"Ahhh!!"

Splash!

’Water?!’

Reiji immediately swam upward.

"Huff... Huff... Is this an ocean or a river?" Reiji thought as he tried to fight against the tide.

He couldn’t see anything. Everywhere was dark and covered with cold fog.

Thankfully, he was good at swimming, otherwise he would’ve drowned and died and his journey would have ended abruptly before he even had the chance to start. And the system hadn’t said anything about extra lives or something like that.

But that wasn’t the main issue.

The main issue was his inability to see.

"System...? Is there anything that would allow me to see in the dark? Like night-vision goggles or something like that...?"

Ding!

[Yes... Opening the System Market.]

_____

[SYSTEM MARKET]

━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━

[Host Level: LV3]

[Available Balance: 100 Xcoins]

___

[Category] – [Support Items]

___

[Night Contact Lens] – 500 Xcoins

(Contacts that grant night vision and clear visibility in dark foggy environments.)

_____

Reiji didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. This was exactly what he needed.

But he only had 100 Xcoins.

"System, convert my savings to Xcoins."

Ding!

[Host is currently in a place that is shut out from the outside world. Transfer and conversion are unavailable for now.]

’Son of a bitch...’ Reiji gritted his teeth, staring at the system interface with frustration. The cold water was biting against his soft delicate skin.

He knew that if he continued this way, he wouldn’t get anywhere.

So Reiji let out a long breath, swallowed his pride, then asked in a low voice almost impossible to hear.

"Uhm... System? Is there a way you can give me the item and I’ll pay you back...? Like a loan or something..."

Ding!

[How much do you want, Host?]

’What...? It actually agreed...’

Ding!

[Interest rates increase the longer Host delays repayment.]

"There is the system I know..." Reiji muttered sarcastically. "Anyway, I don’t have a choice..."

"System, I want four hundred yen... I mean four hundred Xcoins."

Ding!

[400 Xcoins has been deposited to your balance.]

Reiji immediately bought the Night Contact Lens, but what he heard from the system made him both happy and furious.

Ding!

[You’ve successfully purchased the Night Contact Lens (500 Xcoins) from the system market, Host!]

[Congratulations Host on your first purchase! You have received a full cashback reward!]

Reiji was stunned.

"...What?"

But the moment his eyes drifted toward his balance, his expression instantly darkened.

[Available Balance: -300 Xcoins]

"This system gave me a full cashback and still removed my original 100 Xcoins... How shameless."

[...]

Reiji suddenly felt a cold sensation cover his eyes as the contact lenses smoothly attached themselves to his corneas.

"Fuck..." He blinked several times as his eyes adjusted to them. Tears rolled down from the corners of his eyes and he couldn’t tell if it was really tears or just the water.

Reiji closed his eyes once more and when he opened them, everything became clear as day.

The sky was blue with a hint of red. There was no sun, making everything look eerie.

He almost vomited as he discovered that what he was swimming in wasn’t water but blood.

The blood didn’t have any smell nor did it taste like blood when it had entered his mouth before. It was as tasteless and odorless as water, but something in Reiji’s gut told him this was definitely not just red water.

It was blood.

A vast sea of blood stretching past the horizon.

But yet he didn’t panic. He was strangely calm. The events of the Devil’s Island Dreamscape were somewhat similar, but the Devil’s Island Dreamscape was definitely much scarier than this.

Just as Reiji was wondering where the Undead King’s Palace was, he turned around and saw a distant shore.

Further ahead stood enormous walls and a massive gate. It was obvious that the Undead King’s Palace was beyond those walls.

He took in a deep breath as he swam toward the shore.

After arriving, he took out the Soul Torture Blade from his inventory again as he walked toward the gate.

BANG! BANG! BANG!

Reiji banged on the iron gate that stood about twenty feet tall. There was a big skull embedded at the center of the gate. Mysterious concentric and eccentric patterns were carved on the body of the gate which joined at the head of the skull.

It looked ancient.

CRREEAAK!!!

The gate slowly bent backwards.

Reiji stared in astonishment. This was the first time he had ever seen a bridge gate like the ones from fantasy movies.

The massive gate folded backwards, revealing the dark path beyond it. The head of the gate landed on the other side. It now acted like a bridge.

And as soon as he stepped on the drawbridge gate, a barely noticeable red light rapidly ran across the runic concentric and eccentric patterns carved on the body of the drawbridge.

Reiji didn’t notice it as he continued to walk forward.

What he didn’t understand was why he couldn’t see an entrance on the other side.

Just as he reached the middle where the skull was and stepped on it, a massive magic circle suddenly appeared on the gate.

The concentric and eccentric patterns that had looked like a strange mess suddenly formed a perfect ancient runic magic circle.

It glowed a bright red color and before Reiji could wrap his head around what was going on, he suddenly vanished into thin air.

And the drawbridge slowly began to raise back up.

***

"What the hell was that...?" Reiji muttered as the light disappeared.

No, he was no longer on the drawbridge.

He looked around carefully.

He was in a massive hallway stretching endlessly into the distance.

It wasn’t dark like he expected.

Rows of burning torches were mounted along the ancient walls, their flames flickering quietly and illuminating the endless path ahead.

What surprised him the most was the design of the place.

The entire place gave off the feeling of medieval royalty.

Gigantic stone pillars stood on both sides supporting the high ceiling above while ancient patterns and carvings were etched into the walls and floor.

Everything looked old yet strangely majestic.

"What is this place...?"

He turned around but it was the same thing.

"Something is not right..." Reiji muttered under his breath.

Ding!

_____

[Welcome Host to the Undead King’s Palace.]

[Main Quest (2): I Came To Conquer Unlocked!]

[Info: Host was given the key to enter the Undead King’s Palace to conquer. Host would have to defeat the Undead King and his army in order to complete the quest.]

[Rewards: 0.5% of a rare bloodline, 3 Bronze Mystery Gift Boxes, 5 Mystery Items, +5 added to all stats, ownership of the Undead King’s Palace.]

[Penalty: You will die and become a lesser soldier for the Undead King.]

_____

Reiji’s mouth opened and closed.

He couldn’t get even a single word out.

The rewards were great, but just as the rewards were great, so was the punishment.

He felt a throbbing headache coming on.

He knew there was no negotiating with this.

But on the bright side, there weren’t any timers.

It put Reiji’s mind at ease for a little bit. He knew if he stalled too much the system might suddenly set a timer.

With a helpless sigh, he gripped the dagger in his hand tightly as he walked forward carefully. 𝑓𝑟𝑒𝘦𝓌𝑒𝑏𝑛𝑜𝘷𝑒𝘭.𝒸𝘰𝑚

He didn’t want to suddenly walk into one of those things and end up inside the mouth of some animal.

After walking for a while, Reiji reached a place where the path separated into two and as always he picked left.

Soon he arrived in front of a massive iron door. It looked exactly like the gate outside, but this one was smaller. He stepped forward and pushed the door open.

And as soon as he did, his eyes and mouth widened in disbelief.

"What the hell!!!"