Chapter 2
Amid a disaster that made it hard to stay sane, there was one thing that was strangely funny.
“You really… never let go of that notebook.”
“I know… it’s ridiculous…”
We struggled forward through water that had risen to our thighs, breathing so hard it felt like our lungs would burst.
There wasn’t another person in sight anymore.
How many forks in the path had we passed while running?
The maze-like tunnels had thrown us into some unknown place.
Even if the Hunters arrive… will they even be able to find us?
The thought came to me far too late.
“But we’re all scattered now. What are we supposed to do?”
It seemed Ah-rin had reached the same conclusion.
I wanted to burst into tears like a little kid.
But I was too afraid the monsters would hear me.
“I don’t know…”
My nose burned with heat.
The water was freezing, and I was getting colder by the minute, yet my head felt hot.
I’m probably about to cry.
I forced the lump in my throat back down and kept wading through the water.
“Hey, where are you going?”
“If we stay in the water like this, we’ll get hypothermia. We have to find somewhere dry.”
Ah-rin stared at me in admiration before moving closer.
We linked arms, relying on each other’s body heat.
As we walked, she suddenly muttered,
“By the way… do you know what time it is? How long have we been in this dungeon?”
“No idea. Don’t you have your phone?”
“I left it at home charging. Besides, electronics don’t work inside dungeons, do they?”
I can probably still check the time.
Thinking that, I reached into my pocket.
Despite everything that had happened, my phone was still there.
I pulled it out and turned on the screen.
“…Whoa.”
The screen had been smashed into cracks, probably from when I’d hit the ground.
“What time is it?”
“The time…? I can’t tell… But today’s date isn’t today’s date.”
Ignoring the completely black part of the display, I focused on the flickering numbers underneath.
“Month 29, Day 134.”
“Oh.”
“Year 16,578.”
“…Wow.”
Her reaction was almost as ridiculous as the phone itself.
Almost.
“My phone didn’t just break… it completely lost its mind.”
I shoved what was now basically an expensive club back into my pocket.
I bought this with the student discount…
Even now, random thoughts like that were all I could think about.
Then—
Skreeee…
Grind. Grind.
A high-pitched cry echoed through the tunnel, accompanied by the horrible sound of grinding teeth.
The narrow passage amplified the noise.
Goosebumps ran down my spine.
“R-Run.”
“Quick! Hurry!”
Still clutching each other’s arms, we stumbled into a run.
The thigh-deep water slowed us down, but stopping wasn’t an option.
Aquatic monsters could move silently through the water.
The only way to avoid them was to keep moving.
We looked like people doing a three-legged race.
Not that we got very far.
The water slowed us.
We were already exhausted.
Calling it “running” was generous.
It was barely faster than walking.
And all the while…
We made endless splashing noises.
Finding us wasn’t difficult for the monsters.
Skreeee…
The cries came closer.
Something briefly surfaced before slipping beneath the water again.
Just then, I spotted something.
A miracle.
“Ah-rin! Over there! That path! Go sideways!”
“What? What path?! Where?!”
“On the right! There’s a path! Up there!”
A sloping tunnel branched off to the right, high enough that the water couldn’t reach it.
I had no idea where it led.
But anywhere dry was better than here.
“What path?!”
“Oh, for goodness’ sake! Here!”
“W-Wait! Stop pushing! I’ll fall!”
I shoved Ah-rin forward with all my strength.
Finally, her hand reached the opening above us.
She turned back toward me with a relieved smile.
Why are you looking at me now?!
“What are you doing?! Get inside!”
“Oh! Right!”
Climbing into the tunnel wasn’t easy.
After slipping several times, Ah-rin finally managed to crawl inside.
Meanwhile…
The monsters kept getting closer.
“Give me your hand! I’ll pull you up! Hurry! Hurry!”
“Okay!”
“Both hands! Use both! Throw away the notebook and give me both hands! Aaah!”
“Hey! Don’t slip! Hold on!”
