??? resets ago.
In a castle inside section 25, which used to be a certain chubby Mayor's house, now it was ruined, explosions raised from the ground, infrastructure collapsed.
All except the castle.
Flesh squelched, its sound passing over the creaking floors that was the only sound breathing, save for the breeze of the wind pressing uninvited, heavily in on the broken floorboard through shattered windows.
Lightning flashed, blue streaked the silhouettes of two figures, their shadows stretching long and clawing their way to the columns for but a moment.
The silence the both held was stifling, just as the rain fiercely dripped down like daggers outside, the silent stature of the two was broken in the reception room where a throne of a lost king was stolen by an arrogant regressor. As the man on the arched doorway took a step forward.
Speaking with a musical hum the rain gave as backdrop.
"Is there no heart beating behind that rib cage of yours, Eliot?"
The light, crashed delivered a shade of visibility on the one sitting on the throne, his crimson eyes glowed with a glint.
Eliot, the past Eliot simply looked at the still shadow veiled individual before him.
"What do you think?" Eliot scoffed without a shred of emotion painted on his face, propping his chin with two mechanical hands. Their fingers stretched unnaturally long. Like small needles whose width were sacrificed for more reach.
The man, hiding from any source of lighting, chuckled softly.
"Haaa, from what I know though, you were some upstanding awakened, an awakener whose nature was too save people... not someone who caused incidents just to satiate some twisted desire."
"It's fun though?"
It was fun, saving people and having them praise you despite you being the one who caused the crisis in the first place was just so much fun, in fact. Eliot made sure to imprint this nature and personality onto his very soul so his future self would also understand how amazing saving those people would be.
Being a hero was fun, making everyone think you're some sort of messiah sent to save was just hilarious to see happen.
Of course, a hero had to have his flaws, so he also made sure to never feel any kind of emotion, to never be able to grieve for the dead and lost, to twist his own common sense so much for his future self, that he seemed like a psycho when he actually wasn't.
I mean, he couldn't have himself be an upstanding citizen for a world destined to die because of him, now could he?
"So, to what do I owe the honor of the main character, Lucas?"
"I don't know about main character, friend." He took his longsword out, shrugging away the compliment with his cape full of his valor achievement, "but I will stand as an obstacle in your madness."
"Of course you will." With a deep smile, Eliot brought his right hand on his face, the metal needles touched him coldly.
A shine of light focused on the spot Lucas was standing, his neat figure and embroidered dark suit, above him was a stage light, hanging loosely above him. Dangling with muffled screams travelling down.
Yeah, carrying the stage light, or well not so much as carrying but strapped to their waist was a young man in his early twenties, an innocent man whose life dangled on the whims of a regressor who knew everything by the 5th ever reset he experienced in his life.
Now he was just a shell of his former valor, a man broken by the truth of his existence.
Just musing over the idea of saving for the sake of saving.
Holding a remote in his hand, he waved it toward Lucas, on his facial features marred a deep and meaningful smile as he locked eyes with the main protagonist.
He thought sentimentally about the words Lucas spoke.
Which made him burst in a fit of laughter.
"Haha! I guess you wouldn't know about that. The main protagonist is... always a dense prick that infuriates the reader or player." With a hop, Eliot carefreely pressed on the small red button, stepping down steadily the bloodied carpets stained with a royal's blood. Voice ringing loud and clear.
Boooom—!
"So let's fucking do what the protagonist does best! Putting on a show for a reader who reads for the sake of passing time!"
The stage light went out with a loud bang, killing the one strapped tightly to it instantly.
Eliot dug his metal fingers inside his own flesh, just enough so it wouldn't reach his brain, addicted to pain like it were a drug to him.
Shards of glass fell down to the carpet.
Blanketing the entire reception room... in utter silent, and dark thuds of clashing metal.
*
"Seems familiar..."
"Didn't you prophesize it? Is it that strange to see it as familiar when you already saw it?" Suspicion glared at me from the sides.
"Hmm, I guess so...?"
In the throne room, the royal reception room of Pylon shimmered with embroidered jewelry. Accentuating our surroundings, making them seem more noticeable, more pressuring and more... dissonant to the mind.
'What a strange feeling..' It wasn't something I felt often, though I did feel it a couple of times.
But that was all it was. Just a strange feeling that boiled.
