[You acquire Double Body]
[Welcome to Sixth Close Global Menace]
[Title of the Dungeon: Underworld Food Resto]
[Task: Work harder and survive for 7 days]
[Players in the dungeon: 11]
The moment the system announcement ended, I found myself surrounded by darkness, a deep red glow pulsing faintly from the bloody, cracked walls around me. I took a deep breath, trying to ground myself in the reality of this bizarre place.
"So this is the Underworld Food Resto," I muttered, surveying my surroundings. The smell of charred flesh and strange spices filled the air, making my stomach churn.
I glanced at my hands, feeling the weight of the task ahead. Serving, cooking, and taking orders from creatures straight out of nightmares was not what I'd envisioned when I woke up this morning.
[As you have the Double Body skill, you also have a double body. Your system, Nero, can possess it, and he will use your double skill. Remember: whenever you activate Double Body, you can only use your normal skill. If you do not use it, all of your skills will be doubled.]
"Double Body, huh?" I said aloud, trying to wrap my head around this new feature. Before I could delve deeper into its mechanics, I heard a voice behind me.
"Shian, I am here."
I turned and came face to face with... myself. My double, wearing the same clothes, standing with the same posture, and sporting an expression just as confused as mine.
It was like looking into a mirror, but one that could move independently of my thoughts.
"Well, I guess we're twins now," I remarked, raising an eyebrow at my double. The situation was bizarre, but in a world as twisted as this, I'd come to expect the unexpected.
The sound of someone scoffing drew my attention to a guy with glasses, who was pacing nearby.
He looked as confused as the rest of us, though there was a sharpness to his gaze, a calculating edge.
"The heck... where am I?" the guy muttered, looking around in a mix of disbelief and irritation.
A loud clatter echoed through the space, pulling all of our attention toward a large wooden door that creaked open. The air thickened with the scent of smoke and decay as a hulking figure appeared in the doorway.
It was one of the creatures. Its face was twisted, a grotesque blend of human features and something far more monstrous. Its eyes were sunken, and its jagged teeth glistened in the dim light.
It approached us slowly, its heavy footsteps echoing through the room, and when it spoke, its voice was a raspy growl.
[Team Assignments Initiated]
**Team 1: Cooking Team**
[Assigned Members: Lu Shian, Nero, Eliana]
**Cooking Partner: Gorbul the Flesh Chef**
*Description: Gorbul is a massive creature with slimy skin, protruding bones, and a grotesque apron stained with blood. Known for his unique ability to prepare delicacies from the Underworld's most dangerous creatures, Gorbul communicates in grunts and snorts but is a master of his craft. He has no tolerance for mistakes.*
**Team 2: Service Team**
[Assigned Members: Korin, Lily, Markus]
**Service Partner: Drallith the Shadow Waiter**
*Description: Drallith moves with an eerie silence, his body a swirling mass of shadows that can melt into the darkness at will. His presence sends shivers down your spine, but his knowledge of proper etiquette is unmatched. Drallith demands precision and grace in every movement, and any slip-up could lead to terrifying consequences.*
**Team 3: Order Taking Team**
[Assigned Members: Mira, Jax, Oren]
**Order-Taking Partner: Zargath the Mind Whisperer**
*Description: Zargath is a lanky, skeletal figure with long, bony fingers and hollow eyes. His voice echoes inside your mind rather than through your ears, making communication unsettling. Zargath is responsible for taking orders from the Underworld's most dangerous clients, and he expects the same level of telepathic clarity from his team.*
I glanced at the system screen floating in front of me, then at my teammates. Eliana was a quiet girl who stood to my left, her eyes darting around nervously.
The guy with glasses—whose name, according to the system, was Korel—looked skeptical but determined. Our cooking partner, Gorbul, was already glaring at us with impatience.
"Alright, everyone," I said, trying to muster some confidence. "Looks like we're cooking. Let's do this."
Gorbul let out a low growl and slammed a slab of meat onto the counter. It was unlike anything I'd ever seen before—large, pulsating with veins, and reeking of something foul. He grunted and pointed at the knives lined up next to it.
[Task: Prepare a dish for the Underworld's top patrons within the next 30 minutes. Failure will result in punishment.]
"Great," Korel muttered. "Just what I needed."
I grabbed a knife and positioned myself next to the slab of meat. My double, now fully under Nero's control, mirrored my actions on the opposite side of the counter. Eliana hesitated, then picked up a utensil, her hands trembling.
The pressure was on.
**30 minutes later**
We worked in a tense silence, Gorbul watching over us like a hawk. Every misstep earned us a low growl or a grunt of disapproval.
I tried my best to focus, cutting the meat into the right portions and following Gorbul's unspoken instructions.
As we plated the final dish, a notification appeared before me.
[You have completed your first task: Underworld Appetizer.]
[Next Task: Survive the night and prepare for breakfast.]
