'I don't really have much of a choice, do I?'

Staring up at the rusted door in front of me, that barely looked like it was holding together, the system window's words flashed through my mind.

'1 day.'

I repeated in my head, drilling that fact in. The old steel door in front of me, looking like it could fall apart at any moment, just seemed to further compound how little time there was.

This dungeon had to be cleared now. Even though I had no special equipment, consumables, and I wasn't allowed to bring any outside help at all, I was the only person who could clear it. 

"...fine. I'll take on the challenge." 

Rather than allowing myself to be further overtaken by despair, I thought of what would happen if I didn't deal with this.

If I gave up, not only would I die, but so would Aurum and Pearl. I thought of their smiling faces - girls I had only known for a month at best, yet felt closer to than anyone else I had once known in the life I lived before coming here.

I'm sure Arianwen and her elite guards would perish, as well. I'd never learn the truth of what happened between her and Thomas. I'd never hear her awkward breakfast discussions anymore, or get to eat her bland, plain food, that was still clearly made with so much love...

While she was a genius, right now, even the 'Blood Diamond', Diamante would be no match for a fully awakened demon.

And the people of the village, as much as I didn't care for them, and they didn't care for me...all of them had their own lives too, damn it.

There were many strong people around, and maybe if all the elites currently within the village banded together, they could fight a demon off. However, nobody besides I was even aware that there was a demon to be cautious of, in the first place. The battle would end before it could even start.

It'd be a toppling domino effect. The story would derail and end five years before it could even start. One of the most important heroines, the crown princess, would be dead. Whoever the protagonist is wouldn't even be able to reach here to begin their journey in earnest.

My life before coming to this world had been one that felt like I wasn't living at all. I barely spoke to other people, I didn't build a lot of formative experiences others had, and I didn't have a single person I could really trust.

I lived alone, comforted only by the few fun games I could play, even with the fact that I worked around the clock, by my own choice. 

Taking trips, drinking, doing drugs, trying out new hobbies and learning new skills...it couldn't be said that I didn't do any of those things. Yet, still, it was like the world remained in a ceaseless monotone for me. Until I got here. Until I was brought to this world that challenged me every way, presented me the chance to make meaningful, lasting friendships, allowed me to redo life in a place where nothing from my old world could reach me.

Even strapped down by the System's unreasonable demands, even though I was so weak...even though I was not the main character of this story, I didn't care.

I was finally free. Totally free from a life that I didn't care to go back to. And now, something was threatening this world, this life that I finally obtained.

Thinking like that, I felt most of the anxiety begin to leave my body. My gaze steadied, and my breathing was even. I opened my mouth to speak, while a smile slowly came to my face.

"It's like I said earlier, isn't it? No developer makes a game that can't be beaten. And even, even if by the slightest chance that nobody is supposed to be able to..." 

I reached my hand out for the rusted door handle, gripping it. The metal was cold, but my entire body was warming up, prepared for the fight of my life. The fight that would allow me to keep my life.

"I'll just have to be the first."

Whatever force brought me here, whoever was running this world, I'd show them. The power of the Extra they continued pushing towards death. The power of a person willing to do anything to protect what they wanted to protect.

I yanked the door open, allowing the darkness to consume me whole - and momentarily disappeared from the face of the planet.

---

"Pearl..."

A soft, gentle voice called out to me. It was a distant voice, but it sounded so close. It rang in my ears with a unfamiliar familiarity, contradicting my thoughts.

"My beautiful, shining Pearl."

The more I listened to it, the more I realized that this voice wasn't just coming from nowhere, but from a person.

I suddenly found myself in a flower garden. It was a beautiful place, covered by vibrant plants and greenery of all kind. Even fruit trees, which seemed to be eternally in season stood tall and proud, bearing the ripest, freshest fruit anyone would find across the land.

I recognized the place. But it was a place I usually only saw from a distance. It was the royal garden.

---

---

In front of me was a woman dressed in the most beautiful white dress I had ever seen. Her eyes were mysteriously covered by a blindfold, and her hair was long enough to hide anything else above her neck. But even then, I could tell she was pretty, just like her pretty voice, that soothed me, for some reason.

