It had already been some time since Alexei became aware that there was something wrong with his luck. Either he was extremely lucky, or incredibly unlucky. There were only these two options and most of the time, these two came hand in hand like a pair of conjoined twins with misfortune greeting him first before the other.
One example of this was when he first opened his eyes in Mavria. His luck was the worst of the worst as he transmigrated directly into an experimental subject of some mentally and morally deranged dark magicians. Fortunately, the Leader took interest in him thanks to the random 'predictions' he spouted. As a result, his status got elevated a bit and he was moved out of the hell-like basement. This became his first case of 'mishap followed by a lucky encounter'. Although, he did not completely escape from tortures, at least his survival was guaranteed, completely unlike the pitiful kids on the underground floors.
The next instance was Alexei's escape from the Dark Palace. The relic suddenly reacted to his touch which was something he did not expect. At that moment, he only planned to fake being in a trance and 'predict' something about a random Sovereign. He never thought of anything else, much less of the possibility that the Dark Palace's precious treasure would suddenly teleport him away from the Leader's reach and save him from further torture.
However, as mentioned earlier, his luck never came alone. This time, the unfortunate thing was that he got teleported into the abyss, a place of legend infamous for its corrupted and inhospitable environment and cursed inhabitants. When the unexpected teleportation ended, he did not only end up in the abyss which was outside Mavria, he also arrived in an unknown Boss' lair where he almost turned into its meal! Whatever took place there, he had no idea how to describe!
But thankfully, Lady Luck did not abandon him. The Boss lost interest in him after sensing the aura of the mysterious relic in him, and he also awakened his Gift which was supposed to happen two or so years later. He even met a strong Gift user who healed all his injuries and practically acted as his babysitter when he entered the Abyssal Tower.
But how many times could he depend on his luck?
Who would be able to say when the unluckiness would not be accompanied by luck anymore?
And was the Mikaela Hanover who entered the Tower alongside him the one he really knew from the game?
Inside the wide arena enclosed by several sky-high stone pillars, Alexei rapidly retreated to one corner after he got separated from Mikaela. Gone was the goofy look in his countenance. His body also no longer showed nervousness and fear. There was also no awkwardness that was mostly present when one was conscious of the stares and opinions of those around him.
In an instant, Alexei turned back to the lad he was when he was still a servant of the Dark Palace - obsessively observant and quiet.
'I see...'
'It seems the gigantic arena was divided into at least ten areas enclosed within invisible walls. All enclosed spaces must have a hundred people each.'
Even as the metallic scent and deafening screams filled the place, he kept his silence and continued observing.
'Everybody was given some time to roam around before we got summoned here so the majority holds some sort of weapon. Of course not many know how to properly swing their blades. But any weapon in the hands of an insane person is naturally deadly.'
Oddly, as a wall made up of his fellow humans formed between him and Mikaela, his head became clearer and his brain more active.
He had to admit it. Despite acting subservient and worshipful of the girl, Alexei actually did not let his guard down even one second around her. He was originally suspicious of the woman, but when he saw how she handled the matter about the sacrificial slaves, he became certain of one thing. She was somebody who could abandon a burden.
Regardless of whether she was the Mikaela he knew in-game or not, the young man knew he would not be able to leave his back to her and completely trust her.
The experiences he had at the Dark Palace left him with trust issues and the tendency to think that moving alone was better for him. At least if he were by himself, he would not have to worry about being used, abandoned, or betrayed by others.
This was the reason why Alexei hid one fact from Mikaela.
That he knew from the start how to activate his Gift.
As a player, Alexei knew a trick that could be employed through a Gift to cancel out any short-distance teleportation spell. This meant that if he wanted to, he could at least delay the transport until Mikaela grabbed a hold of him.
Yet he did not. Because in reality, he was not comfortable traveling with anybody yet, especially somebody with questionable purpose in coming to the abyss.
The sudden segregation of participants by numbers became an opportunity for him to detach from her and he preferred to be like this.
