Chapter 2: The Nightmare Commences

Chapter 2: The Nightmare Commences

[7:30 AM; Saturday, 29th of April, 2023]

I woke up that morning with a mild headache.

Sunlight gleamed on my dark brown hair as I moved, and I looked around with half-open, heavy-lidded amber eyes, taking in the bright morning.

"Ah..." I muttered, rubbing my forehead with a bit of concern. It was a brand new day, but I could already feel the stress it would bring.

"I guess I'll check in with the drugstore later."

I rose up from my small bed and was greeted by a very plain and sparsely furnished room. Other than my bed and wardrobe, nothing worthy of note was in sight.

I took a few steps away from my bed and looked at myself in the mirror on the wall, performing the same ritual I did every morning.

I blinked.

I yawned.

I stretched my arms and legs. Even jumped a little.

Finally, I placed my hands on the mirror.

And, much to my relief... nothing strange happened. Apparently, I wasn't dreaming.

"Alright, Mikey, time to start the day!"

*****

For over ten years, I had been having dreams.

Most were like jumbled puzzles I couldn't solve, nonsensical images that faded from memory as quickly as they came. But then, there were those that clung to my mind, casting a shadow that wouldn't lift.

Those were the real nightmares.

While there were moments of clarity when I knew I was dreaming, most times, I was swept up in the narrative, as if my consciousness went along for the ride. Living that way, not knowing if my reality was real or imagined, nearly drove me mad.

The jolt of relief upon waking, only to realize it was all an illusion, left a scar on my soul.

So, every morning, I'd make my way to the mirror. Checking my reflection became my ritual, a lifeline to sanity.

There were several methods to check if one was in a dream, and using mirrors happened to be one of them.

In a dream, a person's reflection in the mirror would often be distorted, incomplete or downright different. Mirrors were a gateway of sorts in dreams, a chance for reality to bend, since a lot of things in a dreamscape defied the laws of physics.

I heard that other solutions like 'pain' or a 'totem' such as a spinning top existed, but they lacked the certainty of the mirror. Besides, only a certain threshold of pain could wake me up, and I wasn't about to hurt myself just to confirm whether I was awake or dreaming.

By performing simple gestures, ensuring the mirror was as steadfast as any mirror should be, I could find my footing. It was a lifeline, a connection to the world that kept slipping through my fingers.

It helped me keep my sanity... Or at least, what was left of it.

*****

Down the chilly street I jogged, clad in my trusty tracksuit. The cool breeze wafted across my skin, and I huffed and puffed as my feet pounded the pavement. Beads of sweat formed on my face despite the cold, but I paid it no mind, eyes locked on the path ahead. My muscles ached and burned, a chorus of discomfort that I'd grown accustomed to over the months.

It had been a few months since I started working out, and so far it had become my lifeline, a way to ground myself and clear my head.

The gym was a bit of a trek from my studio apartment, so jogging there had become a ritual. There was a thrill to it, an exhilarating feeling as my heart raced and my body pushed through the strain.

As my heart raced, and my muscles ached, I kept up my pace and made my way to the gym.

*****

"Mikey, you're here!"

"Oh, it's Mikey!"

"Looking good, Mikey!"

A chorus of cheerful voices greeted me as I stepped into the gym. I acknowledged the friendly welcomes with a nod and a smile, trying to shake off the strange popularity I had unintentionally gained. It was a popularity I had never asked for, stemming from a very weird and unexpected series of events.

It was embarrassing, but according to the guys at the gym, I used to sleepwalk and arrive three hours earlier than usual to get some crunches and sets in. And as if that weren't strange enough, I would return again in the evening for another round of intense exercise.

I had no idea how that was possible, but apparently, it was.

At first, I thought my gym buddies were messing with me when they said they saw me often in the gym. Many even commended me. It wasn't until I saw the footage one of them took that I realized what was going on.

'Thankfully, none of them knew that it was sleepwalking.' I thought gratefully.

They assured me they hadn't seen me do anything of the sort all through this week, so I had to assume the sleepwalking had stopped.

'Same as my nightmares. Thank goodness. Is it finally time for my life to take a turn for the normal?'

I would hope so, considering I was going to be twenty-one years old in September, and I still didn't have a girlfriend. But, who knows, perhaps things were already changing for the better.

'I hope it continues this way.'

*****

After my grueling workout at the gym, I rushed through a shower and a change of clothes, eager to shake off the sweat and strain.

Unfortunately, I had a splitting headache which persisted, so I decided to veer off my usual path and make a detour to the nearby drugstore, to get something to alleviate the pain.

'This isn't my first time, so...' A weary smile played on my lips as I recalled past visits to this very place.

