The cold stone of the Dungeon floor bit into his hands as he scrambled to his feet.
"What… where am I?" he muttered, glancing at the dim torchlight flickering across the walls. His head throbbed, a dull echo of something he could only describe as "life before this."
Then he looked down. A sword strapped to his back, a familiar but foreign set of clothes, and a name tag on his chest: Bell Cranel.
"I'm… Bell? Wait—Bell Cranel?"
Memories of his ordinary life on Earth flooded back—school, games, mundane problems—and then collided with the reality of this world: monsters, magic, and deadly dungeons.
"I died… and this is my second chance? Alright… let's not die this time."
He flexed his hands, testing his strength, his heart racing with a mix of fear and exhilaration. Every lesson he had learned from Danmachi as a reader, every danger, every trap—he remembered it all. This time, he would survive, and maybe… just maybe, he would rise faster than anyone expected.
He cautiously moved through the dimly lit corridors, eyes scanning for movement. Unlike the original Bell, he remembered the danger lurking around every corner: goblins in packs, kobolds with rudimentary tactics, and traps that could end his life instantly.
His first encounter came sooner than expected. A lone goblin, small but aggressive, lunged at him. Bell's reflexes, honed from Earth games and anime logic, kicked in. Instead of panicking like the Bell of stories, he sidestepped and landed a precise strike.
The creature fell, and for a moment, he felt something he didn't expect: satisfaction mixed with relief.
"Not bad for a first fight," he muttered. "But this is only the beginning."
Eventually, he emerged into the surface world of Orario, the bustling city alive with merchants, adventurers, and the ever-present hum of the Dungeon. The sun burned bright, and he realized that everything he remembered—the stories, the adventures, even the friends—was now his reality.
He tightened his grip on his sword.
"This is my second chance. Time to make it count."
With that, Bell Cranel—reborn, aware, and determined—stepped into the city, ready to forge a path far different from the one he had read about.