We've been walking for a few minutes now when we finally stumble upon an opening in the wall. It's rough, jagged, but wide enough for all of us to pass through.
- Lena: "Look! There's an exit!"
- Blair: "We don't really know if it's actually an exit though. It could just be another room."
- Kai: "Who cares. Let's go!"
We step through, and the tunnel splits open into a wide cavern. The air shifts immediately—thick, humid, reeking of rot and something… wet.
- Kai: "Shiiiiit. Check it out."
There are ruins.
Crumbling stone pillars rise from the ground like broken teeth. Vines twist through shattered archways. Carvings line the walls, half-faded and covered in moss.
- Kai: "Those are some cool-ass ruins."
- Christy: "This is a perfect opportunity. Everyone, look for supplies—maps, food, weapons. Anything useful."
- Isabella: "…I'm kind of thirsty."
"Yeah. Now that you mention it, I haven't had anything to drink for quite a while."
- Christy: "That's another priority. We need to find water ASAP. We won't last long without any drinkable water down here."
- Kai: "Roger that."
The group fans out instinctively, footsteps crunching over loose gravel and crumbling stone as we start to search the ruins.
- Christy: "Stay within earshot. And don't touch anything magical-looking!"
- Lena: "What counts as magical-looking?"
- Blair: "Glowing. Floating. Cursed. Why even ask that?"
Kai ducks beneath a broken archway, his footsteps echoing softly as he pokes around a collapsed stone altar. Lena crouches near a pile of debris, brushing moss off what might have once been a wooden crate.
- Kai: "Got something! Uh… never mind. It's just a dead rat."
- Lena: "Ew. Was it squishy?"
- Kai: "I don't wanna talk about it."
Isabella wanders near one of the intact walls, running her fingers across the faded carvings.
- Isabella: "These look old. Like… ancient."
- Blair: "Everything down here's ancient. The question is if it's useful."
I find a shattered barrel tucked behind a crumbled pillar. Inside are scraps of leather, half-rotted rope, and what might've been jerky once—but it's long since gone bad. I close it gently and sigh.
"Nothing."
A few minutes go by, and we don't make much progress. I can see from where I stand — near the center of the room — the few things the others have found. A few unusable tools. Some pieces of cloth. Lena is holding an empty flask she found tucked under a fallen statue.
Then—
A low skittering sound.
It echoes from the far wall, followed by a sharper hiss. Something small. Fast. Close.
The same sound can be heard all around us.
A growl pierces the silence, and from the shadows, glowing yellow eyes begin to emerge.
- Kai: "WHAT THE FUCK ARE THOSE?!"
"Are those… Goblins??"
Ten hunched figures skitter into view, their skin a sickly, mottled green. They're no taller than children, but their limbs are long, wiry, and tense like coiled rope. Jagged teeth jut from twisted jaws, and they move on all fours before rising into crouched stances—filthy weapons in hand. Rusted daggers. Broken bones. A sharpened spoon. One of them hisses, drool slipping from its teeth as it locks eyes with us.
- Christy: "Everyone gather up. NOW!"
The group scrambles, backs to each other, weapons raised. I nearly trip over a slab of stone as I rush to join the circle.
The goblins are fast—faster than they should be. They hiss and click their teeth, darting between the ruined pillars, circling like wolves.
Then they charge.
A fireball detonates against the stone, engulfing four goblins in a blast of orange flame. They screech and collapse, charred and writhing.
- Lena: "I-I did it! I think I—"
Another goblin lunges at her side. Faster than she can react.
- Kai: "LENA!"
He charges.
There's no hesitation—just motion. His shield, a slab of wood torn from a barrel and bound with rope, slams into the goblin mid-leap. The creature is knocked aside, but not before its claws rake across Kai's forearm.
- Kai: "Dammit! I'm bleeding!"
The goblin hits the ground, dazed but scrambling to its feet. Kai doesn't wait.
With a shout, he raises his rusted blade and brings it down, hard. The edge doesn't cut clean—it crunches through flesh and bone with a nasty, grinding crack.
The goblin lets out one last choking snarl before collapsing.
