Darkness.

I fall.
I fall, thinking that my life might end once I hit the ground.
No, I won't die.
I can't die.
Not this time.

Like a flashback, I relive the hell of my previous life.
Those days, all the same, those gray days as if they were a black-and-white movie.
A dull life, an inconclusive life, a life where I was just a number among billions.

A life I lived without learning anything, without understanding the why of that life.
A life that left no trace of its existence.
A blink of an eye in the infinite timeline.
There is nothing beyond.
That's why this second chance is invaluable.
I can't waste it, and I can't let it be taken away from me.

I won't stop until I've obtained everything.
Until I've challenged and subdued the entire universe.
It will be the universe bending to me, not the other way around.
I'm going mad. I'm delirious in this endless abyss.

I see the ground.

A few meters before impact.

[CREATE ELDRITCH TENTACLE]

With an effort, I create a tentacle, an ability granted by my cursed mace.

*CATCH*

Using my mind control, I grab myself onto the tentacle, clinging to it mid-air.
The tentacle then gently places me on the ground.

I am exhausted.
The battle and the fall have completely drained me.
I struggle to keep my eyes open. My vision is blurred.
The place where I am seems confusing.
I am too tired.
I black out.

A dreamless sleep.
A sleep as black as death.
Oblivion as black as my heart.

[[ ! WARNING ! ]]

[[ ! WARNING ! ]]

[[ ! WARNING! Only 1 MP out of 736 ]]
[[ ! WARNING! If your MP reaches zero, it's GAME OVER ]]
[[ ! WARNING! One minute remaining!]]

I am awake.

[[ ! WARNING ! ]]

Like an annoying alarm clock, the system wakes me up, one step away from death.
I still have the cursed mace in hand, the [ELDRITCH TENTACLE OF THE DREDGED ONE].

When I wield it, my MP becomes my HP, and every minute, I lose 1 MP.
The system saved me one minute before dying, waking me up like a smartphone alarm.
If I think about all the times I cursed the alarm in my previous life, I almost smile.
I make the mace disappear with the same skill with which I summoned it.
Not having it in hand, I'm back to checking my hit points.
Not that they're in any better shape.

The battle with Deedee Lang and her companion Guli has taken a toll on me.
Additionally, the unwanted effects of the enhancing potions have worsened the situation.
As if that weren't enough, I've also suffered the halved damage from the tentacles once they disappeared.
In the fight, I've already utilized the [AUTO-HEAL] ability.
I don't know how much time has passed, but for a while, I won't be able to rely on it.
I look into my "bag of wonders". I've run out of healing potions.

Fortunately, I still have an ace up my sleeve.
I had considered using it in the encounter with Deedee, but luckily, I kept this option in reserve.
I'm wearing the [CURSED RING OF THE HIDDEN CURSER HAG].

Having been more than seven days since I put it on, taking it off my finger will restore all of my MP.
My curses could be identified and possibly removed, but I'm not concerned about that right now.
If I were to describe the feeling of having low MP, it's very much like mental fatigue after working for two days straight without sleep.
This, too, is a memory from my previous life. Lately, I think about it often.
Not that I miss that life. Absolutely not.
It's just a strange form of nostalgia.

I take the ring off my finger.
Suddenly, I feel decidedly better mentally. Physically, I'm in bad shape, but mentally, I can feel my synapses starting to kick in.

I immediately cast [MINOR HEAL].
This basic magic won't recover most of my hit points, but I want to avoid wasting MP on more powerful spells.
I'm out of potions, so I'll have to find a way to craft them before I can afford to use other spells.
And then, by resting, I can recover hit points. I can also recover MP by sleeping, albeit very slowly.

I'm in an unknown place, probably a dungeon, and without allies.
I have to conserve my resources; they could be crucial for survival.

First point, I need to figure out where I am.
Second point, I need to find water.
Third point, I need some food.

Fortunately, in my bag, I always carry a small pot and a lighter. After all, I am an alchemist.
As important as finding food is identifying medicinal herbs.

Let's go step by step. Where the hell am I?
The brightness is very low. The alien place is very dark, and it seems to be indoors.
There is a strong humidity, and the smell of mold and mushrooms is in the air. It seems like a cavern.
The dimensions are large.
The low brightness comes from strange fungi and even stranger luminescent plants.
Could it be an underground dungeon?
I try to recall what I learned about the subject during the lessons at the academy.
Unfortunately, they were taught by that man... Professor Sfanzeen.

