Novels2Search

Perspective Shift

Mako felt like he was having an aneurysm, his head now aching far more then the injury to his chest and ribcage. The feeling was similar to the time when the blue haired youth had taken an intense, 2 hour long Trigonometry lesson and had to figure out what the hell Sine, Cosine, and Tangent were and how to apply them correctly. With so much information thrown at him during the lesson, Mako had had to mentally slap himself in order to calm down enough to understand everything. The situation then was awfully similar to the present but just on a much larger scale, in which his brain short circuited entirely and refused to be reset.

Even when handed the pieces to the very puzzle he had been attempting to solve, the youth wasnt able to put them together to form any sort of coherent idea, at least none that made sense.

The city known as Orario and the vast underground dungeon that existed beneath it, a large subterranean labyrinth of epic proportions, this much Mako was able to understand. Even if it made little sense in the grand scheme of things, it was something to grasp onto as it gave him a location, wherever that so happened to be. It was the other stuff that Aurori said that had gave him such an intense aneurysm, things like Loki Familia and lower floors. It also didnt help that he already had a swirl of information spiraling around within his noggin, a whole slew of data that he couldn't do anything with.

Every detail that Mako had been handed was easy to understand by themselves. Armor and weapons, adventurers, dungeons, and levels were definitely simple topics to comprehend when combined but that was only in reference to fantasy worlds and RPG based games. In reality, or at least the reality Mako had been used to, none of the things he had heard and witnessed would've ever happened nor would they have ever been brought up in conversation unless in reference to some sort of literature, media, or game based outlet.

(("So, then this isnt MY reality. In that case, maybe it would be better to look at things from a different perspective, )) Mako reasoned, finally reaching a hypothesis after managing to push aside his own fear and confusion. (("As fantastic as it would seem, it isn't logical to assume I'm in my own hometown, especially given all the clues that point away from it. Waking up after seeing that town in the foam pit, visiting the place known as Rivira, seeing people in armor and wielding weapons, and being hackie sacked across a whole lane from a mere collision. None of it fits with what I know. Therefore, my problem isnt that I dont understand but rather I'm too trapped in my own preconceived notions that only applied to the reality that I was aware of. That...or everyone including myself is on drugs which is another possibility."))

Putting aside his own worlds rules and laws, Mako began to fit the figurative pieces of the puzzle into the correct slots as best he could based on his knowledge of fantasy. A dungeon, adventurers all around, a group known as a Familia, levels, inns and various buildings inside Rivira. All of it came together surprisingly easier when looked at from a different perspective and without limiting himself to what was possible. It was similar to math or science, where an answer could be reached just by taking a completely different approach, even if the path seemed like a ridiculous or idiotic one to take.

(("The dungeon, a collection of floors that leads downwards towards...something. Whether or not it has a bottom is up for debate but it seems it has valuables that are worth the long trek downwards. Assuming each floor is as big and or as lengthy as this one, it would have taken them a while to get down here, meaning that this dungeon has value within it. Otherwise, why make the journey down here?")) Mako placed his hand on his chin as he continued to scan his head, looking for clues and answers within the confines of his own memories. (("We're currently on the 18th floor known where a town called Rivira rests. From what I can tell, it serves as a sort of rest area for tired 'adventurers' who have made it this far into the depths of the labyrinth. The inns dotting the area can back the thesis up pretty well."))

The tale has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

Of course, everything Mako came up with was mere speculation and only a few things could be taken as fact. Things like Familia's and levels were still a mystery and something the blue haired youth could only guess at. There was also some key context clues and hints that had been seen or had been dropped during his short talks with the girls, of which had all left some minutes ago.

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"This is the guy you ran into? The one with no level?"

"An apology is the least you can do, especially since even most level 1's would've been seriously injured when hit at the speed you were going."

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"Levels. Like a video game," Mako muttered as he stared into space. "It could explain why that girl was so freakishly strong. Sort of like if one maxed out their level then went back to the first opponent in the game. It's basically a slaughter, hence why I momentarily became a crash test dummy when Tiona ran into me."

Taking what he knew about video games and fantasy worlds, Mako began to draw his own conclusions about everything.

(("In many fantasy worlds there exists a leveling system of sorts, of which can be used to get stronger. The main hypothesis would be that adventurers are people with levels that delve into the vast, subterranean dungeon to gather resources and level up, probably fighting some variety of monsters.")) Mako blinked as he leaned back, wincing slightly from the pain in his own chest. (("Monsters would make the most sense in this case considering the presence of weapons and armor, so that would back up my guess. The lower you go, the more powerful the monsters, at least that's how it works in the games I used to play. Its highly probable that I'm incorrect and just basing this entire reality off some fantasy. Regardless of that though, everything seems to fit. I'll need more data to be sure."))

Mako let out a breath, crimson eyes once again flicking about, actually seeing his surroundings. One of the many downsides to Mako using every last brain cell was that he became unable to process the area around him, tuning it out in its entirety. Luckily no one was currently around otherwise he would have felt extremely embarrassed about how deep in thought he had just been.

After about a minute of getting his bearings, the blue haired youth pushed himself onto his feet, struggling to keep himself upright as he worked his way into a standing position. Just that small bit of exercise had taken a lot out of him, leaving him short of breath, a testament to how badly wounded he was.

Still though, even if his body wasnt quite ready to walk around, he needed to do so. In order to gather some much needed information, Mako needed to explore and talk to others, something he couldn't do by just sitting on his ass. Unless his legs were broken and he wasnt able to get up, the young adolescent refused to simply do nothing, especially given that he was so close to figuring everything out.

Mako took a few steps forward, testing out the strength in his legs and whether or not he could actually make it outside. He made it to about the third step before his body decided it had had enough of his shit, nearly sending him face first back to the ground. It was only due to someone catching him that he avoided the enemy that happened to be gravity, a strong arm wrapping around his waist and lifting him back up. There was so much power packed behind the arm, and Mako could feel it despite being held up so gently. The one who was assisting him could just as easily snap him like a twig if the need arose.

"Oh, thanks for the save," Mako muttered as his right arm was grabbed and wrapped around his helpers neck. He didnt even need to look to know who it was, the head of blonde hair already being enough. "I hate to be of trouble but if I may have your assistance, thatd be amazing."

The blonde shook her head. "No trouble. I'll help."

The blonde didnt seem to speak very much, keeping her words simple and clear. Even when Mako leaned on her and relied on her for movement, she didnt say anything, golden eyes facing forward with an innocent face.

"What's your name?" Mako asked curiously as they walked through the tent flaps, the dim lights from the above crystals shining over them. "If you don't mind me asking."

"Ais," The girl responded, her voice on the quieter side. "Ais Wallenstein."