Break(2)

The leader shouted that if anyone wanted food, they could come and freely get some.

I didn't think much of it before, but it was a really nice gesture.

Everybody ignored the elderly except for that group. At the same time, I felt a little bad that I forgot the leader's name.

'I definitely have to remember his name this time'.

I was eating an energy bar and lying on the ground, looking at the full moon.

'Would the wolf be stronger at night?'

The leader approached me.

"I heard from the others that you were the one who brought that box of food". 

"Yeah, that was me". I took a bite of the energy bar, and he continued.

"Did you do it alone?" He said with a tone of disbelief.

I nodded while continuing to eat my energy bar. He probably couldn't believe it, as he also knew how to get the box. It was a very tiresome task.

You had to exit the forest, which takes 3 hours at normal walking speed, and then come back the same way. which, in total, is about 6 hours of travel.

At the same time, you also needed to carry the box of food back.

While encountering the monsters you meet on the way. Well, for me, it was very easy, as I could run front and back within an hour.

"Do you have a strong skill?"

"You could say so".

He seemed to be thinking for a moment before he responded.

"Thank you for bringing food to the people here; not a lot of people would do that. I am very grateful, and I hope you can keep protecting them". He said with a grateful tone.

Now he was probably going to use his skill on me to get me to join his group.

But as I had that thought, he turned around and was about to leave.

What? Normally, he would use his skill on me to get me to join his group. 

What was different this time?

Is it because I helped the people today, and that's why he didn't use his skill?

"Wait, what is your name?"

He stopped in his tracks and turned towards me.

"Park Junsu, what about yours?"

"Kim Taeho". I responded briefly.

He left after hearing my name.

That's right his name was Park Junsu. I will make sure not to forget this time.

As time passed, I closed my eyes.

I could feel the wind hitting my face and body. It was a little chilly, but not that bad. I enveloped my body with mana, and a comfortable, warm energy washed over me.

I smelled the grass, and I could hear the trees swaying back and forth.

And slowly, like this, I started to drift away.

***

I was in the same grassy field that I was used to seeing. That is when I noticed a person, but this person was someone very familiar to me.

'Am I seeing myself right now?'

I realized that I was seeing myself standing in the grassy field, but it wasn't 'me'. It was like I was watching myself from a ghost's point of view, and I had no control over 'me'.

That's when I noticed that the white shirt I used to wear was not white anymore.

Instead, it was dark red and full of blood. I slowly floated in front of him to see 'my' face.

It was my usual face, but there was something different.

There was no emotion in that face; it was void of anything at all. His body was moving, indicating that he was alive, but his eyes were completely soulless, with no life in them.

Why do I look like that? It was my face, but I have never made that expression before.

"Why did you do this?"

I heard a faint whisper of pain, and as I tried to find the source, I noticed below 'me' that there was a body with a sword pierced through his back.

His face was tilted as he tried to look at me, but he could only stare at my lower body.

He tried to lift it higher, but he couldn't because of the sword that was piercing his back to the ground.

"Why?" A tone that was both confused and hopeless came out of him.

That is when I noticed that it was Lee Min-ho who was asking. He was the one that was pierced to the ground.

"I had to. I tried everything except for this". A weakened voice came out of 'me'.

"At some point, monsters didn't appear anymore, but we still had to kill 1,000 monsters. That is when I realized, 'Why was the missing number of monsters always the remaining number of players?'"

"I didn't want to believe it, but now, after so long...I am sorry".

The 'me' killed Lee Min-ho.

And after he killed him, I noticed that all around the field were lifeless bodies laying on the ground. It was the people that I was used to seeing since I came to this tower.

Each person was killed in a unique way.

After a moment, a transparent window appeared in front of 'me'.

[Clear Condition]

- Kill 1000 monsters [1000/1000]

[ERROR!]

The transparent window flickered, and a new number showed up.

- Kill 1001 monsters [1000/1001]

The 'me' was looking at the transparent window without making a single sound.

He was staring at it for a few minutes, and I had no idea what he was thinking.

But soon his body was trembling a little, and after a while,

"HAHAHAHAHAHHA!"

A crazy laughter came out abruptly, and he kept laughing until

"IS THIS HOW IT IS?"

"..." No response was given. After a pause, he continued again.

"THERE REALLY WASN'T A WAY TO CLEAR THIS FLOOR AFTER ALL?"

He shouted and yelled, looking for an answer, but there was only silence.

"HAHAHAHA".

He laughed like a madman, and suddenly he turned and locked eyes with me.

"WE WILL NEVER GET OUT OF THIS FLOOR HAHAHA".

He took a dagger out. And he stabbed himself in the eye.

***

Waking up, I noticed that the sun was slowly rising. But I didn't stand up immediately.

I was lying on the ground, shocked by the dream I had. It made me think for a while.

It had been so long since I slept that the first time in a while that I finally did, I had a bad dream.

Usually, when I sleep, I don't really remember my dreams when I wake up. But this dream was deeply engraved in my mind; it was unique.

I started to think about the dream.

The 'me' in the dream realized that the remaining amount of monsters was actually the players on the field.

Consequently, he decided to kill the remaining players, but after killing all the players,

The status window glitched, and suddenly there was still a single monster left to kill. He probably realized that he was the last monster to kill, and therefore he went insane.

'Shit'

That meant that the floor would never be cleared, but luckily, it was just a dream.

I knew it was just a dream. But a little part of me was terrified that it could become true.

Well, there was only one thing I could do. Which was to forget about it.

Right now, I am on my break. And should at least act like it.