"Thank you! Come again!"

I sigh as I leave the general store. I did the forage as I planned. However, most of the herbs I got will be used for the party's potion supply. Not only that, with the limited time I have, I don't have time to forage more herbs I need for high-quality [Healing Potions]. So I turned to the general store to buy the rest of them, but at the cost of my own pocket [Lapi] thanks to the Vipers trying to be petty cheap with their guild funds. Despite all of this, it's not enough for my supply. At this rate, I won't be able to catch up and there's a possibility they will toss me out as boss bait again.

[WARNING] [You are feeling peckish. Eat something to replenish your [SP] and recovery rate.]

Oh, right... I haven't eaten anything since my login. I heard from other players there's a delicious [Rabbit Steak] made by a hunter or something, but I doubt I have enough [Lapi] to buy even one meal. I resign to the inn for now. Their meals are a bit cheaper enough for my current budget...

[Lowry! Didn't expect you to be here!]

My eyes widen when I look up at the voice calling out to me. To my shock, it came from the same grey-haired man waving at me from the table full of dishes that might be too much for my stomach.

[Come on! Sit down! The table is open for everyone, including you!]

I chuckle sheepishly to see his toothy grin. I only gave him potions for his village (and the [Hidden Quest]) and he started to treat me as a friend. I'm starting to wonder if he's reckless or a dumb muscle. Still, I appreciate the invitation and I need to rest my legs anyway.

"Hey, Mr. Greyheart. How are the villagers?"

The NPC gives a thumbs-up to me and says, [They're A-okay thanks to your potions! I delivered them with my partner's help and they informed me that they were recovering as we spoke. Thanks to you, we were able to avoid casualties.]

Glad to hear his [Quest's] story has a happy ending. Unlike me...

"Thank goodness," I sigh in relief. "To tell you the truth, I'm more of a beginner in [Alchemy] and I'm glad my potions saved the day. Hehe..."

[Well, beginner or not, you still saved my villagers.]

To my surprise, he hands me a plate of a large cooked steak. It's not an ordinary steak as this one is the most expensive meal they have on their menu.

[Golden Herb Steak]

[A steak mixed with a variety of meat made by the greatest chef or a heartwarming cook.

Effects: +15% STR, 17% VIT, +5% of rare item drops

Quality: 18]

"I-I can't accept this!" I protest.

[Nonsense! You gave me those potions without any payment and I can't leave it after everything you did for me and my village! Besides, you can't do any adventuring with an empty stomach.]

I try to open my mouth to say otherwise. This is too much for a reward in terms of budget and I'm not much of a meat guy and more of a fish and veggies. But I can hear my stomach growling and another notice of my low [SP] due to hunger.

"A-Alright. T-Thanks."

This might be an underwhelming [Hidden Quest] reward if it wasn't for a pop-up not appearing as usual. Now that I think about it, I haven't seen any windows related to it ever since I finished the first one. Is there a bug or is there more to this [Quest] than a potion-making one?

Ugh... I'm too hungry to think about it right now. I cut a small piece with a knife and take a bite of it. As if my [VeilCon] glitching out, I can taste a mix of chicken, beef, and pork at the same time and the seasoning of herbs and soy sauce makes up for the chimeric taste! I feel a bit guilty taking advantage of Greyheart's gratitude due to the staff buffs for the upcoming dungeon dive, but I take what I have and it's not so bad being rewarded with a bit of kindness for once.

[You feeling better, kid?]

I nod slowly with a smile forming on my face. "Y-Yeah. I really need it. Thanks again, Mr. Greyheart."

[Please, call me Fenrir. We're all friends here. No need to be formal,] he said. [Although, I don't know if you're feeling a lot better. Is something troubling you, Lowry?]

I almost choked my steak upon hearing that question. I cough before drinking a glass of water Fenrir provided. "N-No, nothing's going on. I'm fine. I'm okay."

[Really? Cause your heartbeat says otherwise.]

My what? Can this game even detect my heartbeat from real life? I thought it only scanned my mind to access the full features of [ADVR].

"I said I'm okay and if you keep pestering me, I'm leaving without finishing this steak!" I know the steak will disappear if I do, but I'm tired of everyone putting me down and I need some rest before the dive.

[I don't mean to pry into your private life, but I feel like you have too many repressed emotions and you might not be able to bottle them up for too long.]

What is he? My therapist?! I don't need a psychology lesson now! All I want is to eat in peace and...

[Are you angry at someone? Your hands are trembling...]