I threw the notebook into the tunnel first before grabbing Ah-rin’s arm.
The monster was close enough to see now.
It had lifted half of its body out of the water as it charged toward us.
Grind. Grind.
With the sound of grinding teeth…
It lunged.
At that exact moment…
Ah-rin pulled me into the tunnel with all her strength.
Crunch.
“…”
“…”
What was that sound?
Neither of us understood.
But Ah-rin’s face turned deathly pale first.
“AAAAAAH!”
Her scream echoed through the narrow tunnel.
I turned to look where she was staring.
The monster…
was chewing something.
The water turned red.
Even after realizing what had happened…
I couldn’t feel any pain.
Instead…
I noticed the notebook lying open in the distance.
My thoughts and reality no longer matched.
The last thing that crossed my mind was…
Wow… if that notebook ends up as my keepsake after I die… I’m completely finished.
Then darkness swallowed me.
Inside that darkness…
An unfamiliar notification rang in my ears.
Ding—
[This individual cannot awaken at this time.]
[No compatible trait found.]
[Searching for trait…]
[Searching for trait…]
[Searching for trait…]
Even though phones couldn’t function inside dungeons…
The notifications kept ringing.
Every chime interrupted the sleep pulling me deeper into darkness.
[Compatible trait found.]
[Trait system has not been fully established.]
[Awakening impossible.]
[Impossible…]
[Impossible…]
[Applying temporary trait.]
[Errors may occur due to temporary assignment.]
[Beginning temporary awakening.]
Ah-rin blinked several times.
Otherwise, she couldn’t see properly.
Tears blurred her vision.
Partly from fear.
Partly from overwhelming relief.
Crunch. Crack.
While the monster below continued making horrifying noises…
Her friend slowly stood up.
A gentle light radiated from Cho-eun’s body.
It was exactly like the emergency broadcasts she’d seen before—
The scenes showing Hunters awakening.
“C-Cho-eun? Ha Cho-eun? A-Are you okay? Did… did you awaken?”
Only moments ago, everything below Cho-eun’s waist had been gone.
Now…
She had two perfectly normal legs.
Slowly, Cho-eun lifted her head.
“…Ha Cho-eun?”
She looked puzzled.
“Do I know that name?”
Ah-rin could only stare back in confusion.
[Temporary trait assigned.]
[Temporary awakening complete.]
At that very moment…
Bright pink flower petals rained from above.
Pitch-black thorny bushes burst from the ground beneath her feet.
When they met in the middle…
Flames wrapped around her body.
Then…
Her figure emerged once again.
“Cho-eun!”
For one brief moment, an absurd thought crossed Ah-rin’s mind.
…Is this some magical girl transformation?
The person standing there certainly looked the part.
Crimson eyes.
Long silver hair.
Two pairs of black dragonfly-like wings.
Golden triangular ears atop her head.
She looked like someone had mixed together every fantasy character imaginable.
Skreeee…
Grind. Grind.
Still hungry, the monster didn’t hesitate.
Its enormous body leapt from the water, exposing rows of sharp teeth.
Then…
A bright, cheerful voice rang out.
“Oh my.”
Ah-rin instinctively looked toward the speaker.
The crimson eyes now glowed with a soft pink light.
“My little friends.”
With a sweet smile…
Vines suddenly burst from every direction.
Plants Ah-rin hadn’t even noticed wrapped around the monster like ropes.
Within seconds, it was completely bound.
It thrashed helplessly.
“You’ve been very naughty.”
“You mustn’t attack other people.”
“If you do bad things…”
“You’ll be punished.”
Watching the unbelievable scene…
An utterly ridiculous thought entered Ah-rin’s head.
Before she could stop herself…
She blurted it out.
“Um… Chloris?”
When she’d called her “Ha Cho-eun,” the girl had looked confused.
But at the name “Chloris”…
She immediately turned around.
“…Do you know me?”
“Wow…”
Without thinking, Ah-rin reached into her pocket.
She desperately wished she had her phone.