Who knows if he survived the rift's opening... speaking of which!
Rero, Luysia, Kanna, Bicrista... How are they?
I must find them!

Hold on, Strauss.
We can't rush in without a plan.
Great, now I'm talking to myself.
This place will drive me crazy.

I take a deep breath.
I'm not the type to lose my cool.
I will make it out of here alive.

I have [KNOW POSITION] thanks to the Master - Servant contract.
I can know their location. I try to locate Rero.
It seems quite far, but she's here in this dungeon.
She's alive! If she weren't, the contract would be broken, and I wouldn't be able to know her location.
I sigh with relief.
I couldn't bear to lose Rero.
I think of her goofy smile. My silly Rero...

I then search for Luysia. She's alive, fortunately!
I can't give up on my Luysia, after all I've done to obtain her.
I had to descend into the darkest abyss to break her chains. A bit like this dungeon from a certain point of view.
If I've subdued her, I'll conquer this dark abyss as well.
Unfortunately, Luysia is in the opposite direction to Rero and equally distant.
Perhaps the blonde is slightly closer.
Practically speaking, I should reach her first.

Having not made a contract with Kanna and Bicrista, I cannot know how they are, and this kills me inside.
I clench my fists. I can't lose them. They are too important to me.
I absolutely must find them.
And when I find them, I must bind them to me.

Now that I think about it, even Welze Juble might have been involved in the portal opening.
This thought scares me. Anger pervades my body. I am trembling.
All my women must have a Master - Servant contract with me.
From now on, it will be an absolute priority for me.

I pick up a piece of what seems to be wood.
It's a branch from some unknown plant and has a dark gray color. The shape is twisted.
With my alchemist knife, I start scraping the bark at the end of the branch.
My intention is to make shavings to start a fire and then use the branch as a torch.
Fortunately, the wood is dry enough, and I have a lighter with me.

From my now dirty and torn jacket after the violent clash with the policewoman and the giant, I tear off a piece of fabric that I wrap around the tip of the branch. Along with the fabric, I wrap some dry shavings that will help with the ignition.

I could use Luysia's [LIGHT] spell, thanks to the [SHARE SKILL] ability of the Master - Servant contract. But for now, I want to conserve my MP. Moreover, the fire will be a good defense against the creatures lurking in this darkness. For the same reason, I won't wear the cursed ring yet. Having an extra 50 MP available could be crucial.

I manage to light a fire using the scraps from the branch and other dry twigs I found.
In the fire, I insert the torch, which slowly catches fire, becoming my form of illumination for the moment.

Now that I have a light source, I can venture out in search of water and my women.
The torchlight gives me a better view of the environment I'm in and confirms my suspicions.
I am underground, in what appears to be a cave.

The very high ceiling is covered with sharp stalactites, giving me the anxious impression that they could fall at any moment. The ground is also dotted with stalagmites, as if they were about to collide with the stalactites in the ceiling and form a monstrous jaw.

In addition to the crackling of the fire, the only other sound I perceive is the whisper of falling water droplets breaking the otherwise eerie silence.

I walk uncertainly along the only possible path in the direction of Luysia.
The sound of small creaks and hisses accompanies each step, creating a unsettling symphony in the darkness. The stench of moisture and decay hangs in the air, giving a heavy and oppressive atmosphere.

Despite being an underground cave, the place is rich in flora. Layers of bioluminescent lichens cover the cave walls, emitting a dim and distorted light. Their bioluminescence is both fascinating and sinister, creating strange and unsettling shadows.

Large toxic mushrooms sprout from the rocky ground. Their caps emit spores that taint the environment.
Using another scrap of my torn jacket, I fashion a makeshift bandana to use as an improvised mask.
The mushrooms could be poisonous or worse.

The torchlight seems to dim in this place, and the echoes of footsteps and whispers make it difficult to distinguish real threats from imagined ones. As I proceed cautiously, I hear the whisper of distant voices and the echo of muffled screams.

Then suddenly, an alien growl.
A sound all too real in front of me.

*HRIEAK*

A real threat.
An eight-legged threat.