Chapter 17: Well of Eternity

Immediately, those at the front began to plunge into the massive well, falling into the reflection of the abyss.

It wasn’t as though it mattered much, but there were some advantages to entering first.

Peace wasn’t really in a position to capitalize on them, so he floundered near the end of the crowd, clutching the straps of the backpack he’d bought with the loaned money.

Peace wasn’t an idiot; he knew that even if he survived the hellish conditions of the dungeon, he still needed to eat and drink, as well as carry whatever he earned. So, he put what remained of the loan, a little over one silver, toward a backpack, canteens of water, and enough dried jerky for the week.

He would have loved to invest in a better weapon than his shoddy dagger, or maybe some armor, but feeding himself and staying hydrated were imperative. Besides, even if the drops weren’t good, weapons were common drops on the first floor.

Better yet, higher-ranked Divers often left a trail of unclaimed items in their wake as they ascended to the higher floors.

’Or is it descending?’

He’d never really thought about it.

’Who knows... It doesn’t really matter.’

What mattered was that once he entered, he couldn’t leave until time was up; he’d be trapped inside with no way of returning until the dungeon spat him out.

As for another thing odd about the dungeon... it was weird when it came to time...

It moved ’slower.’ One could spend a week inside, yet only thirty minutes would pass in the real world. At least that was how it was in the game’s time.

Peace was curious how anyone here could explain that phenomenon, assuming it had an explanation...

Was it a relativistic phenomenon caused by gravity? Or was something else at work?

Peace could ponder that when he had business to.

For now, there was one thing that actually concerned him...

’My monster side.’

Was Peace’s switch triggered by the passage of external time or his body’s internal clock? More straightforward... Would he switch while inside the dungeon or not?

’I guess I’ll find out.’

For now, all he needed to concern himself with was surviving and overcoming whatever challenge awaited him.

Still, he would have loved to form a party with... anyone.

When he saw the other Night Elves in the Divers’ Guild, he had hoped he could team up with them, but they seemed to hold even more prejudice against him than everyone else did.

And every other race seemed predisposed to distrust him, except the Giants and maybe the Lizardpeople...

The Giants were simply too dumb and naive to see him as the kind of threat the others perceived him to be. The Lizardpeople were different only because they were in a similar boat.

Peace wasn’t exactly sure why, but the Lizardpeople were a tribe that had been ostracized from the beastmen coalition. Their race had once been counted among the beastmen, but for some reason, that was no longer the case. It had been the same in the game.

The few Lizardpeople he’d come across hadn’t seemed particularly spooked, but it was hard to tell beneath their almost serpentine, scaly faces.

However, Lizardpeople usually didn’t team up with those outside their own race, so Peace didn’t think he’d have much luck with them either.

Then there were the Giants, but there weren’t many, and they all seemed to belong to groups of their own. Not to mention, they were... dumb. It wasn’t a surprise for an unchecked Giant to get an entire cohort killed.

’The greatest danger isn’t a traitor or a beast, but an incompetent ally.’

While Peace didn’t have an issue with Giants, he felt he stood a better chance alone than he would if partnered with one...

That belief came from his own experience with the game. During the few times he played solo, when his sister was especially sick or busy with other things, he’d lost a few characters from one aggroing way too many monsters; two of his characters even died in their sleep while a Giant was supposed to be on lookout duty.

’...’

There was nothing more frustrating than watching your character die during the time-fast-forward screen.

Moving on...

There was a bigger issue than his physical appearance.

The true heart of the problem was his visible lack of equipment and experience. He looked like dead weight, so it was no wonder nobody wanted anything to do with him. After all, the same reason he didn’t want to be left alone with a Giant teammate applied to him...

’...Nothing is more dangerous than an incompetent ally.’

Peace didn’t really blame them because that sentiment was entirely true. He had no idea how to wield a blade and was the weakest of the weak.

His knowledge might help him scrape by, but survival ultimately came down to practical application. Even Peace wasn’t quite sure how he’d fare on that front.

Ironically, the only thing giving Peace a semblance of confidence was the short stints he’d spent as a monster. In a way, those harrowing moments had forced him to adjust to this cruel world.

Peace hadn’t even entered the well yet, though he was drawing close, but he was sure that his encounters with those grotesque, corrupted abominations would help steady his nerves when he finally faced a beast.

Peace stared at the pile of stones, beneath which lay a pit. At the bottom waited a pool of stagnant water, ready to send him into that lawless land.

Peace gripped the straps of his backpack as he inched forward with the dwindling crowd.

A strange, frigid sensation enveloped him as he neared the Well of Eternity. It felt as if the cold hands of death were slowly curling around his body, touching every pore and crease.

Closer... closer...

Then...

He stepped onto the stones lining the edge of the huge well.

’Here goes nothing.’

Peace took a cautious yet determined step, and the ground vanished beneath him.

Wind tore past his body.

His feet plunged into the water below. The moment they breached the plane, the cold chill that had begun to drown him was replaced by a warm, fuzzy feeling... almost like he was drunk.

His vision blurred beneath a gray film. He was in a free fall as reality gobbled him up and guided his endless plunge.

Then, color rushed back, and Peace found himself standing alone... atop a mountain of bones.

The abyss had swallowed him and spat him out into the Maw of Hell.