Chapter 650: Just good luck

In the end, I offer Marble two chocolates and a blue sports drink. He hesitates for a moment but eventually accepts and points to the place he wants me to leave them. Someone will be along later to pick them up and bring them to the room where the body he shares with Spark, and Veil is locked away.

And in return, I get an answer to something that's been stuck in my mind ever since he mentioned it.

The number of times attendees have tripped over their own feet while trying to look mysterious or intimidating in the past 500 years.

(Really?)

I ask, after he tells me.

(I told you it would surprise you.)

Even though he speaks in his usual, calm, deep voice, I can hear the satisfaction beneath it, he’s clearly pleased by my reaction.

(But how?)

(I know, right? It's really surprising.)

(I never would’ve expected that.)

(None of us did either.)

(Damn.)

After that, we spend a bit more time talking until Weslin comes to get me.

As we walk through what, by my estimation, must be the center of the tower, we enter a floor that seems to be completely empty. It’s a massive open space, broken only by a large portal framed in twisted silver metal shaped like roots. And through it, I can see the third floor.

There are no guards and no locks, but after everything I’ve seen, that doesn’t surprise me anymore.

Weslin and I pass through and leave the second floor behind.

Welcome to the 3rd floor of the First Dungeon!

There are multiple safe zones distributed across the floor. Each safe zone has a capacity limit of 100, 1,000, or 10,000 individuals.

During daytime hours, it is possible for the number of individuals in a safe zone to exceed the designated maximum. However, if the number of individuals remains above the capacity limit by nightfall, the offending safe zone will permanently lose its function as a safe zone.

Individuals who have been present on the 3rd floor for a duration of 24 hours or less, either as a result of utilizing a Beyond Stay Token or by recently entering the floor, are not included in the safe zone capacity calculation. Once the 24-hour period has elapsed, these individuals will be included in the capacity count in the same manner as all others.

3rd Floor quest:

Contribute to the creation of new safe zones

Rewards:

14-day Stay Token

100,000 shards

Activation stone for the portal to the 4th floor

Most of all, this floor reminds me of the environment of the Astral Prison. Rocky plains stretch out in every direction, eventually giving way to mountains and hills. Only broken up by clusters of ancient-looking trees.

But the ceiling of this enormous cave cannot be seen. It feels as if it’s much higher than it was back on the other floors, and it’s covered in what looks like clouds, through which light shines down, sometimes slipping through holes in their cover, allowing their warm rays to fall on the ground.

“So, any info you would like to share?” I ask Weslin after rereading the information on the third floor.

“Maybe? I mean, should I, though? You’ve already gotten to the third floor like you wanted. You might try to run away.”

“Didn’t you tell me you could easily stop me and kick my ass if I tried?”

“Yes, but it would be too much of a bother at this point.”

Under his eyes, I just shrug. “I won’t for now. There’s someone I still want to find. If you help me, I might even give a thought to joining the Primordial Knights.”

“Was there ever a more annoying little jerk than you?” Even though he says that, he’s smiling. “Names.”

“Faora and Luan.”

“Luan?”

“Yes, Luan.”

“As in motherfucking Luan?”

“Probably?”

“Damn, I gotta admire the balls on you. Faora is a bitch, no question, and a dangerous, rabid animal. Even she is too much for you at the moment, but Luan? Why the fuck would you want to mess with that guy?”

“Because of stuff,” I answer, as I take a moment to control myself, as happens every time I talk about them. I feel a small smile climb onto my lips. “Luan, not so much, but I would like to talk to Faora.”

“Sure, man. Talk. Yeah, yeah. Just talk. Fucking great. I brought you here so you can get killed by that twisted bitch. Damn great.”

“I don’t plan to die. Is Luan that strong?”

“Not gonna ask about Faora if she’s more important?”

“There’s no need.”

For a while, he stares at me while the quiet of this floor continues to fill the area.

“I’m not surprised you’re asking about the two of them at once. For some reason, he’s been seen moving with her a lot recently. Luan is... well, insanely talented. He’s already an Absolute Candidate and just a step away from S rank.”

“Could you beat him?”

“Newbie, I love you for thinking your good ol´ kidnapper might be that strong, but we have to be realistic, okay? Even though I’m sure I could fight him for a bit, there’s no way I could win, and I would die if I made a single mistake. Wouldn’t you agree that would suck for me?”

“I do agree with that.”

“Good boy. I always say a man has to have his own mind and make his own decisions, so do whatever you want. But I would strongly recommend putting this off, especially when it comes to Luan. As for Faora, even though she will never reach S rank, she’s a very powerful mind mage. Newbie, you probably know that everyone here fucking hates mind mages. The fact that she’s survived long enough to become an A rank should tell you something about her.”

“I see.”

“Yeah, you won’t listen. Well, anyway, we’ll be heading to one of the smaller safe zones nearby, where I’ll get some information before we move deeper into the floor. I need to get you to the Black Tower. It’s one of the bigger safe zones here, and we have a branch there that will take care of you.”

