July 21 — Tuesday
Deaths: 38
Second day since awakening the Hunter’s Mark.
Belle watched him with her arms crossed, now far from the commotion in the main lobby. Her red eyes were fixed on him, her expression somewhere between disbelief and suspicion.
“A Rank F Hunter,” she repeated slowly, as if she needed to hear it out loud to believe it. “On his first day as a Hunter, he defeated a floor boss.”
Noah scratched the back of his neck, avoiding her gaze.
“It was luck, actually. I ran into several Rank F Hunters along the way, and we managed to defeat it together.”
Belle nodded slowly, though she still looked thoughtful.
“That’s possible. It wouldn’t be the first time a group of rookies joined forces to get past the first obstacle.”
She fell silent for longer than expected, her gaze lost somewhere down the hallway. Taking advantage of the pause, Noah decided to ask what had been on his mind for a while.
“Did you get help when you started, too? A group, a mentor?”
Belle shook her head without hesitation.
“No. I’ve always gone on alone.”
“Was there a reason?”
She looked at him for a moment, as if deciding whether it was worth answering.
“I don’t trust anyone,” she said with a bluntness that surprised Noah. “And I needed to pay for my younger brother’s education. I pushed myself harder than was reasonable so I could level up quickly. It was difficult at first. Very difficult. But my reason for earning money was greater than any fear I might feel.”
Noah nodded, feeling an uncomfortable pang of familiarity at her words.
“Okay,” Belle said. “Let’s walk. We’ll explore Floor 2 together. I want to help you, so ask me anything you want to know.”
‘It’s strange how helpful she’s being toward me,’ Noah thought as he followed her.
He wanted to ask her directly why she was going to so much trouble to help him, but decided not to risk ruining whatever was going on between them.
He would simply enjoy it.
‘They say that if something’s working, you shouldn’t mess with it.’
◇◆◇
The first monsters they encountered went down with almost laughable ease.
Belle dispatched each creature with economical, almost bored movements, barely paying attention as she watched Noah out of the corner of her eye while he faced his own opponents.
When he managed to take down a couple of shadow demons with a fluid combination of [Swift Step] and [Echo Thrust], she applauded softly.
“Well done,” she said with genuine approval. “You’re moving better every time.”
Noah felt his cheeks grow warm.
“I feel like you’re my mom clapping for me after a test.”
Belle laughed.
“Then I’ll stop complimenting you.”
“No, no,” Noah hurriedly said, raising his hands. “You can keep going. It’s good motivation.”
She laughed again, more softly this time.
“Then I’ll keep doing it.”
As they moved through the ruined corridors of the second floor, Belle explained things Noah knew nothing about: how, on the higher floors, door portals became practically the only viable way to travel, since covering such vast distances on foot would be impossible.
How each floor was a kind of separate dimension. On one floor, you could be at the top of a mountain, and on the next, in a desert.
How there were rest areas where Hunters spent entire nights inside the castle, gaining levels during concentrated periods of intensive exploration.
“Do you spend entire days in there?” Noah asked, interested.
“When you’ve made it as far as I have, you have to. There’s no other way to keep up.”
‘So that’s how they get ahead,’ Noah thought, filing away the information. ‘I should consider doing that at some point, too. But with Lily in my care, I’d need money and someone I could trust. Though… she’s a girl. What about her baths and hygiene? I’d never put her in the care of some strange man. I’d have to talk it over with her and hear what she thinks. On the other hand, using [Return] would send me back to that same day. I could repeat the same day dozens of times and never be away from her. Of course, I’d have to keep killing myself…’
“I’d rather take you to the hidden area on Floor 2,” Belle said suddenly, changing direction. “That’s where the stronger monsters are. You’ll level up much faster.”
Noah frowned.
“Hidden area?”
Belle looked at him in surprise.
“You don’t know about the hidden areas?”
Noah shook his head.
“Every floor has a hidden area,” she explained patiently. “That’s where the strongest monsters on the entire floor gather. It’s an excellent source of experience, but the danger is real, too. If you go in there, you have to be prepared and know that you’ll be in constant mortal danger.” She paused, looking thoughtfully toward a side corridor. “I still remember where the one on this floor is. Follow me.”
They walked for several more minutes until they reached a section of the castle swallowed by such dense darkness that Noah could barely make out his own feet.
