Grand Lust Sovereign

[02:14:56_19]

[02:14:56_18]

With a crackling sound, the torch was on fire. I held it and moved forwards in the narrow stone passage. 

Ten steps ahead, I heard a clicking sound followed by a swishing one.

I felt a sense of danger and jumped back. 

Something hit the wall beside me. I put the torch in that area and checked what it was. 

Lo-behold, an arrow!

Low visibility with deadly traps, catalyzed with my immense misfortune… wasn't it a perfect blend to immediately send me to the netherworld?

"Complete the tutorial, they said. You'll gain experience, they said." I murmured while slowly walking ahead and taking note of what my foot was pressing onto. 

A few steps ahead, I felt my foot slightly sink into the ground. I immediately pulled it away and took another step forward, only to hear some strange whispers. 

At first I ignored it as I moved into the dark passage, but soon, it got louder and made me stop in my tracks. 

From the silent passage, the whispers moved closer to me. 

Closer and closer…

Until I could feel a breeze right beside my ears. 

"Donotpassdonotpassdonotpassdonotpass…"

My hair stood on their ends as a chill went down my spine. 

Fuck, this was scary!

I did not have it in me to take a step forward.

I took a step back. 

*Poof!*

I hit something.

I hit something. 

I fucking hit something and it wasn't hard!

What did I hit? What did I hit? WhatdidIfuckinghhiiiiiiittttt!?!

Aaaahhhhhhh, something's behind me! 

Don't look back! Don't look back!Don't look back!

Gasping for breath, I somehow convinced myself that nothing was behind me despite seeing something standing beside me in my peripheral vision.

"Oooooh…" I sucked in a cold breath of air and began walking forward. There was no going back or to the side. 

*Click!*

"…"

*Ba-dump!* *Ba-dump!* *Ba-dump!*

"…"

Nothing happened. 

No air piercing sound. No swishing arrows, no traps, no nothing. 

It was eerily silent. 

The fire crackled on the torch, creating a whip-like sound in the deathly silent place and breaking my trance. 

I took a deep breath and made up my mind to move forward, no matter what happened. 

The lady said I wouldn't die. There was no evidence that stated I wouldn't die. But she was the one who gave me a chance at another life. She was my benefactor, so I should at least have some trust in her. 

Yeah, yeah, yeah, right. She's benefactor. Believe in her. 

I took another deep breath. Despite the many long breaths, I still found myself to be out of breath. 

I took a step ahead. 

Nothing happened. 

I took another step ahead.

The torch extinguished.

"Welcome…"

A loud whisper echoed in my ears, and in the next instant…

"Ahhhhhhhhhhh—!"

My stomach dropped as the ground beneath me disappeared!

I was free falling!

"Aaaaahhhhhhhh…"

My shout echoed in the tunnel I was falling within and the passage above. 

I kept falling and falling and falling…

Until finally…

*Splash!*

"Blubbb—blubbb—"

I was drowning. 

"Mmmphhh—mfffff—"

I thrashed around, my hands never stopping to flutter!

I tried to get to the surface and violently thrashed around as the water entered my nostrils and eyes, choking and drawing out the remaining oxygen from my lungs.

"Guhhhh—"

My chest expanded and contracted rapidly as my lungs desperately gasped for air. 

Alas, water filled my nose, mouth, throat, and lastly… lungs. 

"—mfffff…"

I let go. 

I let go of the struggle and succumbed.

This was my fate. This was it for this life. 

I could only make it this far.

My vision darkened and I couldn't see the wavy water anymore as I sunk towards the bottom. 

Haaaaah…

Like the movies… there was no hand coming to magically rescue me…

Haha, there was no plot armor saving me…

No deus ex-machina, no nothing. 

This was the end. 

I had a short life, but it was a good life nonetheless. The lady that was supposedly my mother… she was really gentle and loving…

If possible… I hope she doesn't grieve too much when I'm gone…

Please stay str..on..g…

D..on..t… mis..s… me…

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[You have died.]

[Revivals available: 1]

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[x1 Phoenix Feather has been used.]

[Reviving…]

[Spawning to the nearest safe zone…]

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"Huwaaaaaa!"

I woke up. 

"What the fuck…"

I looked around, completely in disbelief.

"What the hell just happened…"

I was under a bright blue runestone that illuminated the entire cave I was in. 

My head felt heavy and my heart was beating really fast. Something major had happened. I tried to recall what it was.

Soon, memories flooded in. 

"Right…"

"R-r-right…"

My hands and legs began trembling as a shiver ran down my spine as I recalled the past experience. 

"I-I-I drowned…"

"Oh my god…"

I couldn't stop trembling and curled up in the cave. 

"Oh..my… *sniff* fucking *sniff*… god…"

I will never forget this experience. 

I literally drowned and… and… died. 

It wasn't a near-death experience, but actual, proper death. 

I couldn't believe it. This felt so different from dying of heart attack. This felt so… traumatic… and sad. 

This one instance topped everything I had suffered so far. 

I was in shambles, totally broken during my last breath. 

Oh boy… 

"I… really died…"

I brought my hand in front of my face. It was still trembling. Even if I tried to make it stop, it wouldn't. 

I took deep breaths and bit my quivering lips, stopping myself from crying out loud. 

I silently stayed curled up in this cave and didn't move for a while, contemplating everything that had happened so far. 

[02:13:44_37]

[02:13:44_36]

"This is real life…" I muttered softly as I remembered the final vision of looking at the wavy waters, hoping that some hand came to rescue me from drowning. 

The situation was a tight slap on my face and a firm reminder that in real life, there was nobody coming to save you. 

You had to be your own savior, and hoping for someone to help you was peak foolishness. 

Within a day's time, I got third degree burns, fell from a height, fought fantasy monsters, and died from drowning. If this wasn't the pinnacle of misfortune, then I wasn't sure what else was. 

I had to be really careful from this point onwards if I wanted to survive. I had to do things which I wouldn't imagine even in my wildest dreams. 

I wouldn't have fallen down from the passage had I faced the ghostly figures around me. Or, if I knew swimming, I wouldn't be in such a tough situation. 

I had to quickly learn some martial arts, swimming, and magic to put myself away from mortal dangers such as these. 

Heaving out a deep sigh, I gradually calmed down and got up from the curled up position. 

A switch within me flicked and I was burning with the desire to live. I would overcome any and every challenge thrown at me from this point onwards and become strong enough to protect myself. 

I did not want to rely on anyone anymore. 

The lotus lady said I wouldn't die, and although her words came true, I wasn't sure how long it would be valid for. 

"Huuuuuuff…"

I took another deep breath and steeled my resolve, then began walking inside the cave I resurrected at.