Chapter 8: Far Too Optimistic
We returned to the main antechamber of the tomb, where Jax briefed the guild masters on our progress. We were the fourth group to finish our assigned section of the exploration.
Lady Mikaela exhaled softly. “Are you sure about their level?” she asked.
“Yes. The highest were level 40.” Jax said, while my mind remained occupied by thoughts of the Checkpoint skill. Should I use it now?
Lady Mikaela nodded at Jax’s words. “Peculiar indeed. An adjusting dungeon...that’s a first.”
Stephan Lorren seemed deep in thought before speaking. “Should we call it off?”
But before Lady Mikaela could respond, a low-leveled adventurer from one of the other parties came stumbling from inside the dungeon, calling out for help.
“Help us!” he cried out.
It was a male healer, of the Mystic class, bleeding heavily and barely managing to make his way to us.
“Help!” he cried out before collapsing, and suddenly the entrance to the tomb slammed shut, locking us all inside.
My heart raced. Whatever happened to him and his party, now was the best moment to use the Checkpoint skill. I activated it.
[Checkpoint Set: Your progress has been saved at this point in time. Use wisely – current anchor will be lost upon death, or after thirty minutes. The earliest of the two.]
So, level 1 Checkpoint gives you just thirty minutes…
I took a deep breath. Let’s see what’s going to challenge us.
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We received a bone-chilling introduction from Gaelith himself - or his spirit, I suppose.
Stephan Lorren focused on the entrance. Trying to unlock it.
But then, the first wave of enemies came.
A pack of undead wolves.
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***
The pack was large. While Lady Mikaela focused on the Pack Leader, the rest of us were left to deal with the remaining wolves. Realizing the threat, I activated Bladesurge, enhancing Nightfall’s stats for the next two minutes.
Yana made her way to my side as the attack began, and together we faced one of the undead wolves. It lunged at me, but my agility stats were enough to keep me out of its reach and I rolled to the side, narrowly dodging its snapping jaws.
Yana closed the distance with Blade Rush, moving like a blur, and swung her sword at the wolf. But the beast reacted swiftly, dodging the attack. Then, to our surprise, it let out a chilling howl, unleashing a sound wave attack at Yana.
Her eyes widened, but she managed to use Dash Step to evade the attack just in time.
Seizing the opportunity, I took advantage of the wolf’s focus on Yana and rushed forward, swinging Nightfall with Time Delay Swing. The blade connected, but I barely made a dent in its HP despite the enhanced stats.
Yana closed the distance again, unleashing Flame Arc, sending a blazing slash of fire at the wolf. But it dodged once more, and then dashed powerfully toward her, targeting her. It was clear the beast saw her as the primary threat and was determined to take her out first.
While it was distracted, I attacked again from behind, but my strike was a lot weaker than Yana’s. The wolf turned to face me with a snarl, giving Yana the perfect opening. She closed in with another Blade Rush. Her blade carving a deep gash across the wolf’s side, taking away almost third its health in a single strike.
Then, she concentrated, activating Blazing Dash, moving like a streak of fire as her sword cleaved through the beast’s defenses, The wolf’s HP dropped to a sliver, and I quickly followed up with another Time Delay Swing, making sure I get the kill and most of the XP.
The blade connected, and the wolf staggered before collapsing, its HP bar finally hitting zero.
[+318 XP]
Only 318 XP? Unbelievable…way lower than I expected.
“It sure felt a lot stronger than a level 70. At the very least, HP and durability-wise. My attacks usually deal a lot more damage to enemies of similar level.” Yana exhaled, visibly exhausted.
“At least we got it.” I replied, equally winded, wondering if my previous selves managed to slay the wolf as well.
I glanced at the Déjà vu system menu. How much time do I have left until my Checkpoint expired?
[Déjà vu System: Level 2]
[Loop Count: 3]
[Experience Points (XP): 350 / 1100]
[Checkpoint lvl. 1: Time left until Anchor expires – 15 minutes and 23 seconds]
Around fifteen minutes…
I bit my lip nervously. Should I use the remaining time to prepare? But what if no one attacks us during this time? If that happens, did this mean I would have to kill myself to trigger the skill’s effect?
