Chapter 3: Betrayed Beneath the Earth
The echo of the woman's footsteps lingered in the cavern long after she had made her presence known. Her power, undeniable and unsettling, hung in the air, thick with the energy of something ancient and untouchable. Ryo stood frozen, his sword still raised, his heart pounding in his chest. The golem had fallen, crushed to dust by her mere gesture, and he was alive—thanks to her.
He didn't know whether to thank her or question her.
"Who... who are you?" Ryo finally asked, his voice hoarse from the fight and the fear still creeping through his veins.
The woman didn't immediately answer. She examined the remains of the golem, her gaze distant, almost as though she were contemplating something deeper than just the physical destruction she had wrought. Her icy blue eyes flicked back to him, appraising him with the same cold calculation.
"My name doesn't matter," she said, her tone sharp, as though it was a truth she had accepted long ago. "What matters is that you're alive, hunter. That's all that matters."
Ryo's throat tightened. Alive? He had no idea what had just happened. One moment, he had been certain he was about to meet his end, and now—now he was standing in front of a woman who could command the very earth to obey her will.
"Why did you save me?" Ryo asked, his voice steadier now, though confusion still weighed on his mind.
Her lips curled into a brief, humorless smile. "Not because I like you," she replied with a hint of bitterness. "But because you're useful."
Ryo frowned. "Useful?"
She nodded. "I'm not the only one watching you. There are others, far more dangerous, who will take notice of you. They'll know you survived this."
"And what does that mean for me?" Ryo asked, stepping forward cautiously.
"It means," she said, her eyes narrowing, "you will be hunted." She glanced at him, her gaze piercing. "This Dungeon—it doesn't forgive. It doesn't care about the weak. You're just another pawn in the game, hunter."
Ryo clenched his fists, anger swelling within him. "I'm not some pawn! I'm not weak! I can fight!"
The woman's lips parted slightly, as though she were about to respond with something sharp, but she paused. Instead, she exhaled slowly and shook her head.
"I didn't mean to offend you," she said, her voice suddenly softer, but no less cold. "But you don't understand. The Dungeon will test you in ways you cannot imagine. You think you can survive by just fighting? No. You need to learn how to think—how to adapt."
Ryo swallowed the sting of her words, his pride injured. But deep down, he knew she was right. Everything about this place—this Dungeon—was a deadly riddle, and brute strength wouldn't be enough to solve it.
The silence stretched between them, uncomfortable, tense. Then, without another word, the woman turned her back to him and walked toward the exit of the cavern.
Ryo hesitated, torn between following her or striking out on his own. He could leave, he thought—he could abandon the Dungeon entirely. But something inside him burned, a desire to understand, to prove that he was not weak, that he could conquer this place on his terms.
"Wait!" Ryo called out, running to catch up. "You can't just leave me here. You owe me an explanation!"
She stopped, slowly turning to face him, her expression unreadable. "What you don't understand, hunter," she said, her voice now low and dangerous, "is that you are already far too deep. There's no turning back. The Dungeon doesn't let anyone leave unless it decides you've been tested enough to be worthy. It's already marked you."
Ryo took a step back, the words sinking in like a stone in his gut. Marked?
"I don't need a guide," he snapped, gritting his teeth. "I'll figure it out on my own."
The woman's lips twisted into another cold smile. "That's what you think."
With a wave of her hand, she beckoned him forward. "Come with me, hunter. I'll show you something you won't be able to escape from."
Against his better judgment, Ryo followed her.
The narrow passageways of the Dungeon seemed to stretch endlessly, each turn more oppressive than the last. The darkness seemed alive, a living thing that whispered and swirled just out of sight. Ryo's eyes scanned every shadow, every flicker of movement, but there was nothing. The eerie stillness pressed in around him.
The woman led him to a narrow platform that stretched out over a chasm so deep he couldn't see the bottom. The air here felt heavier, colder. Ryo could feel the weight of something ancient pressing down on him.
"This is it," she said, her voice quiet. "The heart of the Dungeon."
Ryo's gaze snapped to the chasm beneath him. There was nothing down there. But then, as if on cue, something stirred in the depths—a shift in the air, a rumble that seemed to come from the earth itself.
A massive stone door appeared before them, slowly rising from the ground as though it had been hidden for centuries. Ryo stepped forward, instinctively reaching for his sword, but the woman's hand stopped him.
"Don't bother," she said. "This door is not meant for you."
Ryo blinked. "Then why are we here?"
She turned to him, her eyes cold and focused. "Because this is where your journey truly begins, hunter. This is the Dungeon's heart. Its core."
Ryo's pulse quickened. The core? That was where the power of the Dungeon resided. Where the greatest dangers lived.
"And what does that mean for me?" Ryo asked, a sense of unease building within him.
The woman's lips curled into a smile. "It means you're about to learn exactly how deep the betrayal goes."
End of Chapter 3