“Fuck.”
Chris looked up at the night sky as he walked through the empty parking lot, wondering how he’d managed to get himself in this predicament.
“It’s not like I can just go back,” he sighed, remembering the words he’d yelled at his stepmother before storming out of the house, “Why did I have to forget to grab my phone and wallet on the way out?”
Taking a deep breath, the cold autumn air stung his nose slightly, making Chris sigh again. It wasn’t going to be pleasant if he had to sleep outside, but maybe the shock of him not returning home for a night would get that woman to see some sense. Shaking his head, he tried to drive the memories of their argument deeper into the back of his mind.
He walked up to the old convenience store, standing in front of the window as the old halogen light above him flickered, allowing him brief glimpses of his reflection. He was a relatively tall young man on the later end of twenty years, his brown hair cut short on the sides and longer on top in a simple undercut, his preferred hairstyle. His jacket hung on his skinny frame, open to reveal the slight gut that had been growing on him over the last couple of years under his shirt.
You need to lose weight!
The voice of his stepmother pierced his thoughts as he glared at the reflection, his brown eyes cold and lifeless in the glass.
“Fuck that,” he sighed, shaking his head again as he turned to continue walking, blinking as he spotted something behind him in the flickering reflection.
A moment passed as Chris stared at the object, blinking as the light flickered off, then on again, showing that it was still there. Slowly, he turned, staring at the door that certainly hadn’t been there a moment ago. It was made of polished bronze, intricate patterns embossed on its surface, large rings hanging from it as it seemed to glow with an inner light.
“What the fuck?” Chris muttered as he slowly approached the door, walking around it in confusion.
It looked the same from both sides, and was simply standing in the middle of the parking lot like it had always been there. Curiously, he reached out and tapped it with his finger.
[New Diver detected. Activating the Level System.]
Chris shouted as the words appeared on a glowing screen in front of him, falling backwards in surprise as he stared at the object in confusion.
“What the fuck?”
[Level System activated. Stats assigned.]
“What?”
[World First Achieved: The First Diver. Rewards: {Leader} Title.]
[World First Achieved: First to Discover a Dungeon. Rewards: {Explorer} Title.]
[World First Achieved: First to discover an EX+ Rank Dungeon. Rewards: {Truly Ambitious} Title.]
“What the fuck is going on?!” Chris shouted as the screens appeared one after the other, making him scramble back as they overlayed each other, “Is this some sort of joke? Holograms?”
He looked around anxiously, trying to see if he could spot anyone nearby that might be filming him, but saw nothing but the dark parking lot around him.
“Seriously, what the hell is going on?” he sighed, getting back to his feet as he looked at the screens again, wishing they’d go away.
Suddenly, they vanished, making him blink in surprise. Quizzically, he thought about bringing them back, the screens reappearing in front of him a moment later.
“This is so weird,” Chris muttered, looking back to the strange door, “And it all started when I touched that door. I wonder what would happen if I touched it again?”
Shaking the thought out of his head, Chris just sighed as he turned away, glancing back at the door as it continued to glow with an inner light. He knew it was a bad idea, but something nagged at him to try touching the door one more time. Instead, he stepped away, wondering if he could just go home and explain what had happened to his dad.
We never needed you!
The words shot through his mind like a bullet, the woman’s voice making him bite his lip in frustration.
You’re nothing but a leech!
Chris felt the tears well up in his eyes as he tasted blood in his mouth, the pain in his lip drowned out by the words reverberating in his mind.
You’re just a burden to this entire family!
Chris gasped as he felt the warm liquid dripping down his chin, lifting his hand to his face, the fingers coming back red. Tears burned in his eyes as he turned to look at the door again, walking towards it now as he reached out his hand. This was a stupid idea, but if this door could take him away from this shitty world, then it might just be worth it. He laid his palm against the bronze surface, a new screen appearing in front of him.
[Enter {The Trial of Turmoil}?]
“Yes,” Chris stated out loud, his voice louder and stronger than he’d expected.
[Select Difficulty.]
[Tutorial]
[Easy]
[Normal]
This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience.
[Hard]
[Extreme]
[Hell]
“What?” Chris blinked as the choices appeared, all but one crossed out, “Wait, I changed my mind!”
[Hell difficulty chosen. Entering Dungeon.]
“Wait!” Chris shouted as he pulled his hand back, watching in terror as the door swung open, revealing a darkness behind it that seemed to suck him in.
The door shut a moment later, the parking lot empty apart from itself.
------
[Hell Difficulty features.]
[Monsters within the Dungeon deal 500% more damage. Monsters within the Dungeon take 500% less damage. No Safe Zones. No Rest Points. Healing is reduced by 50%. Drop rate of item rewards is increased by 100%. Quality of item rewards is increased by two stages. Free Point multiplier set to five.]
“What the fuck?” Chris whispered as he read over the screen that had appeared in front of him, looking around the massive cavern he now found himself in, “Seriously, what the fuck?”
[Two new Skills gained.]
[World First Achieved: First to enter a Dungeon. Rewards: Skill Rank Upgrade.]
[Skill Ranks upgraded.]
[World First Achieved: First to enter an EX+ Rank Dungeon. Rewards: Rank SSS Skill.]
[Skill gained.]
“Enough!” Chris shouted as he wished the screens would just vanish, panting as he stared into the dimly lit cavern around him when they did.
He found himself in the middle of circle of stalagmites, the massive columns easily three times his height, each fused to its neighbors, except for a small gap between two of them. Shaking his head again, Chris walked towards the gap, slowing as he started to hear strange sounds coming from the other side of the natural wall. Carefully, he peeked out from behind the stalagmite, blinking at what he saw.