Belle, however, didn’t seem fazed. She took a small jewel from the pouch strapped to her thigh and tossed it into the air.
The gem burst into a white glow, illuminating the entire space as if it were the middle of the day.
“What is that?” Noah asked, his mouth falling open.
“Lightning stones from Floor 300,” Belle replied casually. “They’re pretty common up there. Do you want one?”
Noah hesitated, but Belle had already stepped forward, taking two identical gems from her pouch and placing them directly in his hand.
“You can have them.”
“They look expensive,” he said hesitantly. “I can’t accept them.”
Belle let out a brief laugh.
“Money isn’t a problem for me.” She gestured for him to follow. “Come on. The dark knights are already starting to gather.”
Noah drew his dagger, noticing several black-armored figures emerging from the gloom and slowly regrouping around them.
‘So this is where they were hiding,’ he thought, remembering how terrified he’d been the first time he encountered one of those knights.
Thanks to [Devourer’s Hunger], he was now more resistant to them than he’d been the first time. Even so, he had no intention of getting careless.
He glanced at Belle and noticed she hadn’t drawn a weapon.
“Aren’t you going to fight?”
“There’s no need for me to take anything out,” she replied calmly.
The battle began.
Noah immediately felt the difference: the blows he took were considerably weaker than before, clear proof that the resistance he’d gained worked exactly as he’d expected.
As he faced one knight head-on, he noticed movement around him—Belle, gliding with an almost dance-like grace as she kept the other enemies from surrounding him, pushing them back and deflecting them without killing any of them.
“I’ll make sure they don’t interfere with your fight,” she said without losing the rhythm of her movements. “You focus on defeating them.”
Noah nodded, pouring all his attention into the enemy in front of him.
The battle was tough. Each knight took considerable effort to defeat, and every exchange of blows left him a little more tired. But, little by little, he managed to establish a rhythm: dodge, strike the neck with [Echo Thrust], step back, repeat.
Each time a knight fell, Belle congratulated him. Without interrupting her defensive dance around him, she picked up the blue, diamond-shaped stone that emerged from the shattered body and tucked it away with an almost automatic motion.
“You’re strong,” she said after the fifth kill. “Stronger every time.”
Hours passed without Noah fully realizing it, as he was completely absorbed in the steady flow of combat. Every time he checked his system, he found a new level-up message.
[Level increased: 7.]
[Level increased: 8.]
[Level increased: 9.]
When he finally stopped to catch his breath, gasping for air, the horde was still gathering around him, seemingly endless.
“Had enough?” Belle asked, still without a single scratch.
“Does this ever end?” Noah panted.
“No,” she replied simply. “Hidden areas function as the heart of each floor. Monsters appear endlessly. If you want to stop, you just have to leave.”
“Yeah,” Noah said, resting his hands on his knees. “We’d better go.”
Belle nodded, and they withdrew through the horde, which dissolved behind them, leaving the constant hum of new monsters appearing.
◇◆◇
Once they were out, Noah leaned against a wall and slid down until he was sitting on the floor, catching his breath in long gasps.
Belle crouched in front of him, watching him closely, her eyes settling on the dagger he still held in his hand.
“Your blade wears down too quickly,” she observed. “You should buy better equipment when you get out.”
“I’ll have to save up quite a bit for that,” Noah replied with a tired laugh.
Belle produced a considerably bulging leather bag from somewhere and handed it to him.
“This should be enough money for you, with some left over.”
Noah opened it, surprised by the number of fragments, claws, and stones piled inside.
“Did you collect all this from the ones I killed?” he asked, genuinely astonished. “I never would’ve had time to do that in there.”
“Someone had to do it while you were fighting,” she replied with a shrug.
“Thank you,” Noah said, with a sincerity he struggled to express. “You’re really helping me a lot. I don’t know how I can repay you.”
Belle smiled.
“You don’t need to repay me. That’s what friends do.”
Noah blinked.
“Friends?”
Belle’s eyebrows shot up, and for the first time since he’d met her, he saw her look genuinely nervous.
“Yeah, well…” She stopped, stumbling over her words. “Sorry, maybe I got ahead of myself. Maybe we’re not… or you didn’t want to…” She stood up too quickly. “Sorry for being so intense.”
