7 Red Strings of Fate

『Distance From Target: 105 Meters In-Depth 』

『Current Location: 5th Floor, Level I 』

Azuma winced as an abrupt static noise pierced his ear. The ringing inside took some time to fade back. It was the sound of the system adjusting to the unsteady Abyssal enviro

His heart slightly sank from an uneasy exhilaration.

"Aye, this one was easy!"'

"I will take the bones, the claws are free if any of you want!"

"Is that poop?"

The hunters laughed and chatted as usual even as they killed a mob of abyssal hounds. Some shared what they hunted, the others kept their victory to themselves and the rest sighed in disappointment.

Azuma realized how the dangers get greatly reduced with the hunters, a certain part of them did the most fighting with ease and claimed the best valuables.

He directed his flashlight towards the end of the tunnel.

There was a large cavern with the roof covered in jaw-like limestones, drops of water slowly trickled down from there and plopped over the thin layer of water on the ground.

A cerulean moss spread on the base of the cavern..

The water gurgled and pooled together like a malformed human-made of slime.

"Alright, now the real hunt begins."

Raptor smirked and wiped off the blood from his face

Azuma's gaze became determined. He had spent all his life trying to learn about the Abyss. The time was for him to use his knowledge was finally there.

Everyone took out their weapons, and Azuma too brought out his knife before they all charged forward as one.

『 The Plasm Wraith I Detected! 』

Three minutes later, Azuma was sitting over a rock as Haru wrapped his hand in a bandage. A few hunters were dealing with the remaining five or so wraiths.

A flicker of concern appeared over Haru's gaze, "Hold on, the pain will be gone in no time."

"Thanks."

Azuma awkwardly nodded.

The fight was rather one-sided, he saw the huge and strong hunters dealing all the damage and killing wraiths and Azuma felt like it would be too much waste of time for him to bother with the fight.

He wasn't there to collect riches, it will be best to save his energy.

And so Azuma quietly sat over a rock and noted how despite having the best upgrades like seekers, the hunters were still a force to be reckoned with.

But can they survive in the deeper Abyss?

It was then Azuma saw a slimy substance floating near his feet. He poked it once before grabbing it in his hands to examine what it was.

The answer came to him when the slime burned through his gloves and almost his skin.

『Skeleton Hound I Detected! 』

『 Master Viper II Detected! 』

『 Rocket Racoon II Detected! 』

The group encountered bizarre abyssal beasts on their way and the end was always the same. A certain portion of hunters fought and the gains were sometimes divided and sometimes not.

Azuma noted how most of the hunters were disappointed because it was hard to find abundant or valuable riches in Level One.

He flinched at a sudden sharp pain.

"Well that looks deep," Haru murmured as she prepared to stitch the wound near his neck, "Take this, the pain will lessen."

Azuma really didn't want to bother her the third time but then there was a snake that coiled around his arm into a suffocating grip. His teary eyes made Haru speechless.

"Okay all done!" Haru sighed, "Please be careful, Azuma–kun."

Unfortunately, their interactions became frequent the deeper they descended.

"What the heck?! Is that a rat dangling from your ear???" Haru almost shouted.

"Oh dear… there's so much blood…"

"Er, maybe you should not return to the Abyss."

"...again?"

"But you're not even fighting!"

"Um, Azuma–kun… why did you even descend?"

"Nothing really," Azuma sheepishly smiled, "You have been a great help, Haru–san. Sorry to bother you."

"You're bothering yourself more."

"It's alright!"

Haru pointed at the band-aid over his cheek, then at the bandage on his wrist, and then at the scratches near his neck, the bloodstains on his right arm.

She said no word but her point was clear.

The injuries Azuma inflicted upon himself were drastically a lot compared to other hunters and Haru. They all killed the beasts with ease and collected the few resources and abyssal riches they could find.

But Azuma was covered in scars.

"I didn't want to push myself," he sincerely stated.

"Yeah right," Haru rolled her eyes and offered her hand as she got up, "We are about to return so please don't get yourself injured anymore."

"Roger captain, don't worry—"

"I am not worrying," her lips formed a small pout, she liked to do that a lot, "My supplies are limited."

It was hard to tell how many hours passed since they entered the Abyss. The first level was heavily infested with mobs.

Azuma was one of the only three hunters who stayed on the sidelines while the others fought and killed dozens of monsters. He noticed how Haru was exceptional in her marksmanship for a while before his attention was distracted by one thing or other.

