[
Nasrin dropped to one knee as a beam of light materialized in front of them, her breathing labored and shallow. “I did it…My fallen comrades, your deaths have been avenged," she muttered through her exhaustion, closing her eyes as she felt tears well up.
A portal appeared behind a golden chest; the one that had manifested from the light pillar. With a small smile on their faces, Zeke and Circe turned to approach Nasrin, both edging closer to her.
Before any of them could speak, shimmering lights suddenly appeared, dancing around Nasrin as her body began to turn translucent. She lowered her hand to inspect herself in surprise, but soon raised her head to meet with her two heroes. Her lips formed a slight grin. “It seems that I am now free from this place.”
“Nasrin…” Circe's voice dropped unusually low, and her visage darkened as if a dying friend lay before her. Even though they’d met for a brief moment, as comrades who’d fought side by side, she couldn't help but feel glum by their departure.
Nasrin seemed to understand Circe's sentiments, staring up at her as she extended her talon to her hand. “Circe,” Nasrin nodded at Zeke, “Ezekiel, I thank you both for helping me achieve this final goal of mine.”
"Of course," Circe said, her melancholy look lightened by a big grin. “You can go now, Nasrin. It’s been nice knowing you.”
“Truly,” as her body began to fade, Nasrin shifted her attention to Zeke; most likely, her next sentence would be her last, “Ezekiel, keep in mind what I’ve said…it might become of help to you someday.”
Zeke just reacted with a nod, his face too impassive to discern any emotion from its blank canvas. Despite his silence, Nasrin's brightened expression indicated that she heard his silent goodbyes loud and clear.
“Farewell, Otherworlders.”
Nasrin's body faded into nothingness as it melted into light and drifted into the skies. Zeke and Circe trailed the glittering streaks upward, their stillness marking the final minutes of their fleeting encounter.
“...So that’s it,” Circe’s quiet voice broke the silence between them. Before she could continue, she caught onto something sitting on her palm; on the hand Nasrin had grabbed on to. When she saw what the item was for, her eyes widened. “Isn’t this…!?”
[The Original Owner of
“Woah,” Zeke sounded impressed as he leaned closer, reading the notification panel in front of Circe, “A boss willingly giving their core to a player is very rare…Nasrin must’ve given you hers as a departing gift.”
Hearing his words, a grin formed on Circe’s lips. “You’re not jealous that she didn’t give you anything, right?”
“Of course not!” Zeke huffed in frustration, a deep scowl forming between his brows. He went on, gesturing with his thumb to Tarren's body, "This means I get to have Tarren's core. That’s fair, right?”
“Pfft, sure~” Circe responded with a playful roll of her eyes, “Assuming that whatever you get from Tarren is for mages, that is.”
“Don’t you dare say that,” Zeke practically growled, “I’ll get a good skill from Tarren, because he’s a high-leveled boss.”
“Okay, okay,” Circe raised her hands defensively, but the toothy grin on her face still lingered. Rather than teasing Zeke more, she changed the subject, “Anyway, since I’m level twenty now…”
[Equipped
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[
[Equipped
[The Weapon Skill,
[The Weapon Skill,
An obsidian-black scythe materialized in Circe’s palm, the unending storm surrounding them intensified the hint of purple around its keen edge. As if the weapon’s imposing stature didn’t appear threatening enough, its bonus effects made the scythe exclude an uncanny aura; as if Death itself stood in Circe’s place.
“Isn’t it just so cool?” With pride, she declared while performing a dramatic dance with the Presence of Death. Despite it being her first time using the weapon, she handled it far too skillfully for a novice. “I can already imagine the skill combo I could use for this thing. I can’t wait to raid more dungeons!”
“Yes, yes…” Zeke responded in a dejected tone. As he brought up his status window, he eyed the number of his level with a small frown. “I'm just one level away from my S-Rank weapon too. So let's grab our rewards and get out of here.”
