Dungeon Shade 3

𝘏𝘰𝘸 𝘪𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦? With this question in mind, I dropped my sword to the ground. 𝘋𝘰𝘦𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘮𝘦𝘢𝘯 '𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵' 𝘢𝘳𝘵𝘪𝘧𝘪𝘤𝘪𝘢𝘭 𝘮𝘰𝘯𝘴𝘵𝘦𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘨𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘯𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘵 𝘤𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘵𝘦𝘥 𝘪𝘴 𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦?

After the man that looked like an half-dragon appeared from the portal, the other researcher team who was once my subordinate made a decision to tell about what happened in our experiment to the government.

Every country's Leader, in other words, Presidents, decided to create an artificial monster in fear of what happened that day will once again happen in the future.

They also asked me to help them build an ultimate protector for humanity, which I decided to partake until my last project finish so that I can finally sign my resignation.

We used animal, plants and even human as this experiment.

Although I was against this idea, I had no choice but to do as I was told because I could somehow feel that if that dragon-like person went back to this world after breaking free from what he called as 'curse', I'm sure we'll all be dead in a matter of seconds.

But, anyways...

Yes, we managed to create one. But, that artificial monster we created suddenly had an malfunction in it's system and went amok. Almost every people on it's path after it was released for testing almost died. They were all highly injured.

It took us a few weeks just to capture it and sealed it including the lab.

If it weren't for the fact that we got lucky when a humongous cliff that was ten times of it's size fell on top of it, it's unique capabilities would have possibly ended the world.

Why?

I'm the one who created it, I know all of it's capabilities and ability. I created it with limitless potential. It can grow for about 1% every year years, it can even survive a bomb explosion, and many more the more it grows. If ever it had an opponent similar to it's strength, 'that' monster will quickly adapt and grow 0.001% stronger almost every seconds. Meaning, the more it fight, the stronger it gets.

Thankfully, or not actually, although we managed to deactivate and seal it away after being captured including the laboratory to the ground... I'm kind of having second thoughts about that now...

[Project: New World : Version 6.0]

I stared at the letters written around the circular door with languid, or grim expression. It's probably both actually...

I'm sure that we've buried it deep near the earth's core. But how did it got here...? I don't know why but I'm somehow sure that this was related to that man and the portal.

I was still in shock, silently sitting on the floor while also staring at the written letters on the door in front of us when Aries finally called out to me, making me turn my head around.

"Athan... Are you okay?" Aries walked forward to me and helped me get up. After that, I returned my eyes at the door for a few seconds before turning them once again to look at Aries.

The trio on her back had an confused, yet also had an worried expression that was visible on their face while looking at me. Seeing this, although it felt uncomfortable, I sighed and spoke.

"I'm... Fine," I said, this made them feel relieved for a couple of seconds as I continued. "Anyways, we should continue now. I... I think I know how to open that door in front of us?"

When they heard this, the four tilted their heads and asked in synchronizing voice. ""You do?""

"Yes," I answered, scratching the back of my neck lightly. "While I was in my shocked state earlier, I noticed something on the right side of this door that looks to be an hand scan--i mean almost identical to a hand." I thankfully managed to stop myself from saying 'hand scanner'. And when I'm finally done speaking, they nodded in unison.

I walked slowly towards the hand scanner and stopped when I was only a few meters away from it.

Then, after I'm done examining if it would still work, I smirked slightly.

𝘓𝘰𝘰𝘬𝘴 𝘭𝘪𝘬𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘤𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘥 𝘴𝘵𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘧𝘶𝘯𝘤𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘱𝘦𝘳𝘭𝘺 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘯 𝘢𝘧𝘵𝘦𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘰𝘶𝘴𝘢𝘯𝘥𝘴 𝘰𝘧 𝘺𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘴 𝘩𝘢𝘥 𝘱𝘢𝘴𝘴𝘦𝘥. I thought to myself internally.

Since my hand right now is not exactly identical back to my previous life, I had to hack into it's system and add a new handprint to open it using my current hand.

[Loading. Please wait a minute.....]

After a few moments of waiting, it let out a notification to alert me that it's done.

[Ding-!]

𝘍𝘪𝘯𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘺! I thought as I promptly placed my hands on the hand scanner.

-Clang!

-Fuuuu....

"I never thought that I'll be seeing this once again," I murmured to myself, as the door in front of us slowly opened up revealing a much more bigger circular-shaped machine that was placed inside the room.

Although it was now ripped and looked old, seeing the old mark that was placed on top of the room, I was sure that this was the same laboratory I used to use back from my previous life.

𝘐 𝘯𝘦𝘦𝘥 𝘵𝘰 𝘪𝘯𝘷𝘦𝘴𝘵𝘪𝘨𝘢𝘵𝘦 𝘩𝘰𝘸 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘱𝘭𝘢𝘤𝘦 𝘨𝘰𝘵 𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘪𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘥𝘶𝘯𝘨𝘦𝘰𝘯... 𝘈𝘭𝘴𝘰, 𝘪𝘧 '𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵' 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘵𝘢𝘪𝘯𝘦𝘥 𝘮𝘰𝘯𝘴𝘵𝘦𝘳 𝘩𝘢𝘥 𝘢𝘸𝘢𝘬𝘦𝘯𝘦𝘥 𝘧𝘳𝘰𝘮 𝘪𝘵'𝘴 𝘭𝘰𝘯𝘨 𝘴𝘭𝘶𝘮𝘣𝘦𝘳 𝘪𝘯𝘴𝘪𝘥𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘪𝘤𝘦 𝘸𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘪𝘵 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘴𝘦𝘢𝘭𝘦𝘥. With this thoughts in mind, I gestured my hands to order them to follow me.

Soon enough, they nodded their heads in unison. We went inside as I began to look around. The four behind me had a mixed expression; surprised and fascinated as they turned their heads to look at the interior of the gigantic laboratory.

With large portal placed in the middle, the sides of the room only had many monitors surrounding it. The metal walls, which was now covered in outgrown vines, gives off a feeling of an old abandoned building due to it.

"Wow... What is this place?" Xavier asked, not removing his eyes from the mark, that look like an helmet with gun, on top of the room.

With a wry smile, I shook my head and answered, "Don't know. I just got here with you guys, remember?"

Nodding, Xavier then decided to ignore my words as he continues to look around. He had an expression of a child that was about to get a candy from his parent.

𝘞𝘦𝘭𝘭... 𝘐 𝘴𝘩𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘥 𝘣𝘦 𝘨𝘰𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘯𝘰𝘸.

While their attentions was not towards me, I left the four alone and went to walk forward on the small door on the other side of the portal.

-Step.

-Step.

-Step.

After reaching the door, I strengthened my whole arm with mana as I pulled them open.

I was only about a halfway through when I noticed something so I decided to stop.

"...Are you kidding me." Peeping at the half-opened door in front of me, I clenched my fist hard that the handle of the door broke into pieces.

"It's not empty."

But...

Seeing a katana-shaped sword stabbed on the ground and the black aura surrounding it, the only question that my mind managed to muster is...

𝘏𝘰𝘸 𝘪𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘩𝘦𝘭𝘭 𝘪𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘴𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘥 𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘸𝘩𝘦𝘯 𝘪𝘵 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘴𝘶𝘱𝘱𝘰𝘴𝘦𝘥 𝘵𝘰 𝘣𝘦 𝘪𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘴𝘢𝘮𝘦 𝘧𝘭𝘰𝘰𝘳 𝘢𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘵𝘢𝘨𝘰𝘯𝘪𝘴𝘵?

Sighing, I just shook my head and threw the door handle to the ground.

"Welp, let's just get this over with."