Kai's panting.
- Kai: "Okay… Who's next?"
Across the battlefield, two goblins creep toward the others from the flanks—silent, calculating, trying to cut us off.
Blair appears behind them like a shadow peeling from the stone. Her movement is soundless. Her footsteps leave no echo.
She glides forward with eerie grace, rusted knives flashing in both hands.
The first goblin doesn't even see her coming. A quick step, a blur of motion—and her blade slips cleanly through its throat. It crumples without a sound.
The second turns just in time to catch her cold stare—right before she sinks her blade into its temple.
One clean motion. No hesitation. No wasted breath.
She straightens, wiping her blade on the creature's rags.
- Blair: "This skill is useful."
I can barely process it—how smooth, how effortless it was.
A snarl to my left.
Two goblins rush Christy from opposite sides.
She doesn't move.
Then—her eyes glow faintly blue.
Precision.
Time seems to slow as she exhales. Her gaze shifts between the two with mechanical calm.
She steps forward, sidestepping the first goblin's swing with unnatural ease. Her blade flashes, piercing straight through its eye.
Before it hits the ground, she pivots sharply—slashes upward, driving her sword beneath the second goblin's jaw, the steel tearing through soft tissue with clinical efficiency.
Both bodies collapse beside her.
She stands still for a moment, breathing steady, eyes scanning for the next target.
- Christy: "Is that all of them?"
- Blair: "Seems like it."
- Isabella: "Here. Let me heal you."
- Kai: "Thanks."
Christy lowers her blade. Blair takes a cautious step forward, eyes still scanning the dark edges of the ruins.
Out of the corner of my eye, I notice something — a shadow moving, accompanied by a low skitter. No one sees it. No one hears it.
Except me.
One last goblin, barely breathing, dragging itself forward with a jagged bone clutched in its hand. Its eyes are locked on Isabella's unguarded back.
"ISABELLA!"
She turns just in time to see it leap.
I don't think.
I throw myself forward.
My blade connects mid-air, slamming into the goblin's side.
It shrieks, claws slashing blindly as I struggle to hold it back. My arms tremble. The steel doesn't go in deep enough.
I shove. Harder.
The goblin snarls, eyes wide and feral—until finally, the blade sinks deep.
Its weight drops.
And the ruins fall silent again, the only sound being the ringing in my ears.
I stand there, frozen—blade still buried in its side, my knuckles white around the hilt. I stand myself up while pulling the blade out.
The smell hits me.
It's worse than before. Not just rot and blood—but heat. Wetness. Something raw and metallic that floods my nose and mouth, clinging to the back of my throat.
I gag.
My hands are soaked in its blood. It clings to my skin like oil. Like it's not going to come off. Like it's part of me now.
My stomach lurches. I double over, breath hitching, trying not to puke.
I killed it. It would've killed Isabella. But I-I actually killed it.
My arms are still trembling. The dagger feels heavy. My legs feel hollow. There's a ringing in my ears.
- Isabella: "...You saved me."
She says this so softly I can barely hear her.
I don't answer. I can't.
I feel sick.
One by one, everyone begins to gather near the center—sitting on broken columns, leaning against cracked stone walls. Weapons lower. Tension fades.
- Kai: "We're alive… holy shit, we're actually alive!"
While Kai is still relishing in the fact we even survived this encounter, Lena damn near tackles him out of pure joy.
- Lena: "WE DID IT!!"
- Christy: "Good job everyone. We managed to handle this with minimal damage."
As everyone begins to relax, Blair speaks up.
- Blair: "You guys should check your stats. They changed."
- Isabella: "Really?"
——————————————————————
STATUS SCREEN
Name: Blair
Level: 2
XP: 0
Attribute Points: 1
[ATTRIBUTES]:
Strength: 4
Speed: 8
Perception: 8
Intelligence: 6
Vigor: 4
[SKILLS]:
Stealth Walk: Lvl 2 –> Conceals the presence of the wielder, as well as their footsteps, allowing them to perform sneak attacks. Lasts 12 seconds.
——————————————————————
- Blair: "I leveled up once."
