The alley was quiet, tucked away behind the stacked containers of the western docks. A light blue shimmer pulsed between rusted steel beams — the gate flickered softly like a heartbeat.
Akira pulled his hood down and stared at it.
"Here I go."
He stepped forward, vanishing into the rippling light.
---
Inside the Gate
Dark. Damp. The faint stench of sulfur hung in the air.
Akira took two steps forward. Something scurried in the shadows.
Snikt.
He reached into the air beside him.
"Inven—tory."
The crackle of red sparks. The hole formed. His hand dipped in and emerged with the twin blades — dark steel with crimson runes that pulsed like veins. A rare and deadly pair.
He rolled his shoulder.
Then sprinted.
Two goblin-like creatures lunged from the darkness. Before they could shriek—
Sching!
Both were already falling, their necks separated from their bodies. Three more scrambled toward him.
Akira grinned.
"Small fries."
He darted low, one blade dragging on the stone floor, sparks flying.
In one clean sweep, all three were cleaved in half.
5 goblins. 2 seconds.
He looked at the blade, breath calm.
"…You're starting to feel like home."
---
Pushing Deeper
He advanced quickly, his footsteps steady but silent. Each corridor brought more enemies — clusters of goblins, sometimes five or more, sometimes ten. It didn't matter.
He weaved between them, blades flashing in elegant arcs. Blood splattered his sleeves, but not once did he hesitate.
"This is what it means to fight on my terms."
Suddenly, a shift. The tunnel widened — and from the earth, something huge burst forward.
A centipede-like beast. Long, coiling, with armored plates and clawed limbs. Its eyes glowed green.
Akira leapt back just as the monster slammed down, splitting the stone floor.
"Not one of those again…"
The creature hissed, its tail whipping.
Akira charged. His right blade clanged against its shell — no effect.
Tsk.
He jumped again, flipping over its head, and jammed the left blade right between its upper carapace. It screeched.
He twisted, ripping downward. Acid sprayed across his coat — but he was already gone.
The centipede spasmed — then fell, twitching.
"Hard shell, soft center. Got it."
---
The Familiar Terror
Moments later, the ground quaked again.
A beast stepped forward — bipedal, muscular, with tusks jutting from its jaw. A darker version of the one that nearly killed him in the earlier gate.
He froze for a moment.
That face… those arms. That scream.
Flashbacks hit him — blood, pain, the fear.
But this time, he wasn't the same.
He raised his blades.
"Come on, then."
The beast roared and charged.
They clashed. Akira ducked low, slashed its knee — the blade glanced off.
He danced back just as a fist whistled past his head.
He dashed in, feinted left, then jumped and carved a gash across its chest.
Thud!
It swung and connected.
Akira flew back, rolling over gravel.
"Damn it…"
Blood ran from his lip.
He stood up, chest heaving.
"…Not…this time."
He ran, feinting again. This time, both blades sank deep into its thigh. He kicked off its knee and flipped over, driving his heel into the back of its skull.
The beast collapsed. With a final cry, Akira pierced both blades through its neck.
Silence.
He knelt beside it, panting.
"You didn't kill me this time."
---
Deeper Still
Loot after loot. Pouches of crystals, beast cores, talismans. He opened his Inventory and carefully stored everything, eating and drinking between rooms.
Then — the chamber shifted.
Three more of the beast's type emerged.
These were armored. Bigger. Smarter.
"…Seriously?"
He turned — but they'd already blocked the exits.
Boom!
One slammed him into a wall. His ribs cracked.
He rolled, coughing blood.
"Ghh…"
They pounced. He slashed one across the face, but the second kicked him across the floor.
Blood blurred his vision.
"Aghrrrrrr"
Another kick. A sharp sting in his leg — he couldn't move it properly.
Then one beast raised its arm for the kill.
"Just getting started"
He grinned.
His blades answered.
A red flash. His aura surged.
He spun, ducked the blow, and slashed upward, cleaving through the beast's chest.
Then he jumped, spinning mid-air, blades out — the second beast's arm fell to the ground.
"YOU. WON'T. STOP. ME!!"
He slashed, stabbed, ducked, countered. Screams echoed. Blood sprayed.
Pain screamed in his body. But he didn't stop.
Ten minutes of battle.
When it ended, he was standing.
Bleeding. Bruised.
But alive.
"…I've surpassed my limit."
---
The Exit
He limped toward the gate's end. A massive stash of loot waited there — clearly the den's horde chamber.
Crystals. Rare cores. Spellstones.
He packed all he could into his Inventory. His hands trembled.
When he stepped back into the alley… it was already morning.
---
Market & Resolve
The same vendor saw him and gasped.
"You're serious?! All this? And barely a scratch? Kaito… you're getting used to this."
Akira smiled faintly.
He got a fat stack of bills — more than enough to pay off one major portion of his father's treatment.
---
Walking Toward the Hospital
His bruised face hidden under a cap.
In his chest pocket, the relic hummed faintly.
As he walked down the street, he clenched his fist.
"As long as I have this…"
"…I'll keep growing stronger."
And he didn't stop walking.
He headed for the Hospital.