A Way Out

This house is covered with a simple low level barrier which prevents the mysterious gasses from entering. Only people can enter and exit the barrier. After the night of the full moon, it's deadly to be outside of the barrier. We had to learn that the hard way.

Soon after getting up from the bed, I realized my body was covered with bandages. As I asked Arthur about this, he informed me that the gasses can also harm your outer body if exposed for long.

As I was sitting beside Alice, I noticed that she was awake. Seeing this, I slightly leaned towards her to ask,

"Alice, are you okay?"

Alice looked at me with concern. She asked,

"Wh-what happened, master?!"

Didn't I just tell her to stop calling me master the last time we were together.

As she lifted the covers, I realized that her body was also covered with bandages.

"Alice, your body is also covered with bandages, even more than mine, y'know…"

"Where are we?" Alice asked in a low voice.

"Don't worry about that, just get some sleep. I'll be here."

"B-but, master, are you really okay?"

"I'm completely fine! I should be the one asking since you've got twice the amount of bandage than me!"

"I'm fine,"

"Don't worry, I'll be here in case you need anything. Just get some rest."

As I said that, Alice slowly shut her eyes and fell asleep once again. Her body must be completely exhausted, I thought.

I headed to Arthur's room to explain everything in detail. According to Arthur, he had been reincarnated in a town called Galedom. As he was trying to make an announcement about his return, he stopped as he heard false rumors about the war. As he was trying to figure out a way to change things, he was teleported here at midnight.

This house had already been there by the time he was teleported. Since then, he has been living here. He found a journal left by someone who used to live here. Most details and knowledge necessary for surviving on the island were described there. However, the part about the monster's disappearance and other supernatural events were mentioned on a page which had been ripped out. It was unfortunate, but with the information we have, we could certainly survive.

I also told him about everything from the day I was transported to this world till today.

…

"By the way, Arthur, how did you save us without getting harmed even though you left the barrier?"

"Oh, that. My armor filters out the oxygen from the atmosphere, so no other substance is taken in. We used this to our advantage in the previous war, so, tell me, HOW THE F*** DID YOU FORGET EVERYTHING ABOUT ME?!"

"Oh, yeah… I forgot."

"..."

"More importantly, how do we get out of here-"

"There is no way." He interrupted.

"What?!"

Jumping into the ocean is not a good idea if you wanna make it out alive. Ocean's filled with man-eating monsters and this island is at least ten miles away from land. And also a fun fact, every night after the night of the full moon, the area fills up with heavy fog. The next day, the terrain of the island completely changes except for this house.

I really wasn't happy to hear that we'd have to spend the rest of our lives here.

"We need to find a way out…"

"That's what I've been trying for the past few days."

"Where have you looked?"

"Everywhere, but there's no point! A new full moon appears every week in this world, unlike the other one. If you can't find it within one week, you'd have to start all over again."

"Okay, let's take whatever we can find in this house to help our search and head out. Have you checked what's in this house?"

"Nope. Don't have the guts to open every closet or drawer."

"Fine, I'll come with you. Let's check."

We began searching for items which may help us to find the exit.

***

After searching for a few minutes,

"Hevop, check this out…"

A stone, engraved with the word 'Portal'. It shone as bright as the full moon, with an immense aura which tickled my nerves.

"Portal?" I muttered.

All of a sudden, the closet which I recently checked and found nothing, opened with force as a bright light seeped through. A mysterious voice asked,

"Please provide your destination. If the gate was opened by mistake, please withdraw using the stone."

I took the stone from Arthur's hand and said,

"Withdraw."

The closet was immediately shut tight. This is just like a voice command feature, I thought.

"I'm going to go and get Alice," I said as I rushed downstairs where Alice was.

After waking her up, I escorted her to the upper floor as she wasn't able to walk properly on her own.

"Is something wrong, master?" Does she forget to call me by my name everytime she wakes up?! I thought.

"I'll explain it to you, once we reach home and you recover from your injuries."

"But, master, you're also injured."

"Not at all! I can run at full speed, wanna see?!" I said, to provide reassurance.

"You sure you should be lying to her like that? You're on the verge of life or death." Arthur whispered to my ears.

"I'm not planning to die. It'll be okay as long as I explain it to her later."

"If you say so…"

Arthur picked up the stone, and the closet was forced open once again.

"Please provide your destination. If the gate was opened by mistake, please withdraw using the stone."

I decided that the best place to go now would be home.

"DESTINATION: STARIA"