He could only describe it as a blob, a small glowing gem suspended in the center as it moved slowly towards him. He watched it in interest for a moment, before the strange creature stopped, its round body rippling. Still confused, Chris remained still as the creature continued to ripple, then suddenly launched itself into the air, straight towards him.
“FUCK!” Chris screamed as the creature slammed into the stalagmite he’d been hiding behind, shattering the stone like it was made of cheap plaster, before hitting the ground with a wet plop behind him, “What the hell?!”
The creature simply started to ripple again, Chris starting to panic as he tried to find something to use as a weapon. He quickly grabbed a rock from the ground, part of the stalagmite that had just been destroyed by the Slime, before he threw it with all his might at the creature. He watched in horror as the stone hit the creature, simply passing into its body, before beginning to fizz violently, disappearing in moments.
“Of course,” Chris muttered, “Slimes are all but immune to physical attacks, you have to kill them with magic.”
He didn’t have time to think about where he’d gotten that knowledge, nor why he was so certain of it, as the creature launched itself at him again. He yelped as he threw himself to the floor, the Slime slamming into the stalagmite behind him, leaving a shattered crater on its surface.
“Fuck, I’m going to die!” Chris wailed as he scrambled towards the gap in the stalagmites, gasping for air as he desperately ran from the creature before it could attack again.
He froze as he reached the gap, staring out into the cavern, numerous stalagmites piercing up from the ground, as their counterparts hung from the ceiling. There were also patches of strange glowing moss growing almost everywhere, filling the cavern with a dim light. Normally, he would have stopped to marvel at the strange and alien beauty of the place, but what had caused him to freeze were the three other Slimes slowly making their way towards him, blocking off any hope of escape.
“No,” he whispered, before pain lanced up his back, Chris crying out as he was thrown forwards, feeling like his spine had been crushed by the impact.
Gasping as he skidded across the ground, he managed to look back at the gap, seeing the first slime now making its way towards him as well. Tears welled up in his eyes, fear and pain mixing as he started to sob uncontrollably, his entire body shaking. Seeming to sense his weakness, the four Slimes started moving towards him faster, two bumping into each other as they did. Chris could only watch as the two creatures both rippled, before they suddenly lunged at each other, rolling around as their bodies started to mix. A moment later, the two had now become one, the glowing gems in their centers fused into a larger, brighter gem.
“A Great Slime?” he coughed, blood trickling out of his mouth, “But how? It should take more than just two Slimes to make one of those?”
He didn’t get a chance to question it further as the Great Slime immediately lunged and engulfed the third Slime that had been heading towards him, absorbing it as it grew even larger.
“Now it’s a King Slime?” he gasped, the crystal at its center growing even larger with its new form, “Fuck! Fuck fuck fuck!”
He gasped as the force slammed into his back again, throwing him closer to the King Slime, the first Slime hitting the ground and rolling towards the massive creature, which immediately extended a pseudopod and absorbed it as well. Once again, the monster grew, its gem now the size of a basketball as it loomed over Chris.
“Emperor Slime,” he whispered, watching as the creature reached out to him with its tentacle like appendages, wrapping them around him as it lifted him into the air.
Chris screamed as the pain returned, though this time it was a burning sensation as the massive blob started to dissolve him, quickly making its way through his clothes and reaching his skin.
“NO!” he shrieked in agony, “I don’t want to die! Not like this! Help! Anyone, help me!”
[Would you like an Assistant?]
“Yes!” Chris screamed as the screen appeared, gasping as it shimmered, new words appearing on it.
[Hello, I am your Dungeon Assistant. You appear to be under attack from an Emperor Slime. I suggest using Magic that it is weak against to defeat it.]
“Yes! Anything! Help me!” Chris coughed as he felt his ribs crumble, the tendril of goo starting to close in on his lungs.
[Opening Status Screen. Please review your Skills.]
“No! Help me! Please!” Chris coughed, barely able to breath.
Name: Christopher Trevor Sanders
Level: 1
Experience: 0/100
Health: 47/120
Mana: 25/25
Stats:
Strength: 3
Vitality: 2
Dexterity: 4
Intellect: 5
Wisdom: 8
Charisma: 3
Free Points: 0
Titles:
Leader, Explorer, Truly Ambitious
Skills:
[Self-Regeneration lv 1]
[Air Magic lv 1]
[Studious Sage lv 1]
“Magic…” Chris coughed as he looked at his Skills, “I need…magic…”
He reached weakly for the screen, trying to touch the floating object, his hand just passing straight through.
“How?” he wheezed, feeling his lungs burning from within and without, “How do I…cast magic?”
A wave of cool washed through his mind, the sudden understanding startling him for a moment, before he dropped his arm, pointing his palm at the creature in front of him. A ball of energy started to form in his hand, the air gathering into a spinning mass as Chris felt a pressure in the back of his mind. Gritting his teeth, he forced more Mana into the orb, willing it to pierce through the creature holding him up, its form changing until it was a spinning cone, its point aimed directly at the Emperor Slime.
The spell shot from his hand, slamming into the monster with surprising force as it bored deep into its soft body. The Emperor Slime shivered as it tried to close the hole, but the chaotic swirling winds kept ripping it apart. Chris watched, transfixed as the spell tore deeper into the monster, reaching its core in seconds, striking the gem with its point, and shattering it. Silence hung in the air for a moment as Chris stared at the monster, then tried to laugh, only blood pouring from his throat as the creature collapsed into a puddle, dropping him hard on the floor as well.
Well, he managed to think as darkness slowly engulfed his mind, At least I took it with me.
