After the golem on the 10th floor was reduced to rubble, we finally allowed ourselves a brief moment of respite. The tension from the battle lingered, but the sense of relief was undeniable. Once we felt ready, we resumed our journey.

Our path through the 10th floor led us across familiar sights: endless stretches of grass broken by crumbled ruins. Yet, as we pressed forward, a peculiar structure came into view. Unlike the sprawling, decayed remnants we had passed before, this one was distinctly different in its simplicity and purpose. Standing solitary in the middle of the field, it was a door—a solid slab of ancient wood framed by stone pylons. The surrounding grass rippled in the breeze, as though bowing to its presence.

“Behind that door is the -9th floor, Lucy!” Ryna’s cheerful voice broke the tranquil silence, pulling me out of my contemplation. Her enthusiasm was infectious, but her words raised a question that stuck in my mind. Were all floors separated by such doors?

Before crossing the threshold, a movement at the edge of my vision caught my attention. Turning slightly, I spotted a quaint village in the distance. Small, pointy-hatted figures busily moved about, accompanied by amorphous blobs of many sizes and colors shimmered in the light.

“Gnomes and slimes,” Ryna said, following my gaze. She had taught me about these creatures before. The gnomes appeared industrious, working together to construct homes and gather food alongside their gelatinous companions. Their cooperative existence seemed worlds apart from the chaos we had endured.

I let the sight linger for a moment before turning back to the door. The curiosity about the labyrinth’s structure—its design, its purpose—was tempting, but I quickly dismissed it. My goal was simple: escape. The mysteries of this place could wait until I was far from its grasp.image [https://i.imgur.com/9lAag9t.jpg]

Stepping through the door was like crossing into another world. The open sky vanished, replaced by walls that hemmed us in from every direction, including above. The sudden confinement was jarring, a stark reminder of how fleeting freedom could be. The air felt heavier here, the weight of the labyrinth pressing down on us.

We continued forward, traversing uneventful floors. The monotonous scenery became a blur of stone corridors and dimly lit chambers. The creatures we encountered were unremarkable—small goblins, meek and unthreatening, moved about their lives. Ryna whispered, “They won’t attack unless provoked. Ryna sneaky-sneak-sneaks past them all the time!” She placed a finger to her lips, grinning mischievously. I nodded, following her lead.

The monotony of these floors made them almost laughably mundane, a stark contrast to the harrowing challenges we had faced earlier. It was a relief in its own way, though the thought lingered in the back of my mind: if this place were truly dangerous, would Ryna have ever dug through the floors and awaken me?

Hours passed in this repetitive rhythm until we finally arrived at the -1st floor. Here, the atmosphere shifted once again. The stale air carried a sense of foreboding, and the oppressive silence felt heavier. Ryna explained that the labyrinth’s layout descended into the earth itself, with the numbered floors climbing back toward the surface. However, before reaching the 1st floor, we had one more obstacle: the ominously titled “Floor 0.”

“Every 10th floor has a guardian,” I mused aloud. “That means there’s something waiting for us on Floor 0, right?”

Ryna nodded solemnly, her usual cheer subdued. “Ryna doesn’t know what’s there. Ryna never met the sleepy monsters… Ryna only sneaks around. Never seen them.”

I understood her caution. It wasn’t worth speculating about what lay ahead. We’d find out soon enough. The -1st floor, while carrying a sense of unease, was uneventful—just another stretch of dull stone corridors and lifeless chambers. With no real threats in sight, we pressed forward without hesitation.

When we stepped into Floor 0, the labyrinth played another of its tricks. The walls fell away, replaced by an open expanse. The sky above was not the familiar blue but a muted canvas of dusk, the horizon tinged with hues of orange and purple. The ruins here bore an eerie resemblance to those on the 10th floor, as though we had stepped back in time to an earlier part of our journey.

“Are these doors connecting the same two dimensions?” I wondered aloud, the thought drifting into the still air. We had walked long enough for the sun to set, and the landscape was hauntingly familiar.

Ryna stayed close as we navigated this space. Her initial surprise at my heightened caution gave way to quiet understanding as she let me lead. The stillness around us was unsettling, but I moved forward with deliberate care. I couldn’t shake the feeling that we were being watched.

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An hour passed in tense silence... Then another. The expanse of Floor 0 seemed endless, and I began to wonder if this place was designed to test patience as much as resolve. Then, the peace shattered.

A sharp, unearthly screech sliced through the stillness, dark and piercing like a predator’s cry echoing across a silent night. Ryna froze, her trembling form betraying the fear coursing through her. I reached out, resting a steadying hand on her shoulder, grounding her as I scanned the surroundings for the source of the dreadful noise.