She wanted to record this forever and play it at Cho-eun’s seventieth birthday party.
“Oh, right! I left my phone at home!”
Sadly…
It was probably buried beneath the collapsed apartment building by now.
“Hm? What’s a phone?”
“Uh… nothing. Never mind.”
Ah-rin awkwardly shook her head.
Then she quietly picked up the notebook lying on the ground.
Cho-eun had made such a huge fuss about never letting anyone read it.
But now…
She needed it.
Fairy: Flora Anemone Chloris
A fairy born in a flower garden.
Very kind and gentle.
Because she grew up only in flower fields, she has an innocent personality.
Her adorable behaviour makes all the other fairies love her.
“…Oh, you’ve got to be kidding me.”
Ah-rin had just encountered the hardest question of her life.
What should you do when you discover your best friend’s embarrassing childhood notebook?
-
Tease her.
-
Tease her relentlessly.
-
Tease her with all your heart.
-
Tease her until the day she dies.
-
Protect your friend’s dignity and pretend you never saw anything.
There was only one correct answer.
Ah-rin lowered her head.
Her shoulders shook.
The strangely transformed Cho-eun walked over.
“Oh my, is something wrong? Are you hurt?”
Her voice was much softer and gentler than usual.
Ah-rin’s shoulders trembled even harder.
She wanted to burst out laughing.
But she gathered every ounce of loyalty—
And survival instinct.
Maybe not loyalty.
But survival instinct definitely led her to the correct answer.
5. Protect your friend’s dignity and pretend you know nothing.
“Sob… sniff… I’m… I’m just… so sad…”
Cry.
Just cry instead.
Having made her decision, Ah-rin desperately forced herself to sob.
“You’re sad? Why? Oh dear… Is there anything I can do to help?”
“P-Please… stop talking…”
Even now…
It was still hilarious.
Her brain refused to stop.
Cho-eun… what on earth were you watching when you wrote this? Magical Girl? Strawberry Sparkle? Choco Choco? Mysterious Star? Shining Wedding?
Unfortunately…
Her thoughts weren’t becoming any more useful.
She only wanted to laugh even harder.
“If you do not tell me why, this one cannot help you. Do you not wish to survive?”
Suddenly…
The way Cho-eun spoke completely changed.
Her voice became lower.
Huskier.
It was as though she had become a different person.
She can’t suddenly have multiple personalities…
There wasn’t anything like that in Chloris’s character profile.
Suppressing her laughter, Ah-rin flipped through the notebook.
Dark Fairy: Black Chloris
Chloris after being betrayed by humans and falling into darkness.
“Sob… don’t tell me this is Choco Choco?”
Keep crying. Just keep crying.
She turned another page.
Demon King: Kitreus
Speaks arrogantly and refers to himself with supreme authority.
Trusting her theory, Ah-rin cautiously asked,
“Um… are… are you Kitreus?”
As she looked up…
She saw bright golden eyes.
Like the eyes of a beast lurking in the night.
The figure frowned.
“What is that ridiculous name? Does my name truly sound so absurd?”
There’s more…?
Please…
Fighting through confusion and barely contained laughter, Ah-rin flipped another page.
Finally…
Another entry appeared.
Heavenly Fox (天狐)
At that point, Ah-rin couldn’t take it anymore.
The clumsy Chinese characters looked so poorly written they almost made her burst into laughter.
She snapped the notebook shut.
Curled up on the ground, shaking.
The person who was definitely no longer Ha Cho-eun folded their arms.
“Do you wish to be abandoned here?”
“N-No… sniff… It’s just… we’re in a dungeon… and… my parents… my family’s in danger…”
She wasn’t even sure whether she was laughing or crying anymore.
Covering her face with the notebook, she slowly looked up.
Fortunately—or perhaps unfortunately—
The mysterious figure finally moved.
“I have little desire to help the humans who betrayed us…”
“But…”
“I shall help you this once.”
“Sob…!”
And with that…
Ah-rin finally broke down into genuine tears once more.
