Chapter 41 – The XP Festival
[KUTO – FESTIVAL TEMPLE, UNKNOWN DIMENSION ]
The silence was alive.
Not the absence of sound — but an oppressive presence pressing against the eardrums, against the skull, against sanity itself like a physical weight impossible to ignore.
Kuto slowly opened his eyes.
Blurred vision. Doubled. Spinning.
He tried to move his right arm.
Pain exploded — not sharp, but deep, in the bones, as if every cell was screaming simultaneously.
He forced the movement. Fingers responded reluctantly, trembling.
I still work.
I'm still alive.
Why?
Memory returned in a flash:
Thegg raising his axe. Selina frozen. System blinking. White light exploding. The sensation of being ripped from reality by an invisible force—
He sat up with effort that made his muscles protest, looking around.
---
Ancient temple.
Not a dungeon. Completely different.
Massive columns — each five meters in diameter, rising until disappearing into darkness above — cracked, covered with black moss that glowed faintly with sickly green. Polished stone floor reflecting, littered with debris — fragments of broken statues, rusted weapons, dark stains that could be blood or something worse.
Symbols engraved on the walls — not known runes, but something older, more ancient, pulsating in faint red like veins carrying dying energy.
Torches burned in twisted iron holders — sickly orange flames flickering even without wind, casting shadows that moved wrongly, out of sync with the sources of light.
The air smelled of iron, ancient dust, something rotting buried deep.
And beyond the columns, beyond the circle of torchlight —
Absolute darkness.
Not just absence of light. Void that consumed any attempt to look inside it, made the eyes ache trying to focus, whispering things almost-but-not-completely audible.
---
Bodies scattered across the floor.
Kuto saw them — processing each quickly, checking movement, breathing, life.
Romeu — fallen three meters to the left, bow still clutched tightly enough to turn his fingers white, chest rising and falling irregularly but present.
Jack — leaning against a column, shield broken in half across his lap, head hanging, but shoulders moving slightly.
Haru — too still, face covered in dried blood, but Kuto saw a faint pulse on his neck beating weakly.
Sônia — curled in fetal position, staff fallen beside her, trembling lightly even unconscious.
Selina — further away, kneeling, eyes open but empty, staring at her own hands without seeing.
Six.
Out of ten.
Four dead.
Gunja. Sensi. Célia. Dimitri.
Something gripped Kuto's chest — not physical pain, but something worse, something he refused to name because naming it would make it real.
I failed.
I promised to protect.
Tools need to work.
And I let four break permanently.
---
Romeu moved first.
Low groan. Body contracting. Eyes opening slowly, blurred.
— Urgh… — voice coming out hoarse, broken. — Where… where are we?
Tried to sit, failed, tried again. Succeeded on the third attempt, leaning on the bow as a crutch.
He looked at the HUD floating in the corner of his vision:
[HP: 23/100]
[MANA: 12/85]
[STAMINA: CRITICAL]
— Damn… — he whispered.
Looked around — saw the others fallen, saw Kuto sitting but clearly injured, saw the strange temple.
We are not in the dungeon.
Thegg isn't here.
We are… somewhere else?
Mind working quickly despite the pain, processing options.
Opened menu with trembling hand movement.
[PLAYER SHOP]
[VelPoints Available: 542]
Scrolled through options quickly. Stopped at:
[SUPREME HEALING POTION]
[Effect: Instantly restores 100% HP/Mana]
[Cost: 80 VelPoints]
— This will do… — he muttered.
Bought it without hesitation.
Item materialized in his hand — small glass vial, golden liquid swirling inside as if alive.
Uncorked. Drank it in one gulp.
The taste was liquid fire — burning throat, stomach, spreading heat that quickly turned into agony before becoming relief.
Blue-gold light enveloped his body — wounds closing, broken bones snapping back audibly, torn muscles regenerating.
Ten seconds. Fifteen.
Then the glow disappeared.
Romeu breathed deeply — first full breath since Thegg struck him.
Life returned.
But the pain remains.
Not physical. Emotional.
Image of Dimitri being impaled. Célia decapitated. Sensi slashed. Gunja instantly dead.
All dead.
And I survived.
Why?
Forced thoughts away violently.
Later. Process later.
Now — save those who remain.
---
Bought five more potions.
VelPoints: 542 → 142.
Worth every point.
Walked to Sônia first — closest, trembling violently even unconscious.