The rest start to frantically check their menus.
- Isabella: "I leveled up too. But I didn't kill anything…"
- Christy: "It's probably because you healed others. Using your skills might also grant xp. I've also gone up by one level."
- Kai: "I only got 50 xp?! Not even a level up?"
Kai's frustration is pretty evident, as his face begins to scrunch.
- Lena: "Woah! I leveled up twice?!"
Lena's comment only adds to his annoyance.
- Kai: "How is that even fair? We all fought equally."
- Christy: "I think it works by counting our kills. She got the most kills, so naturally she gets the highest xp."
- Kai: "This sucks. I guess from now on I'm going to be stealing all your kills."
He says this with a big grin on his face.
In turn, Lena retaliates by slapping him on the head.
- Kai: "OW!?"
I stop paying attention to their antics, opening my status screen.
I wonder if I'll finally get a useful skill. Well, more physical ones anyway.
——————————————————————
STATUS SCREEN
Name: Ayden
Level: 1
XP: 0
Attribute Points: 0
[ATTRIBUTES]:
Strength: 5
Speed: 5
Perception: 6
Intelligence: 6
Vigor: 6
[SKILLS]:
Phantom's Reset: Lvl 0 –> Death will never rule you.
Mental Fortitude: Lvl 1 –> The user has the strength to stand on their feet under extreme stress. Increased resistance to mind-affecting and sleep-based effects. Improved focus and clarity under duress.
——————————————————————
What?
That makes no sense. Not even 1 xp point? I killed the same amount of them as Kai though. Is it still alive?
I look over at the carcass of the creature, about 15 feet away from us.
No. It's dead. I felt it's heart stop beating.
I tremble a little at the thought.
- Isabella: "Ayden? Are you okay?"
"…Yeah. I'm fine. What about you? You didn't get hurt right?"
- Isabella: "No. I'm okay thanks to you."
"Let's say we're even then."
She raises an eyebrow.
- Isabella: "Hm?"
After our short breather, we keep moving deeper into the cave.
There's gotta be an exit somewhere.
As we enter a new room, the air in the cavern shifts again, but this time it's thicker, oppressive. The walls seem to close in, the shadows lengthening. There's a faint hum in the air, like a distant drumbeat reverberating through the stone. We all stop, instinctively looking around.
I feel the weight of the silence in my bones, something telling me—no, warning me.
The ground shakes, just once, and a deep voice booms from the darkness ahead.
???: "First, you must prove your resilience."
Out of the shadows, a figure steps forward—a towering knight in pitch-black armor, his eyes glowing a deep red beneath his helmet. His sword, massive and jagged, scrapes against the stone as he drags it forward. The hum grows louder. The air seems to buzz.
Fuck.
- Kai: "Oh shit."
As he says this, Christy readies her sword, getting into her stance.
- Christy: "EVERYONE, GET READY!"
- Lena: "Get ready?! For what?!"
- Blair: "It's going to attack us."
"Fuck! Isabella, stay behind me."
- Isabella: "Uh… Okay!"
The knight doesn't move immediately. It just stands there, watching us with eerie patience. Then, in a blur of motion, he charges.
We scatter, but he's too fast. His sword swings down with terrifying force, and lands straight on Kai's head. Luckily, he managed to block the blow.
But that turned his makeshift shield into broken splinters.
This doesn't even seem to faze the entity, as it charges another attack, this time aimed at his lower abdomen.
- Kai: "This is gonna hurt!"
Kai attempts to block it with his sword, but its not use. He gets sent flying into a wall as his sword is broken into pieces.
How the fuck can he move that fast with that sword?!
Come on. Think! There's gotta be something I'm missing. A weakpoint?
Blair lunges, her twin knives flashing in the dim light as she aims for one of the knight's joints.
It's not enough.
It catches her hand and shatters her wrist, breaking it instantly. The bone is sticking out.
- Blair: "AGH!"
He tosses her aside like used paper.
The knight doesn't pause though. It's not a fight; it's a slaughter.
He looks towards me and Isabella, preparing another swing.