"It seems like you'll be getting rid of me soon."

“Right? It was fun, newbie, but I ain’t built for taking care of rookies. After I deliver you, I’ll return to my tutorial for a week or two. When I get back, I’ll probably be assigned to some well-paid guild quest, or my Handler might have something fancy for me.”

He gestures, and I follow at his side as he heads on into the third floor. This time, he moves faster than he did on the second floor, so I put in more effort to keep up while flying. In some ways, these past days have been good training, and my use of kinetic energy for long-distance running has improved greatly.

“So what’s the deal with this floor?” I ask.

“Very simple, newbie. During the day, all is well. Everyone’s your friend, monsters are weaker, and it’s almost nice out there. But when night comes, stronger monsters start to appear. The longer the night, the stronger they get.”

“Stronger than you?”

"Get unlucky, stay in one place too long, or cause too much commotion, and you’ll get fucked up, newbie. S-ranks have been known to die on this floor."

“Damn.”

"Yeah, damn. You can go out at night, and it's even somewhat safe for about an hour after nightfall. If you're strong or part of a powerful group, you're probably fine. But with just a bit of bad luck, you're finished."

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“And the safe zone capacity?”

"Sometimes it feels like I’m either babysitting or doing unpaid work for an information guild."

I open my status and transfer 100 shards to him.

Weslin stops running, and I stop too. He stares at me, and I stare at him.

“You little shit.”

I nod.

He accepts the transfer.

And we continue.

“As the system message says, if you have a safe zone with a capacity of 100 people, and night comes with 101 people inside, it stops functioning as a safe zone, and everyone gets royally screwed. Don’t ask for more than that. They’ll explain it better at the guild branch.”

Seeing that I’d only be pressing my luck, I agree and stay quiet.

We head deeper, and I keep thinking about how damn punishing this place is and how a little bad luck can get you killed. I also start thinking about the rules I’d set to keep an entire safe zone from dying over the actions of one asshole. I’m pretty sure that when night is coming, everyone in the zone checks the number of people there. And if it’s over the limit, well, I bet they wouldn’t hesitate to use... drastic measures.

The safe zone we reach first is small. Just a few buildings at the edge of a small forest. A few people move around, and more of them are in what’s no bigger than a camp.

When we enter, we get a notification.

Welcome to the safe zone.

Current capacity: 86/100

Instead of heading in, Weslin waits, and a man comes to us. At this point, I can more or less guess who’s an attendee and who’s local. This Vyssari seems like a local. Like others of his race, he's very short and wears little over his scaly legs, just something that looks like shorts.

As he and Weslin talk, I listen.

In a way that seems common on this floor, the vyssari tells Weslin that we’ll have to leave because they’re expecting people who registered their stay with the intent to return before nightfall. Weslin tells him that we’re within our 24-hour period, so we don’t count toward the limit.

That noticeably calms the vyssari. After some sort of simple check that washes over me, he confirms it somehow. I take note of what part of me he scanned so I can look into it later.

Weslin then asks for the capacities of the safe zones along the way in the direction we’re heading, and the vyssari shares the information easily.

It’s all clearly business as usual.

Looking at me with a smirk, Weslin turns to the vyssari one more time in a way that is clearly meant to make fun of me. “Have you seen a four armed thylarin and a feylith woman in the area?”

Unexpectedly, the vyssari lights up at the memory. “Oh, I did. Not that long ago. The thylarin was extremely powerful and helped us hunt a monster we needed for material. They left just a while ago.”

The rest of his words sound distant, with a dark hum echoing in the back of my mind.

Weslin’s shoulders slump, and slowly he turns away from the vyssari, who keeps talking about the thylarin he met, and looks at me.

When our eyes meet, there is an expression on his face that’s hard to read.

Just a few minutes later, we leave the safe zone. In the end, the vyssari doesn’t know where the duo that passed through that safe zone could’ve gone. He just points in the direction they left, possibly having decided to stay a bit into the night to hunt some powerful monster or maybe with the intent to head toward some other safe zone.

Weslin and I are heading that way as well.

“Newbie, once again I would like to remind you…”

“Weslin, want to hear what someone told me before I met Faora and Luan for the first time?” I interrupt.

He doesn’t answer and keeps that serious look.

But I ignore it and stare in the direction we’re heading. “She told me that it’s all just bad luck.”

The construct in my body twists, and I make further modifications. My mind strains to the point I have to combust thermal energy under my skin just to ease the strain a tiny bit. Even that isn’t enough as I push myself further.

Looking in that direction, I wipe away the blood that drips from my nose.

“Maybe this time, it’s time for me to have some good luck.”

Two days pass, and we spend the nights in two more safe zones along the way. One is smaller, with a limit of up to 100 people, and the others a bit bigger, with a limit of up to 1,000. During these days, I do not sleep. I keep preparing.

The nights are filled with roars, reverberations, and distant explosions that grow louder and more powerful the deeper into the night it gets.