"Uhm... sir hunters?" From behind, a sweet tone reached me, turning around, I saw the mayor, a chubby, small man whose quests were always declined.
It made sense, the dungeon for first clear was actually pretty hard... if you didn't have me in your party.
"So? Sitting on that throne will get us teleported correct?"
At my words.
The mayor only nodded.
Clear frustration seemed to boil inside him as I could see his knuckles whiten.
"Yes. One of you have to sit and a small bubble of 15 meters will expand, teleporting you to the state of this castle before the finalization of the dungeon war."
Dungeon war, the words formed a clot inside my blood vessels.
That war, it was so crazy driven that only 2 billion of the entire human population survived from it.
It was brutal, absolute wastelands rained like pennies discarded.
So many lives were trampled, crushed and crumpled like paper.
It didn't help the situation when the people in charge of that war never took accountability for their actions.
I didn't feel anything towards it, nor to the deaths that happened around me despite my nature to try to desperately save people.
It was a strange thing that I noticed.
Whenever there were people around me, my emotions always seemed to dull over. And even more so when I was alone.
I tried to fix it by trying to trick myself into believing I had emotions, making exaggerated gestures, exaggerating my anger and whatnot.
But none of it seemed to work, it felt tiring to do so and it clearly didn't work.
'Should I stop then?' Nothing was gained, so acting according to what I truly felt wouldn't change anything.
I tapped my foot on the ground, walking slowly towards the throne, Ares followed behind me. Silent along the way.
'If I still act with those fake, exaggerated gestures, then that just means I do actually have emotions that prominently show themselves when stimulated.'
If not, well... being calm and collected always isn't such a bad perk to have.
Still, I couldn't help but wonder what the source of this detached feeling of being unable to feel strongly toward my emotions was?
Knowing that the answer to that question would never be found in my mind. I walk on the red, velvet carpet, the tips of my toes being the first to make contact with the steps escalating to a throne.
A throne so extravagant that I just know that the past me must've sat at least once on such a throne for the fun of it.
Before long, I had reached the throne.
Honestly speaking, it didn't take a lot to get here, just a show of my and Ares ID and they let us pass.
While I did want to tour around section 25 since it resembled so much like Paris in my old world.
I decided against it for now and get what I needed over the weekend.
The first-clear of servant Midnight needed to happen first above all else.
'Just five pieces.'
That's all I asked, just five pieces, the soul pillar could be from any other set, but the five piece full effect was needed one hundred percent.
I turn to face Ares.
Throughout the entire journey, uneventful as it was, Ares never spoke, which is why I never covered that part...
That guy is just always silent, throw him a watermelon? He'd at best mutter a curse and throw a kitchen knife at you in your nether regions.
He never once spoke unless it was necessary.
'Why couldn't you be the social principal like you were a few days ago on my first day at the job?'
Seriously, why?! Do you know how awkward it was to walk with this guy for 5 hours straight!?
Soon enough, I tore my gaze from him, walking to the throne before touching it's golden armbar.
'He said to sit on it right?' That was all the instructions, the same as the game.
Sit on the throne, wait a couple of seconds for the ominous wind to blow from god knows where and get teleported into the dungeon.
That's it.
However, that was not what happened.
Swooooosh—!
The portal expanded the moment I touched, from the soft cushion, a bubble of azure blue rolled out.
The mayor was long gone, so the only ones inside the room were me, Ares and whatever insect was still inside.
Ares seemed to be flustered over what happened, but I wasn't.
I stared with empty eyes, half expecting.
'The dungeon rank is raised....'
Which meant one thing, the rewards would be higher and more generous.
I knew the reason and it was simple really.
I had a curse afflicted on me, one that made the dungeons far worse to handle. However, there was luck involved in it.
'There is a set chance of the dungeon's first clear becoming harder.'
By harder, I meant a significant boost in enemies, bulkier and even giving the boss some new moves.
Thankfully, the goddess that placed this curse on me was kind enough to reward my resilience by giving more rewards to the dungeon as a result.... unfortunately, the rewards are guaranteed to be trash.
In short? The first clear rewards, which were the only rewards that didn't require extracting my soul for. Were set for failure.
'What a sad life...'
I muttered, the bubble consuming me and Ares entirely.
The dissonant feeling of organs mirroring and twisting grew prominent with time.
Soon, the nauseous feeling in my stomach dissipated, leaving only the new scenery before me to be praised for the destruction it received.