Suddenly, a surge of flames hit him from the back. It doesn't even seem to have an effect. If anything, it only makes it angrier.
Lena stands there, completely frozen in fear as the knight approaches her, sword grinding against the floor.
- Christy: "NO!"
She slashes across the knight's back, creating sparks with her sword, but it doesn't seem to faze him. My vision spins as I watch the knight grab her by the head with his free hand, crushing it instantly.
- Lena: "C-Christy?"
I don't even begin to process what occurs as I watch him spin back. What's left is a red mist where she once stood.
…What is this? This is impossible. How are we supposed to win against something like this?
- Isabella: "AYDEN!"
By the time I snap back to reality, I see he stands about 3 feet in front of me.
He lifts his sword—this is it. I know it.
Shit!
I try dodging out of the way, sprawling onto the ground to my left.
I'm too late though.
A coldness spreads over me. I blink, trying to get my bearings. My vision clears, and I see the cavern once again. The knight stands there in front of me, whole. As I try to stand up, I notice something is off.
My legs aren't working?
Once I look down, I realize why. My lower half of my body is gone, halfway across the room.
I cough up blood immediately.
The pain is overwhelming. I feel a sharp burning in my stomach, or at least what's left of it.
Is this as far as I go this time?
Blood pours from the stump where my legs used to be, mixing with the dust on the stone floor. I can feel it, the warmth of my own death spreading across the cold, crumbling earth.
My vision begins to darken as I see the body of Isabella collapse next to me—her eyes glassy as a doll.
"AHH!"
I shoot upwards as I feel my entire body burn up.
"Fuck!"
My breathing has become scattered. I can't think. I feel sick. I feel like throwing up.
I frantically look at my legs. They're fully intact.
I don't notice it right away, but I'm laying in the same room as before. The bed, the smell of tinders in the air.
It's all the same.
I've reset again.
There's nothing wrong with me physically. But mentally, it feels like my entire body is being cooked on a grill.
I lie back down and huddle into a ball, trying to shut out the outside world.
As I lie there, curled on my side, my hands tremble against the coarse sheets. My heart is still racing, hammering like it's trying to claw its way out of my chest.
The image of Christy's head—gone—won't leave my mind.
Neither will Isabella's eyes. The way they just... stopped seeing.
I can still feel it. The moment the sword cut through me—cold steel tearing hot flesh. The sight of missing my legs. The burning inside my gut. The sharpness of bone. That awful numbness just before the dark came in.
I'm not bleeding now. But I remember bleeding.
I remember dying.
My breath hitches again and I curl tighter into myself. Everything in me screams "You're still dying." My body knows it. My brain knows it. Even though it's not true, it feels true.
I squeeze my eyes shut.
It's not real.
It's over.
I'm not dead.
Not yet.
I try to calm my breathing.
Deep breaths, in and out.
After a while, the heat finally starts to fade. Like the fire in my veins is cooling. My pulse is still ragged, but at least it's slowing. Bit by bit, I feel the weight of the moment settle.
I sit up slowly, wiping the cold sweat from my neck.
Then I whisper, half-laughing.
"I'm back in the bed from after the collapse? Did my save update?"
Thank god. I don't know if I would have been able to take it if I had to do all that again.
After a panic attack, the usual next step is to open my status menu.
Which is exactly what I do.
——————————————————————
STATUS SCREEN
Name: Ayden
Level: 1
XP: 0
Attribute Points: 0
[ATTRIBUTES]:
Strength: 5
Speed: 6
Perception: 6
Intelligence: 6
Vigor: 6
[SKILLS]:
Phantom's Reset: Lvl 0 –> Death will never rule you.
Mental Fortitude: Lvl 1 –> The user has the strength to stand on their feet under extreme stress. Increased resistance to mind-affecting and sleep-based effects. Improved focus and clarity under duress.
——————————————————————
Speed went up this time.
I start to chuckle a little as I realize the unfairness of everything.
"This game is so rigged. I made no progress at all when fighting the goblins. It's like I wasn't supposed to level up."
Then, the realization hits me like freight train.
Do I only get stronger by dying?