We had regrouped in an empty chamber with the other groups after leaving the chamber that contained the green key. Wex and his group were nowhere to be seen. They were confirmed dead.
As time passed by, the dungeon became more dangerous.
The passageway opened up into a wider hall, but it wasn't any safer. The floor was scattered with deep pit holes, their bottoms lost in darkness. Every few seconds, a strong current of seawater rushed through the tunnel from random directions, hard enough to knock someone off their feet. Black ink slowly spilled from cracks in the walls, curling through the water like smoke. Despite the strange sounds and shifting currents, there were no monsters in sight. Only silence, heavy and tense.
One current of seawater surged from the side, nearly dragging a male mage into a hole. Luckily, I caught the back of his robe just in time.
He wheezed, clutching his chest. "I'm starting to hate this place."
"Next time, don't flirt with the water," I said, breathing hard. "You were almost a goner back there..."
He peeled seaweed off his face and gave a nervous chuckle. "Y-Yeah... thanks for saving me."
Then, we reached a small chamber that contained the red key.
The walls were made of smooth stone, slick with moisture, and faint streams of black ink trickled down from cracks above. The ceiling stretched high, lost in shadow, where glowing jellyfish floated slowly, casting a dim blue light like a firefly in the dark. The air was cold and heavy, carrying the faint scent of salt and rust.
But something about the place felt wrong.
"Keep your guards up," the old healer said, observing the corners. "There's something fishy about this..."
Then, I noticed it—cracks spreading across the stone floor. Thin at first, like spiderwebs, then widening fast as the sound of splitting rock echoed through the chamber.
"Wait—!" I shouted, sweat running down my forehead. Before I could say another word, the floor collapsed beneath us.
All of us screamed as we dropped into the unknown pit like coins into a slot.
We hit the ground hard, water splashing around us. My back ached from the fall, but I was alive.
We found ourselves in another chamber surrounded by black pillars, shrouded in thick, rolling fog.
When we got back to our knees, there was no time to think or breathe as shapes drifted from the mist—thin, skeletal figures wrapped in tattered robes and seaweed, bones peeking through decayed skin, barnacles clinging to their shoulders. Their pale faces had faintly glowing eyes, fingers reaching forward like shadows. Level twenty-five Sea Liches. Their eyes glowed yellow as they raised their arms slowly.
"Sea Liches…" I thought, my grip tightening on my dagger.
The Sea Liches began to fire cursed brine orbs from their palm that floated toward us. The orbs moved sluggishly, almost lazily.
The high-level warrior pointed at the orbs. "How are they even supposed to hit us with that?" he said. "It's too slow!"
My eyes widened as I remembered that cursed brine orbs can accelerate and kill a player in one hit.
"TAKE COVER!" I shouted, running toward the back of a pillar with my voice filled with terror. "THAT THING CAN KILL YOU IN AN INSTANT!"
"In an instant?" the high-level warrior said, bracing to run. "That's nothing but pure comedy! I WILL LEAD THE CHARGE!"
The old healer and the Archer in Gold listened to me, as well as the other players who were with us.
"Hey!" I shouted at the high-level warrior. "Listen to me!"
The high-level warrior didn't listen. Instead, he let out a cocky grin.
"HERE I COME!" he said, swinging his sword, charging forward at the Sea Liches.
The high-level warrior's eyes widened in surprise as the cursed brine orbs that he mocked earlier suddenly accelerated like the speed of light toward him.
"What the—" he muttered, looking at the cursed brine orbs approaching his face just an inch away.
The attack hit the high-level warrior. The impact exploded into a swarm of screaming skulls that burst mid-air, their shrieks echoing through the chamber.
"So it slows down for three seconds, then it accelerates..." the Archer in Gold thought. She glanced down at her clenched fist. "I'm level twenty-six... I should be able to do a lot of damage. I'll attack when they start channeling again."
"So the boy was right," the old healer thought. "He's clever, I'll give him that!"
"What the hell..." I said, looking at the high-level warrior's body flying backward, slamming him against a pillar before he collapsed onto the slick, waterlogged floor.
The low-level and injured players scattered across the room like wildfire after seeing the high-level warrior's body hit the ground.
Their voices filled the chamber, trembling with panic.
"NOOOO!!!"
"RUN!"
"GET ME OUTTA HERE!"
"WE CAN'T WIN AGAINST A LEVEL TWENTY-FIVE MONSTER!"
"HIDE BEHIND A PILLAR! GODDAMN IT!" I shouted over the noise. "ARE YOU GUYS DEAF?!"
The Sea Liches started channeling their attacks again.
