Because of how irresolute he was, Aectaeon found a new function of the floor panels.
At first, the man had planned to visit the first floor right away, but a thought suddenly struck him. While contemplating his situation, he didn't let go of his finger that was pressing the [[ 1 ]] panel. After a few seconds, an information panel appeared on top of all the floor panels.
Aectaeon tried to see if the same function worked for all the panels. Upon knowing that it did, the smile of satisfaction on his face lasted until his departure from the 51st floor.
[[ The Obelisk Time: 04:55 Post Meridiem ]]
[[ 33rd Floor -- The Great Void ]]
Aectaeon gazed at the darkness that was staring back at him. Though he was expecting it, he was still appalled.
As its name stated, the floor was totally absent of light, aside from the ones being emitted by the pillars. There was no other way for the players to counter the darkness. They were only allowed to see a meter in front of them. No more, no less. Even the players who had the ability to see in the dark would be rendered nearly sightless on this floor.
Before he stepped out of the pillar, Aectaeon spoke, "Info 33"
[[ Area: Indefinite ]]
[[ Weather: 21 degrees Celsius, Wind SE 2 km/h, 35% Humidity ]]
[[ Number of Players on the Floor: 16 out of 4,736,148 ]]
[[ Number of Players Who Have Access on the Floor: 4,736,148 out of 4,736,148 ]]
[[ Regulations ]]
[[ A: Players are prohibited from activating Light-related abilities on this floor ]]
"Hmm, I made a good choice. There are only 16 players. Less chance for me to bump into someone."
Aectaeon then exited the pillar. He looked at the ground and noticed that he was stepping on dry earth. The man scratched the surface of the ground with his heel, feeling light in his steps.
He proceeded to roam his gaze around even if it was futile. Aectaeon snorted as he put his hands in his pockets.
"It's really dark, isn't it? Like the black hole that it is."
Aectaeon turned back to look at the pillar. Two numbers were displayed on the pillar, approximately four meters off of the ground. Aectaeon's smile slowly faded into a frown as he read the display.
"51, huh? It really was a good choice to have traveled to a different floor first. The other players would have bombarded me with questions, or maybe even attacked me, if they saw that I came from the 51st floor." He muttered as he sighed.
Shortly after, he made his way back to the pillar. As the floor panels appeared, there was another panel that came with them.
[[ 00 D ; 00 H ; 09 M ; 24 S ]]
Aectaeon knitted his eyebrows at what he saw. His forefinger made its way to the [[ 1 ]] panel. Withal, as he tapped on it, the panel only vibrated. He began massaging his forehead with his hand, letting out a long breath thereafter.
"So, I need to wait nine minutes more before I can travel to another floor? I would have been in trouble if I didn't discover this."
The man put a hand over his chest as he leaned on the inner wall of the pillar. A laugh soon escaped his narrowly opened mouth.
"It will be hard to be on a run in the Obelisk. I have to think of a way to evade the other players."
For the second time around, Aectaeon went out of the pillar. Though he wanted to stay inside the pillar, the light made the interior hotter by the second. The coldness of the floor was just the right temperature for him.
He looked towards the map and debated on his next destination. The man faced in the direction of where the next pillar was located. He decided to kill some time by walking.
'This area is far too big. We're only 16 here. I doubt that I'll encounter them.' Aectaeon thought, rubbing his shoulders all the while.
Despite the fact that he liked the cold, his clothing was a bit thin. Goosebumps were all over his body, forcing him to stop walking for a short while.
All of a sudden, his gaze went down to his stomach. Tilting his head to the side, he asked himself, "Why am I not hungry? I haven't eaten anything for the past, I guess, a day or so."
He rubbed his stomach as he slumped his shoulders down. A myriad of questions was freely swimming inside his head. Rather than a hunger for food, he had a hunger for answers.
With a straight face, Aectaeon straightened his posture while thinking. His feet began to move on their own, wanting to take him to his next destination.
For a good while, only the sound of his shoes crunching the dirt could be heard. In less than no time, Aectaeon's ears caught the sound of footsteps that weren't his own. He immediately ceased sauntering and closed his eyes.
'Someone is approaching me from the front. Based on their footsteps, I can assume that they're bigger and taller than me. They're not human.'
Once he was done contemplating, Aectaeon took a step back as quietly as he could. He then took another, and another, looking as if he was now walking backward.
'The pillar where I came from is nearer. I better return. Who knows what this player wants with me? Worse, it might not even be a player that I will be facing. Monsters are also with us in the Obelisk.'
Following a few steps more, Aectaeon turned around and prepared for a run. Just as he did so, he heard someone's voice.
"Stop,"
Instead of stopping because he was afraid, it was Aectaeon's curiosity that compelled him to. He could sense no hostility from the deep-toned voice of the person behind him. His forehead broke out in a sweat. He bit his lips hard to stop them from quivering.
The man turned his head laggardly, wary of what would happen if he let his guard down. But before he could get a glimpse of who it was, he felt a large grip on his shoulder.