Silliness in the Pit

Somehow and unbeknownst to them, suddenly the little old man was behind them while holding their shoulders. The grip was so tight that Xavier and Cytherea could neither dodge nor escape.

Both of their legs suddenly lifted up, momentarily seemed to float for a long time and then changed places in a matter of seconds. Automatically both of their bodies seemed to be carried away by a quick but calming wind. The next second Xavier just realised that he was currently standing on the edge of the well, not even half of his feet were on the surface.

Whereas a few seconds ago they were at a considerable distance from the well. Meanwhile, the goddess looked panicked, her heartbeat was beating fast as if it was about to break. So fast, she didn't even react to anything until both of them were given a little push by the little old man.

Before their bodies fell into the well, he said.

"Think carefully about what you should do before landing at the bottom of the well. Basically, everyone is required to make quick decisions when in a precarious situation. This is not a trick or a lie, but a test to recognise your abilities. Think on your feet and don't let panic shake your composure. Now, the test begins."

As a touching last word, the little old man pushed their backs hard enough for their feet to be in the centre of the well. Instantly, they plunged down at a speed they had not expected. Xavier briefly raised his head, seeing that the little old man's face held no lies behind it. But he still did not understand what the 'test' was when he had plunged so fast and had not thought of anything to land safely.

Closing his eyes and trying to calm down, the former soldier wondered what ridiculous thing could save him from falling from such a dark and bottomless height. Unfortunately he was not a demon or a mythical creature with wings to lower his panic. He wondered if the gods could have wings hidden in their shoulders or not.

But looking at Cytherea who had been shouting loudly and echoing since the plunge, it seemed like the answer was already answered without having to ask. It was a dead end and there was no other way but to grip the wall of the well using both hands and feet to slow down the plunging speed. But what fool would sacrifice both pillars to save himself yet live a life of disability?

Xavier would rather die a ridiculous death than live a life of misery alongside a physical disability. For him, living with a disability is like dying but that life is still half-hovering over his body. Of course, that kind of thinking was not shared by normal people in general.

Half a minute into their plunge, two strange things crossed his mind. Firstly, Cytherea's screams since the beginning had not slowed down in the slightest and even grew louder as if her eardrums were seconds away from bursting. With a bold move, Xavier was forced to take the money pocket containing hundreds of coins, then put it into his narrow and holy mouth. His hand continued to clutch the money pocket despite Cytherea's attempts to remove the filthy object. Scratches, kicks, and punches were thrown in quick succession but the pain was minimal for a former soldier like him.

At that moment, the screaming stopped but Xavier could understand the goddess was ranting and raging even though he could not hear clearly. Thanks to his quick thinking, in fact, his ears did not feel any harmful vibrations anymore. Another strange thing was when she realised that since being pushed into the well, she had been plunging for a long time but did not see the bottom of the well or at least the light that might give them a glimmer of hope. Instead, it was the goddess's hair that became brighter when the surroundings were dark enough.

'I quite understand this well seems to be out of service and very dry. Then what was his intention in pushing us into this well without any explanation? That bastard couldn't have intended to harm us, I'm pretty sure. But what? Is there something at the bottom of the well or some kind of prison for foreigners?'

Whatever the reason, Xavier still did not understand and what to do to save himself. He pulled out the coin pocket in his mouth and asked the goddess. "Hey, can a goddess like you fly or levitate?"

Cytherea did not answer immediately. For three seconds she coughed violently and slightly expelled phlegm and saliva. "If I could fly, I couldn't possibly traverse this world on foot by myself."

Xavier nodded, he understood how useless the goddess in front of him was. Imagined as a child, gods had wings and could fly freely like birds. But his expectations did not match reality and it was quite painful.

After almost despairing of not being able to think of a way to land safely, Xavier could see a very small light at the bottom of the well. It wasn't blinding but it was red hot like a fire ready to burn. His wild mind began to assume that the bottom of the well was hell, but his assumption was laughed off by the goddess who was slowly showing no panic.

With full awareness, Cytherea removed her robe and folded it into a pile of cloth. Then she forcibly pulled out his luggage and used it as a safety net to reduce the risk of disfiguring her body during a rough and brutal landing.

"You think your legs won't break with that kind of protection? Please, use your common sense again. We've been plunging for a while and the gratification speed is increasing. Your body still shatters into pieces, O beautiful and idiotic Goddess."

"At least, let me try. After all, there's nothing we can do but use this as a safety net, right? Even someone who always looks calm like you can't think of anything.

Xavier silently accepted a fact. Despite trying to find a way out, he still could not do anything to save their lives. In the end, there was one way he thought might be quite ridiculous and embarrassing. He opened his legs wide and used the technique and rhythm of floating in the water as a movement to slow down the pace of gratification. Not forgetting his hands flapping regularly like a bird's wings.

"Dumb you, that doesn't help at all!" Cytherea immediately lashed out at him and the light at the bottom of the well grew brighter and they began to feel a thin warmth.