The Underground

"Do you even know who you're messing with?!"

Aiham bellowed.

The thugs inside the shop tilted their heads and looked him over.

"Yeah, we know. Some Level 3 weakling and his little… this?"

The thug boss held up his pinky finger.

Aiham's face went rigid at that, and he shouted,

"The people you're messing with are the young lady of the Medici Merchant Guild and her guest!"

"Medici Merchant Guild?"

The onlookers began to murmur.

The boss's underlings turned to him with worried faces.

"Boss, Medici—isn't that the old… that family?"

The boss snapped at them.

"Shut up! How long has it been since they fell from grace! Hey, Mr. Hero of Justice. So what exactly can you do here? Wasn't it this weakling who drew first?"

At that, Aiham hesitated for a beat and glanced at me—then pressed on.

"If you won't quietly disappear, I'll tell him."

The crowd stirred.

"Him? Don't tell me… the Thorn—"

"Hey! Watch your mouth. You know he doesn't like being called by that name."

At the word Thorn, the thug boss's face hardened.

"B-Boss… this is…"

"He's right… if that person were to get involved…"

The thug slid the sword he'd been holding back into its scabbard.

Then he walked out the door.

Tch—

With a click of his tongue, he tossed one last line over his shoulder.

"Lucky you, weakling. Without this guy here, you'd be dead today. Let's go!"

He vanished outside, and Aiham came over and held out a hand.

"Are you all right? Let me help you up."

I couldn't bring myself to take it. I planted my hands on the floor and pushed myself up on my own.

I hadn't done a thing.

It was humiliating.

Throwing punches and drawing my blade had only made everything worse.

I walked straight out through the open door.

"Giseok…"

Aera called quietly from behind me.

I stopped for a moment at the sound of her voice.

"I'm sorry, Aera. And you too, Aiham."

That was all I said before I kept walking.

I was weak. I had to get stronger.

Strong enough to protect myself.

Strong enough to protect the people who mattered.

I bit my lip.

I'll get strong enough that no one can look down on me.

And so I walked toward the Tower.

Before long, the grand entrance came into view. Tents clustered around it, and guards stood watch. I kept going.

"Halt."

A Tower guard stopped me.

"Show me your identification."

"Here."

I held out my adventurer card. My name was on it, along with Level 3 — Newcomer.

The guard looked me over—my clothes, my face—then spoke.

"You're heading into the first floor without a lantern?"

"Ah… do I need one? Where can I buy one?"

"Hmm. Wait a moment."

He ducked into a tent, came back with a small lantern, and held it out.

"Take it."

"How much?"

"Don't worry about it. Just take it."

"Thank you."

"Don't underestimate the first floor. Stay sharp. It can be dangerous for a Level 3."

After that word of advice, he let me through.

I arrived at the dungeon entrance.

This is it.

Something like a gate waited there—a black dimensional door. Once I stepped through, I'd be fighting monsters.

I swallowed hard.

I was nervous, but after what I'd just been through, hesitation was gone. I reached for the gate.

Fwoop—

A scene completely different from the outside of the Tower unfolded before my eyes.

The interior of the Tower, seen for the first time—and yet somehow familiar. It didn't feel strange at all.

Puddles of water dotted the ground. Countless stalactites hung from the ceiling. The humidity was crushing, the air thick and damp. On Earth, a place like this would simply be called a cave.

I drew my dagger and walked slowly forward.

Ten minutes or so later, I spotted a single monster in the distance.

A soft-looking body, insides visible through transparent flesh, colored a clear blue.

A slime.

The kind of familiar monster you always fought first in any game.

I tightened my grip on the dagger. With a tap-tap of footsteps I charged, and I cut down the slow creature crawling along the ground without mercy.

A familiar pop!—and the monster vanished.

Where it had died, an item lay waiting.

Appraise.

My first monster kill, and my first piece of loot. I popped the jelly into my mouth.

