Walk Beside Me

" Close your eyes, this will be a little bloody" Daniel advised.

" It's alright, I can't kill but I can watch someone die, I'm strange. . . right?" Josh awkwardly laughed.

". . ." Daniel didn't respond for he doesn't know how to react. "Kyle" he called and a sword appeared in his right hand, he jumped super high till he reached the worm and chop it into cubes a size as one's thumb.

Josh shivered, it wasn't just a " little bloody", it was a bloodbath.

" H-hey, even for a monster, isn't that a little too mean" Josh said, feeling sympathy for the stinky creature that just got chopped in a form of a tofu.

". . ." Daniel ignored him and continued to walk in the dark muddy path with Josh following behind.

" Ace, did you just ignore me?"

". . ."

" Eh? Am I annoying?"

". . ."

Josh stopped following him, it was the first time he felt hurt for being ignored, even though he isn't the type who likes attention, after all, a true friend's silence hurts more than an enemy's rough words.

" Josh, don't follow me" Daniel said from afar but Josh could hear it from the silence of the cave.

" WhAt?" Josh's voice broke, it's like he chug down a whole bunch of pins when he heard those words.

" Don't walk behind me, I may not lead, don't walk in front of me, I may not follow; walk beside me, and let's tackle this troublesome game and hit the sack!" Daniel said with a hint of snickering.

Josh's eyes beamed, " No way!! You were teasing me aren't you?!" Josh said and ran to Daniel and walk beside him.

" Pfft, Who knows, I just had this urge of bullying you out of the blue" Daniel shrugged after chuckling. What he said isn't a lie but it's not the whole truth either, he just wanted to cheer him up.

And so, the following stinkworm that get on their way got chopped into cubes like tofu by Daniel, while Josh just cheered him up saying he's like Levi from "Attack on Titan" because he's small while his enemy is gigantic. Though Daniel won't get offended by blunt words uttered by someone so kind, innocent, and insensitive sometimes.

. . .

As they walk deeper into the dungeon, a cement-like mud door blocked their path. Two eggs lie in front of the entrance, it started to shake and crack.

Two baby stinkworm is born! To get past through, they must kill them both.

" You said you will show me your skills right? Hit then" said Daniel, challenging.

" Is it alright though? It's just a baby" Said Josh.

" Don't worry, like humans, the faster they die; the faster they reincarnate, but since this is a game, then the faster it dies; the faster they will respawn"

" Well, if you say s-" Josh was bit by the baby stinkworm with its small two sharp teeth, blood rolled down from his palm to his fingers.

Daniel smelled blood and he was triggered.

[Player Sanchez glanced at you with the eyes of a predator, his 'hunger' has been awakened, keep a distance between the two of you if you have a raw wound or open wound, be aware that once he gets to taste human meat, he will be continuing to eat 'it' as long as possible, as a friend of his, please make sure to not make any contact with other people or he will attack them without hesitation unlike what he's doing to you]

[He's smart, what he felt by your light tap is like a pour of acid, he thought that biting you will feel like eating nails or worse]

'eh?' Josh was confused by the sudden notification of the screen which appeared before him that only he can see.

" Kyle" Daniel called and his single-edged sword appeared in his hand, he then split the baby stinkworm into halves.

" Don't show sympathy to beings that don't understand the word "mercy" " Daniel advised. " Now, kill the other one".

" Eh?. . .ah!, Okay!" Josh said with an understanding face.

[Holy creation: Sword]

He drew his hands forwards and a white sword emitting a holy light was made, he gripped laxly with his trembling hands and swing.

The sword flew towards Daniel, if Daniel didn't dodge he would probably be headless now.

" Uwaaahh!! S-sorry!!! It wasn't on purpose, really! I'm sorry!" Josh apologized in panic.

' That almost killed me. . .'

" . . .I think your muscle coordination when using your hand is . . . A little . . . Forget it, just use your feet" Daniel suggested, Daniel knew that Josh specialized in using his feet since the beginning because he almost died when Josh ran down the stairs that almost killed them if not for Max.

" O-okay! B-but aren't you mad? I almost killed you?!" Josh asked because Daniel is still calm. Moreover, Daniel only has 1 HP, it'd no surprise if he dies with just a scratch.