Something huge keeps circling the safe zone as well, waiting but refusing to enter.

Most people in the safe zones create sound dampening barriers during the night, but I don’t. Instead, I spend these nights at the edge of the safe zone, looking into the dark night that even my strengthened sight fails to pierce.

On the third day, we leave the place we spent the night before and move onto the final stretch toward the safe zone known as the Black Tower.

I recognize two of the figures we see while heading there instantly.

They notice us too and stop, waiting. Weslin sighs, glances at me one last time, and heads their way.

By the end of the five minutes it takes us to reach them, my

[Focus]

is almost gone.

“Hello, Faora, Luan,” I say.

“Nathaniel! It’s nice to see you. Are you doing well?”

“I can’t complain.”

“How is dear Sophie?”

“She could be better.”

Faora laughs, both her hair and eyes turning bright yellow, her small wings flickering in excitement.

She turns to Luan and nudges him. “Did you hear that?

She could be better

, hehe. And look, he has Weslin with him. Weslin, are you guys going to be adopting this mess?”

“Maybe?” Weslin shrugs. “It’s up to the others to decide. Nyssa seemed to…”

“I don’t give a fuck!” Faora barks. “Don’t think I didn’t notice that veiled threat you made by using her name. If I want to, I’ll kill him right here, and I don't care what Nyssa might think!”

Weslin stays quiet, and Faora keeps looking between him and me before fixing her hair, which turns red, the same as her eyes. “But it would be rude for me to bully poor Nathaniel, right? So what if I just leave you here and head deeper into the dungeon? That would mean we wouldn’t have the chance to meet again before my tutorial ends. That would be terrible for you, right, Nathaniel? Would your pride handle it, especially with how happy you seem at the sight of me?”

I don’t answer, and she bursts into laughter. “Luan, let’s go. There’s no need to deal with someone as weak as him, right?” Her eyes stay on me. “Just tell my sister to stay strong, okay, Nat?”

For a brief moment, her hair turns black and her eyes green.

Time freezes as Luan turns to her. He watches, then his gaze changes, like he has just confirmed something.

Faora herself doesn’t seem to realize what she just said, and continues to tease me.

Then she and Luan turn to leave and walk away. By my side, Weslin breathes out in relief.

Then I say.

“Where do you think you’re going?”

POV Weslin

“Where do you think you are going?”

Just those words, and everyone stops moving. There is still a chance to de-escalate, but I’ve already decided to respect this man’s decision and won’t even try.

He watches to make sure Luan and Faora stop. Then, while she turns to say something, he completely ignores her and turns to me.

“Weslin, can you hold off Luan for a moment?”

I shake my head. “I won’t.”

I don’t know what happened between him and that woman, or what makes him so eager to die at her hands, but I won’t be helping with any of it.

Hearing my answer, he tilts his head in confusion. “Oh, you want shards then?”

Immediately, a notification pops up in front of me.

Incoming transfer of 2,286,688 shards. Confirm?

Yes / No

I have to reread the number a few times, unable to believe he could have that much already. The way the number hasn’t been rounded at all tells me this is likely everything he has. All offered without a speck of hesitation.

And my view of him starts to change.

When I look at him, without having accepted the trade, he's staring back at me with golden circles gleaming around his pupils.

“Is that not enough? Fine, I’ll join the Primordial Knights. I’ll sign a contract without asking for any pay. Or is even that not enough? I’ll make a mid arcane item for you. If you help me with the materials, I can make it upper arcane before your tutorial ends.”

He talks quickly, his eyes wide open. The golden circles seem to bleed light as he pauses, tilts his head, and asks, “Oh, are you maybe scared, Weslin?”

It isn’t him being rude or trying to provoke me. It’s a genuine question, asked in the same style as everything else he’s asked me so many times before, when we were still talking about the floors.

“Weslin,” he repeats, and his expression shifts from cold to slightly maniacal. “I don’t understand. From your heartbeat and movements, you don’t seem to be refusing because I haven’t offered enough. So what is it? Is it really that you are scared? Or am I wrong? Is it not enough? Do you want me to beg? I can do it, I can crawl at your feet. I can lick your shoes if that's what you want.”

He takes a step towards me, and I step back almost instinctively.

That makes him hesitate, and for that moment, he looks almost sad.

“Weslin,” he says. “Why do you hesitate? Why don’t you want to fight and push yourself? Aren’t you supposed to be really strong? You have such power, greater than I currently have, and yet you hesitate?”

In that moment, I understand, I was wrong about him the entire time.

This man is no different from demons. He might be even worse than any demon I’ve ever met.

And in reaction to that, something stirs inside me.

How does he dare?

Without hesitation, I refuse the transfer of shards. As I pass by him, I push him aside.

“Don’t do it,” Luan says simply.

“I don’t seem to have any other choice,” I shrug, and almost without realizing it, I smile.

What a nice feeling.

The void answers before I even call it. It wraps around me like an old cloak, familiar and cold.

Then I charge Luan, leaving the newbie and Faora behind.