I, Achrin Stessil, a young noble of the Stessil House, am inside a dungeon. When I opened my eyes, I was covered in something stiff; it smelled burnt as well.
Hm… what happened?
Looking around… I saw nothing. Naturally. I raised my arm, and a warm feeling coursed through my aching body. Instantly, the chamber lit up as Navi appeared.
"Ouch… my eyes hurt."
As I slowly got used to the brightness, I got on my feet. The ants around me were charred.
"…"
My food…
"—Growl…"
My stomach…
Anyways, I looked around to see if there was something not burnt to a crisp—there was. By the corners were a bunch of lightly toasted ants.
I ran over, and I broke off one of the legs, crushed the exoskeleton, and dug for meat.
Nom~nom~nom
"Ahh, it is as they say. Hunger is the best spice!"
While eating, I tried recalling what happened after activating frenzy. And when it all slowly returned.
"…"
..
—Hahahahaha!
"Yahooo! ♪Food! And over there too! ♪Food!"
Having used Aerial Blades constantly—
"Areal Blade to you, and to you, a Wind Claw for you!"
And then…
"HAHAHAHAHA!Burn, Burn—no, wait… I mean—COOK! COOK! HAHAHA. AHAHAHAHAH!"
..
Having recalled what happened during Frenzy, I began to feel bad.
"What am I doing!? Wasting food? It's all burnt now!"
Clenching my head and rolling around in the wasted nourishment, I composed myself. After all, I needed to get out of here. And wallowing on past mistakes won't help. Nope, it won't!
"That's right, it's a concern for when I get out!"
After convincing myself, I began to store some of what's edible—it's undercooked…
I took out the cookware and began to cook. Now that I can taste again, this meat wasn't terrible; it lacked some seasoning.
When I tasted the stew broth, it was pretty good. It had complexities, and the meat was tender as well!
Kriikiiriiiiki!
Then, I suddenly heard a familiar noise. I turned my head a little and saw a living ant, carrying an egg.
"…"
—Areal Blade.
Thud…
"♪Hmm~♪Mm~♫Nn~ Into the stew you go!"
Just like that, I got fresh meat. And that got me thinking.
"Were there more?"
Was it all hidden behind the pile of coal?
..
After searching for the hidden stash, I came across a pathway leading somewhere, and I eventually found the eggs! Of course, I took them and stored them in the void gem.
"Now then… out, out. Where is the way out?"
I mean, I definitely can't go back to the Mister… Miss? …Dragon? I don't even know where I fell, and the opening was gone if I recalled correctly.
Think about it, Achrin, think.
Nope, no idea.
I figured I'd just wander around, but without a sky, I can't tell how many hours or days have passed.
Honestly, I'm getting a little tired of ants. There were also no other beasts around. If this truly was a dungeon, it'd be crawling with them. Or did someone already take the core?
No, that can't be. If the core was gone, I'd be able to dig myself out.
"Sigh…"
I went to a corner and hugged my knees.
How long has it been since I last saw the sun? And all these halls—I'm tired.
"I'm tired, I'm tired! I wanna get out!"
..
"Day 5. Achrin is still trying to find a way out."
No, wait, I can't even tell in the first place. And as for the good news. This dungeon appeared to be some kind of labyrinth. As for the bad news…
"I have no idea where I am."
Well… that was old news.
Either way, maybe I should've left some of the ants alive and stalked them to see where they go. But the chances of that succeeding were low since they're very perceptive.
Even so, I probably would've had a higher chance of finding a way out. But I do know something. I'm heading up!
I can feel it in my legs!
After some more walking. And walking…
I stumbled upon a crystal forest. The forest was vibrant, and the crystals glowed prettily. From here was a path, and alongside the path were crystal flowers. It looked so romantic, I walked in without a second thought.
However…
My almost forgotten survival instincts naturally kicked in. I peeked before thinking of entering the new chamber. And what do I say, good job me…
"Oooouh~~"
Mist translucent ghosts were everywhere, flying aimlessly. They were almost dreamy—only if their faces weren't distorted and decomposed.
If I remember correctly, these ghosts were called Flesh Seekers—they'd ruthlessly kill their victims. However, they leave the parts they want untouched. And since some of them had faces, albeit rotten by now, it must mean that there were people before me at some point.
And well, good news!
I hadn't seen one with a full body. I can't imagine how absurdly many victims it would've taken to get there.
The bad news… This was the only way forward.
—I feel like crying… rather, should I cry?
Gulp…
I really hope I'm not their type. But if I consider they might not have encountered people in a while…
Sigh…
Mama. Papa. Your son… might soon have a new face… or body? Ah! What do I know if my flesh is their type or not?!