First of all, the leader vanished inside the swirling smoke and was immediately followed by his companions. But I didn’t move.

I watched the Gate for a few seconds before taking a deep breath. It was my first time going inside one. I would be lying if I said I wasn’t afraid.

The mercenaries may be strong and they may be able to clear it without much trouble, yet I was still doubting if I would even be able to come back alive.

What if they can’t defeat the monsters on the other side? What if their actual target wasn’t clearing the Gate but killing the fourth member, which is now me?

That would be the worst-case scenario. If I think about it, the possibilities of that happening weren’t low either.

Everything was uncertain. But one thing wasn’t. I have to take this risk. Sooner or later, I had to face it, so why not now? I can’t always avoid dungeons now that I am linked to Viora.

’I just hope I can come back in one piece.’

Making up my mind, I placed my hand on my head so that my paper mask doesn’t fly off because of the wind around the Gate.

After stepping inside it, I felt myself floating in the air, and then suddenly I was slammed onto the ground.

"Urg,"

I let out a pained groan as my whole body was pinned down by the unbearable gravity.

I tried to push myself up from the floor, but even moving my hand wasn’t possible. The intensity of the gravity was just too much for me.

’What is this? Why is gravity so strong here? Am I the only one being affected by it?’

I thought, until my eyes caught glimpses of the others also pinned down and struggling to stand up just like me, except for the leader.

He was holding his ground well. Even though his back was arched forward, he refused to let himself fall down.

"This... Can’t... DEFEAT ME!"

Slowly but surely, he took the first step and then another. Soon, after taking a few steps, he was out of the range of the heavy gravity.

Just as he did that, I sensed the weight on my body getting lowered. Shortly after, all the pressure decreased to nothing and I was able to move my body again.

"Finally,"

I let out and rose up from the ground.

What was that? 𝕗𝐫𝚎𝗲𝘄𝐞𝕓𝐧𝕠𝘃𝕖𝐥.𝐜𝚘𝚖

I don’t remember anything like this happening in the story. Or maybe it has been so long that the low-rank, D or C-Rank Gates were barely even mentioned, and I have forgotten about them?

I looked around and saw the same landscapes and buildings which we had just left behind. The only difference was that here everything was dark. There wasn’t much light. It seemed the sun had forgotten to shine here.

The ground was all broken. Big piles of concrete were stabbed into it. And the buildings which were standing without a crack in the real world were broken and ruined here.

While running my gaze through the new reality, my eyes fell on the leader who was a bit further away from us three.

In front of him was standing a monster. A black humanoid type. It had a smooth featureless face. It had arms and legs but no hands or feet.

Instead, in their place, it had circle-like flesh which I didn’t really want to see.

Other than that, it wasn’t even standing on the ground but was levitating above it.

"hO...w."

The monster spoke to the leader who was right in front of it.

How? Is it asking how he was able to get out of the gravity zone? Why does it matter? It isn’t like it is the one who cast the gravity on us. Or is it?

Just when that thought appeared in my mind, my blood went cold and I felt a chill run down my spine.

I remember it now. Clearly so.

This wasn’t a dungeon. It was another version of the same world which had already died and was completely ruined by monsters.

Every low-rank Gate connected to a different world but at the same place. If we enter a Gate in a subway, we would still be in the subway but in another ruined world.

And the monster this Gate has is ’that’. I can’t be so sure. There can be more depending on the destruction imprinted on the surroundings.

Since there exists no system or screen to show the goal or monsters, it was really difficult to clear the Gates. You have to do everything by yourself if you want to get out of it.

My System also doesn’t know anything about Gates. If it did, it would have already informed me. But it didn’t do that.

I was kind of lost in my own thoughts and fears when I heard the leader’s loud laugh.

"How, you ask?"

The leader raised his hand and the ground began to tremble. Then the broken pieces of concrete began to levitate in the air.

What?

’The monster is using his powers again?’

I was wrong. It wasn’t the monster this time. It was the leader.

With a single flick of his finger, all the levitating rocks and huge rubble shot toward the monster.

"Because, I also am a gravity user!"