Unlike the outside world, the pitch-black dungeon was far more chaotic and eerie.
After his leg was seized without warning, Zephyr struggled to break free as his body was dragged through turbulent currents.
For a brief, short moment, he felt himself slipping through a cold, disorienting layer.
It made his head spin, and he realized he had been dragged into the dungeon portal by the slimy, wriggling thing coiled around his leg. It was probably... a big tentacle?
He concluded.
Yet amidst the pain and struggle, his goal wasn't to save himself—it was to pinpoint the exact direction of Lucien's screaming voice. His eyes grew colder with fury with each passing moment as he struggled to break free, only to fail again and again.
In his desperation, Zephyr even started thrashing and clawing at the thing coiled around his leg, each movement frantic.
The damp, unpleasant air of the dungeon slammed against his face, carrying a faint, foul stench that made his stomach churn.
Still, he didn't stop struggling.
He still held his rationality.
Even amidst the anger and panic.
After all, he could still hear Lucien's voice echoing faintly through the utter darkness all around him. But when a sudden, sweet, foreign scent of warm blood—not his own—wafted through the air, mingling with the putrid stench coming from the creature dragging them away, he finally snapped.
"You! Dare!"
Two ragged words escaped him, followed by a powerful burst of mana that violently ripped through the tentacle around his leg.
Still, even amidst the chaos, Zephyr didn't dare use his (SSS-Rank) skill—the ability to corrode and erase everything of lower rank—so as not to accidentally harm Lucien. His abrupt attack, unleashed by channeling only pure mana without any skills, was followed by a loud, monstrous shriek, sending murky blood splattering across his body, staining his slacks and long-sleeved fitted sweater.
With the tentacle holding him destroyed,
instantly, his body plummeted, but before he could hit the ground, another tentacle struck him, hurling him through the air.
Zephyr's head spun as he spat out blood, crashing against hard, jagged rocks before sliding backward with a sickening impact.
Heaving violently, he could barely stay on his feet, yet he still muttered incoherently.
"Cien… Lucien…"
Numerous wounds scarred his body, each movement sending pain coursing through him. And this was when he had the body of an Esper—then what about Lucien, a guide?
Could his body even endure all this?
The thought forced him to push himself upright, but amidst the chaotic shrieks of the monster and the noise caused by its movements, he couldn't locate Lucien.
For the first time, he truly realized how hateful it was to be blind—so hateful it made his chest tighten and suffocate.
Zephyr spread his S-rank psychokinesis skill to feel everything around him using tactile perception from the energy—but once again, a tentacle flung him away.
This scene was seen by Lucien, who was already half-conscious, his vision a blur.
Dragged so violently, his weak guide body could barely keep up. Blood trickled from his lips as his insides were battered with each harsh movement. Through the sharp, searing pain, he could feel that every bone in his trapped leg was already shattered.
Lucien choked out a horrified gasp at the enormous creature holding his leg. It was gigantic—huge enough to rival a building!
He was high enough to see it clearly.
The monster's large, round, purple head resembled that of an octopus, while many dark, spider-like legs extended beneath it.
Countless dark purple tentacles sprawled from the space between its head and legs, moving in the vicinity with terrifying force.
And let's not forget the pairs of glowing crimson eyes on its head and the gaping maw below, lined with jagged, razor-sharp teeth that glistened with dripping saliva!
It was the first time Lucien had actually seen such a terrifying monster up close since arriving in this foreign world—so, of course, he was terrified out of his wits.
There was also a deeper, gnawing dread.
His mind raced with a single thought:
He was about to die—torn apart, chewed, and swallowed. And not just him—Zephyr would die too, the only hope of this world.
After all, even if Zephyr was an SSS-rank Esper, he seemed completely unaware of his own powers. Lucien had only known his rank through his Gaya skill. On top of that, Zephyr couldn't even see this creature, so how could a blind Esper possibly fight it?
It was painfully clear: they were both doomed. And will perish together.
And he himself was to blame...
If only he hadn't rushed toward the dome, maybe he could have survived a bit longer. Even if Zephyr was gone, Lucien could still have tried to change the story of the world and discover another way to return home.
Of course, when he had first come to this world, Lucien had thought that if he died in this world, maybe... he would return home.
But that thought was soon extinguished—because when the 'Gaya System' appeared to tell him about his Gaya skill, it left behind a chilling line at the end before vanishing: if Lucien perished here, he would die for real.
At that moment, Lucien had been stunned—after all, Gaya's words had told him that this damn system knew he was a transmigrator!
The thought even made him wonder: after he took over this body, where had the real Lucien's soul gone? After all, Lucien didn't die so soon in the novel. But there was no answer, and no one else could offer one.
That was why, instead of seeking death, he began desperately searching for a way to survive—and for another path back home.
And Zephyr was his first hope…
But what was the point of any of it now?
He was about to die.
That realization fully solidified when the large creature holding him slammed his body into the hard, rocky ground. So fast, Lucien couldn't even react. Blood clouded his already hazy vision completely as he was lifted toward its enormous mouth.
Beneath the dungeon's gloomy, lightless sky, surrounded by a vast, barren expanse dotted with small lakes, Lucien closed his eyes, a tear slipping from the corner of his eye. Why was he so weak? So powerless? Why couldn't he even... save himself?
The countless questions echoed briefly through his mind before fading like wind, leaving only a hollow emptiness and the heavy weight of his helplessness as he recalled his real parents' smiling faces.
'Mom... Dad... Cien is sorry...'
'It seems I won't be able to come back...'
'Please forgive this unfilial son... who couldn't even take care of you...'