I pressed my back against the pillar, letting out a shaky sigh. "I need to help that warrior," I muttered. "I have to."
And I did.
I pushed off the pillar and sprinted toward the high-level warrior, my boots splashing through the shallow water. But the moment I got close, my steps froze. His armor, helmet, and sword lay scattered on the ground. The rest of him was gone.
"Shit…" I muttered, my voice shaking. "N-No way…"
Before I could move, another wave of cursed brine orbs streaked through the battlefield, hissing as they cut through the air.
One of them came straight toward me.
"WATCH OUT!" a male archer shouted.
I reacted just in time, diving behind a pillar as the orb slammed into the ground where I'd stood a second ago, exploding into a swarm of screaming skulls that burst mid-air, their shrieks echoing through the chamber.
"Damn, that was close…" I panted, pressing a hand to my chest. "Way too close…"
A female warrior tried to run away from the attack, and a nearby female archer spun to run. But it was just too fast. It was impossible to dodge it. The cursed brine hit them both head-on. In an instant, their bodies shattered into glowing fragments. All that remained was a steaming helmet and a steel bow clattering across the wet floor.
The Archer in Gold crouched low, hiding behind a pillar, eyes focused on the Sea Liches. "Come on..." she muttered. "Start channeling your damn thing now..."
The Sea Liches started channeling their attacks again.
"There we go," the Archer in Gold muttered, her crimson eyes narrowing. She pushed off from behind the pillar, rolling low across the wet stone floor as a cursed orb streaked past where she'd just been. Coming out of the roll, she rose smoothly to one knee, bow already drawn. The string twanged with a sharp snap as she activated Multi-Shot, launching three arrows in quick motion. They shot forward in perfect formation, cutting through the mist and striking three Sea Liches square in the chest, staggering them back a few steps.
The old healer jumped forward, slamming his staff into the ground and activating a skill: Protection. A burst of blue light spread around him, forming a glowing shield that blocked an incoming cursed brine orb. He then activated a skill: Lesser Blessing, and a faint golden light wrapped around his arms, boosting his attack damage. Dropping his staff, he charged straight at the staggering Sea Liches. His fists glowed as he swung wildly, each hit landing with a heavy crack of bone and a burst of mist.
"HERE! HERE! HERE! MORE! MORE! MORE!" he shouted, his voice echoing through the chamber as he kept punching. The Sea Liches couldn't even fight back—each blow shattered them until they finally crumbled into smoke and vanished.
"That didn't even make me sweat!" he said, wiping the sweat from his forehead. "Oh... maybe a little..."
I stared at the old healer. "A battle healer?" I said. "He must've maxed his attack damage and speed attribute instead of intelligence..."
I triggered my copied skill: Frenzy. "I'm pretty sure I can take them on for a bit now," I thought, clenching my fist. "I've leveled up to seventeen after those skirmishes earlier."
I lunged forward, my blade tearing through the Sea Liches as I darted between stone pillars. The Sea Liches retaliated, hurling bursts of cursed brine orbs.
"Shit!" I shouted, trying to run away from a cursed brine orb.
"I got you, mate!" a male healer shouted from behind a nearby pillar. He thrust his staff forward, activating a skill: Protection. A burst of blue light flared around me, forming a shimmering barrier just as a cursed brine orb exploded against it, the impact shaking the ground beneath my feet.
"Thanks..." I said, rolling behind a pillar.
The male healer nodded. "You can thank me by killing the remaining Sea Liches!"
"I'll try!" I replied.
"I just need a perfect timing," I thought, tightening my grip on my dagger. "Once it starts channeling a cursed brine orb, I'll attack."
I turned to the left, spotting the mage I'd saved earlier in the passageway. His robes were ripped, his face pale as he tried to fight off three Sea Liches at once. He couldn't activate a skill due to panic. In the end, a cursed brine orb hit him point-blank, shattering him into fragments.
"N-No way..." I muttered, my voice shaking.
Then, behind me, the male healer who'd saved me earlier let out a scream of terror as a cursed brine orb hit him square in the chest. His body shattered into fragments.
I was so focused on fighting that I didn't notice what was happening around me. Players were dying one after another. Cursed brine orbs struck down the injured who tried to run, and the low-level players hiding behind pillars were found and attacked at point-blank range by the Sea Liches. They were too scared to even move. That's when it hit me—I remembered that this wasn't just a game anymore. This was real. If we died here, then we would die for real.
"We're losing..." I whispered, my hands trembling. "We're dying..."
I became afraid. I couldn't move my body. I couldn't even process a thing anymore. I felt like a man who was put in a den of lions.
Four Sea Liches turned their glowing eyes toward me, moving closer with every step.
