The spiders advanced slowly, their twisted forms creeping across the shattered street like shadows come alive, their multiple eyes glinting in the dim light that filtered through the ruined buildings.
Soryn's body, which was drained from the previous fight, refused to respond properly. It has reached its limit.
Can I really do nothing? he thought, staring at the grotesque shapes closing in on him.
No. He couldn't let it end like this—not here, not like this.
Teeth clenched as he forced his body to obey, one staggering step after another.
The spiders began to chase him with renewed purpose, their mandibles clicking and clattering as they adjusted their paths.
One suddenly lunged forward toward him as its massive leg swung down like a jagged scythe.
Soryn twisted just in time, rolling across the rubble as he narrowly avoided the crushing blow.
I have to think… I promised them I'd come back… His mind raced, desperate for a plan, for anything that could save him.
But before he could react further, pain exploded across his back as another spider's leg slashed through him.
He collapsed to the ground with a grunt.
He looked up at the spiders as they slowly closed in, surrounding him from all sides. There was no longer a way out.
Sorry…. He murmured under his breath.
Then suddenly, without warning a sword fell from the sky, its tip embedding itself into the cracked street in front of him—and in front of the nearest spider.
The creature froze mid-step, its eyes glinting with confusion, as a figure dropped from above. He pulled the sword out of the ground in a blink of seconds.
"Are you alright?" the man asked with a cold voice. Relief surged through Soryn like sunlight piercing through a storm.
"Kaiden…." Soryn murmured as a faint smile curved over his lips.
From the ruined street beyond, two more figures emerged.
A young man his silver hair falling over his eyes as he calmly ran toward the battlefield. Beside him, a young woman her short black hair that were long enough just to cover her ears and her golden eyes that followed the young man.
"You really ran all this way alone without waiting for us?" the woman said, her voice was calm as her gaze pierced Kaiden with quiet reprimand.
"Stop talking. Let's just finish this," Kaiden replied, his eyes flickered toward the spiders.
He pointed the tip of his sword toward the spiders and laughed.
"Come here. You ugly things."
And then, the battle began.
The spiders rushed at them. Kaiden didn't hesitate. He jumped straight into the middle of them and swung his sword.
Spiders felt down one by one. It was almost like they didn't even exist to him.
Elina didn't have a weapon. She just stood there. Water droplets started to float around her, slowly coming together, forming a huge ball of water above her head.
Six spiders charged at her at once. She didn't move, didn't flinch. Then, the water exploded. Streams of water shot out like knives, cutting through the spider's body.
The young man with silver hair just stood there, watching. He didn't do anything. He didn't move. He just continued to look around.
Soryn watched everything. He wasn't shocked they were helping him. His eyes followed their movements, but it looked like as if he was thinking about something else.
In a few minutes, all the spiders were dead.
Kaiden walked toward Soryn calmly as if nothing had happened. Like killing spiders was just… normal for him.
He reached out his hand toward Soryn.
Soryn hesitated for a second but then he took it and let himself stand up.
"Why… did you help me?" Soryn asked. His voice was rough.
"It's because of the woman who was with you," the young man said while he was being scolded by the woman next to him.
"Why were you just standing there? You should have helped us!" the woman shouted toward the young man.
The young man laughed softly while the woman kept getting more and more angrier.
Then he stepped closer to Soryn and smiled a little. "Sorry. I should introduce myself. I'm Kai Rozail." Then he pointed toward the woman and continued. "And this is my sister, Elina Rozail. We're Kaiden's companions."
Soryn looked at him. He couldn't see his eyes under the silver hair, but he could tell just by looking at him that he was a nice person.
"Thanks… for helping me," Soryn said as he bowed down slightly in front of them.
"Let's go," Kaiden said. "Stop wasting time, or more monsters will surround us soon."
With that, all of them started moving again.
"Where are we going?" Soryn asked as he followed them.
"We're taking you to your teammates, of course," Elina said calmly, walking beside him.
They moved in silence for about an hour, the ruins stretching endlessly around them. Finally, they entered a broken building. It looked like it might have been a café once, but now it was crumbling and empty, as if it had never been touched for a century.
"I'll look around for a safe path. You guys wait here," Kaiden said as he stepped outside.
Elina sat down in a corner, her back pressed against a cracked pillar.
Soryn stayed near the center of the room.
"Why are you staring at us like that?" Kai asked suddenly.
Soryn flinched slightly, pulled out of his thoughts. "Huh… It is nothing," he muttered, moving a little back.
"You alright?" Kai pressed.
"I'm alright," Soryn replied as he brushed his hair back with a tired smile. "Just… tired."
"Oh. Then you should sleep. I'll take care of this place," Kai said, Soryn could feel a faint calm in his voice.
With that Soryn laid down, closing his eyes, but his mind refused to rest.
Why is all this happening? Why are Kaiden, Kai, and Elina here? Why does everything feel… familiar?
It's like my third novel, but at the same time it is not. But Kaiden, Kai and Elina the characters I wrote, are here and alive fighting against the monster.
Did my novel turn into reality?
But my mind can't accept it.
Soryn sat up abruptly, his thoughts racing, and then stood.
"Is something wrong?" Kai asked from the corner.
"No… nothing," Soryn replied quickly. "I'm just going for a walk. Don't worry. You stay here."
He moved toward the entrance of the building. Kai's eyes followed him, a faint curiosity in them, but he didn't say anything.
Outside, Soryn looked at the gray, clouded sky.
This… this isn't how the story went in my novel. There were no laggers, no monsters chasing like this. It's the world I wrote, but at the same time… it isn't.
His thoughts were spinning when a sudden message appeared in front of him.
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Quest: Kill the Mastery Slayer
Time duration: 3 hours
Penalty: Death
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