As the night dragged on, exhaustion began to settle in. But there was no time to rest—not in this place. We were expected to perform, to keep up with the relentless pace of the Underworld kitchen.
"Shian," Nero's voice spoke through my double, who stood beside me. "We need to be careful. These creatures won't tolerate failure."
I nodded, wiping sweat from my brow. "I know. We've got seven days of this... and we need to stay sharp."
The dim, flickering lights overhead made the shadows dance on the walls as Gorbul inspected our work.
His grotesque features softened, if only for a moment, as he gnawed on a piece of the Underworld Appetizer.
There was a low grunt of approval, but it wasn't reassuring. In this place, a moment of approval didn't mean we were safe—it only meant we'd survive a bit longer.
[Task completed. Penalty avoided.]
I exhaled a shaky breath I hadn't realized I was holding. Eliana, beside me, gave a weak smile, though her hands still trembled. Nero, in the form of my double body, stood beside me, looking as calm as ever, though I knew he shared my tension.
"Alright, Shian," Nero said, straightening his posture.
"We've made it through the first round. But if I'm being honest, this system is messed up. No magic, no weapons, just... service? Cooking for monsters? What the hell kind of game is this?"
I wiped my hands on the stained apron Gorbul had thrown at me earlier. "It's more than just a game, Nero," I muttered, still scanning my surroundings, half-expecting something to jump out at us from the shadows.
"This place feels too real. I can't shake the feeling that there's something more going on here."
Nero's lips tightened as he stared at me, his skepticism palpable. But before he could respond, the system chimed again.
[Next Task: Survive the Night.]
[Penalty for Failure: Death.]
I swore under my breath. Just when I thought we might have a chance to rest, the system threw us back into the fire.
Gorbul, still chewing on the last bite of the appetizer, glared at us with those unblinking, monstrous eyes.
He motioned with a large, bone-cracking fist toward the kitchen, his silent way of ordering us to prepare for the next challenge.
Nero clicked his tongue, muttering to himself, "Of course. It's never that simple."
"At least we've got the Double Body skill," I reminded myself out loud, casting a glance at my doppelgänger—Nero's form, who had been working alongside me this whole time.
"Shian, I can keep an eye on things while you sleep, if it comes to that," Nero said through the double, his voice calm and pragmatic.
"But I'm not sure how long we can keep splitting like this without consequences. The system doesn't exactly play fair."
I nodded, knowing he was right. Using the Double Body skill had its advantages, but it was also draining.
Even though Nero was handling the extra load, there was something unsettling about sharing my body and skills like this. We couldn't rely on it indefinitely.
"Let's keep it as a last resort, Nero," I muttered. "We'll need all the strength we can muster for whatever's next."
---
The kitchen had calmed down slightly, but the air was still thick with tension. Gorbul stood by the stove, stirring something in a massive cauldron that emitted an ominous green vapor.
The other teams were scattered about the restaurant—some cleaning tables, others attempting to communicate with their nightmarish team leaders.
Over at the **Service Team's** section, Korin, Lily, and Markus were nervously pacing, watching as Drallith, their shadowy supervisor, drifted in and out of sight.
His presence was unnerving—he didn't speak much, only pointed out mistakes with his ghostly, ethereal fingers.
"That thing gives me the creeps," Markus said as he carefully adjusted a stack of plates. "It's like he's watching even when he's not there."
Lily shuddered, keeping her distance from the shadows where Drallith would occasionally appear. "Just don't mess up, and maybe he'll leave us alone."
Meanwhile, over at the **Order Taking Team**, Mira, Jax, and Oren were standing awkwardly in front of Zargath, their skeletal partner.
Zargath's hollow eyes glowed faintly as he communicated telepathically, his orders floating directly into their minds.
"We've got to be fast," Oren whispered after Zargath finished his silent instructions.
"The creatures here don't like waiting for their food, and if we mess up an order—"
Jax cut him off with a nervous laugh. "Yeah, we all know what happens. Instant death. Let's just not screw this up, okay?"
---
Back in the kitchen, I glanced over at the counter where the remaining ingredients were piled up.
The next task would likely involve preparing something much more complex, but before I could get too caught up in worrying about it, I was hit with a sudden wave of exhaustion.
My muscles ached from the nonstop work, and my mind felt like it was running on fumes.
Eliana must've noticed because she spoke up, her voice soft but concerned. "Shian, you should rest for a bit. You've been going nonstop, and... well, we'll need you at full strength."
I shook my head. "We don't know when the next task will hit, and I don't trust anything in this place. We need to stay alert."
But Nero, still in control of my double body, chimed in with a more insistent tone. "She's right, Shian. I can handle things for a while. You've got to rest, even if it's just for a few hours. Otherwise, you'll collapse when we really need you."
I hesitated. Trusting Nero to handle things while I slept felt strange. But the exhaustion was real, and I couldn't afford to make mistakes because I was too tired to think straight.
"Alright," I finally relented, pulling off my bloodstained apron. "But only for a couple of hours."