Chapter Nine

Alright, let's just calm down for a second and carefully examine this.

My forehead is itching a bit due to how much I scrubbed the eye symbol so that it would disappear. Of course, that didn't work.

Listen, it looks horrible, okay? I don't want that thing permanently on my forehead.

So, Code Zero…

"Hmm..." I can see another vein appearing on her forehead. Does she hate the name, or does she just not want me to call her by that name?

Ah, whatever. So, tell me, what the hell is this symbol?

"I've already told thee," She said calmly. "It's thy third eye."

Third eye my ass, I can't see anything with this!

No- Let's stop this, no need to get agitated so easily.

"Haah..." With a sigh, she continued, "I believe it was unlocked due to thy fight with 'Ivy'. As for what it does, plenty."

...Such as?

"I can't give you all the detail, because I myself don't know all of them. I know only the basics based on what my mistress told me. For starters, It can amplify thy perception speed, making things much faster than thee appear slower."

That's... neat? So that's what happened with Ivy? I thought it was just adrenaline, to be honest. Wait- that doesn't make sense, I already experienced something like this in the real world!

"Heh- Real world," She snickered and muttered under her breath.

Woman, do you think I'm deaf or what? What does that supposed to mean?!

"Surely you should've noticed that thy previous experience wasn't exactly similar to this one. This one felt more vivid, did it not? Furthermore, this one can be activated at will.

Oi, oi, this is nice and all, and does indeed seem different, but can we just take a second and go back over that whole 'real world' thing? Don't dodge that question!

"I don't know what is thee talking about. Is thee sure thy mind is not broken and is functioning correctly?"

Hey! Don't use my own tricks against me!

Ugh, screw this. I'm sure I'll know about it someday.

I hope.

So... how can I activate it? Last time it worked was when I was pretty much in a life-or-death situation, and I kinda don't like that. You said it activates at will, right? Do I just shout 'Third Eye!' and it will work?

"Sure."

Really? Well, here goes nothing.

"Third E-"

"Of course that's not how it works!"

Jesus! Okay, okay, you don't have to shout.

"Hmph, although I don't know the exact specifics, my mistress said that the Chosen One, in others, thee, would be able to use it via a simple thought, not some foolish shout, as long as their mind is truly calm. Also, with it, thy processing speed would increase, making to so-"

Woah woah, wait. Go back a bit.

"...The processing speed?"

No, further back.

"Using thy third eye via a thought?"

No! The Chosen One stuff! What the hell does that mean?! You told me you don't know the reason why I was dragged into this world!

"Oh, uh, see... My Mistress mentioned thee being a Chosen One of some sort, which by itself would've been enough to drag thee here, but she also stated that it wasn't the reason why thee is here."

...

The Chosen One?

Really?

Shit, woman, I'm not sure what kind of thing I'm supposed to excel at, but I couldn't even properly make food until like two years ago. Did you know that fire can sometimes be lit on water?

Trust me, that happened to me.

"..."

Also, I'm kinda pissed that your mistress is all "Oh, let's kidnap the supposed Chosen One, and put him into the middle of a building infested with monsters that want to violate and potentially kill him, without any guides or warnings whatsoever until like, a day later, I'm sure he won't mind."

Why yes, thank you very much, I do fucking mind!

"Ehm, It seems our time is up. This dimension is still not complete, as such, it needs more time, and it's unstable due to thy soul being here. Additionally, thee is finally waking up from thy sleeping, as such, I shall send thee to the human dimension. I've already given thee a few gifts to help with thy journey. Until then, Ryu."

Suddenly, pitch-black darkness began eating in the room and reaching toward me. Wait, no, nothing is happening to the room, it's my vision! I'm blacking out, somehow.

Wait, wait, I'm still not done with the questions! And, my whining, too. But that's not important! Wait wait wait-

---

"Agh shit!"

With a shout, I opened my eyes and immediately sat up.

... Familiar walls, walls that are similar to that monster-infested building. No- to be exact, it was similar to that resting room in the previous floor.

The furniture is the same as well, and the bed that I'm lying on is similar as well.

And of course, the most essential part, Eve sitting on the ground, looking at me with a slightly surprised face.

...Ah, not cool, Code Zero or whatever, not cool.