The drugstore was a familiar place, tucked conveniently behind my apartment complex, just a few blocks away. Yet, the twisted layout of the neighborhood streets meant taking an indirect route, a cruel loop that turned a short walk into an unnecessarily long journey.

That was why I simply decided to get it on my way back.

I entered the store and it looked the same as usual.

The cool, air-conditioned ambience of the drugstore greeted me as soon as I stepped in. Bright fluorescent lights illuminated the store, casting a clinical glow over shelves that were stocked with an array of products.

I walked past the isle of skincare products, each bottle making bold claims of rejuvenation and renewal. Whiffs of perfumes and colognes wafted through the air as I made my way towards the pharmacy's counter at a corner of the store.

As I passed the aisles of over-the-counter medications, I saw what I was looking for and grabbed it, making straight for the counter. The store seemed quieter than usual, but I was too tired to make much of it.

For some reason, my body felt a little groggy, and the pain in my head intensified, but that only made me quicken my pace so I could pay for the medication and go home.

Upon getting to the pharmacy counter, though, I found it empty.

'H-huh?' I thought to myself.

There was no one behind the counter. Why? What was going on? I looked around to see if I could find the pharmacist, only to realize something even more confusing.

I... I was the only person in this store.

"Why am I—?"

~DING~

I suddenly heard a sound, and a game-like System Window suddenly opened in front of me.

[SYSTEM NOTIFICATION]

<Paradise Will Now Be Initialized>

{The realm of the gods, Paradise, will be revealed to the chosen humans. Overcome the 99 Floors and reach the Final Realm.}

<A Tutorial Will Begin Once The Announcement Has Been Concluded>

{Your mission is to survive the Tutorial so you can be qualified to enter Paradise. Time Left until the end of the Tutorial: 168 hrs: 00 mins: 00 secs}

<Announcement is ending... The Tutorial will now commence>

'This again?!' I thought to myself angrily.

I was dreaming again, wasn't I? But I did the 'Mirror Trick' already. Why was this happening?

"GRRRRRRRRRR...." A growl, primal and chilling like that of a wild animal, disrupted my thoughts.

A chill raced down my spine, causing the hairs on my skin to stand on end. The growling noise came from behind the counter.

'W-what is... this is a dream... right?' I took a slow, cautious step back, and then two more steps. My gaze was fixed on the counter, or rather, whatever lay behind it, but I continued walking backwards.

Before I knew it, I had arrived at the cosmetics and beauty section, and I was greeted by mirrors.

'N-no...' nove/lb-In

The reflections were perfect.

I touched one, and it was solid.

As much as I would have loved to assume that I was dreaming, reality told me otherwise.

"I-I am... awake—?"

~BOOM!~

Something erupted from behind the counter, leaping from its hidden place out into the open. The being defied reason, and all I could see was a very thin and malformed gray blur.

'N-not... a dream...?' The pain in my head intensified as my heart raced.

But I had seen this monster countless times in my nightmares. They were called Demons, weren't they?

[SYSTEM WARNING]

<You Have Encountered A Demon>

The emaciated creature, its long arms and razor-sharp teeth attached to powerful jaws, moved too rapidly for my eyes to fully capture. Before I could even move a muscle, it materialized right in front of me.

'N-no... no, I—!'

~SQUELCH~

I didn't realize when its hand became buried deep in my chest. Blood dripped, slowly making a red puddle beneath me, yet I remained paralyzed.

[SYSTEM WARNING]

<Your Life Force Has Dropped Below 5 Percent.>

{You will soon die...}

"Ack.. koff... haaa... haa..." I glanced at the grinning creature, realizing it still had a piece of lab coat on. Its features vaguely resembled the pharmacist of this drugstore, if I could ignore its bald head, slimy grey skin, and deformed face.

Although, it was now nothing more than a monster.

"S-so... will I die here?"

Why? Even though I knew this wasn't a dream, why wasn't I freaking out? It's not like I had an extra life tucked away in my pocket.

I didn't believe in God or anything, so this was it!

Was I really okay with letting my life end just like that? Why wasn't I more terrified by the creature that had just killed me?!

Perhaps... perhaps I already knew the answers to these questions.

After all, this wasn't the first time. It wasn't the tenth time, not even the millionth time; that I had been killed in my dream.

In all my dreams, every single nightmare I had... I was always killed. That was the threshold of pain that was required to wake me.

'But this isn't a dream...' I thought to myself, feeling my consciousness drift away.

'... Or is it?'

[You Have Died]

<Dream Sequence Has Ended>

{Based On Exclusive Skill: The Dream; your recent experiences have been dissolved into a dream}

<You Will Now Be Returned To The Preset Save Point>

[You Will Now Wake Up]

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[A/N]

I hope you enjoyed this second chapter.

In case you don't understand what's happening yet, just keep reading, it'll become clearer to you.

Please continue to support me. Thanks.