For Bruises and Stones Alike

A muffled groan woke me from my deep slumber. I twisted around in half-sleep before opening my eyes. The blue tint of the dungeon sky penetrated all the way inside the cave-like space we had spent the night at—Ah! What's with those groans?!

I sat up and threw my head to the side, just to see a beautiful man. His white hair and red eyes seemed to be stressed even by the rags for clothes he was wearing. One could almost call him a morning angel, were it not for the rope that tied him to an enormous boulder. That bit ruins the whole damn image.

I walked over to the groaning sad fuck with a disgusted face.

"You are into some odd kinks, huh?"

"Ahh, you bastard!! Ouch, ouch... Do you think I am enjoying this?" Eric replied.

"Umm, yeah?"

"Fuck you then! You said first watch! First, watch! Ouch ouch..."

Oh, I see what happened here.

"Haha, you sad fuck. Not only did you actually think we'll take over the watch, but you also tried to wake up Nea? Hahaha," He tried to switch shifts with Nea and was beat up and then tied to a rock! Ahahhah.

"Untie me, you bastard!"

I heeded his call and started and untied. All the while, my chuckles evolved into a burst of laughter.

"You find this funny? Just wait till you get beat up!"

"Hahaha!!"

"Urgh..." A faint voice resounded. To us, it sounded like the infernal call of a grim reaper here to harvest our souls. Both I and Eric froze like snow. Nea moved around in her sleep, disturbed by the noise we made. After a few minutes of absolute silence, Eric spoke up.

"Are we clear...?"

"I think..."

"Hm... Well, that was awkward, hahaha!"

"Hahaha!!"

"... Hey you two—"

Fuck.

"—Why are you so loud?"

**

"I think the map says left from here," I said from the back. We were on our way to the core to get out of the dungeon.

The core of a dungeon was nothing like a vast stone or the soul of some hidden god. It was simply the place where the magical energy was most concentrated. The core has the greatest amount of influence on its surroundings. Most times, there are super powerful beasts living in the core, and in others, the core comprises extremely complex terrain. Sometimes, entire civilizations of some beast live in the core.

There was one thing common with each core, though. They all always had a simple path leading to the outside of the dungeon, connecting with the main entrance. Many researchers claim that this happens because of the movement of Magical Energy, taking the shortest path to the emptiest spot.

The core of this dungeon originally had a Grade 6 beast living in it, and like most dungeons, the monster was killed before the dungeon was deemed safe. So the core we were headed to was pretty much empty aside from the pretty scenery we would see.

A map blocked my eyes from reaching the thin grassy routes, navigating around the streams of water in a humongous maze as I tried to guide us towards the core.

"Anyfays, arfen't fou fom Zakall?" Eric said, his face swollen. I used him as a shield against Nea and got away with just a few scratches. This guy was messed up, though. On a side note, does it make sense for someone to look good with a swollen face? How does he do that?

"Hm? Yeah, we are," I replied.

"How does it feel, seeing it become a military country?" Eric asked, how is his voice normal again?!

"Well, the whole incident could have been avoided if the military was there, right?" Nea said.

"That's true."

After the incident in Zakall, the news of the president dying while fighting for the country spread far and wide. Thanks to his "sacrifice," only 36 people died from the monsters. A number that could have been much higher.

His heroism became a symbol in the country and gave way for the military to take command. Many people accepted it thanks to Kapustin's glorified death and the military propaganda. Propaganda that the military could have never done by itself. Propaganda by the military, that was completely in the clutches of the doves, thanks to its never-ending requirement of finances. They grabbed the country by the very nose.

"We take a right..."

"Are you sure, Ivan? I think we are headed the wrong way," Nea said.

"Yes, I've been thinking that too, Ivan."

"Check the map again. Big brother!"

"Ah yeah... Oh, I've been holding it upside down the entire time," I said before realizing what a hellhole I had dug for myself.

**

"It'f thif way, right behifd thif linef," I said, my face swollen even more than Eric's. We had reached the core.