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The thought sent a shiver down my spine. I couldn’t do that, could I? Even if I wouldn’t remember it in the next loop, it felt…wrong. Would anyone in their right mind willingly end themselves, just to make progress?
But if I didn’t, I’d lose this run’s progress when I died.
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Lorren couldn’t open the entrance doors without a Keystone.
The high-leveled adventurers, led by him and Lady Mikaela ventured deeper inside to retrieve it.
Aric Kelltins, one of Lady Mikaela’s finest, was left behind with the rest of us who were lower than level 75.
He began setting our defense over the perimeter. Putting me next to the healers in the center of the formation.
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***
The faint feeling of Déjà vu struck me again, the passive skill sending a jolt of dread through me. Something bad was going to happen now - something involving the ground. But what? I clenched my teeth, wishing the damned skills in this new system were leveled up higher so I could actually understand what I was supposed to do.
I glanced around for Yana. She was positioned in the front lines of the formation.
“If things go downhill, look for me.” She said before stepping away. “I’ll look for you too.”
I nodded, forcing a weak smile. “Just like the old times.”
But that ominous feeling refused to leave me. It clawed at my chest, tightening my throat. Something was definitely about to go wrong.
Aric Kelltins tried to raise our moral, claiming that dungeon monsters usually target the higher-leveled adventurers first, claiming we should be safe. But he was proven wrong, when the ground quaked beneath us.
Large, twisted versions of moles burst through the earth with a horrific screech, using their oversized claws to shatter our entire formation. Their names appeared as Grave Moles, followed by a terrifying level 80.
They emerged right beneath the healers. When the front lines noticed and tried to fall back to help, a wave of giant spider monsters appeared from within the tomb, cutting off their retreat.
One of the Grave Moles lunged at Lena, its massive claws arcing toward her. Instinctively, I dove forward, shoving her aside at the very last second. The young healer standing behind her wasn’t as fortunate – he barely had time to scream before the monster’s claws bisected him.
“T-Thank you.” Lena stammered, trembling as I helped her to her feet, blood splattering around us.
I nodded as the chaos enveloped us. Some of the mages turned their strikes on the moles, trying to help us.
“Watch out!” someone shouted behind me.
I spun around just in time to see a Grave Mole slam its claws against a blue barrier cast by Dina. It held for a moment, but then the monster’s claws glowed a dark red, enhanced by some kind of magic. The next strike shattered the barrier like glass.
I activated Luminous Slash, releasing crescent-shaped projectiles from Nightfall aimed at the creature. The glowing arc sliced through the air, but the Grave Mole effortlessly deflected it with its claws.
Before we could react, another Grave Mole erupted from the ground beneath us. Its claws latched onto Dina’s leg, severing it clean off in a single motion. She cried in agony as the creature dragged her down into the earth before we could even blink.
“Dina!” someone screamed, but she was gone, swallowed by the ground.
Meanwhile, the first Grave Mole lunged at Lena and me. I raised Nightfall, bracing myself. Lena, paralyzed by shock, couldn’t even move.
Then Yana came out of nowhere, using Blazing Dash to slice through the Grave Mole’s side. The fiery slash landed perfectly - a critical hit - but it only shaved off a quarter of its HP.
“Aidan, we need to run!” Yana shouted.
I nodded, and we began our retreat toward the nearest corridor. But it wasn’t so simple – the Grave Moles were relentless, emerging from the ground beneath us. Huge claws continued bursting through the earth around us, trying to snatch us just like they did to Dina.
At some point, Jax and Henry grouped with us, using their offensive spells to buy us more distance from the moles as we retreated.
But then, the level 65 Void Spiders started dropping from the ceiling, ensnaring retreating adventurers in sticky webs, making them easy targets for the Grave Moles. It was chaotic. Everyone just falling left and right.
