Ryan's body blurred as he exploded forward with immense speed. He knew that dungeons collapsed whenever their final boss, in this case the goblin king was defeated, but he never knew they collapsed so fast.
'Guess you can't read everything in books.' Ryan thought, as he dashed through the goblin village, his feet moving at a speed that many would struggle to see.
"RACHELLLL!!!" Ryan cried out. If Rachel was still in the Paradox Dungeon, then he was her only chance at managing to escape.
Ryan continued to call out to Rachel, but he received no response. He steelened his resolve and pressed forward. If Rachel had somehow died, then so be it.
The ground beneath Ryan shook rapidly, the dungeon was collapsing at a speed that Ryan was barely able to outrun.
The ground behind Ryan caved in, leaving behind a massive crater, Ryan's eyes widened in shock. For each second that he wasted, the chances of his death increased astronomically.
The golden sun's rays that illuminated the goblin village slowly began to darken, making it difficult for Ryan to see, the entire place was crumbling into nothingness, and if he was not careful, he would crumble along with it.
"The cave!!" Ryan said excitedly, this was the same cave he and the rest of his team were originally transported into, until he found the goblin village. It was this same cave that held the exit to the Paradox Dungeon.
While Ryan struggled with all his might to escape the collapsing Paradox Dungeon, there was quite the scene unfolding outside the Dungeon.
Minutes Earlier.
News of the summoner Prince had spread far and wide. Usually, whenever people heard that another group of criminals or offenders had been sentenced to the Paradox Dungeon, they wouldn't even bother, because they knew it was futile.
However, the news of a prince and not just any prince, one who had awakened an SSS Ranked talent had been sentenced to the Paradox Dungeon, they all gathered to observe the outcome, including Catherine.
"I'm going to place 1 bronze coin that the prince will survive." A yellow-bearded man with bald hair and a round stomach suddenly declared.
"I'm also placing 1 bronze coin on the prince, the stakes are high, and the money is cheap, there's nothing to lose." Another villager shouted, most people had bet on the obvious choice of the prince losing, because it had been the same fate for everyone else who stepped foot in the Paradox Dungeon.
The sounds of more people placing their bets and raising the stakes echoed, even the guards who were assigned to oversee the affairs of the dungeons decided to get in on some of the action.
Minutes passed, and only the sounds of bets being placed could be heard from around Paradox Dungeon, until...
"The Dungeon!!!" A villager shouted with wide eyes, while pointing at the portal leading to the Paradox Dungeon.
"I can't believe it." A woman said with her mouth agape, the Paradox Dungeon was pulsating, something that only happened when a dungeon had been cleared.
"I knew it!! Master Ryan survived." Catherine said with a broad smile on her face and tears streaming down her eyes. Somehow, her master had managed to do the impossible.
'I just hope he can make it out fast enough before the Dungeon Collapses.' Catherine thought. She knew how fast dungeons collapsed, and it was only a matter of time till Ryan's fate was decided.
"Look, someone is coming through." Another villager said, pointing at the hand reaching out from the portal. Catherine's heart drummed in joy, finally she would be reunited with her master, but she was quickly disappointed.
"That's not the prince, who is she?" The villagers said as they stared at Rachel's unconscious body, this was not who they had all bet on, which only frustrated them.
"The portal's shrinking fast. I'm not sure if the prince will be able to make it through, that's if he's even alive." Another villager pointed out, and truly the portal was shrinking fast.
It has gone from being able to fit a car to twice the size of a manhole in 15 seconds, it was only a matter of time until it became too small for anyone to crawl out of.
Catherine weaved her way close to the portal, she slapped Rachel's unconscious body, forcing her awake. The guards tried to stop her, but one look at her eyes, and they all backed away.
"That's the infamous Catherine, leave her alone unless you want to die." one of the knights said to his colleague, forcing him to stand down. Everyone in this kingdom knew who Catherine was and how fierce she could be.
"Where is Master Ryan!!" Catherine shouted at Rachel, hoping that she could give her an answer. She needed to know if he was already dead.
"He was right behind me." Rachel said, before fading unconscious once more, giving Catherine the answer that she so rightfully decided.
10 seconds were left, and the portal had already shrunk to the size of a manhole, if Ryan didn't make it through now, the chances of him surviving would be zero.
With each second that passed, a wave of emotions would hit every member of the crowd. If the prince somehow managed to scale through, then he would either make some incredibly rich and others incredibly poor.
A few more seconds passed, and this time, the portal had shrunk to half the size of a manhole, making everyone lose hope, except Catherine.
Catherine remained faithful, never for once did she dare doubt that Ryan would survive this encounter.
A hand suddenly stuck out of the portal, drawing the attention of everyone. Catherine stared at the hand with a wild smile on her face.
Catherine grabbed onto it, and with all her strength, she pulled Ryan out of the portal. Ryan's body collapsed onto the ground, and the portal vanished behind him.
A single purple eye peered through the shadows, watching the scene unfold before it.
A single purple eye peered through the shadows, watching the scene unfold.
"So, it is true," the cloaked figure muttered. "The gods have chosen their avatar."
The shadows around him stirred unnaturally, whispering in an ancient tongue. He turned away, his voice barely a whisper—yet filled with dark intent.
"Then it is time we choose ours."
With a ripple in the air, he vanished, leaving nothing behind but the lingering echo of his words.