Global Announcement

[An announcement will be made to all beta players.]

"a global announcement to all players? That's tricky." He thought, as a frown formed on his face.

[Would you like to reveal your name?]

[Yes/no]

"phew, almost thought I was done for a second there," He wiped, a nonexistent sweat bead from his forehead.

"No." Arthur selected, without hesitation.

He didn't have enough power in the real world, and nor did he have enough power in this world.

"It's too risky, especially since the people I trade with will see my name." He muttered silently.

[Global Announcement!]

[Attention to all players!]

[Player **** has discovered the first secret realm in armageddon.]

...

"A secret realm?" said a man, with red hair as he fought against a few level 4 monsters alone.

Somewhere far away from Arthur, a woman with silver hair opened her eyes.

"Interesting." She muttered, as a smirk formed on her face.

Her beautiful ocean eyes slowly closed again.

...

Arthur felt the familiar feeling of teleportation as the cave faded away, replaced by the shadowed, dense growth of an ancient forest.

"What is this place," He thought, glancing at the trees around him stretched high, their branches twisted and scary.

There was barely any light let through due to the dense trees.

He glanced around uneasily, the forest was very strange. Every so often, he could hear faint sounds of screaming or crying in the distance.

"...damn it, I'm already regretting coming here," he muttered, feeling a shiver crawl up his spine.

The place had a vibe he did not like at all.

"Why does it feel so… creepy?"

He took a steadying breath, determined not to let the eerie atmosphere get to him.

'Come on, Arthur, you can't always remain weak,' he thought, clenching his fists. "I need to get stronger,"

He gave his cheeks a light slap with both hands, as if to shake off the unease, and forced himself to focus.

To his relief, Hank and Neko were still by his side.

Hank sat alert on his shoulder, his eyes scanning the trees with a hawk's sharp focus, while Neko walked along at her own pace, her nonchalant expression back.

As they moved deeper into the forest, a faint noise drifted through the trees.

"…Crrreeak…"

Arthur stopped in his tracks, glancing around for the source of the sound.

"What… what are those noises?" he whispered, casting a quick glance at Neko.

Surely, she'd have some idea—after all, she was the one who led him here in the first place.

But Neko merely looked up at him, unimpressed, her gaze dismissive as she resumed her casual stroll.

Arthur sighed.

He buried his face in his hands, his palms pressing against his eyes as if to block out the absurdity before him.

"Great. Perfect time to go back to acting like you don't care," he muttered, rubbing his forehead. "Thanks a lot, Neko."

A small rustling sound caught his attention next, like leaves brushing against each other in a soft, persistent whisper.

He quickly turned around his dagger in hand ready for an altercation.

After waiting for a while, nothing happened.

"Shhhh…shhhhh…"

It was so faint that he almost missed it, but there it was again.

The noise seemed to come from somewhere just ahead of him, as though something or someone was whispering through the trees.

Arthur couldn't shake the feeling that he was being watched by something but he didn't know what or where it was.

"Alright, this place is seriously messed up," he muttered, gripping his dagger closer to his chest.

The forest around him seemed almost alive, the shadows seemed to move in ways that made him question his own senses.

"Am I hallucinating?" He thought as he could've sworn he saw a shadow move.

A cold breeze suddenly travelled towards them, sending chills down his spine as it rustled the leaves above.

"...scrratch…scrape…"

Hank let out a sharp shriek, alerting Arthur to move off to their left.

Arthur squinted, but all he could make out were the vague shapes of tree branches.

"Hank stay on alert, alright?" Arthur said, his voice heavy.

Hank gave a low shriek in response, his eyes scanning their surroundings.

Arthur looked down at Neko, who was now sitting calmly, staring straight into the dark expanse ahead.

"...creeeeak…snap…"

Another sound echoed again from behind, making him turn around quickly.

But as he turned around...

"There is nothing there?" 

"Ugh, this must be a ghost playing games with me," He muttered in frustration.

"Just show up and fight, stop playing these petty tricks," He spat out, glancing around in slight fear.

Despite the slight fear, he took a deep breath and continued, his footsteps crunching softly on tree branches.

The ground was uneven, littered with decaying leaves and vines that seemed to move slightly with each step.

Arthur gritted his teeth, doing his best to shake off the anxiety creeping up his spine. "This place feels like it's testing me," he murmured. "But I can't turn back... it's too late."

As Hank and Arthur walked around vigilant for any sound, or movement.

Neko had resumed her leisurely stride, occasionally glancing back as if checking to make sure Arthur was following.

