He was lying under the shadow of the giant tree and asked himself, "Why am I betraying myself? Why did I run away? Why? Why do I always run away from problems?" He had all the answers, but none good enough to satisfy himself.
He closed his eyes, but he could not sleep. The moment he closed his eyes, he saw those 99 people who had slaughtered his family one by one, chopping them into pieces and feeding them to wild dogs.
Three or four days passed like this—no sleep, no hunger. His mind could no longer bear it all. Slowly, madness began to creep into his thoughts; his vision started to blur. But every time he closed his eyes, that horrifying nightmare would appear right before him.
He had understood one thing—rather than living like this, suffocating day by day, it was better to die. So he jumped into the well near that tree, hoping it would free him from all his suffering, and release him from all those unanswered questions.
He kept sinking deeper and deeper into the water, holding his breath so that when he reached the greatest depth, he would be forced to take in a deep breath—one that would end his life within moments. And that is exactly what happened, just as he had wanted. He breathed his last.
Two hours later, his eyes opened.
"Am I really dead?"
He looked around—everything was pitch dark, with only a few torches burning here and there.
"Is this hell? Is this what hell looks like?"
He couldn't understand where he really was, because there was no one there to answer him.
In that darkness, under the faint glow of the torches, he slowly moved forward—until suddenly, he stumbled and fell to the ground.
All at once, the surroundings lit up with the glow of boiling lava. Strange paintings covered the walls, and in front of him stood a massive stone statue, its eyes gleaming.
Fear gripped him; he didn't have the courage to get up from that place.
"Welcome to the world of bounty," a voice echoed all around.
In just a second, everything changed — the place now looked like a grand ancient palace.
But he was still lying there in the same spot.
Suddenly, he began to rise into the air, fear gripping his entire body.
And then, he was placed in front of a huge throne.
"You are being assigned a task. If you succeed, you will gain extraordinary powers; but if you fail, you will meet death,"
a voice echoed from the throne — yet, there was no one.
Allen was so terrified that he couldn't even think about what to do.
Suddenly, a katana appeared in his hands.
"Your first bounty begins now."
The sound of a drum echoed, and the entire place changed. He was back in the very spot where he had fallen. It felt like a dream — but when his eyes fell on his hands, he was certain this was no dream.
"What is going on here?"
Seeing the katana, he thought, Why not check once whether I'm actually alive or not?
He tried to slit his own throat with the katana, but couldn't — a shield had been placed around him for his protection.
He tried again and again to cut himself, but kept failing.
Then, a voice thundered:
"Hunter 99, you are violating our rules… If you attempt to kill yourself more than 99 times, you will be imprisoned for eternity and forced to live a life of hell until your final breath. So my advice is: do what you have been told to do. Good luck — your journey begins now."
In front of him, a small box began to glow, and on it, a shining sign appeared, indicating: "Open the box."
Slowly, he approached the box and opened it.
The moment he did, a map floated out — "Map to the Bounty" — hovering in the air, showing Allen the direction he needed to go.
Allen began following the map step by step, moving forward cautiously.
Suddenly, a small monster appeared in front of him.
"Slash the monster," the map displayed.
The monster was small but incredibly ugly, reeking of a foul, rotten stench. Allen felt disgusted just looking at it.
"Seriously? I have to fight this stinking monster now?" he muttered.
He stepped forward and tried to strike with his katana, but it didn't cut through. Instead, the monster lunged at him and attacked. Allen was knocked to the ground.
He got up and tried slashing again, but still couldn't cut it.
Once more, the monster slammed him to the ground.
Allen stood up, wondering what to do next. He couldn't spot any weak point on the creature.
Then it struck him — "Why not strike at its eyes?"
Allen thrust the katana straight through the monster's eyes, piercing clean through. The monster let out a screech and vanished into nothingness.
After its death, something was glowing on the ground.
"Collect the power," the map displayed.
Allen walked up to it, and the moment he did, he felt a surge of energy course through his body. He was stronger, faster, and more agile than before.
"So… my bounty is complete, right?" Allen asked aloud.
But on the map, only one word glowed: "Run."
"What kind of joke is this? You said it was just one mission!" he protested.
Still, Allen couldn't deny he had enjoyed cutting down that last monster. So, with a smirk, he dashed ahead — and soon, another monster appeared.
"Slash the monster," the map instructed.
But this time, the monster was bigger and different from the previous one.
Instead of a foul stench, this creature radiated an intense heat.
And unlike the last monster, it didn't wait to attack — it struck first, and it struck hard.
Allen took several blows, each one sending him staggering. His face shield was now completely shattered, and blood trickled down his cheek.
He tried to aim for the monster's eyes, but the creature moved too fast, giving him no clear shot.
"Alright… this time, no defense," Allen thought to himself.
And he meant it — he didn't even try to block. The monster grabbed him, lifting him high into the air. The moment an opening appeared, Allen drove his katana straight through the creature's eyes, piercing clean through once again.
Just like before, the monster's body dissolved, leaving behind a surge of power.
Allen felt his shield fully restored, but the wounds on his face remained unhealed
"Warning, we are close to the bounty," the map signaled.
To be continued