Chapter 14 - Quest Continues

As Ishida tried to sense the area around him, he realized he couldn't detect any more demons nearby. Confused, he wondered aloud, "Is the quest really over? There's no notification. Does that mean I haven't completed it yet?"

Then, a prompt appeared:

[Would you like to continue the quest?] [Y/N]

"Just as I suspected, the quest isn't finished yet. It's asking if I want to keep going!"

[Fatigue: 30↓/100]

'I still have most of my HP, and my fatigue is slowly going down. Besides, there's no way I'm backing out now, not after only dealing with those weak demons,' Ishida thought to himself. Determined, he said, "Yes, I want to continue!"

As soon as Ishida spoke, the ground beneath him started to shake. He struggled to keep his balance as the trembling continued.

After a few moments, the shaking subsided, and the darkness surrounding him faded away, allowing him to finally see his surroundings.

He realized he was in a cave, standing in a small section of it. The rocky walls enclosed him tightly.

As he glanced around, he noticed one side of the cave wall beginning to slide apart, revealing an opening that looked just like a door, inviting him to step through.

As soon as Ishida saw the path open up, he stepped inside without giving it much thought. The moment he crossed the threshold, the cave closed behind him just like before, leaving no sign that a path had ever existed.

Ishida glanced around, utterly amazed by his surroundings. This place was nothing like the stony cave he had been in moments ago. Instead, he found himself in a softly lit corridor that seemed to belong to a grand mansion. Plush carpets lined the floors, and the walls were beautifully decorated.

"How strange. What kind of challenge could be waiting for me in a place like this?" Ishida wondered aloud, as he began to walk down the hallway. He kept looking around, hoping to discover some clue or detail about this mysterious location, but there wasn't much for him to find.

As he kept walking down the hallway, he eventually arrived at the very end, where a massive gate stood before him.

Curiosity got the better of him, and he instinctively moved to open the door. But just as his fingers brushed against the gate, he felt an overwhelming energy emanating from behind it. This immense force made his hand tremble slightly.

"I feel strange for some reason. There's something behind that door, and my instincts are screaming that it's incredibly powerful. But what could it be?" Ishida wondered to himself.

Just as Ishida was about to open the door, a clawed hand shot towards him, targeting his head. He reacted swiftly, ducking just in time to avoid the attack. As he turned slightly, he caught sight of the demon that had tried to strike him with its claws. Gathering his strength, he pushed the demon back, making it stumble three or four steps away.

When Ishida turned away from the door and looked back down the hallway he had just walked through, he saw three demons standing there. One of them was the very same demon that had already tried to attack him.

"The presence of whatever's behind that door is so powerful, it completely masked these attacks," Ishida thought to himself. "No, I can't let that distract me right now. I need to concentrate on the battle in front of me." With renewed focus, he steadied his mind and prepared to face the three demons standing in the hallway before him.

[DEMON 1 - LEVEL. 7] [DEMON 2 - LEVEL.7]

[DEMON 3 - LEVEL. 8]

Suddenly, numbers appeared above the heads of the demons, indicating their levels. Ishida was puzzled, as he'd never seen such markings in his previous battles. This was a new development compared to the demons he had encountered before.

"Could it be that the demons I fought in the cave also had levels, but I couldn't see them because I was focusing with my eyes closed?" he wondered. "If I'm at level 11, does that mean these demons are nearly as strong as I am? Can I take on all three of them by myself in a one-against-three battle?" Ishida questioned, trying to gauge the situation.