July 21 — Tuesday
Deaths: 37
Second day since awakening the Hunter’s Mark.
“I really am fine,” he told Lily outside the academy entrance, wearing what he hoped was a convincing smile. “It was just a horrible nightmare.”
Lily looked at him suspiciously for a long moment. If the bell hadn’t rung, she would have stayed longer. Finally, she nodded.
“Okay. Take good care of yourself today.”
“I always do.”
They said goodbye, and Noah walked to a nearby park, where he dropped onto a bench with his head in his hands, hunched over.
For the first time since awakening his Mark, he was afraid to return to the castle.
‘I should buy that monster guide. I don’t want to be caught off guard like that again.’
He rubbed his right knee out of habit. It was perfectly healthy, but the sight of the bone jutting out from the side was still seared into his mind with unbearable clarity.
“Stop being a coward,” he said aloud, clenching his fists. “You can come back from the dead. You have the system. You have—”
He stopped abruptly.
“Wait.”
He lifted his head.
‘I completely forgot to check the ability I stole.’
He opened his system window and searched through the list of abilities until he found the newest one.
[Resonance] — Rank E
[Enhances the senses to detect vibrations and temperatures in the surrounding area.]
He activated it while still sitting on the bench and waited. He didn’t feel anything new.
Curious, he pressed his right hand directly against the ground in the park.
Suddenly, a flood of information washed over him: the movements of children playing a few yards away, the footsteps of adults walking along the path, the distant vibrations of cars on the street, and even the faint flow of water running through the drain beneath the ground.
He immediately pulled his hand away, startled, and sat in silence.
“I’m glad I have an ability like this,” he murmured after a moment. “It’ll be incredibly useful for crossing that maze.”
But the way he had obtained it was still horrifying.
‘Even if someone told me I could get it by letting that centipede kill me,’ he thought, a shiver running down his back, ‘I’d refuse outright.’
He took a deep breath and slowly exhaled, trying to get his thoughts in order until he reached a simple conclusion.
He couldn’t spend the whole day living in fear. He had to try again.
He stood up.
‘If we weren’t cursed to enter every day,’ he thought as he walked back toward the Fortress, ‘I’d probably stop going into the castle for an entire week.’
◇◆◇
The maze greeted him exactly as before: silent, dark, and endless.
This time, Noah had a sheet of paper and a pen clutched in his hand, determined to mark every turn, every intersection, every step.
He moved slowly, his nerves still on edge, mentally repeating that he needed to stay calm and that under no circumstances would he climb to the top of the wall this time.
He wasn’t sure whether climbing had caused the anomaly, but he had no intention of finding out twice.
And so, with the pen trembling slightly between his fingers, he began his walk through the nighttime maze once more.
The oppressive silence made him nervous. Not just because of the darkness and solitude, but because he knew what lay ahead.
‘Calm down… I don’t know when or where I’ll run into those insects, or whatever else is in here.’
Every few yards, he stopped and used [Resonance], touching the hedge walls to sense everything around him. Despite being a useful ability, it was limited to whatever surface he touched while using it.
Sweat ran down his forehead as he wiped it away, careful not to stain the sheet of paper.
‘Calm down. Breathe slowly.’
As he drew the next turn he had taken, the ground gave way. A scream escaped his mouth as he fell straight down and struck an unfamiliar surface.
The air rushed from his lungs, leaving him incapacitated for a moment. It was very dark.
The sound of dozens of shrieks began. Noah desperately searched for his flashlight. When he turned it on, he saw the insects’ hive.
There were thousands of them surrounding him. His terror grew as he realized he had fallen directly into their nest. They all turned hostile and began advancing on Noah, but he didn’t wait for them.
He pulled out his dagger and, screaming, began stabbing himself in the throat without a second thought. Again and again, amid screams, gasps, tears, and panic.
Blood poured out as he staggered.
“Die! Die! Die! Die! DIE! DIE! DIE! DIE!”
By the time the swarm reached him, he was already in a state of shock. He was still alive as they devoured him, but fortunately, he didn’t feel it.
[You Died.]
◇◆◇
Once again, he woke up in a panic, but this time he didn’t scream. His glass lamp didn’t break, either. He began to sweat as he clutched his chest, feeling his heart pound.
“Damn it,” he said angrily, gripping the sheets. “How did I end up falling in there? I didn’t feel anything moving beneath the ground. Are they in a deep sleep until someone wakes them? Are there traps like that all over the maze?”
His jaw clenched and his brow furrowed as he imagined how impossible this journey seemed.
“How the hell did the Hunters make it through that maze? Did they—”
His eyebrows shot up. He picked up his phone and started searching online.
‘Now that I think about it, I remember hearing about Hunters offering their services in plazas or crowded places in the past. They guide newcomers through difficult areas for a fee. I’m sure they still do that.’
After a quick search, he found them. There were a lot of them, more than he’d expected. Unfortunately for him…
“The prices are outrageous… I don’t have that kind of money. And they require payment up front.”
He let his phone drop and sighed, staring at the ceiling.
“I have to think of something. What can I do?”
After a brief pause, he opened his system and searched for the inventory section.
‘Wait, my things from yesterday… they’re supposed to come back with me after I die.’
“Yes, they’re here! But not the map I made or the flashlight. I didn’t store them when I died, so they couldn’t come back with me. The only solution I can think of is to make my own map every time I die…”
He rubbed his temple, thinking about how stressful that would be. But, driven by the feeling of being cornered, he decided to message the only person he knew from the castle: Belle Snow.
‘If I’m going to die today anyway, I have nothing to lose by messaging her to ask her something. At least I’ll use my chances to get information.’
Without a hint of hesitation, he casually messaged a famous SSS-Rank Hunter.
“I’m still alive today, too! Even Rank F Hunters can be careful.”
Noah locked his phone and stretched.
‘Now I’ll wait for her to reply. I imagine she’ll answer much later, given everything she has to do.’
His phone chimed with a notification. Noah was surprised.
‘That was fast.’
When he looked at his phone, he saw Belle’s reply:
“Hahaha, I hope so. Though that means you haven’t forgotten my tragic story 😭 Don’t tell anyone!”
Noah smiled wryly and typed.
“What story? I’ve actually already forgotten it.”
“How rude… I won’t tell you anything next time.”
“I’m kidding, I’m kidding. I couldn’t forget how much fun it was talking to you.”
“It was… By the way, I didn’t ask your name last time. I was distracted. What’s your name?”
“Noah.”
“Pretty name. It’s easy to pronounce, Noah.”
“Thanks for the compliment, Belle.”
“🥳✨”
‘She replies really fast,’ he thought, resting his chin on his hand. ‘I thought she’d be a very busy and aloof woman.’
“By the way, Belle. Are you doing anything important today?”
“Yes. I have meetings, work to take care of, things to buy, interviews to attend (whether I like it or not), Guild paperwork to do, and, well, not to mention the curse of having to go to the Castle. Why?”
“That’s a lot… I thought we could talk for a while somewhere, but I wouldn’t want to interrupt your responsibilities.”
“Haha, yes, I’m really busy… But I can do more than one thing at a time. If you don’t mind, you could come along while I take care of everything. Just so you know, I’ll be busy for hours, and we probably won’t talk much.”
“That’s okay. Any time with you is memorable. I’ll message you as soon as I finish my morning tasks.”
With that, he locked his phone and stood up. As he stretched, he thought:
‘In the end, talking to her wasn’t difficult. She has a good attitude and is easy to talk to. Even though she has such an intense, cold crimson gaze, she speaks very kindly. Or is that just because I’ve talked to her several times?’