Aiden and I sat, starring ahead with this strange look that could only resemble still asleep mixed with a copious amount of hangover.
"Hey Jax, blackout drunk is normally your schtick, what happened, and better yet, where in the hells are we?"
Despite the blistering headache, I found myself fortunate that for whatever reason, that pain didn't count towards my pain magnification, so I took a moment to close my eyes trying to think back. Instead of a coherent memory, flashes of moments shot through my mind,
There was us arriving to bear reach
Then us splitting up with the others to grab dinner
Then meeting one of the other teams also in the tournament
Two members of their team and Aiden and myself in a drinking contest
A shot count somewhere in the 70's
And then here.
"Kraven better not have forgotten to turn off his aura thing again."
Came a groaned voice as Aiden and I turned to see a towering albino lizard sitting up, they had markings on their body here and there from what must have been old fights as they seemed to be more lizardfolk than beastkin, though considering they were let into town, and the bracelet on their wrist marking them as having a system, they must be an awakened like Beatrice was. My head began to pulse as the obsession seemed to be taking this opportunity to rampage a bit now that Beatrice wasn't here to help keep it in check, and it seemed enraged that we couldn't see her and know she was safe and not being targeted by another person who realized how pretty, how beautiful, how precious she was.
I shook myself off, both throwing away bits of trash that had accumulated on my body from where it seems we had all fallen asleep on a trash heap, and to try to chase away the obsession placing things in my head. There was a sound of a small crash as I turned back and saw falling from the lizardman's chest was a beastkin that seemed to be a lightblood bat with a strange purple skin complexion. A set of scarlet red wings protruded from their back as they seemed to roll down the pile before coming to a stop as they looked up at the lizardman and in a queasy, and hungover voice said.
"Rex, buddy, please don't throw me, especially when im hun-Hurp!"
He turned and vomited into the trash pile as Aiden stumbled over and started patting him on the back and making sure he didn't throw up on himself. I walked over to the lizardman who seemed to be called Rex as I said.
"Ok, I remember vaguely meeting you all earlier, but no names or anything, so who are you and do you remember where we are?"
Rex turned to me and looked around as he scratched at the back of his head.
"Ok, well I'm Rex, and the one puking his guts out is Cassius."
"It's nice to meet you aga-HUUUUUURL"
Cassius tried to say before he went back to puking.
"As for where we are, judging from the smell of the dump, though I'm not sure what dumb has a ceiling, much less walls."
I looked to Aiden as he seemed to be scrolling through his system screens, squinting with a look of irritation at the sudden light in the dim room as he turned back to us, helping Cassius to his feet as his stomach finally seemed to settle down.
"Ok, good news and bad news, which do we want first?"
I glanced at Rex who shrugged as I turned back, having to take a moment to force myself to be calm as the obsession screamed
GAMES HOLLOWCREAK, OUR PRECIOUS BEATRICE IS AWAY FROM US AND YOU WISH TO SPEAK IN GAMES!!
"Uh, let's go with good news."
"Ok, the good news is I both know where we are, and how long it's been since we passed out."
Rex seemed to relax a bit at this as he asked.
"Then what's the bad news?"
Aiden seemed to take a moment before he said.
"The bad news is that we are currently inside of a C rank linger dungeon, that while empty, is still rather large, and from what I remember about what you all said about your first round of the tournament happening at 11, we have about 40 minutes to both figure out how to get out of here, and find our groups."
There was a long stretch of silence as I looked at Rex and Cassius who both seemed to have a worried look on their faces and were now soaked with a nervous sweat. A memory came back as I turned and said.
"Hey Aiden, wern't we one of the other teams taking part in the preliminary match with a different group?"
Aiden glanced back down at his system screen, probably at the time stamp since we entered this dungeon as it was now our turn to break out in a cold sweat. Despite seemingly being strangers until last night, the magical bonds of cheap booze, blacking out, and waking up in a trash pile in the middle of a dungeon seemed to have bound us together with a bond of brotherhood as in perfect sync we all said.
"Aw fuck."
As if hearing a starting gun we all began to slide down the side of the trash pile as the room illuminated with torch light, and the system announced the enemies of the room seemingly beginning to form, but they were behind us, and before us if we were late would be 4 very pissed off girls who may turn me into a fine coat. We all went charging out into the first doorway we saw along the wall. As we ran we all seemed to be screaming all maner of curses as there was a level of panic in all of that that probably confused the monsters that seemed to hesitate as we ran past.
We rounded a corner as we saw a massive pit ahead of us. I glanced to my system screen to the side as we all began to slow down.
"30 MINUTES LEFT!"
I cried, panic leaking into my voice in a way that made me sound like I was crying slightly. With a united cry of "Shit" we all speed up, I jumped on Aiden's back as Cassius's red wings expanded and he grabbed Rex's arms. Aiden threw his spear, the string from his spears ability binding to his arm as we swung across the casm and landed on the other side as Rex and Cassius landed. I jumped off and we continued to race through the dungeon, even jumping over, and sliding between the legs of a massive trash monster a group of 3 adventurers seemed to be fighting, much to their bewilderment, though that probably came from Aiden yelled
"Sosorrywecan'thelpwearesolateandtheyaregoingtokillusifwemessthisup!"
We continued around the corner where we heard what sounded to be the bellow of a man as he said.
"Get into positions, I hear a group of them charging, and they seem to be pretty fast for garbage slimes."
"HUMAN, HUMAN, VERY LATE HUMAN, BUT HUMAN!"
Cassius called out as we ran and saw what seemed to be a full group of dwarven adventurers who looked at us bewildered. As the others ran I took a moment to come sliding to a stop. I'm sure I was a hell of a sight, covered in trash and probably smelling of alcohol, filth, and I don't know what else, and we had been running and screaming for 20 minutes, but I turned to the dwarf that had shouted earlier and in a raspy, panting voice
"Door, huff, where!"
I managed to get out as he slowly raised a hand as if unsure of what to do and said.
"Uh, down the hall and take a left then a right, look for the marked walls and you can't miss it."
I nodded, tossed a small mouthful of my gold out and ran after the others as they turned right.
"WRONG WAY, LEFT THEN RIGHT!"
I called out as I went the right way and heard the sound of them sliding to a stop before turning around.
I can imagine it now, the dungeon being an area closed off to most ordinary people, but allowing visitors to witness it, a striving point of economy and XP for those willing to brave its gates.
The moment suddenly shattered as 4 hungover, terrible smelling, and filth covered figured rushed out, breathless and soaked in sweat as the largest one that seems to resemble a lizardman monster, but still wears the tags of one with a system goes stomping over to the nearest person on the street and breathlessly says
"Colosium, gasp, plate game's, wheeze, where?"
Only to be pointed in a direction as one of the four that seemed fully human looked down at their system screen and yelled
"8 MINUTES"
As the group all began yelling a cacophony of curses as they charged down the street in the direction they were pointed.