"Come on," I thought, staring at my frozen legs. "Move... let me run, fuck!"
The Sea Liches started channeling cursed brine orbs.
"So this is how it ends, huh..." I thought, looking at the cursed brine orbs that were slowly forming in their palms.
I slowly closed my eyes. "What a shitty way to die..."
Before they could attack, an arrow cut through the fog and pierced them all in an instant. The Sea Liches dissolved into mist.
When I opened my eyes, the Archer in Gold stood in front of me, her bow still raised. She glanced at me with a cold, steady look.
"Don't be a burden," she said in a cold tone. "Get up and be a man."
I stared at the ground, my hands shaking. "She's right... I need to get myself together or else I'll die..." I thought, hitting my forehead with my fist over and over, trying to focus.
Then, silence. A moment of clarity.
"I have to man up and clear this dungeon," I thought, forcing myself to stand. "For Lars... and to leave behind the old me, the weak version of myself. I have to be stronger."
As a drip of water from the ceiling echoed through the floor, I moved.
I sprinted at a weakened Sea Lich that was channeling an attack, water slapping under my boots. I leapt behind it, grabbed the back of its rotten head, and drove my dagger into its neck again and again, hard enough to feel the blade slip a little each time.
Rage consumed my body. "I'LL FUCKING KILL ALL OF YOU!" I screamed, over and over, stabbing until the Sea Lich's health bar finally dropped to zero, collapsing into cold mist.
The old healer looked at me and sighed. "He's gone mad..."
"Everyone, this is the last Sea Lich!" the female mage in green robes shouted, her voice echoing through the fog. She raised her staff high, activating a skill: Fireball, flames swirling around its tip. "Take this, you disgusting bastard!"
A blazing fireball shot from her staff and smashed into the Sea Lich's chest. The explosion sent water and smoke bursting outward. It let out a shrill, gurgling cry as its burned skin peeled away, and its health bar dropped fast.
The female mage clenched her staff and took a step back, breathing heavily. "It's not down yet!" she yelled.
"I'll finish it!" said a female assassin in black lightweight armor, her voice sharp and full of confidence. Her twin daggers gleamed green as she activated a skill: Viper's Strike. She vanished in a blur, rolling through the mist and reappearing behind the Sea Lich. She drove both daggers into its back with a clean, wet sound. The Sea Lich's body jerked, and black water spilled from its wounds. It tried to turn, but the assassin twisted her blades, pulling them free in one smooth motion.
The Sea Lich gave a final, broken screech before collapsing, its form dissolving into mist that faded into the cold air. The assassin exhaled slowly, flicking black liquid off her daggers. "Assassinated," she muttered, her eyes steady and cold.
The fog thinned and peeled away, revealing a pedestal with a red key in the center of the room. It was wet, worn, and glowing.
I stood frozen, panting heavily, dagger trembling in my grip as my eyes locked on it. "We did it... I survived..."
A system window popped into visibility above it.
[You have acquired: Red Key]
In the end, six players remained alive. Our group: the Archer in Gold, the old healer, the female mage in green robes, a female assassin in black lightweight armor, an injured male warrior that hiding behind a pillar, and me.
All of us were battered, burned, clothes torn, potions long since emptied. Our eyes were hollow, dulled by too much death. My silver dagger was chipped along the edge, its shine worn away with each fight.
Now, we stood before a yellow door. Ornate, pulsing faintly like a wounded heart. Unlike the others, this one was sealed behind a barrier. Above the archway, letters were carved deep into the stone, glowing faintly with sea-light script.
"Abandon certainty, all ye who enter here." The old healer translated it. He looked humble with deep laugh lines around his eyes and a sad smile that said he'd seen this scene before.
"What does that mean?" I said.
The old healer grinned. "It means we might die today."
Without speaking, the Archer in Gold focused on the barrier ahead. She nocked an arrow, pulled it back, and shot, shattering the barrier instantly.
No one spoke. But we all thought the same thing: It's do or die.
We stepped through.
The chamber was massive. It was perfectly circular, seamless, and silent. A thin mist drifted low across the floor, where a shallow layer of water turned the ground into a mirror. Our reflections shimmered across the mirrored walls, stretching into infinity.
And there, at the very center, stood a pedestal bathed in warm, golden light. Resting upon it, untouched, the Yellow Key.
"Is it… over?" the female mage whispered, her voice barely audible as she pressed a hand against her chest, eyes wide and trembling.
My eyes observed the chamber, every mirrored wall, every shimmer of reflected light.
Then I saw it. My reflection.
It blinked. I didn't.
"H-Huh?" I thought.
