Staggering to my feet, my legs feeling as though they might give out on me at any moment, I swipe my head around, scanning my surroundings. There is no way for me to go further in, only a way to get out.
Grunting as I struggle to take one step without falling, I move out of the small cave, using the walls to support my walking until I regain my footing. I focus, taking one step at a time, placing one foot in front of the other.
"Arghh!!" A scream erupts, completely halting me, my feet seemingly rooted to the floor, unwilling to take another step.
The screams of death.
I remember it all too well—the screams of agony as a person is ripped apart. My heart echoes in my ears as I stand there, their cries growing louder and louder, the sound of weapons splitting through flesh and the scent of blood making my body stiffen with fear.
"Someone help!" A voice shouts, calling, no, pleading for help.
"Come on, not now," I whisper to myself, taking a step as I embrace the emotions coursing through me that I haven't felt in a while.
_________
[System]
Dagger forming
_________
The dagger materializes in my hands just as I continue, and with my heart stuck in my throat, I choke down the saliva accumulating in my mouth and turn the final corner, my eyes widening at the gruesome scene before me.
Blood is plastered on the walls, bodies scattered all around, heads detached from their bodies, limbs missing. It all makes my stomach turn as I look at a frail woman being relentlessly attacked from multiple directions, her clothes torn by the unseen force dashing around in a blur.
A shadow goblin, its speed beyond our eyes' capabilities to detect, only found in dungeons closest to the rings. They are unpredictable but carry the most treasures and perhaps relics.
The girl, with a staff placed firmly on the floor between her legs, whispers something—an incantation. Though battered and drained, there is no way she can manage much.
_________
[System]
Name: Unknown
Level 5
Title to achieve: Broken Mage
Magic type: Bestowed
Magic: Emptiness
_________
"Emptiness?" I mutter as the floor beneath her turns pitch black and an orb forms around her, encasing her inside. But as soon as it forms, it breaks, turning into shattered black glass that disperses with one hit from the unseen goblin.
With one swift move, her head is severed from her shoulders, leaving only a trail of blood in its wake. However, the scene replays, and she repeats everything again. Just as the goblin is about to slit her neck, my body moves on its own, and I send my rusted blade hurling toward her head.
Just in time, it sinks right through the goblin's arm holding the sword, and the weapon drops to the floor, rolling a bit before facing back up, its onyx eyes staring at me with pure hatred.
"Shit." I immediately turn around to run away, but as I do, I am hit by an excruciating blend of shock, pain, and betrayal. The initial impact feels like a sledgehammer blow, forceful and jarring, knocking the breath out of my lungs and sending a paralyzing wave of agony through my body.
Turning around, the blade of the goblin's sword pierces deeper into my flesh, a searing, white-hot pain radiating outward, sharp and merciless. My muscles tense involuntarily, and a chill spreads from the wound, a coldness seeping into my bones.
Blood erupts from my mouth, and my legs give out, collapsing to the floor. The metallic tang of blood fills the air, and with each heartbeat, the pain intensifies, throbbing in rhythm with the pulse pounding in my ears.
I'm going to die.