" As you can see, I'm still breathing so why should I be mad?. Forget about me, kill that baby or we'll(I'll) never be able to finish this dungeon and go to sleep"

" Even so-"

Daniel sliced the baby stinkworm's body into half, he can't wait anymore for Josh to kill it himself.

' I'M SORRY!' Josh apologized sincerely to the baby worm he was suppose to kill.

" . . . Sanch-"

" Ace" Daniel interrupted what Josh is about to say.

" Ace-sa-"

" Just Ace" Daniel cut him off again.

". . . .Ace, does sleeping the only thing in your mind?" Asked Josh.

". . .No. But sleeping is the most effective way to subside my 'hunger' " Daniel answered honestly.

" Eh?! It's true?! You eat humans?!?!!" Josh asked surprisedly.

" No, not yet. . .probably. Are you afraid of me now? It's no use lying because you used the game itself to know earlier and lying isn't really my thing" Daniel opened the mud door.

" . . . No, not really. The game also told me that you're afraid of biting me hehe" Josh smiled, teasing Daniel a little as a form of cheer, he walked beside Daniel inside the stinkworm Queen's nest.

" I'm not afraid, I'm just not a fan of pain" Daniel chuckled softly, leading the way as he use Josh as the light.

" Really?" Josh teased as he ruffled Daniel's hair, he realized that it would hurt Daniel so he quickly recoiled his hands.

" What? worried about me? How naive." Daniel turned around, his eyes completely changed! From matte black to beaming red.

" Are you alright? Your eyes are a little odd" said Josh.

". . . That's because I'm hun-"

" Hiiiiiiiiiingh"

He didn't finish his response when a shrieking sound echoed inside the whole nest, making their ears ring.

As they search for the queen from all the compiled eggs inside, another shriek was heard.

"Hiiiiiiiiiingh"

With that last screech, they looked up and saw the Stinkworm Queen.

" Whoa! Disgusting!" both said at the same time as they stare at a giant, stinky female stinkworm, its womb occupied ⅔ of her body where the eggs can be seen through, added with her mouth covered in blood and uneven sharp teeth, it truly is disgusting.

*Crack* (the sound of the stinkworm Queen's self-esteem breaking apart)

The queen unattached herself from the ceiling and look at them, craving for their meat, drooling but her eyes shows fire from anger from being called disgusting.

" You said you don't kill, wouldn't that make your stats a display?, how about breaking a few parts of that thing?, for example - the face" Daniel pointed at the stinkworm Queen. Josh doesn't kill but he do know how to fight and make someone cry.

Josh smiled, looking innocent but surely not. His sneakers glow white as he jumped higher than the giant stinkworm Queen. He kicked the head of the queen down from above and kicked it left and right then landed on the ground gently.

" Not bad" Daniel commented with a clapping hands.

" Haha, sorry bud, you're not the only one who can fight" Josh grinned, unlike his usual self that looks cheerful and sweet, he's in the other mode where he fights and acts maturely.

" You sure do know how to perform according to expectations" Daniel said and run towards the weak queen with Kyle in his right hand.

" Haha" Josh run towards it as well to finish it with their combo attack as the finishing blow.

The white-colored Stinkworm queen turned purple from mushed muscles and body covered in its blood(her blood is color purple)

[ Clearing the E ranked dungeon.

reward money: 10,000xen]

[ 5,000xen has been transfered to both of your XEN card]

The two fist-bumped and head-butted.

" Ow!" both groaned.

Daniel felt his head was about to explode and his hands getting poured by boiling oil from their headbutt and fistbump.

Daniel clicked "The Room" on the options where the system asked them where they want to be transferred, and when they arrived, Josh went to someone he knew after asking for permission.

[The "Transportation" payment will cause you 100xen each time you change from place to place,

Money deducted from your card:100xen]

' Troublesome' Daniel thought about his own hell of a creation.

. . .

After Daniel finished bathing, Josh was still not there.

There was a knock on the door and a familiar voice was heard, it's Mako Himekata, his first girlfriend!.

' Just when I'm about to sleep . . .' Daniel whined