'What lies deeper in this place?' he thought, glancing into the darkness of the forest.

As they walked into the forest, Hank suddenly shrieked and attacked a shadow of a tree.

-6HP

"Hank?" Arthur got confused, seeing his summon attacking a shadow but his face later showed a shock.

"T-The shadow moved??" He thought, not believing what he was looking at.

"It's really moving, the shadow is moving." He said, rubbing his eyes.

After Hank attacked the shadow, Arthur was able to see the information.

[Shadow Slave]

Level: 3

Health Points: 40

Physical Damage: 11

[Details:] A slave long forgotten in the realms of the vast universe.

Glancing at the shadow information provided by the system, he frowned.

"Shadow slave... really?" He muttered, "I mean that's cool, especially since it's quite sunless here."

"Seems like I will be committing a horrendous act that many will hate," He thought, as a smirk appeared on his face.

"Time to level up, Hank you ready?" He said as he charged in at the shadow.

...

[You have slain a Shadow Slave]

[Magic wand (Uncommon) has been dropped]

"Hmm, so there are new item drops in this area. Interesting," He said, as he placed the magic wand in the backpack.

"Let's go," He gestured for Hank, as he continued forward.

On the way, he met with a few more Shadow Slaves that he beat with Hank without any issues.

"What is this?" He said examining the narrow path, that was in front of him.

"Well, I have no option but to get in since I can't go back anyway," He shook his head and entered.

Arthur continued down the narrow path, pushing branches aside and stepping carefully over roots that were embedded in the soil.

The forest around him was silent and eerie, its shadows swallowing every atom of light that dared to filter through.

He could feel an odd, oppressive aura in the air, it was like an invisible hand on his shoulder.

After walking for what felt like an eternity, he stopped, frowning as he scanned his surroundings.

'Something feels off…' He thought.

He couldn't place it at first.

Everything looked as it had ten minutes ago—the same trees, the same silence, the same strange feeling of being watched.

"Yeah, something is definitely wrong," He muttered, as he checked his surroundings.

He quickly took out his dagger and marked a tree on his right with an 'X' shape.

After marking it, he continued walking and 10 minutes later he was still walking and everything felt the same yet again.

"I can't be at the same place, I haven't seen the mark at all," He thought.

Although everything pointed to him being in the same place as before, the mark he placed on the tree wasn't there.

"Wait!" He thought, when something suddenly clicked in his mind glancing at the trees next to him

With a slight frown, Arthur reached into his inventory and pulled out a [Stone Sword (Uncommon)] he didn't care much about.

Crouching down, he placed it on the forest floor and marked the nearby tree with a quick scratch from his dagger.

"Alright, let's see what's going on here," he muttered to himself, glancing at Hank, who had settled on a branch above him, and Neko, who was busy licking her paws a few steps behind.

He moved forward, letting his feet carry him down the path once more, his senses on high alert as every fibre of his body was alert.

He walked, counting each step and second in his mind, focusing on every twist and turn of the forest trail, determined to make some progress.

Ten minutes passed, and Arthur felt the ground level off as he approached a clearing.

But as he looked down at the forest floor, his heart skipped a beat.

There, lying on the ground, was the [Stone Sword] he'd placed earlier, and the scratch on the nearby tree he had made was gone.

"Oh no… this isn't good," he muttered, horror creeping in.

He knelt down, his knees touching the forest ground as his fingers hovered over the [Stone Sword] as if it might vanish.

He'd been walking in circles—no, it was worse.

Somehow, he'd been walking forward for ten minutes, only to end up exactly where he'd started.

His mind reeled, racing through possibilities.

'Is this some kind of illusion? Or… a trap?'

Arthur gritted his teeth, unwilling to accept that he was trapped so easily.

He stood up, determination hardening on his features.

"Alright, let's try this again," he said, scanning the trees with a keener eye.

This time, he pulled a piece of bark from a nearby tree and dropped it onto the path, marking it with an X.

He nodded to himself and moved forward again, making sure to remember each detail of his surroundings.

He counted his steps and timed himself again, glancing back occasionally to reassure himself that he was moving farther away from the marking.

Ten minutes later, Arthur paused and looked down at the ground.

His breath hitched.

The marked bark was gone, not lying on the path next to the [Stone Sword].

"Damn it! What's going on?" Arthur muttered, his frustration increasing.

He kicked some soil away in anger, but it only thudded softly.

Hank, sensing his distress, let out a soft shriek, but even his reassuring presence couldn't quell the unsettling feeling crawling up Arthur's spine.