Chapter 5 -5- Bonus quest objective (don’t die) still ongoing!

Chapter 5: Chapter5- Bonus quest objective (don't die) still ongoing!

I was about to reject the quest when a gigantic roar echoed through the hedge maze, freezing me in place.

"A monster?" I whispered, alarmed. The roar was so loud it reached my ears with startling clarity, louder than even the rhino I'd encountered earlier.

I gave it some serious thought.

'Fuck.'

Normally, I would have rejected the quest and tried to find a way out of the maze, but in this situation, hiding seemed like the best choice.

The roar sounded closer now, and panic set in. I couldn't afford to be caught out in the open, especially not by something that powerful.

"Okay, think, Michael," I muttered to myself. "What's the safest option here?"

The answer was obvious.

With no weapon in hand and still naked except for a pair of sandals and simple pants, climbing down into the well seemed like the most pragmatic decision.

At least it would get me out of sight.

I really don't want to die...

Atleast, till I loss my virginity.

Taking a deep breath, I accepted the quest and grabbed onto the iron rungs.

They felt cold and slightly damp under my fingers as I began to descend into the well.

The roar echoed again, even closer this time, urging me to move faster.

"What kind of bloody place is this?"

My heart pounded as I climbed down, each rung taking me further into the darkness below.

The further I went, the cooler the air became, providing a slight relief from the adrenaline-fueled heat coursing through my body.

I focused on the rungs, trying to ignore the increasingly distant roars and the ever-growing darkness around me.

The iron rungs seemed stable enough, though they creaked ominously with each step.

I discovered I had reached the bottom when my foot met water instead of the next rung.

Some experimental probing revealed it was ankle deep, enough to submerge my sandals in the icy cold.

The bottom of the well was flat, but as it turned out, just as slippery as the walls.

My feet slipped, and I barely avoided hitting my head on the side of the well by hanging onto the rungs.

I ended up sprawled at the bottom, with dirty water soaking my new pants along with blood and dirts.

Panting slightly, I paused to catch my breath and assess my situation.

"Fantastic."

I couldn't hear the roar anymore, which was a small relief, but it also meant I had no idea where the monster was nor where I am.

I looked around, trying to orient myself in the gloom.

From my low perspective, I noticed a slightly darker circle in the wall of the already dark well.

I reached out and found it was a hole, big enough to crawl through. I wasn't sure if it was the source of the well's water or a drainage tunnel.

"No way," I said. "I'm not crawling in there."

After my eyes recovered from the blinding light, I cautiously removed my hands and blinked rapidly, trying to clear my vision. Gradually, shapes and colors began to come into focus again.

As I looked around, I finally understood what the metal rod was. It was a simple but metallic torch. Relief flooded through me, and I let out a shaky breath.

"Ohhh, It's just a torch..." I muttered to myself, feeling a wave of embarrassment wash over me. "I nearly thought I had triggered a bomb."

With trembling hands, I reached out and picked up the torch from where it had fallen.

I inspected it carefully, now able to see it clearly in the dim light. It was a sturdy piece of equipment, well-made and reliable.

Atleast, I got a torch or I would have lost my path by now.

Feeling more confident now that I knew what it was, I clicked the button again to switch it off and on again, this time pointing the torch away from my face.

A beam of light illuminated the pathway ahead, casting long shadows on the wooden planks.

The light was largely obscured, but compared to complete darkness, even some shadowy outlines were bliss.

It was at least enough to recognise that I was in a natural cavern.

It didn't have the conveniently smooth floors of a video game cave, which was presumably why someone had put in the walkway, raised on thick wooden posts.

The walkway was only about an arm's length above the cave floor, so I understood quickly.

I followed the walkway cautiously, taking care with each step.

The sand coating had worn away in many places, leaving patches of slick wood from years of exposure to the damp cavern.

The cave turned out to be a natural tunnel, roughly hewn, through which the walkway followed.

I proceeded slowly and carefully until it came to an end at a brick wall, set into the side of the cave.

In the middle of the wall was a hefty metal door with a big wheel set into it, resembling a bulkhead door on a submarine.

Both door and wheel were rusty and appeared not to have been opened in quite some time.

"Now we're getting somewhere."

Setting down the torch, I grabbed the wheel with both hands and pulled, but it didn't budge.

"Oh, come on."

I yanked on it harder and harder, bracing my feet against the door as I hauled sideways with all my strength.

I felt a little give, then a little more, each accompanied by an unwilling metal groan.

Finally, the wheel jerked loose, and I could turn the reluctant mechanism with heavy jerks.

Panting from the exertion, I shouldered open the door.

Like the wheel, it resisted, and I had to shove it open in fits and starts.

My shoulder grew sore as I repeatedly rammed it into the door.

Finally, with a shriek, the door gave way, and I stumbled through the opening.

(Ding, congratulations host! Quest: [Well's Dark secrets] has been completed!)

(Objective complete: Explore the well 1/1.)

(Reward: A new body will be granted to the host after they kill the first human of this world.)

(Ding, Bonus quest objective (don't die) still ongoing!)

"Hey, System! This isn't fair. I finished the quest, but now I have to do another one just to get the reward. And why do I have to kill someone for it?"