Nothing. Just the ruins, still and foreboding as ever.

The sound—it felt as though the very air itself was screaming, a disembodied cry that seemed to emanate from everywhere and nowhere. I frowned. Could the dungeon itself be alive, its voice a warning or a threat? The thought lingered uncomfortably in my mind.

And then it came again.

SCREEECH!!!

Louder, sharper, more grating this time. It clawed at my senses, refusing to be ignored. Ryna flinched again, her ears flattening against her head, but I kept her close, my gaze darting around with heightened focus. Still, no sign of a threat. No shadow, no movement—nothing to explain the awful noise.

But it didn’t matter. Because there it was—the door. Just ahead, within sight. Relief surged through me as I quickened our pace, eager to escape this cursed floor once and for all.

And then the ground trembled.

A sudden, fiery streak tore through the darkened sky like a blade of light, descending with meteoric force. The object blazed brighter as it fell, igniting the air around it in an inferno of flame and smoke. The ground beneath us trembled violently, and a deafening roar erupted as it collided with the earth, obliterating the stillness. I shielded Ryna instinctively, bracing against the gale-like pressure.

The impact sent a shockwave rippling outward, flattening the grass and dislodging ancient stone fragments from nearby ruins.

As for the door? Well, the door seems to be a force of awe in itself, no damage was sustained. The door alongisde the ground beneath it, both, did not undergo any destruction whatsoever. Almost like an aura was embracing it, and hell, maybe an aura was in fact protecting it.

The scene revealed itself—a crater, easily ten meters wide and half as deep, radiating heat in palpable waves. The grass at the edges had been scorched to ash, leaving a blackened ring marking the devastation.

When the dust cleared, my eyes fell upon it—the creature.

It rose slowly, unfolding from the crater like a nightmare given form. It resembled a bird in shape alone, its massive body covered in sinewy flesh and grotesque, writhing tendrils that mimicked a skeletal frame. There was no fire in its essence; the flames had been a byproduct of its sheer velocity. Despite the fiery descent, its unnatural form bore no burns or scars. It was as though the laws of nature simply didn’t apply to this monstrosity.

“What in the world?” I muttered, stepping forward instinctively. My gaze locked onto its featureless face. It had no eyes, no discernible features, yet it turned toward me with an unsettling precision, as though it could see—or sense—me perfectly.

The creature remained still, its tendrils twitching faintly. The only sound it made was the same screech, now more guttural, more deliberate. It wasn’t just noise. It was communicating, studying me with a predator’s intent.

“Fine,” I said, breaking the tense silence. “Have it your way. I’ll make the first move.”

I took a step forward, closing the distance. To my surprise, the creature recoiled, its grotesque form shifting backward. It was a subtle motion, but it was there—a retreat. I narrowed my eyes. Was it… afraid?

I tested the theory, stepping forward again with deliberate intent. The creature flinched, its tendrils curling inward defensively. The screeching grew softer, more frantic. It wasn’t just reacting—it was hesitating, calculating. For all its monstrous appearance, it possessed a spark of intelligence, enough to recognize the danger I posed.

“Interesting,” I murmured. But I had no time for a drawn-out confrontation. The door was my priority.

Without breaking eye contact, I reached back and took Ryna’s hand, guiding her toward the door. My movements were slow, deliberate, non-threatening. The creature remained rooted in place, its tendrils quivering as it watched us pass.image [https://i.imgur.com/GzTBCyb.png]

And just like that, we were through.

The door closed behind us, and I exhaled a breath I hadn’t realized I was holding. Ryna looked up at me, her eyes wide with a mixture of awe and confusion. “Lucy… it let us go?”

“Seems like it,” I replied, though the words felt hollow. My thoughts were racing. Why had it backed down? Could it truly have been afraid of me? Or was it simply biding its time, a predator watching its prey escape for now?

A faint flicker of energy caught my attention. The ability I’d activated during the golem encounter—one that let me sense intent—was still in effect. I glanced back through the now-closed door, focusing on the creature’s presence. Its emotions washed over me in an instant: fear, uncertainty, and something deeper… respect? It had recognized me as a superior force, one it had no desire to challenge.

I let out a quiet laugh, more out of disbelief than humor. “So, even monsters like that can feel fear.”

But the thought gave rise to more questions. Why had the golem fought without hesitation? Was it mindless, bound to its purpose as a guardian? Or did it lack the capacity for fear entirely?

...

Was it created to guard my tomb?

...

I pushed the thoughts aside. They were questions for another time. What mattered now was that we had reached the first floor—the true beginning of freedom! The stale air of the ruins was behind us, and ahead lay the promise of a new world, fresh and untainted, waiting to be explored.

Alongside with whatever dangers it prepared for yours truly!