I gasp. I try to make another excuse. But when I look down, I see my hands shaking while cutting another piece of steak. I try to stop the trembling, but it seems to grow faster. He's wrong, I'm fine. I'm fine! I...

"The boss might be forgiving thanks to your offer, but you're still a weakling."

I cringe upon recalling one of the goons calling out to me. I sigh and let go of my utensils to the plate. "You can say that," I sigh in defeat. "Someone I know forced me to participate in their guild's dungeon exploration and let's just say it's not a good deal. Heck, I've been dealing with him and his goons for months now."

I can hear Fenrir humming. [Why didn't you leave them or ask for help?]

"If I do that, they will turn to everyone else and do anything to blame me for treachery or something," I answered. "My burdens are mine alone. If I give them to everyone else, they will never forgive me. Doing a mutiny would have the same effect, letting everyone blame me for everything that's going wrong. I've learned that fighting has consequences. If I backstab them to escape, then they will force my hand to backstab the ones close to me by any means. And I don't want them to make me lose more of them again."

I sigh after releasing all of my feelings, just like Fenrir asked. "Is that all you want? Because that's all I can share. I need to eat, so can you not disturb me?"

I hear him humming in thought again. I feel like he's not going to listen to me. Either way, all I can do is ignore him until...

This story is posted elsewhere by the author. Help them out by reading the authentic version.

[If I can understand, you're running away from yourself and your dignity.]

I drop the spoon again. "What...did you say?"

His tone suddenly changes. What was once a jolly old man turned into a stern, cold man as he glared at me with his yellow eyes. For some reason, they are glowing a slight gold.

[You say you didn't act because you fear retribution. But all I see in you is a deer who always runs away from responsibilities. A prey not willing to fight back even when given a chance to turn the tables against their hunter.]

I grit my teeth. What the hell is he spouting about? This guy doesn't understand what I've been through both in RL and online life! I'm not as strong, smart, or skilled as everyone else! If anything, trying to improve on them led me to years of suffering out of jealousy and amusement from my bullies! I'm not...

[I have to ask. Did you even try to stand up against your tormentor? Did you ignore him at all? Do you have friends who were aware of everything that happened to you?]

I narrow my eyes and say, "I did many times. But all that did was a lot of bruises around my body. And I told you, calling for help isn't gonna help me at all!!! Don't you hear what I said?! I don't want to get my friends at all than letting them be threatened to stab me in the back!"

[Now that's odd. You said you don't want to involve your friends because of the bully's threats. But did they even make those kinds of threats at all?]

...Huh?

I know they made those threats. I know because... Because...

I know... I know he said...

"You will regret turning against us, Lucas."

Huh? That's not what I remember. That's not Savior's...

"What's the point of following your friends to a college and major we didn't recommend to you? This is the reason why you will never be an heir to a company soon."

No... That's...my father.

"Someday, your friends will turn their back and leave you."

"Like the hell, my friends will do that."

"Oh, but I will... And trust me. You will never have another "friend" who will corrupt you away from your responsibilities."

Why am I remembering him now?! This isn't about my parents! This is about my current...

My current... No... My whole life...

[What makes you think your friends will leave after confronting your tormentors? Why do you think leaving a bully would make your life suffer even more? All I'm hearing is nothing but hogwash. Tormentors and bullies indeed exist to suffer others, but it's not only for their amusement. It's because they feel inferior to the ones they see as the better person than them. Those feelings give birth to jealousy and jealousy is the main motivation behind their bullying. To dominate others and show themselves as the more powerful person than the better one. It's this imbalance that created wars, deaths, and unnecessary despair around . However, the only thing powerful enough to beat jealousy is kindness. The power of bonds forged in everyday life.]

I groan. Is this about the power of friendship cliché? Cause I'm sick...

OWWWW!!!

"Hey, why did you slap me?!" I yell at Fenrir.

[I thought you might not listen and you think that last line might be too boring for you.]

WTF?! Is he a mind reader or something?!

[And before you ask, I'm not a mind reader. I have some kids who often think of my advice as boring. Some of them died because they disregarded them.]

...What? Since when did this convention go into a darker route already?

[Right now, the world is facing a peaceful era, decades after the horrible world war that has instigated an era without gods. But it doesn't mean they achieved most of it through moral means. As I said, the world faced wars because of the imbalance between physical and social power. Some gave in to corruption and hid from the public to continue their pursuits of power and riches and some committed crimes against humanity for greed and lust. Not even the bright kingdoms such as are safe from the corrupted life. However, if you have friends by your side, it's proof that you are never alone. A power that will give you courage to face your tormentors and obstacles coming your way. That's how my village lives in this principle and it should be the same for you and every race in this bright world.]