There were so many things in Abyss that he had never seen before, the harmless small beasts, a bewitching and sometimes scary flora, fungus, and whatnot.

He had always been a curious soul and loved to explore different things.

Well, the result wasn't good but that result was something Azuma experienced a lot in his beta testing job.

At least he didn't break any bones.

And if he thoroughly explores these caverns, it would help his system gather crucial intel. The step would make his future expeditions less rough.

Even if he now carried a temporary license, Azuma knew he would become a full-fledged seeker.

He has to be.

"Damn how long have we been here?" Misaki asked, looking slightly anxious.

"Six hours," someone replied.

"We should be back in a couple of hours," Raptor muttered while cleaning his machine gun, "Any longer and the radiations would start to work up."

There were nods of approval but the uneasy silence amongst the hunters was more noticeable.

They haven't found many valuables and since it was a group hunt, the resources found were divided and became fewer.

Some of them felt left out because only a certain part of the group has actually fought.

And Azuma was conflicted with both of those emotions.

How long will it take before he can descend again?

Above all…

『Distance From Target: 14 Meters In Depth 』

『Current Location: 19th Floor, Level I 』

He was so close.

But he won't be able to return later, the subway car won't wait for just a person.

His eyes remained over the navigator as he took a few steps forwards, descending a moss-covered stairway. A sudden notification made his mind go blank.

『Distance From Target: 5 Meters In Depth 』

Was the navigator broken? He had taken only a few steps.

But what if…

"Oi! Kid!" Raptor yelled, "What are you spacing out for? Hurry over!"

"You will get killed."

Gus frowned, having noticed how Azuma was the only one who got so many wounds when the boy has not even fought.

"I found something," Azuma replied as he noticed a red thread near the darkness of the cave and leaned to examine it.

Haru had a worried look beside him but then it somewhat paled.

"That's blood."

"Spider silk," Azuma added, "And yeah, blood."

"I doubt spiders were supposed to be on the Level One," Gus frowned.

Azuma lifted the silk under the dim glow of flashlights. The read thread glistened and descended beneath his feet through a small crack.

『Distance From Target: 1 Meter In Depth 』

『Current Location: 19th Floor, Level I 』

"It might lead to a dungeon," he called out, "Abyssal spiders burrow there sometimes!"

Dungeons were the remnants of old architecture which were now used as nests of the abyssal beats. Most of the dungeons were rich in abyssal riches and held greater treasures.

Along with great dangers.

"I am not sure…we should perhaps leave the dungeons alone." Misaki hesitated.

"You don't have to come," Azuma agreed, "But I am going in there. There will be good treasure, this expedition has offered us little to nothing."

Raptor laughed, "You will need knights guarding you, My Lord! Are you sure your excellency won't overwhelm the petty dungeon with his mighty aura?"

The hunters burst into laughs as Haru muttered something incoherent under her breath.

"Well the caverns were too easy for me," she replied being more used to the riskier seeker expeditions, "It will be good to fight an actual boss so I am coming."

Gus frowned, "A dungeon full of treasures will belong to just the three of you then…"

"No one's stopping you from coming Gus!" Raptor laughed, "Step aside kiddo, let me blow up that hole!"

His machine gun activated as light gathered around the nuzzle, Azuma and Haru hastily moved away as dozens of bullets were bombarded over a single place.

The ground couldn't hold on for long and it collapsed down with a loud rumble.

Azuma wasn't in the safest place, his eyes widened when the crack spread beneath his feet and the rocks tumbled down, plunging him down in the darkness.

"I asked him to move…" Raptor said as he scratched his neck and the hunters slowly gathered around the gap of the ground.

A screech cut through the silence of darkness as Azuma slammed a pickaxe against whatever he could find. This caused the gravity to be merciful to him.

Only the sleeve on his left arm was ripped from the impact, the bruise was bearable.

He panted heavily and tried to get on his feet but failed.

"Is it alright down there?"

A faint echo called out to him.

Azuma took in a deep breath, fingers clenching as the pain flared up even further. "Yeah!"

He yelled back.

『Alert! Target Location Reached!』

『Current Location not in the database.』

Azuma's fingers trembled over the axe, eyes glancing around in the darkness. His heart was numb from an exhilaration tinged with anxiety.

That's when he noticed a sharp pain around his ankle. The red spider silk was coiled around, slowly tightening its grip as the thread cut into his skin.

『 Emergency Alert! System Disconnected! 』

His blood ran cold.