I rub my temples and let out a sigh. I shouldn't have blown up that hard on her. Oh well, at least I feel a bit better.

"Haah... Thanks, Eve, for saving me."

"Woof!" Her tail began to wag frantically, and she let out a woof full of happiness. Thankfully, she didn't try to get into my pants this time.

"I also forgive you for kissing me while I was asleep."

"W-Woof?!" Her face suddenly blanked, just like a child being caught red-handed when they try to take cookies in the middle of the night.

She stayed like this for a few moments, until I finally head-patted her, and she let out a few barks in response, clearly delighted.

She's adorable, to be honest. I can't be mad at her.

Well, I'm here now. I didn't get to ask all my questions, but I at least got answers to a few. Besides, I can always just go back asleep If I wanted to talk to her.

Not now, though. I'm not sure how Eve did it, perhaps most monsters- or, demons- on this floor aren't that aggressive, but I don't think she can do anything against THAT boss. The snake lady, or the boss of the game, to be exact, killed almost everyone around here according to Damien.

For some reason, I wasn't that worried about Damien. I'm not exactly sure of their relationship, but it seems Ivy knows him, quite well in fact. I just hope she doesn't suck his soul or anything. Not like I can do anything about it, after she launched me at the wall with ridiculous speed. That's just asking for death.

That reminds me...

I look down at my shirt, and sure enough, the red stains were there. I'm not exactly sure if this is the cause of Ivy launching me at Mach speed, or if it's because of me activating this third eye stuff.

Speaking of which-

I closed my eyes and began to take deep breaths. She said I need to calm my mind, be free from distractions, or whatever.

But I'm calm right now. At least, I think so.

...

...

...?

No, Eve, stop licking my hand, I'm trying to focus, god damn it!

...

...!

Huh? After focusing for a while, I felt something strange, as if my entire body was being heated up. Albeit, barely.

I turn to look at Eve, but I can't move my head. I can only, barely, move my eyes.

Eve is just sitting there, staring at me. But something felt off, she didn't seem 'alive', she seemed almost like a statue, not moving even a millimeter. I looked at the clock, and sure enough, even its ticking sound disappeared. Nothing was moving, not even its second hand was moving.

This one is a bit different from my encounter with Ivy. I can't feel my blood flow, my heartbeat, my neurons, or anything. Perhaps that time was just a mixture of both this and adrenaline. But still, It's nothing to scoff at.

Oh, this is nice. No- it's fantastic! Of course, It still sucks I can't move my body in this state, but I can think, that's a huge plus by itself. If I get into a fight, or even something mundane, I can simply use this to check my options, check the scenarios, and predict many things!

This is-

*Splot*

*Drip*

Uh...?

"Woof!" Eve's bark almost scared the living hell out of me. What the hell? What's this, everything is already back to normal. Was it because I was too excited, or what?

"Awoo!"

"What is it, Eve?"

"WOOF!"

"What-"

*Drip*

...?

Oh, crap.

I gently touched my face, and sure enough, there was blood dripping from my nose. I looked at the shirt once more, and it was becoming even more bloody. I look like a serial killer now, I just need a creepy mask, and I'll be perfect to star in an average horror movie.

Shit, really? I can only use it for a few moments, and that's it? Not only that, but it will also cause a nosebleed. What happens if I use it again? Just more nosebleeds, or is something more severe going to happen?

No- let's stop, for now. Even a few moments are better than nothing.

But shit, I need some-

"Wumff!" Eve let out a muffled bark, as a roll of paper tissues was in her mouth. I was too fixated on the third eye ability that I didn't even notice her move to get me this.

I let out a small 'Thank you.' and take it.

At least I know the reason for the nosebleed wasn't Ivy launching me, as surprising as that is. Oh yeah, how come I don't feel any pain in my body? That throw should've at least broken a bone or two.

Ah, whatever, let's not jinx it. I feel great right now, albeit a bit tired. I didn't exactly have the best beauty sleep, and I only slept for two hours or so.

After rubbing the blood off, I got up from the bed. Since I managed to get some sleep, and this new ability, this should at least help me a bit.

To be honest with you, I'm a bit worried about what Zero said, that whole Chosen One stuff. Regardless, that shouldn't deter me from my main objective.

For now, my objective remains the same; get the hell out of here, and everything else can be sorted later.