Sweet and tangy—almost exactly like the worm-shaped gummies I used to eat all the time.

"You're my stress relief for today!"

I started cutting down slimes one after another. Honestly, hunting them wasn't hard at all. They were slow. They were weak.

Two hours later, I'd gathered about thirty Slime Jellies.

Fighting monsters had done a lot to clear the sour mood from earlier—but leaving the shop alone still nagged at me.

Are they worried?

I turned my steps back toward the Medici Merchant Guild.

When I arrived, I found Aera outside, crouched low to the ground. Aiham was beside her, trying to comfort her.

"Giseok will be fine."

Something in my chest tightened at the sight.

There are people who worry about me like this.

It was a feeling I hadn't known since Mother died.

Then Aera's eyes met mine.

"Giseok!"

She sprang up and ran straight to me. She stopped in front of me and said,

"Where did you go…"

Her eyes were already reddening.

"I'm sorry… I just went to the Tower for a bit."

"I thought you'd gone after those thugs…"

She could have thought that.

Guilt settled in for making her worry over nothing.

Aiham spoke next.

"Aera filled me in on what happened. I'd have been furious too, in your place. But those guys are adventurers who even work the fourth floor. You were in real danger."

"I'm sorry for worrying you. I only survived thanks to you. Thank you, Aiham."

Then I turned to Aera.

"I'm sorry, Aera. Forgive me."

"Next time, don't just disappear like that!"

I gave an awkward smile. Aera started checking me over, looking for injuries.

"Are you hurt anywhere?"

"Not really. I bought a potion on the way back and drank it."

I looked between the two of them, then said what I'd come to say.

"The truth is… I came to say goodbye."

Aera's brow furrowed, and tears looked ready to spill. I waved my hands quickly.

"I'm going to look for an inn near the Tower."

The tears vanished at once.

"I've found a reason I need to get stronger."

"Does it have to be tomorrow?"

Aera looked genuinely disappointed. It had only been a short time, but we'd grown close enough that I felt it too. Still—when you've made up your mind, you leave.

"Young lady, you're still in the same city. You'll see each other often. Don't worry."

"…All right."

"I'll come visit soon."

We said our brief goodbyes.

Meeting the two of them after arriving in this world had been pure luck. Warmth. I hadn't felt that from anyone outside Gyutae's family in a long time.

I left the guild and headed back toward the Tower. Near it, I rented a room at an inn.

Room and board ran about forty copper coins a week. Steep for such a small room—but the soup was free, so…

From that day on, I spent about a week on the first floor of the Tower.

The guard had given me one more piece of advice: don't go deep until I got used to the place. So I stuck to hunting slimes near the entrance.

That was what a week of work had produced.

Every stat point went into Stamina. It paired well with Acceleration, and I was always short on endurance anyway.

Back in the day, my body wasn't this pathetic…

Frustrating, but there was nothing for it. I just had to work harder.

I put on my gear, left the inn, and headed for the Tower.

"I've leveled up a fair bit. Time to…"

It was time. Time to hunt deeper.

When I reached the Tower, I gave the guard a light nod.

"Heading in again today? Take a rest sometime."

"I want to level up fast. I'm planning to go a little deeper today."

"Deeper? Isn't that still dangerous?"

"I'm Level 5. Still too risky?"

The guard hummed thoughtfully, then said,

"Your leveling speed is impressive, but five is still a bit short. If you're set on going in, I'll give you a tip—so you don't get hurt."

My eyes went wide.

"What kind of tip?"

"If things get bad inside the Tower, check the walls carefully. There'll be places to hide."

The walls? I'd spent a week walking around and never seen anything on them.

Puzzled, I stepped into the Tower.

*

Killing slimes as I went, I walked for a long time. The interior was far larger than it looked from outside—large enough that it was easier to think of it as another dimension entirely.

I pressed on through the cave, water pooling in places underfoot, until something appeared ahead.

It wasn't a slime.

