Chapter 45: KELLY AND TOMMY WARIAN

’’Ughhh...’’

A low groan escaped Aaron’s throat as he slowly forced his eyes open.

Pain. That was the first thing he registered.

His head throbbed relentlessly, his entire body felt sore, and even his eyes seemed to ache as though he had spent hours staring directly into the sun.

He blinked several times, struggling to adjust his vision.

For a few seconds, everything remained blurry. Then, as his eyes gradually regained focus, he lowered his gaze and took in his miserable condition.

His clothes were practically destroyed.

His trousers, which had somehow managed to survive the ordeal, were now brutally torn around the thighs. His shirt, on the other hand, was beyond recognition. The once decent-looking fabric had been reduced to a collection of ragged pieces, barely hanging together.

And that wasn’t even the worst part.

Long, ugly scratches covered his exposed chest, stomach, and ribs. Some were shallow, while others were deep enough to leave dried trails of blood across his skin.

Apparently, the bats hadn’t been particularly gentle with him.

He had only spent two or three hours inside the Dungeon, yet he already looked like someone who had barely escaped a battlefield.

’Wait...’

His expression suddenly changed.

Two or three hours?

He couldn’t even remember how long he had been unconscious.

What if he had been out for much longer?

The thought made him instinctively glance around, trying to get his bearings.

’’He’s waking up, Kelly.’’

A deep, rather indifferent voice interrupted his thoughts.

’Huh?’

Aaron’s eyes snapped open.

He immediately attempted to sit up, only to feel a soft palm press against his chest, gently forcing him back onto the stone surface.

’’Careful. Your shoulder is dislocated.’’ The familiar feminine voice reached his ears.

Aaron blinked, his gaze shifting towards the person beside him.

It was the blue-haired girl.

Kelly stared down at him with her usual expressionless face, her hand still resting against his chest.

’’You still need some rest.’’

For a moment, Aaron simply stared at her.

He wasn’t particularly expecting to receiving help from strangers, especially inside a Dungeon where practically everyone was supposed to be looking out for themselves.

After a brief silence, Kelly broke the awkward atmosphere.

’’What happened?’’

Aaron gave her a sideways glance.

His throat felt incredibly dry, and his voice came out slightly hoarse.

’’What do you mean?’’

Kelly’s brows knitted together.

’’You were unconscious and covered in blood when we found you. Your hair was practically soaked with it, and there were dozens of dead bats scattered around your body.’’

She paused briefly, studying his expression.

’’So, what happened?’’

Aaron remained silent for a moment before forcing himself into a sitting position.

The pain in his body immediately intensified, but he ignored it.

’’The sorcery dropped me somewhere close to the bats’ nest. From there, I killed a few of them and jumped down.’’

’’There’s a bat nest above us?’’

The question came from the boy standing a short distance away.

Aaron turned his head.

It was Tommy Warian.

The second individual with a Fifth-Dimensional Nature. The same person Finn had previously considered the strongest among the awakened students.

Aaron studied him for a moment before answering.

’’Yes. There is a bat nest above us.’’

He paused.

Something about his surroundings suddenly caught his attention.

The stone platform beneath him was considerably larger than the one he remembered, and several enormous doors stood nearby. The walls were also different. He wasn’t where he had been before.

’Wait...’

His eyes narrowed slightly.

’This isn’t the same place.’

’’There was a bat nest above us,’’ he repeated, his gaze shifting between the two. ’’But where exactly are we? And how long have I been unconscious?’’

Tommy stared at him for a few seconds, his expression completely unchanged.

Then he spoke.

’’You’re supposed to thank her for carrying you.’’

Aaron turned towards Kelly.

’’Oh.’’

He gave her a brief nod.

’’Thank you for helping me.’’

Without wasting another second, he returned his attention to Tommy.

’’Now, where are we?’’

Tommy chuckled.

’’Rude bastard.’’

He slowly stroked his jaw, narrowing his eyes as he examined Aaron from head to toe.

’’Seriously, how are you even a Fifth-Dimensional carrier? Kelly and I are supposed to be the only ones.’’

’’Tsk.’’

Aaron clicked his tongue.

He wasn’t particularly interested in entertaining the boy’s curiosity.

Instead, he shifted his attention to his surroundings.

From what he could remember, this was still the First Floor. However, judging by the enormous stone platform they were standing on and the three massive doors nearby, it seemed Tommy and Kelly had already explored a considerable portion of it.

In fact, they appeared to be close to entering the Boss’s Cave.

’So I’ve been unconscious for quite a while.’

He was still examining the surroundings when—

Grab!

A hand suddenly seized the collar of his tattered shirt.

Aaron’s eyebrows twitched.

He slowly turned his head and found Tommy glaring directly at him.

’’Listen to me, Goldilock.’’

Tommy’s grip tightened slightly.

’’While you were enjoying your beauty sleep, Kelly and I were busy carrying your unconscious body around this deadly Dungeon. We had to protect you while dealing with all sorts of beasts.’’

He leaned closer.

’’Do you have any idea how troublesome that was?’’

’’Let him be, Tommy,’’ Kelly muttered from behind them.

But Tommy paid her no attention.

’’And now that you finally wake up, the first thing you do is start asking questions? Not even a proper expression of gratitude?’’

Aaron stared at him.

He could understand why the boy was irritated. After all, carrying an unconscious person through a dangerous Dungeon wasn’t exactly an enjoyable experience.

However, he had considerably bigger problems to worry about.

The First Reincarnate was still after him.

He hadn’t found Natasha.

Damien was still somewhere in the Dungeon, and the threat he had made earlier was far from reassuring.

And, perhaps most importantly, he couldn’t even trust his supposed best friends anymore.

For all he knew, they might have already laid another trap for him.

He really didn’t have the luxury of wasting time on unnecessary arguments.

’’I’m grateful.’’

Aaron’s voice remained calm.

’’I just need to know where we are. Besides, I have a feeling we’re approaching something dangerous.’’

Tommy maintained his intimidating glare for another moment. Then, quite unexpectedly, his lips curled into a smile.

’’Kelly, I told you he’d be a burden.’’

He released Aaron’s collar and took a step backwards.

’’You should have just left him to die.’’

Kelly sighed.

’’Tommy, there’s a reason both of us were sent to the same location immediately after entering the Dungeon.’’

She glanced at Aaron.

’’And I believe that same reason is why we encountered another Fifth-Dimensional Nature user.’’