Greg walked down the street, looking at the ground. He avoided looking at faces.

It had been a week since he was told to kill, and he came to a realization. He would do it. He just didn't know who it was going to be. Maybe Old Man Klerk, who would die the soonest; Pulp the Drunk, who nobody liked; or someone random, decided upon a coin flip.

It wasn't like he wanted to do it; it's just that he didn't want to die, as soon as he got a chance to restart his life.

"Hey, Greg!" called a lighthearted voice. Looking towards the source, he found Janus a little distance away, walking closer. "What are you thinking about?"

"Nothing," Greg nervously replied, darting his eyes around to the various shops. Despite Turo being a small village, most houses were half-shops so that travelers would spend money, which allowed a stable economy. It was incredible how many people passed through the village. Unfortunately, it was on the border of the Yuri Kingdom, which he found to be a hilarious name, and the Eve, Angel & Lion Coalition, which was also funny to him. What wasn't funny, though, is that the two countries are always on the brink of war.

"Hey, you listening?" Janus asked, gently tapping on Greg's head.

"Of course I was," Greg answered, waving off his hand. "But, just to make sure you know, could you repeat it?"

"No way," he laughed. "Come on. We're about to practice."

Greg smiled. "Alright, alright."

The two walked out of the town, Janus spilling tea, and Greg drinking it up. When they finally reached the surrounding forest, Janus was saying, "Can you believe it? Bunbun confessed to me, again. Of course, I blew her off, without mentioning my true love. Oh, how her cold eyes drill holes through my body!"

Greg, meanwhile, sighed. "I don't need to hear about this again."

Before Janus could respond, a loud boom sounded from ahead, followed by dust blowing towards them. Greg covered his eyes with his arm, while Janus kept walking ahead.

"They said they'd wait," he complained. He glanced about eagerly.

"You don't have to go at my pace," Greg said once the dust calmed down.

Janus looked over his shoulder. "Really?" he asked. "Weren't you scared of the Monsters?"

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"I have to get used to them, don't I?"

Without any more explanation, Janus nodded, before flashing forward. No wonder he'd become known as Lightning Flash in the future. Still, he didn't hurry to follow, but took his time.

Truly, the forest was pretty creepy, but he knew this was nothing compared to other areas. Thankfully, there wasn't any signs of web-

Across the path lay a single strand of something almost invisible. Curse his mouth.

"This isn't supposed to happen, is it?" he quietly asked, not daring to raise his voice.

No, it is not. But it's a side-effect of bringing others here. That's why you are necessary.

He stopped, rereading the message again. "Others?" he finally asked, shocked.

Yes, others. Although I am unable to tell you who they are, I can tell you that you are not the first to be brought here, nor will you be the last.

He sighed, turning off the path towards the edge of the tree line. "So, my knowledge becomes useless?"

No. None of them played End of Days like you did.

"Glad to clear that up."

Finally, he crossed the tree line, entering a clearing where three people flashed, sending small shockwaves that Greg could feel. One, carrying a sword, evenly matched the others in speed, but her shockwaves seemed stronger than the other two. Another, using a staff, created ice from the air, using wide-range attacks that rarely hit. The final one, being the most energetic, moved the quickest, barely being visible to Greg's eyes. Obviously, they were Lily Silver, Leia Frost, and Janus Thunderbolt, respectively.

Instead of joining in, he sat down at the edge, hopefully being the farthest he could be from them. It was enjoyable, watching skills that he could only ever see on a screen in real life, feeling the aftershocks, even smelling the lightning. Truly, this was so much better than staring at a screen all day.

He could tell the moment all three of them saw him, since they began to use flashier moves that weren't quite effective, even going so far as to yell the names of those skills.

"Lightning Fist!" yelled Janus, throwing a fist towards Lily, who parried with the edge of her sword.

"Cross-Slash!" she shouted, swinging her weapon in wide, eye-catching arcs. Janus, however, dodged the blow.

"Iceberg Throw!" Leia cried, aiming her staff at the two who were focused on each other. Obviously, they dodged.

Greg sighed, pulling out tufts of grass. He didn't come here to watch a size contest, after all. Maybe he'd go find the Spider Nest.

And do what? a part of him asked. He wasn't strong enough to kill a monster, that's for sure. He wouldn't ask for help until the spiders started killing, as they were sometimes friendly.

So, what?

Something dripped from above. He already knew what it was before he looked, but he was surprised to find that it was a friendly species, the Honour Spiders. For some reason, his hands scoured his pockets, searching for something.

Feeling his fingers wrap around what he was searching for, he pulled it out, holding it very carefully in front of the spider. He was ready to pull back at any time, but he knew he wouldn't be fast enough.

As though the spider didn't trust him, it carefully moved a leg, taking the bread so fast he barely saw the leg move. He was shaking, but he knew that Honour Spiders hated meat, going so far that some nests had their own fields, though they rarely yielded anything edible. Often, they stole food to eat. That must've been why it placed a web over the path into town; to steal from any carts that left, or entered, carrying food.

Quickly, it scuttled away from his vision, its white body somehow blending in at a distance.