"90€? Damn, that's expensive. What kind of idiot would pay this?" he muttered to himself as he scrolled through the game shop, his frustration bubbling. "Why do they keep getting more and more expensive? And this isn't even a special edition, it's just the normal game!"
He kept scrolling, grumbling under his breath, until something caught his eye. Fruit Frenzy? The name stood out in the sea of overpriced titles. "Hmm, this looks interesting," he mused, finally feeling a spark of excitement.
Bing!
Just as his cursor hovered over the purchase button, his microwave chimed from the kitchen. The sound reminded him that his instant curry was ready. His stomach growled in agreement, and without a second thought, he pushed back his chair and headed for the kitchen, already imagining the taste of the curry.
He knew it wasn't the healthiest option, but who cares? It was cheap, delicious, and quick. "Healthy food's overrated anyway," he said aloud, grabbing the steaming container from the microwave. All he needed was to fill his stomach and keep himself fueled for the night.
BAM!
A sharp, sudden noise echoed as he dropped his curry. His eyes locked onto the bizarre sight in front of him. What was going on? His feet had barely crossed the threshold into the room when his brain couldn't comprehend what it was seeing.
Where his table used to be, there was now... a portal. It was swirling, dark, with shades of blue and red. It seemed to suck in the very air around it, like it was alive.
"No, no, no!" he thought in despair. His brand new 3090 GPU and i9-11900K processor, which he had just spent over 1400€ on, were gone - swallowed up by the portal. His heart sank as he realized his expensive setup had vanished without a trace.
Should he get closer? His curiosity got the better of him. Slowly, he took a few steps toward the portal, his feet moving of their own accord.
Then, out of nowhere, he felt an invisible force pulling at him. His body jerked forward faster and faster until he had no control. Within seconds, he was drawn in, sucked into the portal, as though he were being yanked into a vacuum.
"FUCK!" he screamed, but it was useless. The pull was too strong. All around him, he saw a blur of stars, streaking by like he was traveling through space at impossible speeds. He could still breathe, but everything else seemed impossible - his body felt weightless, like he had no control, no grip on anything.
Time lost all meaning. Was he in this for a minute? An hour? A year? He had no way of telling. He was just floating, tumbling through whatever this was, his mind numb to the passing moments.
Then, he saw it. Just ahead of him, a glowing vortex began to materialize. It was different from the portal he'd come from. His mind screamed at him. He needed to get there.
Without thinking, his body - almost as if on instinct - moved toward it. His limbs followed as though guided by some invisible force, drawing him closer to that vortex.
The next thing he knew, he shot through it and crashed into something solid, something hard and real. His body hit with a jarring thud, but it didn't matter. He was finally out of whatever that was.
But where was he now?
He slowly tried to get to his feet, using his hands for balance. His eyes darted around, trying to make sense of his surroundings.
He was in some kind of bathhouse. Before him, there was a large pool, but that was all he could make out. The mist in the air blurred everything beyond it. The fog was thick, and he could barely see anything else. Behind him, there was a wooden door and a stone wall.
"Laia? I told you I don't need your help," a sultry voice called out from the fog.
"Laia?" it repeated, this time more sharply.
He needed to get out of there. The last thing he wanted was to be seen as a pervert. He moved toward the door, eager to escape. Just as his hand reached for the doorknob, a sword shot out from the mist with lightning speed, striking the door just inches away from him.
"Who are you? What are you doing in my bath?" the female voice demanded again, this time with fury.
He turned around quickly and stammered, "Would you believe me if I said I don't know how I got here?"
The woman he could now see raised an eyebrow and sneered. "I don't think so."
Without warning, her figure flickered and disappeared. In the blink of an eye, she reappeared right next to him. A hand shot out, gripping him by the throat. His feet left the ground as she lifted him effortlessly into the air.
She was using only one arm. This woman - no, this monster was insanely strong.
"You want to live?" she asked, her voice as cold as ice.
He tried to nod, but the pressure on his throat made it hard to breathe. Everything was happening so fast. He hadn't fully processed the situation. Was it shock? Fear? Whatever it was, his body knew one thing - he wouldn't survive if he made a mistake now.
"I really didn't... come... here on my... own!" His words were choked and broken, but he managed to mutter them out.
The woman's grip tightened slightly, but then she paused. "You're not lying."
Finally, her hand let go, and he dropped to the floor with a thud.
Cough, cough.
Slowly, his breathing returned to normal, though he could still feel the remnants of her grip tightening around his throat.
"You say you didn't want to come here. I believe you," she said, her voice still cold, but tinged with something like curiosity. "There's a barrier, after all. Someone as weak as you couldn't possibly have entered on your own. And if there had been someone strong behind you, I would've sensed their presence. But yours... it appeared out of nowhere."
Weak? He didn't mind being called that for now; it was true, after all. But now that he had some space, he could think more clearly. Should he tell her the whole truth? He wasn't sure. From her strength, it was obvious she wasn't ordinary. And this place likely wasn't Earth. Maybe things like this weren't uncommon here. But if that were the case, would she use him for experiments? He shuddered at the thought, his body growing cold at the possibilities.
But maybe... maybe she knew what had happened to him. Or at least understood what this portal was.
Fuck it, he thought. Better to tell her the truth - just leave out a few things.
"Like I already said, I don't know how I got here," he began, his voice steady. "A portal appeared in front of me, and I got sucked in. Then... I felt an impact, and now I'm here."
Her eyes scanned him carefully, studying his body language as if trying to gauge whether he was lying.
The silence between them stretched on until she spoke again, her voice calm but sharp, "Let me test something."
Before he could react, she moved close to him again. Her hand reached out. His body tensed instinctively, trying to back away, but she stopped him with a softer tone.
"Don't worry, I'm not going to hurt you," she said, her voice gentler now, as if trying to soothe his fear.
Her hand rested lightly on his head, and she closed her eyes.
Now that she wasn't looking at him, he had a chance to study her more closely.
She had long, crimson hair that cascaded down her back, and a face that could only be described as angelic. Her skin was pale and flawless, with delicate features - white teeth, a small nose, and a slender face. Her body was mature, with curves that demanded attention. Her bust was provocatively displayed, and her wide hips added to her alluring presence.
He couldn't help but feel a little out of his element as his eyes drifted back to her hand, which still rested on his head. His heart pounded, and his mind raced. What was she doing?
Shortly after, her voice resounded once again, this time with a hint of joy. "You finally arrived."
He froze. Finally arrived? What did she mean by that? It felt as though she had been waiting for him, but for what? The words didn't sit right in his mind. What was going on here? Was there some bigger plan at play? Or was he just some pawn in her world?