“Taylor!”

 

Pain Endurance Level 3 activating.

 

Nope. Is not working. I can still feel it.

Since the very first moment I got hurt inside this virtual reality, I’ve wondered why the developers decided to simulate pain as close as the real deal as possible.

Now I get it.

They wanted us to feel scared.

Not of dying, this is all treated as a game, after all. If what Grace said is true, death is nothing more than a punishment. They penalize you for being stupid. For acting rashly. For not strategizing.

Pain is just the icing in the cake.

Some players may not like this, and opt to not engage in battle as time passes on.

But to me, this piercing, burning torment--in the form of Dylak’s fangs--is telling me that I screwed up.

The creators of The Novus want you to remember what being stabbed, stomped, and breaking your bones feels like, so that you do better the next time.

I should have known that Dylak was still alive.

I didn’t know I could be cocky. I wasn’t good at anything back on Earth, so finding out that I could competently fight here, just gave me a little bit of confidence. What was so bad about that?

“And another falls…” Dylak said, with his lips stained with my blood. “Strong ones taste sweeter.”

Was he programmed to compliment those that almost got him? Well, while I watched my HP dropping all the way to zero, I didn’t feel better about myself, I can assure you.

 

Notice: Count Dylak has recovered 15% of his health.

 

With not even the strength to retaliate, the only thing I could do was wait for my death and stare at the broken ceiling above me, from where a silhouette peered at us. Was that…? Yes! It was Charles! I wanted to cheer him up so he could finish this fight, but it would give away his position. And… something was wrong.

When he jumped down, he didn’t seem to be targeting the boss, but Steve instead…

“What are you waiting for?! SHOOT IT!” I cried to Grace with my last breath, breaking her out of her state of shock.

“I’m so sorry T.! Major Fire Crafting, Spitfire!”

At that distance, even Grace took damage, and made the whole room tremble and get engulfed in flames.

 

Notice: Count Dylak’s HP at 10%

 

Hmm, and it seems that the spell that took 30% off his health before, only did 20% of damage this time, indicating that his Second Form made him more resistant… Great.

Notice: You have survived a fatal wound thanks to the effect of your Master’s Keepsake artifact. 0 daily uses remaining. Notice: You have restored 5% of your health.

 

“T-Taylor?!” Grace cried after seeing me jump out of the fire. “You’re alive! But I saw your HP bar--”

“Not now! Charles is here!”

“So that bastard finally showed up! Fine, let’s--” she interrupted herself once I grabbed her wrist and pulled her out of the room. “W-what are you doing? Let’s finish the boss now that he’s weak!”

“We have a bigger problem right now. Charles attacked Steve.”

“That he WHAT?!”

“You were right! Charles wants to deal the final blow, and will try to eliminate us first.”

“That’s insane! The boss’ health is still at 10%. Dylak could easily kill him if--”

“Sword Slash!”

 

Notice: Count Dylak’s HP at 5%

 

“Yeah, that’s what I thought…” I said, making Grace frown.

“What are you…?”

The wall behind us suddenly collapsed, and a wounded Dylak got launched out of the burning room.

“How dare you!” the boss shouted, showing a diagonal cut across his chest.

“Charles has been hiding his true strength,” I whispered to Grace as I shielded her. “At this rate, he’ll truly deal the final blow… After taking us down.”

“But why would he…?”

As Charles stepped out of the room, he gazed at us as if we were strangers, which made me self-aware that I wasn’t holding my hammer.

“Do you remember what I told you, Taylor?!” he asked, pointing his bloodied sword at us. “This is all a test! Only the strong will thrive in this new world! This is why the developers made it a competitive game!”

“Yes, you ‘competitive’ lunatic! You only want to level up to surpass that blonde we met yesterday, don’t you?!”

“Bullshit!” Grace cried, astonished. “Don’t tell me that’s the reason you’ve betrayed us, Charles! Just so you can get all of the loot and XP?!”

Charles snickered at the same time Dylak stood up. “You’re good at reading people, Taylor. It’s a shame that you’re not a real girl…”

“I wonder what your blood tastes like!” Dylak shouted, dashing towards him, but Charles got invisible in an instant, making Dylak clash against a wall.

“I would have made you my girlfriend otherwise!” Charles’ voice and hurried steps were heard.

“What do we do now, T.? I’m out of mana...” Grace said, grabbing my shoulders. Was she shaking due to the anger, or by the fact that Dylak was now targeting us?

 

Dungeon closing in 3 minutes and 15 seconds.

 

“Not let him win, that’s what we’ll do.”

“Taylor?”

“There is a make-up set I want to buy… And I won’t spend another day without it!”

Dylak ran towards us, showing his fangs.

What could I do while protecting an ‘out-of-juice’ mage behind me?

