Chapter 6: Penalty Part - 1

Chapter 6: Penalty Part - 1

When Erik left the association building, the worker who had been looking after him stared at the glass with a puzzled expression.

'Why is the glass suddenly shining like that?'

In his three years on the job, he had never experienced anything like this. There had always been special cases, but none as strange as this one.

'We'd better not think about this anymore and get on with our work.'

He decided not to stick his nose too far into the matter. She felt that getting more involved would only bring her unnecessary problems that could end her life.

What could she do as a simple worker?

Just as she was about to touch the glass, something unexpected happened.

Crack!

A crack appeared in the glass, stopping his hand in its tracks.

"Huh?"

Confused, she stared at the huge crack in the glass. A puzzled look appeared on her face.

The crystal kept shattering.

Suddenly, the crystal shattered, turning into particles that then disappeared into thin air, as if the crystal had never been there in the first place.

'What the hell just happened?'

Now, the confusion was even greater. From the initial strange glow to the sudden disintegration of the crystal, she was baffled by what was happening.

Nothing like this had ever happened before and I had no record of anything like it.

"Phew..."

A tired sigh escaped her lips. She had experienced too many strange things in a single day and felt exhausted by it.

'I want to finish my shift quickly so I can go have a few beers'.

"Next person, wait a minute!"

She got up and headed off in search of a new crystal orb, leaving behind a mystery that defied explanation.

***

Erik now sat outside the building, oblivious to the events surrounding the mysterious crystal orb he had previously touched.

His mind was focused on finding a way to discover a new monster zone in order to accomplish his daily mission.

Avoiding being sent to an unknown dungeon was his main goal now.

"This is tricky, there don't seem to be any monster zones in the city."

Erik in frustration muttered biting his nails, his face reflecting his anxiety.

The only monster zone in this city was under the control of the hunters' association, where they conducted the tests.

Monster zones are defined as areas where mana is intensely concentrated, causing the appearance of monsters on the fringes of the usual dungeons.

These creatures tend to be mostly low-ranked, although, in regions with a higher mana density, their level can go up to rank D at most.

But while they do not pose too much of a threat, it is crucial to perform periodic cleanups accurately to prevent possible incidents.

And Erik found no monster zones in this city, for the only one there is guarded by the hunters' association. nove(l)bi(n.)com

In addition, if he decides to go to another city, he knows that he will not have enough time left to fulfill his daily mission.

He sighed deeply as he stood up from the bench he was sitting on, feeling his anxiety growing again.

"Phew, I'd better get back home and then we'll figure out what to do."

Heading back to the apartment, looking for a quiet space to think of possible solutions, to complete the daily mission.

Why does he feel such urgency to complete this mission?

The answer was simple: Erik understood that, just as the system had granted him the ability to recover from serious injuries, the odds of being sent to an unknown dungeon were alarmingly high.

Therefore, he found himself in a state of anxiety and frustration, desperately seeking some method to circumvent that inevitable fate.

"What's happening?"

Finally, Erik was thrown out of bed and crashed into the ceiling of the apartment, watching with a shocked expression as every object in the room was sucked into the dimensional rift.

"Uwaaaahhh!"

...And then, the muffled sound of impact.

Erik suddenly fell into the dimensional rift, feeling something soft under his fingers and a cold wind whipping his face.

It turned out to be grass.

"What the hell just happened?"

Erik exclaimed as he looked up into the night sky.

Looked around and saw that he was in the middle of a huge forest.

Frowned slightly and stood up, shaking off his clothes as he looked around.

All he could see were huge trees and more trees.

"...A forest?"

This can't be real.

Just moments ago he was sleeping peacefully in his apartment. But now, the instant he regained consciousness, he found himself in the middle of a forest.

Erik grabbed a handful of grass and let it blow away in the wind. The grass slowly drifted away from his hands.

"Where the hell am I?"

Whispered, whispered, whispered...

The sound of movement through the bushes filled the air, not just from one place, but spreading simultaneously from multiple directions.

At that moment, Erik was still bewildered by what he had just experienced.

Heard the sound of bodies moving through the bushes.

'What's happening now?'

Erik began to feel afraid and looked around, noticing that something in the bushes was starting to move.

Noise, noise, noise, noise, noise, noise, noise, noise, noise, noise!

"... Huh?"

Erik's expression became rigid.

The sounds among the bushes increased in intensity.

An unsettling sensation gripped his body from the marrow.

'Something...'

'Something is wrong...'

Whisper, whisper, whisper...'

The sound of whispering echoed in all directions.

It wasn't just three or four.

It was at least twenty, if not more than thirty, creatures moving.

"Damn it,"

A faint curse escaped Erik's lips.

Tti-ring.

[Penalty mission: survive]

Objective: stay alive until time runs out.

Time limit: 4 hours

Time remaining: 4 hours, 0 minutes, 0 seconds.

? Warning: If you don't complete the penalty missions, you will DIE!

....