules state that I have to clear this dungeon. I have no choice but to go forward.

I wore the 【Escape Shoes】 and unsheathed my knife from the scabbard strapped on my waist. Since I was really weak, my chances of winning were much better with a sharp weapon like a knife rather than with a dull weapon like a stick.

The cold stone floor actually sent a chill running down my spine. This was the life-threatening adventure I had always dreamed of since I was a kid, the adventure I had to give up after I learned what my gift was.

Before my gift was revealed, I had been forced to succeed in the Heineman sword style. However, from the very beginning, my dream was to become a hunter like my mother, and not a swordsmanship instructor.

That was why, during the ceremony two years ago, I had secretly wished that my gift wouldn’t be related to swordcraft. If it wasn’t, I was sure that my grandfather would have allowed me to become a hunter. In the end, I ended up being branded as ‘incompetent.’ Forget becoming a hunter, I had even lost the swordcraft that I had desperately trained until now as I had become too weak.

It was the reason I couldn’t help but feel elated right now.

Although I had completely immersed myself in viewing the passage wall for more than ten minutes, I had never let my guard down. I was especially vigilant toward the path behind me, my retreat path to the surface. It was the basics of dungeon exploration. Well, it was just textbook knowledge for hunters that I had read in my mother’s room a long time ago.

A while later, I finally came out of the blue stone’s passage and arrived at a crossroad. Now, the question was: which path should I choose? The easiest way was going straight ahead.

「Eh？」

The moment I stepped out of the passage, I saw a living being on my right side crouched on the floor while eating something. My train of thought was completely suspended for a moment.

The next moment, a piercing pain assaulted my body. It felt as if someone had driven a stake into my spine. A moment later, I realized what that living being was eating. The bright red liquid that was spurting from my right shoulder like a fountain was enough to make me understand.

Yes, the thing this monster with a locust-like head was eating was… my right arm.

「GIHYAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!」

I ran as fast as I could toward the entrance while screaming like a cock that was being strangled to death.

Just what in the he*l is that? When did it attack me? Why couldn’t I see the moment it attacked me at all? No, in the first place, why did it look at me with such eyes?

I couldn’t understand at all. However, this unexplained situation terrified me.

IT HURTS! It so fuc*ing hurts! AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!!!

Suddenly, the pain that had almost made me mad disappeared. I felt like my head was boiling over. Overwhelmed by fear, my brain ordered my legs to run, run, and run.

I couldn’t remember what happened after that. I just dashed toward the wasteland in front of the temple.

In my dimmed consciousness, I remember throwing myself into the fountain filled with blue liquid. Then, my consciousness faded away.

When I opened my eyes, the sun was shining brightly. I squinted due to the brilliant sunlight, then looked around my surroundings.

It seemed I was floating on the surface of dark blue water. I found out that my body hadn’t sunk into the fountain. Thus, I forced my languid self to move to the shore lake while recalling the unpleasant sensation I had before I passed out.

Strange, my head feels so heavy! Why did I pass out in the middle of the fountain?

I tried recalling my memories.

I was going to the Royal Capital after receiving a call from my mother. I had rocked inside the carriage for a week and had a conversation with Rose during the camp. When I left the camp to do my business, I met a red-haired man. And then—

「―!!!」

A series of nightmarish flashbacks assaulted me at once. The more I recalled the situation, the more blood I felt draining out of my body.

Yes! That’s right! I ran into this place to escape from those beasts, entered the dungeon, and then a locust-like monster ate my right a— My right arm?

「My right arm is… still there?」

When I saw that my right arm was still attached to my shoulder, I heaved a deep sigh and plopped on the ground.

Maybe, it was just a nightmare. I mean, if that was a reality, I should be missing my right arm. Yeah, that must’ve been a dream. 

Finally, my train of thought was back to normal again.

「Eh, my clothes…」

Yes, there was indeed not a single scratch on my skin. However, the right arm part of my clothes was torn until the base. Upon a closer look, I found a blood clot around the base of the right arm of my clothes.

「Elixir!」

All of a sudden, I unconsciously muttered a word that was left in my head. That’s right. If that is the case, everything makes sense now.

After that locust-like monster tore off my right arm, I had run like my life depended on it, fallen into this elixir fountain, and passed out. In short, the reason there was not a single scratch on my right arm was none other than “elixir.”

If that’s the case, everything that happened in the basement of that temple is not a pipe dream. Then, I have no choice but to go to that hellish place again in order to get out of this space.

「Dammit! No! Like hell! I have enough of that hell!」

I couldn’t even see the movements of that locust-like monster. If what the monster tore off was my head instead of my right arm, I would’ve died for sure. The only silver lining of that situation was that I had survived. I absolutely wouldn’t enter that place.

「Or not! I have to enter that place sooner or later. Well, my right arm is safe and sound thanks to elixir―」

After I cheered myself up, I turned around and headed toward the temple again. On the ground leading to the temple, I saw large patches of blood spread everywhere. It was definitely the blood that had been spurting from my wound.

「Haha…」

I see! So that’s the case, huh. It’s always the same every time. The thing I want the most is always robbed from me in the worst possible way.

I unconsciously let out a dry laugh upon realizing the extraordinarily high and thick grey wall that separated me from my future. Soon, that laugh turned into bitter cries.

Unable to withstand the extremely cruel fate that I had never asked for, I finally broke into tears for the first time in a few years.

After crying my heart out, I calmed down a lot.

Anyhow, I knew that the current me couldn’t win against that locust-like monster. If I forced my way into the dungeon, I would only become its food. However, the only way to get out of this place was by clearing that dungeon.

Will Rosemary dispatch a search party if I wait until morning? I better not hope for that. There is no way her attendants would obey her order to search for me. Even if Al-san orders them, I’m sure that they would still refuse. Moreover, the time outside of this world is suspended right now. Morning would never come in the outside world unless I clear this dungeon. Dammit!

I was backed against the wall. Anyhow, I refused to die in this kind of hidden place. Moreover, the situation might change for the better as long as I persevered. For example, someone else might come to challenge this dungeon while I waited.

Since that was the case, the first thing I had to do was securing food and water. For water, I had the fountain, which endlessly pumped out elixir. The main problem was food.

「As expected, there’s no food, huh…」

I tried to walk around the space, but forget about a nut, I couldn’t even find a small animal or grass in this place. I spotted a caterpillar-like animal beneath the shadow of stone or rock, but it was inedible since it contained a fatal poison, though I did not want to eat those caterpillars either.

However, it was too early to give up. I mean, since the passage of time outside this place and my age progression was suspended, there was a chance that I might not feel hungry. Or else, I might be able to alleviate my hunger with elixir. I had no choice but to bet on those possibilities.

For the time being, let’s not do anything that would exhaust my stamina.

Thus, I lay down on the ground and closed my eyes to sleep.