One second before, I had been watching the news feed of the hero party's latest dungeon conquest, and the next second, I was free-falling into a seemingly endless void.
It took a moment for my mind to comprehend what was happening to me... before the realization finally hit, and terror crept into my heart—!
"Waaaaaaahhhhh!!!" I screamed as my body kept being pulled downward into the seemingly empty abyssal darkness below me.
Wind rushed past my ears with my descent, ringing in a deafening roar that only added to my panic.
My arms flailed in a desperate attempt to find something—anything—to grab onto...!
But there was nothing. Just empty space.
I could feel my stomach lurching, my heart pounding against my chest as the descent continued. The sensation of falling seemed to go on forever, with each second feeling like it was stretching into an eternity.
Just when I thought it would never end, the ground suddenly rushed up to meet me, and I landed with a heavy thud!
"Ow!"
Pain shot through me, especially my rear end, which took the brunt of the impact.
I was left sprawled on the ground, finally landed after free-falling into a seemingly endless abyss... and I was alive... somehow...
"Ugh..." I groaned, wincing as the soreness set in, but... I was truly alive. If not, I wouldn't be groaning and wincing in pain like this.
I slowly stood up from the ground where I had landed, stumbling and shaking a bit. Nevertheless, I managed to stand up on my two feet.
Honestly... I'd say I was lucky to be standing at all, especially without any broken bones. Falling from a height like that—like from a skyscraper at that speed? It would've killed a normal person.
And for a moment, I had been falling like that... I should have been a human paste by now instead of standing on my two feet, rubbing the sore spot on my rear end.
Moving aside the sore pain I was experiencing... I finally realized the surroundings where I had landed.
"What the...?"
The dim light revealed... that I was inside some kind of large cave...!
However, it wasn't exactly a normal cave either...
Columns made out of white stone stretched upward, seemingly holding the roof of this massive cave. Flickering torches attached to each of these columns cast long, eerie shadows across the stone floor.
"Where am I...?" I asked myself, confused... and a bit scared of what I had stumbled into.
I had... somewhat seen these kinds of white columns before... but then I finally remembered what these were...!
They were ancient Greek columns! I'd seen these columns made out of marble in TVs and books before, as they were pivotal in holding up many ancient Greek structures and temples.
But... why was I here? Why was I in a large cave with seemingly ancient Greek architecture?
I looked around a bit more... and then I noticed something in the far distance: the only pathway out of this cave—a grand marble entrance...!
Even from a distance, I could tell that it was massive.
The entrance was flanked by two large, imposing Greek soldier statues, each holding a majestic spear and shield...
And above the entrance itself... a stern, bearded face was carved into the very marble structure...!
Though I didn't know why... I felt like the bearded face carving had something eerie about it...
I felt like... it was watching me—judging me...!
If I knew any better, and with this Greek-like structure surrounding me... this face carving must have belonged to a Greek God... and I had a good feeling about whom it belonged to as well...
Zeus, the ancient Greek God of Lightning and Thunder. The god who had led all of the Greek gods and goddesses under his command...!
As if confirming my assumption, the face carving of this supposed ancient Greek god felt even more stern than before...! I had to avoid a direct stare at it because of how bone-chilling its supposed judgmental glare was...
But now, my thoughts went back to why I had ended up 'down' here...
I had fallen into some sort of... hole, was it? It had felt like it was, but what kind of hole could have led me to this place?
I was pretty sure there had been no reports of any actual cave findings beneath the city block where I had been walking before... especially not a hole big enough for a grown man to fall into.
I tried to think more about this supposed location of mine... before a 'wild' thought crossed my mind!
"No way... this place!"
I realized what this place was!
It was a 'wild dungeon'! A dungeon that appeared outside of the many main grand dungeons!
These wild dungeons were usually either entrances to a nearby main dungeon... or entirely new dungeons by themselves! Their appearances were quite rare and usually only opened for a short period of time...
The thought that I was inside one of these wild dungeons...
I couldn't hold back the grin forming on my face...
Not only because I was finally inside a dungeon that I had been dreaming of entering, but also... the possibilities behind such a wild dungeon...!
Wild dungeons were said to have a higher chance of yielding a large amount of high-quality treasure and...
An even higher chance of gaining a legendary relic...!
"This... this could be my big break!" I exclaimed loudly, barely able to contain the excitement bubbling within me. I really couldn't hold it back any longer... as the possibility of riches and powerful relics awaited inside this Greek-themed wild dungeon that I had stumbled into..!
So, with that excitement, determination... and a bit of greed, I began to advance toward the only pathway out of this cave, with a little spring in my step, as I anticipated the many treasures awaiting me on the other side.
But... as I came closer to the massive grand marble entrance, the ground beneath me shook a little...!
Stomp, stomp, stomp...
"Hmm?"
The sound of heavy, deliberate footsteps echoed through the cave, growing louder with each step.
My excitement... slowly turned into unease as the shadows near the entrance began to shift...
Something was coming.
And suddenly... a massive figure emerged from the darkness beyond the pathway—its single, glaring eye locking onto me.
A cyclops.