Derek had his hands around his head as he did to protect himself from the monster. He opened his eyes and looked around, but everything seemed quiet.
Huh? Am I dead?... He placed his hands down and saw that he was standing at the front of a wooden door.
Wh-What happened?...The young man was puzzled as his eyes landed on the crimson window before him.
[You have survived the Penalty Quest!]
[Remaining Time: 0 hours, 0 minute, 0 seconds]
"Did I do it? Did I pass the quest?" A smile played on Derek’s lips as he saw the notice of the system.
He looked up and recognized the wooden door he was standing before. Then, to his right and left, he turned, his eyes shaking. "I really am back."
He turned back at the familiar door of the old man’s house. "Thank goodness. I really thought I had died. That beast. It played a number on me, if I was less than a second from completing the quest, I would have died."
He could hear the sound of his heartbeat. It was playing like a drum in a festival. This was to show how scared he was, since he was only a couple steps from death’s door.
"Since I came to this world, I have almost died twice." Derek placed his hand on his chest as he listened to his heartbeat.
He tried to calm himself now that he was safe. "But this system. Did it really try to kill me? Penalty Quest? More like suicide quest. That was as good as telling me to go and die."
The young man was almost traumatized, but he cancelled the feeling off his chest.
"I need to avoid ever facing that again. To do so, the daily quests must be completed."
Derek turned around, and glanced at the quiet and dark street. Only a couple lanterns were lit because most of the shops had closed down and turned theirs off.
"It is late. And I need to rest." Derek placed his hands away from his chest. He moved closer to the entrance and raised his right hand to knock.
However, before it could even land, the door cracked and opened by itself.
Standing before him, the old man was dressed in a casual black shirt and grey trousers. He had opened the door and was now staring at the young man who looked like he was just coming back from hiking a mountain somewhere in a lost continent.
"Oh goodness!" The old man uttered as he saw Derek. "Where have you been, lad? It has been hours since you left. I was just about to come look for you."
He moved closer and placed his hands on Derek’s shoulder. "Goodness. Where are you coming from? And why is your body so cold? Is it snowing?"
The old man looked up but saw a clear sky with the greyish full moon. "It’s not. So why all this snow dust?"
Derek stood in a daze. What am I going to say? How should I explain myself?... He had a slight smile as he played as though clueless.
There was nothing he could explain. Although, it wasn’t as if the old man was truly interested.
"Come on, come inside, you’ll freeze to death."
The old man placed this hand over Derek and led him inside the house.
The night passed quietly and the sun rose almost instantly. On a futon, Derek rose, eyes drifting towards the window of the room, where the morning light began to sweep through.
"Is it morning?" He mumbled as he cleaned the fatigue off his eyes.
He surveyed his surroundings and saw the familiar room which he had woken up from the previous day. Then, his gaze landed on the chair which the old man had sat on then. But this time, no one was there.
"It looks like it wasn’t all a dream after all."
The young man stood up, folded the futon and placed it at the edge of the room. The bedroom was significantly small and empty too.
There was nothing inside except for the futon, chair, and a table near the edge of the room which was close to the window.
There was also some clothes hung on the wall at one side of the room, and that was all m.
What kind of person lives with only a few clothes?... Derek wondered. Then again, it might be because this was his second home. Perhaps his backup? He had said that the manor was also his home. Maybe most of his things were there?
He took a good look at the clothes hanging on the wall and murmured. "But what kind of person also lives in an abandoned manor? Was he keeping it safe?"
Derek shook his head. He wasn’t able to understand the ways of the old man and didn’t want to think too much about it.
Yesterday, after we came inside I only eat and went to bed immediately. We didn’t get to talk about anything else.
Derek stepped out of the room. He walked along the passage that led to the stairs of the ground floor.
It was a story building with an upper floor which had more than a single room.
The building had served as an inn and a tavern. The ground floor was where customers came to eat and drink, while the up floor had rooms which were rented out.
Derek was able to notice this since he had seen a lot of buildings like this back on earth when he played games and watched adventure movies.
"But how did the old man afford all of this? Is he secretly rich?" Derek landed on the ground floor and turned to his left.
It was the living room which was joined with the dining area where he and the old man had eaten previously.
"Where is he? Hasn’t he woken up?" Derek moved to the wooden table which had two chairs at the sides.
On the table there was a note beside a plate of soup and a loaf of bread.
"What is this?" Derek’s eyes narrowed as he picked up the letter.
He read the letter which was from the old man informing him he was out and would be back before noon.
"Where did he go? Does he have work he does?" Derek dropped the letter back on the table, pulled out a chair and sat down.
"Of course he could. How else is he able to live in a place like this?"
After sitting and getting comfortable on the chair, he reached for the soup and the loaf of bread when his eyes shifted to his shirt.
"Tsk. My clothes are dirty and torn. It is no longer suitable to wear out." He looked around and noticed that there was nothing much inside this part of the house either.
"Should I maybe get a job?" He had a slight smile. It was the only way he thought he was going to earn money to get new clothes.
While thinking about it, his stomach rumbled and almost instantly all his thoughts vanished. Without hesitation, he reached for the loaf of bread, tore a piece and was about to place it in his mouth when the crimson window appeared before him.
[Daily Quest: Train to become Powerful]
Goals:
[Incomplete] Push-ups — [0/100]
[Incomplete] Sit-ups — [0/100]
[Incomplete] Squats — [0/100]
[Incomplete] Running — [0/10km]
Warning: If the daily quest remains incomplete, a penalty will be given accordingly.
As he read the information, the smile on the young man’s face vanished as though he were staring at something that had tormented him.
He spat.
"Give me a break."