As I retreated, the familiar sense of Déjà vu washed over me.
I asked myself if that was the same way things had played out in the previous runs? Running away protected by Yana, retreating, watching adventurers get slaughtered around me. Their terrified faces, their haunting screams, their desperate cries for help.
Slowly, the feeling that I was repeating my previous selves’ actions intensified.
My future selves might not remember any of it, but we’ll see the loop counter rising. Just the idea of living the same day over and over again, made me sick.
I couldn’t keep running.
This needs to stop. I need to take control. This is what I’ve been waiting for. A chance to prove I’m not mediocre. I need to level up as fast as I can.
Gritting my teeth, I stopped in my tracks and turned to face the Grave Mole.
“Aidan! What are you doing?” I heard Yana behind me, panic clear in her tone.
I’m sorry, Yan. But I have to do this.
Ignoring her, I tightened my grip on Nighfall. I activated Luminous Slash again, following it up with my own Blade Rush and a Time Delay Swing. Hoping that all three skills together will overwhelm the monster and give me an opening to inflict some damage.
But that didn’t happen.
Despite my efforts, I barely managed to scratch its health. Instead of overwhelming it, I only enraged it further. The Grave Mole suddenly moved with incredible speed, its huge claws cleaving through the air. One powerful swipe knocked Nightfall from my hand. The second pierced through my chest.
“Aidan!” Yana’s scream echoed, distant and fading, as my vision blurred and everything began fading to black.
I was far too optimistic…
[Health: 0% - You Have Died]
[Checkpoint Level 1 activated: You will now reawaken at the anchor point]
***
When my eyes opened again, the first thing I did was gasp for breath - gasp and clutch my chest, falling to my knees. The memories of mere seconds ago, when the Grave Mole’s claw pierced right through me, overwhelmed me, and I began to hyperventilate.
“Aidan.” Yana ducked beside me, placing a steady hand on my back. “What’s wrong?”
The pain seemed to follow me back here, lingering in my chest as if it was still real. Yana’s voice grew muffled, but I caught three words clearly: “Take deep breaths.”
I closed my eyes tightly, forcing myself to slow my breathing. Deep breaths, in and out. I counted each inhale and exhale, relaxing my muscles.
“That’s it.” I could hear Yana better now. “I’m here.”
It’s just phantom pain. I’m okay. I’m here with Yana. I forced my focus back to the present, grounding myself in the touch of her hand on my back. Gradually, my breathing stabilized.
“Aidan, are you okay?” Yana asked, her voice filled with worry.
I nodded, still on my knees, sweat dripping from my forehead.
“Thank the gods.” Yana sighed with relief. “You scared me half to death!”
But my mind was somewhere else entirely…I just died.
The Grave Mole landed a single attack on me, and it was enough to kill me instantly.
I’m that weak, huh?
But since I’m here now, aware of everything that happened, that means…It worked! The Checkpoint skill had actually worked! Any doubts I may have had about Chronos and his Déjà vu System began crumbling away.
But it if it worked, and I retained my current self’s memories, then…the Undead Wolves should be attacking any moment now.
Lady Mikaela’s voice suddenly boomed, and I realized that in my hyperventilated state, I had missed Gaelith’s chilling introduction.
“Calm down, everyone! We’ll all make it out of here alive! Lorren and I will make sure of it! Just follow us and trust our commands.” She shouted.
Stephan Lorren nodded, yet his expression was tense, just like last time. “Yes. Follow me and Mikaela. There will be an exit out of here. I’m sure of it. Let me analyze the entrance here for now.”
Images of the slaughtered adventurers flashed before my eyes, sending a chill down my spine. I recalled how Lorren’s reluctance to help against the wolves had cost seventeen adventurers their lives last time.
“No!” I shouted, stopping him in his tracks. “You can do that later!”
Everyone turned to stare at me suspiciously.
“How dare you speak to Master Lorren this way?!” Jax snapped, aiming his staff at me, fully willing and ready to obliterate me with his magic.