In the dark cave, a scatter of white dots. Curious, I moved closer.

Then—clack—I kicked a pebble without meaning to.

The white dots moved.

A sudden flurry of wingbeats filled the air. The dots took shape and came flying straight at me.

"What the—bats?!"

But these were nothing like the cute bats I knew from Earth. Bodies the size of my head. Needle-sharp teeth.

About twenty of them.

I swung my dagger wildly at the swarm. Wounds opened on their bodies—but their attack showed no sign of stopping.

The thugs' words came back to me. You'd die on the first floor. The guard's warning. It can be dangerous.

They hadn't been empty talk.

I gave up swinging and started blocking. The bats latched onto my head and tore at me.

This is bad. I have to fall back!

I ran.

But flying bats were faster than I'd imagined. They were about to catch me.

I had to use it. I drew a breath.

Acceleration.

My sprint surged. The bats that had been right on my heels fell a little behind—but not far enough. Shaking them still looked impossible.

Acceleration!

I used it again. The bats kept coming. Two activations, and my lungs were already burning.

I need a place to hide—now!

The guard's words flashed through my mind.

If things get bad, check the walls carefully.

I scanned left and right as I ran. Nothing here. Nothing there. I kept searching while I fled, and still saw nothing.

Please… please!

I kept firing off Acceleration in short bursts while I hunted for cover, until my breath was clawing at the back of my throat. I felt like I was about to throw up.

"Please!!"

Then I saw it—a hole. Just wide enough for one person to squeeze through.

‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠

I sprinted for it, hiked a knee, and dove in.

Had I made it?

Then the wingbeats again. Somehow the bats had found me and were still coming.

I squeezed my eyes shut.

Was I wrong…?

I tried to lean back against the wall behind me.

But—

"Huh?"

There was no wall.

I toppled backward and tumbled down.

"Aaaagh!!! Somebody help!!"

I rolled and rolled for what felt like forever before I finally hit something—landing hard on my backside with a solid thud.

"Ow! My tailbone…"

I rubbed my aching rear, then took in the dark, suspicious space around me.

Right—the bats!

I turned and held the lantern up into the hole. The stubborn things had followed me even here. I drew my dagger and steeled myself for a last stand.

The bats poked their heads out of the hole—

Bzzzz—

A familiar insectile drone filled the air.

The bats that had emerged from the hole were gone. Dozens of flies buzzed around me instead.

Where did they go?! I saw them flying right at me!

I stood frozen, feeling like an idiot.

I pulled myself together and slowly looked around.

Where am I?

A place you could only reach ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠by tumbling a long way down a hole ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠on the first floor of the Tower.

Underground?

I raised the lantern high and walked forward.

A strange sight opened before me.

Great pillars lined both sides of the chamber, draped in red cloth so old it had rotted to tatters. A black carpet ran along the floor; I followed it.

Something came into view ahead. Stone statues on either side, and between them a single large chair.

A cat on the left. A toad on the right.

Beneath the toad statue sat a stone pedestal.

The air was oppressive. Flies had been buzzing in this room since I arrived.

On the pedestal, a hand-shaped indentation had been carved into the stone.

"This is way too suspicious… I should go back."

Uneasy, I turned around and searched every wall of the chamber.

Nothing.

No matter how hard I looked, there was nothing. The hole I'd come through was gone.

I walked back to the pedestal.

I was trapped. I had to find a way out.

I thought for a long time, and only a few ideas came to me. One was to sit on that throne.

I approached it and dropped into the seat.

Thud—

Nothing happened.

Then the other option…

That one felt wrong. Fitting my hand into that indentation.

I wrestled with it for a while, then made up my mind. I stepped up to the pedestal and pressed my palm into the groove.

Cold stone against my skin. I looked toward the chair.

Nothing's happening?

The thought had barely formed when a strange sensation flooded my palm.

"Agh!!!"

Pain.

And a system message appeared before my eyes.