Even though she was a total stranger, she felt so...familiar.

"I'm so sorry, Pearl. I love you. You know I do. However...this is simply how it had to be. Had to be..had...ht.a.d..."

The voice was interrupted, tainted, suddenly corrupted, as the peaceful world around seemed to collapse bit by bit. Tendrils of darkness reached out for the figure, and I instinctively moved towards them. They came from the palace behind her, and I just knew their intent.

They were taking her. They were taking her away for good this time, and I knew I couldn't stop them. As frantically as I swore I was trying, my legs weren't taking me anywhere. I couldn't move - I wouldn't move.

"N-No! Don't leave me, ***! D-Don't! Don't leave me!"

I could barely make out a smile on the figure's face, such a beautiful and kind smile...as she spoke the cruelest words I'd possibly ever heard.

"I'm sorry, Pearl. But it's inevitable..."

Moisture ran down my face. I could feel endless tears streaming, worse than any crying fit I had ever had.

"W-Why...?"

"Because you're weak."

---

The dream shattered. And I woke up with a start.

"H-Ha...ha...ha.." I was wheezing, my hands clutched tightly against my nightdress. I slowly calmed my breathing, and the ringing in my ears that I hadn't quite noticed being there in the first place started to go away.

However, replaced by it was an even more horrible sound.

"H-Help me!"

"P-Please, somebody call the rest of the guards!"

"Where is the Guard Captain?!"

"Why...why are monsters attacking?!"

The sound of suffering.

People's voices were screaming indistinctly, in howls of pain and desperation like I had never heard before. 

I slid out from under my sheets, stomping over to the window within the room of the inn that I was staying in. It was usually covered by a sheet that couldn't be seen through, keeping the room dark during the few times that I wasn't with Aurum and Thomas.

I pulled the curtain aside forcefully, my eyes widening at the sight outside.

It was pure chaos, like a scene out of everybody's worst nightmares. The town was full of all the monsters me, Thomas, and Aurum had spent hunting over the past week and a half. 

Lesser Oni, Demonic Boars, Hellslimes...they crowded every inch of the streets of Aureal, causing destruction on a level that, I'm sure, made the Imps' attack earlier in the month look like a joke. They were so numerous, that it almost seemed as if we didn't make any large dent in their monstrous numbers, at all.

People were running around like panicked ants here and there, and small conflicts were going on everywhere around the village, indicated by the bright flashes of magic and loud clangs of metal.

I couldn't even move...it didn't even prompt me to scream in fear, like I thought it would've. I just stood there, my eyes glazed over while observing the sheer destruction and chaos happening right in front of me. What was I supposed to do...?

I wanted desperately for Aurum to show up, flying from the skies to rescue me and comfort me...

I really wanted Thomas to show up and give me confident orders, with that attitude of his that made it seem like he always knew exactly what he was doing...

But more than anything...

I...

I...!

"Because you're weak."

I wanted to prove her wrong. I wanted to show that I had become strong, that I could be strong, for once in my life. That I wasn't just a worthless tool for everyone to use, ignore, and step over, with my own strength.

I wanted to show Thomas and Aurum that they helped me grow in ways they could never imagine.

Even if it was just a dream, I never wanted to feel that sense of loss and helplessness again.

I hastily threw on my clothes and darted from my inn room down the stairs, clutching the fabric of my scarf tightly. I didn't need to hold it, but if I didn't, I felt like I'd lose all the courage and heart I finally managed to build up. 

'Thomas...Aurum.'

I was worried for those two. Of course I would be. They meant everything to me now. I had only known them for maybe 3 weeks, but they felt more like family to me than my own sisters.

But.

I believed in them. That someway, somehow, they would be just fine.

And that, the next time I saw them, I'd be able to brag about what I did, too.

---

Dungeons exist in a large number across the world of Treasure Quest. However, they're usually more informal...rather than searching a dungeon in a game-like way, you quite literally go cave-diving or tomb exploring. In a world where Treasure could be anywhere, it's only a given that hunting it down and hiding it in increasingly obscure ways was common.

