"I'm gonna die. I'm gonna die. I'm gonna die. I'm gonna die. I'm gonna die," Asaru's thoughts raced with that one single phrase while he gazed at the goblins that were snarling in delight from his frightened state.
One of the goblins, leaping towards him and closing the distance between them, brandished its blade, ready to kill him in a single slash.
"I gonna die. I don't wanna die. I gonna die. I don't wanna die. I don't wanna die. I-I… I don't wanna die!" as his thoughts alternated between his impending death and his fear of death, he instinctively grabbed his sword and lunged towards the goblin. "AAAAAAAAAHHHHHHH!!!"
Blood dripped on the ground.
Not red blood, but dark purple blood… the goblin's blood.
Asaru's breath became heavier and heavier. The sensation from piercing the monster was still fresh in his mind. The gummy and sticky sensation of the blade passing through the monster's flesh. The pungent and disgusting smell of the goblin's body odor. The sound of the monster's blood dripping on the ground and it's groans of agony as it died.
Asaru felt sick to his stomach, forcing himself not to throw up.
Even if it was a monster that was threatening his life, it was still a living creature, and he had killed it. All his senses told him that this situation was real. Yet somewhere in the deep corners of his mind, he wanted all this to only be a nightmare.
'BEEP! BEEP!'
A screen appeared.
[You have killed a goblin. You have received 100 Achievement Points.]
"Huh? Achievement points?"
Time was not for distractions as the rest of the goblins screamed in fury and started charging towards him.
"Shit!" he pushed the dead goblin's body away, gritting his teeth as he ignored the pain and started fighting back.
Try hard as he might, it was hard to evade the goblin's relentless attacks. The number of goblins he managed to hit every once in a while, was nothing compared to the injuries he was sustaining.
[HP: 945/1024]
[HP: 832/1024]
[HP: 784/1024]
[HP: 643/1024]
[HP…]
[HP…]
[HP…]
The amount of HP continued to drop at an incredible rate while the goblins continued their onslaught on Asaru.
"I refuse to die. I'm gonna survive… whatever it takes!" he shouted internally as he lost himself in a frenzy of goblin slaughter.
He pierced their heads without a single shred of hesitation.
He sliced their torsos in two while screaming at the top of his lungs.
He even went as far as biting when he couldn't lift a finger.
It didn't matter the number of injuries he got or how exhausted he was, he continued to kill every goblin in his line of sight in order to survive.
5, 10, 15 minutes passed and at the end of the horrific performance, Asaru was lying on the ground which was now just a giant pool of goblin blood, his body battered, bloodied, and completely covered in wounds with his left arm missing.
The goblins' carcasses were a gruesome mess, with limbs cut off, guts exposed and blood dripping and flowing endlessly.
[HP: 45/1024]
[HP: 44/1024]
[HP: 43/1024]
[HP: 42/1024]
[HP…]
[HP…]
[HP…]
[You have killed a Goblin. You have received 100 Achievement Points.]
[All stats have permanently increased.]
[You have killed a Goblin. You have received 100 Achievement Points.]
[All stats have permanently increased.]
[You have killed a Goblin. You have received 100 Achievement Points.]
[All stats have permanently increased.]
[You have killed a Goblin. You have received 100 Achievement Points.]
[All stats have permanently increased.]
…
…
…
Asaru breathed heavily, his lungs struggling to take in air.
His vision was hazy and blurred red from his blood.
His muscles could no longer move an inch.
Even though he had survived, he was as good as dead.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
[Name: Asaru Takayoshi]
[Age: 16]
[HP: 32/1024]
[AP: 1700]
[Stats]
[STR: 100]
[AGI: 67]
[STA: 75]
[PER: 83]
[INT: 140]
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
"Seriously. After all this, shouldn't I have something like a potion or item drop? At this rate, I'm… really going to die," his thoughts faded as his eyes struggled to stay open.
'BEEP! BEEP!'
A new screen appeared.
[You have met the requirements to access the Store. Would you like to open it?]
"Store?" Asaru's eyes that were on the verge of shutting, opened once again. "Maybe… just maybe…"
"Open Store," he thought as the screen shifted to a list of items.
[Intermediate Short Sword: 150 AP]
[Bronze Chest Plate: 200 AP]
[…: 300 AP]
[…: 140 AP]
[…: 230 AP]
…
…
…
"Come on. Please. A healing potion… anything. Please let it be somewhere," Asaru scrolled down, looking for a healing potion or any other healing item that could save him.
[HP: 20/1024]
[HP: 19/1024]
[HP: 17/1024]
…
…
…
[Full Recovery Buff: 1000 AP]
"Found it!" his eyes widened.
[HP: 10/1024]
"Buy!"
[You have purchased Full Recovery Buff. You have used 1000 Achievement Points.]
[AP: 700]
A warm, golden light covered his body. All his injuries disappeared, his arm grew back and his HP was back at 100%.
[You have used a Full Recovery Buff. All injuries have been healed.]
[HP: 1024/1024]
He jumped out of the ground, his breath heavy as he had just brushed off a near death experience.
"Haha. HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!" his laugh boomed as tears dripped down his cheeks. "I'm alive!"
Laying on the ground once again, he stared blankly at the ceiling of the cave, thoughts flooding his mind.
"I lived but… I could have died. I was lucky to survive this time around, but there's no telling what will happen from now on. In this place, there's no hero to save me, no one to help me. I can only do one thing from here on out, and that's…"
He stood up.
[You have bought Intermediate Short Sword. You have used 150 AP]
A sword in his hand, his eyes became focused. His expression grim and anxious, his face dripping in cold sweat as he took one step forward.
"To fight! Search for battle and fight. Fight and get stronger. Get stronger and survive. All creatures fight to survive, and that is their instinct. Pure, unrestrained battle instincts set on one thing alone… survival."
He dived into the darkness and started to fight his way through the monsters that appeared one by one. It didn't matter what kind of danger and atrocities he faced, he pushed through the pain, continuing his descent through the dungeon as days turned into weeks, and weeks to months.