“Agree,” Circe nodded, her smile still as bright as ever. She strode over to Tarren's motionless body and cut through the enormous bird's back, ripping the feathers and skin like she had done with Arachne's corpse. As she removed the boss monster's core from the wound, she whistled with joy, "This scythe slices so good~."
Zeke extended his hand, demanding, “Now give it to me.”
Without a verbal response, Circe recklessly threw the glass-like sphere towards him. Fortunately, Zeke managed to catch it with one precise swipe of his hand.
[
As Zeke made his way to the chest reward, Circe hopped down from Tarren’s corpse, walking to his side. They shared a brief glance at one another before Zeke extended his hand towards the chest. It gave off a golden glow and swung open.
[You’ve earned: x1
[You’ve earned: x1
[You’ve earned: x5
After they received their rewards, the chest blinked a flash of gold once more before disintegrating into light. Zeke turned to Circe and asked, “Do you want to open our rewards here?”
“No,” she responded with a shake of her head, “It's been hours since we left. Even if time moves slower here, it must be pretty late outside.”
Zeke nodded in agreement, “Alright, then let's go.”
They faced the dungeon’s scenery once more; the raging thunder and perpetual storm persisting even after their lord’s death. Although they both secretly agreed that it had a certain beauty of its own, they did not want to go back if they could help it.
“Once is enough.”
With that, they turned to the portal, and walked on through.
.
.
.
The smell of rain dissipated as soon as they stepped foot onto the familiar ground of the alleyway. Diminishing sunlight peeked through the gaps between buildings, signaling the day’s end. Zeke and Circe quietly walked onto the streets, now barren of its people with the rise of dusk.
Without exchanging any more words, they made their way towards the coachman, promptly awaiting their arrival at the nearby stables. The man quietly bowed in respect to the young nobles, opening the carriage door for Lady Ruelle and Lord Silas. They appreciated him for not giving them looks for being late, or at the very least kept his curiosity to himself.
When the coachman closed the door behind them, Zeke and Circe let out the breath they didn't realize they were holding. “Phew! It’s nice that he didn’t ask us where we were.” Circe slumped down on her seat in relief.
“Servants wouldn’t care about what their masters are doing anyway,” as Zeke responded, the carriage jolted forward, “But man, am I tired…I used up way too much mana, it’s catching up to me.”
“Oh, by the way,” Circe straightened herself, “You said you wanted to try something in the dungeon? What was it?”
“Ah, right,” a slice of cheesecake appeared in Zeke’s hand. He suddenly took a bite out of it, not caring if he got his hands dirty, “I wanted to know if bringing food into the dungeon would make them give us buffs. It doesn’t.”
Circe rested her legs up on the seat, stretching it as far as she could. Because of her–Ruelle’s petite stature, there was plenty of room. “Maybe if we’re the ones who make the food, those could give us buffs.”
“Probably,” Zeke shrugged, “There’s an achievement for cooking…so I’ll probably do that to get myself to level twenty.”
A chuckle from Circe rang through the carriage, “You know how to cook?”
“Why, of course?” Zeke responded with a raised eyebrow, the look on his face made it clear he wasn’t joking, “I know how to cook a few dishes. Even if all I do is game, I also take care of myself,” there was a slight pause as Zeke narrowed his gaze at Circe, “...Don’t tell me you think all I eat are cup noodles.”
Auditably gasping, Circe placed a hand to her chest, “Wow, you don’t eat cup noodles twenty four seven? I can’t believe it!”
Zeke didn’t find the sarcasm funny, as clear annoyance spread across his deadpan face, “I’ll show you what I can do. I can even make desserts, you know? Because I have other hobbies other than gaming too.”
“Wow! So a pro gamer does other things than play games all day? Unbelievable!”
“Okay, it was alright the first time,” Zeke shook his head, “You didn’t need to make that joke twice.”
As the sound of Circe’s hysteria filled the cabinet, Zeke couldn't help but find himself smiling at her goofy reaction. He leaned his chin against his palm, turning to watch the sunset outside the window. For some reason, he found Circe’s laughter oddly comforting as they ride back home.