That is, until demons appeared. More specifically, when their revivals started to be attempted once more.

Demons create the sort of dungeons a person familiar with them might expect. The theming of each of these dungeons is individually based on the demon's power set.

Depending on the demon's strength, it can even be used as a repeatable way to challenge yourself, gain experience, and hunt for rare materials.

A named demon's dungeons are much different.

Echidna is a demon whose powers specialize in the creation and modification of living beings, including herself. That was probably why her dungeon's unique effect was demonification, and why it released created monsters on its' own.

I was currently walking through a building made out of rusted steel, with some sort of acid seeping down the wall, that only further corroded it. I stayed far away from the walls, even though I gave them a curious glance.

The entire place gave off an eerie vibe, like an abandoned factory that hadn't been touched for decades, and was just coming apart at the seams. In some places, the metal even seemed bent.

Despite that feeling, there was no clear structure...it was like walking through a giant block made out of metal, with occasional twists and turns. 

It felt like a prison...and naturally, I soon ran into the guards.

Four sets of heavy footsteps joined my own, and I soon found myself looking up at four Lesser Oni. They were different than the ones outside the dungeon, covered in blood, and wielding clubs made out of metal instead of wood. They stood for a second once we crossed paths, observing me.

Dungeon monsters evolve in a way opposite to that of demons...they have a special, stronger form, unique to the dungeon soaked in their master's energy...and outside the dungeon, they are simply regular monsters and beasts. Even if they can escape the confines of their dungeon, they only retain certain special characteristics, like their demonification.

I stopped in place, staring up at the towering creatures. Even just by staring at them, I could tell that they had an aura far more imposing than any monster I'd fought before. 

But that didn't matter. I rose my fists up anyways. My resolve was long since made.

...

"GRAAAAAH!"

Despite having a slightly larger semblance of intelligence than the others, 0 + 1 is just 1. They all charged with bestial roars that showed a distinct lack of intelligence.

In that moment, I could feel a certain sense within myself grow sharper. I put together a plan automatically, and I trusted that my body could do it. 

My hands twitched, ready to move automatically into moves I had practiced many times. Staring at the bodies of the Lesser Oni, covered in bloody clothing that looked more like rags, I could feel their weakpoints coming to me. Probably the effect of Monster Hunter.

I dashed forward to meet them, a manic grin tearing across my face. 

"Let's get the time-trial party started, you pieces of shit!"

I yelled, a rush of energy and adrenaline surging through my body, activated by my own loud shout.

One of the Lesser Oni reached me first, already swinging the giant, vaguely club-shaped hunk of metal towards my body. Maybe three weeks ago, I would've considered it unbearably fast and terrifying - a swing made by a creature with an arm three times the size of my body. 

All I did was side flip over the club, causing the Lesser Oni to swing it not into the wall - but against one of his comrades. The side-effect of swinging so wildly when the four of them had gathered closely together, charging after me in a crowded, corridor.

It was tall enough to accommodate their height, but not nearly enough to comfortably give the four of them independent space to fight in.

The Lesser Oni struck by friendly fire roared in pain, swinging his club ahead of him at the one which had hit him, without thinking. 

The two Lesser Oni, recoiling from the blows that they had fired at each other, were therefore unable to react when I started climbing up one of their bodies. Once, I needed Aurum to drop me down, but my Agility was high enough to the point where climbing like this was only a matter of focusing my hardest.

Maybe thanks to the side-effects of my proficiency in Unarmed Combat increasing my effectiveness in these combat situations, unarmed, it was even easier to hold on than I would've thought.

'Easier' didn't mean easy, though. I still had a long way to go before I was some master of agility, but I didn't care about climbing stably or even about climbing technique at all.

I hung on for dear life while vicious stabbing my fingers into the Lesser Oni's flesh as leverage, pulling myself up inch by inch, and I eventually reached the top of the first Lesser Oni's head...

Then I looked behind me.

The third Lesser Oni had arrived, and was already swinging his club in response to seeing me on his comrade's neck. His club was on an unchangeable path towards the first Lesser Oni's head, carried by all the momentum of his giant, overly muscular body.

