The fight between two different beings was beginning again. One was hiding behind the throne, while the other was standing despite losing a lot of blood.
The fight between two different beings began. The one hiding behind the throne, while the one standing alone in the pool of blood dashed at each other.
Their swords clashed. Clashed. Again. Their swords clashed multiple times, producing countless sparks and smoke. The view faded and grey smoke filled the whole room, but the sparks and the sound of metal clashing didn't stop.. instead, they increased.
The sparks produced from the clash moved horizontally, leaving smoke behind.
"Nnghhh!"
The struggling voice of a certain someone could be heard alongside the sound of clashes and sparks. Maybe it was already decided who was going to win this clash of swords. The running sounds eventually slowed down and then came to an end.
Next, the sound of metal touching the ground and a human falling to his knees could be heard. The winner and loser of the battle had been decided. With no continuous clashes, the smoke got thinner and the shadowy figures of two beings could be seen: one standing straight, the other on the ground.
The smoke finally cleared, and the tall figure of a knight could be seen standing straight with his sword pointing at the wounded man on the ground.
***
Hyunwoo gasped in fear several times, making his irises tremble slightly. His broken knees had now given up, and he could no longer stand or run from the devil right in front of him.
…so this is the end
Hyunwoo's gaze was on the ground, and his trembling eyes had finally calmed down, but there was something different in them. The eyes which used to resemble light no longer had any light. Hyunwoo's eyes were dark and didn't show a bit of light in them. It felt like the light was getting swallowed by the dark irises.
…they abandoned me
Hyunwoo's emotions were drying out of his body. He no longer trembled, nor did he gasp. He just calmly sat on the ground, accepting the fate he was going to get.
what was i fighting for..?
Due to countless clashes, the blade on Hyunwoo's sword had started to get several cracks in it. It was visible that this sword would crumble in a few more clashes. But yet, despite all the cracks, the shine over the sword remained the same. It still reflected light no matter how many cracks appeared on it.
Was i used..?
With countless thoughts, Hyunwoo's dark eyes and jaw trembled slightly. Not because of the fear of death but because of the realisation. The realisation of not actually be important to those so-called comrades of his. The realisation of being abandoned by his loved ones. The realisation of being used by the ones he trusted the most.
…
Hyunwoo's heart realised all these truths at the brink of death. The truth that could make anyone's soul shiver intensely. The same could be said for Hyunwoo's soul.
Where are they..?
Hyunwoo's gaze was no longer on the ground. It had already shifted to the entrance of the Boss room through which Hyunwoo had entered by himself. He wasn't supposed to be alone; that's what he thought. But he still was alone. Always alone.
"Are you waiting for your comrades?"
The knight's gaze also shifted to the entrance of the Boss room. They knew where Hyunwoo was looking and what it meant.
"They have abandoned you."
The knight understood Hyunwoo's current situation better than anyone. They knew that Hyunwoo was abandoned. No reply from Hyunwoo was heard, and the knight continued its words.
"No one will come."
"I already know."
The knight lowered its sword as it turned its gaze towards Hyunwoo, who was still glaring at the entrance. The skin on Hyunwoo's hand was ripped apart, revealing the muscles beneath. The same could be said for his neck, shoulders, and legs. Hyunwoo's face was covered with blood, which was dripping down from his wounded head.
From this battle, Hyunwoo only suffered greater injuries which could take months to heal.
"Then what're you glaring at?"
The knight was confused. The knight questioned themselves many times:
Why would someone turn their gaze to something else in the final moments of their life? Why not focus on the fate you're getting? Why not focus on the fate right in front of you? Why are you…
…not looking at me, the one who's going to help you meet your fate?
Hyunwoo didn't reply to the knight's question. Instead, he started muttering something which couldn't be heard by the knight.
With a small sigh, the knight spoke again.
"I'll twist that question… Why're you still hoping for them to come back when you already know no one's coming?"
Hyunwoo's eyebrow twitched a bit, his irises trembled. The knight continued its words.
"Accepting reality isn't that hard, is it?"
Hyunwoo gritted his broken teeth in frustration and turned his gaze back to the knight standing right in front of him.
"I know."
"You know what?"
Hyunwoo lowered his gaze to the ground and kept his mouth shut for a few seconds.
Why aren't you killing me..?
"I don't know...kill me already."
The knight pointed its sword towards Hyunwoo's neck and, with a small sigh opened it mouth.
"I'll kill you, but not this quickly…"
[Space Manipulation Lvl.??? Has been activated!]
…space Manipulation?! What is it??!