Kneeling, lifted her head gently:
— Come on, Sônia… wake up… — voice softer than he expected.
Opened the potion, touching the vial to her lips.
Liquid flowed. She swallowed reflexively.
Blue-gold glow enveloped her. Wounds closing. Breathing stabilizing.
Eyes opened — brown, blurred, confused:
— Romeu…? — broken whisper. — We… survived?
— Yes. — Heavy pause. — At least some of us.
She immediately understood what some meant.
Tears filled her eyes but did not fall.
---
Jack was next.
Warrior barely breathing — each inhale rough, irregular.
Romeu opened potion, forcing it to his lips.
Jack swallowed. Coughed violently. Then the glow enveloped him.
Eyes opened — green, hardened, furious:
— Damn… — groaned, trying to sit, failing, trying again. — That monster…
Managed to sit, looking around:
— Where are we?
— In a temple. — Romeu pointed to the columns, the symbols. — Seems ancient. Very ancient.
Pause:
— I don't see Thegg around here.
Jack clenched fists until blood ran between fingers:
— I failed. As leader… I should have protected everyone…
Voice breaking at the end.
---
Haru was in worse condition — face swollen beyond recognition, left arm at wrong angle, breathing so weak that Romeu had to check pulse twice to confirm life.
Poured potion into his lips.
Glow enveloped him. Bones snapped back in place. Face deflating.
Eyes opened — dark, distant, empty:
— Heh… — weak broken laugh. — So I'm not dead yet. I thought Thegg had sent me straight to hell…
— Not this time — Romeu replied, trying to smile but coming out as grimace.
---
Kuto was last of the critically injured.
Romeu approached — saw body trembling slightly, trying to move but muscles not fully responding.
— Can you drink on your own or do I force it down your throat? — asked with forced humor.
Kuto only opened his mouth.
Romeu poured.
Blue-gold glow more intense this time — as if Kuto's body required more energy, as if the wounds were deeper than they appeared.
Bones snapped loudly. Muscles contracted violently. Kuto screamed — rare, never heard before — before biting his own lip until it bled, forcing himself silent.
Twenty seconds. Thirty.
Glow disappeared.
Kuto breathed deeply — first full, controlled breath.
Opened eyes — black, focused, calculating immediately:
— …Selina?
Romeu pointed to distant corner.
---
Selina was kneeling.
Alone. Isolated. Eyes open but dead.
Potion vial rolling between fingers — intact, unused.
Romeu approached slowly:
— Selina… you need to take this.
No response.
Tears began to fall — silently, one after another, shining under torchlight.
— It's no use… — voice choked, broken. — Nothing else matters…
Romeu stopped half a meter away.
Selina clenched fists — nails digging into stone until cracking:
— I… I lost him. — Voice rising slightly. — He was all I had left. I swore to my parents… swore I would protect Dimitri… and I failed!
Screamed — raw, primitive, devastating:
— I BROKE THE PROMISE! I FAILED!
Slammed fist into ground — creating a small crater, stone cracking in spider-web pattern.
---
Jack — now standing, leaning on a column — looked at her with heavy expression:
— It wasn't your fault…
But voice failed because it was a lie and both knew it.
As leader, every death is my responsibility.
I should have been faster.
Stronger.
I should have protected everyone.
Clenched fist until blood ran again.
Sônia approached — staggering but functional — kneeling beside Selina:
— I'm sorry… we all are. — Gentle, maternal voice. — But what Dimitri did… he saved you. He chose that.
Selina raised face — red, swollen, destroyed eyes:
— Then why am I still here?! — Voice completely breaking. — To watch everyone die?! What's the point of this?!
Romeu breathed deeply.
Approached. Kneeling directly in front of her. Held her hands — small, cold, trembling.
— Selina… I know what you're feeling. — Voice firm but carrying genuine empathy. — Dimitri was my closest friend. And Gunja, Célia, Sensi… all gone.
Heavy pause:
— But… if you give up now… his sacrifice will have been in vain.
She looked at him silently — processing, struggling internally.
— Survive. — Romeu squeezed her hands lightly. — Live for him. Because that's what Dimitri would want. That you continue. That you live.
Words hung in the air — echoing among ancient columns, carrying weight that silenced even the shadows.
Selina closed eyes.
Tears kept falling.
But after a long moment, whispered:
— …Alright. I will continue.
Opened eyes. Took potion. Drank.
Glow surrounded her — not just healing body, but something more, as if restoring a tiny fragment of broken hope.
