The first floor was alive with noise and motion. The sun sat high in the sky, pouring down warm light while new players scrambled through the open area, swinging wildly at monsters that looked just as confused as they were.
Spells flew. Swords clashed. People yelled random stuff that probably sounded cooler in their heads.
A little off to the side, right next to the glowing gate, Noah, Dimitri, June, Fiona, and Aiko stood around a glowing blue circle carved into the ground. It gave off a soft hum, kind of like a phone on vibrate, if that phone could bend space.
They all stepped onto it at once. The moment their feet hit the light, a pulse spread out across the circle like a ripple through water.
[Teleportation Circle activated. You can now return to this floor from any other—just step on the teleportation circle wherever you are. There's one on every floor, right next to each gate. So, y'know… don't forget to activate them unless you really want to get stranded in the monster-infested wilderness. Your call.]
With the soft hum of the Teleportation Circle still fading behind them, the group turned without a word and made their way toward the Floor Portal stationed just ahead—a swirling blue vortex that shimmered like someone had bottled ocean water and told it to defy gravity.
The path was short, but every step felt like a quiet agreement: they were really doing this.
As they reached the portal, the air around them began to shift. Static tingled at their fingertips, and a faint pull, gentle yet persistent, tugged at their bodies. Then, with a single unified motion, they stepped through.
The portal reacted instantly. The light folded in on itself like silk being drawn into a knot, and in a blink, they were gone—swallowed whole by the glow.
When the world unfolded again, they were standing at the edge of Floor 1, right before the next gate. The scenery had changed, but the silence between them lingered for just a beat longer—like everyone was waiting for someone else to be the first to break it.
Noah was the one to crack the quiet. His grin was far too casual for the occasion, like a man preparing for a beach day rather than a dungeon crawl.
"Alright, team. Who's ready for another lovely round of pain, suffering, and the slow crawl of existential dread?"
Aiko slowly raised her hand, the movement small and unsure. Her arms were wrapped tightly around her simple katana like it might run away if she let go.
"I don't think I'm ready for pain, suffering, or... existential dread. But... I think I'm ready to fight. Probably. Maybe."
Noah flashed a grin and casually strolled up to the gate, which was now bubbling with some kind of ominous dark goo that looked like someone poured soda into a cursed hot tub. The liquid swirled like it had opinions and none of them were good.
"Don't stress, Aiko-chan. With this dream team? Not even the monsters'll know what hit 'em. We're practically invincible... emotionally, anyway."
Without waiting for a reply, he stepped right through the gate like he'd done it a hundred times. The others followed close behind, like it was just another Tuesday.
Instantly, the sunlight vanished like someone turned off the ceiling light.
Now they were standing in what looked like Halloween's backyard. The place was a giant dark forest, full of trees that clearly hadn't had a hug in centuries.
Every trunk was covered in spikes, the branches looked like they were reaching out to start drama, and the whole place smelled like mystery and bad decisions.
Above them, a big ol' red moon hung awkwardly in the sky, casting this moody red light that drenched everything in crimson—from the crooked trees to the dirt under their feet—turning the entire place into a red-tinted world.
It felt like they'd walked into a haunted theme park where the budget went mostly into the lighting.
Somewhere in the distance, a low howl cut through the silence—long and slow, like it had all the time in the world to be creepy.
It wasn't alone either. Snarls, hisses, and other definitely-not-friendly monster sounds echoed through the trees, bouncing off the twisted bark like nature was trying out for a horror podcast.
Noah squinted, scanning the weird red shadows shifting across the ground.
"This is... not what I signed up for."
[Welcome to the second floor. The Red Woodland. Home of nighttime nasties, shady traps, surprise parties of the stabby kind, and a generous serving of despair. Have fun.]
Dimitri's brows pulled together like he was trying to do math he didn't like.
June just stared, her mouth slightly open like the environment personally offended her sense of aesthetic.
Fiona's gaze swept the area, eyes flicking from one creepy tree to the next like she was already counting exit routes and places to hide behind. Just in case.