There was no need to act and brainwash himself to be in this or that role. He only needed to consider himself and not be conscious of anybody else, which meant his head could focus on thinking about more pressing matters.
Chaos and madness ensued in all directions. Alexei's brain quietly took in everything happening around him. His breath was so shallow as he swept his gaze around.
'The fairies definitely did something.'
'Mind-control? Poison? Wait...'
'These little creatures don't exist in my game. But the obelisk at the center is very familiar. It frequently shows even on the lower floors of the in-game Tower and has the function of periodically giving buffs to monsters.'
There were no monsters around. But the humans around him began to act like one. The other people in the same area as Alexei were no longer in their sane minds so they blindly fought with whoever they came across.
The young man chose to stay away from the fights so he rarely encountered people who wanted to kill him. But, it was really not possible to completely stay out of trouble.
"DIE! DIE! DIE!" A red-eyed crazy-looking middle-aged man dressed like a village farmer lunged toward Alexei. The person was targeting his neck, obviously intending to bite or stab that area to make him bleed to death.
Alexei narrowed his eyes.
Whenever he met those that held killing intent towards him, he would unhesitatingly raise his blade to cut one limb from them. Then he would slip away without caring if his victim died at others' hands. His attention would then fall back to the purple obelisk.
Several minutes passed just like that. The scent of death became stronger and stronger as the stench of blood devoured the air around.
When Alexei confirmed that the faint mist the monument-like thing emitted was the cause behind the sudden chaos that sparked in the dome, he first found a corpse that had the same build as him. Then he swiftly exchanged clothes with it before he closed his eyes and stabbed down to destroy the corpse's face. As for his own face, he covered it with a mask made of a blood-stained piece of clothing.
After looking around and confirming that Mikaela was nowhere in sight, Alexei stealthily approached the obelisk and place a hand on it. A fairy instantly appeared before him, its mask sporting a hideous grin.
It said in an amused voice.
"Congratulations, in this subarea, you're the first to discover how to clear the game."
Alexei continued looking at the obelisk so the fairy laughingly said, "I said you passed already. Can you please stop channeling your elemental power into your Gift now?"
It noticed the faint fluctuations coming from the blue gem and Alexei's intention to destroy the device at the center.
"...What a perceptive midget." He subconsciously muttered.
The little fairy circled around him before it poked his chest, or rather, the pendant of his necklace that was hidden underneath his shirt. It was as if reminding him.
Alexei gave the floating creature a warning look. His eyes were so piercing and hostile that the fairy immediately shrugged and floated away. "Okay. I'll be transporting you now then."
He hurriedly followed up, "Transport me somewhere else on this floor."
A giggle came out of the fairy's little mouth. Alexei knew through the knowing expression in its mask that the fairy guessed his reason for staying on the first floor.
But thankfully the creature did not press on and simply cast a teleportation spell.
Alexei's entire figure turned into countless specks of lights that disappeared within seconds.
...
A minute after he got transported outside the place, a woman's fair hands tore through the invisible wall of the subarea that he just come out of.
Mikaela Hanover's figure followed after, entering through the hole she made. Behind her was an empty space. Her clothes, hair, and skin had no trace of dirt on them.
Seeing the bloody mess that the sub-arena before had become, her face crumpled in disgust. But then, when she found the corpse wearing Alexei's clothes, she was stupefied for a few seconds.
Then when she tried to look for his Gift, disbelief and anger flickered across her ash-blue eyes.
'Al died? Somebody even took his Gift away?'
Her brows furrowed and her face also contorted.
However, in the end, she turned around and left with balled fists on both her sides.
Behind her, a gentle gust of wind blew.
At the same time that Mikaela's brooch shone with an apple-green hue, an illusory field of lavenders appeared which purified the entire sub-area.
All mentally unstable people inside suddenly stopped in their tracks and blankly gazed at the weapons they hold or at the destroyed obelisk.
The masked fairy in charge of the sub-arena also appeared once again. It clicked its tongue and looked at the woman's back with obvious dissatisfaction, displeased at the early end of bloody battles in its area.