Nova got up from his bed at five o'clock in the morning. He hadn't slept much. His mind had been racing all night with thoughts of his first dungeon adventure, and each time he began to drift off, he remembered Marcus's announcement and found himself wide awake again.
'I know the F-rank dungeon will have real wolves, so the chances of dying are much more real, even if the pain from training yesterday felt plenty real.'
He sat on the edge of his bed for a minute, staring at the floor as he tried to shake off the fog in his head. The apartment was silent. His muscles still ached from training, although nowhere near as badly as they had after their first sparring session.
The kittens were asleep in their box beside the couch, little balls of fur rising and falling with every breath. One had its paw resting over another's face. Nova watched them, somewhat jealous of their peaceful lives, even if his reasons for coming to Earth were the opposite.