Fenrir places his hand on my shoulder as if I'm his son. [I can sense the potential hiding in your mask. You can keep hiding behind it, but you will be trapped in stagnation if you continue to give in to cowardice. You have the power to stand up by yourself or with your friends, but you need to find a solid motivation to move on from your suffering.]

I...

I simply sigh in defeat. I want to say that everything he said was hogwash... Excuses that make me force to risk everything I worked for...

But it turns out, I'm the one who is making excuses to not do anything at all. Everything he said is true. I'm only burying myself because I thought it was my burden alone. I only thought of those things because of all the insults and harassment I endured from Savior and the other bullies since middle school. All because my stupid Dad accused me of turning away from a job I don't even care about!

In the end, I'm only a cowardly deer. Nothing else...

[NOTICE] [Your [Golden Herb Steak] will disappear in 1 minute. Please finish eating to obtain the full effects of it.]

I quickly checked the time on my UI as soon as I read the notice. I'm already wasting time here. I ate most of the steak and drank all of it down with a glass of water.

"Thanks for the lesson, Fenrir. But even if you tell me all of that, it's still too late. I'm indeed a coward, but I rather be one than let all of the adventurers die in the than abandon the dungeon dive."

[Forest...of Luna?]

"Yeah. That's where his guild is heading next." I raise my eyebrow when his voice shifts again, which is odd. "I don't know the details, but they're aiming for the treasure at the end and..."

Suddenly, Fenrir quickly grabs my next and shouts, [Do you plan to betray my village after everything?! How could you?!]

What is he babbling about?! I can feel his grip tightening around my neck and I will get a penalty for suffocation!

"C-Calm down! I s-seriously don't know what are you talking about! I mean, why are you mad about a forest dungeon?!"

To my relief, he stops shaking me as he releases my neck. [Dungeon? You mean you have no idea about the shrine?]

I raise my eyebrow. Did he mistake that dungeon for a shrine? I cough before I can speak again. "If I knew about the shrine thing, I would have known about it in the first place!"

Now that he said it, the [Quest] description never mentions anything about a shrine and Savior and his right-hand man didn't elaborate more about the dungeon I never heard of in any wikis and guides I know.

[I'm sorry for that, Lowry. But I want to know what those people you've mentioned know about the .]

I narrow my eyes at him. I would call him a liar at this point. But something about this [Quest] doesn't sit right with me. Honestly, I don't want to have this [Dungeon Quest] approved unless we know what we're dealing with here. Some [Dungeon Quests] I know tend to create consequences that will affect the game world in the long run and with some acting as an [Urgent Quest], we don't know what will happen if we clear it.

At that point, I see a new ping popping in front of me.

[NOTICE]

[You have to share details of your upcoming exploration with the mysterious visitor, .

You have uncovered the secrets behind the current [Dungeon Quest], [Conquer the Ruins!].]

What a coincidence. I didn't expect this NPC would be related to [Viper Fangs'] [Dungeon Quest]. More importantly, what he said somehow disturbs me a bit.

"It's okay. I'm more confused than you, Fenrir," I admit. "But I have to ask. What is the ? Is it sacred for your village?"

[It's more than a sacred landmark, Lowry. It's...]

As he answers my question, my eyes widen, horrified at the true nature of it. Then, I'm stunned at what the guild will do to it. Harassing me and the newbies is one thing, but...

Ack... I hate this. I hate all of this. And it's all because I'm nothing but a big coward! Lyco and Hiroshi aren't with me right now, so I can't do anything alone!

No... I have to do something. I have to help not only the NPCs, but for M3GAN and the new players. It's impossible! No, it's not impossible. I'm making excuses every time I think of this!

Yeah... I keep making excuses. Because I'm scared of defying my bullies. Why the hell am I treating them like my parents?! I'm sick of this cowardly façade. I'm sick of Savior spitting on me like dirt! I'm sick of my own character being so weak against everyone around me!

I'm done making excuses and I'm done running.

[You have the power to stand up by yourself or with your friends, but you need to find a solid motivation to move on from your suffering.]

...A motivation, huh?

As I look up when I hear another ping, I realize what it is for me.

"Fenrir?"

[What is it, Lowry?]

I gulp as I stare up at a holographic window.

"I might do something stupid very soon. I hope you have a backup with you soon," I said all of that with a smirk filled with mischief on my face.

The very first genuine one I show to everyone other than my friends.