Aiko stood frozen, her eyes darting from one shadow to the next like they were all auditioning to be her final boss. Her grip on her katana tightened, but her hands were shaking just enough to make it obvious she wasn't holding it for style.
"On second thought... maybe starving slowly in the Bottom Lair would've been the better option. Peaceful. Quiet. No fangs. I knew I shouldn't have listened to Yanagi about joining a party. This is it. I'm going to get chewed up, stepped on, and turned into dungeon mulch."
Noah casually reached out and placed a hand on her shoulder. Not dramatic. Just enough weight to anchor her before her panic turned into a full-on meltdown.
"You're one of us now. There's no escape. Congrats."
He gave a half-smirk like it was all part of a prank, then let the words settle before adding,
"And if things go completely sideways and everything explodes into chaos—which, let's be real, probably will—we're still getting out of here. All of us. Nobody gets left behind. That's the rule."
Aiko took a breath. Then another. Her shoulders dropped a little, the tension loosening just enough for her to blink like she was waking up from a nightmare that hadn't started yet.
A shimmer of silvery light wrapped around Dimitri's arms as a broad shield and sturdy sword flickered into being, summoned with the calm ease of someone who'd done it a thousand times before.
He took the lead, his footsteps steady, almost relaxed, like he was just out for an afternoon stroll instead of prepping for dungeon violence.
"Let us take glorious quest, smash this floor like watermelon, reach next level, and enjoy delicious dinner, my friends."
Noah grinned, and with a flick of his wrists, his twin flintlocks blinked into existence, gleaming like freshly polished toys. He caught them smoothly, spinning them once before letting them settle into his hands with a satisfying click.
Robocrab perked up, its metal claws twitching while its glowing red eye brightened, scanning their surroundings like a tiny, paranoid bodyguard on high alert.
"Honestly? That sounds like the best plan I've heard all day. Count me in, General Snow Bear."
June didn't budge from her spot, arms crossed as she turned toward the floating orb that hovered near her head, pulsing gently with a pale gray light.
"Sebastian, darling, would you be a dear and take us straight to the juiciest quest-giver on this floor? Preferably one who isn't standing in the middle of a swamp or trying to sell cabbage. I have standards, you know."
Sebastian pulsed once in acknowledgement, then drifted ahead with slow, deliberate grace, like a polite but slightly dramatic butler leading them toward something worth their attention.
The group followed at a comfortable pace, until the soft sound of sobbing pulled their eyes to the side.
There, nestled beneath a tree with wide, curling roots, sat a small child. His hands clutched his knees, shoulders trembling as quiet tears ran down his cheeks. He looked like he'd been sitting there a while, like he didn't know what else to do but cry.
[NPC: Luis.]
Dimitri stepped forward, shield resting calmly at his side, voice gentle as his towering form cast a long shadow over the boy.
"What troubles you, little warrior?"
The child looked up. His lips quivered, but he didn't hide. The moment his eyes met theirs, something fragile stirred in them—hope, flickering and faint.
"Please... I need help. My sister... she was taken. A Shadow Owl came down from the sky and grabbed her. We didn't even hear it coming. One moment we were walking, and the next, she was gone. I don't know where it went. I tried to chase it, but I—I couldn't keep up..."
Noah tilted his head, squinting at the sobbing child like he was trying to solve a puzzle with missing pieces.
"NPCs have backstories now? What's next, emotional damage stats? And seriously, who in their right mind goes on a casual stroll in a place like this? This whole floor screams 'please eat me' in monster language—"
June's elbow found his stomach before he could finish. Not hard enough to hurt, but precise enough to deliver a message. The kind that said 'shut up before I shut you up more creatively'.
Noah winced dramatically, one hand pressed over the spot like he'd been struck by a divine smite of sass. Then he grinned, unfazed, eyes still on the kid.
"Alright, alright. Don't let the peanut gallery distract you. Go on, kid. Let it out. We're listening."