---
CRACK.
High-pitched sound — metallic, wrong — reverberated across the walls.
Everyone froze.
Then a voice echoed — coming from all directions simultaneously, crystalline, playful, carrying malice that made skin crawl:
— Welcome, survivors…
Kuto immediately stood, sword materializing in hand.
Haru disappeared into shadows reflexively.
Jack raised broken shield.
— That voice… — Haru whispered from some invisible place. — I recognize…
Kuto gritted teeth:
— Zeylor.
Laughter — light, almost childish, but loaded with something rotten:
— Oh, oh… what a lovely reunion! I almost believed you wouldn't make it past the tutorial!
Sônia gripped staff so hard fingers turned white:
— What do you want now, Zeylor?!
— Ah, calm down, calm down… nothing serious! — Falsely reassuring tone. — I just came to congratulate you. You were… persistent. Surprisingly difficult to kill.
Dramatic pause:
— And I came to announce the opening of a special system event! I almost gave up saving your little broken heads… but the XP Festival started just in time. Perfect timing, don't you think?
Jack stepped forward, voice hoarse with anger:
— So we were pulled from the dungeon because of this?!
— Exactly! — Zeylor replied with false excitement. — The system wouldn't allow "my" players to die before the event starts. The XP Festival is an ancient tradition! A little present from Nexus to rapidly increase your levels…
Tone changed — cold, dangerous:
— …or to devour you, depending on luck, of course.
— Is this a joke?! — Romeu roared. — We just barely survived a dungeon where we almost died and now you want us to fight again?!
— Oh, my dear archer… — Zeylor replied with fake pity. — You have no choice. The event is mandatory. If you don't participate…
Long, deliberate pause:
— …well… you will be instantly eliminated from the game. Erased. Dead.
Grave silence.
Selina lowered her head.
Jack breathed heavily.
No one dared respond because there was nothing to respond.
— But don't worry! — Tone returning to sarcasm. — The first stage is just a warm-up. Small creatures… a fun mess. Then, a little boss. Easy!
Magical popping sounds filled the air.
Colossal door began materializing — appearing out of nowhere, solidifying, growing until reaching ten meters high.
Edges engraved with gold and ruby, pulsating like a living heart. Incomprehensible symbols glowing in hypnotic sequence.
— Inside lies your destiny. — Zeylor announced theatrically. — Complete the event and you will return to Velerithon. Fail…
Pause:
— …and be swallowed by the darkness surrounding this place.
Haru materialized, looking beyond the columns — at the absolute void surrounding the temple:
— What if we try to leave?
— Ah, ah, ah… — Laughter. — Try. And you will discover what it is to be erased from existence. I control this reality, my dears. There is nowhere to run.
The group remained motionless.
Palpable fear. Crushing weight.
Only living thing there was the sound of torches crackling.
---
Kuto stood completely.
Pulled sword — metal reflecting orange flames.
Looked at door. Then at companions.
— We have no choice. — Voice firm, controlled, cold. — If we want to live… we play.
One by one, the others stood.
Jack adjusted broken shield on arm.
Romeu readied bow, checking remaining arrows.
Sônia gripped staff, wiping face.
Selina breathed deeply — bought extra potion, drank, minimal color returning to face.
Haru simply disappeared into shadows again — ready.
Kuto walked to the door, hand on golden handle that burned slightly to the touch.
Turned:
— Ready?
Romeu nodded:
— We always were.
Jack muttered through teeth:
— Then let the hell begin.
Zeylor's voice echoed one last time — playful, expectant, hungry:
— Oh, I can hardly wait to see the show!
Kuto pushed.
Door opened.
Freezing wind blew — carrying the smell of old blood and something worse.
Golden and red lights flooded the room.
The group advanced — disappearing into luminous mist.
Door closed behind them.
Definitive sound. Final.
Temple plunged into silence again.
Only distant echo of Zeylor's laughter remained — echoing, echoing, echoing until disappearing completely.
And in the shadows beyond the columns, something watched.
Waiting.
Hungry.
---
[DAYS REMAINING: 155]
[LOCATION: XP FESTIVAL — ISOLATED DIMENSION]
[GROUP: 6 SURVIVORS OUT OF 10]
[DEAD: GUNJA, SENSI, CÉLIA, DIMITRI]
[NEXT CHAPTER: XP Festival – Cursed Forest of Myrren]
[SURVIVAL CHANCE??]