And there was also the danger Charles presented.

What would he do first?

“Give me another taste of you!” the boss said.

Unfortunately, there was no time to think! Dylak jumped over me, making me fall backward, and the only reason he couldn’t bite me again was because I was pushing him away with my both hands.

The entire place was also getting increasingly hot, due to Grace’s fire spreading.

Looking at Dylak’s fangs up close made my heart thump like crazy. My left shoulder was aching, remembering his bite… and… for some reason, that moment prolonged… 

While Dylak menacingly threw bites in the air in vain, I could think!

What would Charles do in this situation?

He’s confident that he can kill Dylak alone. If he kills him right now, the three of us remaining will get the dungeon’s rewards… But he doesn’t want that. So while I’m here stuck… He’ll try assassinating Grace!

There was no time to even peer at her to corroborate my theory. I just cast: “Fire Boost, Valor!”

 

Congratulations!  Your Active Skill, ‘Valor’, is now level 2!

 

Did that mean that I could muster even more power? Maybe picturing me being stronger than Dylak could help. So with that thought in mind, I started pushing back Dylak, and it was working! Just enough so I could bend my legs and place my feet on his stomach.

“Grace, duck!”

The corridor we were in was narrow, I didn’t have to aim. So using all of my strength, I sent Dylak flying behind me, successfully hitting an unsuspected Charles, trying to backstab Grace.

“Kyaaah! No more!” she cried, covering his ears. “I want this to end already!”

“Just hang in there a little more!” I said once I stood up, watching my two enemies getting up too.

Although Dylak didn’t receive damage, Charles’ HP was at 10%. I wanted to deal with him first, but the boss was standing between the two.

Charles wasn’t going to backstab Dylak, and he would turn invisible again at the very moment he felt threatened. Grace and I were unable to deal the final blow. There was nothing I could do.

“You fucking bastard!” someone shouted behind him. It was Steve, holding my hammer! 

“Shit!” Charles breathed, grabbing something beneath the collar of his shirt. 

At that very moment, I knew what I had to do.

Knowing that Dylak’s attention was now on Steve, I grabbed my pendant and closed my eyes. “Not this time…” I whispered, gritting my teeth. My ‘Inner Sight’ let me see Dylak as a glowing, golden silhouette, and for some reason, I could feel Grace’s presence behind me.

Steve glowed silver, still running toward us. His HP was at 5%… and… YES! I could see another silver person trying to sneak away from the fight.

I formed fists, and with closed eyes dashed towards him. “CHARLES!” Even though I could not discern his expression, since the system rendered him as if he was a faceless mannequin, I knew he shivered once he turned his head towards me. “I WON’T TEAM UP WITH YOU EVER AGAIN!”

My Valor boost was still active, so yeah, I gave him a very good punch. I could even swear that the sound of my fist connecting with his cheek echoed through the whole mansion.

The artifact’s invisibility wore off as I sat on his stomach to restrain him, and for a brief moment, while I was on top of him, I remember the intimacy we shared just an hour ago. Watching him in that sorry state, spitting blood and with 1% of HP remaining, made me pity him. The fire around us also bathed his wounded face in a favorable, warm light.

 

Notice: Count Dylak’s HP at 3%

 

It seemed that Steve was making good use of my hammer. Although I wanted to witness how he fought with it, my gaze was still locked on Charles. He was the reason we were there.

Without him, we would’ve never come here and got all these artifacts, levels and gold.

Maybe… He deserved some of the final rewards too.

“That you’ll never team up with me again? Too bad…” he muttered, smirking. “No loot for you too, then.”

My fist moved on its own out of instinct. I punched him again, killing him this time, but it was too late. He managed to slice my throat with his sword.

My blood stained his clothes before his body started to turn into pixels.

I didn’t feel pain…

 

Notice: Count Dylak’s HP at 1%

 

“Taylor! Hang in there!”

…But I died before Steve could kill the boss anyway.

 

***

 

It wasn’t bad. Dying, I mean. 

It was not as dreadful as when the system malfunctioned.

It didn’t feel hollow… Just… calming, in some sort of twisted way.

It was like embracing a moment of peace.

Falling in love with the silence. 

Sleeping. Truly sleeping.

Then, the intruding messages popped up, as if it was a morning alarm.

 

You died. But don’t feel bad about it! Learn from your mistakes and never give up! * Respawning in Unus Town * * Death Penalty: 50% of your gold have been subtracted from your account. Current Gold Balance: 294

 

“‘Don’t feel bad about it’?” I whispered. “Yeah… right…”

I started chuckling. Why? I’m not sure... Then, I burst out laughing, getting the attention of other adventurers around me, who were unaware of what I had been through.

Then, the tears…