The air suddenly cracked. The glassy floor rippled like heat rising off stone. The mirrored walls twisted, then bled long streaks of shadow spilling outward like ink in water.
Then they stepped through.
Our reflections.
Perfect doubles. Same weapons. Same gear. Same faces. But their eyes glowed faintly yellow. And the way they smiled... it wasn't confidence, it was certainty.
The first move came from the clone of the female assassin from our group. She vanished and reappeared behind her to slit her throat. She was fortunate and managed to defend.
"Sneaky," She said, her dagger clashing against the clone's dagger. "Just like me, huh?"
A clone lunged at me. It was me, but cleaner. Sharper. Same stance. Same silver dagger. Same glare I used to see in the mirror.
Its first strike came fast. I barely got my blade up in time to block, the clash of steel ringing through the chamber. My arms trembled from the impact.
"I-It's strong…" I muttered through gritted teeth, my heart pounding in my chest. The clone twisted its wrist, pressing harder, forcing me back step by step. "Are they buffed or something? Damn it…"
My clone didn't hesitate. Didn't overthink. Every step matched mine, mirrored perfectly, as if it had practiced my movements a thousand times. I feinted left. It didn't fall for it. Its blade flashed and cut across the right side of my chest. It was quick, clean, and precise. Pain ripped through my side. It was shallow, but deep enough to remind me that I wasn't fighting some random monster. I was fighting myself.
I staggered, kicked it hard in the chest, then dove. The water splashed as I rolled beneath the surface, trying to break its rhythm. But it didn't falter. It adjusted. No surprise. I would've done the same. I came up fast, dagger ready. It was already there. This wasn't just a fight. It was a test. Every bad habit, every shortcut, every weakness I thought I'd hidden. It knew them. And if I didn't adapt, if I didn't become something more than what I was, I wouldn't walk out of here alive.
The Archer in Gold was faring better, barely. She unleashed a volley of arrows that caught her clone off guard, but her clone moved just as fast. Arrows sliced the air, splitting mid-flight. Then she was down to her last quiver.
Across the room, the old healer and his clone were locked in a battle of spells and curses. Every time he tried to heal, the clone nullified it. He clenched his fist, jaw tight, and punched the clone, engaging in brutal hand-to-hand combat, his robes whipping with motion.
The female mage and her clone clashed in fire and water spells, each trying to outmaneuver the other. In the end, she succumbed to her clone's flames, leaving her in shattered fragments.
Not far away, the female assassin and her clone moved too fast to track. Steel flashed again and again until exhaustion slowed her down. The clone didn't hesitate. One clean strike—then silence.
The injured warrior roared and charged at his mirror image, their swords clashing in sparks. But his wounds slowed him. The clone's blade slipped past his guard, cutting deep. He fell hard, armor scraping against the mirrored floor, and didn't get back up. He shattered into fragments.
Then, we were down to three.
I dodged a brutal strike from my clone. Barely. My arm was trembling. My clone cocked its head, tilting it like a predator. Then I did something it wouldn't. I screamed and threw the dagger directly upward. I charged the moment it blinked its eyes. It expected a punch. I dove low, sweeping its legs, grabbing the falling dagger mid-spin, burying it into its side as we crashed into the water. It then writhed and vanished.
The old healer took the opportunity when he punched his clone, making it off balance. He extended both hands and activated a skill: Purification. A pulse of light spread from the clone's body as it shrieked in pain, shattering into fragments.
The Archer in Gold feinted and delivered a brutal point-blank shot. Her clone crumpled. She lowered her bow, breathing hard, arm shaking, bowstring frayed.
We all exhaled, the weight of the battle pressing on us. I tried not to drop my dagger from sheer exhaustion.
"I feel like my body's about to collapse…" I muttered, gripping the hilt tighter. "This is bad…"
The old healer laughed, shaking his head. "I guess it's just the three of us now. That dungeon raid leader was all talk, no strength! MUHAHAHAHA!"
"You're not funny, old man," I said. "Stop that."
"Calm down," he said with a shrug, his laugh lines deepening. "It's just my way of coping."
I didn't respond.
"Let's finish this and get out," the Archer in Gold said, her voice tight, eyes scanning the chamber.
The Yellow Key lifted gently into the air, floating toward us.
Then, all the keys we collected suddenly floated into the air, spinning and slowly vanishing into thin air.
"What the hell was that for?" the old healer said.
A system window appeared in front of us:
[4/4 Keys collected. Dungeon boss room is now open!]
"There goes your answer, old man..." I said.
He laughed. "MUHAHAHAHA! THAT WAS SO DRAMATIC!"
A door across the room rumbled open, leading into deeper darkness.
The dungeon boss awaited.