‘She definitely has a side I didn’t know about,’ Noah thought, watching her with a restrained smile.
“I’d be happy to have you in my life,” he said calmly.
Belle fell completely silent, wearing an expression Noah couldn’t quite interpret.
“Are you okay?” he asked, a little worried by her reaction.
“Yes,” she replied quickly, almost too quickly. “Sorry.” She changed the subject immediately. “Do you want to keep going?”
Noah nodded as he watched her walk away, though he was still somewhat confused.
◇◆◇
They finally reached the nighttime maze, and Belle stopped at the entrance, looking at the hedge walls with quiet recognition.
“So this is the place you’re having so much trouble with,” she said with an understanding smile. “I remember it well.”
“How did it go for you here?” Noah asked.
“I was lucky enough to get information before going in. I found out about the traps scattered throughout the maze, so I didn’t enter until I had a complete map of the area. Even with the map, it took me two months to reach the tower.”
Noah’s eyes widened at the amount of time she mentioned.
Belle smiled mischievously.
“Do you want me to tell you what’s there? What’s waiting for you at the end?”
“Why are you smiling like that?” Noah asked with some suspicion. “Is there something bad?”
Belle closed her eyes without answering right away.
“I won’t tell you unless you ask me to.”
Noah laughed softly.
“Please tell me.”
She started walking, and he followed close behind.
“You’re right to think the floor boss is in the dark tower,” Belle explained. “That’s the main route. But don’t try to climb the maze walls under any circumstances. That will awaken the guardian.”
‘Yeah… I’ve already met it,’ Noah thought, pretending he was hearing the information for the first time.
They walked in silence for quite a while, until Belle stopped at the first intersection, frowning slightly.
“I don’t remember the route from here very well,” she admitted. “And I didn’t bring a map. If we keep going like this, we’ll probably get lost.”
She held out her hand to him.
Noah took it, confused. Even though she was very strong, her hand felt small, delicate, and frail. For some reason Noah couldn’t understand, he liked the sensation. Maybe it was just human nature.
Before he could ask anything, Belle jumped.
The leap carried them straight to the top of the maze, where they landed on the surface of the hedges.
“Wait!” Noah immediately felt panic seize him. “We shouldn’t do this!”
The tremor came at once, followed by the brutal gale he knew all too well. He felt the wind threatening to drag him away, but Belle’s hand closed firmly around his.
“Hold on tight,” she said with absolute calm amid the chaos.
Her clothes and hair whipped violently in the wind, and Noah, his heart pounding, caught sight of the swarm emerging en masse from the depths of the maze and, farther off, the colossal centipede climbing toward the surface.
“Belle!” he shouted, terror seizing every fiber of his body as he tried to back away, run, and escape a memory that still felt etched into every inch of his skin.
But she held him firmly without letting go.
“Relax,” she said in a soft, almost motherly voice. “I’ll protect you. Trust me.”
Noah looked at her, still trembling with fear, but something in the absolute serenity of her face, in the unshakable certainty of her gaze, calmed him enough to nod.
The swarm drew closer.
Belle moved.
It was barely a flash: her figure blurred completely as she moved at a speed Noah couldn’t follow with his eyes. In her wake, the insects began to burst apart one after another, hundreds of them, without her momentum faltering for even a moment.
Noah watched, frozen, as the entire swarm disintegrated in a matter of seconds.
Then the centipede arrived.
Belle stepped in front of him, and a glow began to envelop her entire figure, a light that seemed to come from her own skin. She leaped straight at it, striking with such force that she pierced the colossal monster’s head in a single motion.
The resulting shock wave shook the air, whipping Noah’s clothes violently. Still kneeling on the hedges, he could only watch her, entranced, bathed in the moon’s silvery light.
‘I never thought I could feel this much admiration,’ he thought, his heart beating for a reason completely different from fear.
The centipede’s colossal body crumpled, dead, shaking the ground with its weight.
Belle landed on the dead monster’s head, higher up than Noah, surrounded by that silvery light, her black hair swaying slightly.
‘It’s like looking at a goddess.’
Noah could only keep staring at the goddess in front of him, as if the whole world had stopped just to let him admire her.
Their eyes met. His heart pounded in his chest.
‘I think… I’ve fallen in love with her.’