The knight lowered its sword, and the distance between the knight and Hyunwoo which was only a mere three steps stretched out to more than thirty steps. The floor… no, not only the floor but the whole dungeon had stretched its length. It happened in just the blink of an eye, that's why Hyunwoo looked at his surroundings in surprise.
He had already seen a lot of strange things today but witnessing such a strange yet powerful skill was something he never thought he could witness.
The knight started walking towards Hyunwoo meanwhile the armor around the knight's body started disappearing with each step.
With the first step, both the sabatons turned into smoke, revealing the foot. With the second step, the cuisses, poleyns, and greaves turned into smoke revealing the long legs of a woman. With the third step, both the gauntlets turned into smoke revealing long beautiful hands. With the fourth step, the rerebrace, couter, and vambrace turned into smoke revealing the arms of a young woman. Just with four steps, it was already known what the gender of the knight truly was.
With each step, Hyunwoo crawled backward while glaring at the knight who was revealing its appearance to him.
With the fifth step, the fauld, plackart, and cuirass turned into smoke revealing the torso. With the sixth step, the gorget, pauldrons, and faulds turned into smoke revealing a thin neck and shoulders. With the seventh step, the visor and helm turned into smoke revealing the face of the woman who defeated Hyunwoo.
Thin sheets of smoke now floated in the dungeon room, successfully hiding the naked body of the woman. Only her face, arms, and legs below her knees were barely visible in the smoke.
The shocked eyes of Hyunwoo glared at the woman who defeated him. The woman who had the right to take his life. The woman who had the right to make Hyunwoo's fate be realised.
How…
Hyunwoo clenched his fists in pure frustration. It wasn't the frustration of losing to a woman. It was the frustration of being utterly weak.
…Can someone be this strong?
There was a mischievous smirk over the woman's lips as she continued her steps towards Hyunwoo. It was just a smirk, yet Hyunwoo felt the hair on his body stand up.
Now with each step, the smoke floating between Hyunwoo and the woman started getting thinner and thinner. Meanwhile, the smoke surrounding both these beings got thicker and thicker.
Sweat streamed down Hyunwoo's head, revealing how hard it was for him to be in front of the master of an A-rank dungeon. Hyunwoo had already realised that no matter how hard he tried, he could never conquer this dungeon.
Suddenly, the woman's hair started standing up and tied into a ponytail in just the blink of an eye. Her long wavy hair looked majestic, which made Hyunwoo stare at her for so long that he forgot what type of situation he was stuck in.
Next, her body was suddenly covered with a black noble dress which was once worn by the Great Writer of Beauty.
The skirt which was attached to the dress covered the legs of the woman, only revealing the feet which were now in black heels. The smoke got thinner and finally it flowed to the side of the dungeon surrounding the woman and Hyunwoo.
The steps taken by the woman still hadn't stopped and she continued while glaring at and smiling at him. Now the whole attire of the woman was visible to Hyunwoo; he observed her from the bottom to the top.
This woman right in front of Hyunwoo was a perfect example of beauty mixed with destruction. The dress covering the woman's shoulders had green petals imprinted on it. Hyunwoo looked at them suspiciously before opening his mouth.
"…stop."
The woman didn't stop at Hyunwoo's voice and continued her steps. Hyunwoo didn't say anything either; maybe he sensed that he wasn't the one who should be giving orders but the one who should be obeying them.
[You're in the presence of the Great Writer of Beauty]
G-Great Writer…?
The woman walking towards Hyunwoo was none other than the Great Writer of Beauty. From her appearance, it did look like she was an upper being… but to think that she would be a Great Writer…
Incidents like these keep happening in the Endless Dream thanks to the Great Author of this story, aka Kang Hong.
Finally, the presence of the Great Writer stopped and behind her, a chair spawned. The chair had vines covering it. The Great Writer sat and folded her legs. She placed her elbow right on her knees while holding her chin against her hand.
With a small grin on her lips, she looked down at the helpless Hyunwoo who couldn't do anything except glare at the beauty of the Great Writer.
[How about we introduce ourselves?]
The real voice of the Great Writer filled the whole dungeon room with nothing but silence.
If I had to explain her voice in one word, then it can be said: calm. The voice was calming enough to make anyone feel at ease.
The Great Writer looked at Hyunwoo with a calm gaze and continued her words.
[…aren't you going to reply?]
Hyunwoo's expression had calmed a lot with the Great Writer's voice. It seemed like he wasn't frustrated about his weakness or being abandoned anymore. The inner soul of Hyunwoo had fallen asleep with the voice, while only the outer soul remained awake.
With a dry and tired voice, Hyunwoo opened his mouth.
"W-Who are you..?"