Just like I expected. 

I gathered every bit of strength I had in my legs...and jumped. 

I barely made the gap, my hands desperately grasping onto a poorly-made loincloth the third wore. 

I began to desperately climb up, not even wasting time to look back and confirm the kill. I could already hear the sickening crunch of bone, as the third Oni's metal club smashed his comrade's skull in.

One down.

Confused, the Oni tried pulling his club back, only to suddenly have a blinding pain shoot through its' body. The fourth Lesser Oni had arrived, and the second Lesser Oni recovered, both caving in the monster's chest, where I had been, only moments prior.

It spewed blood, blood which flew into the air and blinded both Lesser Oni.

I took that chance to jump from Lesser Oni to Lesser Oni again, and this time, I went for the killing blow, myself. I landed on the creature's neck, twisting my hips forward while thrusting my arm out.

With a vicious, clawed palm, I easily shoved past the Lesser Oni's neck, grabbing hold of a part of its' giant, muscular carotid artery, and crushing my palm close.

Even if they went through demonification, these Lesser Oni were originally regular creatures, after all.

It dropped its' club immediately, falling to its' knees, then faceplanting onto the floor, twitching while bleeding out.

By then, I was in front of the last Lesser Oni, staring at its' once imposing, now cowering figure with a quiet malice. It twitched away from me and threw its club forward, 

"G-GRAAAAAH!"

I'm sure seeing its' comrades kill each other, and then have its' final one die beside it was uncomfortable. Maybe somewhere deep down, it was even scared.

But I didn't care. 

I didn't care if the Lesser Oni saw me as nothing but a vicious rat, tricking them and going for cheap weakspots. Since when was I strong enough to be picky about how I won these kinds of fights?

What did pride mean? It was nothing but a weakness right now. I'd become even more of a monster than these bastards, if it was to protect this new life I earned.

I'm sure the last thing that the Lesser Oni saw...was my bloodied hand, reaching for one of its' exposed eyeballs.

Crunch.

---

Echidna was nothing but a consequential being of instinct, as were most named demons.

Perhaps, in some ways, they were even baser than the monsters that served them. Like natural disasters with no free will, when they were 'revived', they just did as those natural instincts drove them. There was not even a primitive train of thought behind many of their actions or reactions.

Even just a few days ago, when Echidna had been doing nothing but sitting in this dungeon, allowing the energy to accumulate that would slowly bring on her revival, she was mindless. It was only occasionally that she would act, granting monsters within her dungeon portions of her energy to serve her.

The demon herself looked like a being far removed from any sort of natural form. She was made up out of a light-blue mist hat took a vaguely feminine, humanlike appearance. She looked more made of stardust than flesh and blood. 

Today, only a few minutes ago, she had been mindlessly feeling out the presence of the dungeon, as usual. She was trapped within a large room. It was dark and silent. The walls looked dull and aged, just like how her brain consistently felt. A steel prison trapping a mindless demon within - this was the dungeon that was on track to revive her.

Then, all of a sudden...it entered her. Life. Memories. Instinct. Emotions. It felt like her mind, a mind that had been rotting for endless centuries and millennia, finally came back to full function.

And he was the center of it.

That little boy who was fighting through her legions of her enhanced demonic monsters and beasts with the ferocity of someone who had nothing to lose. The same one who was covered in blood, to the point where she could not tell whether he was injured, or he had just so ruthlessly killed her servants.

The moment she sensed his presence within her dungeon, it was as if the true person within her that had been forced asleep for an uncountable amount of time was suddenly awakened.

When her ego returned, Echidna was not angered at this boy's slaughtering of her creations.

Neither did she display the sort of arrogance that sentient lesser demons like Succubi, Greater Imps, or unnamed demons would.

She instead slowly smiled, rising from her place in the room that chained her very soul. While she could not leave, it didn't matter anymore. Echidna had found something greater than her temporary freedom.

"Finally..."

Echidna spoke, in a voice that hadn't been used since time immemorial. A voice that would not have been heard even by the oldest of wizards, the priests closest to divinity, and the longest-lived of elves.

"I have finally found one. A true human."