-Haru Pov-
I ran without even knowing where I was going, just sprinting through the forest until my legs gave up on me.
I looked around—no monsters in sight. Either they stopped chasing me, or I'd already gotten pretty far from the spawn point.
I dropped down and leaned against a tree, trying to catch my breath.
"Damn… why did this have to happen to me? And what even is this? Some kind of crazy developer test? A trial run for players? Sigh… whatever. I need to survive first. Let's see what's inside this bag."
I opened the bag and checked the contents.
-Two Daggers (Common)
-Small Healing Potion (Common)
-5 Loaves of Bread
-A thin, beat-up robe
I stared at it, kind of disappointed, honestly. I wanted to complain—really badly—but at least I still had food.
"Only five loaves, huh? If I eat three a day… shit, that's only enough for like two days. Guess I'll have to hunt something… ugh, this is gonna be hell for a teenager who just wants to lie around all day…"
I was adjusting the worn-out robe when something suddenly jumped out of the bushes in front of me.
I snapped my head up and saw a goblin leaping toward me, wooden club raised. I dodged as fast as I could, and the goblin's swing smashed right into my bag of bread.
I really wanted to get pissed, but I could tell that something was off—there wasn't just one goblin here. I could feel more of them coming.
So I ran. Hard.
As I sprinted through the trees, the goblin chasing me bounced from trunk to trunk. Goblins might be low-level mobs, but damn—these things were fast and agile.
I tried dodging another attack, but my foot caught on a rock, and I stumbled. Before I could recover, the goblin slammed its club straight into my stomach, sending me crashing to the ground.
The pain was unreal—like getting hit with a metal pipe in real life. I forced myself to stand and looked behind me.
There was no path. Just a cliff.
I'd hit a dead end, and the goblin stepped forward, ready to finish the job.
The goblin lunged forward, and in just a split second it was already in front of me.
I tried to dodge, but its wooden club still scraped my side. Before I could even refocus, the goblin spun around with insane speed, swinging its club again.
I tried to dodge a second time, but I wasn't fast enough—this time the blow landed clean, sending me stumbling backward.
Without giving me a second to breathe, the goblin rushed in again. I tried to block with my arm, which was a massive mistake—the impact instantly cracked something inside.
"ARGHHH!"
I screamed in pain, surprising the goblin, who actually flinched and hopped back while I writhed and clutched my arm.
"Damn… damn… this hurts like hell—shit!"
My mind spiraled. Is this really the end? Am I going to get crushed again like always? Did I even fight hard enough this time? Is it wrong to want to live—
"Damn it… who cares anymore. I'm just panicking because I haven't felt pain like this in forever…"
I slowly stood up and grabbed my dagger again.
"You damn goblin… you destroyed my precious bread. So you're gonna pay for that. But… thanks, I guess, for snapping me back to reality."
I charged at the goblin. It ducked aside and swung again, and I didn't even block it this time—I just took the hit straight to the body. Blow after blow, pain piling on, until the goblin slammed its club upward and cracked my head hard enough to make stars explode in my vision.
Blood ran down my forehead, and I almost blacked out. But instead, I smiled.
"So this is how it ends, huh…"
My hand holding the dagger punched forward and stabbed straight into the goblin's gut, making it scream.
I threw myself onto it, knocking it to the ground, then straddled it, pinning its arms beneath my legs.
I stared at the creature—then I laughed. A raw, unhinged laugh like someone who had snapped completely.
"Hahaha! Who's winning now, huh?!"
I stabbed the goblin again. And again. And again. Each stab fueled by rage, fear, and adrenaline.
"You look at me like a i'm just a good doll for broke! You chased me like I was some weak prey! YOU DESTROYED MY PRECIOUS BREAD! DIE! DIE! DIE!"
I kept stabbing and stabbing—I didn't even know how many times. I didn't understand why I was doing this.
Was I angry because the goblin destroyed my bread? Because it chased me? Because it ruined my peaceful life? I had no idea.
But I kept stabbing. Each thrust felt like I was carving into meat… and for some reason, every stab felt guided by something whispering in my ear.
"Kill him… he's a threat… stab deeper… so nothing can disturb your peace again…"
I kept stabbing until my arm weakened, my body trembling with exhaustion, and a strange sense of satisfaction washed over me. Then I finally looked down at the corpse beneath me.
The moment I saw what I'd done, reality hit me. My stomach churned, and I threw up beside the body.
"Why… why is there always something bothering me…"
Suddenly, a group of goblins appeared. They froze when they saw me sitting on top of their dead comrade.
I looked at them, still breathing hard, before slowly standing up and lifting my dagger toward them.
"Are you threats too…? Not like you can understand a damn word I'm saying anyway."
They rushed me, and I charged right back at them—even though I was injured, bleeding, and one arm was cracked.
Twenty minutes later, I was kneeling on the ground, staring up at the artificial moon and sky of the dungeon. My body was covered in my own blood and the goblins'. Their corpses surrounded me.
Then, the System suddenly appeared.
[Congratulations. You fought at your lowest point, and your luck carried you through. We reward you with a new skill as appreciation.]
I stared at the announcement blankly for a moment before letting out a small, tired smile.
"Appreciation…? If I died, would I still be appreciated? Stupid damn system…"
I forced myself to stand. My body was torn up, bleeding heavily. My vision blurred, and my balance was shot, but I had to move. I needed help—or at least somewhere safe to collapse.
So I staggered forward, dragging my weak body through the dungeon, searching for safety or someone who could help.